Chapter 9: Elder Brother Who Hates Iron for Not Becoming Steel?

In the fish pond of Longshe Shan, there are many spirit fish; these fish have grown up, and when it's time to sell them, Chen Chuyang hands them over to his third uncle to handle—these matters have always been handled by the third uncle, requiring no action from him.

Of course, he also helps from the side; after all, the third uncle catches fish alone, not knowing when the catch will finish—first release water, then catch fish, a process that takes time; fortunately the third uncle can speed up the water flow, and this step also requires waiting. Chen Chuyang watches his third uncle bustling about, very busy.

Catching fish is a very joyful thing; if fast, once a year; if slow, once every two or three years. These spirit fish are all consumed by the Chen Clan, mostly supplied to the clan's inn for sale, earning spirit stones.

A portion is kept for internal consumption by the Chen Clan; spirit fish meat promotes cultivation, a rare meat, naturally inferior to some demon beast meat, yet this spirit fish meat has no side effects, is also delicious, can be eaten after a little cooking, fresh and sweet, tasty, with excellent meat quality, suitable for adults and children, especially suited for the clan's body‑training children.

Fish meat is in short supply in the Chen Clan, demand high; even before catching, people come asking. Unable to find Chen Chuyang, they turn to Third Uncle Chen Shen for help—Third Uncle has already secured buyers, so he worries about no market.

After a busy afternoon, all the spirit fish in the pond have been caught; the remaining small spirit fish are all released back, with various kinds present, needing further growth. At the same time, Third Uncle also brought a batch of fish fry, which he purchased outside—these are relatively rare fry.

"Chuyang kid, this is the spirit stone from this batch of spirit fish."

According to the agreed distribution, a portion of these spirit fish is turned over to the clan, the surplus being Chen Chuyang's remuneration— for others, breaking even would be good. Third Uncle Chen Shen looks at the fish he has hidden away, very satisfied.

He has several storage bags in his hand, capable of holding many fish; some remain, needing to be transported in batches.

"This year's spirit fish yield is up by one‑fifth compared to last year—your fish‑raising ability is truly awesome; in the whole Chen Clan, only you could achieve this."

"Raising fish, planting spirit medicines, and all sorts of farming‑related tasks—your talent truly needs no comment."

Chen Chuyang laughed and waved his hand: "No, Third Uncle, you overpraise me."

Upon hearing this, Third Uncle Chen Shen burst out laughing: "You kid are still so modest—rest assured, I wouldn't speak nonsense."

These matters can be uncovered by someone who cares to look.

However, he will not let the blame fall on this nephew.

"Having earned so many spirit stones, kid, do you want to go relax with Third Uncle?"

"Third Uncle knows plenty of beauties of all ages; Chuyang nephew, tell me what type you like and I'll find it for you."

"Hehehe."

His lecherous expression left people speechless; Chen Chuyang pushed Third Uncle away.

"Third Uncle, if you keep this up, I'll tell Mother."

"Don't, kid, don't spout nonsense—your mother is violent, Third Uncle can't withstand it."

Third Uncle Chen Shen greatly fears Chen Chuyang's mother; when she turns violent, nobody else can do anything.

The fiercest person in the Chen Clan is not Chen Yuan but Chen Chuyang's mother; many fear the matriarch.

Chen Shen, as a child, was hardly ever free from being bullied.

Beaten from childhood to adulthood, it's been utterly miserable, always living in the shadow of his sister‑in‑law.

Perhaps that's also why he has remained unmarried all this time.

To some extent, there are reasons of this sort.

"Forget it, I won't say more—if you kid ever complain about me, what would I be?"

Third Uncle Chen Shen doesn't want to see that scene; just thinking of his sister‑in‑law's appearance makes him shudder all over.

Chen Chuyang laughed, shook his head, and watched Third Uncle leave.

"Third Uncle still hasn't grown up."

He counted the spirit stones in his hand—quite a lot.

Chen Chuyang put them away, plugged the leak in the fish pond, and began to store water.

Spirit spring water flowed into the pond; those fish fry were all released in, quickly adapting to life there.

With a pinch of his hands, a simple formation was set up; spirit energy gathered into the pond, nurturing the fish within.

After the pond returned to calm, Chen Chuyang began harvesting a batch of fodder, planting it around the pond; this fodder is what the fish love most, speeding their growth and improving their meat's flavor.

The material, nurtured by spirit energy, is filled with it; although it hasn't reached the grade of spirit medicine, it's still not bad.

Harvesting fodder is Chen Chuyang's cultivation.

Harvesting—pick up the sickle and cut; each step is simple, but doing it requires patience, truly testing one's endurance.

Unaware, several hours passed; Chen Chuyang looked at the results before him and felt very satisfied.

"This fodder is enough for the fish to eat for a long time."

He tossed down the spirit grass; the fish in the pond smelled the tasty treat and quickly came out to eat the fodder.

Chen Chuyang watched the fish happily eating their meal and laughed along.

"Grow quickly, little fish."

All are spirit stones, all cultivation resources.

These fish are all Chen Chuyang's treasures.

After feeding the fish, Chen Chuyang went to inspect his spirit medicines; each stalk needs careful nurturing, not yet mature, so a batch cannot be harvested—after checking, a day had basically passed.

Simple yet fulfilling.

The next morning, Chen Chuyang began repeating the same life.

Harvesting fodder, hoeing the fields, weeding, trimming fruit‑tree branches, and so on.

Every step requires him to do it personally, and he enjoys this life.

"You haven't changed, Chen Chuyang."

Chen Chuyang turned around; a man who looks about sixty percent like him stood with arms crossed, watching him busy.

This person is none other than Chen Chuyang's elder brother, Chen Chusheng, also the future head of the Chen Clan.

That elder brother who has always loomed over Chen Chuyang's head possesses a strong aura, somewhat stronger than their father; his imposing, anger‑free presence already has one‑third of a clan head's bearing—if he grew a bit stronger, he could possibly replace their father.

Qi Seed Third Heaven— the elder brother who has already condensed his Qi Seed is about two years older than Chen Chuyang; his cultivation talent and every aspect completely outclass Chen Chuyang, and not only him, but the other members of the Chen Clan are also suppressed by him.

The last time they met, he was at Qi Seed First Heaven; to have risen to Qi Seed Third Heaven so quickly, such cultivation talent still astonishes Chen Chuyang.

"Elder brother, you've come?"

Chen Chuyang had long known he was coming, but simply ignored him.

The elder brother wears a token crafted by Chen Chuyang, allowing him free entry and exit of Longshe Shan.

Formation will not harm him.

Once the formation token entered the formation, Chen Chuyang knew.

"Can't you cultivate properly? Don't do these useless things. Look, you've cultivated for so many years, yet your cultivation level remains the same." Older brother Chen Chusheng hated that iron could not be made into steel, wishing he could personally educate this younger brother.

Shang Hongchen has come to the door to break off the engagement; isn't this humiliating him?

He despises his own younger brother, yet still behaves this way.

Chen Chusheng could not bear it; he could not directly educate Shang Hongchen, so he could only come to find his own younger brother.