Spirit Plant Entry: Immortality Begins with Farming

The thatched hut smelled of earth, mixed with the lingering scent of blood on Chen Yuan's body.

He was staring blankly at the earthen pot in the corner, his right hand hovering over it, the golden light at his fingertips trembling, refusing to flow out.

"Tsk, still not working."

Chen Yuan withdrew his hand and wiped his forehead, which was covered in cold sweat.

Suddenly, there was a loud "bang" sound outside the door. It wasn't a heavy knock, but it conveyed a sense of urgency.

"Senior Brother Chen! Senior Brother Chen Yuan! Are you inside? Something strange has happened!"

It's Zhou Ming, no doubt about it.

Chen Yuan opened the door. Zhou Ming almost stumbled in, his face flushed red, the half-empty jug of cheap liquor in his hand rattling loudly.

"Be careful," Chen Yuan stepped aside to let him in, closing the door behind him. "What's wrong? Why are you so anxious?"

"Just those few edelweisses in your herb garden!" Zhou Ming tilted his head back and gulped down a mouthful of wine, wiping his mouth haphazardly with his sleeve. "I just happened to pass by yesterday and casually used my spirit-testing disc to check them out—"

He took out a copper plate from his pocket, with a point of light flickering in the center.

"Guess what? There's one inside with spiritual energy as strong as a low-grade second-tier tree! And there's something even more bizarre..." He leaned forward, his voice barely a whisper, his eyes gleaming, "It's absorbing the surrounding fire spiritual energy itself, like a little vortex, bubbling and swirling in!"

Chen Yuan's heart skipped a beat.

It's stabilized? It can even gather spiritual energy now?

"Let's go," he said, his expression impassive, turning and walking outside. "Let's go take a look."

"Hey! Senior brother, wait for me!" Zhou Ming quickly grabbed the wine jug and chased after him.

The two of them ran to the edge of the herb garden, one after the other.

The three grasses stood in a row, looking no different at first glance. But the one in the middle had what looked like red mercury flowing in its veins, and the ground within three feet around it was warm, with heat rising towards it.

Chen Yuan crouched down, and several lines of text suddenly appeared in his field of vision:

【Edelweiss (Mutant, Stable)】

[Entries: Fire Spirit Condensation (Continuous Enhancement), Weak Spirit Gathering]

[Status: Healthy, growing very fast]

[New Feature: One 'Fire Spirit Crystal' can be generated every twelve hours, equivalent to half a low-grade Fire Spirit Stone]

Producing your own spirit stones?

Chen Yuan stared at the line of text, remaining silent for a long time.

"How about it?" Zhou Ming squatted down as well, his breath reeking of alcohol, his voice low. "This treasure... Senior Brother, if it can be kept stable and passed down through generations, think about how much it's worth? Those fiery types in the sect will be scrambling to get it, won't they? Those Foundation Establishment uncles from the Enforcement Hall and the Alchemy Room will probably come to take a look themselves!"

Chen Yuan reached out and touched the leaf with his fingertips.

A warm yet vibrant fire seeped into my fingers, its purity almost frightening.

"Is your plate accurate?"

"Borrowed from the outer sect management office! A first or second-tier grass test, guaranteed to be accurate!" Zhou Ming thumped his chest loudly, his eyes darting around, then leaned in half a foot closer. "Senior brother, but this matter... can't be kept secret. The spiritual energy flow here is off; those dogs in the Array Academy will smell it sooner or later. And what about Uncle Wang Mo's place..."

Chen Yuan withdrew his hand, stood up, and glanced at the two ordinary grasses beside him before his gaze fell back on the mutated one.

Possessing a treasure is a crime. He remembers the blood ginseng incident to the core.

"So, what do you think we should do?" he asked Zhou Ming.

Zhou Ming rubbed his hands together, grinned, revealing some yellow teeth: "Two paths. First, report it to the Medicine Valley immediately, or even go straight to the alchemy room. With that merit, getting an inner sect status, or making a big fortune, won't be difficult. Second..." He chuckled twice, "Let's keep it under wraps for now, figure out how it mutated. Even if we can't make the exact same one, we can get some weakened versions of the seed—that's a long-term business."

He spoke frankly, and the meaning was clear: Zhou Ming wanted to get on board, betting that his senior brother was capable.

"Too risky." Chen Yuan shook his head, his face expressionless. "Wang Mo is just worried about not having any leverage over me. Not reporting my possession of high-level mutated spiritual plants is enough for him to make a big fuss about."

"Then... then it's just a freebie?" Zhou Ming asked anxiously.

"However," Chen Yuan changed the subject, looking at his dilapidated thatched hut, "since the grass is growing here, how to report it, to whom to report it, and when to report it are all up to us. At least... we have to wait until it's more 'ripe' and we have enough capital before we can talk about the price."

Zhou Ming's eyes lit up: "Senior brother is brilliant! Drag it out! The longer you drag it out, the more interesting things might be!"

