Rising from Small Cloud Rain Technique

Ji An knew what the Earth Dragon Beast was talking about. Just now, the curiosity hanging around his neck emitted spiritual energy, which was absorbed by the Stone Turtle.

’Should I let this great demon see the item?’

He hesitated for a moment but then dismissed the thought.

This curiosity could generate over a hundred units of Kun Spirit annually, which, accumulated over time, would be a significant gain.

“I’m just a Foundation Establishment cultivator. How could I possess a treasure that the Rock Ancestor would covet?”

“That’s true, I might have made a mistake.”

The Earth Dragon Beast shook its head and returned to its original spot, lying down to pretend to sleep again. “Keep your voices down when you speak!”

The aura just flashed momentarily; it wasn’t entirely sure. It had encountered similar situations before.

Jia Yu suppressed a laugh and said softly:

“What’s the matter today? Are you here to exchange and refine spiritual objects again?”

“Yes, I want to exchange for some water-elemental spiritual objects. Is there a sufficient stock?”

Ji An replied, knowing that the Red Flame Peak had Azure Dragon Wood and he had accumulated enough Profound Yellow Soil, only lacking water-elemental spiritual objects.

“The stock is sufficient,” Jia Yu said, somewhat disappointed.

This was a negative effect brought by the Canglan Secret Realm, with nearly a hundred cultivators who needed to exchange spiritual objects suddenly gone, leaving the stock abundant.

If possible, the sect would rather not have such an abundance.

“Can I exchange for more then?”

“Sure.”

“Then I will exchange for three times the previous amount,” Ji An handed over his identity jade token.

Jia Yu entered the secret vault to fetch the spiritual objects and deducted the small merit points on the spirit disc:

“You have 24,916 small merit points left.”

Ji An checked the quantity of the spiritual objects and then asked:

“Junior Martial Uncle, are there any discounts for A-class disciples exchanging for Nourishing Yuan Pills?”

The sect always favors outstanding disciples, and even if not, one must find a way to strive for it.

Rules are dead, but the cultivators who set the rules are alive after all.

“No,” Jia Yu shook his head, “the pills for breaking through the Great Realm involve too much, and even A-class disciples won’t get a discount.

Fifty thousand small merit points must be paid in full.

Unless you have Celestial-Grade talent, you have to dutifully pay all the small merit points to qualify for an exchange.”

“I heard that providing the main herb can reduce the small merit points.”

“Yes, which main herb do you have?”

Jia Yu looked skeptical, as this disciple hadn’t entered the Canglan Secret Realm and would have no access to spiritual medicine.

Could it be from Ge Ying’s private medicinal garden?

“I have them all. I planted some in the medicinal grove of Red Flame Peak. They are now at a hundred years of maturity.

Junior Martial Uncle, consider that I planted these spiritual herbs for only thirty years, and they are already a hundred years old…”

“So, you want to use a hundred-year-old item to offset this year’s debt? No way!

Kid, don’t think just because we’re familiar, you can talk nonsense. I’m not that senile yet.

Besides, you are still far from needing a Nourishing Yuan Pill. You have enough time to accumulate small merit points.”

“Time is running out, Junior Martial Uncle, I’m already at the eighth layer of Foundation Establishment, at this rate…”

Jia Yu released his divine sense and scanned Ji An, immediately understanding the latter’s current realm.

“How are you advancing so quickly? Your current speed is no less than someone with Celestial-Grade talent!”

He was greatly shocked, as this was completely abnormal.

The sect having someone like Li Haoran was already lucky enough; could there be another similar figure?

“I’m just cultivating normally, making breakthroughs naturally.

Well, when I was at Mingfeng Mountain, I comprehended the second realm of Magic Intent Transformation, and it seems my understanding of the cultivation technique has also advanced.”

Ji An recounted the events at Lin Qiubai’s grotto mansion.

