Chapter 2: Spiritual Plant Master
"Chen'er, at your age, you don't need to worry about Spirit Stones. It's fine to go out and play with your Family's Buddy or practice basic Five Elements Spells."
Bai Jiu'an found that his nephew was truly too precocious. At that age, he was still playing in the dirt and snatching toys from the neighbor's dog. Even after his Spiritual Root was tested, how could such a young child endure boring Cultivation? He would always try to be lazy whenever he had the chance.
It wasn't until he was fifteen or sixteen, and his Heart-Nature settled, that he understood the importance of Cultivation and began to take it seriously.
Today, Bai Zichen was wearing a brand new azure uniform Dao robe. On his chest was a thriving clump of dark bamboo, which was one of the benefits all Cultivators of the Bai Family could receive from the Family.
The Dao robe was made of ordinary Materials, but it was embroidered with silk Talismanic Incantations that automatically cleaned and repaired cracks. In the outside market, it would cost at least five Spirit Stones.
A new brocade pouch hung at his waist, containing two Spirit Stones and a stack of Talismanic Incantations—the former being the annual tribute he, as a first-level Qi Refinement Stage Cultivator, could receive from the Family, and the latter being a Qi Refining into Body gift from his Senior Bai Jiu'an.
Spirit Stones, as the circulating currency of the Cultivation world and an indispensable item in Cultivation, their importance was self-evident. Although Bai Zichen did not yet understand the pricing system of the Cultivation world, from the knowledge he gained from miscellaneous notes, he knew that two Spirit Stones probably wouldn't suffice.
"Senior, the books say that among the hundred arts of immortal Cultivation, Artifact Refining, Alchemy, and Talisman Drawing are the three easiest professions to earn Spirit Stones in the Cultivation world. Why did you become a Spiritual Plant Master?"
Bai Zichen, though young, had already decided that he must learn a money-making skill. His paternal Senior was naturally the best channel, but unfortunately, his Senior was not proficient in any of the highly regarded skills.
"Those three professions have extremely high demands on Aptitude, and in the early stages, they require a massive investment of resources for cultivation. Besides Sects like Qingfeng Sect, which Family would specifically Cultivate such talents?"
Bai Jiu'an reached out and touched his young nephew's head, not getting angry over the child's question.
"For example, an Alchemist, even for the lowest grade Medicinal Pills, a single furnace requires an investment of hundreds of Spirit Stones in Materials. Dozens of failures are enough to severely impact a small Family."
"And don't underestimate a Spiritual Plant Master. This job doesn't require much investment, and if one or two raw Spiritual Plants succeed in cultivation, the benefits won't be small either."
No matter how you put it, the future of a Spiritual Plant Master cannot compare to that of an Alchemist or Artifact Refiner; it's mainly because the investment is small.
Bai Zichen muttered to himself, not having much prejudice against the Spiritual Plant Master profession. He was still young, and there was no way for him to learn the other high-end professions. Starting as a Spiritual Plant Master was a good idea.
Bai Jiu'an led Bai Zichen to a bamboo forest, pinched his fingers, and cast a Spell. A few faint green lights danced around his fingertips before entering the bamboo in front of him. The bamboo leaves rustled, and in an instant, the bamboo visibly became much more vibrant, and its branches and leaves seemed to grow denser.
"The Yi Wood Azure God Art, a unique Spell passed down by our ancestors, is one of a kind in the entire Black Mountain County. It greatly benefits plants, not only promoting growth and restoring vitality but also refining essence and enhancing their fundamental nature. It is by virtue of this Spell that the Spiritual Plants cultivated by our Bai Family are quite famous throughout Black Mountain County and are the Family's most important output."
Bai Jiu'an introduced and cast Spells simultaneously, successfully enchanting several acres of bamboo in a short while.
"Huh, isn't this the dark bamboo planted outside the town? Is it also a type of Spiritual Plant?"
Bai Zichen carefully observed it twice. Besides being deeper in color and more vibrant, these bamboos were not much different from the large tracts of dark bamboo planted in dark bamboo Town.
"Haha, you guessed right, kid. This is dark bamboo, but it's still far from being a Spiritual Plant!"
It turned out that when the Bai Family's ancestors first settled in the Black Mountain Mountain Range, they obtained a bag of first-grade Low Grade Spiritual Plant Xuan Mo Bamboo seeds from a Senior's legacy. Later, they successfully cultivated and continuously bred them, and the scale of the bamboo forest grew larger and larger.
