Having accomplished his mission outside, Lu Xuan, always mindful of the spirit plants in his yard, wasted no time and headed directly home.
Inside his room.
He couldn't wait to pull out the array plate smeared with dark red blood stains. The array plate inscribed with a basic protective array, once activated, could protect a certain area and even alert the user when an outsider intrudes.
Lu Xuan adjusted his breathing and waited for his emotions to calm down. Then, he catalyzed the spiritual power within his body and began to slowly pour it into the array plate, following the instructions of the loose cultivator who ran the stall.
The array plate, stimulated by spiritual power, flickered a faint white light. Once it absorbed enough spiritual power, the white light instantly amplified hundreds to thousands of times, covering the entire yard.
The faint white light swayed gently, like a layer of egg white.
Lu Xuan continued to adjust, controlling the array plate. The faint spiritual energy shield continuously changed according to the shape of the house, gradually disappearing until it was completely invisible from the outside.
As the master of the array plate, he could still clearly perceive the existence of the spiritual energy shield.
The shield has a certain defensive capability that can block assaults from outsiders. If anything tries to penetrate the spiritual energy shield, as long as Lu Xuan is at home, he can detect it immediately.
After the successful deployment of the protective array, the worry that had been weighing heavily on Lu Xuan finally lifted completely.
At this moment, he felt entirely secure. He no longer had to worry about the spirit plants in his yard being harmed by evildoers or demon insects, which would affect the rewards of the white light cluster.
After a brief rest, Lu Xuan took the Spirit Firefly Grass Seeds and the sack containing the Red Cloud Pine seedling and entered the spirit field.
After harvesting the nine Spirit Firefly Grasses, a large area in the spirit field had been vacated.
Lu Xuan estimated their future growing range, took out ten Spirit Firefly Grass Seeds, and began to plant them.
Spiritual power surged within him, causing the soil in the spirit field to rise slightly. Under the control of the Earth Pulling Technique, ten cracks of various sizes formed.
The seed, no bigger than a dried tealeaf, was placed into each crack, then a thin layer of spirit field soil was spread on top.
Droplets of spiritual rain infiltrated the soil, nourishing the Spirit Firefly Grass Seeds inside.
Lu Xuan focused his mind on the seeds, sensing a surge of joyous and thriving emotion exuding from them.
This emotion infected him, making him smile involuntarily.
"Little guys, grow well, break through the soil quickly, and witness this magical world."
He planned to plant the remaining ten Spirit Firefly Grass Seeds after the other fifteen Spirit Firefly Grasses had matured.
Next, he took out the Red Cloud Pine sapling. The sapling, which had been in the sack for half a day, appeared a little weary.
Lu Xuan quickly used the spirit field soil to cover the root of the sapling.
After planting, he cast the Spirit Rain Technique again. Under its thorough nourishment, the Red Cloud Pine sapling showed new signs of life.
Lu Xuan ran his internal spiritual power, causing a fist-sized red fireball to appear in front of him.
The fireball, tracing an arc, flew towards the Red Cloud Pine sapling.
The moment before it was about to touch the Red Cloud Pine, the red fireball silently dissolved into hundreds of small flames, merging into the trunks and needles of the Red Cloud Pine.
Under the nourishment of countless tiny flames, the originally grey-black trunk of the Red Cloud Pine revealed a faint red color, giving off a mild sensation of heat.
The countless needle-like leaves all stood upright. The entire Red Cloud Pine looked like an aroused hedgehog. It was quite an amusing sight.
Looking at the Red Cloud Pine in its stress state, Lu Xuan couldn't resist a chuckle.
Three days passed in a blink of an eye.
During these three days, Lu Xuan stayed at home, without stepping out once.
In order to obtain higher quality Spirit Plants, he spent most of his time caring for and cultivating them, sparing a little time for his own cultivation, practicing the Earth Pulling Technique and the Golden Sword Technique.
The cultivation technique he practiced was called "Yuan Attraction Technique", which was common and unremarkable, with an extremely slow rate of absorbing spiritual energy.
Of course, for Lu Xuan then, and even now, its greatest advantage was being inexpensive.
After several days of practicing the Earth Pulling Technique and the Golden Sword Technique, he became more skilled, and the speed at which he deployed the sword technique increased quite a bit.
If he really had to face an opponent, this slight improvement wouldn't make much of a difference, the result would be similar:
The sword technique would crumble before it could fully take effect.
"At times like these, I fondly remember the white light cluster and look forward to another experience bar appearing."
Lu Xuan sighed, stepping into his courtyard.
After several days of meticulous care, another four plants of the Spirit Firefly Grass were fully matured, leaving only eleven more to ripen.
With extra days of careful cultivation, a good quality Spirit Firefly Grass now had a higher chance of appearing. Among the four plants of Spirit Firefly Grass, three were good quality, and one was ordinary.
The ordinary Spirit Firefly Grass still brought three months of cultivation level.
As for the three good quality Spirit Firefly Grasses.
Lu Xuan collected the three slightly sparkling white light clusters from the soil one by one.
"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, acquire a First Grade Technique, 'Jingold Sword Art'."
"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, acquire a half-year cultivation level."
"Harvest a Spirit Firefly Grass, acquire a First Grade Talisman, Sword Qi Talisman."
Several thoughts flashed through Lu Xuan's mind, as the rewards from the three white light clusters were revealed, one after another.
After absorbing the light cluster containing the sword technique, Lu Xuan's understanding of the sword technique improved, its execution speed was faster, and its power increased by ten to twenty percent.
"The ordinary quality Spirit Firefly Grass brings three months cultivation level, while the good quality one provides a half-year cultivation level, this is a delightful surprise."
Lu Xuan thought to himself, his attention then focused on the talisman appearing quietly in his hand.
The talisman was a dark yellow color, with complex and obscure rune patterns carved around the edges. In the center, a faint Sword Qi stood out on the talisman, as if it would burst out at any moment.
"Sword Qi Talisman, a First Grade Talisman, a one-time-use item, equivalent to the full-force attack of a Middle-Stage Qi Practitioner proficient in the Sword Dao, with immense killing power."
"A First Grade Talisman... I feel like I've hit the jackpot."
Though it was a one-time-use talisman, the Sword Dao has always been known for its killing capabilities. This Sword Qi Talisman was equivalent to a full-force attack from a Middle-Stage Sword Cultivator, its offensive strength was evident.
For Lu Xuan who was at the Third Layer of Qi Cultivation, this was considered a decent weapon.
Feeling quite satisfied, Lu Xuan's expectations for the remaining eleven Spirit Firefly Grasses grew even more.
The ten Spiritual Firefly Grass seeds that he planted three days ago, all sprouted, showing new buds.
The tender green leaves were extremely narrow, with tiny traces of glowing dust on them, barely noticeable unless closely observed.
"Spirit Firefly Grass in its rapid growth stage grows well, showing a very strong demand for spiritual energy. Can you, a second-rate Spirit Plant Master, satisfy them?"
Lu Xuan looked at the thought that had formed in his mind, and snorted in disdain.
"I want to plant ten more plants!"
The Red Cloud Pine was growing a little slower, reaching about an inch in length. Whenever Lu Xuan used the flame from the Fireball Technique to stimulate it, the fine red pine leaves would surge with vigor, returning to normal only after fully absorbing the flames.