Jia Yu probed into the details of that time, finally looking at him with eyes that seemed to see a monster:

“Being able to manifest the cultivation technique’s divine intent, your understanding of the Evergreen Wood Skill surpasses the level of the Foundation Establishment Stage.”

He furrowed his brows in thought for a moment before saying:

“Nourishing Yuan Pills relate to breaking through the Chao Origin Stage. I don’t have the authority to change the rules.

I will inform the ancestor of your situation and let him decide whether to give you any extra privileges.”

“Thank you, Junior Martial Uncle,” Ji An cupped his hands in salute, leaving it to fate whether this would succeed or not.

A few more words did indeed help secure an opportunity.

Jia Yu nodded, offering advice:

“I see you have a hundred great merits on your jade token, which converts to thirty-five thousand small merits, leaving a surplus of only ten thousand points.

With so many Tier Two Spirit Plants in Red Flame Peak, the accumulation of small merit points isn’t slow. You can also borrow some spiritual objects to exchange for small merit points, paying them back later.”

“I will have to rely on that. Junior Martial Uncle, how many batches of Nourishing Yuan Pills can be refined with the spiritual herbs brought out by the sect disciples from the Secret Realm this time?

Can you give me an estimate?”

“Three batches can be refined. Based on previous experience, there’s a sixty percent pill formation success rate, producing four to six pills.”

Ji An thought for a moment and asked:

“If I now have enough small merit points to exchange for a Nourishing Yuan Pill, could I get one from this batch opening?”

“Let me check the sect’s records,” Jia Yu took out his jade token and placed it on the spirit disc to read the exchange information processed by him, saying a moment later:

“There are already five people ahead of you. Had there been no accident with the Canglan Secret Realm, this number would’ve doubled.”

“The sect can’t possibly rely solely on the harvest from the Secret Realm for refining Nourishing Yuan Pills, right?”

“Of course not, the Sect’s Medicinal Garden also grows the materials for the Nourishing Yuan Pill, but the spirit medicines in the garden will not mature for another thirty years, at which point they can be used to refine two more furnaces of pills.

The spirit fields located at the high-tier spirit vein nodes are extremely precious, and those medicinal gardens still need to plant spirit medicines for Chao Origin Stage cultivators.”

Ji An scratched his head, feeling worried inside.

He couldn’t wait for the next time the furnace opened, and even if it did, it wasn’t guaranteed he could exchange for a Nourishing Yuan Pill.

He could only pray the alchemist performs exceptionally well and gather enough small merit as quickly as possible.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the irritation rising within:

“Thank you for your guidance, Junior Martial Uncle, I’ll go back and think of a way to quickly gather enough small merit.

By the way, could you please give me a list of spiritual objects that can be exchanged for small merit?”

Completing certain tasks could accumulate small merit, but they weren’t suitable for him, as a Demon King was eyeing the outside of the Sect.

Jia Yu took out a jade slip and handed it over, opening his mouth to say some comforting words, but ultimately didn’t speak.

Ji An accepted the jade slip, and the two of them headed out of the main hall together.

“Junior Martial Uncle, why is Rock Ancestor here?”

He truly couldn’t understand why the Sect’s Mountain Guardian Spirit Beast would be sleeping in the Treasure Pavilion.

Jia Yu explained:

“Rock Ancestor used to guard the Secret Vault; I’m just a decoration outside.

Now that the Demon Calamity is severe, Rock Ancestor often patrols around the Sect to deter Demon Beast groups.”

Ji An suddenly realized; he had once sensed a strange aura in the Secret Vault, thinking it was the fluctuation of the Qi Mechanism from the magic array. Now it seemed it might have been Rock Ancestor’s aura unintentionally emanating.

He took out the flying shuttle, cupped his hands and said:

“Junior Martial Uncle, I bid you farewell.”

After he flew off, Jia Yu activated a Communication Golden Sword, and the golden light flew towards Yingyue Peak.

