Chapter 17: Harvest

On the table lay fourteen stones of varying sizes: three earthy yellow, five red, and six green.

The earthy yellow ones exuded a heavy, solid aura, much like the earth itself. The red ones allowed one to feel an aura of incomparably pure fire.

As for the green ones, they gave off a sense of life and the flourishing vitality of trees.

"These stones, which look as pure as jade, make one feel comfortable from the bottom of their heart; they certainly are not ordinary items. Although I do not know their specific uses, the fact that they were collected in several storage bags proves they must be useful."

Lu Xiaotian thought to himself. Although he knew nothing of immortal cultivation techniques or spiritual objects, he could sense the spiritual qi within them.

For now, he could only put them away and figure them out slowly later.

In addition to these fourteen stones filled with various types of spiritual qi, several jade boxes were also placed on the table. Inside the boxes were spiritual herbs, though the fluctuations of spiritual qi within them were much stronger than those of the herbs he had consumed previously, suggesting they were of a higher grade.

Aside from the spiritual herbs were three bottles of medicinal pills and three manuals. These also possessed fluctuations of spiritual energy; the three bottles of pills were identical. As for the manuals, he had already practiced the *Primordial Chaos Sutra*, so these few manuals were of no use to him.

Lu Xiaotian's gaze fell upon the last storage bag. The other three had been opened, but this one remained closed. Several times when his divine sense attempted to touch this bag, it was repelled, and the slight vibration caused by the repulsion left him feeling dizzy and ringing in his ears. After a few attempts, he did not dare to try again.

It seemed the methods of cultivators were truly numerous. Unfortunately, the black-robed elder had no intention of teaching him anything; currently, Lu Xiaotian was completely in the dark, knowing nothing at all. Lu Xiaotian thought to himself with regret that if there were someone to teach him, it would save a great deal of trouble. At least he wouldn't be starting from zero. As it stood, he could only rely on his own groping in the dark, which was twice the effort for half the result.

After putting the items away, with the small black bag and the jade gourd hanging from his waist, Lu Xiaotian opened a small pill bottle and poured out a white pill the size of a pigeon's egg. His expression was hesitant; the spiritual energy fluctuation on this pill was much stronger than the Qi Gathering Pills he had taken before. He did not know if there were any taboos regarding this spiritual pill. After a moment of contemplation, he decided that unless absolutely necessary, he would not consume it blindly before understanding what kind of medicine it was.

In his other hand, Lu Xiaotian held a storage bag with embroidery on it, which read "Blood Dwarf." Seeing these words, he couldn't help but remember a middle-aged man he had met once. The man was shorter than him and wore black clothes; he had heard from others that his name was indeed the Blood Dwarf. There had been exactly three people traveling with the black-robed elder—could these storage bags belong to those three? If they were theirs, why were they on the black-robed elder? Could it be...? Thinking of the black-robed elder's insidious and treacherous nature, Lu Xiaotian felt a sudden chill of horror, though he did not dare to be certain of his guess.

Half an hour later, after moving the stones out of the cave dwelling, Lu Xiaotian looked up at the blue sky and white clouds and let out a heavy sigh of relief. Having been driven into a desperate situation by the black-robed elder earlier, he inevitably felt a sense of having survived a great calamity.

"Once my strength is sufficient, I must deal with the black-robed elder's primordial spirit," Lu Xiaotian decided inwardly. The elder's primordial spirit had been residing within his body; although it was currently trapped behind that layer of transparent barrier, it remained a hidden danger. After all, he could not be certain how long that barrier could actually hold the other party.

Everything in the canyon had withered, turning into a barren wasteland. Such a place held no spiritual objects, and even if the canyon remained unchanged, with his current strength of only the first layer of Qi Refinement, venturing into the canyon would likely result in him becoming food for other demon beasts very quickly.

Having thought this through, Lu Xiaotian headed toward the exit of the canyon, carrying the items he had obtained from the black-robed elder.

"Awoo!" Just as he reached a spot not far from the cave entrance, Lu Xiaotian heard a beast's roar. Instinctively, he gripped the hilt of his sword, but upon looking closely, he saw a leopard with a small silver ring around its neck sprinting toward him, circling him excitedly.

Good heavens, his spiritual beast had actually escaped the wolf pack. A look of joy appeared on Lu Xiaotian's face as he patted the leopard's head. The leopard understood and crouched down.

"Let's go!" Lu Xiaotian shouted cheerfully. The leopard bolted toward the distance.

Several months later, in a dense jungle, a lithe leopard was locked in a fierce struggle with a much larger tiger demon. Their strengths were roughly comparable, but the tiger demon was larger and held an advantage in physical stamina. The two beasts fought intensely, and after a moment, the leopard fell into a disadvantage. However, at that moment, over a dozen small green ants flew in from various angles. They landed on the tiger demon, burrowing into its fur and biting incessantly. The tiger demon's movements suddenly became sluggish and weak, and the leopard seized the opportunity to bite its throat, killing it instantly.

At this moment, a youth with several black bags and a jade gourd and short sword hanging from his waist curled his lips into a slight smile.

"The utility of the small green ants is indeed extraordinary; no wonder the black-robed elder kept them by his side at all times."

Lu Xiaotian was very satisfied with the role the small green ants had played throughout his journey. These ants did not possess great killing power themselves, but their paralyzing effect was extremely strong. Furthermore, even when he attacked a single ant repeatedly with his short sword, he could not kill it. Aside from the ants' incredible defense, their small size, which made them resistant to wind resistance while flying, was also a crucial factor.

Lu Xiaotian skinned the dead tiger demon and took some of its bones. Everything about a tiger was a treasure; selling them to a pharmacy in the city should earn him a good amount of money. He placed the whole tiger skin and the bones into his storage bag. He then roasted a few pieces of tiger meat and tossed them to the leopard, which had been salivating for a long time.

He carried the storage bag away with satisfaction. Through his experiments over these past days, he had discovered that only objects containing spiritual energy could be stored in the bags; the few herbs in his backpack, such as the He Shou Wu, could not be placed inside.

While the leopard lay to the side gorging on the roasted meat, Lu Xiaotian sat cross-legged and practiced his cultivation as usual.

"Brother Lu, Great Lord Lu, please be kind and let me out!" Amidst the white mist, a massive barrier shaped like a green fruit floated in the air like a green bubble.

Inside the pale green transparent bubble, the black-robed elder's primordial spirit attempted to shuttle back and forth, but the mist outside the barrier surged as if trying to suck and tear the spirit apart. The black-robed elder was startled and no longer dared to easily step outside the barrier.

In the past, when he went into seclusion for long periods, it might last several months, but within this transparent green barrier, in his primordial spirit state, he could not cultivate at all and could not absorb any essence qi. After several months of such tedious and boring waiting, he was practically going mad.

"To think a heartless and shameless wretch like you would actually have moments where you beg others for help; it truly is a marvel."

Lu Xiaotian's primordial spirit emerged from the mist and spoke through the barrier. Through continuous cultivation over these past days, he had discovered that every time he practiced, he would appear in this mysterious place within his body. As he did it more frequently, he found he could even control where his primordial spirit appeared when entering. He had been leaving the black-robed elder hanging for several months.

(End of Chapter)