"I'm willing."
Huang Feihu didn't hesitate in the slightest; he agreed immediately.
He had a gut feeling this partnership was only the beginning. In the future, their cooperation would only deepen.
How many spirit stones he might earn was secondary. What truly mattered was maintaining close ties with a cultivator of immense potential who would soon step into Foundation Establishment.
That was the meaning of constant give and take.
Once his senior brother established his foundation, even the scraps he casually tossed down would be enough for Feihu to benefit.
Ji An chuckled.
"You agreed so quickly? Not going to think it over first?"
"Senior Brother trusts me enough to offer this cooperation that already puts me at an advantage. No need to consider further!"
Ji An grew thoughtful.
"Feihu, how many spirit farmers do you know who are decent at making talisman paper?"
"Mm… five or six, I'd say. Senior Brother, are you thinking…?"
"In recent years, talismans have risen in price, and demand isn't likely to shrink anytime soon.
With talisman paper prices climbing as well, if you and your people have the time, I plan to plant another twenty mu of talisman grass and hand it all over for you to process into paper. What do you think?"
Wasteland was easy to find, and talisman grass was simple to manage occasionally; it just needed the Sharp Gold Art to wipe out pests.
At Ji An's current level, all it took was rain and earth-tending spells to yield high-quality crops.
At the perfected level, these spells only needed to be cast once every two days to keep the grass thriving. Planting another twenty mu wouldn't interfere with his cultivation at all.
Even after sharing profits and deducting planting and land rental costs, twenty mu of talisman grass could bring in around 150 spirit stones.
Together with his talisman-making income, and after covering cultivation and medicine expenses, he would still be saving nearly 300 stones every two months.
This income was leagues beyond that of an ordinary disciple.
"Senior Brother, if we're working with you, it doesn't matter how much talisman grass you plant; we'll be able to process it all."
Huang Feihu's excitement flared. To him, this was like securing a steady, long-term source of income.
And beyond that, he'd gain loyalty from a group of fellow spirit farmers willing to follow him.
"Good. We'll begin next season."
Ji An rolled up his sleeves, satisfied. This deal was a win-win.
He went to the Administrative Hall to purchase seeds of talisman grass and Jadegrain Rice, then returned to his Bihai Lake fields to sow them.
Since coming under Ji An's care, the Gray-Feathered Sand Goose had been working hard, flying at least one round trip a day between Verdant Cliff and Bihai Lake.
Of course, Ji An hadn't treated it poorly, ample spirit grain, spirit beast pills on schedule, never skimped.
He even bought fish and shrimp from the market as treats, and with such care, the bird had grown leaner and more powerful.
When Ji An left, his thirty-odd mu of fields shimmered with green. These weren't crops; these were spirit stones waiting to be harvested!
As he flew back on the goose, suddenly the sky darkened overhead.
He looked up, and his eyes widened.
A colossal flying ark swept past above, spanning the heavens like a mountain adrift in the clouds.
Its hull glimmered with warding light and spirit seals, and even at such a distance, Ji An could feel the oppressive weight radiating from it.
How have I never heard of our sect owning a flying vessel of this size? He stared, dumbstruck, watching until the ark vanished deeper into the sect's territory.
Aboard the ark, a group of young Foundation Establishment cultivators looked down over the endless mountains below. Many wore faintly scornful expressions.
"The Western Wastes' spiritual energy is far too thin. This so-called grand sect… is hardly worth mentioning."
"Senior Brother, you're too harsh. This is only a Golden Core-level sect; how could it compare to our great Central Continent sects?"
"I doubt these backwater sects of Xilan Continent will contribute much in the coming demon calamity."
"They're here to serve as a buffer. So long as they give warning of the outbreak and hold back the first wave of beasts, they'll have fulfilled their purpose.
But to truly endure the calamity? That will still depend on us, Central Continent sects."
On the way back, Ji An made a small detour to a trading post and bought some spirit deer meat.
When he reached the foot of Verdant Cliff, he emptied the freshly harvested Jadegrain Rice into the rice jar and began cooking.
As he worked, he silently tallied up his assets.
Managing his master's medicine garden earned him 200 contribution points per month. He had already saved up 1,000 points.
In addition, he still had over 600 spirit stones on hand. If things went smoothly, in another year, he could conservatively amass 2,000 stones.
By then, if he shamelessly borrowed a little from his master and senior brothers and sisters, he would have enough to exchange for a Foundation Establishment Pill and enter the waiting queue.
The evening breeze carried a rosy glow across the sky. Ji An brought out the braised deer meat and a few plates of spirit vegetables, laid out steaming bowls of rice, set the chopsticks, and waited for Li Lingyu.
Beside him, the two spirit beasts stared hungrily at the food, eyes wide, practically drooling. They wanted to eat too, but had to wait until their master had finished.
The Gray-Feathered Sand Goose, growing impatient, waddled over to Li Lingyu's window and honked loudly.
Come out and eat! If you don't eat, when will we get our share?!
"If you keep squawking, I'll stew you into soup!"
Li Lingyu stormed out of her bamboo lodge, glaring. Sharpening one's divine sense required a calm heart, and the goose's endless noise had been unbearable.
But the moment she caught the aroma of rice drifting in the air, her expression changed. She inhaled deeply, savoring it, and exclaimed:
"Why does the spirit rice smell so good today? The grains are larger than usual… and the spiritual energy feels denser too."
Ji An chuckled.
"Of course, it's spirit rice I planted myself."
"No, that can't be it. The rice in your jar has always been your own. Did you discover some kind of secret method?"
"Something like that. Anyway, eat first."
The Thick Earth Art, infused with Dao Intent, counted as a secret art, after all.
As they ate, Ji An mentioned what he had seen earlier, the colossal flying ark crossing overhead, and asked:
"Senior Sister, could that flying vessel belong to our sect? I've never seen a skyship hundreds of zhang long before."
"I've never heard of our sect owning something that massive either," Li Lingyu replied with a shake of her head. She took a bite of the rice, and her eyes lit up as a unique flavor spread through her mouth.
"Junior Brother… something's different about this rice. Ordinary Jadegrain Rice could never taste like this. It's almost like a lower-grade version of jade marrow rice!
I'm certain the sect doesn't have a technique like this. If you were to submit this method, you'd be rewarded with a hefty amount of contribution points.
And for the next five years, every time someone exchanged for this method, you'd receive a cut of the contribution points as well."
She stared at Ji An as though he were some hidden tycoon, wondering where on earth he had stumbled upon such a secret art. What dumb luck!
Low-level or not, this was practically a strategic-class farming method. After all, the sect cultivated thousands of mu of Jadegrain Rice.
With this, high-level cultivators could study and perhaps derive other planting secrets.
"Uh…" Ji An grimaced and finally confessed:
"My 'secret method' is actually just… comprehending the Dao Intent of the Thick Earth Art."
The air fell silent.
Li Lingyu clenched her jaw, no longer speaking, and simply buried herself in her food.
Her pride had taken a blow. She couldn't compare not yet. To comprehend two different Dao Intents while still in Qi Refinement… even she couldn't hope to match that.
And once someone like him reached Foundation Establishment, with the right cultivation method, he would grasp its mysteries far faster than ordinary disciples, leaving behind those who had yet to touch Dao Intent at all.
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