“What a good child, pity he’s so stubborn.”
Li Shuo said, turning to pat the shoulder of Li Xinyue beside him, “Stop looking, his path is different from yours.”
“How is it different?” Li Xinyue retorted.
“He’s a single-minded person. In this lifetime, he will either make no progress his entire life, or he’ll soar straight to the heavens and become a true cultivator.”
Li Shuo sighed, his expression desolate, “While we martial artists who entered the Dao through martial arts have low aptitude. No matter how hard we work, we can’t reach the true immortal path.”
“Brother, why do you belittle yourself like this? You’ve already reached the Qi Condensation second layer! Among the tenant farmers of Luoxia Mountain, few can match you!”
“What do the tenant farmers of Luoxia Mountain count for? To those cultivators up the mountain, they’re nothing but ants! One day not ascending the mountain means a lifetime as ants!”
Li Shuo’s voice grew louder, showing some agitation. Li Xinyue was immediately scared speechless by him.
“Ah-“
Seeing this, Li Shuo let out another long sigh, gently stroking his sister’s hair, “Xinyue, back in the Martial Dynasty, your brother was considered a heaven-blessed genius. I entered Xiantian at twenty-five, brought you to Luoxia Mountain at thirty. Now ten years have passed in a flash, and I still remember how ecstatic I was when I first discovered the cultivators of Luoxia Mountain!
However, too many things happened during these ten years. I’ve seen too many things and had to accept my own mediocrity. Sometimes I even think I shouldn’t have brought you to Luoxia Mountain.
If you were still in the Martial Dynasty, you’d be the most honored young lady, sister of a Xiantian master-who would dare bully you? But at Luoxia Mountain, both of us are just ants that those cultivators could destroy with a flick of their finger.”
“Brother, don’t say that. Coming to Luoxia Mountain, Xinyue doesn’t regret it at all. If Brother hadn’t brought me here, I wouldn’t know how vast the sky is, how broad the earth is. In the Martial Dynasty, even being second to none would just make you a frog at the bottom of a well!”
“As long as you think that way, then it’s good.” Li Shuo gently stroked the ends of her hair, murmuring.
Mu Jiuxiao didn’t know about the siblings’ conversation. He took his reward and returned to his small thatched hut, then began meditating.
He never expected that helping harvest rice today would bring an unexpected joy-today he could digest another bowl of spirit porridge, meaning he could meditate for three hours today.
Counting yesterday’s two hours, he was only five hours short of his Earth Spirit Root attribute reaching twenty!
Thinking this, Mu Jiuxiao felt a surge of eagerness in his heart. Not wasting a single moment, he earnestly began cultivating the Everlasting Spring Technique.
Even though each time he painstakingly guided Spiritual Qi to circulate through his meridians, and each time the Spiritual Qi dispersed completely before gathering in his Dantian, he still guided Spiritual Qi again and again, cultivating according to the meridian circulation method of the Everlasting Spring Technique, practicing over and over.
The Everlasting Spring Technique was a common method. After Spiritual Qi entered the body, it only needed to circulate along three meridians within the body to be guided to the Dantian. Yet even so, after ten years of practice, Mu Jiuxiao failed each time.
This was because his Spirit Root talent was insufficient. Even though he could sense Spiritual Qi and could move Spiritual Qi, he couldn’t even complete a full Great Zhou Tian circulation!
However, each time he moved Spiritual Qi, he got one step closer to the Dantian, one step closer to success.
Mu Jiuxiao believed Hard Work Makes Up for Clumsiness, and could only believe in it!
After finishing cultivation, Mu Jiuxiao began drawing talismans again. What if it was futile effort? Now that the Gold Spirit Rice harvest was complete and it wasn’t yet time for replanting, besides cultivation and talisman drawing, he had nothing else to do.
A day passed quickly. The next day, Mu Jiuxiao again took his Cold Iron Sickle to help Nie Tan’s family harvest spirit rice.
Nie Tan was also married with children. He was at the Qi Condensation first layer, his wife was a Xiantian master, and they had a son. According to Luoxia Mountain’s rules, their family could cultivate six mu of land.
But his son reportedly had good talent, reaching the threshold of Qi Condensation. They cherished him dearly, so their son never did farm work.
So today, Nie Tan and his wife led a group of Xiantian masters to work.
Coincidentally, among the Xiantian masters helping Nie Tan’s family today were those who helped the Li family yesterday.
“What medicine did this kid take? Yesterday he worked so fiercely, today he’s still full of energy.”
Knowing that expending more energy meant his body could digest another bowl of spirit rice porridge, Mu Jiuxiao didn’t hold back at all today while helping Nie Tan’s family. He still swung his sickle with lightning speed, taking the lead, causing those Xiantian masters from yesterday to discuss him.
“Young people just have vigorous energy.”
“We’re also in our prime, not yet at the age of declining vitality. I think he just relies on his Cold Iron Sickle!”
Gold Spirit Rice belonged to the fire element, and the Cold Iron Sickle happened to counter it, making it the perfect tool for harvesting Gold Spirit Rice.
“I heard this Cold Iron Sickle costs ten Spirit Stones each.”
