Chapter 199: Cultivating the Hua Ling Yao Cao

"Hehe! If Brother Wei needs it, then of course it's possible." Qin Ming's smile deepened.

He paused to consider for a moment, then said, "Very well—Brother Wei, if you have any wood-element spiritual soil, second-rank superior-grade spiritual plant seeds, or other materials of equivalent value, Qin Mou will trade them."

"What do you think, Brother Wei?"

Qin Ming knew Wei Wuyan, as a prodigy of Lei Yuanzong and a figure of extraordinary status, undoubtedly carried many valuable items—truly a "mobile treasure vault."

With such an opportunity, he naturally intended to seek out what he currently lacked.

After hearing this, Wei Wuyan's face twisted into a peculiar expression; he promptly slapped his storage bag and pulled out a jade box, handing it to Qin Ming. "Brother Qin, would this suffice?"

"Now that you mention it, how coincidental—this spiritual soil was also acquired by me just days ago during a raid on demons, from Qianye Lingdao."

Qin Ming took the jade box, opened it, and saw within a square foot of greenish spiritual soil, radiating a thick aura of wood-elemental mist.

"Second-rank superior-grade Xun Wood spiritual soil!" Qin Ming exclaimed in delight.

He had searched far and wide for this—and now it had come to him effortlessly!

He had long heard from Long Yi that spiritual soil would appear at the Qianye Lingdao trading fair, but he never got the chance to buy any before the island suffered its great upheaval; he never expected the soil, after circling about, had ended up in his hands.

With this Xun Wood spiritual soil, Qin Ming could now cultivate the third-rank spiritual plant, Hua Ling Yao Cao, entrusted to him by Nalan Xi.

Qin Ming immediately replied, "Brother Wei, this spiritual soil alone is more than sufficient for exchange."

"I won't take advantage of you—this square foot of second-rank superior-grade spiritual soil holds considerable value."

"I'll offer two jars of Linghuo Wine in exchange."

Wei Wuyan's eyes lit up with joy. "Perfect! Deal!"

Qin Ming, adhering to the principle of goodwill, knew it was wise to cultivate ties with figures like Wei Wuyan—perhaps someday he might glean other vital information from him.

He could also sense that Wei Wuyan's attitude toward him was genuinely friendly; otherwise, he wouldn't have so readily offered second-rank superior-grade Xun Wood spiritual soil in exchange for spiritual wine.

After the exchange was completed, both parties obtained what they needed and were thoroughly satisfied.

Wei Wuyan rose to take his leave. "Brother Qin, your surroundings are serene and otherworldly, with fine wine to accompany—truly a journey well worth taking!"

"But I must return to my sect to report, so I'll take my leave now. If you ever have time, Brother Qin, do visit Lei Yuanzong—I would be honored to welcome you."

"I'll even let you taste my personal collection of spiritual wine, hehe!"

Qin Ming also rose, smiling politely as he bowed his hands in return. "Of course, of course!"

"Since Brother Wei has urgent matters, I won't detain you further."

"Please."

Qin Ming then opened the Mist Illusion Realm and escorted Wei Wuyan away from Wangyue Island.

"Phew~"

"Turns out Wei Wuyan is a real stroke of luck for me—he just delivered the demon monkey, and now he's brought me the very spiritual soil I needed."

"His nature is straightforward, lacking the scheming cunning of Zhao Wuji—he's worth cultivating a connection with."

…

With the Xun Wood spiritual soil in hand, Qin Ming immediately began preparing to cultivate the third-rank spiritual plant, Hua Ling Yao Cao.

"Hmm. Spiritual soil—acquired."

"According to the inheritance of the third-rank spiritual cultivator, Hua Ling Yao Cao requires an auxiliary material during its early cultivation phase."

"Namely, the eggshell of a second-rank avian demon beast, Yanwei Ying."

Qin Ming held a simple jade slip in his hand, studying it carefully.

"This item likely exists only in Canghai Xiancheng—but it shouldn't be hard to obtain."

Qin Ming had recently been tending to the injuries of his two spirit pets, needing to personally heal them every few days with Ancient Wood Longevity Qi—he couldn't leave just yet, so he summoned Wu Jiang to assist him.

Moments later.

Wu Jiang arrived before Qin Ming, glancing around nervously, then asked cautiously, "Brother Qin, has Senior Wei left?"

He knew that someone of Wei Wuyan's stature coming to Wangyue Island must have been drawn by the recent disturbances on the island.

