Unlimited priesthood

Chapter 130 Cultivation
Although it is called a cultivation market, apart from some strange methods, it is no different from a mortal market. Behind the major shops, there are also some small shops and vendors who appear in the streets and alleys, selling all kinds of items, and even some rumors of "fate to immortality".

Shen He already knew about it, so he wasn't too curious. He strolled around casually and then arrived at the Red Maple Inn in the center of the town.

Although it's called an inn, it actually serves multiple purposes, handling businesses such as cave dwelling rentals and land sales. It even has connections with some female cultivators. As long as the spirit stones are in place, beautiful women will come to the door. Not only can they enjoy a night of passion, but they can also improve their cultivation, so it is extremely popular.

"Sir, what can I do for you?"

A servant greeted Shen He, whose faint aura indicated that his cultivation had at least reached the "Gathering Spirit" realm. Although he was only a first-level cultivator, he was already different from ordinary people.

Shen He got straight to the point: "I'd like to stay in Red Maple Valley for a while. Do you have any recommendations for accommodations?"

"residence?"

The servant glanced at him, then took out a map. The map shimmered with light, revealing a landscape.

"The accommodations in Red Maple Valley can be roughly divided into three categories."

"One type is cave dwellings and shops located in this market. Residents automatically become residents of Red Maple Valley and can come and go freely without paying any accommodation fees. In addition, the market is situated on the Red Maple Spirit Vein, which is full of primordial energy, greatly beneficial to cultivation."

"One type is shantytowns, which are the low-rise buildings around the market. Because the market has set up a spirit-gathering array, the spiritual energy around it is relatively thin, but it is still enough for cultivators in the Spirit Gathering Realm or even the Cultivation Realm to cultivate. Every ten days, the residents consume one wisp of spiritual energy from the jade tablet."

"Another type is the farmhouse, which is built on and bound to the spiritual fields. You must rent or buy the spiritual fields to live there. Although the spiritual energy is not as good as that of the market, it is more abundant than that of the shantytown. The residents also consume one wisp of spiritual energy from the jade token every ten days."

"..."

After the servant's introduction, Shen He secretly made his own plans.

The market town is large, but living there is not easy!
The major Foundation Establishment forces have opened up Red Maple Valley as a market town, so there's no reason for them to do charity. They must pay a certain price to stay in Red Maple Valley and enjoy the nourishment of spiritual energy.

The most obvious example is the spirit stone.

A wisp of spiritual energy from a jade tablet is equivalent to a spirit stone. Cultivators without lodging in Red Maple Valley not only have to consume a wisp of spiritual energy from a jade tablet every day, but also have to spend extra spirit stones to rent a cave dwelling or inn room, otherwise they can only sleep on the streets.

Rent is one of the ways Red Maple Valley extracts profits, and it is also the first hurdle for cultivators to overcome in the cultivation world. Without a means of making a living or enough spirit stones to support them, they simply cannot stay.

Shen He asked, "How much does a cave dwelling cost in the market?"

"Cave dwellings are also divided into different grades. The highest grade cave dwellings and shops can be sold for thousands or even tens of thousands of spirit stones. However, most of them are only for rent and not for sale. Some lower grade cave dwellings are for sale, but they also cost thousands of spirit stones. May I ask, sir..."

The servant looked at Shen He, but did not continue speaking.

Seeing this, Shen He understood and immediately moved on to the next topic: "What about the shantytowns?"

"The shantytowns are much cheaper, and there are many houses currently listed for sale, with prices ranging from tens to two or three hundred spirit stones."

The servant looked at Shen He and asked, "Sir, would you like to purchase a shantytown house?"

Shen He shook his head: "Then how will the land be sold?"

The servant was not impatient: "The spirit fields belong to the major forces in Red Maple Valley. Most of them are only rented out and not sold. There are no idle fields for sale now. If you want to live in the fields, you will have to sign a contract, cultivate the fields for the spirit field owner, and pay a fixed amount of spirit rice or spirit medicine every year."

Shen He smiled: "Are there landlords and tenants in the cultivation world?"

"What's so new about this world?"

Before the servant could speak, a man approached. He was a middle-aged man dressed as a wealthy gentleman: "My surname is Qian, and I am the manager of this Red Maple Inn. Are you looking to rent land, sir?"

"So it's Manager Qian!"

Shen He nodded: "I wonder what the rent is for this land?"

"That depends on which farmland you wish to rent, sir."

Shopkeeper Qian smiled and pointed to the map: "These fields are also divided into different grades. The best ones are full of spiritual energy, which can not only be used for Qi cultivation, but also for planting some spiritual herbs. The owners have requirements: only experienced spiritual farmers can rent them, and they must plant the spiritual herbs specified by the owners."

Shen He continued, "And what about the first-class one that time?"

"The next level is much more lenient."

Shopkeeper Qian smiled and said, "Whether you are a spirit farmer or not, you can rent it out. You just need to pledge spirit stones and pay a fixed amount of spirit rice every year."

Shen He nodded: "Then, does the shopkeeper have any recommendations?"

"Ok!"