“Ten Spirit Stones? This kid has that much money?”
These Xiantian masters used Spirit Stone fragments. Some who fared worse hadn’t even touched a complete Spirit Stone. Yet this kid was so rich he could afford a Cold Iron Sickle costing ten Spirit Stones?
“Where did this kid come from?”
Some stared at Mu Jiuxiao’s Cold Iron Sickle, their eyes burning red.
“I heard his parents were both tenant farmers at Luoxia Mountain.”
Hearing this, some immediately dismissed their dark thoughts.
“But they’re both gone!”
With this news, some people’s thoughts grew fervent again.
Both parents dead, with money and grain-wasn’t this exactly a plump fat sheep?
Mu Jiuxiao had no idea he was being targeted, still diligently harvesting rice until the bell rang, marking the end of today’s harvest period.
“Nephew, I really owe you thanks today. Never expected Nephew to be so skilled at harvesting Gold Spirit Rice, your speed is not inferior to this old man’s.”
After harvesting ended, Nie Tan greeted him with a beaming smile, though his gaze subtly fell on the Cold Iron Sickle in Mu Jiuxiao’s hand.
Clearly, he also believed Mu Jiuxiao’s speed today was due to the Cold Iron Sickle.
“Uncle Nie praises me too much. Uncle Nie, I have matters to attend to, please give me today’s reward first.”
Mu Jiuxiao had no time for pleasantries with Nie Tan. He paid, Mu Jiuxiao exerted effort-simple as that.
“Good, good.”
Nie Tan said, handing over a bag of Gold Spirit Rice. Mu Jiuxiao gave it a slight heft and knew it contained only one sheng of Gold Spirit Rice, so he smiled slightly, “Yesterday when I went to help Li Shuo’s family harvest, he saw I worked very hard and gave me two sheng of spirit rice.”
Hearing this, Nie Tan’s mouth twitched. He forced a dry laugh, “The labor Nephew did today deserves two sheng of spirit rice, but Nephew also knows Uncle Nie’s family is poor. Your elder brother Nie Feng still needs to cultivate, so…”
Nie Tan scooped half a sheng of spirit rice and, holding his nose, poured it into the bag, “Can only give you another half sheng. Please don’t blame this old man.”
“I don’t blame.”
Mu Jiuxiao left carrying one and a half sheng of spirit rice.
Nie Feng, who had just finished cultivating, happened to see this scene when he stepped out. He walked over, looking at Mu Jiuxiao’s retreating back and snorted coldly, “This kid is too greedy!”
Today they hired these mortal experts, giving each only two ge of spirit rice. But this Mu Jiuxiao-not satisfied with receiving one sheng, he demanded another half sheng just by opening his mouth! Really excessive!
Ten ge equal one sheng, meaning he alone took fifteen ge of spirit rice!
“He has the Cold Iron Sickle in hand and worked hard today. Giving him this much isn’t too much.” Nie Tan comforted.
“Not too much? He’s neither a cultivator nor a Xiantian master, just a waste! Taking so much Gold Spirit Rice, isn’t he afraid of choking!”
Nie Feng clearly disliked Mu Jiuxiao. Mu Jiuxiao taking more Gold Spirit Rice meant his own resources diminished.
“Forget it, why should my son bother with him? This year’s harvest is good, my son can eat spirit rice porridge all year round.”
Nie Tan looked lovingly at his son with a gentle smile. Since he abandoned his Dao path, he focused all his energy on this son.
But Nie Feng wasn’t particularly happy about eating spirit rice porridge. Instead, he complained somewhat discontentedly, “I’m tired of eating spirit rice porridge. If I could eat Demon Beast meat from Zhenwei Pavilion once, that would be living like an immortal.”
“Zhenwei Pavilion-going once costs at least two Spirit Stones. We tenant farmers can’t afford it.” Nie Tan advised softly.
“Dad, thirty years east of the river, thirty years west of the river. Are we tenant farmers doomed to be tenant farmers our whole lives?!”
Nie Feng turned to look at Nie Tan, somewhat dissatisfied with him. If his father weren’t a tenant farmer but one of those lofty cultivators up the mountain, how good would that be? Then he certainly wouldn’t be living so miserably, unable to even visit Zhenwei Pavilion once!
Hearing his son’s words now, Nie Tan couldn’t help feeling somewhat emotional. Yes, back in the Martial Dynasty, he too was once an ambitious Xiantian master, but now he was just a tenant farmer trampled underfoot.
However, before he could dwell on his feelings, he heard his son say again, “Dad, your son has a feeling that in a few days I can successfully step into the Qi Condensation first layer. When that happens, Dad will fulfill your son’s wish, right?”
“Feng’er, you’re about to step into the Qi Condensation first layer?” Nie Tan looked at his son with ecstatic joy.
“Mmm.”
Nie Feng nodded indifferently. His father was so short-sighted-merely stepping into the Qi Condensation first layer, what was there to be happy about? His future world was still vast.
“Good! Good! As long as my son becomes a cultivator, Dad is willing to do anything.”
Nie Tan rubbed his hands, his face showing an excited expression, smiling continuously.