Chapter 302: Chapter 202: Planting Again_1
Clearly, this area belonged to the central part of Dongting Lake, where strange fish were active and small boats were not suitable for navigation.
This time, it was a bodily travel, without any related memories, so Xu Yang was not clear about many things.
Although he had also observed on his way here, it was quite normal for several large ships to moor on the side of such a large lake formed by the convergence of the five Wuzhe waters, as long as there was no blockade, no one would care, let alone the fact that these large ships also had their own small boats nearby.
Were they fishing for these strange fish?
If so, his luck was indeed not bad.
Xu Yang smiled, took hold of the paddles with both hands, and started to row the boat with strong strokes.
Although this incarnation lacked the skill trait for “rowing”, having fished in Dongting Lake for several decades had turned rowing into a bodily instinct, coupled with his current Qi Cultivation at the third tier…
The boat shot forward like an arrow released from the string.
The people behind paddled frantically, but they couldn’t catch up, and could only watch as he gradually moved farther away.
“Can it be that nobody is flying through the sky, not even using qinggong to walk on water?”
“This world, though rich in Yuan Spirit and Demonic Qi, the number of cultivators and the extent of its prevalence…”
With no one following, Xu Yang who had easily escaped noticed another issue.
This world was rich in Yuan Spirit, not to mention the worlds dealing with the end-of-heaven-and-earth Taoism, it was even more abundant than the Void Spirit Cave Heaven.
With abundant Yuan Spirit, there should be a multitude of cultivators, but what he saw now were all ordinary people, not even mentioning extraordinary cultivators, even common martial fighters were nowhere to be seen.
Why was this so?
Xu Yang thought hard and pinpointed a possible reason.
Demonic Qi!
Demonic Qi was limiting the cultivators of this world.
But wasn’t this world a world of demons and monsters?
Demonic Qi should have enabled the rise of demon cultivators, so why…
Xu Yang steered the boat into a patch of reeds and then turned back to inspect the strange fish.
“Its scales are hard as armor, its flesh thick, it has already become a Yuan-Spirit alien beast, and with the erosion of Demonic Qi, it is comparable to a martial artist with Inner Strength.”
Xu Yang crouched down and looked at the fish corpse: “Yuan Spirit and Demonic Qi are hard to distinguish and separate; when Yuan Spirit enters the body, Demonic Qi must invade. If the cultivators of this world cannot solve this problem, then the higher their cultivation, the heavier their demonic nature becomes, and they must inevitably fall into being demons and monsters.”
“Not just cultivators, all living beings are the same, this demon fish is an example!”
“So, what exactly is going on with this world?”
“The higher the cultivation, the heavier the demonic nature. Logically, the upper echelons should have long been controlled by demons and monsters. Even if there are still living humans below them, they should have been domesticated. So why is it in the form of this sort of nation? Could it be…?”
Xu Yang furrowed his brows, pondered for a long time, but still could not make sense of it.
Lacking information, it was useless to think more, he might as well focus on the present.
Xu Yang went into the cabin, found a sharp knife used for killing fish, and began to deal with the strange black fish.
The scales of the black fish were like armor, extremely hard, and with the material of an ordinary sharp knife, it was impossible to scrape off. Hence, Xu Yang directly performed a chef’s fish filleting. He augmented the blade with mana, peeling off the fish scales along with the skin and even took off a good amount of snow-white, translucent flesh.
Xu Yang was not bothered by the blood and gore and cut off a thin slice of fish, chewing it in his mouth.
“The flesh is fresh and sweet, the blood is rich, and there’s a trace of Spiritual Energy.”
“Hmm… compared to directly absorbing Heavenly Earth Prime Spirit, the Demonic Qi content is much less, is this the result of the living being’s own neutralization and digestion?”
“That is to say, by consuming living beings, the absorbed Demonic Qi and Spiritual Energy will experience a certain level of reduction and increase, much like alchemy – as herbs are refined into pills, the positive effects are enhanced, and the negative impacts are reduced.”
