Outside the town, in the Spirit Field.
By the time the farm work was done, the sun was already setting in the west. Fortunately, the Spirit Field was not far from the market.
Lin Changsheng circulated his spiritual power according to his memory, quickening his pace. His speed was as fast as a galloping horse, and the scenery on both sides of the road rapidly receded.
After a few cups of tea, the tall and majestic Qingmu Town came into view.
Qingmu Town is located on a plain outside the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain Range.
It was named Qingmu Town because the mountains on both sides are covered with lush vegetation, all consisting of giant green trees over a hundred zhang tall that remain evergreen all year round.
In addition, according to rumors, these green trees are a strange phenomenon caused by the influence of a thousand-zhang giant tree, which is the core of the Formation within the city. As for whether it is true or false, a small Cultivator like Lin Changsheng has no way of knowing.
...
The market before him was extremely large, stretching about two hundred li from east to west.
The city walls were dozens of zhang high, engraved with various unknown inscriptions, and the Restriction spiritual light, which flashed from time to time, contained immense power. When activated with a Formation, even several Golden Core Yao Beasts would be unable to break through, making it truly impregnable.
Lin Changsheng felt both familiar and unfamiliar with all of this. The original owner had lived here for ten years, but he was penniless and had only visited the market a handful of times.
Qingmu Town is built on a Third-Stage Spiritual Vein and is divided into an outer city and an inner city. The outer city is mostly shops and restaurants, bustling with people, and extremely lively.
The inner city, on the other hand, is a blessed land with extremely rich Spiritual Qi, mostly rented out to wealthy Cultivators.
It is divided into four grades of residences: A, B, C, and D. Although the prices are extremely expensive, Cultivating within them can yield twice the results with half the effort.
Some Loose Cultivators who are short on Spirit Stones will occasionally grit their teeth and rent for a month or two to increase their chances of breaking through a Bottleneck.
Outside the city walls, on the other hand, were the residences of low-level Cultivators like Lin Changsheng, the "Shantytown."
Loose Cultivators in the Shantytown often enter the mountains and never return or encounter various accidents.
Therefore, the houses built there are simple wooden and stone structures, haphazardly put together. They are chaotic and completely lack the style of an Immortal Cultivator, looking more like a refugee camp.
Furthermore, the most important point is that the Immortal City intentionally designed it this way. If everyone lived in grand houses with carved railings and jade decorations, how could the noble status of the Cultivators within the Immortal City be reflected?
The only thing worth mentioning is that the rent for houses here is extremely cheap, costing only six Spirit Stones a year.
However, this also led to the city's law enforcement team being too lazy to manage this area, resulting in extremely chaotic order in the Shantytown.
Normally, as long as no major incidents occur, law enforcement patrols are rare. Once someone reveals their wealth, murder and treasure snatching often happen.
Lin Changsheng's residence was at the end of Yimu Lane in the Shantytown, a rather secluded location.
Fortunately, he was just a farmer, wearing coarse linen clothes stained with yellow dirt, and his cultivation was low. He looked like someone without a penny, so no one targeted him. He lived peacefully for many years.
As soon as he reached his doorstep, he heard a burst of teasing laughter.
"Oh, Fellow Daoist Lin, haven't seen you in a few days. Did you go to see your old lover?"
The door opened, and a mature female Cultivator, about thirty years old, walked out. She wore a light purple Daoist robe, heavily made up with fiery red lips.
Her Qi Refining Fourth Stage cultivation and ordinary facial features were complemented by a full and shapely figure and a mature, gentle smile. Her eyes exuded the charm of a young married woman, which was very attractive to bachelors.
Searching his memory, this was his neighbor, Wang Tao. She wasn't a bad person, but she often enjoyed teasing his honest predecessor.
Her Dao Companion was a fierce-looking, burly man, a Peak expert at Qi Refining Sixth Stage.
The two of them hunted Yao Beasts in the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain Range year-round and lived quite comfortably.
It was precisely because of them that the original owner had the idea of breaking through to the Qi Refining Middle Stage and venturing into the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain Range.
