Chapter 630: A Bumper Harvest

“It’s exactly that amazing!” Qi Jian carefully took the stalk of Dendrobium officinale from Shen Yibin’s hand. His movements were extremely gentle, as if he was afraid of damaging the leaves. “Let me put it this way, do you know how much this stuff sells for out there?”

“How much?” Shen Yibin knew next to nothing about the herbal medicine industry, so how could he know the price of this thing? But seeing Qi Jian’s expression, he knew this stuff definitely wasn’t cheap.

“For pure, wild Dendrobium officinale, the market price this year has already topped ten thousand yuan per half-kilo.” He pointed to the patch of wild Dendrobium officinale nearby. “If you went and harvested this whole patch, you could probably make tens of thousands of yuan. And you wouldn’t have to worry about a thing. I could make a single phone call, and someone would show up with cash, begging you to sell it to them.”

“Ten thousand yuan per half-kilo?” Staring at the unremarkable herb, Shen Yibin felt like his brain couldn’t keep up. He didn’t have a direct grasp of the medicinal effects Qi Jian had mentioned earlier, but the moment the price was stated, he instantly understood. ‘If this wasn’t something absolutely incredible, why on earth would people spend so much money to buy it?’

“And that’s just the purchase price. After they take it back, process it, and sell it to customers, the price is even higher. They sell it by the gram then.” Qi Jian handed the Dendrobium officinale back to Shen Yibin. “Of course, this price is nothing to you. You’re definitely not going to sell it. But taking it home to prepare as a tonic for your health is a great idea.” He also knew Shen Yibin’s financial situation and was sure he wouldn’t care about a few tens of thousands of yuan. But while tens of thousands were easy to earn, finding wild Dendrobium officinale this good wasn’t something that happened every day.

“Yeah, I get it.” Even if Qi Jian hadn’t said anything, Shen Yibin would have harvested it all to take back. This was all top-quality stuff that the Turtle Immortal had helped him find; it had to be a superior health supplement. Shen Yibin put down his backpack and, along with Hah’Er and Xiaoliu, gathered around. In no time, they had picked all the Dendrobium officinale clean and stored it away carefully.

“Just with this stuff alone, your trip into the mountains hasn’t been a waste. What a coincidence. I’ve been all over these mountains countless times, but I’ve never once found it. Yet you find it as soon as you arrive.” Qi Jian’s face was full of envy. He also wanted to get some wild Dendrobium officinale to take back for his own health, but he could never find any.

“You can take some back with you when we get home,” Shen Yibin said generously. “We can give some to Carmen, too. Let him have a health boost.” ‘You’re getting excited over just this? Who knows, there might be even better things to come.’

“Uh, alright then, I won’t be polite.” Qi Jian paused for a moment before nodding in agreement. ‘Sigh, so I’m just riding on Carmen’s coattails.’ He felt a strange mix of emotions, not knowing whether to be happy or frustrated.

After packing everything away, the group continued forward. They crossed another mountain ridge, and the Turtle Immortal once again tried to get down from Shen Yibin’s back. With the Dendrobium officinale as a precedent, Shen Yibin didn’t hesitate at all this time. He immediately let the Turtle Immortal down, carefully set down his backpack, and followed closely behind it, his eyes glued to its every move.

This time, the Turtle Immortal crawled onto a sun-drenched slope and began to paw at a plant with oval-shaped leaves. Seeing this, Xiaoliu quickly went up to help. Working together, the two of them soon dug out the plant’s entire root system. After shaking off the dirt, a flat, round, plump rhizome was revealed. It was entirely black and looked a bit like a radish.

“What’s this now?” Shen Yibin turned his gaze to Qi Jian. He still didn’t recognize this thing, so he had to turn to the veteran hiker for help.

“Maca. Its root has a sweet and delicious taste and is rich in various high-unit nutrients. It has a nourishing and strengthening effect on the human body. People who’ve eaten it feel energetic, full of vigor, and don’t get tired.” Qi Jian didn’t even know what to say anymore. ‘Why is it that you can find amazing things wherever you go?’ “Maca roots come in many colors—black, red, yellow, blue, green, purple, and gold. Among them, the black variety has the highest medicinal value.”

“But that’s not all. The most important thing is that it also contains macamides and macaenes. These two substances have a significant effect on balancing the body’s hormone secretion, which is why Maca is also known as the ‘natural hormone engine.'” Qi Jian gave him a lewd grin. “Bin, if you ever feel like you can’t handle the ladies, you can eat a bit more of this. I guarantee you’ll be full of vigor and vitality…”

“I don’t need that,” Shen Yibin said, breaking into a sweat. Hearing his explanation, he felt that Maca sounded an awful lot like that little blue pill. ‘In that case, I’d better hold onto this stuff carefully. It might come in handy one day.’

“Xiaoliu, Hah’Er, come and help!” Looking ahead, he could see many more Maca plants scattered around. He couldn’t let any of them go to waste. Shen Yibin immediately started digging with his little companions. Xiaoliu’s movements were especially fast; the little guy had probably understood Qi Jian’s words and figured he’d better put in some extra effort for the sake of his own future happiness!

“When we get back, I’ll give you some too.” Shen Yibin gave him a knowing look. “Since you guys aren’t that busy lately, you should go home and spend more time with your wife!”

“Pfft, I don’t need this stuff,” Qi Jian said righteously, but then he immediately lowered his voice. “Bin, don’t you dare tell anyone about this.”

“Got it, got it!” Shen Yibin said with a grin, not pointing out Qi Jian’s true intentions. After packing away the Maca, he shouldered his backpack with the Turtle Immortal and continued deeper into the mountains.

“What’s this now?” As dusk was falling, the Turtle Immortal once again crawled down from Shen Yibin’s back. It started digging around a green plant with its two front claws, unearthing a brown root.

“Sanqi. Li Shizhen called it ‘more valuable than gold.’ It can invigorate blood circulation, remove blood stasis, enrich the blood, strengthen the body, reduce swelling, and relieve pain. It’s also a top-tier medicinal herb for health preservation.” Qi Jian was already feeling a bit numb. ‘How do you manage to find every good thing there is?’

“Oh, I know this one. It’s a Snow Lotus, right? Isn’t this stuff only found on Tian Mountain?” A plant that Shen Yibin recognized finally appeared. The Snow Lotus was so famous that even a layman like him could identify it.

“That’s right, it’s a Snow Lotus. While the Tianshan Snow Lotus is famous, the medicinal value of the Snow Lotus from our mountain here isn’t much inferior to it,” Qi Jian continued to explain.

“This is Yellow Ginseng. According to ancient legends, it was a favorite of Qi Cultivators. After eating Yellow Ginseng, they no longer needed to eat regular food. Over time, by absorbing enough of the Yellow Ginseng’s essence, they would ascend to become immortals. This Yellow Ginseng looks very old at a glance. It’s the real deal!”

Looking at all the wonderful things the Turtle Immortal had found, Shen Yibin was grinning from ear to ear. It was like they had truly stumbled into a great treasure trove this time.