Establishing the Thunder Fruit Orchard, Winning Over Shi Mo!
The caravan returned to the city just as dawn was breaking.
Twelve beast-drawn carts rolled across the bluestone road at the Hongtian City, the sound of their wheels startling several sparrows at the city gate.
Sun Mao jumped off the black dog's back, then instructed his retainers to store the goods in batches, while he himself headed straight for the back mountain.
He has two things to do.
The first item is the Thunder Essence Fruit Tree.
On the western slope of the back mountain, there is a gently sloping area that has been abandoned for many years. It has plenty of sunshine and loose soil. It was originally an abandoned field where the Sun Clan tried to plant spirit medicine in their early years.
Sun Mao entrusted the matter of the Thunder Essence Fruit Tree to Sun Caiya.
Sun Caiya, an elder of the Sun Clan, never married, but her skill in tending to Spirit Plant was unparalleled.
Others rely on formations to accelerate the growth of spiritual herbs, but she relies on her own two hands and a stubborn streak.
Although she is getting on in years, it cannot conceal her youthful beauty and charm, and she devotes herself wholeheartedly to cultivating Spirit Plant.
"I checked the fruit trees; the roots are still alive, but the soil is wrong."
Sun Caiya squatted on the ground, pinched a handful of soil and rubbed it, her brows furrowed. "The Thunder Essence Fruit Tree prefers dryness and dislikes dampness; its roots need to grow deep, and ordinary spiritual soil can't suppress its nature."
What do you need?
"Use the sawdust from lightning-struck trees as base fertilizer, and then mix in 30% iron wire sand. This will make the soil firm and well-aerated."
Sun Caiya counted on her fingers. "We also need to find a few spiritual herbs with a lightning attribute to grow alongside the fruit trees, such as Purple Lightning Vine and Thunder Radiance Grass, which can help gather the scattered Lightning Spirit energy in the world."
She got more and more excited as she talked, and pulled a charcoal pencil from her sleeve, squatting down to draw a layout of the herb garden.
Sun Mao glanced at the picture and nodded. "How many Spirit Stone do you want?"
"To cultivate a separate medicinal herb garden, with its array, spirit soil, accompanying Spirit Plant, and daily maintenance... it will cost at least eight hundred low-grade Spirit Stone in the early stages."
When Sun Caiya mentioned this number, she swallowed hard. "We'll have to spend another two hundred every year on maintenance."
"Furthermore, this is only the initial investment. If we want to expand the scale in the future, the consumption will likely be even greater, amounting to a considerable sum..."
This number is enough to support five or six Qi Refining cultivators for a whole year.
Just for a tree.
But Sun Mao didn't hesitate at all. "Approved. Whatever materials are needed, just get them from the clan and train them as well as possible."
Sun Caiya was stunned for a moment, then her eyes lit up. With the clan giving her so much power and supporting her wholeheartedly, she had no choice but to make a name for herself. With that thought, she headed towards her cave abode, intending to draw up a detailed map of the herb garden.
Sun Mao watched her retreating figure and shook his head.
Aunt Caiya may not be good at much else, but she's truly gifted at growing things!
For the next two weeks, the western slope of Houshan was bustling with activity.
Sun Caiya practically lived next to the herb garden, personally supervising the proportions of each cartload of spiritual soil and the planting angle of each accompanying vine.
She even took out a set of Spirit Plant care manuals from her private collection, turned to the pages about lightning- Spirit Plant, and studied them repeatedly.
On the day the medicinal herb garden was completed, Sun Mao went to inspect it.
In the center of a terraced medicinal herb garden, which is about half an acre in size, stands the transplanted Thunder Essence Fruit Tree. The trunk is not tall, and the branches are gnarled and twisted, but the roots have firmly penetrated into the specially prepared spiritual soil.
Surrounded by Purple Lightning Vine and Thunder Radiance Grass, the vines clung to the array stone pillars, with tiny arcs of electricity occasionally flashing between the leaves.
A Spirit Gathering Formation is embedded at the bottom of the herb garden, specifically designed to filter and enrich the sparse Lightning Spirit energy in the air, creating a suitable growing environment.
