Chapter 37: Spirit Field Mutual Aid Society

Returning to Spirit Field Valley, Lin Donglai looked at the other spirit plant disciples; only eight of them remained.

There had been over twenty people guarding Spirit Field Valley before, but most had abandoned the path of spirit planting after harvesting the spirit grain, turning instead to learn other crafts.

Some didn't even bother learning a craft and went straight to the Hall of Merit to take on odd jobs—like Lin Donglai chopping trees or Ding Zhen catching insects before—earning half a spirit stone a day, which was still more than they could make from farming.

Those who came to farm were originally those lacking talent in other crafts and possessing poor spiritual root aptitude; now that they had even failed at farming, they naturally needed to find another way out.

The remaining eight, including Lin Donglai, were at least qualified in the aspect of growing spirit grain.

Therefore, after a moment's thought, Lin Donglai spoke up: "Everyone, there are only a few of us left in Spirit Field Valley. Before the Immortal Seed cultivation period ends, if we don't become First-Grade Low-Rank Spirit Plant Masters, the Spirit Plant Hall won't accept us. Perhaps we should support one another a little."

"The spirit planting spell I chose is the Sprouting and Gestation Technique. I am now at the second level of Qi Refinement and can officially begin practicing it. Its effect is to accelerate germination and nurture seeds."

"I wonder if any fellow disciples are practicing different spirit planting spells and would be willing to supplement each other's deficiencies?"

At this moment, Ning Feng, who had previously used the Golden Wind Saber Technique, hesitated for a moment before being the first to step forward. "Brother Lin, I practice the Golden Sickle Severing Technique. I can help with harvesting, weeding, or even cutting weeds at the root without harming the spirit grain. Additionally, this spell can be considered somewhat useful for combat; paired with my family's martial arts, it can be of some use against those exotic beasts that try to steal spirit grain or herbs."

After Ning Feng stepped forward, the other spirit plant disciples followed suit.

Among them, as many as four practiced the Sweet Dew Rain Spell, and two practiced the Spirit Casting Earth-Shaking Technique.

However, none of them possessed spirit plant artifacts; only Lin Donglai, because of his Lower-Grade Wood Constitution, had been designated by the Spirit Plant Hall and thus received the Sweet Dew Gourd ahead of time.

"Brother Lin, how do we complement each other? How about we draw up a set of rules? No one wants to be used as cheap labor; it must be genuine mutual aid for us to be willing to join."

This was said by Niu Fusheng, who practiced the Spirit Casting Earth-Shaking Technique. Among the five types of spirit planting spells, the Spirit Casting Earth-Shaking Technique was the most exhausting and the hardest to master. If all the tilling work were placed on him and one other person, it would undoubtedly be the most grueling.

"That is my intention as well," Lin Donglai said. "My father was a hunter. Hunting in the mountains is dangerous, so hunters huddle together for warmth, forming hunting parties where everyone looks out for one another."

"In town, there are medicine merchants who buy herbs. In our town, there are specialized herb gatherers who help each other and form herb gangs to prevent being bullied or having prices suppressed by merchants."

"We spirit plant disciples have the lowest spiritual root aptitude, and our cultivation levels are basically at the bottom of the entering Immortal Seed group. Huddling together for warmth might be easier than being alone."

"When I spoke with Senior Sister Huang of the Spirit Plant Hall today, she said there is only one way: endure. Endure until you become a First-Grade High-Rank Spirit Plant Master, or reach the late stages of Qi Refinement, and then you will have made something of yourself."

"Otherwise, even if you pass the assessment to become a First-Grade Low-Rank Spirit Plant Master, you will have only just entered the door."

"There are over three thousand outer disciples, but not many of us spirit plant disciples make it out."

"We only have a few paths to choose from, none of which are easy. Either we honestly farm spirit grain as spirit farmers, making it hard to rise in this lifetime; or we boldly borrow money to plant spirit herbs—if we succeed, all is well, but one failure means losing our entire livelihood; or we join under a high-level Spirit Plant Master as apprentices."

Lin Donglai spoke with genuine emotion, and for a moment, everyone felt a sense of shared plight.

"When Brother Niu mentioned rules just now, I didn't know how to go about it. I just saw that the valley went from over thirty people to only eight of us, and in a moment of impulse, I suggested this idea."

"As for the specific rules, it's best if we discuss them together. Ideally, we can play to everyone's strengths. If anyone feels they do not need help, they can leave at any time."

"Alright, let's discuss it."

For a time, the eight disciples went back and forth, one proposing an idea and another pointing out a flaw.

Fortunately, as the initiator, Lin Donglai held some prestige, and he managed to establish several rules.

The first rule was that participation was entirely voluntary to protect one's own interests.

The second rule was that helping someone once would record a "favor" in Lin Donglai's ledger, and mutual help could be used to settle these favors. Additionally, one spirit stone could settle two favors, which was roughly equivalent to the daily cost of half a spirit stone for odd jobs at the Hall of Merit. Anyone who failed to settle more than five favors would be boycotted, lose their credibility, and be kicked out of the Spirit Field Mutual Aid Society. Half a spirit stone for a day's work was the price for someone at the second level of Qi Refinement who had just learned a spell; as skills improved, prices could rise.

The third rule was to hold a monthly exchange meeting to share experiences in growing spirit grain and herbs and to discuss problems discovered; participation was optional.

The fourth rule was that this mutual aid society would only be effective during the Spirit Field Valley period, before the Spirit Plant Hall's outer disciple assessment. What would happen after the Immortal Seed cultivation period ended would be decided then.

As the founder, Lin Donglai served as the Society Head, but he could not interfere with others; his role was to act as a witness and record the ledger of favors.

Society Head: Lin Donglai, masters the Sprouting and Gestation Technique, possesses the Sweet Dew Gourd.

The other seven: Ning Feng, masters the Golden Sickle Severing Technique. Niu Fusheng and Li Gensheng, both master the Spirit Casting Earth-Shaking Technique. Zhang Baiyi, Ma Quanyong, Hou Wenhua, and He Wuxuan, all four master the Sweet Dew Rain Spell.

Of the five spirit field spells, no one practiced the fire-attribute "Blazing Light Solar Gathering Technique." This was a fire-attribute spell, but those with fire aptitude either became blacksmith apprentices for weapon forging, fire-tending apprentices for alchemy, or a few became spirit chef apprentices; very few came to farm.

Since Lin Donglai needed to master the basics of the Sprouting and Gestation Technique, and possessed the Sweet Dew Gourd, he could use the seed-soaking method for germination. Thus, he took on the responsibility of the germination and seedling stage for everyone, meaning everyone owed him one favor.

The others made their own arrangements regarding who would till the land and who would water it. However, since tilling only happened once and took a long time, favors for tilling were calculated based on the area of land. As for watering, it was a frequent and relatively easy task; since there were four people practicing the Sweet Dew Rain Spell plus the Sweet Dew Gourd, there were effectively five people for watering, so five uses of the spell counted as one favor. The Golden Sickle Severing Technique could handle weeding for half a month per application, so that was also calculated by area.

With this arrangement, helping each other once actually brought their hearts together. Everyone became much more familiar with one another and gradually let down their guard. At the very least, they no longer had to worry about their spirit fields or seedlings being sabotaged by others, as had happened when there were more people and more hands to steal.

Some of the disciples, even those with a bit of spirit stone savings, even brought them out this time, intending to farm more land or, like Lin Donglai, try to plant some low-grade spirit herbs to practice their skills.

(End of Chapter)