Chapter 4: Chapter 4: Automatically Operating Cultivation Technique
The next day.
Li Ye groggily opened his eyes and instinctively reached for the pillow beside him, but all he felt was the Flint Fire Crystal Insect placed in the box.
The crystal insects, which were originally huddled together sleeping, were startled and immediately emitted a burning heat.
"Hiss!"
Li Ye retracted his hand from the burn, and his sleepiness instantly vanished.
"You little fellows." Though he was burnt, his first concern was whether the Flint Fire Crystal Insects were hurt. Seeing them safe and sound, he breathed a sigh of relief.
"I wonder what time it is now..."
Unable to accurately judge the time, he had no choice but to get up.
Opening the window, the snow outside was even heavier than last night, rendering the world a vast expanse of white. Such heavy snow was a sight he had never seen in his past life.
"Last night’s snow wasn’t this heavy, but a good snow augurs a prosperous year. Perhaps it’s a good omen?"
He stared at the snowy scene for a while before turning his gaze toward the Silver Moon Grass by the well in the courtyard. One plant was particularly vibrant, with a plump Flint Fire Crystal Insect clutching its leaf, sleeping soundly.
"How come it looks more comfortable than I am?"
He couldn’t help but chuckle, feeling much calmer inside.
This little fellow is his foundation for living; if anything were to happen, it would be troublesome.
"Whew~~~"
After keeping the window open for a while, the cold air mixed with snowflakes drifted in. Li Ye shivered and hurriedly closed the window, going to the small door beside him to freshen up.
The water source inside the house came from a spring that continued to flow even in winter. The spring water had no spiritual fluctuations, just ordinary warm water, yet it was exceptionally sweet.
He circled around the spring for a while, murmuring, "This spring water seems purposely arranged for use..."
Is there a concept of tap water in the Cultivation Realm?
Indeed, the original owner’s memory retained some information about this house. After all, this is the world of cultivation, naturally possessing some convenient arrays and magical artifacts.
For instance, the clear spring water in front of him that constantly flows, the stove igniting at the touch of a button, the mechanical mice outside automatically clearing snow, and even a mechanism box that delivers goods upon inputting desired items.
"Quite interesting."
Finished washing, he went into the courtyard and picked up the mechanical mouse in the corner, gently pressing a button. The tiny wooden mouse immediately started clearing the snow in the yard.
Its speed was extremely fast, traversing the snow enough to bury itself, the snow melting at a visibly rapid pace from the hot wind it emitted, then flowing into the pool beside through a waterway.
The courtyard was not entirely farmland, with the center having about an acre used for planting, while the rest was paved with bluestone slabs, featuring well-designed hidden waterway channels that would not accumulate water.
Within moments, the snow outside the farmland was cleared, leaving only a thick layer of white snow covering the farmland.
Li Ye’s gaze swept over the farmland, drawn to the vegetables planted within.
"Uh."
"Cabbage."
He had just transmigrated yesterday and hadn’t paid attention to what was planted in the field. Only now did he realize, it was all cabbages!
The cabbage’s outer skin was green with hints of white, as if it were translucent jade, standing neatly in the field, about a foot tall.
’Do they also eat cabbage over winter in the Cultivation Realm?’
His mouth twitched slightly, recalling how his family in his past life would stockpile large amounts of cabbage for winter, only stopping once shopping became convenient.
Unexpectedly, here, there were so many cabbages planted.
"Squeak squeak."
At this moment, the mechanical mouse, having completed its task, returned to his feet, quietly sitting, seemingly a wooden toy statue.
"What a magical little thing."
In such a short time, all the convenience objects he had seen piqued his curiosity. There was no shortage of cultivators who enjoyed researching and creating, and these magical artifacts were their masterpieces.
Li Ye picked up the mechanical mouse, examining it, unexpectedly discovering the words "Mo Family Mechanism Workshop" on the underside of the mouse, even its marketplace address was marked.
"..."
This familiar writing reminded him of advertisements seen at bus and subway stations in his past life. So the cultivation world has marketing strategies too?
