Chapter 247

Zhang Shijie glanced at Zheng Fa's expression, as if sensing his delight, and asked, "Is this secret technique valuable?"

Zheng Fa handed the jade cylinder to her; Zhang Shijie swept it with her spiritual sense, frowned slightly, and her face bore just two words:

That's it?

Zheng Fa understood the doubt in her eyes—truthfully, the techniques in this Qianhe secret manual weren't numerous—

Qianhe Sect was merely a Golden Core sect, and its most renowned product was Huangya Rice, so most of its secret techniques focused on cultivating Huangya Rice:

Which spells could increase Huangya Rice yield.

What spiritual energy concentration best suited Huangya Rice growth.

From sowing to harvest, they had a complete set of cultivation methods, involving multiple spells and environmental requirements.

There were also techniques regarding other spiritual plants.

But they weren't systematic.

Zhang Shijie probably couldn't understand why Zheng Fa was so delighted—after all, for most people in Xuanwei Realm, learning these techniques meant little more than knowing how to grow Huangya Rice.

Zheng Fa pointed at the jade cylinder and said:

"This secret technique isn't much, but it's solved many of my doubts."

"What doubts?"

"Since studying Lingmu Thunder, I've had a question…" Zheng Fa explained, "Zhang Shijie, you probably know I once farmed in the Field Village—ordinary crops grow largely depending on timing, geography, and human effort."

"Timing means climate, geography refers to soil fertility, and human effort is whether you know how to farm…"

"But immortal techniques are too miraculous—some spells can directly trigger plants to bloom and fruit, meaning spiritual energy alters these natural laws."

Zhang Shijie frowned, seemingly unable to grasp what Zheng Fa meant.

"This creates a problem: past agricultural experience doesn't align well with spiritual plant cultivation."

This problem was something Zheng Fa had thought of in the modern world—

For instance, Zheng Fa's Changqing Talisman can accelerate growth in most non-spiritual crops, creating a phenomenon—the Xuanwei Realm's immortal agricultural system doesn't rely on traditional farming knowledge, because this talisman is too OP.

Strong talismans aren't bad.

But the problem is Zheng Fa struggles to find an effective way to cultivate spiritual plants, forced to rely solely on studying Lingmu Thunder and observation.

This makes research painfully slow.

"But this Qianhe secret manual is different… it's given me new questions about spiritual plant cultivation:"

"Why do seasonal changes affect spiritual plant development?"

"Why is spiritual energy concentration so crucial?"

"Most importantly, what's the fundamental difference between spiritual plants and ordinary plants?"

Zhang Shijie rubbed her temples, as if overwhelmed: "Young brother, why don't you go chat with Yuan Meimei?"

"Isn't she still evolving? She's asleep and can't hear me."

"Exactly—that's why she won't get a headache listening to all your 'whys.'"

…

Modern era, nursing home.

"These techniques…" Teacher Tian looked at the Qianhe secret manual Zheng Fa had copied, frowned slightly, then said, "Actually, there are only two points—"

"Hmm?"

"Seasons, spiritual energy."

"For example, choosing the right spiritual land, planting on the best spiritual vein—all boil down to one issue: controlling spiritual energy concentration."

Hearing this, Zheng Fa nodded slightly.

"You're right. This is very different from our agricultural system—we often consider light, temperature, humidity, soil nutrients… but these techniques barely care about any of that. Ultimately, they only care about these two."

Old White beside him nodded: "This is probably because spiritual energy's influence is so overwhelming that everything else becomes secondary."

"Then why emphasize seasons?" Tang Lingwumin asked. "Zheng Fa, you said Lingmu Thunder might relate to the twenty-four solar terms… why are solar terms so important for spiritual plants?"

At this, Tang Mudao also looked puzzled.

Though he'd just joined the nursing home, he knew spiritual plant cultivation was vital for them—without it, their cultivation advancement would be painfully slow.

"Actually, I have a very…" Zheng Fa hesitated, sounding uncertain, "a very outlandish idea."

"What idea?"

Seeing his hesitation, the other four grew curious.

Zheng Fa usually had many ideas, but never this hesitant.

He'd had this idea before Zhang Shijie, but she probably wouldn't understand, so he hadn't spoken it.

"You know, when we humans cultivate, we only consider two things—spiritual energy concentration and cultivation method."

Old White blinked, suddenly understanding: "You mean, plants becoming spiritual plants is also a form of cultivation?"

