62: Chapter 62 Fellow Villagers Advance

After returning from the Martial Arts Field, Li Changsheng did not go back to the Hundred Herb Garden but headed straight for Field No. 3 in Area C.

From a distance, he saw a small figure squatting in the spiritual field.

She was holding a small trowel, carefully loosening the soil around a Spiritual Plant that was half the height of a person.

The sunlight spilled over her, making the hair on her head, tied in two small buns, look fuzzy.

“Xiao Cao.”

Li Xiaocao looked up, and when she saw it was him, her eyes immediately lit up.

“Brother Changsheng!”

She put down the small trowel and came running over with a skip in her step.

“Why are you here?”

Li Changsheng squatted down to be at eye level with her and said softly,

“I came to see you. How is the Spirit Medicine care going?”

“It's going great!”

Li Xiaocao pointed to the spiritual field behind her, her face full of pride.

“Manager Qin said that the Jade Dew Ginseng in my field is growing even better than the one next to it!”

“In a few more days, it will be time to harvest!”

Li Changsheng looked at the spiritual field and then at the little girl before him, whose face was full of anticipation, and a complex wave of emotion welled up in his heart.

The Spirit Medicine harvest.

When that time came, she would have a batch of Spiritual Plants.

He thought back to his own experiences over the past few days.

Being followed, being robbed—if not for his foundation in martial arts, those two hundred Spirit Stones would have been gone long ago.

What about Li Xiaocao?

She was just a little girl at Qi Refining Level 1; if she took Spiritual Plants to the market...

“Xiao Cao,”

He suddenly said.

“How do you plan to handle those Spiritual Plants?”

Li Xiaocao tilted her head and thought for a moment.

“Manager Qin said I can sell them to the Hundred Herb Pharmacy in exchange for some Spirit Stones and Medicinal Pills.”

“I want to exchange them for some qi gathering pills to use during the assessment.”

Li Changsheng was silent for a moment before taking out the small jade bottle from his robes.

There were still two drops of spiritual liquid extracted from Jade Dew Ginseng left in the bottle.

“Take this.”

Li Xiaocao took the jade bottle and opened the stopper; a rich medicinal fragrance wafted out.

Her small face was filled with surprise.

“Is this... the essence of Jade Dew Ginseng?”

“Yes.”

Li Changsheng nodded.

“The three seeds you gave me, I grew them.”

“This is the spiritual liquid extracted from one of them; there are two drops left.”

“Keep it. Use one drop before the assessment; it can help you Breakthrough to Qi Refining Level 2.”

Li Xiaocao held the jade bottle, her eyes wide and round, unable to speak for a long while.

“Brother Changsheng... this, this is too precious...”

“Take it.”

Li Changsheng stood up and rubbed her head.

“I grew the Jade Dew Ginseng from the seeds you gave me. This spiritual liquid is my gift in return. Between us, there's no need to talk about what's precious.”

Li Xiaocao looked at him, her eyes reddening slightly, and she nodded vigorously.

“Also,”

Li Changsheng added.

“After your Spiritual Plants are harvested, don't be in a hurry to sell them. Come find me then, and I'll help you handle them.”

He already had a plan in mind.

Although the spirit extraction method in the Evergreen Plant Truth Scripture could only process one Spiritual Plant at a time, its advantage lay in its safety.

Extracting Spiritual Plants into spiritual liquid made them small in volume, easy to carry, and difficult to detect.

Even if one were targeted, a bottle of spiritual liquid was easier to hide than a pile of Spiritual Plants.

Li Xiaocao nodded, only half-understanding, and carefully tucked the jade bottle into her robes.

“Brother Changsheng,”

She suddenly asked.

“Will Sister Changqing and Brother Tiezhu also come to participate in the assessment?”

Li Changsheng nodded.

“They will.”

“Then... then can I see them?”

“You can.”

Li Changsheng smiled.

“On the day of the assessment, I'll take you to see them.”

Half a month later.

The day of the Named Disciple assessment finally arrived.

Li Changsheng stood at the edge of the Martial Arts Field, looking at the bustling crowd in the arena.

Half a year had passed, and his state of mind was completely different.

The last time he stood here, he was the General Affairs Hall trash that everyone mocked.

This time, he was here to wait for people.

“Brother Changsheng!”

A familiar voice rang out.