However, as time passed, a large number of newly grown Xuan Mo Bamboo degenerated into ordinary dark bamboo, which was only slightly tougher in Material than ordinary bamboo. But as long as a Spiritual Plant Master carefully cared for them, coupled with the cumulative effect of thousands of Yi Wood Azure God Arts, it was possible for them to re-advance and become Xuan Mo Bamboo again.
And the dark bamboo planted everywhere outside the Mortal town was naturally at the behest of the Bai Family Cultivators, so that they would have enough reserve bamboo.
"Within our Family's territory, there are dozens of nameless mountains like this. When you reach the Middle Stage of Qi Refinement, which is the fourth level of the Qi Refinement Stage, you can apply to the Family for one, specifically to open up Spiritual Fields and Cultivate Spiritual Plants. For now, you can practice on my Fufeng Ridge."
Bai Zichen was delighted to hear this. This Family benefit was quite good. Such a small mountain was enough to accommodate hundreds of Mortals, a territory he wouldn't even dare to dream of in his previous life.
About two to three hundred dark bamboos occupied the most Spirit Qi-rich area on Fufeng Ridge. Behind it was a cliff, with lush vines climbing on the mountain wall, and looking down, there was a pool only a few meters wide.
On the other side, a flat area about a hundred zhang long and wide had been cleared, planted with a fiery red crop that glowed like fire, with slender stems and leaves that grew to waist height.
A gentle breeze made them all sway to one side and then stretch back, looking like undulating waves of fire, which left Bai Zichen, who saw it for the first time, in a daze. At the corner of the flat ground, a wall had also been built, with three solitary, dusty houses inside.
When dealing with this red crop, Bai Jiu'an was much more perfunctory. A single Yi Wood Azure God Art covered a large area of the Spiritual Field, the green light so faint it was barely visible to the naked eye. He finished it in no time.
"Yangyan Grass. After it matures, it can be used to make Talisman Paper for first-grade Low Grade fire-attribute Spiritual Talismans. It's not worth much; this large patch probably sells for only a dozen or so Spirit Stones. But the advantage is that it doesn't require much Spirit Qi and is extremely easy to Cultivate, requiring little effort to care for. Most low-level Cultivators will plant some."
Bai Jiu'an had already realized that his nephew could not be treated as an ordinary child. For half a day, he had been very serious about every detail in caring for the Spiritual Plants, asking questions repeatedly when he didn't understand something, without any impatience or boredom. So, he simply began to introduce things to him proactively.
"I only come here when I need to care for the Spiritual Plants. I stay here for less than half a month a year, so I only built simple houses back then. In a few more years, when Senior reaches the Late Stage of Qi Refinement, he can bring a few Mortal servants into the mountains to take care of our lives and handle some chores."
In the beginning, the Bai Family lived together with Mortals, but after several generations, as the number of clansmen increased, some Cultivators raised objections. The Clan Chief of that generation simply set a rule to establish a small town at the foot of the nearby mountain and move all Bai Family Mortals without Spiritual Roots into it.
Only Cultivators who reached the Late Stage of Qi Refinement could apply to bring a certain number of Mortals up the mountain.
This was partly for ease of management and partly to avoid overpopulation disturbing the mountain's Spirit Qi.
However, this rule made things difficult for many low-level Cultivators. Qi Refinement Stage Cultivators had not yet reached the Bigu Realm, so they still had to prepare their own meals, wash clothes, and clean every day, which caused many Cultivators who felt they had soared to greatness and were no longer Mortals after their Spiritual Roots were tested to complain endlessly. Those with an unstable Heart-Nature who loved ease and hated work would never endure such hardship and fatigue, and would escape to the small town at the foot of the mountain to enjoy themselves for a few days whenever they had the chance.
Of course, Bai Jiu'an did not live on Fufeng Ridge mainly because of Family tasks, constantly traveling outside to accumulate Cultivation resources. Otherwise, it would be impossible for him to be only one step away from the Late Stage of Qi Refinement with his Four Spiritual Roots Aptitude.
In the evening, after having a Spiritual Meal with his Senior, Bai Zichen returned to his room—speaking of Spiritual Meal, it was actually just a plot of Spiritual Field roughly cultivated by his Senior, planted with ordinary rice and green vegetables, occasionally receiving the nourishment of the Yi Wood Azure God Art, which did not help Cultivation in the slightest.
Coupled with Bai Jiu'an's poor cooking skills and lack of good ingredients, Bai Zichen, who had been a carnivore in both lives, found it like chewing wax and could only hope that his Senior's Realm would advance soon, and he would find a good cook.