Everyone who came to see the spiritual rice was amazed; the spiritual field was nothing special, but this spiritual rice was far more outstanding than the surrounding ones!
The Outer Sect Grand Steward looked at Si Qinghe's spiritual rice. The Grand Steward, with his Foundation Establishment cultivation, could sense that the Spiritual Vein beneath this mountain peak was indeed depleted, but the Spiritual Qi in the spiritual field was very abundant. He asked Zhao Hu, "Are you sure this spiritual rice was on the verge of dying before?"
Zhao Hu respectfully replied, "Reporting to Grand Steward, it's true. A few days ago, all these spiritual rice plants were wilting. Then this junior went and carried back some spiritual soil, and they grew like this in a few days. Many people saw it with their own eyes!"
The Grand Steward instructed him, "Go find him and bring him here!"
Zhao Hu replied, "I heard he went to the Hall of External Affairs to take on a mission. This junior owes others two Low-Grade Spirit Stones and can't even pay them back. He's also poisoned, so he's probably trying to earn Spirit Stones to buy Medicinal Pills!"
The Grand Steward's eyes flickered, "Tomorrow, tell him to wait here!"
It seemed the Grand Steward did not believe that merely adding some spiritual soil could make spiritual rice, which was on the verge of death due to a depleted Spiritual Vein, grow like this. He wanted to question Si Qinghe personally!
Si Qinghe had continuously done missions for two days, earning 22 Low-Grade Spirit Stones. He felt delighted. Tomorrow, he would collect his reward and buy detoxification Medicinal Pills. He also wanted to slowly uncover the person who poisoned him. He definitely couldn't let this grudge go unavenged!
Living in this world, sometimes one has to put fangs in one's mouth. A kind person is easily bullied, and a gentle horse is easily ridden! It is very necessary to show some sharpness when appropriate!
He returned only after completing his mission, only to find Zhao Hu waiting at the door for him!
"Grand Steward, you are..."
Si Qinghe's heart sank. Could there be a problem with the spiritual rice?
"Your spiritual rice has grown exceptionally well these past two days. Even the Grand Steward has been alerted. Do you have any secret techniques?"
Si Qinghe's heart trembled, but his expression remained calm: "Grand Steward, you must be joking. If I had a secret technique, I wouldn't be in a situation where I can't even repay two Spirit Stones I owe. I just carried back some spiritual soil and cast a Spirit Rain Spell once!"
Si Qinghe was the worst-off among these Outer Sect Disciples, so Zhao Hu knew him well. This time, he didn't know what kind of luck he had, but his spiritual rice suddenly grew very well. When he said he had no secret technique, Zhao Hu actually believed him!
"The Grand Steward wants to see you. You should wait at the spiritual field tomorrow morning!"
Zhao Hu left after saying that. He had a lot of things to do, and waiting here for a long time made him uncomfortable, especially since he knew this junior had no profit to be squeezed out of him!
He wondered if he had earned enough Spirit Stones to buy Medicinal Pills. He decided to let him off for now!
Upon hearing that even the Grand Steward had been alerted, Si Qinghe immediately ran to the spiritual field to check, despite the darkness, and at first glance, he thought he had seen wrong!
These spiritual rice plants were robust and tall, and their ears were long, surprisingly no worse than the second-grade spiritual rice he cultivated when doing missions with the Spirit Rain Spell!
Si Qinghe was astonished!
This Spiritual Plant Heavenly Book is good. The few techniques it provides are quite useful. This yield, could it reach 900 jin?
But how should he respond to the Grand Steward tomorrow?
Someone who can become a Grand Steward cannot be easily dismissed with just a few words. He had to think it through carefully!
Si Qinghe had no idea that this new version of the Five Elements Spiritual Plant Mind-Cultivation Technique had such an explosive effect. Now, being too outstanding, he had become a target!
He didn't believe the Sect would pamper him like a panda. It would be good enough if they didn't slice him up for research!
What to do?
Fortunately, the two versions of the Spirit Rain Spell he performed could not be distinguished without being on site. The water mist gathered in the same way; only one had Spiritual Qi and the other did not. The rest were similar, and could not be seen from a distance!
So, if the Heavenly Book version of the Spirit Rain Spell was used without hand gestures, would there be other differences?