“If that applies to living beings, then…”
Xu Yang looked at the piece of fish in his hand and the dissected black fish and shook his head before setting up a cooking pot.
Soon, cooking smoke rose, and the aroma began to waft through the air.
Although he had no memories, by looking at the way the brother and sister before him had behaved, as well as the household items on this awning boat, Xu Yang could still be sure that life for the fishermen in this world was still incredibly difficult.
In a world with abundant Yuan Spirit, the natural resources should be rich. If not everyone were like a dragon, at least the nation should be prosperous and the people peaceful.
But when it comes to human governance, many times, many things just don’t make sense.
Not to mention the influence of Demonic Qi.
Like with Wuzhe Lake, monster fish rove fiercely in the deep waters, and ordinary fishermen dare not venture into the heart of the lake, sticking to the shores or shallow water areas to catch small fish and shrimp. The competition is very fierce, with fishing tyrants, gangs, and the official government above them squeezing them dry… it’s tough beyond words.
No wonder it’s said from ancient times that there are three sufferings – poling a boat, smithing iron, and selling tofu.
The life of a fisherman is even worse than that of a farmer, truly subject to the whims of weather and uncertain from day to day.
At the start of his transmigration, with the mysteries of his origin unresolved, Xu Yang had lived such a life.
Later, when his memory recovered and his Attribute Panel was activated, he gradually cultivated skills, making life a bit more bearable.
But it was not much better – without sufficient time to accumulate, it was difficult for skill traits to help him turn the tide.
Luckily, those days had passed.
Now, even without skill traits, he could steadily ascend to the summit.
Not long after, the soup began to boil, and the fish flesh turned white.
On the awning boat, there were no seasonings. The small jar of coarse salt had been given away the day before.
But this did not stump Xu Yang, with a casual flick of his sleeve and a surge of his mana, the blood pooled on the ground started to gleam and rapidly crystallized into white salt, which he then caught in his hand.
Saltpetre technique?
Indeed, there existed such Daoist methods, since salt was a vital commodity in ancient times.
However, what he was employing now was not the saltpetre technique but the pride of Wandao School—the Heavenly Crafting Technique.
Heavenly Crafts Natural Creation, where all things are materials, is a mysterious combination of array symbols, artifact refining, and the like.
With this mana point, analyzing materials was an effortless task.
Even without this technique, with his tier-three Pill Master and tier-four Artifact Refiner capabilities, a bit of mana was all it took to extract desired materials from various substances.
A handful of refined salt, extracted from blood, yet not the slightest bit fishy; sprinkled into the pot, it emitted a tantalizing aroma.
Seeing this, Xu Yang didn’t bother looking for any bowls or chopsticks, but simply snapped off two reeds and began eating next to the stove.
The fish flesh was snowy white, aromatic and overflowing with flavor, not only delicious when sliced, but also exquisite when boiled thoroughly.
Had it not been for the contamination of demonic qi, it would have been a superior ingredient.
Even with the contamination of demonic qi, it remained a superior ingredient, or else why would anyone bother catching it?
Soon, the entirety of a black fish, a hundred catties of fish meat, and a pot of fish soup had found their way into Xu Yang’s stomach.
Even the fish bones were chewed to pieces, their marrow and juices thoroughly consumed; only a few inedible bones were discarded as kitchen waste.
Although this avatar had not yet developed the “Eating” skill, the rich vital essence of the demon fish, and the hidden Yuan Sprit within, caused a warm current to rise in his belly, swiftly spreading to his limbs and bones after a short while.
Xu Yang naturally wouldn’t waste such an opportunity, and immediately sat up, orienting his Five Hearts towards Yuan, and continued cultivating the “Five Spirits and Five Elements True Jue”.
“Huff!”
A Light Wind swept by, rustling the reeds.
Waves formed on the water, striking the side of the small boat, causing it to continuously rock.
Xu Yang sat erect, as stable as Mount Tai, while the aura of the Yuan Spirit swirled towards him, forming a vortex.