"You go back first." Chen Yuan waved his hand. "I'll think about it. Keep your mouth shut."

"Don't worry! My mouth is sealed!" Zhou Ming tossed the wine jug aside, swaggered away, and walked off with a light step.

Chen Yuan didn't move, and squatted back down.

The sunlight shines on the leaves, making the crimson veins look like a living fire.

……

He turned and went back into the house.

Once the door is closed, the restless heat outside is shut out.

In the earthen pot in the corner, the remaining roots of the *Cynanchum alopecuroides* still looked lifeless.

Chen Yuan sat down on the futon and closed his eyes.

This time, he didn't forcefully try to draw out the golden light. Instead, he slowly let his thoughts sink in and "approach" that gentle yet substantial vitality.

It's not about ordering someone around, it's about saying hello.

After an unknown amount of time, the pale golden star seemed to give a soft "hmm".

Chen Yuan opened his eyes, his right hand hovering over the earthen pot again.

The golden light, like a thin mist, slowly seeped into the black soil.

After an incense stick had burned, he withdrew his hand, his face pale.

The remaining roots still look the same.

But he "sensed" it—

Deep inside that dead root, there was a tiny, tiny dot, beneath the icy shell, where a faint trace of warmth seemed to be "waiting."

At the same time, the golden star in my mind seemed to have become a little more real.

A thought flashed through my mind:

[Life Nourishment (Law Insights): Introduction (0.1%)]

There is a play.

Chen Yuan leaned against the earthen wall, exhaling a long breath that carried a hint of blood. His lips twitched slightly.

The road ahead is long, but we haven't gone astray.

Outside the window, the sun was getting increasingly scorching.

That strange grass, three feet deep, silently drew in the sunlight and the fiery energy from the air.

The red glow on the leaves seemed to have intensified slightly.

In the distance, at the Hall of Affairs, a disciple on duty yawned and stuffed the record of "Slightly different spiritual energy flow in Area C of Medicine Valley" under a pile of documents.

Right now, it's not worth anyone's second glance.

In the afternoon, Chen Yuan went down the mountain towards the shantytown.

Instead of going through the main gate, we took a path around the back mountain.

quiet.

Half an hour later, the low, dilapidated rooftops of the shantytown appeared at the bottom of the slope.

The smoke from burning firewood, the smell of stale porridge, and a faint, musty odor of feces and urine mingled together, and when the wind blew, it went straight into your nose.

This taste is too familiar, so familiar that it makes my heart sink.

"Chen...Brother Chen?"

A head popped out from a roadside shack; it was Old Sun.

He squinted at Chen Yuan for several seconds before asking in a trembling voice, "Is it really you? This robe... you've joined the sect?"

"A nominal disciple, a handyman in the Medicine Valley," Chen Yuan replied briefly, without stopping.

"Oh my! This is incredible!" Old Sun shouted from behind, "I told you you'd definitely pull something out—"

Before I could even finish speaking, they were already behind me.

Chen Yuan first went to the eight acres of land at the east end.

A person was squatting by the edge of the field, their back to her thin frame, head down, weeding. Hearing the noise, they turned around and saw it was Widow Li.

She paused, wiped her hands on her apron, and stood up. "Brother Chen? What brings you back at this hour?"

"Take a look at the land." Chen Yuan walked to the edge of the field, his gaze sweeping over the furrows.

The eight mu of land was divided into three plots: four mu of Qingyang rice, with stalks reaching waist height and leaves so green they were almost black, rustling in the wind; two mu of gray leaf vegetables, with plump leaves and a ring of silvery-gray velvet around the edges; and the remaining two mu were empty, the soil turned over until it was soft.

"Not bad looking." Chen Yuan squatted down and picked up a piece of rice leaf with his fingers.

The entry's scope unfolded quietly:

【Qingyang Rice (Improved Variety)】

[Entry: Disease resistance enhancement (weak)]

[Status: Jointing stage, excellent growth]

[Estimated yield per acre: approximately 30% higher than ordinary varieties]

Chen Yuan glanced at the entry and decided against it, thinking that taking the entry would damage the plant's spirituality.

Widow Li followed and squatted down as well: "The 'dregs' you scattered before you left were really effective. The rice didn't get infested with insects, and it didn't wilt during the drought either. Old Wang next door was peeking over the fence every day; his eyes were practically red with envy."

"It's not dregs, it's just bits and pieces, which just happened to suit the nature of this land." Chen Yuan stood up, clapped his hands, and looked at the two acres of empty fields. "What did you plant before?"

"Potatoes." Widow Li also stood up. "The harvest is alright, but the sizes are uneven. I'll do as you said, pick out the big ones to sell at the shop, and keep the small and crooked ones for ourselves."

"How's the shop?"

"I was just about to tell you," Widow Li's eyes brightened. "Come on, let's take a look."