To Xu Ning's surprise, the Qi and Blood Flowers he harvested over the next few days were all of medium grade, with occasional high-grade ones appearing as well.
In other words, after his comprehensive cultivation techniques, the Qi and Blood Flowers grown in this medium-grade spirit field only produced medium-grade or higher Qi and Blood Flowers. The low-grade ones had been eliminated.
If the Peak Master knew this, he'd be ecstatic! It was an incredible result.
However, the Peak Master hadn't come to check, so Xu Ning couldn't do anything about it. It was safe to stay here anyway, so he could focus on developing his methods.
Meanwhile, Lei Wei and Cang Wanrou next door noticed the anomaly in Xu Ning's spirit field. They watched with growing curiosity.
At first, they just felt that the spiritual herbs in Xu Ning's field were growing better and didn't think much of it. It was a minor observation.
But after observing for a while, they discovered that Xu Ning was always harvesting medium-grade or higher spiritual herbs, never low-grade. That was unusual.
However, because they had been rather cold to Xu Ning when he first visited them, they didn't dare to ask him anything at first. They felt awkward.
But as they watched, both of them became increasingly itchy with curiosity and finally couldn't resist approaching him.
That day, while Xu Ning was in the spirit field, Cang Wanrou approached and asked, "Junior Brother Xu Ning, busy with your work?"
"Yeah," Xu Ning replied without looking up, focused on his plants.
Cang Wanrou was immediately embarrassed. "Um, Senior Brother Lei Wei said that since you've come, we haven't really welcomed you properly, so we're planning to throw you a welcome party. Do you have time tonight?"
Xu Ning was speechless. A welcome party?! Weren't they all ignoring him before? It was clearly just an excuse.
But Xu Ning didn't bother arguing with them. He'd try to build goodwill. Maybe he could see them off someday with good feelings!
After thinking about it for a while, Xu Ning concluded that those who had a good impression of him would almost certainly contribute spiritual roots to him after death, helping him improve the quality of his own spiritual roots. It was an investment.
Of course, Xu Ning wasn't befriending them for that reason. It was all to maintain good relationships with his fellow disciples. Yes, that was it. Pure intentions.
Xu Ning nodded immediately. "Alright, I'd be happy to come."
"That's great! Remember to come over later, Junior Brother!" Cang Wanrou exclaimed with delight, clapping her hands.
It was called a welcome party, but it was really just two tables set up by the spirit field for a simple meal and drinks. It was humble.
However, compared to before, the two were much more enthusiastic towards Xu Ning, offering him food and drink.
Ultimately, they couldn't avoid revealing their true purpose after a few drinks.
Lei Wei composed himself and asked, "Junior Brother Xu Ning, why are your spirit herbs growing so well? Is there some secret? We've been struggling."
Xu Ning pondered for a long time before replying, "There are indeed some secrets to it."
Cang Wanrou's eyes lit up. "Could you share some with me, Junior Brother? We'd be grateful."
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Actually, the two didn't have high hopes. They could see that the fact that he was recruited here with only a second-level Qi Refining stage cultivation was definitely one of the reasons he was special.
And his cultivation techniques were clearly his livelihood. How could he possibly share them with them? It was his advantage.
They were all cultivators. Selfishness was just the most basic element for survival. Sharing was rare.
To Cang Wanrou and Lei Wei's surprise, Xu Ning nodded. "It's nothing really. I can tell you. It's not a big secret."
"Really?" Cang Wanrou and Lei Wei were overjoyed and quickly sat down in front of Xu Ning, leaning in.
Xu Ning didn't hesitate much and began to explain some common knowledge and habits of the spiritual herbs they were planting. He gave them basic tips.
The two were excited and couldn't wait to try it out on their own fields.
After explaining for a while, Lei Wei excitedly grasped Xu Ning's hand. "Junior Brother, if you ever need anything in the future that's within my ability, just let me know! I'll do my best to help."
Xu Ning replied, "Of course. If you and Senior Sister encounter any problems in the future, you can come to me again. I'll help if I can."
For the next period of time, Cang Wanrou and Lei Wei strictly followed Xu Ning's instructions, applying his methods to their fields.
The effects were noticeable after half a month. The spiritual herbs in their fields grew significantly better, and the chance of harvesting mid-grade spiritual herbs almost doubled. They were thrilled.