He needed to confirm the situation with Senior Brother Lin, although he didn’t think the disciple was lying, it was better to be cautious when reporting to the ancestor.

Half an hour later, a Communication Golden Sword flew back to the Treasure Pavilion.

Jia Yu read Lin Qiu Bai’s response carefully, organized the information, and sent a Communication Golden Sword to the ancestor.

He quickly received the ancestor’s directive:

’Allow the disciple to owe small merit in exchange for the Nourishing Yuan Pill, but he must repay it within five years.

Additionally, if the merchant flying ship from Central Continent arrives, you are permitted to use spirit objects to purchase several spare Nourishing Yuan Pills.’

The ancestor is truly wise; it seems he wants to use the sect’s resources to cultivate more Chao Origin Stage cultivators.

…

Ji An piloted the flying shuttle back to Red Flame Peak. Holding the seed-like curiosity in his hand, he pondered what kind of treasure it was that attracted Rock Ancestor’s attention.

After thinking for a long time, he still couldn’t figure it out.

He then hung the curiosity around his neck and reminded himself that he must put away this pendant before visiting the Treasure Pavilion next time.

Placing the jade slip on his forehead, Ji An began to calculate how much small merit his possessions could exchange for.

The metal-elemental and fire-elemental spiritual objects obtained from Red Flame Peak were still plenty, which could probably be exchanged for three thousand small merit, but there was still a significant shortfall; it seemed he would need to borrow some spirit objects.

During dinner, two Communication Golden Swords arrived at the table one after the other.

Ji An was slightly startled, catching the golden swords, and from the magical marks, he could tell one was from his master, and the other from Junior Martial Uncle Jia Yu.

He first checked his master’s golden sword, ’I still have some resources that can be exchanged for small merit, you can come to get them when needed, which can probably exchange for five thousand small merit.

But this is the last legacy I intend to leave for Luo Ying, so you must repay it to her in the future.’

Ji An thought to himself:

’Master’s last little treasury, probably fearing that the matter of the Nourishing Yuan Pill might affect my breakthrough to the Chao Origin Stage.’

He picked up Jia Yu’s Communication Golden Sword, his eyes flashing with golden light.

“Thank the ancestor!”

They actually allowed him to owe the merit, so he immediately replied to his master:

’Thanks to the ancestor’s benevolence, I can use another method to exchange for the Nourishing Yuan Pill, so master, do not worry.’

The Communication Golden Sword shimmered as it flew away from Red Flame Peak, like a joyful golden carp swimming in a large lake.

….

Next day, at 5:00 AM.

Years of biological clock training made Ji An wake up on time, he went to the Cold Pool, hastily ate his breakfast, and then left on the flying shuttle.

Late Mao Hour, Ji An descended halfway up Sunrise Peak.

Seeing the tightly closed gates of the Treasure Pavilion, he chuckled foolishly:

“Came too early!”

He sat cross-legged at the entrance of the main hall and began to practice the Evergreen Wood Skill, as precious time could not be wasted.

As the cultivation technique operated, the earth-element spirit mechanism in the ground and the wood-element spirit mechanism in nearby spirit wood were absorbed, flowing into his nose and mouth.

Centered around him, phenomena of grass sprouting, growing, withering, and so forth manifested on the ground.

Time passed, life waxed and waned.

Jia Yu arrived above the Treasure Pavilion, looking somewhat dazed.

Manifesting cultivation technique phenomena when under pressure versus naturally displaying them while cultivating made a difference.

Clearly, this disciple’s understanding of the cultivation technique had advanced once again.

’Once he breaks through to the Chao Origin Stage, he should soon be able to open up the Wood Mansion! It’s astonishing!’

At this moment, Ji An was lost in contemplation, feeling as if he had transformed into a vast grassland.

Spring thunder accompanied rain, prompting sprouting; summer heat brought lush growth; autumn winds took their toll, turning things yellow; winter snow buried life deep beneath the earth.