Chapter 210 – Sword Intent Can Also Farm
Withdrawing his gaze from the fourth-rank spirit plants, Gu Mo pressed onward. Along the way, aside from abandoned spirit fields, he spotted several enclosures—within them lay a few skeletons.
This was likely an area once used to raise spirit beasts. As he approached one broken fence, Gu Mo immediately sensed a faint yet formidable aura radiating from the bones within.
"This is…"
His eyes grew solemn as he stared at the skeleton. From the lingering aura alone, he could tell that in life, this creature had at least been a fourth-rank Demon King—likely a peak-tier one at that.
Otherwise, after being dead for so long, it would have been impossible for its remains to still carry such a presence. A skeleton of such a Demon King, if brought outside, would be considered a treasure of immense value.
But Gu Mo knew what he needed most—or rather, what was most precious in this Cave Heaven ruin was neither the fourth-rank spirit plants nor this peak-tier Demon King's remains, but the Cave Heaven's core itself.
Without hesitation, he continued toward the center.
Soon, however, he involuntarily stopped. His gaze shifted toward a nearby spirit field—long abandoned—where a massive tree lay toppled.
Though clearly dead, its trunk still exuded a staggering spiritual fluctuation. Gu Mo knew this aura well—Shennong Valley's fifth-rank ancient tree gave off the same.
This meant the fallen tree was a fifth-rank spirit plant. Even in death, its trunk and branches were fifth-rank materials.
The Valley's contribution exchange list included fifth-rank materials—branches from the ancient tree, harvested only once every hundred years.
After all, breaking a branch from a fifth-rank ancient tree harmed it greatly; a century between harvests was the Valley's careful balance to ensure sustainable yield without excessive damage.
Even so, redeeming a piece of fifth-rank material required an astronomical contribution amount, and whenever such materials appeared, they were swiftly claimed by the Valley elders.
Now, in this abandoned field, lay an entire fifth-rank tree—equivalent to tens of thousands of such branches. And this specimen was far smaller than the Valley's own ancient tree, which suggested its materials might have unique properties.
"No. The Cave Heaven core is the priority!"
Gu Mo forced himself to look away. Truthfully, an entire fifth-rank spirit plant was tempting—its materials were treasures even Deity Transformation cultivators longed for.
But he remained clear-headed. The Cave Heaven core was what he truly needed. If such plants existed here, the Cave Heaven's master must have been tremendously powerful.
Moreover, though these fields looked abandoned, who could say whether restrictions remained? If he tried to collect treasures here and triggered a formation, he could lose his chance at the core—trading a watermelon for sesame seeds.
From then on, he no longer glanced at the fields along his path, avoiding further temptation.
Soon, a small courtyard came into view—the only building in the ruin, likely the dwelling of the Cave Heaven's master.
If there was any place the core might be, it was here.
At the courtyard's entrance, a formation blocked his way. Gu Mo was no novice at formations now, but upon examining this one, he felt like a beginner again.
It was too profound—he couldn't judge its rank. Still, since the Cave Heaven treasure was damaged, many of its formations and restrictions were partially broken.
This one was no exception. Though exquisite, its current strength was only equivalent to a fourth-rank formation.
"Good!"
He exhaled in relief. As long as it wasn't above fourth-rank, he could break it.
Taking out a prepared fourth-rank tombstone moss, he said, "Xiao Hei, it's up to you."
He tossed it forward. Like the sunflower and torch stump before, this fourth-rank moss had developed intelligence, and he had named it Xiao Hei for its color.
"Yes, Master!" came a deep voice.
Xiao Hei clung to the formation's light curtain, spreading quickly. About half an hour later, a gap appeared.
The speed was slower than Gu Mo expected, but considering the true rank of the formation was far beyond fourth-rank, the fact that Xiao Hei could breach it at all was impressive.
Once the gap opened, he slipped inside to the courtyard gate.
Taking a deep breath, he pushed the door open—
"Who are you? How did you get in?!"
