Cultivating Immortality in Two Realms: Sunflower Lord

The moment Ji Ruchang stepped out of the courtyard gate, the little maid Xiu'e stood at the door, watching his figure disappear into the alley, her face still showing the joy of that moment.

The master has emerged from seclusion.

Although he only offered a few words of comfort and left the yard immediately, those two words, "Thank you for your hard work" and "Well done," warmed her heart.

The yard was kept clean and tidy, the clothes were neatly washed, and the meals, though simple, were never missed—all of this was noticed by the adults.

Xiu'e smiled and turned back to continue her work.

At this moment, Ji Ruchang was walking slowly towards the village entrance along the main street in the center of the village.

The villagers he encountered along the way all stopped and respectfully greeted him.

"Greetings, Lady Ji!"

"Has Lord Ji come out on patrol?"

"You've worked hard, sir!"

Ji Ruchang nodded slightly, occasionally responding with a word or two, her steps never faltering.

But as he passed by, whispers began to rise behind him:

"Lord Ji said she's going to inspect the area around the village."

"Will this happen every now and then?"

"That's great! With resident cultivators patrolling, our village will be much safer!"

"He's a good man, a responsible night watchman..."

These words drifted into Ji Ruchang's ears on the wind. He didn't turn around, but a very faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth.

nice guy?

A responsible night watchman?

maybe.

But more importantly, he needed a legitimate reason to frequently enter and leave the village and go into the mountains.

And now we have that reason.

At the foot of Black Mountain lies a gentle slope strewn with jagged rocks.

Ji Ruchang stood on this slope, her gaze sweeping over the scattered stones of various sizes.

He needs stone.

A lot of stone.

The damaged dry well in the northeast corner has a large section of its wall collapsed and needs to be rebuilt with stones.

While ordinary stone cannot truly block the attacks of those powerful monsters, it can at least provide some shelter and protection, and also give the transplanted sunflowers a relatively stable rooting environment.

He walked slowly up the hillside, occasionally squatting down to tap a stone and feel its texture.

Avoid pieces that are too finely broken, as they are prone to loosening.

Avoid anything too brittle, as it will crack at the slightest touch.

Don't use anything too small, you can't stack them up.

Finally, he stopped in front of a relatively gentle slope.

Here is an exposed rock layer, bluish-gray in color, with fine texture, and a dull, solid sound when struck.

"This is it."

Ji Ruchang took two steps back and gripped the Flaming Blade on his back with his right hand.

Starlight True Essence, poured in!

The blade instantly lit up with flowing gold and silver flames!

He took a deep breath, gripped the knife with both hands, and slashed fiercely at the rock formation!

"boom!"

The blade pierced the rock as easily as cutting tofu, cleaving a straight crack along the intended cutting line!

Ji Ruchang did not stop.

Cut after cut, like the most skilled stonemason, cutting and carving on that rock stratum.

The blade flashed, and stone chips flew everywhere.

Half an hour later, a dozen or so neatly sized bluestones, each about three feet long, two feet wide, and half a foot thick, were stacked to one side.

Each piece was cleaved out by him, one stroke at a time, with his flaming blade.

"That's enough." Ji Ruchang wiped the thin layer of sweat from her forehead and glanced at the pile of stones.

He didn't stop.

Turning around, I walked to another spot where there were several huge natural round stones, each over four feet in diameter, perfectly round and solid in texture.

Ji Ruchang circled around them for a while, then raised the Flaming Blade again.

This time, it's not cutting, it's hollowing out.

The blade, like the most skillful carving knife, cut a regular circular incision at the top of the round stone, then went deep inside, carving out the stone core piece by piece.

First piece, done.

The second piece is complete.

The third piece, the fourth piece.

Four enormous stone basins, each with a cavity three feet deep and three feet wide, with smooth edges and a flat bottom.

Ji Ruchang dragged them aside one by one, then dug up fertile soil from the hillside and filled the four stone basins.

not enough.

He then selected two round stones of similar size, hollowed them out, and walked to a nearby mountain stream. He drew two streams of water and filled the two stone basins behind them with clear spring water.

Six stone basins, four for soil and two for water, were neatly arranged next to the stone.

Ji Ruchang nodded in satisfaction.

Then he walked to the pile of stones and the stone basin, reached out and pressed his hand on the largest one.

A thought crossed my mind.

The boulder vanished into thin air.

The second piece, the third piece, the fourth piece...

He collected more than a dozen stones, six stone basins, and all the small stones into his sea of ​​consciousness courtyard and placed them directly at the edge of the light circle.

This is the area where Ji Ruchang has permission to access items.

In other places shrouded in darkness, the main body cannot enter or access items.

The mountains have returned to peace.

All that remains is a rock layer that has been cut into a mess, and a few pits where huge rocks have been dug out.

Ji Ruchang dusted off his hands, turned around, and continued walking into the mountains.

Unbeknownst to her, Ji Ruchang had already circled most of the mountain.

As he emerged from a thicket of mixed trees, the view suddenly opened up before him, and he realized he had returned to that familiar area—

The cemetery in Heishanqian Village.

On the hillside, countless small graves are neatly arranged, each a low mound with a rough wooden sign in front, recording the name and date of birth and death of the deceased.

Urns, earthenware urns, and occasionally thin-skinned coffins—these are traces left by the cremation policy forcibly implemented by the Dayu Dynasty.

The midday sun shone brightly on this cemetery.

But as soon as Ji Ruchang stepped into the edge of the cemetery, he sensed something unusual.

A chill.

It wasn't the usual coolness, but a kind of... sticky, penetrating chill that seeped into your pores.