Thinking this, he tried it again, without hand gestures, but using the Heavenly Book version of the Mind-Cultivation Technique. It could still be performed, but the effect was somewhere in between the two previous versions.
Spiritual Qi gathered, but that Spiritual Qi was much weaker, only about a quarter of what it was with hand gestures!
Tomorrow, could he use this to fool him?
Your spiritual rice has grown so suddenly; if you don't give a reason, people won't believe it!
Si Qinghe tossed and turned all night, feeling uneasy, wondering if he could get away with this.
Unconsciously, dawn broke. Si Qinghe meditated for a while, recovered some of his energy, and then went to the edge of the spiritual field to wait.
Some Outer Sect Disciples came early to admire this miracle, each filled with envy, jealousy, and hatred. They had also dug spiritual soil from the mine, but why had there been no reaction after two nights?
Some wanted to ask directly, but felt it was inappropriate. They weren't familiar with him, so why should he tell them the secret to increased production?
They had previously thought they had found the secret to Si Qinghe's increased production and had even mocked him for not secretly hiding his actions from everyone. If they had such a secret, they would definitely not let anyone see it!
But two days without a reaction made them impatient, their hearts filled with anxiety.
"Could he have another method secretly?"
"It's possible. He returned late that night. Was he secretly playing tricks?"
"Look at him, he seems so straightforward, yet he can also be cunning, using this useless spiritual soil to deceive everyone!"
"If someone has a secret technique, they'll definitely hide it. If you had such a good thing, wouldn't you keep it hidden?"
"I heard the Grand Steward is coming to question him today. Let's see how he explains it! Such a good thing, the Sect will definitely promote it widely. Why should he be the only one who knows it?"
...
The bird that sticks its head out gets shot; the first rafter to stick out rots first. When he was down and out, no one paid attention. When he achieved something, everyone wanted him to hand over his secret technique!
No one came to find Si Qinghe, only Li Minghai came over.
"Junior Brother, you really hide things deeply. Your spiritual rice is growing well. This season will be a great harvest!"
Si Qinghe was very speechless. He had heard many of those people's discussions. Li Minghai coming over surely had the same intention, wanting him to reveal some secret technique or something!
After thinking for a moment, Si Qinghe took out two Low-Grade Spirit Stones: "Thank you, Senior Brother, for your previous assistance. Junior Brother earned some Spirit Stones yesterday. I'll return these two to Senior Brother first, and next time I earn Spirit Stones, I'll treat Senior Brother to spiritual wine!"
Since he was willing to lend him Spirit Stones, this favor had to be repaid. After repaying these two Spirit Stones, he would only have enough to buy detoxification Medicinal Pills. He couldn't afford spiritual wine, so he could only repay this favor next time!
Li Minghai was a bit awkward. He wasn't actually here to collect a debt this time, but since he was returning it, it seemed bad not to accept!
"Junior Brother, you're too polite. Senior Brother isn't in urgent need of them for now. If Junior Brother needs to use them, you can take your time!"
Si Qinghe's spiritual grain was having a bumper harvest, and he was about to earn a sum of Spirit Stones. He could definitely afford to repay two Spirit Stones, so there was no fear of him defaulting!
"I'll return them to Senior Brother first. If I'm short on Spirit Stones next time, I'll come to Senior Brother to borrow again!"
Li Minghai was helpless and had to accept the Spirit Stones. He was still about to ask about the spiritual rice when the Grand Steward and his entourage arrived!
Among the Outer Sect Disciples, the Grand Steward held the most power, the kind who could decide life and death with a single word!
What Si Qinghe had considered the most last night was how to deal with this Grand Steward. He had to explain things as reasonably as possible!
Trying to use spiritual soil from a depleted Spirit Stone mine as an excuse would definitely not work! That would be proven false with a single test; those Outer Sect Disciples who planted spiritual rice had already tested it for him!
He could only use the Heavenly Book version of the Spirit Rain Spell without hand gestures. If the Grand Steward really wanted him to demonstrate, he would continuously use the Spirit Rain Spell, accumulating small amounts to make a large one. Each time, a little Spiritual Qi, but with more repetitions, the effect would be the same!
He didn't plan to add anything extra to the other Five Elements Techniques. He couldn't let people know that each of his techniques was actually different from before!