Wei Changsheng's fingers hovered above the blue-tinged, sprouting wild grass; a faint pull emanated from his fingertips, as if an invisible thread from the roots tugged at his Divine Sense.
He didn't withdraw his hand; instead, he gently pinched the grass blade, which snapped readily, a glistening dewdrop seeping from the break, blue light swirling within it like a living thing.
"The System hasn't acknowledged it, but it's definitely growing," he murmured to himself.
"This means it's not a data omission, but rather... ecological-level contamination has begun."
He put the grass blade into his Storage Pouch and turned back to the grass shed.
Inside, the light was dim, with only a faint glow coming from a few bags of Spirit Grain husks piled in the corner.
He took out three ordinary Spirit Rice plants from his in my arms and then pulled out a small pinch of mutated Ninglu Grass powder—this was leftover scraps from a previous Formation arrangement, still containing spiritual energy but no longer enough to trigger illusions, perfect for "adulterating."
He evenly sprinkled the powder at the roots of the Spirit Rice, covered them with his palm, and slowly injected spiritual power.
The grass powder dissolved upon contact with spiritual energy, and amid swirling gray mist, the three rice seedlings visibly grew taller and sprouted ears at a speed visible to the naked eye, producing plump grains in just ten breaths.
"Artificial cultivation sample, Number One, complete."
He placed the rice seedlings in a clay pot, set it in the center of the table, and then unfastened the small hoe from his waist, leaning it against the pot intentionally, with the runic side facing out, as if placed casually, but actually at a precise angle to immediately draw the attention of anyone approaching to the circulating spiritual lines.
"Spiritual Artifact assistance and Family Legacy are both indispensable," he nodded.
"The act must be complete."
He took out a blank Jade Slip and wrote with his brush: "Nine Revolutions Qi Cultivation Method · Preliminary Explanation."
His brush paused, then he added: "Three money of Yin Soil, five point of Yang Sand, collect dew at Yin hour, guide Qi into the meridians."
After writing, he still felt it wasn't enough, so he deliberately altered two places, crossing out "Yang Sand" and changing it to "Sun Essence Fragments," and adding a note next to it: "Or perhaps tempering with morning light can substitute," his handwriting messy, as if thinking as he wrote.
"The cultivation world falls for this," he blew on the Jade Slip.
"They get dizzy at the sound of profound terminology, and with some professional edits, they immediately think it's practical notes, not made up."
He tucked the Jade Slip into his sleeve and was about to stand up when he suddenly heard approaching footsteps outside, three people walking abreast, their steps uniform, the crisp sound of spiritual shoes on the ground—this wasn't the casual rhythm of Outer Sect Servants, but the disciplined pace only Inner Sect Disciples possessed.
"They're here."
He quickly moved the clay pot to the entrance, then squatted beside it, pretending to inspect the roots, a hint of awkwardness immediately appearing on his face.
Three Inner Sect Disciples stopped outside the field path.
The leader was a young man wearing a jade crown, with an enforcement token hanging from his waist, his gaze as sharp as a knife.
Behind him, the two others each held a spiritual disk, slowly sweeping it across the fields.
"Are you Wei Changsheng?" the jade-crowned Disciple spoke, his voice not loud, but carrying a sense of oppression.
"Yes, this junior is," Wei Changsheng lowered his head, unconsciously rubbing the corner of his clothes.
"I didn't know Senior Brothers were coming; I apologize for not greeting you sooner."
"No need for formalities," the jade-crowned Disciple said coldly.
"Last night, Li Mang and others came here to cause trouble, claiming you used illusion arts to drive people away and also displayed 'Instant Spirit Rice.' The Sect received a report and has come to verify."
Wei Changsheng's heart tightened, but his face showed a look of sudden realization: "Oh! So it's about that... Alas, it's truly a misunderstanding."
"Misunderstanding?" another Disciple sneered.
"You can cause collective hallucinations and make Spirit Rice sprout in three breaths; you call this a misunderstanding?"
"It's not illusion art," Wei Changsheng shook his head, his tone sincere.
"It's a planting method passed down from my ancestors."
He pointed to the rice seedlings in the clay pot: "These are experimental samples this junior just cultivated, using the 'Nine Revolutions Qi Cultivation Method,' which emphasizes the Yin and Yang soil ratio, supplemented by morning dew to draw in Qi, stimulating the potential of the spiritual seeds.
Those Senior Brothers just now stepped on the field path, triggering the field protection Formation, which caused the unusual phenomenon."
"Field protection Formation?" The jade-crowned Disciple narrowed his eyes.
"You're a Servant; where did you get a Formation?"
Wei Changsheng didn't answer; instead, he gently patted the small hoe.
The runes on the hoe handle flashed, and the soil at the edge of the field slightly swelled, a few withered grasses moving without wind, forming an incomplete five-pointed star shape.
