Chapter Sixty: Celebration

"Congratulations to Daoist Qin on advancing to High-grade Spirit Planter!"

Hearing these words, Gu Qingzhao was momentarily taken aback. Then a delighted smile blossomed on her red lips as she offered her heartfelt congratulations.

Manager Liao, standing nearby, was visibly excited as well. "Congratulations, Daoist Qin, on breaking through to High-grade Spirit Planter. This is another step forward on your immortal path!"

Qin Ming’s achievement brought obvious benefits to Gathering Pavilion, for he was now in close cooperation with them.

Manager Liao couldn’t help but feel a touch of emotion. He remembered how, in years past, this young man had needed to sneak through the back door just to sell his spiritual rice. Now, he had become someone even Liao himself hoped to befriend.

After all, among rogue cultivators, High-grade Spirit Planters were rare as phoenix feathers. Even within sects, their status was just beneath the inner elders and core disciples.

Moreover, once one became a High-grade Spirit Planter, one gained the qualifications to independently apply for leases of spiritual fields on a second-tier spiritual vein. After all, as one needed to cultivate higher-level spiritual plants in the future, the spiritual energy of first-tier veins was already insufficient.

Qin Ming was in high spirits. "Thank you both for waiting. Let me treat you to a drink at Gathering Pavilion to celebrate."

Afterward, under the witness of several elders and Gu Qingzhao, Qin Ming lit up the third leaf on his Spirit Planter’s badge, officially becoming a High-grade Spirit Planter.

He also extended the lease on Su Yuqing’s house in the shantytown.

Once everything was settled, Qin Ming bade farewell to Elder Zhuang and left the Steward Hall.

Inside, the four elders sat together, exchanging glances.

"Well, Zhuang, how did this kid manage it?"

"You didn’t go easy on him, did you?"

"Easy my foot! To be honest, I didn’t see this coming either."

"…"

"So what now?"

"Let fate decide. After all, second-tier spiritual plants aren’t easily cultivated."

"You all know this from experience."

"If this kid manages to find another way to obtain a spot and passes the trial of the Forest Illusion, then I will have nothing more to say."

...

At Gathering Pavilion, Qin Ming and Gu Qingzhao had just reached the entrance when they ran into an old acquaintance.

It was none other than his neighbor, Alchemist Yan.

"Hey! Daoist Qin! Long time no see. Off to Gathering Pavilion for a drink?" Alchemist Yan spotted Qin Ming from afar, came over, and greeted him.

As he drew closer and saw Gu Qingzhao at Qin Ming’s side, he was a little surprised. He knew very well that Gu Qingzhao’s background was anything but simple.

Alchemist Yan often sold and bought spiritual materials at Gathering Pavilion for his own pill refining, so he recognized the forces behind Gu Qingzhao.

He hurriedly greeted her. "Master Gu, you and Daoist Qin know each other?"

Gu Qingzhao nodded slightly. "Indeed. Daoist Qin is an honored guest of the Pavilion and has just been promoted to High-grade Spirit Planter today."

"Daoist Yan, since we’ve run into each other, why not join us for a drink?" Qin Ming greeted Alchemist Yan and extended the invitation.

Alchemist Yan’s head buzzed; he stood there stunned for a long moment.

"What?"

"High… High-grade Spirit Planter?"

"So soon?"

...

Soon after, Manager Liao instructed the staff to set up a lavish banquet in a private room.

At the table, Alchemist Yan, his face flushed, took an ancient wooden box from his storage pouch and handed it to Qin Ming. "Today marks your breakthrough, Daoist Qin. Please accept this humble gift as a token of my esteem."

Qin Ming couldn’t refuse his goodwill and accepted the box with thanks. "Thank you, Daoist Yan."

After that, Alchemist Yan toasted Qin Ming. "I’ve already sent a message to a few of our other neighbors. They should be here soon."

"Since it’s such a joyous occasion, everyone should celebrate together!"

Qin Ming was caught off guard, not expecting Alchemist Yan to invite the others.

At this moment, Gu Qingzhao suddenly spoke. "Daoist Qin, since that’s the case, why not invite Alchemist Su as well?"

Qin Ming replied, "Oh, you may not know, Daoist Gu, but Brother Su left the Cloud Marsh Wilds some time ago."

A trace of regret flickered in Gu Qingzhao’s beautiful eyes. "I didn’t expect Alchemist Su to have left."

At the side, Alchemist Yan, cup in hand, was dumbstruck. "Daoist Qin, you know Alchemist Su as well?"

Manager Liao, smiling, interjected, "More than just acquaintances—Daoist Qin’s pill refining skills were personally guided by Alchemist Su."

Alchemist Yan was astonished. "Pill refining? Guided by Alchemist Su?"

"Exactly. Daoist Qin is now not only a High-grade Spirit Planter but also a genuine Mid-grade Alchemist," Manager Liao explained.

Now Alchemist Yan could hardly sit still.

"Daoist Qin, you never mentioned you were a Mid-grade Alchemist!"

"Sigh, it seems I underestimated you."

He lamented his own age, recalling the brilliance of Su Yuqing, who had become a High-grade Alchemist at such a young age. Now Qin Ming too was a Mid-grade Alchemist, also so young.

"Truly, the younger generation surpasses the old!"

Before long, several of Qin Ming’s neighbors arrived as well.

All were surprised to see Master Gu herself present.

"Daoist Qin, who would’ve thought you’d advance to High-grade Spirit Planter so quickly? Congratulations!" Huang Xishan, a High-grade Artifact Refiner from the Refinement Hall, offered his best wishes.

He presented a finely crafted long wooden box as a congratulatory gift to Qin Ming.

Qin Ming opened it slightly and found inside a beautifully made spiritual hoe.

"Heh, I forged this spiritual hoe on a whim years ago. Its quality matches any ordinary Mid-grade magical tool. Now, it’s perfect for you."

Clearly, Huang Xishan was eager to befriend him. Among the neighbors, only Qin Ming had, like him, reached the High-grade level in one of the Hundred Cultivation Arts.

He already regarded Qin Ming as a peer.

The Feng brothers came as well, offering their congratulations and a plain but generous gift—a small pouch containing two hundred spirit stones.

"Heh, Daoist Qin, who’d have thought you’d be so gifted in spirit planting? In just a year’s time, you’ve quietly surpassed us all," Lin Zixiao joked good-naturedly, presenting his own congratulatory gift.

Lin Zixiao’s gift was a set of warning formations, quite useful in their own right.

For a while, the private room was filled with laughter and lively conversation.

In the minds of these cultivators, Qin Ming’s status was now entirely different from before.

Such a young High-grade Spirit Planter might soon advance again to become a Second-tier Spirit Planter.

By then, it would be too late to try to befriend him.

After several rounds of toasts, the celebration ended in a harmonious and festive atmosphere.

...

When Qin Ming returned to the Cool Breeze Cottage, excitement sparkled in his eyes.

"So close—only one more step to becoming a Second-tier Spirit Planter!"