"Within three years, this tree will be able to resume its normal fruiting cycle."
Sun Caiya patted the mud off her clothes, a rare look of pride on her face. "Doubling production in five years won't be a problem!"
Sun Mao nodded without saying anything more.
He had done the math in his mind: five years later, with a stable output of Thunder Essence Fruit and careful cultivation, the yield would double.
That is, six to ten pieces every five years.
Once Ancestor Shi emerges from seclusion, the first batch of fruits will be available for offering. One fruit can be consumed each year, accumulating over time.
Given enough time, quantitative change will eventually lead to qualitative change!
This investment was worthwhile!
The second thing is the Dark Gold Ape Bone Fragment.
Bear den in the back mountains.
After Shi Jian went into seclusion, the many bear-like beasts were cared for by members of the Sun Clan clan in turns, but few people were actually able to get close to them.
Shi Mo is one of the three bears Enlightenment Shi Jian. He has black fur all over his body, is taciturn and doesn't usually bark, but his eyes are extremely intelligent.
When Sun Mao entered the bear's den, Shi Mo was lying on a blue stone, basking in the sun. Hearing footsteps, he only raised his eyelids slightly.
The black dog followed behind Sun Mao. As soon as they stepped into the bear den, Shi Mo stood up, gripped the ground with all four paws, and let out a low warning growl.
A fierce aura instantly intimidated the black dog!
The black dog tucked its tail between its legs and whimpered as it retreated.
Sun Mao squatted down, took out a jade box from his Storage Bag, and as he slowly opened it, the Savage Wilderness Yao Qi remaining on the bone fragment instantly spread out.
Shi Mo's reaction was ten times more intense than Black Dog's!
Its fur bristled, its vertical pupils suddenly contracted to slits, its nostrils flared violently, drool dripped down its chin, and its limbs tensed as if it were about to pounce at any moment.
But it didn't move.
It stared intently at the bone fragment, its low growl turning from warning to craving, and its front paws dug several deep grooves into the ground.
"Eat."
Sun Mao placed the bone fragment on the ground and took three steps back.
Shi Mo pounced on it, snatched the bone fragment in one bite, crushed it, and swallowed it.
Then it stopped moving.
He lay on the ground, his limbs stiff, and his whole body began to tremble violently.
Something was seeping out from the roots of the black hairs—a very faint golden hue that spread from the roots to the tips.
Not all the fur changed; only a small area on the back, about the size of a palm, turned from black fur to Dark Gold.
From a distance, it looks like a golden mark branded on its back.
Shi Mo's bear claws are also changing.
Its already thick claws grew even thicker, the edges gleaming with a cold metallic sheen, as it casually scratched across the bluestone...
"Laugh--"
A clean cut was made into the surface of the bluestone, the cut surface smooth, as if it had been sliced by a sharp blade...
Sun Mao's eyelid twitched.
The Level 1 Demon Beast's claws already possess a sharp edge. If it were allowed to grow a few more years, it might even be able to withstand magical Law Artifact!
Shi Mo trembled for about half an incense stick's time before gradually calming down.
He stood up, shook his head, seemingly not yet fully adjusted to the changes in his body, but he knew that he had already transformed!
Then he did something.
He walked up to Sun Mao and lowered his head.
This black bear, which was never friendly to strangers, proactively offered its head to Sun Mao's hand, showing a familial attitude...
Sun Mao reached out and patted him on the head.
Beneath my palm, the fur was coarse and prickly, but the enormous bear head remained quietly lowered, motionless.
"Grow up well, and together we'll protect our Lineage in the future!"
Sun Mao's expression remained unchanged, but his heart was already filled with unparalleled excitement. He knew that no one in the clan had yet been able to contract a bear demon as a spirit pet.
The contract with the bear demon had long since become the glory of the Sun Clan clan without anyone noticing!
It's clear that the bear demon's importance to the Sun Clan far surpasses that of a mere spirit pet or battle beast...
It's an honor!
An unshakeable spirit!