77: Chapter 77 Spatial Harvest

Lin Xuan moved his mind and entered the Spirit-Taming Tower Space.

"Hoo—"

Just after entering, a dense and fresh wave of Thunder Spiritual Qi rushed towards him.

The sky inside the space remained gray and hazy, but that sense of oppression had lessened significantly; instead, there was a sense of the Chaos vitality of the world when it first opened.

The first thing that caught his eye was the spiritual field.

The half-mu of land that was originally planned had now been neatly divided by meticulously tended ridges.

The outermost two-tenths of a mu were planted with a new batch of thunder-pattern grass—the previous batch of over two hundred plants had already matured one after another several months ago, and after being harvested and sold to the Hundred Herb Pavilion, they had fetched nearly one thousand contribution points.

This current batch was the second round; the plants were nearly four inches tall, the silver electric patterns on the leaves were clearly visible, and they were growing even better than the first round.

Moving inward one-tenth of a mu, five thunder spirit flowers were in full bloom.

The flowers were the size of a bowl, with silver-purple petals layered upon one another, and fine electric sparks naturally flowing along the edges, breathtakingly beautiful.

These were High Grade spiritual plants; if each flower were picked and sold to a Cultivator who needed to refine thunder-attribute Medicinal Pills or special Magical Artifacts, the value would be no less than one hundred and fifty contribution points.

Lin Xuan crouched down to carefully check the condition of the flower plants. All five had bloomed, and two of them had even formed small flower buds, looking like they could bloom for another round.

"No rush to sell," he whispered to himself. The pollen of the thunder spirit flower was an excellent thunder-attribute medium; if he were to attempt refining thunder-attribute Medicinal Pills or drawing higher-grade thunder Talismans in the future, he would need them.

Adjacent to the thunder spirit flowers was one-tenth of a mu of shocking thunder flower seedlings.

Ten seeds, after more than a year of cultivation, had finally broken through the soil and sprouted three months ago.

Now the seedlings were only a palm high, with deep purple leaves and golden spots distributed on the surface, like stars scattered in the night sky.

These spots would glow faintly with the fluctuation of Spiritual Qi, looking quite beautiful.

The shocking thunder flower grew slowly; it would take at least another two years from sprouting to blooming.

But once it bloomed, the "Shocking Thunder Qi" contained in its flowers was a top-grade Material for refining certain special Medicinal Pills and drawing High Grade thunder Talismans, far exceeding the value of the thunder spirit flower.

And in the very center of the spiritual field, that thunder essence fruit tree was the real main event.

Lin Xuan walked to the tree and looked up.

In one year, the sapling had grown from a slender seedling to five feet tall.

The main trunk was as thick as an adult's wrist, the bark was dark purple, and twisted silver thunder patterns were naturally formed on the surface, as if lightning were traveling under the bark.

The crown of the tree was spread out, the branches and leaves were lush, the three newly sprouted branches stretched upwards, and every leaf was dark purple, almost black, with bright silver veins.

Standing under the tree, one could clearly feel the pure Thunder Spiritual Energy emanating from the tree body, echoing and circulating with the Thunder Spiritual Qi within the space.

Lin Xuan reached out to touch the trunk, and through the contract, he could vaguely sense the vigorous vitality within the tree body.

"At this rate, within three or four years, it should be able to bloom and bear fruit," he estimated.

The thunder essence fruit was a High Grade spiritual fruit of the first rank; consuming it directly could improve one's Cultivation, and it was also a main Material for refining various Medicinal Pills.

A mature thunder essence fruit was worth at least several hundred contribution points, and it was priceless—rarely available on the market.

It was truly worth it to have gritted his teeth and spent a large sum of money to buy this seedling back then.

His gaze moved to the side of the spiritual field, where that thunder-attracting vine had also grown quite a bit.

The vine body was now as thick as a thumb, clinging to the specially built bamboo frame, with thick leaves and a metallic luster on the surface.

The pale golden flower bud at the top had long since fully bloomed, and although the flower had now withered, a tiny, green-bean-sized, blue-purple fruit had formed at the base of the flower.

"It actually bore fruit?" Lin Xuan was somewhat pleasantly surprised. It was extremely rare for a thunder-attracting vine to bear fruit; although he did not know what use this little fruit had, since it was borne by the thunder-attracting vine, it must be extraordinary.

He carefully checked every part of the space. The Thunder-Light Bug still flew between the thunder-attracting vine and the thunder essence fruit tree every day, its "Thunder Gathering" talent making the Thunder Spiritual Qi in the space more active and pure.

The Herb-Seeking Mouse's aura had been fluctuating recently, and it seemed to be about to Breakthrough to Qi Refining Level 2.

The Pangolin spent most of its time curled up in the underground cave it had dug itself, occasionally coming out to patrol, the thunder patterns on its scales becoming increasingly deep.

Everything was in good order and full of vitality.

Lin Xuan exited the space and returned to the Quiet Room.

The Talisman paper and cinnabar that he hadn't finished using in the morning were still spread out on the table. However, he didn't pick up the brush immediately but sat in the chair, thinking quietly.