As for the "old lover" she mentioned, that was a confidante of his former self. They had long gone their separate ways and hadn't seen each other for years.
Although this female neighbor was enthusiastic, she often found amusement in teasing Lin Changsheng.
Suppressing the unrealistic thoughts in his mind.
"I've been in seclusion these past few days, trying to break through a Bottleneck. Unfortunately, I was just a hair short and failed. As for an old lover, that's nonsense. She was just an old friend from my mortal days. I haven't seen her in years."
Saying this, he shook his head helplessly.
"That's truly a pity, Fellow Daoist Lin. If you had broken through to the Qi Refining Middle Stage, perhaps you could have come with me to the Ten Thousand Beasts Mountain Range to see for yourself."
Seeing that Lin Changsheng was not in the mood for much conversation, Wang Tao said a few words, then twisted her swaying, plump hips and turned to leave.
Lin Changsheng retracted his gaze, opened the door, and returned to his home.
The entire house was not large, about a hundred square meters, bare and simply furnished. It was evident that the original owner was devoted to the Dao and did not care much for worldly possessions.
There was a front hall, a bedroom, and a cultivation room.
In the center of the front hall, there were several square stones, on which rested a worn iron pot.
Next to it was a rice jar half the height of a person.
At this moment, Lin Changsheng collected his thoughts, feeling a rumble in his stomach.
"There's not much spirit rice left."
Opening the rice jar, Lin Changsheng felt a chill in his heart.
Qi Refining Cultivators, being mortal flesh and blood, are far from being able to abstain from food. Eating mortal food would also affect their Cultivation.
Spirit rice, however, is not only cheap but also filling and promotes Cultivation... It has many advantages. Because of this, even the most impoverished Loose Cultivators would grit their teeth and buy some spirit rice.
Lin Changsheng set up the iron pot, put in a spoonful of spirit rice, and poured in a small basin of water.
A large fire rose, and after a cup of tea, a fragrant aroma wafted from the pot.
The rice grains were glistening, as large as pearls, and as white as jade. They emitted a faint herbal fragrance. It could be described as perfect in color, aroma, and taste, far beyond what mortal food could compare to.
Scooping up a bowl of rice, Lin Changsheng eagerly began to eat.
It was soft and sticky, with a faint sweetness. Even plain, just eating spirit rice could be called a delicacy.
"This Immortal Cultivation, putting everything else aside, just the food is truly extraordinary, surpassing that of kings and generals."
"I heard there's also Juxian Tower in the city, which serves spirit food. I really want to taste that."
Lin Changsheng praised while stuffing large mouthfuls of spirit rice into his mouth.
After eating and drinking his fill, he was about to get up to Cultivate.
Suddenly, his mind warmed, and he remembered that his former self had secretly kept two and a half Spirit Stones for emergencies.
Lin Changsheng's eyes lit up. This amount of Spirit Stones could buy a lot of spirit rice.
He immediately rummaged through his belongings, finding that his home was even emptier than a rat's rice jar.
One spirit hoe, two and a half Spirit Stones, thirteen taels of gold, and fifteen jin of spirit rice. These were all his possessions.
Lowering his gaze, Lin Changsheng took a deep breath, feeling the difficulty.
"Fortunately, this year's rent has been paid, otherwise I wouldn't even have a place to live. It will still be a long time until the spirit rice matures, so I must be frugal from now on."
As for daring not to pay rent, if caught, one would have to mine spirit ore for Baiyun Sect for three years for free.
If Lin Changsheng, with his meager cultivation, were to mine spirit ore for three years, he would be stumbling when he came out.
As for the gold, he couldn't help but hold it in his palm and rub it vigorously.
It was orange-yellow and shiny, glittering with golden light.
"This is gold!"
If he had possessed so much gold before, it would have been no different from achieving Immortal Ascension on the spot.
Having come here, one could only say it was marginally better than dirt.
This gold could only buy some mortal food without any Spiritual Qi. If his neighbors saw it, he would be mocked.
After all, for a dignified Immortal Cultivator to be so poor that he couldn't afford spirit rice was truly a loss of face.
Exhaling slowly, Lin Changsheng suppressed the complex thoughts in his mind.