Luoxia Valley
In the blink of an eye, another seven days passed.
Yan Qingyan had already planted the purchased bone-penetrating grass and weiling flower seeds in the seven acres of land. She also planted some Spirit Fruits and spiritual vegetables in her own vegetable garden, while in the Spiritual Field within the Space, she cultivated more precious Spiritual Plants such as blood spirit ginseng and magnolia fruit.
For cultivators, tending Spiritual Fields is actually very simple—Rain-Casting Technique, Wood Spirit Technique, soil loosening technique… just a Spell Seal can easily handle it.
But now, Yan Qingyan could only use the most primitive methods, just like the villagers of Yujiang Village.
This made Yan Qingyan resent Yin Siwen even more.
She silently drew circles in her heart to curse him.
The soil irrigated with Spirit Spring Water allowed Spiritual Plants to grow rapidly, especially the batch of blood ginseng in the Space, which had been accelerated by the Wood Element Ability to over fifty years of maturity.
Yan Qingyan decided that once this batch of blood ginseng was accelerated to over a hundred years of maturity, she would take a few plants to exchange for spirit stones.
But the origin… she needed to think carefully about how to explain it.
Yan Qingyan remembered Yan Le'er telling her a story: once, a servant of a great family accidentally obtained a Storage Pouch containing a large number of Spiritual Plants and Magical Artifacts. This person secretly pawned an unused Magical Artifact, claiming it was picked up on the road, but the details of how and where it was found were inconsistent.
This aroused suspicion among listeners, and the story eventually reached the servant's master. The servant was subjected to severe torture and forced to surrender the Storage Pouch.
Yan Qingyan decided to take this as a warning. There was a valley in the back mountains of Yujiang Village called Luoxia Valley. Yan Qingyan decided to artificially create an origin for her blood spirit ginseng.
Also, she couldn't sell too many.
Yan Le'er had also told her another story: once, a Qi Refining fifth-level loose cultivator discovered a patch of seven-color rainbow flowers in the deep mountains. He sold over a hundred plants in total, earning a large amount of spirit stones, but soon after, he was found dead in the mountains, stripped of all possessions.
Without strength to protect it, wealth is like a child holding a gold brick. She wouldn't make such a foolish mistake.
She would sell only two plants, no more greed!
Once decided, Yan Qingyan immediately acted. She carried a basket on her back, took a hoe, and headed toward the direction of the back mountains.
"Ling Mochen, I'm going to the back mountains!" Yan Qingyan called out to the red-shirted man busy in the vegetable garden.
With the help of Spirit Spring Water, Ling Mochen's injuries had greatly improved, no longer showing the sickly state from their first encounter.
After Ling Mochen recovered, Yan Qingyan noticed he still intended to eat the bland Fasting Pills. She whimsically suggested he learn cooking from the neighbor's aunt.
Surprisingly, this rough man who grew up eating Fasting Pills, after trying human delicacies a few times, seemed to have discovered a new world, like Columbus finding the New Continent.
Yan Qingyan once accidentally saw Ling Mochen hiding in a corner of the kitchen, holding a frying spoon in one hand and the bottle of Fasting Pills in the other, his gaze somewhat resentful as he accused, 'How could you mislead me so?!'
Yan Qingyan quietly left, considerately sparing him one embarrassing black mark in his history.
"Back mountains? I heard there are wild beasts in the deep mountains. That place isn't safe." Hearing "back mountains," Ling Mochen frowned slightly.
"Don't worry, I'm quite capable." Yan Qingyan straightened her posture, brimming with supreme confidence.
The deep mountains were filled with plants everywhere. Her Wood Element Ability could help her sense large wild beasts around her, allowing her to avoid danger beforehand.
Even if encountered face-to-face, she wouldn’t be afraid—her special ability was at level four, roughly equivalent to Foundation Establishment… probably.
“Be careful.”
“Alright!”
Yan Qingyan waved goodbye and left. Along the way, she met many villagers who all came over to greet her.
“Qingyan, where are you headed?”
“Just going to wander around the back mountain.” Yan Qingyan smiled in response.
“The back mountain? Just stick to the outskirts, don’t go deep inside! They say there are black bears there!”
“Exactly! Only a few old hunters in our village dare to go into the deep mountains. My husband only hunts rabbits in the outer areas.”