Shopkeeper Qian pondered for a moment, then pointed to a spot on the map: "This field is located on the edge of Red Maple Valley. Although the spiritual energy here is relatively thin, there is a stream flowing from underground nearby, which is also nourished by the Red Maple spiritual vein. The surrounding spiritual farmers can use the water from this stream to irrigate their fields. Even without knowing spiritual planting techniques such as the Lesser Cloud Rain Technique, they can still grow spiritual rice..."

After the introduction, he looked at Shen He's expression and asked, "Is the guest satisfied?"

"Ok!"

Shen He pondered for a moment, then nodded: "Then let's go here. I'd like to rent ten acres."

"Ten mu?"

"can."

Manager Qian glanced at him, then had his servant bring the spirit contract: "These ten acres of spirit fields belong to the Wang family. The lessee must pay three thousand catties of white spirit rice every year, which will be collected by our Red Maple Valley Inn. Please pledge one hundred low-grade spirit stones as collateral. If the spirit rice cannot be paid in full by the due date, we will deduct the deposit and take back the fields."

"it is good!"

Shen He glanced at the spirit contract, had no objections, and directly took out the spirit stones.

With money exchanged for goods, Shen He quickly obtained the spirit contract and became a tenant farmer in Red Maple Valley.

Having finalized the contract and rented the spirit field, Shen He didn't linger and left the Red Maple Valley Inn directly.

"The shopkeeper..."

Watching him leave, the servant turned around and looked at Manager Qian, seemingly wanting to say something but then stopping himself.

"Do your own thing."

Manager Qian said little, leaving behind a single sentence before turning away.

……

On the other side, Shen He, having left the market, finally arrived at the location of the spirit field, guided by the jade tablet.

Ten acres of spiritual land, totaling six thousand square meters, is neither particularly large nor small.
Shen He stood on the ridge of the field, gazing at the surrounding scenery. He saw figures flying across several acres of spiritual fields in the distance. They were actually martial artists of the Gangyuan realm, carrying buckets of water and moving back and forth across the fields.

That's right, a martial artist!
There are also martial artists in the cultivation world.

This is not strange. Once a martial artist reaches the Gangyuan realm, they already possess some extraordinary power. It is quite normal for some martial artists to accidentally and by chance enter the cultivation world.

In addition, not all descendants of cultivators in the cultivation world have spiritual roots and can cultivate. It is only natural for some second-generation cultivators without spiritual roots to switch to martial arts.

The only strange thing is that all the spiritual farmers around here seem to be martial artists, and there isn't a single cultivator among them.

"Hey, there's a newcomer!"

Just as Shen He was observing, a figure approached from afar, leaping through the air.

It turned out to be an old man, dressed as a farmer, with a hoe on his shoulder, who greeted Shen He with a smile and asked, "Fellow Daoist, what is your esteemed name?"

Since the other party was so welcoming, Shen He didn't refuse and replied with a cupped-fist salute, "I am Zhong Shan!"

"So it's Fellow Daoist Zhongshan."

The old farmer smiled and introduced himself: "My name is Yang Qi. I look a few years older than you, so let's call each other brothers."

"So it's Senior Yang Qi."

Having changed his appearance and become a young man, Shen He cupped his hands in greeting and looked around: "It seems that all the spiritual farmers here are martial artists?" "That's natural."

Yang Qi chuckled and said, "This spiritual field is located on the edge of Red Maple Valley. The spiritual energy is thin, so it is the lowest grade of spiritual field. Cultivators are unwilling to cultivate it, so only poor martial artists like us come here."

"Is there such a thing?"

Shen He looked surprised.

"Fellow Daoist, you are new here and do not know the key to this matter."

Yang Qi shook his head: "Those spirit farmers who are originally cultivators can use spirit plant spells such as the Lesser Cloud and Rain Technique to condense spiritual energy, bring down sweet rain, and irrigate the spirit fields."

We martial artists don't possess such abilities; we can only rent spirit fields in this area and rely on the nearby spirit stream for irrigation, so that we can nourish the spirit rice in the fields just like cultivators."

After saying that, he looked at Shen He and said, "Brother Zhong, you don't have any magical power or spiritual light on you, so you must be a martial artist. It's reasonable for Red Maple Inn to recommend that you rent this spiritual field."

"I see!"

Shen He nodded, looking relieved.

Yang Qi smiled again: "But brother, you don't need to be discouraged. Although we martial artists are a bit lacking, we can still make a living in Red Maple Valley. As long as we take good care of this acre of spirit field and ensure good weather and no diseases or disasters, we can still save a few spirit stones after paying the landlord the spirit rice and the spirit rent from Red Maple Valley."

Every grain is the result of hard work!

Upon hearing this, Shen He also sighed.

"That's not it!"

Yang Qi glanced around, then lowered his voice: "Brother Zhong, you're new here, there's something you must be careful about."

"Oh?"

Shen He's eyes narrowed: "What is it?"

"Cultivation Tribulation of Immortal Fate!"

