Chapter 85: Breakthrough, the Difficulty of Inheritance

Chapter 85: Chapter 85: Breakthrough, the Difficulty of Inheritance

"If they’re good, eat some more. Grandpa will plant a few extra vines next year..."

Dong Xing set down the fruit platter. With a mere thought, Spiritual Power circulated within him, and a ball of piercing cold air the size of an infant’s fist condensed into shape and fell upon the platter.

CRACK...

A thin layer of frost rapidly covered the fruit platter, radiating waves of chill. Dong Xing dispelled the Ice Condensation Magic with another thought and pushed the platter closer to Dong Yao. "Try this, Yaoyao. It tastes even better chilled."

Dong Yao picked up a melon and took a bite. The cold, crisp, and refreshing sweetness made her praise, "Mmm, it really does taste better chilled."

Dong Xing rubbed his face and smiled. "If it’s good, eat some more."

"Mhm-hmm." Dong Yao took another bite of the melon, then casually remarked, "Grandpa, tell me about Li Changsheng."

Dong Xing thought nothing of it. Seeing his granddaughter in a talkative mood, he pondered for a moment before saying, "Speaking of the first time I met him, he gave your grandpa quite a fright..."

Meanwhile, as the grandfather and granddaughter chatted.

In a forest filled with ironwood trees.

THUD...

With a resounding crash, a massive ironwood tree tens of meters tall slowly toppled over.

"Phew..." Li Changsheng wiped his sweat and looked at the dozens of fallen ironwood trees on the ground. He smiled. "This should be enough."

He then found some thick vines and bundled the ironwood into three separate piles. Calling over Xiaohua’s family, who were resting nearby, he secured the connecting vines around their bodies.

After a cup of tea’s time had passed.

Li Changsheng flipped onto Xiaohua’s back, scanned his surroundings, and gathered the insect swarm with a thought. "Let’s go, Xiaohua," he called out.

OINK OINK...

Xiaohua’s muscles bulged as it began marching out of the mountain forest with heavy steps. Amidst the scraping sound of dragging ironwood, Xiaohua took the lead, pulling the heaviest load. Big Flower took the middle position, while Little Xiaohua trailed at the rear.

It wasn’t until the evening glow appeared in the sky that the lone human and three pigs emerged from the forest and returned to the small courtyard.

Led by Big Bro and Little Bro, the insect swarm quickly dispersed and settled around the wooden cabin. Li Changsheng glanced around. Upon seeing the cooking smoke rising from a nearby courtyard, he smiled and withdrew his gaze. He hopped off Xiaohua’s back and quickly untied the vines binding the pigs. After organizing the ironwood, he turned and walked into the backyard.

Shortly after.

He walked into the kitchen carrying a basin of fruits and melons. Smoke curled from the chimney, and the crisp sound of chopping vegetables echoed from within the house.

The evening glow eventually faded, and the curtain of night fell.

After feeding the Spirit Beasts and finishing his dinner, Li Changsheng did a simple cleanup of the kitchen before heading up to the second floor.

Sitting cross-legged on the soft couch, he took out a Refining Jade Pill and swallowed it. He closed his eyes and began to circulate the Golden Turtle Spirit Technique to refine the pill’s medicinal efficacy. As the pill dissolved in his stomach, threads of a cool current merged into his Spirit Veins, causing his Spiritual Power to grow at a steady pace.

After an unknown amount of time had passed.

Li Changsheng’s vision brightened as a dense, complex, and chaotic network of lines appeared before his mind’s eye. Among them, nine pale-gold lines were as thick as water vats, while the others varied—some as thick as an arm or a thumb, others as thin as hemp rope.

He was more than familiar with this internal view. Of the nine main Spirit Veins, three were already overflowing with a dense spiritual glow, and the fourth was nearing saturation. As the cooling currents continuously merged into the Spirit Veins, his Spiritual Power expanded slightly with each circulation.

Time slowly ticked by. Eventually, at a certain moment, the fourth main Spirit Vein overflowed with a dense spiritual glow.

"Now’s the time," Li Changsheng thought joyfully. With a shift of his intent, he drove his pale-gold Spiritual Power into the fifth main Spirit Vein.

The moment the Spiritual Power surged in, a sharp pain pierced his mind. Not daring to be careless, Li Changsheng suppressed the pain and carefully circulated his Spiritual Power—like a gentle breeze and drizzling rain—to gradually open up the main Spirit Vein. As the Spiritual Power slowly permeated it, the vein was steadily cleared.

