Without much thought, Lin Xiu used the Attribute Points he had just obtained.
[Your Ability Basic Qi Cultivation has been raised to level 3]
"Hmm? Does this mean that leveling up Ability with Attribute Points won't give me more Attribute Points?"
Lin Xiu thought there might be a loophole, a way to endlessly stack bonuses, but it didn't seem to work like that.
"Basic Qi Cultivation increases the realm experience by 0.1 per level, it's better to add it to Aptitude, which allows for more cultivation sessions."
Increasing Aptitude can increase the number of daily Qi cultivation sessions, which is more cost-effective than the 0.1 increase from Basic Qi Cultivation since he could incease the later without wasting points anyways.
But now that he had done it, Lin Xiu didn't regret it.
[Name: Lin Xiu]
[Age: 17]
[Realm: Dou Disciple Seventh Stage (0.5/70)]
[Constitution: 4]
[Spirit: 5]
[Aptitude: 3]
[Ability: Basic Qi Cultivation Level 3 (10/300), Making Horse Food Level 4 (1/400), Horse Training Level 1 (42/100)]
[Attribute Points: 0]
...
Stepping out of the room, Lin Xiu looked at the dawn on the horizon, feeling that today's sun looked particularly beautiful.
"I have hope of passing the assessment at Jia Nan Academy. Now, I'll try to earn more Attribute Points."
Before, when working, Lin Xiu had only approached tasks with the attitude of getting things done, doing his own job well without showing any flaws to others.
But now things were different, he wanted to take care of the Flame-Maned Fierce Horse as if it were family!
[You made a portion of horse food, experience +20]
[...]
[You completed a Horse Training session, experience +25]
[...]
[Your Ability Horse Training has been raised to level 2, gaining 1 Attribute Point.]
[Your Ability Horse Training has been raised to level 3, gaining 1 Attribute Point.]
[You practiced, gaining 0.3 realm experience.]
[You completed a practice session, experience +10]
...
Three days passed in the blink of an eye.
"Horse Training has increased by two levels, gaining 2 Attribute Points. Now, my Aptitude is raised to 5."
Lin Xiu looked at the panel data, feeling a hidden joy in his heart, realizing that his previous doubts were perhaps a bit too much.
This panel seemed quite advanced, even a bit abnormal!
In just three short days, his Aptitude had increased a whopping 5 times!
[Realm: Dou Disciple Seventh Stage (4.1/70)]
[Aptitude: 3 —> 5]
[Ability:
Basic Qi Cultivation Level 3 (40/300)
Making Horse Food Level 4 (120/400)]
[...]
[Horse Training Level 3 (10/300)]
"Starting tomorrow, each day I can absorb Dou Qi 5 times, equivalent to an increase of 1.5 realm experience."
Even though the daily advancement for Dou Qi was now higher than before, Lin Xiu did not feel proud. He continued to perform just as usual as ever.
As the levels of various Abilities increased, the experience needed for leveling up also increased, giving Lin Xiu a bit of a headache. Aptitude 5 seemed high, but compared to his actual needs, it was still a bit lacking!
At least raising Aptitude to 10 would ensure that before the arrival of the Jia Nan Academy teachers, his strength could break through to the Eighth Stage of Dou Disciple.
"Making better horse food, or more complex Horse Training exercises, will also increase the experience gained in Ability. Since these two have changed, why has Basic Qi Cultivation remained fixed at 10?"
Reflecting on the changes of these three days, Lin Xiu focused more on Basic Qi Cultivation. According to the corresponding Aptitude, he could now raise Basic Qi Cultivation to level 6.
Unfortunately, the daily experience growth was too little.
A night passed in silence.
After finishing the morning practice, Lin Xiu gained 1.5 realm experience and 10 Basic Qi Cultivation Ability experience.
Arriving at the stable, Lin Xiu prepared breakfast for the horse, probably due to the careful Making Horse food over the past three days. When the horse saw Lin Xiu coming, it would actively nuzzle its head against him.
"The Red Jade Ginseng is almost finished, I'll have to go collect some later." Lin Xiu noticed that there were only a few plants left in the box that looked like red carrots, so he decided to use them all.
Red Jade Ginseng is a type of herb, not particularly rare, and can be easily found in the Magic Beast Mountains.
