Rising from Small Cloud Rain Technique

Chapter 48: Chapter 46: Going All Out

After finishing his cultivation, Ji An felt his ears and eyes clear and his whole body comfortable.

Upon entering the late-stage Qi Refining, the amount of spiritual qi refined from eating Yellow Sprout Rice was much less. Consuming three pounds of Spirit Rice a day, the progress in cultivation post-refinement was minimal.

Before cultivating, he consumed a Ginseng Essence Pill; the refined magical power was equivalent to a month’s worth of effort on usual days, making him sigh once more at the allure of Crystal Stones.

If he could regularly use pills to enhance magical power, Ninth-Layer Qi Refining wouldn’t be far off, would it?

Cultivation emphasizes Dharma, Companions, Wealth, and Land; having joined the sect, he currently lacks nothing in terms of Dharma and Companions, and after reaching Foundation Establishment, he’d have a cultivation place, but he’s never been wealthy in terms of the latter.

He possesses two perfection level Planting Techniques, the harvest of Spirit Grain should be unmatched among all Spirit Farmers.

Even so, his days are quite strained, and ordinary Spirit Farmers are even worse, with the loose cultivators outside the sect being the most miserable, lacking all aspects of Wealth, Companions, Dharma, and Land.

Ji An walked out of the bamboo building; the sunlight had not yet reached the valley, and the morning fog had not dispersed, leaving the small building immersed in a dreamlike veil.

The air was fresh with a hint of moisture.

He first went to nearby areas and chopped some tree branches as thick as an arm and as tall as a person, forming a circle of wooden stakes around the yard.

Unnoticed, the sun climbed the mountain peak, shining over the valley.

Ji An chopped several bundles of bamboo as thick as two fingers, setting them around the stakes to create a new dense fence.

There are no large wild beasts in this valley, but plenty of wild rabbits, field mice, and badgers.

He spent three Spirit Stones on the Spirit Fruit Tree saplings, which are quite delicate.

Since there is no magic array for protection here, should a wild animal get in and harm them, his heart would surely ache.

The planting techniques he’s learned are mostly for plant cultivation, without any handy weapons, he relied on an old axe, working busily for half the day to complete the task.

As the sun began to set west, it was already afternoon.

Ji An harvested half the green vegetables in the yard, leaving only those close to the fence.

Then he used the Small Cloud Rain Technique, using the Spirit Rain to wash the vegetables clean, before casting the Flame Fire Spell.

These green vegetables contain quite a lot of spiritual qi, already qualifying as Spirit Vegetables.

As long as magical power output is controlled, they can be dehydrated without being burnt to ashes by Fire Spiritual Power like ordinary weeds.

He started using this method to create dehydrated vegetables long ago, as the yard is so big, the yield of vegetables far exceeds consumption.

In the glow of the setting sun, two seeds were planted in the yard, one left and one right, as Ji An once again cast the Small Cloud Rain Technique.

The five elements are complete in the human body; unlike humans, most spirit plants exhibit a single element attribute.

For example, Yellow Sprout Rice and Jade Corn are both Wood Element attributes, just not very evident.

The Spirit Peach and Spiritual Apricot planted now, however, belong to the Fire Element; once the seedlings grow, they’ll require regular cultivation with the Flame Fire Spell and supplementation with more Wood Element Spiritual Energy.

…

The Spirit Grain reached the elongation stage, and Ji An returned to a busy life.

Now that his magical technique talent is known to the sect, he no longer withholds it.

At dawn, he performs rain magic in the Spirit Field, sorts the earth qi, roams the mountains during the day to find lucky trees and refine Wood Element Beads, returns to the Spirit Field at dusk to release Wood Element Essence Qi.

After evening cultivation, he releases the Thick Earth Technique and Small Cloud Rain Technique in the courtyard.

If magical power remains, he unwaveringly practices the Sharp Gold Technique.

Skill becomes refined through diligent effort and fades through play; small steps accumulate to reach a thousand miles.

With the rising and setting of the sun, time hastened by.

After the Spirit Grain was entirely harvested and sold, and the Talisman Grass made into Talisman Paper, Ji An finally found time to breathe.