"The Formation core is on this hoe," he whispered.
"It's an ancestral Spiritual Artifact; it only recognizes Bloodline."
The three men's expressions subtly changed.
A Spiritual Artifact capable of driving earth veins, even if incomplete, was certainly not something a Servant could possess.
The jade-crowned Disciple's gaze sharpened, and he waved his hand, signaling: "Bring the Tracing Talisman."
The Disciple behind him immediately took out a green talisman paper and activated it with a hand seal.
The talisman paper floated towards the clay pot, circled the rice seedlings three times, and finally stopped in mid-air, perfectly still.
"No System spiritual charm, no high-level Spiritual Pressure residue," the Disciple holding the talisman frowned.
"It's just ordinary Spirit Rice, but the growth cycle is abnormally shortened."
"I told you, it's a cultivation method," Wei Changsheng seized the opportunity to pick up the Jade Slip and offer it with both hands.
"This is a preliminary explanation of the Qi Cultivation Method recorded by this junior; if there are any inadequacies, please Senior Brother, correct me."
The jade-crowned Disciple took the Jade Slip, glanced at it, and his eyebrows twitched slightly.
It not only had a formula but also three records of failure: "Spirit Seed died violently," "Field Vein backlash," "Yang Qi rushed counter-currently," the handwriting mottled, the ink varying in depth, clearly left by long-term recording.
"You said this method was passed down by your ancestors?" he looked up.
"Yes," Wei Changsheng nodded.
"My ancestor was once a Spirit Farmer Family, but later declined due to war, leaving only this Legacy.
This junior's Aptitude is dull; I've only managed to grasp the superficial aspects so far."
The jade-crowned Disciple was silent for a moment, then suddenly said: "Then demonstrate it once now."
Wei Changsheng's heart skipped a beat, but his face remained calm: "I can.
However, this method consumes a lot of spiritual energy; this junior, at Qi Condensation third layer, can barely manage it.
If Senior Brother wishes to study it in depth, I fear it requires Qi Condensation Perfection to master."
After he finished speaking, he took out a handful of ordinary Spirit Rice from his Storage Pouch, scooped half a bowl of clear water, poured the rice into the pot, formed a hand seal, and recited: "Three Yin and Three Yang, Five Elements return to their places, morning dew guides Qi, life force reveals itself!"
As his voice faded, the small hoe subtly vibrated, and a wisp of System Spiritual Pressure quietly seeped into the water.
The rice grains, upon encountering spiritual energy, rapidly absorbed water and expanded; three breaths later, tender sprouts broke through their husks, vibrant with green.
The three men's pupils slightly contracted.
"This... is this really a cultivation method?" the Disciple holding the disk asked, his voice tight.
"Absolutely true," Wei Changsheng withdrew his spiritual power, took a breath, his face slightly pale.
"Each activation consumes half of my spiritual power, so although the harvest is good, the output is limited."
The jade-crowned Disciple stared at him for a long time, then finally nodded: "It's on record; this matter is temporarily concluded.
But if your method is truly effective, it will attract attention sooner or later.
Take care of yourself."
"This junior understands," Wei Changsheng bowed.
"If the Sect needs it, this junior is willing to compile the secret art into a book and submit it to the Outer Sect for record, never to hide it privately."
The three men exchanged glances, said no more, and turned to leave.
Wei Changsheng stood in place until the footsteps completely disappeared, then slowly straightened his back.
He turned back to the shed, took another Jade Slip from under the table, and quickly wrote: "Inner Sect has investigated, Tracing Talisman is fine, the narrative passed, credibility initially established."
He then pulled out the previous "Nine Revolutions Qi Cultivation Method" Jade Slip and added a line of small characters at the end: "This method requires Qi Condensation Perfection to control; forced activation can easily lead to Spiritual Vein collapse."
After writing, he tucked the Jade Slip into a pile of miscellaneous documents, deliberately leaving a corner exposed, as if accidentally misplaced.
"Set the bar high to deter latecomers," he sneered.
"By the time you actually cultivate to Perfection, I'll have already charged the System to ten acres of land."
He was about to put his hand away when he suddenly felt the blue-tinged wild grass in his Storage Pouch faintly heating up.
He took it out and saw that the grass blade had grown another half an inch, and the blue light was even more intense than before.
"Still growing?" he frowned.
"The System's influence is spreading... I need to activate silent mode as soon as possible."
He took out the bag of three hundred Intermediate Spirit Stones and was about to open it when the little fox suddenly jumped down from the shed roof and slapped his wrist with a paw.
Wei Changsheng was startled.
The little fox looked up, its eyes serious, and with a gentle sweep of its tail, it pointed towards the depths of the field.
He followed its gaze and saw that in the turned soil, a wild grass was slowly sprouting, its leaf edges tinged with a faint blue, and within its veins, extremely fine runic patterns had appeared, identical to the runes on the small hoe.