"Let's see about these fields, shall we?" said the wizened old man, his voice thick with authority. He seemed ancient, his wrinkled face brimming with wisdom, and his body cloaked in a scholarly air so intense that the spiritual energy lines danced wildly around the tails of his green robe. The other Alchemists stood gingerly behind him, eyes cast down at their feet and backs stiff as stone.
I caught our sergeant trembling as he gave a shaky nod, extending an inviting hand toward the fields while glaring daggers at the laborers in line. With that, we fell into single file and trudged out from the Laborers' Village.
Like that woman before, I found myself drawn to the greenish lines fluttering around the wizened old man, excitement bubbling in the pit of my stomach. It felt as if, by touching them and joining their jolly dance, something extraordinary might happen.
But I wasn't about to try touching an Elder from the Alchemists' Peak today. Having made that mistake once, I was determined to control my urges this time.
From the hesitant look in Uncle Hai's eyes to the tension gripping our group, I could tell this was no ordinary visit. Everyone kept stealing glances at the old man. I wondered if he was a Master Alchemist or one of the famed Grandmasters. My soul-brother's knowledge about such matters was blurry, and poking around in those memories only brought more confusion.
It looked like I'd have to wait and see.
Past the Village, my jaw nearly dropped when I saw the fields stretching beneath the mighty Central Peak. Once barren, newly seeded fields now bore knee-high stalks swaying happily in the wind, glimmering with golden light.
"Mm," said the wizened elder, hands clasped behind his back. "You've done well, Tang Zixin. The spiritual wheat stalks are coming along nicely."
"You honor me, Elder Hao. This one has only done his duty," Tang Zixin replied, bowing so deeply his nose nearly touched his knees.
"It is of paramount importance that we keep this year's harvest at maximum capacity. Not every field is suited for this crop, and the years we've spent searching for alternative cultivation methods have yielded meager results," the old man said, his eyes narrowing as he stared out into the fields. He then sighed a long breath. "More and more, we find ourselves in deep need of resources. From the reports, it seems this year's Beast Season will be unlike any we've seen before."
"Elder…" Tang Zixin gulped nervously as the other Alchemists shuffled uneasily. "What's causing this change? We haven't been told anything."
Elder Hao glanced up at the bright sky, his face etched with worry. "We can't hope to peer into the secrets of the Heavenly Dao. We can only bear the responsibility and do our utmost to survive this trial. Let us continue."
We moved on.
Now and then, Elder Hao stopped by a field, making us wait as the other Alchemists inspected the crops with their tools—spheres that glowed in a variety of colors when brought near the stalks. They took notes and whispered amongst themselves, repeating this process for perhaps more than a hundred times before we reached the field I had worked the other day.
Elder Hao had the Alchemists check the stalks while he lounged by the fence, facing the sun with a slight smile.
"There's nothing quite like the fresh air of the fields, eh?" he said, surprising Tang Zixin and the rest of us. He chuckled and raised an eyebrow at Kang Yao. "What do you think, young man? Is the sect treating you well?"
"Er…" Kang Yao stuttered, glancing at me as if I had all the answers. I had to nudge him, or he'd have kept staring. "This one is grateful, Elder. This one is only fit for labor and can only pray for such an opportunity." Tang Zixin and Uncle Hai breathed in relief, but Kang Yao kept on. "But if we could do something about the pay… well, it would be even better."
Tang Zixin nearly fainted, and Uncle Hai stepped back as if slapped. I, on the other hand, couldn't stop the smile that creased my lips and nodded in support.
"Pay, you say?" Elder Hao smiled knowingly, clearly amused by our chiefs' reactions. "The last I checked, they were giving you youngsters around five silvers, yes? Perhaps I can do something about that. How does ten silvers sound?"
"Ten silvers?" Kang Yao muttered blankly.
"Oh?" Elder Hao narrowed his eyes, and the colorful spiritual energy lines around him froze in midair as he gazed deeply at Kang Yao. Then the smile returned. "Fifteen silvers it is. I'll see to it personally, don't you worry."
Seeing an honest man get his way was refreshing. I clapped Kang Yao on the back as he stared dumbfounded, his eyes wide like saucers.
"That was some good stuff, Brother Kang!" I said, pointing at the other laborers. "For a moment, I thought you were going for gold."
"Gold?" Kang Yao muttered. "You mean like Aunt Fan? You know they're paying her—"
"I know, I know. They're paying her real gold. But thrice the wage somehow feels better than gold, doesn't it? Take the win, Brother Kang," I said, shaking my head at his blank expression. Then I raised my hand toward Uncle Hai and Tang Zixin, who were still processing what had happened. "We need to drown this man in wine tonight. He's earned it!"
Our whole group laughed and joked, with Elder Hao watching us with a good-natured smile. Turned out he wasn't one of those tight-assed, stuck-up Elders looking for an excuse to wave his finger.