As such, the sun gradually set.
The dying light, like blood, finally dropped behind the western hills.
That night, the moon was obscured, the wind fierce, and the stars hidden behind clouds.
An expanse of darkness, thick and impenetrable, could not be dispelled.
Inside the cabin, Xu Yang opened his eyes, instantly brightening the dark chamber with a flash of light.
“Qi Refinement fourth tier, another barrier broken.”
“The demonic qi has been refined, barely adequate.”
“But to sustain this in the long term, my physical body’s strength must be increased.”
“The Thunder-Driving Lightning-Lifting Skill, the Heavenly Thunder Tempering technique, must be cultivated as soon as possible. I wonder if there are electric eels in Wuzhe Lake?”
“Besides, the Five Spirits and Five Elements True Jue can forge the Five Spirits Battle Body, another method for Body Training.”
“I must find a way to gather the Spiritual Objects of the Five Elements…”
Amid these thoughts, Xu Yang lowered his gaze to examine the pitch-black scales left by the demon fish.
“This object belongs to water, though its quality is too low for major use. But if I have enough of it, by extracting a fraction of the water element’s essence from each, similar to the Three Mountains and Five Peaks Seal, and refining them into a treasure, it could just barely qualify as one of the Spirit Objects.”
“There’s water, and earth won’t be difficult; this world is abundant in Yuan, and Wuzhe Lake is so vast, there must be water and Earth Spirit veins within. Extracting a portion and condensing it into a treasure is enough for the cultivation practices of Qi Refinement and Foundation Establishment.”
“The current Five Elements True Jue I possess only reaches the Golden Core stage. Even with my extrapolation along with the efforts of Wandao School, the most we could reach is acquiring a Nascent Soul. I wonder, in this world beyond the methods of demons and monsters, if there exists any Righteous Path techniques for transforming into Divinity.”
“There are also the metal, fire, and wood Spiritual Objects to consider. Wood can be considered for personal cultivation, but as for metal and fire… Fine, first find an island and set roots.”
With no clue where to start, Xu Yang simply got up, steered the boat out of the reeds, and prepared to find an isolated and uninhabited barren island to make his base.
As the name suggests, Wuzhe Lake comprises five interconnected basins, vast in size, with many pathways.
Hence, the lake harbors numerous islands, some large enough to be occupied by pirates and bandits who have established strongholds, becoming so troublesome that even the authorities are greatly vexed.
Although Xu Yang was not a local and unaware of these circumstances, it did not impede his search for a suitable place for himself.
The size of the island did not matter; if there’s Dao, there will be spirit!
This time, he deliberately avoided the central area and chose a desolate island in a region with fewer fish.
The island was small and quite low-lying; come the flood season, it could even be submerged, hence why few people anchored here.
It was now deep autumn, the flood season long past, so there was no need to fear being submerged. Xu Yang anchored his boat ashore and set foot on the island. After surveying it for a while, he nodded in satisfaction.
As an Earth Deity, he could tell at a glance that there was an underground water vein beneath the island, with a peculiar flow that allowed fish to enter but not to leave, leading to a scarcity of fish.
Few fish meant fewer people; aside from the helplessly competing poor souls, fishermen rarely came here to fish.
Not only were there few people, but the Spiritual Energy was also abundant. Although it was not considered a Spirit Vein, it was clearly superior to other places. Just by setting up several Gathering Spirit Arrays, it would be sufficient for his cultivation until the completion of Foundation Establishment.
In addition, the abundance of Spiritual Energy would be greatly beneficial for farming and breeding.
“I’ll have to make time to visit the market and buy some seeds to plant.”
“Breeding must not be neglected either, though I’m not sure whether the contamination from demonic qi will allow for the cultivation of Kind Spirit Monsters.”
Xu Yang pondered his future plans briefly before returning to his boat. He summoned an Evil Ghost from the Yin Altar, letting it use its past life memories to guide him to Fish Market Pie