The Lin family’s spiritual vein blessed land was located near the core area, composed of countless buildings.
Viewed from above, it vaguely resembled an Eight Trigrams Formation.
At the very center lay the spiritual vein itself. A single day of cultivation there was equivalent to a full year of ordinary practice.
However, only members of the main family were permitted to enter. Aside from them, only a few exceptionally talented geniuses of the collateral lines might earn the right to enter.
Naturally, Matrilocal Husbands like Zhou Luo had no chance whatsoever.
They were restricted to cultivating in the outermost buildings.
Even so, though this area was far from the spiritual vein, cultivating here was still vastly faster than their usual progress.
Before long, Zhou Luo arrived in front of a building designated “Kan.”
To his surprise, he spotted two familiar faces.
One was Xu Changsheng, and the other was Zhang Daben, who still harbored clear hostility toward him.
The moment he saw Zhou Luo, Zhang Daben’s previously laughing face stiffened. He raised his voice in undisguised mockery, “Hmph, allowing someone with the lowest grade spiritual root to cultivate here is simply a waste. Better to give the opportunity to someone else.”
Faced with this ridicule, Zhou Luo only smiled in silence, his gaze landing on the bundle Zhang Daben carried on his back.
This retreat at the spiritual vein would last for an entire month. No one wanted to waste a single second, so most had brought their daily necessities, fully intending to stay for the entire duration.
He looked thoughtful.
“Zhou Luo, long time no see.”
At that moment, Xu Changsheng walked over with a friendly smile.
Zhou Luo withdrew his gaze and nodded. “Long time no see.”
Just as the two finished exchanging greetings, Steward Lin Fu appeared in the courtyard.
Sweeping his indifferent gaze across the crowd, he began to explain the rules of the blessed land.
Within the spiritual vein blessed land, every cultivation area was predetermined. No one was permitted to change places on their own.
“Steward Lin, if both parties voluntarily agree to exchange, is it allowed?”
From the crowd, Zhou Luo suddenly spoke up.
What an idiot.
Hearing this, a sneer tugged at Zhang Daben’s lips as he cursed inwardly.
Now that they were at the spiritual vein blessed land, everyone naturally wanted to be as close to the center as possible.
Who would willingly give up a superior position?
If the positions were of equal value, there was even less reason to swap.
In Zhang Daben’s eyes, there had to be something wrong with Zhou Luo’s brain to ask such a question.
At the front, Lin Fu glanced at Zhou Luo and replied coldly, “Of course it is allowed.”
Zhou Luo gave a subtle nod. You are reading on g.com, the official source.
Excellent. The plan could proceed.
“Are there any other questions?” Lin Fu asked.
When no one spoke, he proceeded to announce the assigned cultivation areas and rooms for the dozen or so people present.
Unsurprisingly, Zhou Luo and the others who had previously been evaluated as high-quality stock were assigned to rooms closer to the inner circle.
As for Zhang Daben and the rest, they were placed in the outermost chambers.
This naturally stirred dissatisfaction among them.
But there was nothing they could do.
Once the allocations were complete, the group passed through the Formation one by one and entered the single-story building.
Just like an Eight Trigrams diagram, the rooms were arranged horizontally. Each row contained ten cultivation chambers, separated by a central corridor, extending deeper inward toward the core area.
Zhou Luo’s cultivation chamber was in the second row, coincidentally located directly behind Zhang Daben’s room.
After briefly inspecting his own room, he stepped back out and headed straight for Zhang Daben’s door.
At that moment, Zhang Daben was unpacking his daily necessities. Startled by the sudden intrusion, he jumped.
“What do you want?”
Seeing it was Zhou Luo, Zhang Daben’s face darkened, assuming the other man had come to pick a fight.
Zhou Luo scanned the room, his gaze resting on a water cup on the table for half a second. He then smiled. “I thought it over, and I feel you are right.”
As he spoke, he casually strolled toward the table.
“What do you mean?” Zhang Daben furrowed his brows.
“You were right. Cultivating here with my ninth-grade spiritual root really is a waste. How about this? I am willing to trade rooms with you, as long as you promise not to make trouble for me in the future.” Zhou Luo deliberately struck a yielding tone.
Hearing this, Zhang Daben was immediately tempted.
But on second thought, something felt wrong.
I mocked him like that, yet he’s still willing to trade rooms?
He eyed Zhou Luo-who was now leaning against the table-with deep suspicion. Suddenly, he sneered, “Heh, are you trying to scheme against me?”
“I wouldn’t dare.” Zhou Luo spread his hands, his expression the picture of innocence.
“Cut the act. I won’t fall for your tricks.”
Zhang Daben crossed his arms, wearing a confident smirk, utterly oblivious to the fact that while Zhou Luo spread his hands, he had seamlessly flicked the small red pill hidden between his fingers straight into the water cup.
“I am completely serious. Otherwise, why would I have asked Steward Lin about trading earlier?” Zhou Luo pressed, feigning earnestness.
“Hmph, get out. I’m not trading with you.”
Zhang Daben lost his patience, barking a low shout as he moved to chase his visitor away.
“Suit yourself.” Zhou Luo shook his head with a look of deep regret and left the room.
“Do you really take me for a fool? There’s definitely a trap in that room. You want to scheme against me? Not a chance!” Still muttering, he walked over to the table, picked up his cup, and took a large gulp of water.
“Trying to outsmart me? You’re still too green.”
Meanwhile, Zhou Luo returned to his own cultivation chamber with a bright smile.
He had been wondering how to test his newly refined poison on a living person, and Zhang Daben had conveniently offered himself up on a silver platter.
This was the perfect opportunity to see if the Spirit Draining Pill was effective on human cultivators.
Reeling in his stray thoughts, Zhou Luo walked over to the stone platform in his room, sat cross-legged, and began to cultivate.
The moment he cycled his technique, Zhou Luo was shocked to discover that the ambient Spiritual Qi here poured into him at least ten times faster than in the outside world.
A single day of cultivation here was truly equivalent to ten days outside.
And this was only the second layer of the outer ring. He couldn’t even imagine the terrifying density of Spiritual Qi at the very core.
No wonder everyone fought tooth and nail for a chance to enter the spiritual vein blessed land.
This place was a world apart from the outside.
It was just a pity he only had a single month.
Pushing aside all distractions, Zhou Luo gathered his focus and immersed himself entirely in his cultivation.
……
In the blink of an eye, a month passed.
“I’ve finally broken through to the first layer of Qi Refining.”
Inside the quiet chamber, Zhou Luo, dressed in a long white robe, suddenly opened his eyes. A clear gleam of joy flashed in his pupils.
Spurred on by the dense energy of the spiritual vein blessed land, he had finally absorbed enough Spiritual Qi to entirely shed his mortal shell, officially stepping onto the path of Cultivation.
Though it was merely the first layer of Qi Refining, it gave Zhou Luo an immense surge of motivation.
With his system and a prolonged lifespan, as long as he had enough time, how could he not become a true Immortal?
At this thought, Zhou Luo’s spirit surged.
However, realizing he was about to leave this supreme cultivation haven, a shadow of gloom flickered across his face.
Once he returned to the outside world, who knew how many years it would take to advance another step?
Letting out a helpless sigh, he stood up, smoothed out his robes, and walked out of the chamber.
Passing by Zhang Daben’s room, he remembered his little experiment and deliberately peeked inside.
But the man was nowhere to be seen.
It seemed he had already left.
He would have to wait until he returned to the estate to properly inquire about the true effects of that Spirit Draining Pill.