Our jolly mood was broken when the Alchemists returned. One of them, a tall middle-aged man, held a sphere glowing like the morning sun.
"Grand Elder, we've found Pure-Yang Extreme-quality wheat stalks in this field!" he said, his voice cracking as he struggled to hold the sphere steady. "Twenty-five of them, Grand Elder!"
Elder Hao's smile faded into a solemn gaze. He gestured to another Alchemist, this one nearly as old as him. "Is this true, Zheng Guoliang?"
Zheng Guoliang's eyes gleamed. "It's true, Master! They look no different from the other stalks, but the Measurement Sphere nearly exploded when Xia Chao brought it over."
"Let me see."
Elder Hao strode into the field, and we all followed. The spiritual wheat stalks parted as spiritual energy lines poured out from Zheng Guoliang, opening a wide path for us.
There they stood—a group of stalks surrounded by thick spiritual energy. When I saw their gorgeous sheaves, my heart nearly leaped out of my chest.
I paused, my lips trembling. These were… my babies! I longed to touch them. I could feel their joy, the strong vitality brimming under their stalks, as if beckoning me for a hug. I had never grown anything in my life, but now I understood why people talked to their plants. They looked beautiful!
"Heavens… It's true," Elder Hao said, clicking his tongue in awe as his fingers brushed the golden stalks. "Extreme-quality. And twenty-five at that… Zheng Guoliang, how many Blood Nursing Pills can you make from these stalks?"
Zheng Guoliang stroked his chin, deep in thought. "Two batches at most, Master. Around a dozen peak-quality pills."
"Mm." Elder Hao nodded. "That means eight extreme-quality Blood Nursing Pills if I personally concoct the batches. But the real question is how this simple field produced so many extreme-quality stalks."
"Should I bring in Master Feng? Or another Formation Master to check the field?" Zheng Guoliang asked.
"They've already checked. The spiritual veins here are normal and can only support high-grade spiritual stalks," Elder Hao replied, shaking his head. He turned to Tang Zixin. "Do you recall the last time we harvested more than twenty extreme-quality stalks?"
Tang Zixin thought for a moment before nodding. "The secret realm's harvest was around fifteen per field, Elder Hao. Never more than eighteen."
"Just as I thought," Elder Hao said, parting the extreme-quality stalks and peering down toward the slope. "Whose idea was it to plant seeds at the edge of the field? Our laborers aren't usually this careless."
Everyone I had worked with snapped their heads toward me. Startled by the sudden attention, I raised my hand and bowed.
"It was me, Elder Hao. I don't know why, but I felt something odd when I gazed upon this corner. It was as though I had to plant those seeds. The urge was that strong," I said, meeting his eyes.
For all I knew, these Elders might have a technique to see through any lies, so I had to come up with something that wasn't quite a lie, but not the whole truth either. I did feel an urge to plant those seeds there—who wouldn't after seeing those thick spiritual energy lines?
"So it was you…" Elder Hao studied my face. After a moment, he nodded, and I released the breath I hadn't realized I was holding. "A gifted laborer, eh? That's rare."
"Gifted laborer?" Tang Zixin blurted out, looking equally as surprised as Uncle Hai and the rest of the laborers.
"You think you can do it again, young man?" Elder Hao asked a moment later, ignoring the other laborers and alchemists. "This gift might become useful in the fields."
"I… I don't really know, Elder." I wasn't sure if I could find more spiritual energy geysers in the other fields, so I had to treat this with caution. At the same time, I didn't mind taking advantage of this gift—especially not after seeing my babies grow into beautiful little stalks. "But if you give me the opportunity, I can try."
"Try you shall, then!" Elder Hao barked a laugh and clapped his hands. For a little moment, that old man was gone, replaced by a highly motivated, eccentric version of him staring at me. "For the next two weeks, you'll be responsible for the crops in these fields. Tang Zixin, you are to aid this young man to the best of your abilities. I want him on the fields, and I want him working hard."
"Master, don't you think you're acting a bit recklessly?" Zheng Guoliang said from the side, a worried look on his face. "The sect has its rules. We must first give notice to the Laborers' Office and see if they will allow this sudden change. You know they're rather strict with their inner workings. They don't like when others meddle—"
"Hmph!" Elder Hao snorted loudly, and the spiritual energy lines around him grew restless. "If they dare to say something about this old man's instructions, have them come to my Alchemy Peak and say it to my face. I'll gladly entertain their questions!"
"You know they wouldn't dare… You're just making life harder for them."
"Leave it, Elder Brother Zheng," said the other alchemist, Xia Chao, with a helpless smile. "It's only a young laborer."
All my fellow laborers were staring at me. Some looked shocked; others were conflicted. Uncle Hai certainly didn't know whether to laugh or cry, and our sergeant, Tang Zixin, kept clicking his tongue.
Just like that, I had become the master of wheat stalks in the sect. I… didn't know what to make of that.
....