Now, they completely trusted Xu Ning and would often send him small gifts of thanks, their relationship with him growing stronger and stronger.
Two months had passed since Xu Ning arrived at Xuanzhi Peak, and it was time to hand over the spiritual plants to the sect. The monthly deadline had arrived.
Because there were two mid-grade spiritual fields, the requirements for the plants Xu Ning and his group needed to hand over were quite high: at least ten mid-grade plants and fifty low-grade plants per month. It was a steep quota.
Of course, if they handed over four high-grade plants, they could be exempt from the rest of the requirement that month. It was a reward for quality.
When Liu Yong, who was in charge of collecting spiritual herbs, arrived at Xu Ning's fields, Xu Ning directly handed him four high-grade plants.
Liu Yong was dumbfounded. "Junior Brother Xu, you're handing over high-grade plants on your first try? How many high-grade plants did you get this month?"
Xu Ning sighed, as if disappointed. "Not many this month. Only seven or eight. Not even ten."
Liu Yong was completely stunned. What did he mean by "not many"?
You know, for those managing mid-grade spiritual herbs here, getting two high-grade plants a month was already incredibly impressive. Otherwise, they wouldn't have stipulated that only two high-grade plants needed to be handed over per spiritual field per month! This was far beyond that.
No wonder the Peak Master directly assigned someone at the second level of Qi Refining to a mid-grade spiritual field. He was indeed extraordinary.
"How many low-grade herbs did you get this month, Junior Brother?" Out of curiosity, Liu Yong couldn't help but ask again.
Since so many high-grade herbs had come out, there must have been many more low-grade herbs than usual, right?
Surprisingly, Xu Ning shook his head. "Not a single one."
Liu Yong was shocked. "Impossible! How could you not get a single low-grade herb! Junior Brother Xu, you must be joking with me!"
Xu Ning explained, "Because all the herbs I got were mid-grade or higher. No low-grade ones appeared."
Seemingly afraid that Liu Yong wouldn't believe him, Xu Ning directly took out all the spiritual herbs he had harvested in the past two months, including about forty or fifty mid-grade Qi and Blood Flowers.
There were also Spirit-Guiding Fruits, not only a bunch of mid-grade ones, but also some high-grade ones mixed in. The pile was impressive.
Liu Yong was completely stunned, hardly believing his eyes. He had never seen such a harvest.
After a long while, he finally reacted and solemnly said, "Junior Brother Xu Ning, I will report your situation to the Peak Master truthfully. This is remarkable."
Xu Ning was somewhat surprised, and immediately grabbed a high-grade Spirit-Guiding Fruit from the pile and handed it to Liu Yong. "Then I'll have to trouble you, Steward. A small gift for your trouble."
It would be a lie to say that Liu Yong wasn't tempted. But he still quickly waved his hand to refuse. "No, no, Junior Brother Xu, no. I can't accept this."
Whether intentionally or unintentionally, as Liu Yong waved his hand, the clothes in his arms unknowingly opened, creating an opening.
Seeing this, Xu Ning directly stuffed the Spirit-Guiding Fruit into the other's arms with a smile.
"Hehe! Good Junior Brother!" Liu Yong couldn't help but chuckle, accepting the gift.
Xu Ning said, "Senior Brother, we should look after each other more in the sect in the future. We're all in this together."
After exchanging a few pleasantries, Liu Yong still needed to report to the Peak Master, so he left early, his step lighter.
Soon, Liu Yong arrived at the Xuanzhi Hall and met Peak Master Miao Yunyi.
"Greetings, Peak Master!" Liu Yong immediately bowed upon arrival.
Miao Yunyi looked up. "How was the harvest from Xuanzhi Peak this time? Any issues?"
Liu Yong hurriedly reported, but hesitated towards the end, unsure how to phrase it.
Miao Yunyi frowned. "Stop stammering! Speak quickly! What is it?"
Liu Yong took a breath. "Peak Master, Xu Ning handed over four top-grade spiritual herbs this time for his quota."
Miao Yunyi, however, didn't seem to care, nodding. "That guy's cultivation skills are indeed quite good. That's normal for him."
Liu Yong added, "But... that's not all."