Chapter Thirty-Five: Moving In
Amidst the flattery of the residents in the slum district, Qin Ming and Old Cai continued driving away.
They traveled all the way to Qingyang Market, arriving at the entrance of the courtyard. Qin Ming had already prepared a new signboard and hung it up—“Cool Retreat Cottage.”
Simple and unadorned.
He had decided to keep a low profile, abandoning any ostentatious name like “Qin Residence.”
As soon as they entered the courtyard, Old Cai was immediately struck by the abundance of spiritual energy. Compared to the slum district, it was a world apart.
“So this is the Spiritual Gathering Formation, combined with the dense aura of a second-grade spiritual vein?”
No wonder so many cultivators went to such lengths to snatch a spot here.
Qin Ming took a deep breath. “From now on, this is where I’ll cultivate.”
Before long, the two of them had moved everything inside and finished tidying up. Old Cai, like Granny Liu touring the Grand View Garden, wandered the courtyard three times, unable to tear himself away.
If he had to sum up his feelings in four words at that moment: “Envy of all others!”
Afterward, Qin Ming brought Old Cai to the Gathering Pavilion.
Manager Liao greeted them with a beaming, enthusiastic smile, hurrying to lead them into a superior private room.
“Congratulations, congratulations to Daoist Qin on advancing to a mid-grade spiritual botanist—another step further on the Immortal Path!”
“Come! Allow me to toast Daoist Qin.”
The table was laden with fine wine and excellent dishes.
Qin Ming was in high spirits today, raising his glass and drinking with the other two.
One cup after another, the rounds of toasts continued.
After three rounds, Qin Ming took out his harvest of Golden Spirit Rice for the year’s three quarters and sold it to Manager Liao—eighteen dan in total, earning another six hundred spirit stones.
His previously flattened purse of spirit stones swelled a bit once more.
Sated with food and drink, Qin Ming and Old Cai left the Gathering Pavilion.
Old Cai departed to attend to his own affairs. Qin Ming returned to his “Cool Retreat Cottage.”
The courtyard was spacious, housing a main building, two side rooms, a meditation chamber for cultivation, and a materials processing room.
There were also two mu of spiritual herb fields, but all the herbs had already been taken away by the members of the Ruan family.
It would be easy for Qin Ming to plant other spiritual crops here.
His courtyard was an “A-grade” residence in the eastern district of the market center, nestled at the foot of Mang Mountain.
From here, one could see, far in the distance, the summit of a range of mountains shrouded in immortal mist and lined with palaces—that was where the headquarters of the Lingyu Sect was located.
All the surrounding neighbors kept their courtyards tightly shut.
Qin Ming swept the area with his spiritual sense and found that the formations isolating each residence were impenetrable. Even from the outside, it was impossible to see the details within with the naked eye.
Next, Qin Ming cleared out the two mu of spiritual fields in his courtyard.
He then planted all the Blood Locust Rice seeds, skillfully urging them to grow.
After two hours, the Blood Locust Rice had all sprouted. Two new entries appeared for the fields:
[Name]: Blood Locust Rice [Trait]: Abundant Vitality (Maturity 1%)
[Name]: Blood Locust Rice [Trait]: Abundant Vitality (Maturity 2%)
Qin Ming’s eyes lit up. With these two, he now had three “Abundant Vitality” entries.
Seven days passed in succession.
Qin Ming finally urged the Blood Locust Rice to maturity, producing spiritual rice panicles. With a thought, the green leaf in his sea of consciousness vanished as he used the “Quality Enhancement” entry.
In an instant, the two mu of Blood Locust Rice underwent a remarkable transformation.
The rice panicles gradually deepened in color until they turned a dark crimson.
“So this is high-grade Blood Locust Rice?”
“But it’s not enough.”
Qin Ming casually peeled a grain of spiritual rice, murmuring to himself.
He did not hesitate to use his final “Quality Enhancement” entry.
Immediately, he formed seals with his hands and cast the Advanced Spiritual Rain Technique, bringing down a shower of spiritual rain upon the rice.
With the abundant aura provided by the second-grade spiritual vein, the effect was exceptional.
The Blood Locust Rice in the two fields eagerly absorbed the rich spiritual energy from the rain, undergoing further transformation.
Eventually, the rice panicles turned a purplish-red, exuding a demonic luster.
“This is supreme-grade Blood Locust Rice!”
Qin Ming’s eyes shone, and he nearly drooled.
He hurried to harvest, collecting every last grain of the two mu of supreme-grade rice.
At the same time, his sea of consciousness yielded two more “Abundant Vitality” entries.
After harvesting the rice, Qin Ming cleaned all traces from the fields, restoring them to their original state.
He calculated roughly—this harvest had yielded him twelve dan of supreme-grade Blood Locust Rice.
What did this mean? Even a single jin of such rice would cause a sensation in Qingyang Market.
But Qin Ming now possessed twelve dan, more than he could ever eat.
Such was his extravagance.
Still, he knew full well that without sufficient strength, this kind of thing must never leak out—he could only use it to enhance his own cultivation.
Otherwise, he might end up as a specimen for those old monsters to study.
With an abundance of supreme-grade Blood Locust Rice, Qin Ming struck while the iron was hot, sitting cross-legged on a meditation mat to cultivate the “Hundred Treasures Glass Scripture.”
A bowl of freshly cooked supreme-grade Blood Locust Rice was placed before him, emanating rich and potent vitality.
This was something countless people could only dream of.
Qin Ming picked up the bowl and quickly finished the contents.
Boom!
The moment the rice entered his stomach, it transformed into a torrent of pure energy, surging violently through him.
Vast vitality flooded his marrow, sending waves of tingling sensation from deep within his bones.
His energy and blood had already been as thick as mercury; with the addition of such powerful energy, they became even more concentrated.
The surging effect of enhanced vitality grew ever stronger.
Three hours passed before Qin Ming managed to fully digest the energy from the supreme-grade rice.
But he did not stop cultivating.
Instead, he pressed on, using one of the “Abundant Vitality” entries.
Rumble!
The vitality radiating from Qin Ming’s body suddenly expanded outward from him as its center.
The power of his energy and blood was compressed to an extreme degree.
A profound force began to constantly transform and strengthen his body, meridians, sinews, and skin.
In an instant, the energy and blood within him doubled, as if he were a fearsome beast.
He opened his eyes abruptly, and the “Glass Treasure Robe” formed by his vitality became even more solid, nearly tangible.
“I’ve finally broken through to the sixth level!”
Qin Ming’s eyes shone with brilliance, his spirit radiant.
He could feel his physique was now far more formidable and domineering than before, with more than double the vitality.
A sense of grandeur surged within him.
With the dual accumulation of the supreme-grade Blood Locust Rice and the “Hundred Treasures Glass Scripture,” he was now many times stronger than other body refinement cultivators at his level.
For a moment, he was overflowing with joy.
Qin Ming could clearly sense the explosive power hidden within his body—now, even if he faced someone at the late stage of the Qi Refining Realm, he would have the strength to fight.
Even if he could not win, he could escape unscathed.
“If only I could break through to the seventh level of the ‘Hundred Treasures Glass Scripture.’”
“The seventh level corresponds to entering the late stage of body refinement.”
“According to the beast hide manual, when this technique is cultivated to the seventh level, one's vitality will become completely solidified and undergo a qualitative change, transforming into a brand-new ‘True Vitality Gang’—invincible and unstoppable!”
Qin Ming’s eyes gleamed with excitement. With so much supreme-grade Blood Locust Rice and vitality entries at his disposal, he knew that he was growing ever closer to this breakthrough.