From Celestial Official to Great Celestial Venerable

Chapter 47 Art
When the white-haired and beard-covered Master Xuanji explained his purpose, Qin Chuan seemed to hear the heartbeats of all the young Taoists in the hall.

As their gazes swept over, Su Liao and the other two from the county's Agricultural Academy had their eyes light up and were breathing rapidly; the others from the neighboring Dragon Tiger Blessed Land also looked excited.

Qin Chuan completely understood—his own heart was pounding wildly too.

"To travel beyond the heavens with the Grand Scholar of the Heavenly Court, to visit the Perfect World, and to exchange knowledge?"

Crossing the celestial canopy! Although the myriad realms now possess "celestial boats" and "boundary boats" for traversing celestial realms and boundary seas, the cost is staggering.

The ticket for the grotto-heaven boat costs fifty or sixty spirit coins, which is equivalent to an ordinary Taoist's annual salary;
The trans-realm vessel that crosses the heavens and earth requires thousands of spirit essences and foreign exchange, which is extremely difficult for any entity other than the Heavenly Court or a top-tier sect to afford.

Although Perfect World is proclaimed as a "great enemy from beyond the heavens," no one denies that it is the number one realm among all the heavens today—its Taoist magic, spiritual energy, and reputation are unparalleled in the world.

Being able to travel abroad with the delegation is not only a great honor, but also a prestigious title that enhances one's image.

With this qualification, the journey back will be much smoother.

Qin Chuan immediately looked at his teacher, Huo Yuanjue, who was also giving him a deep look.

Previously, we were worried that our disciples lacked key experience; if they could get this spot, their eligibility for a house in the spiritual district might be secured.

However, it is clear that the old scholar Feng He also has high hopes for his three disciples, and the five people from Dragon Tiger Blessed Land are even more eager to fight.

"Hehe." Seeing this, Master Xuanji smiled with no small amount of pride. "This spot is not easy to get. Many students from Xiaoxiang Academy have begged me to take them as disciples but have not been able to. This time, it is because your county god has a lot of influence that he asked her former teacher to speak on her behalf. Only then did I agree to give the opportunity to a young man from Jiuchuan."

Everyone was astonished, secretly wondering just who this master of the county god was.

"Please state your conditions frankly, and the heroes of this county will do their utmost to meet them."

Ji Yuqi spoke up at the right time to support the local Taoist priest.

Master Xuanji extended three fingers:

"The three-stage assessment will last for one month. First, submit an article in the field of agricultural spirits to test your professional foundation. Second, I will give each of you ten 'Five-Colored Spirit Valley' seeds, and after one month, we will score you based on their germination and growth. Third, I will personally conduct an oral examination. Each stage is worth ten points, and the two deputy group leaders, Director Fu, and I will jointly evaluate the results. The person with the highest total score across the three stages will be the champion and will be able to join the delegation on the trip."

He looked around at everyone: "Is this fair?"

After careful consideration, everyone agreed.

"We are willing to give it a try!" Qin Chuan and the others replied in unison.

With a flick of his sleeve, Xuanji Zhenren caused colorful light to flow throughout the meeting hall, and nine portions of wondrous grain seeds, shimmering with five-colored radiance, precisely fell into the palms of each young Taoist.

"Five-Colored Spirit Valley?" Qin Chuan carefully caught it, feeling its smooth texture and the presence of all five elements of spiritual energy. He was shocked. "If it is successfully planted, wouldn't it be an excellent resource for cultivating the Five Elements Dao Foundation?"

Everyone present was a skilled farmer, and they all looked astonished.

"Alright! The selection for the Celestial Companion begins today. We will all serve as judges."

Ji Yuqi made the final decision and moved on to the next agenda item: "Since this is a meeting of the Agricultural and Spiritual Economy Task Force, I would like each of you to briefly introduce your expertise and strengths so that we can work together."

She gestured, and Qin Chuan stood up first: "Junior Qin Chuan is skilled in the 'Yi Wood Azure Sky Technique', which can protect the life force of spiritual plants."

The three members of the Agricultural Academy then reported:
Su Liao has a soft and charming voice, possesses an extraordinary body, and the spiritual flowers she cultivates have a calming and unique fragrance;

Jing Shou had a square face and a solemn expression; he was skilled in cultivating cold-resistant spiritual plants.

Teng Qi is taciturn, but he is skilled at sensing the earth's veins and cultivating underground crops.

The Dragon Tiger Blessed Land team was clearly a professional force painstakingly recruited by Sun Qinghan.
The beautiful Tian Xiaoya is skilled at growing sweet potatoes and has participated in the cultivation of the local specialty "Golden Stem Yam".
Miao Yusheng has mastered the ninth level of the "Minor Cloud Rain Technique," which allows him to precisely summon a few acres of spiritual rain using his own spiritual power.

……

This surprised Qin Chuan—the depth of this person's techniques far surpassed that of Elder Huo.

After all, with his own creation of the Eight-Layer Yi Wood Azure Heaven Technique, Elder Huo was already qualified to be a master of spiritual plants in the Nine Rivers.

This person was actually able to cultivate the Lesser Cloud and Rain Technique to the ninth level, which is already the highest level that a technique below the Foundation Establishment Realm can reach.

If he were placed in any water management department, he would be a highly sought-after talent.

How could such a talented person not be promoted even in the blessed land of dragons and tigers?

It seems that in road construction, simply honing one's skills without cultivating connections won't get you anywhere.

