Chapter 55: Ranked First

When Nie Caixia emerged from the illusion, he was brimming with confidence. He had already made inquiries and learned that Lin Donglai had only ever grown two types of low-grade Tier 1 spiritual plants: five types of low-grade Tier 1 spiritual rice.

As for himself, he had observed the outer sect deacons and had experience growing several types of mid-grade Tier 1 spiritual medicines, one type of high-grade Tier 1 spiritual medicine, and one type of high-grade Tier 1 spiritual grain.

However, he lacked confidence in high-grade Tier 1 plants. He could only play to his strengths and avoid his weaknesses by planting Ji-Huangjing, which favored the Earth element.

Just now, within the illusion, he had successfully grown one first-class superior specimen and eight second-class good specimens; the rest were merely qualified.

But just as his confidence peaked, he saw everyone staring at the illusory phantom light projected by the Jia-Yi Divine Mirror.

In the projection, a youth was picking blossoms of palm-sized, perfectly formed high-grade spiritual flowers.

After harvesting them, he performed the "Sweet Dew Rain Spell" once more, and upon the final spiritual flower, he unleashed the "Gestation Technique."

In an instant, the spiritual essence of the entire Qingchi Vine was injected into that single flower. The flower withered rapidly, giving rise to a seed pod, while all other roots, leaves, and vines quickly turned yellow and withered.

All vitality was sucked into the seed pod, including the spiritual energy, earth energy, and fertility of an entire acre of spiritual field, leaving it completely exhausted.

Only then did Lin Donglai reveal a satisfied smile as he plucked the seed pod.

In the next moment, Lin Donglai was kicked out of the illusion.

The Grand Elder silently took a medicinal pill from her storage bag.

The illusory time consumed by the Jia-Yi Divine Mirror was drawn from her own divine sense.

"Lin Donglai of the Spiritual Plant Hall, cultivation level: Qi Refinement Level 2. Sprouting Gestation Technique: Great Success; Sweet Dew Rain Spell: Minor Success; Spiritual Eye Technique: Minor Success. Grown first-grade high-grade spiritual plant: Qingchi Flower. Yield: ten flowers, all first-class superior. Seeds: eighty grains. Evaluation: Jia-Top. Ranked first!"

Even the onlookers—Xue Hong, Sang Qiao, and even Li Yunze—felt that Lin Donglai's talent for spiritual plants was somewhat excessive.

Nie Caixia was even more convinced that Lin Donglai had definitely known the exam questions in advance and had prepared to cheat. "How is this possible! He is only at Qi Refinement Level 2; how could he have mastered a spell to the stage of Great Success? And two spells to Minor Success? In just two short years!"

This doubt triggered suspicion among the other participating disciple candidates, who immediately began clamoring, wanting to drag Lin Donglai down.

However, Grand Elder Zhou Huaying was quite satisfied with Lin Donglai. She barked a reprimand: "Look at you lot, acting like defeated curs who can't handle losing. Have you learned nothing at all?"

As soon as she spoke, the others fell silent.

Lin Donglai knew that the resentment of these people would always be a hidden danger.

Nie Caixia was one thing; whether it was due to bluntness or stupidity, he had accused him of using connections and cheating twice in a row.

The others were merely followers; there was no need to offend them.

Therefore, he simply stated: "The origins of the three spells are all legitimate."

"The Sprouting Gestation Technique was granted by the Spiritual Plant Hall cultivation center. I possess a low-grade Jia-Wood spiritual root, which provides a bonus to wood-attribute spells, making Great Success not difficult to achieve."

"The Spiritual Eye Technique is something I obtained from the Hall of Instruction at Merit Peak at the Qi Refinement Level 2 stage."

"As for the Sweet Dew Rain Spell, I grew Summer-Born Flowers and contributed them to the sect, earning ten merit points, which I used to cultivate it myself."

"As for the cultivation method of the high-grade Tier 1 Qingchi Flower..." Lin Donglai gave a wry smile. "In the Library Pavilion, there is a handwritten notebook. I recall the signature belonging to the Grand Elder herself!"

