The group drank and laughed together, the atmosphere warm and lively.
Ji An set down his wine cup and said,
"Senior Brother Zhang is cultivating at Mo Cliff Mountain now. I wonder how much his cultivation has advanced by this point?"
Mo Cliff Mountain was a first-rank superior spirit vein. The spiritual energy there was abundant; just breathing it in was enough for cultivators to progress swiftly.
In cultivation, they said Dao Companion, Resources, Techniques, and Territory were the four pillars. With a Dao field rich in spiritual energy, one's progress could be greatly accelerated.
Chu He swallowed a mouthful of meat, then chuckled.
"After just two months at Mo Cliff Mountain, Senior Brother Zhang broke through to the sixth level of Qi Refining. Right now, he's preparing for the late stage."
His voice sank as he sighed.
"I only just broke through to the fifth level of Qi Refining. I'll never catch up to him in this lifetime.
But congratulations are in order for Senior Sister Zhao; she has reached the sixth level as well."
Zhao Mengyao smiled modestly.
"I was merely lucky enough to break through."
Chu He scratched his head with a wry smile.
"My talent in artifact forging is mediocre. By the time the sect's three-year assessment comes around, I might have to leave the Artifact Hall altogether and live as a combat cultivator who hunts demonic beasts to get by.
I only feel ashamed of my family's investment in me. I don't know how I'll ever repay them."
A heavy silence fell. It was a harsh reality.
The three-year assessment for new disciples was critical, especially for those in the Artifact Hall and the Beast-Taming Hall. If they failed, they would be cast out.
Combat cultivators produced nothing of value; they survived only by completing sect missions or hunting beasts. It was a far riskier life than cultivating safely within the sect's grounds.
Wei Songnian chuckled, drawing everyone's attention before speaking.
"Junior Brother, I have a word of advice, take it if you will."
Chu He clasped his fists.
"Please, teach me, Senior Brother."
"Artifact forging requires talent. If you've already realized your talent is lacking, then abandon it sooner rather than later. Do not waste time wavering between paths.
There are still two years before the sector assessment. Focus only on completing your assigned tasks, and devote all remaining time to improving your cultivation and training offensive and defensive spells.
I was once placed in the Artifact Hall by my clan as well. After half a year, I accepted that I lacked the gift and chose a path better suited to me. Look at me now, I'm doing just fine."
Though his words might have been a little too frank given the level of familiarity between them, Wei Songnian's philosophy was simple: more friends meant more opportunities. So he said what needed to be said.
For artifact cultivators without talent, catching up required endless practice, yet even then, their growth ceiling was low. More often than not, decades of forging left them worse off than even spirit farmers.
Better to switch tracks while there was still time.
"Thank you for your candor, Senior Brother. I will think about it carefully once I return."
Chu nodded lightly. He had already been hesitating over whether to continue on this path. Now, having heard Wei Songnian's words, his indecision began to resolve.
Zhao Mengyao smoothly changed the subject, and the group moved on to discussing cultivation insights.
Though everyone practiced different techniques, the clash of ideas sparked new perspectives.
This was the companion in "Dao Companion, Resources, Techniques, and Territory." One's own perspective was always limited. By exchanging experiences with peers or receiving instruction from mentors, sometimes an issue that had troubled one for days could suddenly become clear.
After food and wine, the gathering ended happily.
Ji An motioned for Wei Songnian to stay while he personally saw the others out.
"Junior Brother, what else do you need?" Wei Songnian asked.
Ji An pulled out two spirit stones and counted out forty spirit crystals, pushing them across the table.
"Another eight Jadegrain Pills."
Still, the same thought spirit stones sitting idle in his hand were worthless. Unless there was a very specific need, Ji An intended to spend every single crystal he had.
"Junior Brother, you really don't save even a single spirit stone? What if you run into an emergency?"
Wei Songnian chuckled, though he still deftly produced the pills. Not making a profit when spirit crystals were on the table wasn't his way.
