Chapter 23: Trading Market (Please add to favorites! Please keep reading!)

Shao Heng harbored doubts, so she first sent Duo Bao back to the disciples' quarters. After giving necessary instructions, she activated the formation at the entrance and headed toward the Myriad Law Pavilion.

If she were to ask others about this matter, there would be a risk of being scrutinized if they discovered she had taken on another cultivation task simultaneously.

Therefore, she chose to search the archives in the Myriad Law Pavilion first to see if she could find any useful information before making any further plans.

Following the previously provided reading list, Shao Heng gathered various books from the first three floors and piled them on a table on the first floor to begin browsing.

*Comprehensive Explanation of a Hundred Demons*, *The Thousand-Gold Formula for Spiritual Herbs*, *Great Discourse on the Four Elements Carried by Earth*, *Essentials of Basic Spells*...

Among the large stack of books Shao Heng selected, there were various categories. Out of more than twenty books, only three were related to cultivation, ensuring her research did not appear too targeted.

Even when she was a willful young lady of a domineering Marquis household, she had always adhered to the principle of "acting with caution while living with high profile."

In the mortal realm, one could become wise and seasoned through age; however, Shao Heng was now in the cultivation realm, where almost every high-level cultivator was an "old monster." Naturally, she intended to be as steady and cautious as possible.

As she read, her mind gradually quieted, leaving nothing but the rustling sound of turning pages in her ears.

Nearly two hours passed, and the hour of the Monkey arrived.

The disciples who had finished their day of teaching on the fourth floor descended the stairs with weary bodies, every one of them looking miserable.

Among them was an exceptionally beautiful woman, Yan Ning. Though she looked somewhat haggard, she suddenly spotted a figure while walking downstairs.

She tugged at the sleeve of the person beside her.

"Qin Ji, look, it's Lu Shaoheng."

Although they were all disciples who had joined the Zhenyi Yuan Sect in the same year, some came from cultivation clans while others came from the mortal realms, making it inevitable that cliques would form.

Coming from the Great Yan Dynasty, they had known each other since childhood and were natural allies, so they naturally stayed close.

Qin Ji turned his head and indeed saw a youth in a yellow robe sitting at a table, intently flipping through a thick book.

"She actually has the peace of mind to read books here. As Elder Zhao said, she must have successfully guided Qi into her body to be so leisurely," Yan Ning said, her voice tinged with envy.

As a commandery princess, she enjoyed a fief of five hundred households in Great Yan, living a life of luxury and indulgence since childhood.

But now, she had to rise before dawn and sit in the lecture hall for four consecutive hours—damn it! Her backside felt like it was splitting into multiple pieces, yet she still couldn't sense a single bit of that cursed heaven-and-earth spiritual Qi!

After class, once she returned to the disciples' quarters, Yan Ning would try to meditate for an hour or two, but if she couldn't muster the energy to continue, she would simply fall into a heavy sleep. Then, she would wake up in a panic the next day to rush to the Myriad Law Pavilion for class.

In less than ten days, the high spirits she had felt before joining the sect had vanished completely, replaced by a mountain of resentment that felt as though she could feed seventeen or eighteen demons and ghosts.

As Yan Ning grumbled, she couldn't stand Shao Heng's ease, but she also understood that they had long since broken ties. Now that Shao Heng had already guided Qi, if she were to confront her, she would inevitably face ridicule and mockery.

As Qin Ji watched Shao Heng's figure, a dark light flashed in his eyes.

Jiang Yunjiang had entered the inner sect, and they had had no contact for a long time.

But Shao Heng... was his former fiancée.

...

Shao Heng possessed powerful spiritual sense and keen perception; she naturally noticed the disciples descending from the fourth floor stealing glances at her after discovering her presence.

However, she didn't care. After a brief internal thought of "geniuses are always so eye-catching," she threw herself entirely back into her research.

By the time Shao Heng closed the book, she had found three methods for replenishing the spiritual Qi of the soil.

The first was to find the Earth-element supreme treasure, *Xirang* (Breathing Soil). Legend had it that a single grain of Xirang could transform into a high mountain, possessing inexhaustible vitality. If it could be buried in the spiritual field, no matter how much she worked the land, the soil would never become barren.