Zhou Huaying nodded. "Correct. That was indeed a note left by this old woman when I was on duty at the Spiritual Plant Hall."

Zhou Huaying's expression turned reflective. "You are quite calculating, knowing it was me and intentionally growing this Qingchi Flower."

"However, that notebook only contained fragments of information. My cultivation method was different from yours. I used one vine to occupy one plot of land to nourish a single flower. You, however, were bolder—using one vine to occupy an entire acre, accumulating all the essence without fear of the roots interfering with or competing with one another."

"Thank you for the praise, Elder. It was a coincidence; I simply had a vague recollection. I can provide proof."

The others were instantly speechless, cursing themselves for not discovering the Elder's farming notes.

Lin Donglai had grown the Qingchi Flower knowing the notes belonged to the Grand Elder, but he did not know what she looked like.

However, upon seeing the Jia-Yi Divine Mirror, he realized its significance; this artifact was famous in the Spiritual Plant Hall, as Huang Yue had mentioned.

Furthermore, to master Earth, Water, and Wood attribute spells, one needed to grow a suitable plant; the Qingchi Flower, belonging to the Wood element, was a perfect fit.

Additionally, this plant could naturally suppress the growth of weeds, making it extremely dominant. Lin Donglai didn't have to worry about weed management.

As for the issue of insufficient fertility, the solution was to avoid overplanting. The limit would be planting only one, but Lin Donglai planted two just to be safe.

It was simply a matter of playing to his strengths and avoiding his weaknesses.

The fertility of an entire acre was more than enough to nourish a single plant.

Moreover, since this was an illusion, Lin Donglai did not have to worry about ruining the spiritual field; he could even use the process to stimulate the seeds and increase his chances of victory.

"Your level is already sufficient to graduate and take on apprentices," Zhou Huaying said. "That is a fact, so there is no need for modesty. However, skipping mid-grade Tier 1 to go straight to high-grade Tier 1 was a clever trick. Your rank as a Spiritual Planter can be set at mid-grade Tier 1. Once you have grown three types of high-grade Tier 1 spiritual medicines, you may promote your rank."

"Spend more time on your cultivation. To become a low-grade Tier 2 Spiritual Planter, you must at least reach the late stages of Qi Refinement."

"Thank you for your guidance, Grand Elder!" Lin Donglai bowed politely.

Lin Donglai did not wait for Elder Zhou to proactively offer to take him as a disciple, and he felt a slight sense of relief, fearing he had performed too exceptionally.

But in Zhou Huaying's eyes, low spiritual root aptitude was a fundamental flaw. What did it matter if he had a low-grade Jia-Wood spiritual root?

Furthermore, she did not particularly like his calculating nature, though she did not despise it either. She only sighed: *A pity his aptitude is too poor; he is destined not to go far. Otherwise, he might have been like the Sect Founder—another Sect Leader born from the lineage of a spiritual plant disciple.*

"The third stage is diagnosing pests and diseases!"

With that, she tossed out nine pots of spiritual plants: three low-grade Tier 1, three mid-grade Tier 1, and three high-grade Tier 1.

This stage was indeed not Lin Donglai's strength. He had not yet read books regarding professional knowledge of insect pests and diseases; such knowledge belonged to the realm of master-disciple inheritance, involving many secret recipes and methods.

The books in the Spiritual Plant Hall mostly covered how to grow plants, but rarely how to treat them or what formulas to use... because that was where the real profit lay, often earning more spirit stones than the planting itself.

If a spiritual field is ruined, it happens on a massive scale. To save it, one must hire a master planter at a great cost; otherwise, one must simply prepare for total loss.

If planting spiritual plants is a means of livelihood, then diagnosing them is a way to build wealth.

The sect would not be particularly friendly to low-to-mid-grade planters; allowing them to suffer occasional heavy losses was actually conducive to the sect's stability.

Therefore, this third stage was the true test of a planter's ability and potential.

Whether one would become a high-level spiritual farmer or a master planter—a pillar of the Way of Spiritual Plants—depended entirely on how they handled these pests and diseases.