51: Chapter 51: Not bad

Liu Qingchen paused.

"Do you need me to help you change to another place?"

Change places?

With Liu Qingchen's status, if he interceded, transferring away from the General Affairs Hall to become an ordinary handyman in another department wouldn't be impossible.

Moreover, Li Changsheng had already entered the threshold of the Qingyuan Formula, so it was reasonable from any perspective.

Li Changsheng thought for a moment and shook his head.

"Thank you for your kindness, Senior Brother. Although the General Affairs Hall is hard, it has its benefits. For now... I don't want to move."

Liu Qingchen's eyebrows twitched slightly, but he didn't press further.

He understood that everyone has things they don't want to say.

"Very well."

He took out a small cloth bag from his sleeve.

"This is what you deserve."

Li Changsheng took it, opened it, and saw twenty Low-Grade Spirit Stones and a jade bottle inside.

"Senior Brother, this is..."

"Bringing new Disciples into the Sect naturally comes with a recommendation reward,"

Liu Qingchen said.

"All four of you are considered my recommendations. Each person gets five Spirit Stones and a bottle of qi gathering pills."

"It should have been given when you entered the Sect, but I delayed it."

Li Changsheng then remembered that the Sect indeed had this rule.

However, given his treatment when he entered the Sect, he doubted anyone remembered this matter.

"Thank you, Senior Brother."

Liu Qingchen nodded and spoke again.

"Also, do you want to hear news about your three fellow villagers?"

Li Changsheng's spirits lifted: "Please advise me, Senior Brother."

"Li Changqing entered the Sword Guard Hall of Heavenly Sword Peak as a Sword Attendant."

"That girl has a resilient Heart-Nature and is willing to endure hardship. I heard she has been noticed by a female Sword Cultivator in the Foundation Establishment Stage, who occasionally gives her some pointers."

"Although she is still a Named Disciple at the lowest level, she is much stronger than when she first entered."

Li Changsheng felt gratified.

Changqing always had a competitive spirit; being able to gain a foothold on Heavenly Sword Peak was her own ability.

"Shi Tiezhu is at the Hundred Crafts Academy of Houtu Peak, doing rough work like quarrying stones and moving construction materials every day."

"That boy has a good physique and great strength, so he doesn't complain."

"I heard he followed an old craftsman and learned some rudimentary Earth-element Spells. Although they are unranked, they save a lot of effort when moving mountains and clearing ridges."

Li Changsheng thought of that honest blacksmith's son, and the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

People who are down-to-earth and willing to work hard can always find their own path.

"As for Li Xiaocao..."

Liu Qingchen paused slightly here.

Li Changsheng's heart tightened.

"What happened to her?"

"Don't be nervous, she's fine,"

Liu Qingchen said.

"That girl entered the Hundred Herb Garden as an attendant taking care of spiritual plants."

"Although her Wood Spiritual Root is only close to Medium Grade, she seems naturally close to plants and trees."

"A manager at the Hundred Herb Garden said the survival rate of the spiritual plants she cares for is much higher than others."

"Now she no longer has to do rough work and is specifically responsible for several rare Spirit Medicine gardens."

Hearing this, a warm current surged in Li Changsheng's heart.

That timid little girl, the poor child whose parents both died in the Demonic Disaster, had found her own way in the Hundred Herb Garden.

Being close to plants... this talent might be more precious than any Spiritual Root.

"Thank you for telling me, Senior Brother."

He solemnly cupped his fists.

Liu Qingchen looked at him and suddenly said.

"Don't you want to ask about yourself?"

Li Changsheng was startled.

"Ask about myself what?"

"The three of them may have had low starting points, but each has a place and a future. And you..."

Liu Qingchen's gaze swept across the surroundings.

"Trapped in this warehouse day after day. Aren't you anxious?"

Li Changsheng was silent for a moment, then smiled.

The smile was faint but carried a composure that others found hard to understand.

"Senior Brother Liu,"

he said.

"Cultivation is like planting a tree; only when the roots are deep can the leaves be lush."

"Right now... I am just taking root."

Liu Qingchen looked at him, a flicker of surprise in his eyes, followed by pensiveness.

After a long time, he nodded.

"A fine 'taking root'."

"In that case, I won't say more."

"If you need anything, you can come to the Outer Gate Deacon Hall to find me."