Yang Qi said in a deep voice, "We martial artists who come from ordinary backgrounds stumbled into the world of cultivation, and are therefore often considered to have a destiny to become immortals. Some vicious cultivators even prey on us martial artists, robbing and killing us as soon as we leave the market. Many of our fellow cultivators have already fallen into their hands. Brother Zhong, you are new here, so you must be careful of them."

"Is there such a thing?"

Shen He feigned surprise and anger: "What about Red Maple Valley?

"Outside the market town, there is no law and order!"

Yang Qi shook his head and sighed again: "Even within the market, absolute safety cannot be guaranteed. It's better to rely on yourself than to ask others for help. It's better to be careful yourself than to expect help from others."

Shen He cupped his hands in thanks: "Thank you for your guidance, senior."

"As fellow martial arts practitioners, we should help each other."

Yang Qi smiled and said, "I have a few close friends here. Once you've settled in, Brother Zhong, I'll introduce you to them. Cultivation is not easy, and we martial arts practitioners should unite even more."

"Thank you, senior!"

"..."

Such enthusiasm from a senior figure in the martial arts world.

Is it genuine or feigned?

It’s hard to say.

But it doesn't matter, Shen He has already made up his mind to develop quietly in Red Maple Valley and will not leave in the short term.

So what does it matter if this person is sincere or not? What tricks could he possibly play in Red Maple Valley?
Even if they could, it would only amount to flipping the table.

As long as the opponent can't summon a Core Formation cultivator, Shen He doesn't care.

Therefore, let nature take its course and allow things to develop naturally.

After seeing the man off, Shen He turned around and went to a thatched hut by the field.

This was the legacy of the previous tenant farmer, and it has now become his residence.

After sitting down in the thatched hut, Shen He did not hesitate and used his professional experience to transform the hut and the surrounding ten acres of spiritual fields into a secluded cultivation place.

The talent of secluded retreats corresponds to the professional's rank; the number of secluded retreats a professional can possess depends on their rank.

The Immortal Hermit is a second-tier profession, so besides Dongting Lake Island, he can also transform it into a secluded place for cultivation.

After his professional training was completed and his secluded cultivation was finished, Shen He quickly felt the gathering of spiritual energy.

The key to secluded cultivation is seclusion, but cultivation is not completely neglected. It can slightly gather spiritual energy without any changes, and no one except Shen He himself can detect it.

It's simply the perfect tool for getting freebies!
After changing his secluded cultivation location, Shen He began his cultivation. He sat cross-legged on the couch in the Five Elements Convergence posture and silently began to absorb the spiritual energy of heaven and earth by practicing the Five Elements Technique.

That's right, he's cultivating immortality.

When he captured and interrogated several cultivators in Dongting Lake, Shen He obtained several talismans from them that could detect spiritual roots, so he had already determined his own spiritual root aptitude.

Very poor qualifications!

But it's not that it doesn't exist.

He possesses a pseudo-spiritual root that contains all five elements!
According to the classification in the cultivation world, spiritual roots are divided into four levels and three grades. The fourth level is Heaven, Earth, Profound, and Yellow, and the third grade is divided into upper, middle, and lower grades.

However, his pseudo-spiritual root was not among the fourth-tier, third-grade categories. To be precise, it was not qualified to be included in the fourth-tier, third-grade category. It was a second-rate product with no value for cultivation.

That's why it's called a pseudo-spiritual root!
But a pseudo-spiritual root is still a spiritual root, and it also has a certain ability to absorb spiritual energy, it's just that the efficiency is a bit low.

If a true spiritual root of the lower grade of the Yellow Rank has a spiritual energy absorption rate of 10, then his pseudo spiritual root, which is not even in the fourth grade of the third rank, has a spiritual energy absorption rate of 1. Even if he has all five elements, he can only reach 5, making cultivation twice as difficult and half as effective.

Shen He also confirmed this point: even with secluded cultivation sites gathering spiritual energy, his cultivation speed was still outrageously slow.

This was even under the condition that he was practicing the "Five Elements Technique".

The Five Elements Technique, like Xingyi Quan, is a fundamental technique of the human empire. However, it belongs to the cultivation system, and anyone with any of the five elements' spiritual roots can cultivate this fundamental technique.

Although it is a basic technique, like Xingyi Quan, it has been refined and perfected by countless high-level professionals, even immortals, Buddhas and saints, in the human empire. It is not only easy to understand, but also extremely efficient to cultivate.

In this world, it would be considered a celestial cultivation technique, a foundation-building technique at the celestial level.

If released, it would cause countless sects to fight tooth and nail for it.

However, now that it's in Shen He's hands, it's limited by his spiritual root aptitude and can't exert its proper effect.

What a waste!

However, Shen He didn't care, because as he cultivated, three small characters gradually appeared on the general skills bar.

The Five Elements Formula!

Shen He smiled upon seeing this.

Pseudo-spiritual root, poor aptitude?
Is this even a problem when faced with cheating software?
"Should I spend my professional experience to convert the general skill [Five Elements Technique] into a professional skill?"

"Transformation!"

　Not feeling well, this is the only update today.

　　
　
(End of this chapter)