“Be careful!”
“Don’t worry~”
After Yan Qingyan walked away, several villagers stopped to chat.
“Look at how different people from big families are—she’s only been here a few days and already dares to go up the mountain alone.”
“The Spiritual Plants in her family’s plot are growing so well! At this rate, they’ll probably be ready for harvest in another ten days or so!”
“Big families have so many tricks. The Yan family steward who came before was even more impressive—just moved his fingers a few times and rain poured down!”
“I still think the young couple who came this time are better. That Yan family steward before was so arrogant, he didn’t even tell us his name.”
“……”
Yan Qingyan entered the back mountain and headed straight toward Luoxia Valley.
Along the way, she avoided the village hunters, steered clear of all sorts of wild beasts and insects, and continued deeper into the mountains.
Yujiang Village had sparse Spiritual Energy, so Spirit Beasts of any rank rarely appeared in the mountains. Most were merely wild animals that had gained some intelligence, just a bit larger in size than ordinary creatures.
Yan Qingyan enveloped her entire body with her Wood Element Ability. In the perception of those wild beasts, she appeared like a moving tree and would not provoke attacks.
“Novels always say that when the female lead enters the mountains, she’s bound to have a big harvest.” Yan Qingyan muttered to herself as she walked, secretly hoping for some minor twists and turns.
Suddenly!
Yan Qingyan stopped, cautiously watching a patch of grass ahead. A verdant seed quietly appeared in her hand.
A snow-white rabbit suddenly leaped out, hopping a few times before crashing headfirst into a large tree ahead and dying instantly.
Yan Qingyan: .
How did heaven know that rabbit meat was her favorite? So delicious.
But if Fortune was spent on such things, it’d be better to save it up.
Yan Qingyan activated the seed, and a green vine rapidly grew, wrapping the unlucky rabbit and placing it into her backpack basket.
Since she couldn’t cultivate before her Dantian was repaired, she’d just focus on honing her Wood Element Ability.
Yan Qingyan continued forward.
Within less than an hour, Yan Qingyan spotted several ordinary ginseng plants.
She dug up one of the ginseng roots and placed it into her backpack basket, then took a ten-year-old Blood Spirit Ginseng from her Space and placed it into the empty hole. Nearby, she dug two similar holes, creating the illusion that “a treasure had already been discovered and taken.”
To prevent anyone noticing anything odd about the soil, Yan Qingyan deliberately nourished the area with a small amount of Spirit Spring Water and used her Wood Element Ability to harmonize the aura of several ginseng-type plants, making them appear as “brothers born from the same root.”
“Perfect!”
Yan Qingyan was quite satisfied with her “masterpiece,” but she still hoped no one would come to this spot. Avoiding suspicion was best.
With her goal accomplished, Yan Qingyan dug up some “local specialties” to fill her backpack basket as camouflage.
Luoxia Valley boasted beautiful scenery and fresh air, where many small white flowers grew, emitting an intoxicating fragrance. There were also numerous spirit grasses whose names she couldn't recognize. Yan Qingyan dug up one of each type to identify them slowly in the future.
Only after exploring the entire area around Luoxia Valley did Yan Qingyan pack up her basket and prepare to descend the mountain.
The round trip passed without major incidents aside from that unlucky rabbit.
Yan Qingyan chuckled inwardly—she had actually harbored a faint expectation for some "protagonist's opportunity." Having already lived a second life, it was time to let go of such unrealistic "protagonist" obsessions.
She quickened her pace, making the return journey much faster.
……
"Qingyan is back."
"Oh, she even caught a rabbit!"
Yujiang Village was small, with only a few hundred residents, so news spread quickly. Word of Yan Qingyan entering the back mountain had soon circulated.
Now, villagers at the foot of the mountain greeted her upon her return.
Ling Mochen had also been waiting at the mountain's base. Seeing that Yan Qingyan was in good spirits despite her mud-stained clothes, he finally breathed a quiet sigh of relief.
Although Yan Qingyan had accomplished much on the mountain, only a little over two hours had actually passed—most of the time had been spent finding a suitable spot for the Blood Ginseng's origin.
The two returned home together, and Yan Qingyan eagerly sorted through the day's harvest.