A sharp voice rang out as a scarecrow instantly appeared before him. The voice, lacking a mouth, was transmitted directly into his mind.
"So fast!"
Startled by its sudden appearance, Gu Mo nonetheless cupped his fists. "I walked in, of course."
"Impossible! You didn't pass the trial—how could you be here?" the scarecrow said, agitated.
"Trial?" Gu Mo blinked. This ruin had a trial?
"Of course. To inherit my master's legacy, you must pass it," the scarecrow replied matter-of-factly.
It explained that the trial began when the outer formation was triggered—exactly what Qian Tao had faced before. Only by withstanding the puppet attacks could one qualify to enter.
The spirit fields were further tests—each cleared test granting its treasures. Only by passing three could one reach this courtyard and inherit the legacy.
But Gu Mo had bypassed all that with the tombstone moss, never triggering the trial. He ignored the spirit fields entirely and came straight here, breaking the formation the same way.
The scarecrow only noticed him after he entered. His unexpected arrival clashed with its programmed rules, leaving it at a loss—it was intelligent, but not truly alive, bound to follow its master's preset conditions.
"Inheriting means passing the trial, correct?" Gu Mo asked.
"Yes," it nodded.
"Then I'm standing here—doesn't that mean I passed?"
"…But you didn't take the trial," it said hesitantly.
"You just said standing here means I passed."
"…Yes."
The scarecrow knew he hadn't come normally, but it couldn't contradict its master's rules.
"Then that settles it," Gu Mo said. A living man could surely out-argue a tool spirit.
"No! That's not—!" The scarecrow flustered, its aura flaring before quickly retracting. "Harming trial-takers is forbidden," it said when Gu Mo tensed.
"But someone died in a trial before," Gu Mo pressed.
"The Cave Heaven is damaged—some mechanisms failed. Those people were too weak. I didn't have time to save them… but I did save one," it said.
Gu Mo realized Qian Tao's survival was thanks to the scarecrow—without its intervention, his life-saving artifact wouldn't have worked due to the trial's restrictions.
"So what now?" Gu Mo asked.
"…You could… take a trial now? If you pass, you get my master's legacy," it said, hopeful—then it could justify giving him the inheritance.
"Dangerous?" Gu Mo asked, aware that the Cave Heaven's safety features were broken.
"No danger," it assured him, then explained—his trial would be to cultivate a spirit plant, a test for a Spirit Plant Master.
Safe, yes—but for a sword cultivator, a deliberate challenge.
"Alright," Gu Mo agreed. For an ordinary sword cultivator, this was impossible—but the scarecrow didn't know who it was dealing with.
"If I pass, I get all the treasures here—including the core?" he confirmed.
"Of course."
It handed him a third-rank spirit plant seed. The task: make it sprout and grow to third-rank.
For Gu Mo, this was easy—even if this incarnation hadn't cultivated the Taiyi Evergreen sutra, his Grand Yan Cycle Art was attribute-neutral, avoiding the difficulties of, say, a metal- or fire-based art.
Activating Plant Sense, he saw the seed's meridian-like pattern and began channeling his energy to stimulate its growth.
The scarecrow was stunned—a sword cultivator using Spirit Plant Master techniques, and with clear skill.
Then, seeing growth was slow, Gu Mo tried something new—infusing his Great Sun Sword Intent.
The seed sprouted rapidly under its stimulus. Using sword intent to grow plants—the scarecrow had never imagined such a thing, nor had its master.
Planting it in the courtyard soil, Gu Mo alternated Spirit Plant Master methods with his sword intent, accelerating growth.
"…Sword intent can be used like this?" the scarecrow murmured, realizing this man was indeed qualified for the legacy.
"The trial is passed," it declared, though the plant hadn't reached its peak—there was no longer any doubt.
"Hm? Passed?" Gu Mo looked up from his experiment. This flash of inspiration—combining sword intent with spirit planting—was a path worth studying.
After all, his main body was a Spirit Plant Master as well. Used together, the results could be extraordinary.
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