After an unknown amount of time.

The final blockage in the main Spirit Vein was broken through.

BUZZ...

The main Spirit Vein vibrated slightly. Spiritual Power surged through it, instantly connecting and merging with the other four main Spirit Veins. An attractive force erupted from within his body and spread outward. Drawn by this pull, the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi drifting in the air continuously rushed into his body.

The remaining portion of the Refining Jade Pill, only partially refined in his stomach, explosively dissolved under this suction force. It turned into billowing, cool currents that merged into his Spirit Veins. Li Changsheng held his breath and focused his mind, circulating the Golden Turtle Spirit Technique with all his might to refine the energy.

The suction force lasted for a full cup of tea’s time before slowly dissipating. The Spiritual Power galloping through his Spirit Veins had more than doubled.

"Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer..." Li Changsheng thought happily.

He continued to circulate his Cultivation Technique to nourish his Spirit Veins while familiarizing himself with his newly surged Spiritual Power. As for the subsidiary branches of the main Spirit Veins, he would have to wait until he could command this expanded Spiritual Power with ease before attempting to open them.

A sleepless night passed. The next morning.

"Phew..." Li Changsheng slowly exhaled a breath of stale air and opened his eyes. He focused his gaze inward to examine his status.

[Target: Li Changsheng]

[Cultivation: Qi Cultivation Fifth Layer "1%"]

[Cultivation Technique: "Golden Turtle Spirit Technique (5/9)" Traits: "Tenacity, Spirit Recovery"]

[Magic: Insect Seal (Fragment) "Great Mastery 3%" / Golden Turtle Shield "Minor Mastery 15%" / Lesser Cloud Rain Magic "Minor Mastery 13%" / Piercing Gold Magic "Minor Mastery 6%" / Three-leaf Spirit Absorption Vein Map...]

[Status: Healthy.]

After observing it for a moment, Li Changsheng dismissed the panel with a thought. He immediately closed his eyes to meditate. While circulating his Spiritual Power to sense the complex veins at his glabella, he cross-referenced them one by one with the Three-leaf Spirit Absorption Vein Map in his mind.

He had long since memorized the Three-leaf Spirit Absorption Vein Map by heart. However, there were still some tiny, convoluted subsidiary veins that were hard to distinguish. A moment of carelessness could lead to compounding errors, ultimately resulting in a structural failure. Moreover, after studying it for a long time, he discovered that it was completely impossible to construct the Three-leaf Spirit Absorption Vein Map in a single attempt.

Li Changsheng could only compare it with the map in his mind, pre-confirming the condition of the veins at his own glabella. From there, he deduced where it would be easiest, most efficient, and least dangerous to begin manipulating his veins.

By the time the sun began to rise, streams of sunlight filtered through the cracks in the window, illuminating the swirling motes of dust in the air.

On the soft couch, Li Changsheng slowly opened his eyes, rubbed his glabella, and sighed. "This is truly difficult..."

As his research into the Three-leaf Spirit Absorption Vein Map deepened, he increasingly felt that for any of the numerous Spirit Farmers in the Spirit Field Hall to become a Spirit Plant Master was a stroke of immense, heaven-sent luck. It wasn’t because of anything else—it was simply too difficult.

Not only did one have to thoroughly comprehend the complex structures of the Spirit Vein map, but one also had to thoroughly understand their own physical veins. Only by cross-referencing the two could one find a viable method to manipulate their own veins.

Li Changsheng shook his head, tossing the thoughts from his mind. He looked at Xiaobai, who was sprawled out on the soft couch sleeping with its four legs in the air. He dove forward and rubbed his face vigorously against it.

YIP YIP... !

Xiaobai jolted awake instantly. Upon seeing it was Li Changsheng, it wagged its tail and licked his face.

"Haha... Let’s go get some food." Li Changsheng smiled and scooped Xiaobai up, hoisting it onto his shoulder.

He walked over to the large vat and peeked inside. Under his constant irrigation with Rootless Spirit Water and the occasional burial of a few Spirit Stones, the Snake Saliva Spirit Tree had become lush and verdant.

Li Changsheng reached out and parted the branches and leaves, revealing a massive insect nest to his eyes. With a shift of his intent, an Insect Mother the size of two adult fists slowly crawled out of the nest. Over a hundred larvae, resembling finely shredded leaves, could be seen crawling all over its body.

SQUEAK...