He couldn’t help but mumble inwardly, stroked the smooth body of the mouse, casually putting it back in the corner.
Afterward, he approached to check on the Silver Moon Grass and Flint Fire Crystal Insect.
"Eh."
Just standing far from the window earlier, he hadn’t noticed a tiny red bead surprisingly growing on top of the Silver Moon Grass, only half the size of a Moon Liquid Pearl.
It was red and translucent, like solidified firelight, even releasing a fragrant heat in the cold snowy weather. Just by smelling it, Li Ye couldn’t help but salivate.
"Wait, if it’s mutated, has the little fellow also mutated?"
Li Ye’s eyes lit up, bending down promptly to check on the Flint Fire Crystal Insect covered by the leaves.
Sure enough, he found a silver sprout on its back, reflecting a cold metallic sheen in the winter snow light.
This silver sprout replaced the previously underdeveloped red sprout, full of vitality.
Recalling the jade scroll he reviewed last night, he pondered:
"Winter emits vitality, summer buries underground to grow grass and absorb vitality, waiting for winter to arrive... This is somewhat similar to cordyceps."
"They originally couldn’t survive this winter, now they’re repaired through symbiosis? Truly fascinating."
"With my help, you better produce well."
—— Whether it was responding to Li Ye’s voice or not, the Silver Moon Grass and Flint Fire Crystal Insect slightly trembled, a rush of pure spiritual qi wafted over, carrying two entirely different sensations of coolness and warmth.
Simultaneously, he vaguely felt a faint awareness from the spirit beasts and spirit plant, seemingly thanking him, and telling him the red bead wasn’t fully matured, not to pick it.
The mood displayed on the panel was also [Grateful].
Li Ye instinctively absorbed this spiritual qi into his body, feeling a burst of relief instantly. The qi filtered by them was even more effective than ingesting pills!
More marvelously, his cultivation technique "Five Elements Spirit Ascension Technique" spontaneously started operating.
Like a waterwheel suddenly hit by flowing water, it spun rapidly, completing a cycle in just a few breaths.
The injuries inside his body were soothed by this breath, though it remained without substantive healing effects.
"This is..."
He was somewhat taken aback. This cultivation technique hails from the powerful and mysterious Four Seasons Sect, issued to five spirit roots cultivators as a standardized technique, renowned for being ordinary. Why does this happen?
He noted this in his mind, planning to inquire in a safe manner if the opportunity arises.
Though he didn’t understand, he was still quite pleased. The spiritual qi filtered and purified by the spirit beasts and spirit plant was extremely pure, refining it now equates to roughly ten days of hard cultivation.
Currently, his cultivation is at the third-layer of Qi Refining, and with last night’s Moon Liquid Pearl and today’s absorbed spiritual qi, he estimates he can soon reach the 4th layer.
Most importantly, essentially he doesn’t need to manually operate the cycle, it cultivates by itself.
He gently sighed, deciding to find ways to acquire more of such spirit beasts and spirit plant, binding them to garner benefits.
Whether it’s vital essence or the gains and mana enhancement they bring, Li Ye desires them.
He also wishes to see if all spirit beasts and spirit plant would yield spiritual qi for him. If true, it would indeed be a delightful matter.
Wouldn’t it mean he could increase his cultivation just by being idle?
Thinking about it, he suddenly recalled something, asking Silver Moon Grass: "Can you produce three Moon Liquid Pearls every three days?"
Silver Moon Grass conveyed a very distinct affirmative consciousness, its leaves slightly trembled.
It turned out to be true!
Surely that magical panel is working, he vaguely can communicate with spirit plants!
If production can continue, he should consider exchanging for more spirit stones for his profit.
Yet, before heading out, it’s necessary to review the spells the original body knows, it’s not that he intends to fight upon going out but to possess some confidence in the cultivation world.
He can opt not to initiate fights, just stay home to develop, but still needs means of dealing!
However, just as he was about to practice spells, he suddenly felt a pang of hunger from his stomach.
Accompanied by a "growl" sound.
He blinked and silently looked at the cabbages spread across the ground.