"Ta-da~ Look! See what treasures I dug up today!" Yan Qingyan lifted the lid of her basket and dumped out all the unfamiliar plants in one go.
Picking up a small red flower, she asked with a smile, "What a bountiful harvest! Mochen, you're an alchemist—help me figure out what all these things are?"
The Cultivation World sold Comprehensive Illustrated Guide to Spiritual Plants, but that book cost one low-grade spirit stone. Currently penniless, she could only turn to the top student for identification.
Ling Mochen replied with a mix of amusement and exasperation, "I'm not an alchemist yet—at most, I'm still an apprentice."
"You will be in the future," Yan Qingyan stated with certainty.
The main reason alchemists were rare was the enormous material consumption in the early stages. But with her Spiritual Spring Space as a cheat, she would never lack spiritual plants.
Most alchemists nowadays were either recruited and supported by major sects or came from prominent families themselves, making loose cultivator alchemists extremely rare.
Sometimes, hiring an alchemist not only cost more in fees than the materials for the spiritual plants but also came with a low success rate.
She fully supported Ling Mochen's dedication to alchemy. Having a passionate interest coupled with talent was a fortunate thing—one should cherish their own shining qualities.
She herself actually wanted to learn alchemy too, but unfortunately, she lacked a Fire Element Spiritual Root and had no alchemy inheritance. Yan Qingyan pondered: among the four foundational skills in the Cultivation World—Alchemy, Artificing, Array Formation, and Talismanic Script—she also wanted to master one. Since alchemy and artificing weren't suitable, what about array formation and talismanic script?
Yan Qingyan nodded subtly to herself—she could learn those when the opportunity arose.
"Heh, I'll take your auspicious words," Ling Mochen chuckled softly.
He didn't know why Qingyan was so convinced he would become an alchemist, but hearing her speak with such certainty made him feel he could achieve it too.
Though they hadn't known each other long, they now conversed like close friends who could discuss anything, giving him a sense of regret that they hadn't met sooner.
Yan Qingyan: "Spiritual plants aren't a problem. I have ways to find materials—you just focus on studying alchemy. Our future Foundation Establishment Pills will depend on you!"
Apart from those with Heavenly or Earth Grade Spiritual Roots, cultivators of other grades require at least one Foundation Establishment Pill to successfully advance to the Foundation Establishment Stage. Otherwise, there is a high probability of failure, ranging from injury and backlash to death and the dissipation of one's cultivation path.
The current state of the Alchemist profession has led to a situation where essential elixir pills like the Foundation Establishment Pill are scarce in the outside world, despite their high demand. Every Foundation Establishment Pill that appears in an auction house triggers fierce competition and turmoil.
Yan Qingyan deeply disliked this situation.
Her Water Spiritual Root was of Yellow Grade Intermediate quality, meaning she would definitely need Foundation Establishment Pills in the future—perhaps even more than one. It was essential to have Ling Mochen master Alchemy early on, as the Foundation Establishment Pill was a third-grade elixir.
Yan Le'er had once discussed with her how a clan elder in the Yan family had reached the peak of the Qi Refining Tenth Layer by the age of forty but never obtained a single Foundation Establishment Pill in his lifetime, passing away of old age. This alone showed how rare such pills were.
"Alright."
Ling Mochen found it somewhat amusing. Their Dantians had not yet fully recovered, yet Qingyan was already thinking about future Foundation Establishment.
But seeing Qingyan so enthusiastic, Ling Mochen didn’t want to say anything discouraging.
The Foundation Establishment Stage was the true threshold for cultivators embarking on the Immortal Path, granting a lifespan of up to three hundred years. Even in his Ling family, there were only seven Foundation Establishment Stage experts.
The main reason for this scarcity was the difficulty in obtaining Foundation Establishment Pills. Many cultivators remained stuck at the peak of the Qi Refining Stage, lacking the wealth or opportunity to acquire the pill. They often spent their remaining years venturing far and wide, seeking their own chances.
Coincidentally, the legacy left by his mother contained not only the recipe for the Foundation Establishment Pill but also methods to increase Alchemy success rates. It even allowed him to refine higher-grade elixir pills despite his current cultivation level!
Ling Mochen knew that if this secret were ever revealed, it would attract a frenzy of Alchemists desperate to obtain it.
This was his deepest and most guarded secret.