Because Red Jade Ginseng has the effect of making fur shinier, Young Master Lin has always had someone procure it.
After making the horse food, Lin Xiu took the box and found the person in charge of the Lin family.
"The Red Jade Ginseng is finished? How come it's two days faster than last time?" The person in charge felt a bit distressed.
As a medicinal herb, Red Jade Ginseng costs more than ten gold coins per pound. Usually, the amount needed for a Flame-Maned Fierce Horse for a week is around fifty pounds, close to several hundred gold coins.
The average living expenses for a regular household for a year are just a dozen or so gold coins.
"It seems to have a good appetite lately. The young master likes to see its fur shiny and red. I can't just let it go hungry." Lin Xiu wasn't worried that the person in charge would refuse.
Complaints aside, the person in charge still brought out fifty pounds of Red Jade Ginseng to give to Lin Xiu.
After receiving the items, Lin Xiu prepared to head back.
On his way, he saw Steward Lin approaching, so Lin Xiu took the initiative to greet him, "Steward Lin."
"Hmm." Steward Lin nodded slightly, casting a glance at the Red Jade Ginseng.
"Steward Lin, the appetite of the Flame-Maned Fierce Horse is getting bigger and bigger," the person in charge complained to him.
"It's fine, just let that beast eat. It doesn't have many good days left," Steward Lin replied calmly.
Lin Xiu, carrying the Red Jade Ginseng, slowed his pace. Could it be that Horse Brother was going to fall out of favor?
The person in charge asked what was going on.
Steward Lin didn't hide anything, frankly stating that in another half month, the young master would be going with the Misty Cloud Sect elders to the Misty Cloud Sect. When he returned to the Lin family, it would be at least a year later.
Young Master Lin had always been favored by his father, but spending one or two thousand gold coins every month to keep a horse that had no practical use, the clan leader would never agree.
Once Young Master Lin left home, perhaps the Flame-Maned Fierce Horse would be slaughtered directly.
Back at the stable, the Flame-Maned Fierce Horse was still enjoying its meal, the rhythmic sound of its chewing completely unaware of its impending dark fate.
A look of worry crept onto Lin Xiu's face.
As the saying goes, "one's success is everyone's success, and one's loss is everyone's loss!"
Right now, he relied on Horse Brother for his own success. If Horse Brother were to fall, the next time he was sent to the mines, he wouldn't have any excuses.
"Is there any way to increase the experience for Basic Qi Cultivation?" Lin Xiu had to consider this issue now.
The Flame-Maned Fierce Horse had fallen out of favor, his main support crumbled. Before this happened, he had to break away from the Lin family and join the Jia Nan Academy.
Otherwise, even if the crisis at the mines was resolved, who knew if there would be another crisis.
More importantly, although he had a panel to allocate points, after advancing to a Dou Practitioner, cultivation required Qi Methods. The level of the Qi Method would also affect his own strength.
If he excluded obtaining them from the Lin family, the only options left were either to seize them or rely on luck.
As for buying from the Auction House, it was simply not realistic.
Black Rank Qi Methods generally cost hundreds of thousands of gold coins, an amount Lin Xiu couldn't possibly come up with.
Over the next two days, Lin Xiu tried various methods, but the experience for Basic Qi Cultivation remained steadfastly at 10 points.
"Why is there fluctuation in the experience for Making Horse Food and Horse Training? Where is the reason?" Lin Xiu struggled to calm his mind and think carefully.
Suddenly, he thought of something.
That's it! Making Horse Food and Horse Training are not fixed. The variation in Making Horse Food experience is related to the ingredients used, while Horse Training is related to the difficulty of the actions.
"Variation! What kind of variation can there be in cultivation? Isn't it just simple Qi cultivation, performing a movement? What external force could there be?"
Lin Xiu pondered deeply, his eyes suddenly brightening. "The external force in cultivation comes from medicinal herbs, pills, and the location of cultivation."
But, as someone who raises horses, how could he afford to buy medicinal herbs, or even pills?
Wait a minute!
Lin Xiu remembered the Red Jade Ginseng that the Flame-Maned Fierce Horse had in every meal. Wasn't that a type of medicinal herb?
"How about trying one out? It's not like it'll kill me to eat it, and what if it has an effect?"