Qin Ming nodded. "Brother Wei has departed. Also, Brother Wu, I need you to run an errand for me in Canghai Xiancheng."

Wu Jiang, upon hearing Wei Wuyan had come but nothing happened, was taken aback; yet when he learned Qin Ming had another task for him, his face immediately lit up with a beaming smile. "Hehe! Brother Qin, just give the order—I'll get it done!"

Qin Ming said, "I need some eggshells from a second-rank mid-grade demon beast, Yanwei Ying. Go and procure some for me."

As he spoke, Qin Ming pulled a small pouch of spirit stones from his storage bag and tossed it to Wu Jiang.

"This should be enough."

Wu Jiang caught the pouch but frowned, having assumed Qin Ming wanted him to gather intelligence again.

Now he was being asked to acquire materials from a second-rank mid-grade demon beast—far beyond the capability of a Qi Refining cultivator like himself.

"Brother Qin, if I go to buy second-rank materials, others may not even take me seriously," Wu Jiang stammered.

Qin Ming suddenly remembered: second-rank mid-grade materials were restricted resources, and major trading houses in Canghai Xiancheng prioritized only major clients.

He pondered briefly, then pulled out a token and handed it to Wu Jiang. "First, go to Gu Qingzhao of Jingxue Pavilion. If she doesn't have it, use this token to approach Lü Liang, the Canghai Xiancheng official."

Wu Jiang took the gilded token and saw the seal-engraved characters "Canghai" on it—he nearly dropped it in shock.

"Canghai Token!" He had heard of it—he knew exactly what it meant.

The Canghai Token was issued only by Canghai True Person himself, a rare symbol of the city's recognition, with extremely limited quantity.

More importantly, possessing this token granted free access to Canghai Xiancheng's core zones.

'I never thought Brother Qin had even met Canghai True Person—and received the Canghai Token. How incredibly humble he is.'

'We're both cultivators without sects, yet why is he so exceptional?'

Shortly after,

Wu Jiang happily took the token and departed to carry out his task.

…

Qin Ming then went beneath his life-plant, Changsheng Teng, and placed his two spirit beasts back beneath it, allowing the essence of grass and trees to continue healing and nourishing them.

"Your injuries this time were severe—damaging even your roots. Full recovery will take at least several years."

"But hehe!"

As he spoke, Qin Ming pulled out a delicate long jade box before his two spirit beasts.

He broke the seal—and instantly, a ginseng-like spiritual plant radiating earth-yellow spiritual aura appeared before him.

"With this, not only will you recover quickly, but you might even gain rebirth."

Beneath the Changsheng Teng, the previously lifeless Xuan Shui E and Yin Yi Shuangshuang Feng perked up instantly at the sight of Hua Ling Yao Cao—their weakened bodies trembled with excitement.

Both beasts stared fixedly at the Hua Ling Yao Cao, drool dripping from their mouths.

"Hehe! I promised to reward you well—but not yet. Wait until I've grown this plant," Qin Ming chuckled at the reaction of his two spirit beasts.

"This third-rank Hua Ling Yao Cao truly has a deadly allure for demon beasts."

Next, Qin Ming cleared a patch of ground beneath his life-plant and evenly poured in the square foot of Xun Wood spiritual soil.

Then he activated the 【Regenerative Seed】 term upon the Hua Ling Yao Cao with its damaged roots.

Instantly, a cluster of purple spores emerged, enveloping the previously leaking spiritual plant—its root wounds healed rapidly, and the entire plant burst back to vibrant life.

Qin Ming's face brightened; he carefully lifted the Hua Ling Yao Cao and planted it atop the Xun Wood spiritual soil, then chanted a spell and used the Great Five Elements Technique to irrigate it.

All that remained was for Wu Jiang to return with the second-rank demon beast eggshells, crush them, and spread them evenly over the Xun Wood spiritual soil—then the task would be complete.

The eggshells of the second-rank Yanwei Ying's greatest function was to maintain constant temperature in the Xun Wood spiritual soil and prevent its spiritual energy from leaking into surrounding ordinary soil.

They also slightly increased the fruiting rate of the spiritual plant upon maturity.

This was the secret formula from the third-rank spiritual cultivator's inheritance.

After finishing this, Qin Ming used another 【Strong Adaptation】 term, applying it to the Hua Ling Yao Cao.

After all, as a third-rank spiritual plant, Wangyue Island's second-rank mid-grade spiritual vein environment was still insufficient for its normal growth.

(End of Chapter)