He turned to leave, then stopped and looked back.

"By the way, that Zhao Yan from Wanqi Peak has come out of seclusion."

Li Changsheng's gaze narrowed slightly.

"His Magical Artifact has been refined."

"I heard the quality is quite good. His uncle, Zhao Guangyuan, praised him, and he is very proud right now,"

Liu Qingchen said indifferently.

"If he comes to trouble you again, you can come looking for me."

After saying that, the white-clothed figure turned into Sword Light and soared away.

Li Changsheng stood at the warehouse door, watching the departing Sword Light for a long time without moving.

Zhao Yan had come out of seclusion.

He lowered his head and looked at the cloth bag in his hand containing Spirit Stones and Medicinal Pills.

Twenty Spirit Stones, one bottle of qi gathering pills.

To a true Cultivator, it was not worth mentioning.

To him, however, it was the first 'resource' that truly belonged to him.

He looked back into the depths of the warehouse.

Those pottery jars hidden in the piles of miscellaneous items, those low-grade spiritual plants that had just sprouted, that Spirit Nourishing Grass that had already seeded once...

The roots were taking hold.

The leaves were growing.

Whether it was Zhao Yan or the difficult situation, let it be.

He walked back into the warehouse and continued watering the clear heart grass.

Outside the window, the sun was setting.

No one knew how long these peaceful days would last.

But at this moment, every extra moment of peace was a gain.

After Zhao Yan came out of seclusion, he didn't come.

One day, two days, a week, two weeks.

Ding San initially sweated for Li Changsheng, peeking around every day when he came to the warehouse, fearing he would run into that jinx.

However, as the days passed, the direction of Wanqi Peak remained calm, and not even a message-carrying handyman had come.

"Strange,"

Ding San scratched his head.

"Did that guy named Zhao change his nature?"

Li Changsheng didn't respond, just continued to lower his head to register a new batch of miscellaneous items that had been delivered.

He could probably guess the reason.

People like Zhao Yan don't trouble others because of deep hatred; it's purely for fun.

When he was successful in Artifact Refining and praised by his uncle, he was in a state of extreme satisfaction.

That bit of fun from 'teasing a piece of trash' was naturally drowned out by his greater pride.

That Named Disciple from the General Affairs Hall he had once humiliated was probably long forgotten.

This was a good thing.

Li Changsheng was happy to have peace.

He continued his day-to-day rhythm.

Dealing with chores during the day, taking care of spiritual plants and cultivating techniques at night.

The Spirit Nourishing Grass had produced another batch of seeds, and he expanded the planting into three pots.

The clear heart grass was growing well, its leaves already about an inch long.

What surprised him most was that a wild concentration flower transplanted from the back mountain had actually bloomed a grain-sized pale purple bud in his Spiritual Soil.

concentration flower, unranked, but has a weak effect of calming the mind and focusing energy.

Drinking it as tea after drying can slightly improve focus during cultivation.

Although useless to high-level Cultivators, it was already a rare auxiliary item for Qi Refining Stage Disciples.

He carefully nurtured the flower bud with spiritual power, recording its growth daily.

In terms of cultivation, he had basically mastered the introductory chapter of the Evergreen Plant Truth Scripture.

The spiritual power circulation of Qi Refining Level 2 was becoming smoother, and the Spiritual Liquid Vortex in his Dantian was much more solid than when he first broke through.

This was entirely due to the effect of absorbing spiritual power from Spirit Stones.

At this rate, in another half year, he might be able to try to charge towards Qi Refining Level 3.

The only problem was resources.

He had used a few of the twenty Spirit Stones sent by Liu Qingchen, and the effect was indeed good; he had to save some for critical moments.

He had taken three of the qi gathering pills, and the effect was about thirty percent faster than natural cultivation.

He planned to save the remaining seven for when he hit a Bottleneck.

Spirit Stones... were still too few.

He looked at the row of pottery jars in the corner of the warehouse, calculating in his mind.

When this batch of concentration flowers bloomed and dried, they might be exchangeable for a few Spirit Stones.

Would Baicao Hall accept the powder ground from Spirit Nourishing Grass leaves?

How much would it be worth?

Just as he was calculating these things, Ding San appeared at the door again, this time with a slightly different expression.

"Junior Brother Li, Deacon Liu wants you to come over."