"Yes, more precisely, a passive cultivation process," Zheng Fa whispered. "Spiritual energy concentration is obviously essential—that's a basic requirement for cultivation."

"But if we treat Lingmu Thunder and seasonal changes as electromagnetic field variations…"

Zheng Fa whispered:

"Our human bodies are too complex to sense seasonal shifts strongly, but some plants might be more sensitive…"

"External magnetic field changes cause internal bioelectric current shifts in these plants. Teacher Tian, our thoughts are tied to neural currents or brainwaves—so I boldly hypothesize that these bioelectric shifts are a primitive form of thought, or even a cultivation technique…"

Teacher Tian frowned slightly: "You mean the twenty-four solar terms are twenty-four 'thought' cycles, like the mental focus we use to control spiritual energy during cultivation?"

"Exactly!" Zheng Fa smiled. "We have the concept of the Microcosmic Orbit, but the twenty-four solar terms are a natural, annual cycle—twenty-four times every year, endlessly repeating."

"This…" Old White now understood. "You mean spiritual plants are plants that cultivate—albeit unconsciously, shaped by heaven and earth?"

Zheng Fa nodded, looking at the others.

He wasn't confident in this theory—after all, it lacked concrete evidence.

"This could explain many phenomena…" Teacher Tian spoke up. "For instance, the manual's discussion of spiritual fields and veins essentially provides spiritual plants with a better cultivation environment…"

"Like why spiritual plants don't care much about other material conditions beyond spiritual energy—just like humans who can achieve Grain Grain Bigu after cultivation."

"On the other hand, it also explains why we've only produced one spiritual plant: pea sprouts."

Teacher Tian continued:

"First, cultivation itself is a process. We need at least one Microcosmic Orbit to accumulate spiritual energy in the dantian. Do these plants require specific combinations of Lingmu Thunder to generate spiritual energy structures within their cells? Pea sprouts, which change with just one Lingmu Thunder, are probably rare."

"Second, perhaps our nursing home's spiritual energy concentration is too low."

"And third, some plants might simply be incapable of becoming spiritual plants," Old White added. "Like humans with no cultivation potential."

"But how do we verify this theory?" Tang Lingwumin asked.

"There is a way," Zheng Fa thought. "Spiritual energy concentration is limited by the Shanfa Law—we can't raise it. But magnetic field changes, we can simulate in the lab."

At this, the others understood.

"Yes!" Teacher Tian nodded. "If we know how the magnetic field changes on the ground during each solar term, we can simulate it."

But Old White remained pessimistic.

"Cultivation takes time… our short-term simulations probably won't yield results…"

Zheng Fa also felt helpless.

At this moment, he missed that big bell…

"It'll still be useful," Teacher Tian shook his head. "At least it can verify Zheng Fa's theory that Lingmu Thunder relates to the twenty-four solar terms. Even if no spiritual plants emerge, we can still observe spiritual energy changes."

"I still think we shouldn't get our hopes up," Old White countered. "We've been farming for nearly half a year—by now, we've passed over a dozen solar terms, and still no spiritual plants."

That was true.

Zheng Fa had never been confident in this idea; Old White's words made him feel they had merit.

Seeing everyone fall silent, Old White realized he'd dampened morale and added: "I'm not against trying—I just think if this theory is right, we won't cultivate any spiritual plants in the short term…"

"Even humans need time to cultivate…"

He glanced at Zheng Fa. "Have you run into something?"

Zheng Fa froze—he now understood why the usually optimistic Old White spoke this way.

Honestly, Jiushan Sect was under immense pressure; Tongming Shiren might not truly alleviate Jiushan's crisis—he'd rather seize control of Tianbei Realm.

His urgency regarding Lingmu Thunder was growing daily.

It wasn't that their research was slow—it was that the situation grew more desperate by the day.

Old White continued: "We'll still run the experiment, but I mean—don't expect too much…"

Teacher Tian suddenly understood: "Yes. Spiritual plant growth requires time, adequate spiritual energy concentration, and crucially—not every plant can become a spiritual plant…"

Zheng Fa nodded slightly, recognizing Old White's warning.

"But how do we know the magnetic field strength on the ground during solar terms?" Tang Lingwumin raised an unavoidable question.

Zheng Fa froze—yes, this data was notoriously obscure; no need to look it up.

Beside him, Tang Mudao thought for a moment, then spoke: "I might be able to find a way."