Xu Ning sensed something was wrong and quickly took out his divine-grade thatched hut from within his clothes, asking in a low voice, "What's going on? Why am I drawing in Qi so quickly? This isn't normal for a five-element mixed spiritual root."
The hut replied, "Xu Ning, you are a Martial God of the mortal realm. Strictly speaking, your life level has already surpassed that of the mortal world. You have reached the peak of what a mortal body can achieve. So it's normal for you to draw in Qi quickly. Your body is naturally receptive."
Xu Ning asked in confusion, "But what? There's always a catch."
The hut explained, "Your foundation is too terrifying. The resources you'll need for future cultivation will be unimaginable compared to ordinary cultivators."
"Let me put it this way: an ordinary person's foundation is like a small bowl. Your foundation is like a vast lake. The quantity of spiritual energy needed to fill you is on a completely different scale."
"Of course, the trade-off is that at the same cultivation level, your combat power is also unmatched by others. You will be far stronger than anyone at your level."
After hearing this, Xu Ning subconsciously tried cultivating again, circulating the Spirit Origin Technique. Then he was completely dumbfounded.
Damn it, he calculated. At this rate, it would take a hundred years just to cultivate to the second level of Qi Refining!
"What am I going to do?" Xu Ning asked, his voice rising. "Does that mean it'll take me a thousand years to reach Foundation Establishment at this pace? That's ridiculous."
The thatched hut replied, "You're overthinking it. It'll be worse than that."
Xu Ning said, "You mean, it could be faster? There's some hope?"
The thatched hut clarified, "Of course it'll be slower! Ordinary cultivators need to reach the twelfth level of Qi Refining to reach Foundation Establishment. With your terrifying foundation, you might need to reach the thirteenth or even fourteenth level of Qi Refining before you can break through. And it gets slower and slower as you go on. Each level requires exponentially more energy."
"So theoretically, if you rely solely on normal cultivation, it will take at least three thousand years for you to reach Foundation Establishment. Perhaps longer."
Xu Ning was deeply unsettled after hearing this. Although he had an infinite lifespan through reincarnation, three thousand years was an incredibly long time to be so vulnerable. He felt completely unsafe along the way. Anything could happen.
"Is there any way to increase my cultivation speed?" Xu Ning couldn't help but ask, his mind racing.
The thatched hut replied, "Of course there are, many. There are countless fortuitous encounters in the cultivation world—spiritual pools, ancient pills, heavenly treasures. As long as you can obtain a continuous supply of spirit stones and various rare and precious materials to supplement your cultivation, theoretically, you could reach Foundation Establishment in just a few years."
"The premise is that you are willing to risk everything to compete for them against other cultivators. You would need to fight for resources."
Xu Ning immediately shook his head. "No way! I'm not risking my life for speed. I'll think of another way."
With an infinite lifespan, how could he be foolish enough to take unnecessary risks? He had all the time in the world.
However, he could use his lifespan advantage to plan ahead and proceed slowly, building resources over time.
It might be slow at first, but once the overall situation was established and he had a foundation, acquiring those items would be easy through trade and accumulation.
Xu Ning then took out Tie Dan, the Yingying Monster, and all the items he had upgraded to Divine Grade Mortal in the mortal realm from his storage.
Looking at his accumulated resources spread out before him, Xu Ning felt more confident. He called a meeting. "Ahem, today's meeting is about what each of you needs to upgrade your grade to the next level. Speak up."
Xu Ning had previously inquired with the thatched hut—they could all be upgraded to Spirit Weapon level. After upgrading, they would be far more powerful than ordinary low-grade Spirit Weapons. It was essential.
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"I need Spirit Iron!" the axe shouted.
"I need Spiritual Manure!" the dung bucket called out.
"I need Spiritual Herbs!" the hoe demanded.
A group of items immediately began shouting all at once, their voices overlapping.
"Quiet down! One by one. I'll take a count," Xu Ning quickly silenced everyone and began to tally their needs.
After some questioning, Xu Ning had a general understanding of his resource requirements.
For plant-based items like his fruit trees and herbs, a large amount of spiritually imbued excrement was needed. Human cultivators' excrement wouldn't work. It had to be animal excrement from spiritual beasts.
Xu Ning immediately looked at Tie Dan and Yingying Monster. "From now on, this task is yours. You'll produce manure five times a day, no excuses."
Tie Dan and Yingying Monster stared wide-eyed. Five times a day? Wouldn't that leave them exhausted? They immediately protested loudly.
Xu Ning held up a hand. "Protests denied. I'll find a way to provide you with enough food to keep up production. It's for the good of the group."
As for weapons like the axe, hoe, and kitchen knife, they needed spirit iron, which was used for weapon forging. Xu Ning couldn't obtain that in a short time.