"If something urgent comes up, I'll just borrow from Senior Brother. At that time, don't you dare refuse me."
"Haha, no problem," Wei Songnian nodded.
After exchanging for pills, Ji An took a spirit bird to the Administrative Hall.
When he arrived, he happened to see Li Changfeng on duty. He stepped forward with a polite greeting:
"Senior Brother Li, sorry to trouble you.
I've come to exchange for spirit grain seeds and talisman grass seeds, as well as the Qi Refining mid-stage technique of the Clear Source Sutra."
Li Changfeng's eyes lit up, a smile tugging at his lips.
"Junior Brother Ji is a rare guest; it's not often I see you.
Congratulations. To reach the fourth level of Qi Refining in just one year among this intake of spirit farmers, you stand out as exceptional."
You clearly haven't met Senior Brother Liu Yu. He should be close to the eighth level of Qi Refining by now.
Ji An only laughed it off, handing over his jade token.
"Four mu of spirit grain seeds, one mu of talisman grass seeds."
Li Changfeng accepted the token, retrieved the corresponding jade slips and seed packs, weighed them out, then swiped the token over a spirit plate.
Spirit grain seeds, sixteen contribution points. Talisman grass seeds, eight points. The Clear Source Sutra mid-stage technique, fifty points. You have six contribution points remaining."
"Many thanks, Senior Brother."
Ji An received the jade slips and seeds, then asked curiously:
"Senior Brother, I've always wondered how many contribution points it takes to exchange for the perfected version of a planting spell?"
Spells were divided into Entry, Proficient, Minor Accomplishment, Great Accomplishment, and Perfection. Yet Perfection wasn't truly the end.
The Dao was infinite. The "Perfection" realm only meant one had stepped into a wholly new level of understanding of the spell.
Li Changfeng shook his head with a wry smile.
"The sect has no jade slips for Perfection-level spells at least, I've never seen one.
If Great Accomplishment still counts as a technique, then Perfection is a skill touching upon Dao itself.
That kind of realm can only be grasped through personal insight, never recorded in a jade slip.
I've heard rumors of transmission jade slips that can capture one's comprehension, but who knows if that's true.
And even if they exist, they wouldn't be used to record farming spells."
So there was no formula to reference at all. Ji An felt a wave of disappointment.
It meant he would have to burn through more spiritual qi, spend more time, and consume more mana if he wanted to advance further.
After sowing the spirit grain and talisman grass, Ji An returned to his usual rhythm of practicing spells and mixing talisman ink. Life was simple yet fulfilling.
In his courtyard, the vegetables absorbed more and more spiritual energy. One day, this patch of land would be nurtured into a first-rank spirit field.
Every four days, he took a Jadegrain Pill, and for two months, his cultivation advanced rapidly.
Even so, with the stone tortoise siphoning from him, his progress was only average compared to other fourth-level Qi Refining disciples.
Three months later
He harvested his spirit grain and talisman grass, processed the latter into talisman paper, then went to the Administrative Hall to pay his field rent and taxes. The tax rate for talisman grass was the same as for grain. He exchanged for the next season's seeds as well.
After all that effort, what he had left was only two hundred catties of Yellow Sprout Rice, three spirit stones, ten spirit crystals, and some talisman paper and ink.
Enough to barely keep buying pills to cultivate, but the two hundred contribution points he needed to exchange for attack-spell jade slips? That still looked impossibly far away.
He scattered the seeds, cast the Thick Earth Formula, and watched the seeds sink into the soil.
Then, as he normally did, he formed the seals for Minor Rain. This time, though, he felt himself slip into a wondrous, ethereal state.
White mist gathered wildly before his eyes. In the blink of an eye, a great cloud swelled up, covering the entire field and more. Rain poured down in silver threads, carrying with it a strange aura that drew the mind into a dreamy calm, as if sinking into a beautiful vision.
When the cloud finally dispersed, Ji An's spirit returned, and he saw that the seeds he had just sown had already sprouted into tender green shoots.
What's the before, it always took a day or two to germinate!