Ji Ruchang frowned slightly.

He stopped, closed his eyes, and focused his mind on his body.

All thirty-six acupoints trembled simultaneously!

His star map perception, like invisible ripples, spread outwards in all directions from him!

One inch, one foot, one zhang, ten zhang...

The feedback was crystal clear.

There are no monsters.

There wasn't a single one.

In the cemetery, apart from the sleeping ashes, there are no "living" evil spirits.

but--

The yin energy is too strong.

It's abnormally heavy.

Ji Ruchang opened her eyes and glanced at the cemetery.

He had also sensed the eerie atmosphere here when he last came here to kill zombies.

It was shortly after noon, so it was normal for the yin energy to be so strong.

But it is noon now, the time of day when the yang energy is at its peak.

The concentration of yin energy in this cemetery is now higher than last time!

"That's not right."

Ji Ruchang slowly walked around the edge of the cemetery.

With each step, the star map was operating at full capacity, scanning every inch of the underground space.

There are no monster lairs.

There is no source of yin energy.

There are no underground cavities.

The dense yin energy seemed to seep out of thin air from... the void.

No, it is not emptiness.

It comes from the graves themselves.

Each small grave mound slowly and continuously emanates a chilling aura.

The emanation from a single grave is insignificant, but when hundreds or thousands of graves are piled together, they form this "yin land" that is chilling even at midday.

Ji Ruchang stopped and stood at the edge of the cemetery, gazing at the densely packed graves.

A thought slowly surfaced in my mind:

In the human world, there are "cultivation treasure lands" rich in spiritual energy, which cultivators flock to.

So, could there be a "treasure land" suitable for evil creatures to live and reproduce?

If there is—

This place may be a "treasure land of yin energy" that is forming.

Ji Ruchang did not wander around this huge cemetery area any further.

He turned and strode toward the village.

At the village entrance, we ran into Grandpa Zhao, who was preparing to go out for his inspection.

"Lord Ji?" Old Master Zhao greeted him warmly upon seeing him. "Have you returned from the mountains?"

Ji Ruchang nodded, indicating that he should speak privately.

The two walked to an old locust tree at the entrance of the village, avoiding passing villagers.

"Village chief, I just came from the cemetery." Ji Ruchang got straight to the point.

Old Master Zhao's expression changed slightly: "The cemetery? There...is there a problem over there?"

Ji Ruchang looked at him and slowly said, "The yin energy there is much stronger than when I came last time. At noon, it's already as intense as night."

Old Master Zhao gasped.

"How...how could this be? Our village has always practiced cremation, burying the ashes in the ground, never leaving a complete body..."

"It's not a problem of zombies turning into corpses," Ji Ruchang interrupted him. "There are no monsters there, at least not now. But the yin energy is too heavy, and over time, it will corrupt the living."

He looked at Old Master Zhao and said, word by word, "From now on, no more new people will be buried in that cemetery."

Villagers, especially the elderly and children, should not be allowed to get close.

When yin energy enters the body, it can cause illness in mild cases, shorten lifespan in severe cases, and even lead to sudden death.

Old Master Zhao's expression changed from shock to solemnity, and then from solemnity to fear.

"Then... then where will we be buried in the village cemetery? We can't possibly..."

"Bury it further away, in a sunny spot. If that doesn't work, choose a new location." Ji Ruchang's voice was calm yet firm. "Arrange this as soon as possible. I will check on it regularly, and if the situation worsens, I will find a way to deal with it."

Grandpa Zhao nodded repeatedly, his wrinkles seeming to deepen.

"Thank you so much, Lady Ji! Thank you so much, Lady Ji! If it weren't for your discovery, who knows what might have happened to our village!"

Ji Ruchang waved his hand, indicating that he didn't need to say anything more.

Then he turned and walked towards his own yard.

Behind him, Old Master Zhao stood under the old locust tree, watching his back, and did not move for a long time.

When I returned to the courtyard, it was already getting dark.

Xiu'e was busy in the kitchen, and wisps of smoke rose from the chimney, filling the courtyard with the aroma of food.

Ji Ruchang did not disturb her, but went straight into the main room and closed the door.

He sat cross-legged on the bed, but did not rush into the courtyard.

The unusual events at the cemetery were still replaying in his mind.

A sacred place of Yin energy.

He had just come up with this word on the spur of the moment, but his intuition told him that it was very likely the truth.

This world is naturally filled with a dark and mysterious mist.

The fog will settle, gather, and seek suitable places to "settle down".

Cemeteries are places where the dead gather, natural points where yin energy converges.

In addition, Montenegro itself is a huge, unknown mountain.

The yin energy in the mountains, the direction of the earth's veins, and perhaps some deeper factors—

Through their combined efforts, that cemetery is transforming into a "treasure trove".

A treasure trove for evil spirits.

"There will be a lot more trouble..." Ji Ruchang muttered to herself.

But there wasn't much worry in his eyes.

On the contrary, there's a hint of... anticipation?

A place considered inauspicious by the Yin energy will attract evil spirits.

When evil spirits come, he will slay them.

Killing an enemy grants you growth points.

If there is a growth potential, the sunflower can grow.

As the sunflower grows, his strength will increase.

As your strength increases, you'll be able to explore deeper into the courtyard.

Deep within the courtyard lie even more secrets and greater resources.

This is a loop.

A cycle he grew to like more and more.

Ji Ruchang's lips curled up slightly.

Then, he closed his eyes and let his mind sink into his sea of ​​consciousness.

At the bottom of the dry well, five sunflowers swayed quietly, waiting for his return.