Chapter 43: 青女

An excellent book.

The Jade Phoenix Tree, a rare, high-grade fourth-tier spiritual wood in the Immortal Sect, is equivalent to the Nascent Soul stage in cultivation. However, spiritual wood finds it exceptionally difficult to achieve sentience. Despite possessing immense spiritual energy comparable to that of a Nascent Soul cultivator, the Jade Phoenix Tree has not yet awakened its spiritual essence. Though its elevation to a fourth-tier tree a thousand years ago boosted the Scarlet Cloud Academy's Fire Meridian and expanded its reach, there has been no sign of it developing sentience.

This spiritual wood perfectly met the criteria: it was powerful, yet not overwhelming.

With a clear conscience, Chen Mobai began to meditate and visualize. However, the very first step—'entering samadhi'—proved challenging for him. Perhaps he had experienced too much recently, as his mind was filled with an increasing number of complex thoughts. It was truly difficult to suppress them all and maintain mental clarity.

Fortunately, the predecessors of the Immortal Sect had anticipated situations like Chen Mobai's. The 'Nourishing Thought and Forging Spirit Art' began with a complementary 'Mind-Calming Incantation.' He memorized it and silently recited it several times. After approximately two hours, he finally achieved that state of profound tranquility, where his mind was clear and all was silent.

Within this tranquil state of samadhi, Chen Mobai began to visualize the towering tree he had seen that day. He lost track of time. He felt his spiritual essence was like a seed; after a long dormancy, its latent vitality began to stir, and a green sprout slowly emerged from the earth through a tiny fissure.

This process was fascinating. All of Chen Mobai's senses seemed to merge with this single green sprout. As it absorbed nutrients from the earth, it also yearned for the sunlight outside. The sensation of tirelessly yet steadily pushing through the soil allowed him to constantly feel his spiritual power growing. He had a strong intuition that once this green sprout fully broke free from the earth's constraints, his spiritual consciousness would be completely cultivated.

This process might take considerable time, but the satisfaction of witnessing his constant progress filled Chen Mobai with immense joy.

After a night of spiritual visualization, Chen Mobai awoke physically fatigued, yet his mind felt clearer than ever before, as if all mental dust had been swept away.

“The Nourishing Thought and Forging Spirit Art truly lives up to its reputation as a legitimate path,” he thought. “One merely needs to enter samadhi daily, and over time, spiritual consciousness will naturally develop.”

Chen Mobai was visibly excited, unaware that many ordinary sixth-layer Qi Refinement cultivators often get stuck at the first step, 'entering samadhi.' They typically need to practice the Mind-Calming Incantation for a period ranging from ten days to several months before they can shed distracting thoughts and perceive the awakening of their spiritual essence. He, however, was still under the effects of the 'Startling Dream Melody,' his spiritual essence already awakened, which allowed him to achieve this initial success overnight.

Chen Mobai was unaware of these crucial details, but Chen Baolan knew them. That's why she had advised him not to cultivate spiritual power for the next few days, but instead to focus on sensing his spiritual consciousness. Yet, even she hadn't anticipated her nephew's profound fortune, allowing him to successfully enter samadhi by visualizing the 'Jade Phoenix Tree.'

After a quick breakfast, he spent the entire morning at school resting with his eyes half-closed. By the time school ended at noon, Chen Mobai had fully recovered his energy and noticed that his learning efficiency with the auxiliary cultivation software had significantly improved.

“No wonder cultivators always prioritize cultivation realms,” he mused. “I’ve only just begun to sense my spiritual consciousness, yet my learning and comprehension speed has already doubled. Imagine the efficiency of those Foundation Establishment cultivators whose spiritual consciousness is fully developed and can leave their bodies—it must be several times greater!”

With an advanced cultivation realm, the efficiency and speed of acquiring knowledge in the same amount of time far surpassed periods without spiritual consciousness. It was for this very reason that Immortal Sect cultivators would only turn their attention to the myriad cultivation arts when they encountered a bottleneck, hoping to gain broader insights. If one could devote oneself entirely to secluded cultivation, who would ever choose to work a mundane job?