But that wasn't even "luxury"—it was a fantasy.

An Earth-element treasure like Xirang was something even Golden Core or Nascent Soul cultivators would risk their lives to fight for.

The second method was to lay down a Spirit Gathering Formation in the spiritual field to replenish the depletion constantly. However, the cost of such a formation was exorbitant, and if the formation constantly absorbed the surrounding heaven-and-earth spiritual Qi, causing the concentration in the vicinity to drop, it would inevitably attract investigation from the sect. It was not a feasible option.

That left only the final method.

Every time she planted spiritual crops or herbs, she would find a way to replenish the spiritual Qi in the field—for example, alchemists would refine "Thick Earth Pills," which were rich in Earth-element spiritual Qi.

However, whether the profit from the spirit stones could cover the expenditure on the pills remained to be seen after her first harvest of the White Jade Spiritual Rice.

Shao Heng picked up another thick book and began reading, finding it not boring in the slightest.

By the time she finished reading the borrowed classics and returned them to their proper places, the moon was high in the dark sky, and the stars were twinkling.

Shao Heng emerged from the Myriad Law Pavilion and walked toward the disciples' quarters under the moonlight.

She paused and looked up at the stars and the moon.

"The *Discourse on Root and Bone Seeking Heaven* I just read said that the root and bone aptitude measured in human cultivators is actually a reflection of innate talent. For instance, those with a fire-leaning Five Elements affinity will find practicing fire-element spells much more effortless."

"Take Jiang Yunjiang's high-grade aptitude, the 'White Tiger True Embryo.' Her root and bone are extraordinary; without the need for cultivation techniques to assist, the mana she cultivates will naturally carry a wisp of Geng-Gold killing intent, making any spell she casts significantly more powerful."

"Then what did the phenomenon I saw back then mean? Aside from my cultivation speed being far beyond ordinary people these days, I haven't noticed anything particularly special."

Shao Heng reached her hand toward the sky as if trying to grab a few stars.

The stars remained motionless.

Shao Heng hummed twice, put her hands behind her back, and walked back to the disciples' quarters with large, purposeful strides.

Yet, for a brief moment, the full moon and the stars in the sky flared with sudden brightness.

...

It was a bright, sunny day. Outside the mountain gate of the Zhenyi Yuan Sect, a marketplace had been established. The streets were filled with the unending sounds of hawkers calling out, clamor, and conversation.

As a top-tier immortal sect, the disciples of Zhenyi Yuan Sect were quite wealthy, which drew merchants from north and south to gather here. Over time, this had formed a significant commercial hub and trading market.

This place was very close to the mountain gate. The various merchants communicated directly with the Zhenyi Yuan Sect, paying taxes in exchange for protection. Disciples from the Law Enforcement Pavilion patrolled regularly, and anyone who violated the market rules would certainly be punished.

Shao Heng blended into the crowd, walking with a relaxed gait.

Yesterday, she had conducted the final round of experiments in the spiritual field. The third use of the 【Azure Emperor】 spiritual liquid turning into rain had resulted in a bountiful harvest.

After processing the crops and removing the husks, she had harvested a total net weight of five hundred and eighty catties of White Jade Spiritual Rice.

Furthermore, Shao Heng had compared the newly harvested rice with a small handful she had set aside from the original seed bag. After tasting both, she confirmed that the spiritual Qi content was nearly identical with no significant difference, so she felt safe bringing it out for sale.

If the White Jade Spiritual Rice she grew contained significantly more spiritual Qi than ordinary spiritual rice, she wouldn't dare sell it so easily.

She first had the small gray cocoon seal her aura completely, then she wore a veiled hat and went to the rice merchant to inquire about prices.

After comparing several shops and haggling, she sold two hundred and forty catties at a price of four catties per spirit stone, after setting aside the portion required for the mission and the seeds needed for the next planting. She earned sixty spirit stones.

By her calculation, Shao Heng now had a total of one hundred and fifty-seven spirit stones on her.

She looked toward an elegantly decorated pavilion and walked inside. Just as she was about to ask the attendant if they sold pills like Thick Earth Pills, her gaze was captured by a magical tool on a display stand.

Shao Heng couldn't help but praise, "Wow, what a beautiful bow."