Li Changsheng turned his head and saw Li Changqing walking over quickly.

She was still full of heroic spirit, but there was a bit more composure between her brows. A standard-issue longsword hung at her waist, clearly a result of her training in the Sword Guard Hall.

“Changqing.”

Li Changsheng went to meet her, looking her up and down.

“Qi Refining Level 2 Peak?”

“Yes.”

Li Changqing nodded, a hint of gratitude in her eyes.

“It's thanks to that bottle of clear heart liquid you had someone deliver. I was originally just a breath away, but after drinking it, I broke through in three days.”

clear heart liquid was a spiritual liquid Li Changsheng extracted from clear heart grass. Although its effect was not as good as Jade Dew Ginseng, it was already a rare auxiliary item for Qi Refining Stage Disciples.

He had sent a bottle to both Li Changqing and Shi Tiezhu.

“Where's Tiezhu?”

“He's behind me, he'll be here in a moment.”

As Li Changqing spoke, her gaze fell on Li Changsheng, and she was slightly startled.

“You... you're at Qi Refining Level 3?”

Li Changsheng nodded.

Li Changqing looked at him, her eyes full of complexity.

Half a year ago, they were fellow townsmen who came together from Qinghe Town.

Half a year later, Li Changsheng was already walking far ahead of them.

“Brother,” she suddenly smiled, “you've hidden yourself quite well.”

While they were talking, a burly figure strode over.

Shi Tiezhu still had that honest and simple look, but he was much darker than half a year ago, and there were several more scars on his arms.

“Brother Changsheng! Sister Changqing!”

He grinned, revealing a row of white teeth.

“I'm here!”

Li Changsheng looked at him; he was at Qi Refining Level 1 Peak, only a hair's breadth away from Level 2.

“Tiezhu, how is your Cultivation Technique practice going?”

Shi Tiezhu scratched his head.

“It's alright. Over at the Hundred Crafts Academy, I move stones every day. It's tiring, but my strength has grown a lot.”

“A Senior Brother from Houtu Peak taught me a few Earth-element Spells. Although I'm not very proficient yet, they come in handy when moving mountains and shifting ridges.”

Li Changsheng nodded and took out two small jade bottles from his robes, handing one to Li Changqing and one to Shi Tiezhu.

“What is this?”

“qi gathering pills, one bottle each.”

Li Changsheng said.

“Use them before the assessment to have a better chance.”

Li Changqing took the jade bottle and opened it to look; inside were three qi gathering pills.

She looked up at Li Changsheng, looking as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself.

Li Changsheng knew what she wanted to say and waved his hand.

“I have enough for myself. You two look after yourselves first.”

Shi Tiezhu held the jade bottle, his eyes reddening slightly as he said in a low, muffled voice,

“Brother Changsheng, I...”

“That's enough,”

Li Changsheng patted his shoulder.

“The assessment is what matters. Once you've both passed, we'll gather again.”

Just then, a small figure squeezed out from the crowd and ran up to them, panting for breath.

“Sister Changqing! Brother Tiezhu!”

Li Xiaocao's face was flushed red, and her eyes were bright and sparkling.

Li Changqing picked her up and spun her around.

“Xiao Cao! You've grown taller!”

Shi Tiezhu smiled honestly and pulled out a small grass-woven grasshopper from his robes, handing it to Li Xiaocao.

“Here, I wove this on the way.”

Li Xiaocao took it, looking incredibly happy.

Li Changsheng stood to the side, watching this scene with a faint smile on his lips.

“Let's go, it's time to report.”

The assessment lasted for an entire day.

Li Changqing was the first to go up.

She drew an opponent at Qi Refining Level 3. The opponent's cultivation was higher than hers, but her half-year of training in the Sword Guard Hall was not for nothing.

She endured for thirty breaths and even caught a flaw in her opponent's defense, nearly scoring a counter-kill.

“Pass.”

Shi Tiezhu was the second to go up.

His opponent was also at Qi Refining Level 3 and was skilled in Spells.

Relying on his brute strength and the rudimentary defensive techniques he learned from Houtu Peak, Shi Tiezhu stubbornly held on for over twenty breaths.

The opponent's attacks grew increasingly fierce, and he was finally forced off the stage by a Fireball Technique.

But he had held on for the required thirty breaths.

“Pass.”