Over the past year, his life had formed a stable rhythm: mornings in the medicine garden, afternoons in the space tending to spiritual plants and Cultivating, and evenings making Talismans.

His sources of income had also stabilized—making Talismans was the main portion, spiritual plants were occasionally sold for supplementation, and the medicine garden tasks had instead become "pocket money."

But time, it really wasn't enough.

The Cultivation of the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder Art required a large amount of time to refine Spiritual Energy; the medicinal baths and Body Refining of the Thunder Body Refining Technique could not be slacked off;

The Origin Returning Qi Concealment Formula had to be maintained, and he also had to find time to practice new Spells and learn new Talismans.

Making Talismans was the economic pillar, and he had to guarantee at least two hours a day;

The spiritual plants in the space needed meticulous care, especially delicate varieties like the thunder essence fruit tree and the shocking thunder flower...

And the medicine garden tasks, two hours a day, plus rewards, were three to four hundred contribution points per month.

The cost-effectiveness was too low.

"Perhaps... I should really quit," Lin Xuan muttered to himself.

But he didn't make a decision immediately. Although the medicine garden work didn't offer many contribution points, it was a stable cover for his identity.

An ordinary Outer Sect Disciple who was busy in the medicine garden every day would not attract attention.

If he quit completely and stayed in his own small courtyard wholeheartedly, it might instead arouse suspicion—as an Outer Sect Disciple with a Low Grade Lightning Spiritual Root, where did he get the resources to Cultivate without relying on tasks?

Of course, he now ostensibly had income from making Talismans, four to five hundred contribution points a month, which was already quite considerable among Outer Sect Disciples at the Early Stage of Qi Refining, so it was justifiable.

But a Disciple who stayed behind closed doors every day and only knew how to make Talismans was also easily subject to criticism.

The medicine garden work just happened to give him a legitimate reason to be active outside, to interact with people, and to appear "normal."

And there was Deacon Wu. This strict but fair Senior had taken care of him a lot over the past year and had taught him many true teachings of spiritual plant cultivation. If he were to suddenly resign, he would need a suitable reason.

He put away his thoughts and picked up the brush to dip it in ink.

The afternoon sun shone through the lattice window, casting warm spots of light on the Talisman paper.

The tip of the brush fell, and Thunder Spiritual Energy flowed out along his arm, outlining smooth and tension-filled arcs on the Talisman paper.

One, two.

The pale purple spiritual light of the completed Talismans flickered in the Quiet Room.

In the evening, Lin Xuan put down the Talisman brush and rubbed his somewhat sore wrist.

He had made four Thunder Shield Talismans today; at this rate, he might be able to draw one hundred and twenty Thunder Shield Talismans this month.

He took out his identity jade token and probed it with his Divine Sense.

Contribution point balance: two thousand eight hundred and seventy-three points.

This number made a sense of security well up in Lin Xuan's heart.

A year ago, he was still meticulously calculating for a few hundred contribution points and frantically taking on tasks to exchange for the Origin Returning Qi Concealment Formula.

Now, with a stable income of fourteen or fifteen hundred points per month, and occasional income from spiritual plants, his expenses were controlled at around one thousand points—mainly for purchasing Medicinal Pills, Talisman paper, and Materials for Body Refining medicinal baths.

With a net savings of four or five hundred points, over the past half year, he had unknowingly saved up such a considerable fortune.

"It's time to consider adding some things," Lin Xuan said to himself.

He took stock of his own equipment: the startling thunder whip was a Medium Grade first-rank Magical Artifact, its attack was acceptable; the qingyun sword was just a Low Grade first-rank standard-issue item, better than nothing; the magic robe was also Low Grade first-rank, barely enough to cover his body and keep out the cold.

He wasn't lacking in Talismans; he had plenty of Thunder Shield Talismans, and he also had the second-rank Vajra Talisman and God-Speed Talisman he had purchased earlier as trump cards.

But a defensive Magical Artifact... had always been a shortcoming.

The Thunder Body Refining Technique had greatly improved his Physical Body strength, allowing him to withstand attacks from Low Grade Magical Artifacts, but when facing Cultivators in the middle or Late Stage of Qi Refining, or more powerful Yao Beasts, relying solely on his Physical Body and magic robe was ultimately not secure enough.

"A good defensive Magical Artifact can save your life at a critical moment," Lin Xuan's eyes were firm.

He planned to go to the market to take a good look around in the near future, preferably to find a High Grade first-rank, or even top-grade, defensive Magical Artifact.

Thunder-attribute would be best; if not, other attributes would do as long as they were suitable.

As for the price... a High Grade first-rank defensive Magical Artifact was usually between five or six hundred contribution points; a top-grade Magical Artifact would cost over one thousand.

He could fully afford it now. If he had enough contribution points, he also wanted to buy a flying Magical Artifact; defense and speed were the most important priorities for a Cultivator's safety.

The shadows of the bamboo outside the window swayed gently; it was another calm and fulfilling afternoon.

Lin Xuan put away the Talisman paper and began to prepare for the evening medicinal bath. With contribution points in his pocket and the path ahead in sight, he only needed to take it one step at a time and move forward steadily.