He brought over a pinewood rocking chair he had crafted himself, playing with the Spirit Rat Wood Carving while comfortably lying down.

In the sunset glow, the radiance surpassed the green walls, illuminating the two fruit saplings standing about a foot high.

Due to frequent nourishment by Spirit Rain and the Thick Earth Technique, the stakes and bamboo used as a fence surprisingly survived.

Now his little courtyard was embraced by lush greenery, such that the inside could not be seen from outside.

With the chair’s swaying, Ji An contentedly thought:

“If I could raise a yellow dog and brew a pot of Spirit Tea, that would be truly living a cultivation life!”

His mind sank into his dantian, observing the Stone Turtle bobbing in the misty magical power of the Qi Sea Acupoint.

[Master: Ji An]

[Dao Rhyme: 0]

[Spiritual Mechanism: Kan Spirit 415.2, Kun Spirit 189.6, Xun Spirit 144.8]

[Magic Techniques: Small Cloud Rain Technique (Perfection 37%)

Thick Earth Technique (Perfection 27%)

Life and Death Technique (Great Success 76%)

Flame Fire Spell (Great Success 23%)

Sharp Gold Technique (Great Success 85%)]

The rocking chair gradually ceased moving, and the person on it emitted a gentle snore.

…

The next day, Ji An called upon Huang Feihu to help, the two transported 600 pounds of Yellow Sprout Rice to the Miscellaneous Affairs Hall, offering ten Spirit Crystals in payment.

Huang Feihu firmly refused, hastily waving his hand:

“Senior Brother, I was just passing by, I can’t accept your Crystal Stones.”

His grandfather repeatedly urged him to learn from Ji An, and he often sought advice on planting techniques, so how could he accept payment!

Saying this, he waved his hand and ran off.

Ji An watched his retreating figure, smiling while shaking his head.

Since Huang Feihu entered the sect, he regularly received dried rabbit meat from him, adding richness to his meals.

Many cultivators avoid consuming ordinary meats and mortal grains because these foods contain little spiritual qi, and ingesting them generates turbid qi that requires time to cleanse.

Ji An was not overly concerned about this, achieving the taste of cultivation by indulging in a meat meal every now and then.

He entered the hall to pay land rent and taxes, exchanged for ten acres of Spirit Grain seeds and five acres of Talisman Grass seeds, along with fifty Fire Cloud Ginseng seeds.

Each Fire Cloud Ginseng seed costs 2 Contribution Points, and today he spent 160 Contribution Points.

With Ji An’s current amount of magical power, fifteen acres of Spirit Field are his limit.

He plans to plant the Fire Cloud Ginseng in the small courtyard, which, being a Fire Attribute spirit plant, pairs conveniently with the Spirit Peach and Spiritual Apricot for management.

Still too lacking in Crystal Stones, next season he plans to step up his game!

He intends to sacrifice some opportunities to practice magic techniques and first maximize his cultivation effects.

Ginseng Essence Pill requires Crystal Stones for purchase, Spirit Capturing Array needs Crystal Stones to activate, buying magic technique jade slips and magical artifacts all demand a significant number of Crystal Stones; he dreams of earning Crystal Stones night and day.

Cautiously wrapping the Fire Cloud Ginseng seeds and placing them in his bosom, Ji An shouldered the cloth bag containing Spirit Grain seeds and rode the Talisman Bird to Jade Water Marketplace.

He arrived at the stall square to find Wei Songnian, and with a smile said:

“Senior Brother, let’s eat Spirit Fish later, my treat.”

Old Wei has helped him so much, it’s only fitting to invite him for a meal to deepen their bond.

Wei Songnian greeted him with a genuine smile:

“Junior Brother Liang has saved enough Crystal Stones, rented ten acres of fishpond from the sect, and has no time to manage a restaurant.

However, if we visit his place, we can still have some Spirit Fish.”

Junior Brother visits him for extravagant spending every three months, currently being his third largest client.

“Come, help me pack up my stall, let’s buy a few bottles of Spirit Wine to go congratulate Junior Brother Liang.”

“Okay!” Ji An replied with a smile.