Spirit rice

Fang Zelin lowered his head and looked closely.

The seedlings did indeed differ a little from ordinary rice seedlings.

At a glance, the seedlings before him were noticeably greener than ordinary ones, and every stalk looked full of vigor.

He could also see faint patterns on their leaves.

When Fang Zelin examined them closely, he discovered that those faint patterns seemed to be breathing.

Noticing this, Fang Zelin immediately took a closer look.

As he carefully observed them, however, he found that they seemed to have trouble breathing.

"What's going on?"

Fang Zelin studied them carefully. That was indeed the impression he got.

Puzzled, Fang Zelin scratched his head. After giving it some thought, he reached out, channeled the spiritual power in his body into his palm, then released it before him.

The instant the spiritual power appeared, the seedlings before him seemed to come alive, swaying their slender waists as they frantically drew in that tiny bit of spiritual power.

Fang Zelin's mouth fell slightly open, a trace of astonishment on his face.

Was this how spirit rice had to be grown?

Ordinary rice used fertilizer and the like, but spirit rice had to be fed with his own spiritual power?

"Can't you absorb spiritual power yourselves?"

Looking at the dozen or so seedlings before him, Fang Zelin felt utterly miserable.

It was not that Fang Zelin was stingy. He simply did not have that much spiritual power.

He had only just set foot on the path of cultivation and possessed no more than a tiny bit of spiritual power.

Now, after absorbing a little spiritual power, the seedlings before him swayed even harder, like children crying to be fed.

Fang Zelin could only feel helpless at the sight.

Sensing that the nearby spiritual power had been sucked dry and there was no more, the plants swayed all the harder.

"Stop swaying. There's a little more."

Seeing how vigorously the spirit rice could sway, Fang Zelin could only release his last bit of spiritual power before him.

That tiny bit of spiritual power was soon divided up and devoured by the plants before him.

But the spirit rice, clearly still unsatisfied, began swaying again.

Fang Zelin felt as though his head would split. Were these things determined to squeeze him dry?

He really had brought a lord and master home!

Fang Zelin grumbled indignantly, but he was also curious about what it would be like when the spirit rice produced grains.

So, despite his indignant grumbling, Fang Zelin sat straight down cross-legged and began cultivating.

Once seated, Fang Zelin began cultivating according to the feeling he had found yesterday.

Unlike in the real world, Fang Zelin entered the proper state the instant he closed his eyes.

Tiny wisps of spiritual power seemed to tumble out of another space and time, quietly appearing around him before Fang Zelin drew them into his body.

Some of the spiritual power was absorbed by the spirit rice beside him.

"Hm?"

As Fang Zelin cultivated, he attentively sensed his surroundings.

After taking note of the spirit rice taking a share beside him, he paid it no further attention.

Instead, he found the way the spiritual power appeared rather remarkable.

He had only just entered the Dao last night, so he had not noticed this, but today he sensed it.

The way the spiritual power appeared was extremely peculiar.

It was as though spiritual power did not exist in this world, yet also did, only appearing under specific circumstances.

It was as though another space lay behind this world, and the spiritual power normally existed within that other space.

Only when it was needed would this spiritual power appear.

When Fang Zelin circulated his cultivation method, it was like a key unlocking a door and releasing the spiritual power.

Yet it also felt as though the spiritual power was all around him, and Fang Zelin's cultivation method itself was a catalyst, allowing certain things in his surroundings to condense only through its presence.

Whichever impression was correct, Fang Zelin could be certain of one thing: spiritual power did not normally exist around him. It only appeared when it was needed.

"So does this count as the Age of Dharma Decline, or something else?"

Having noticed this, Fang Zelin could not help letting his thoughts wander.

Judging by the current situation, ordinary people had never sensed spiritual power at all.

"Or is this some kind of safeguard?"

Never mind. He should focus on cultivating first.

Without anyone else to help corroborate it, all of this was merely Fang Zelin's own speculation.

And his speculation could very well be wrong.

Calming his mind, Fang Zelin closed his eyes and cultivated.

A while later, when he felt his cultivation session had reached completion, Fang Zelin began bringing it to a close.

Once Fang Zelin stopped cultivating, the nearby spiritual power ceased appearing as well.

When he looked closely at the spirit rice before him, the seedlings' leaves were now several times greener and more tender than before.

On closer inspection, he could even see a few dewdrops clinging to them.

The seedlings swayed in the breeze, as though they had eaten and drunk their fill.

Seeing this, Fang Zelin knew they had absorbed enough and should not need feeding again for now.

Still, this worked out well. From now on, he could simply cultivate beside the seedlings.

They could absorb the spiritual power that drifted out on their own.

Otherwise, feeding the seedlings like this every day would be rather tiring.

"I really don't know how you got by before. There wasn't any Spiritual Qi in that valley of yours, was there? If you need Spiritual Qi this badly, wouldn't you have starved to death before?"

Thinking of how badly the spirit rice had needed Spiritual Qi just now, Fang Zelin could not help sighing.

After that sigh, however, Fang Zelin did not linger beside the field.

He would be living on Yingping Peak from now on, so at the very least, he needed to build somewhere to shelter from the wind and rain.

With that thought, Fang Zelin set to work.

When leaving Anzi County, Fang Zelin had bought not only a hoe but also tools such as a billhook.

However, he knew little about carpentry, and even after working away for half a day, Fang Zelin had failed to produce even the beginnings of a house.

After much deliberation, Fang Zelin ultimately made another trip to Anzi County, spent what little silver he had left on prepared timber from a carpenter, then transported it back to Yingping Peak.

While visiting Anzi County to buy supplies, Fang Zelin saw the kappa again in the Yongding River and asked him to help look after the few spirit rice plants on Yingping Peak.

Fang Zelin did not trust this kappa completely.

But the other party was a kappa, and Fang Zelin planned to settle on Yingping Peak, so he would likely be dealing with him for a long time to come.

Fang Zelin thought that once the spirit rice ripened, he would invite him over to share some and see whether they could establish a good relationship.

If they could, he would settle on Yingping Peak for good.

If the kappa proved unsuitable for a close friendship, Fang Zelin should have grown considerably stronger by then, and he could find somewhere without spirits and continue growing spirit rice there.

He had seen a deer demon on Wangqing Mountain, and a water ghost and a kappa in the Yongding River.

To tell the truth, Fang Zelin was not even sure where he could find a place without spirits.