While Geomantic Star was a cultivation civilization, various social relationships still remained an unavoidable constraint for cultivators. For instance, Chen Mobai desired the 'Qi Supplementing Spirit Water' not only to rapidly advance his own cultivation realm but also to help his father achieve the pinnacle of Ninth-Layer Qi Refinement.

After much deliberation, he finally decided to collaborate with Qing Nü. While there were many alchemists in Danxia City, second-tier alchemists were exceedingly rare. Given that Qing Nü had been accepted as an apprentice by the owner of Changqing Pharmacy, her talent in alchemy was likely exceptional.

Chen Mobai also looked up the formula for the Qi Supplementing Spirit Water on the medicine bottle. All ingredients were first-tier, and an online price check revealed that refining one pot of spirit water concentrate would cost approximately 6,000 cultivation merits. If successful, one pot of concentrate could be diluted into 50 tubes of Qi Supplementing Spirit Water. Based on the last rush purchase price of 200 cultivation merits per tube, the profit margin would be quite substantial.

However, it is widely known that the initial investment in cultivating an alchemist is enormous. There's no guarantee of success, and even if one manages to nurture an alchemist, they might soon seek better opportunities. However, Chen Mobai himself lacked the time to study alchemy. The alchemy teacher at his school was merely a first-tier spiritual gardener. This was because first-tier alchemists could earn significantly more working in pharmaceutical factories, and Fifth High School, with its limited faculty, could only afford a spiritual gardener whose main role was to teach about the cultivation and preservation of medicinal herbs. Even this spiritual gardener had to be personally invited by the principal from Danzhu Academy.

Without resources from the Heavenly River Realm, Chen Mobai would certainly not have considered sponsoring an alchemist. But now, he was willing to try. This was because the elixirs available on the Immortal Sect's market were incredibly difficult to acquire; even Foundation Establishment cultivators had to abide by this rule. Consequently, many high-level cultivators collaborated with alchemists, forming mutually beneficial partnerships.

However, such trust required long-term cooperation. Chen Mobai pondered whether Qing Nü could be trusted. But isn't all trust cultivated from the ground up?

After school, he first went home to change out of his uniform. Then, checking the time, he set off for Changqing Pharmacy.

“Hello…”

As he walked in, Qing Nü was already waiting behind the counter. She was dressed in a casual white shirt, her long hair slightly curled. Upon seeing Chen Mobai, she greeted him with a smile. As she wasn't extracting medicinal liquids that day, she wasn't wearing a mask. Chen Mobai finally got a clear view of her face: fair skin, a delicate oval shape, a refined nose, and red lips. Paired with bright, clear eyes, a sweet smile, and small dimples near her mouth, her overall demeanor exuded purity with a touch of youthful innocence.

“My apologies, it seems I’m late,” he said.

“No, no, not at all. I just got here after school myself. Let’s go grab something to eat first; it’s my treat.”

Qing Nü seemed very happy about having secured tickets for the Jade Phoenix Troupe, and she eagerly offered to treat Chen Mobai to a meal.

“If you leave, will the shop close?”

No sooner had Chen Mobai spoken than Qing Nü grabbed her small bag and shouted toward the back door: “Teacher, I have something to attend to today, so I’m leaving now. Please watch the shop.”

“Alright, remember not to stay out overnight,” a deep, aged voice responded from the back.

A deep, aged voice, presumably the owner of Changqing Pharmacy, came from the back door. However, his words made Qing Nü’s cheeks flush crimson, and she couldn't help but let out a small huff of annoyance. “What are you talking about?” she retorted. “We’re just going to grab dinner and watch a play!”

She stepped out from behind the counter, and Chen Mobai finally got a full view of her graceful figure. Her waist was slender, and she wore blue denim shorts paired with well-worn canvas shoes, accentuating her straight, long, and vibrant legs. Bathed in the sunlight from the entrance, her complexion was as fair and flawless as pristine jade.

“Oh, by the way, I still don’t know your name,” she said.

“Chen Mobai!”

“I’m Qing Nü.”

“And your surname?”

“I don’t have a surname; it’s just Qing Nü.”