...Next:
It is Gu Ling'er who can drive away insects with the sound of bells; Pu Hui who has secretly studied the art of fertilizing and improving soil; and Renqiu, a female Taoist with a pure face but a deep and calm aura, who has cultivated a secret method to ripen spiritual fruits.

Qin Chuan thought to himself, "The Dragon and Tiger Blessed Land is indeed full of talented people. County God Sun Qinghan has really gone all out to recruit so many high-level talents for Jiuchuan Agricultural Economy."

After everyone finished introducing themselves, Ji Yuqi continued with the agenda:

"Now that the task force has been established, we need to hold weekly meetings starting today to summarize the progress and difficulties and clarify the direction for next week. Since most of you are new here, let Qin Chuan, who is most familiar with Lingcheng, introduce the situation and share his suggestions first."

Qin Chuan calmly reiterated the plan he had previously presented to Sun Qinghan.

During the report, Master Xuanji's eyelids were half-closed, as if the lengthy presentation had made him sleepy, and he even dozed off as if no one else was around.

Ji Yuqi saw Qin Chuan without glancing at him and remained focused and unaffected. She secretly praised him, "As expected of someone from my chanting group, this kind of temperament is very useful in the future."

After Qin Chuan finished speaking, he mentioned the method of nourishing the spirit orange with the Spirit Gathering Array Plate and the Yi Wood Azure Heaven Technique. Scholar Feng He raised a deep question in his voice:
"While this method is ingenious, it has a major drawback: it is extremely costly. Jiuchuan is in the midst of development; how can such extravagance be tolerated? Even if laying out spirit-gathering arrays over a large area can ensure the survival of the spirit oranges, have you considered its future promotion? Where are there so many spiritual veins and fields available for use? If ordinary farmers simply cannot afford to grow them, how can they be considered as a cash crop?"

Qin Chuan seemed to have been prepared and answered calmly:

"What Elder Feng is concerned about, I have also thought about. However, the most important thing at present is to ensure that the spirit orange can survive and take root in this area. Promoting superior varieties and reducing costs are things to do after survival. If the trees don't survive, how can we talk about the future? Therefore, the consumption of the spirit-gathering array in only two acres of experimental fields may not be too great."

Feng He shook his head: "Young people don't know the value of money. If the spirit-gathering array is used up, it'll be worth more than two acres of land. Heavenly resources cannot be wasted like this."

His tone already carried a hint of official jargon.

Qin Chuan took a deep breath and asked directly, "This junior has indeed been negligent. I wonder if Elder Feng has any insightful suggestions?"

"Since it is an experiment, we cannot bet on a single solution."

Feng He slowly said, "The County God summoned all parties to establish this class for this very reason. In my opinion, your method can continue, but the scope must be narrowed down to one-quarter of the spirit oranges. The remaining three-quarters should be handed over to others to try different cultivation methods. This will save resources and allow for more exploration, increasing the chances of success."

He turned to Ji Yuqi, "What does the host think?"

After a moment's thought, Ji Yuqi also felt that this was indeed more efficient.

He looked at Huo Yuanjue and Qin Chuan: "This method is feasible, and it is also the original intention of the special task force. What do you two think?"

Huo Yuanjue immediately stated: "I have no objection to Qin Chuan."

Qin Chuan's mind stirred slightly. Was the teacher afraid that he would object? He thought to himself that he was not so unreasonable as to be so ungrateful—now that he was in the special class, he should work together to devise a plan, and he would not dare to think of monopolizing the solution.

He remained silent after Huo Lao, which was an indication of his acquiescence.

“Since there are no objections, the Spirit Orange Field will be divided into four equal parts: one part for Qin Chuan and Elder Huo, one part for Elder Feng and his three disciples, one part for the five fellow Daoists of Dragon Tiger Blessed Land, and one part for True Person Xuanji.” Ji Yuqi made the allocation decisively.

Everyone agreed, and even the seemingly asleep Xuanji Zhenren did not object.

"The last item is about the yam planting plan brought by Fellow Daoist from Dragon Tiger Blessed Land..."

………………

After the meeting, Qin Chuan and Huo Yuanjue walked side by side.

Huo Yuanjue nodded and said, "When Feng He rejected your proposal just now, I thought you were young and impetuous and would argue on the spot. I didn't expect you to be so calm and composed, choosing to avoid confrontation during the crucial argument."

Qin Chuan smiled wryly: "Teacher, you flatter me. Although I have entered the special class, I am still relatively inexperienced. How could I possibly have the idea of ​​commanding the entire class, nor do I have that much prestige?"

"With this awareness, the path to enlightenment is promising."

Huo Yuanjue spoke calmly:
"Cultivation is the art of compromise. The most difficult thing is to get others to accept one's own views. In a monastery, differing opinions and disagreements are common. The key is to distinguish between primary and secondary issues and break down contradictions—when to insist and when to back down. Coordinating personnel is about exchanging one's secondary interests for the core needs. If you want 'everything,' you must have absolute power."

"Disciple understands." How could Qin Chuan not know how to distinguish between the primary and secondary contradictions, which ones can be united, and which ones need to be fought?

Although Feng He opposed his own plan, they were still on the same page regarding the main issue of "the survival of Ling Cheng". As long as Feng He could use his own methods to ensure the survival of Ling Cheng, he would also be defending Qin Chuan's main interests.

"Alright, you're a quick learner. The meeting is over. Now that we've had some time, let's go visit an old fellow with your master," Huo Yuanjue said with a smile.

Qin Chuan's eyes lit up.

Are they other highly skilled individuals in the county who are proficient in the Five Elements Technique?

(End of this chapter)