The thatched hut needed array materials, which also couldn't be obtained quickly. Those were rare.
The dung bucket needed spirit wood. The cultivation technique manuals needed various immortal cultivation methods to absorb.
Tie Dan needed spirit plants to eat. The Yingying Monster needed spirit beast meat. Moreover, they needed even more cultivation resources than Xu Ning because their foundations were several levels higher than his. They were even more demanding.
Xu Ning was overwhelmed with headaches. The list of needed resources was enormous.
However, this couldn't be rushed. He needed to plan carefully and accumulate slowly.
"Big brother, I also want to upgrade my rank!" The wooden table finally couldn't hold back any longer, its voice eager.
"Me too!" The wooden bed immediately chimed in.
"Me too!" The thatched hut wasn't to be outdone.
Xu Ning sighed. "I can't afford to upgrade all of you right now. How about this? Tell me how your upgrades will benefit me, and I'll consider upgrading you in the future when I have resources to spare."
The wooden table spoke first. "Upgrading me will improve your concentration in all aspects of study and cultivation. Just sitting next to me will help you focus better."
The wooden bed added, "I can help you sleep more deeply and recover faster, making you more efficient."
The thatched hut said proudly, "I can gather spiritual energy from the surroundings, allowing you to cultivate faster than normal."
Xu Ning shook his head. The wooden table was the only one with a unique effect that he couldn't get elsewhere.
The wooden bed was out of the question. He probably wouldn't have time to sleep much in the future, needing to cultivate daily instead.
The thatched hut was even less of a concern. He already had a mortal-grade divine-quality thatched hut of his own. Upgrading its grade was sufficient. No need to upgrade this one.
Moreover, upgrading this lowly menial disciple's thatched hut would easily attract attention. It was a losing proposition.
After making a rough plan in his mind, Xu Ning sat cross-legged on the bed and began cultivating for the night.
The night passed uneventfully. By morning, the spiritual energy in Xu Ning's dantian was twice as much as after the Qi induction the previous day. His progress was steady.
To avoid attracting unnecessary attention, Xu Ning quickly activated the Thousand Shadows Transformation technique to conceal his true cultivation level. He needed to appear average.
With Five Element Mixed Spiritual Roots, having spiritual energy enter the body in a single day—this was truly astonishing. If discovered, it would almost certainly lead to arrest and investigation. He couldn't be found out.
After last night's qualitative change from his martial arts foundation, the Thousand Shadows Transformation technique had become a proper cultivation method. It should be able to fool ordinary Qi Refining cultivators without much trouble.
Stepping out of the room, Xu Ning found the area already crowded with other menial disciples heading to work.
Soon after, Qian Zhide arrived, carrying three small bags of supplies.
"Let me tell you all, three new disciples have arrived today!" he announced loudly.
Afterwards, Qian Zhide introduced Xu Ning, Wang Ergou, and Li Yun to the other menial workers, pointing them out.
He then handed three bags to the three newcomers and explained the planting regulations.
Because spiritual herbs were perennial spiritual plants, they didn't need to be harvested and submitted periodically like spirit rice. They grew year-round.
However, there were requirements: after planting, fifty mature spiritual herbs must be submitted every month. Otherwise, punishment would be imposed.
Of course, spiritual herbs could also mutate. With good luck, a mid-grade spiritual herb might appear among the low-grade ones.
If that happened, it was considered good fortune. Only that mid-grade spiritual herb would need to be submitted that month. The other mature low-grade spiritual herbs could be exchanged for sect contribution points.
Xu Ning and the other two were assigned to plant Cloud Spirit Flowers, one of the basic herbs for Qi Gathering Pills. They were in high demand. The flowers matured as soon as they bloomed and had to be harvested immediately. Once the flowers fell, they were useless.
After explaining everything, Qian Zhide left.
Some of the other menial disciples left immediately to start their work, while others came over to greet the three newcomers and get to know them.
After dealing with everyone, Wang Ergou and Li Yun both looked at Xu Ning with concern.
"Brother Xu Ning, did you cultivate last night?" Wang Ergou asked with a disappointed look on his face, suspecting he had failed.
Xu Ning shook his head and sighed, putting on a show of discouragement. "I did cultivate, but I couldn't sense any spiritual energy at all. I sat there all night for nothing."
Li Yun said, "I asked the other senior brothers today. They said that those with five spiritual roots can't sense any energy for at least three months. Sometimes longer. Don't be discouraged."
"With my four spiritual roots, they said it will take at least two months to sense Qi. As for Ergou, with three spiritual roots, it will be much faster. A little over a month shouldn't be a problem if he works hard."
Wang Ergou's mouth dropped open upon hearing this. "So I'm the fastest among us? I might become an immortal before you both!"