Chapter 81: A Foundation is Hard to Obtain

A magical duel?

Holding the line?

No, our relationship isn't good enough for that, is it?

Forget about dueling or holding the line; if Lin Banshan asked him to borrow even a thousand taels of silver, he would consider it for two days before decisively refusing.

That Lin Banshan could ask Chen Ci to hold the line made Chen Ci feel a bit proud; after all, it was an acknowledgment of his character.

However, holding the line was too dangerous, and Chen Ci did not like it.

"Daoist Lin, aren't you overestimating me?"

Chen Ci took a small sip of tea and politely declined: "If you cannot hold the ground yourself, I doubt adding me will make much of a difference."

"The matter of a duel is still uncertain; it is not to say that it will definitely reach that point."

Lin Banshan sighed slightly: "This is a private matter, and it is not convenient to use connections within the sect. I do not have many good friends in Xishan Prefecture, and after thinking it over, you are the only one I can entrust with this, Brother Chen."

The world is bustling, all for the sake of profit.

Among low-level cultivators, anything involving a magical duel is inseparable from the word "profit."

"My Wenxiang Sect is slightly versed in some side-door alchemy and has a small reputation overseas. Although I am untalented, I understand a thing or two, so I want to do some alchemy business in Xishan Prefecture."

Lin Banshan explained: "If it were graded spirit pills, one could naturally win by quality, and the required spirit materials can be obtained in the market without trouble. But for miscellaneous pills that are not graded, one must rely on volume to earn some profit. If the raw materials cannot be produced locally, I fear I won't even earn back the cost of labor."

After a few sentences, Chen Ci understood; it turned out to be for the spirit spring in Qingquan Village.

The medicine field in Qingquan Village was neither a spirit field nor spirit land; otherwise, it would not have been the turn of a group of mountain folk to occupy it. However, the spirit spring in the village was somewhat miraculous. It was unknown if it was because the underground water vein passed through some place rich in divine sand, but the spring water seemed as if it had been soaked in water attribute divine sand, making it quite wondrous for growing medicinal herbs. At the very least, the cost of cultivation was greatly reduced.

The people of Qingquan Village also relied on this spirit spring, and their lives among the mountain folk were quite happy.

"I originally negotiated with Qingquan Village through the Huang Family's connections and had just finished trial-planting a batch of herbs when the situation in Qingquan Village went wrong. Fortunately, there were no major losses."

Lin Banshan pinched his forehead, feeling quite speechless: "Although Qingquan Village was destroyed, the spirit spring remains. Relying on the methods of the old Head of the Family Huang, it wouldn't have been impossible to re-establish the medicine field. But then the Huang Family had an incident. Now, although the younger generation of the Huang Family works quite efficiently, their methods are far inferior. My luck has truly been quite poor in recent years."

Chen Ci: "..." This has nothing to do with me.

However, hearing this, Chen Ci felt slightly relieved. Judging by Lin Banshan's tone, he only wanted a stable source of medicinal herbs. If he were practicing some evil method, it did not seem like it at the moment.

The matter of Qingquan Village was highly unlikely to have anything to do with him.

"Re-establishing the medicine field shouldn't require a magical duel, right?"

Chen Ci spotted the key point and asked curiously: "Just find some experienced hands to open up the medicine field; it would only take a bit more time."

"Misfortunes never come singly, and blessings never arrive in pairs. I only recently learned that Qingquan Village also has herb business dealings with Ma Family Village. This time, people from Ma Family Village also came to say they wanted a piece of the medicine field, but the spirit spring has limited daily output, making it hard to divide the profits."

Lin Banshan let out a turbid breath: "Divine sand is easy to find, but a foundation is hard to obtain. I am an outsider, weak and alone, and cannot stay here for long. If I cannot negotiate, I can only fight to force submission; otherwise, my business will not get off the ground, and the preparations of the last two years will be in vain."

A foundation is indeed hard to obtain.

Chen Ci understood this feeling. Not to mention anything far away, if he didn't have the status of an Outer Sect Disciple of the He Mountain Sect, it would have been impossible for him to easily establish Sanyin Temple in Changping County and occupy thousands of acres of farmland alone.

It is very difficult to establish a foundation with cultivation alone; one must also speak of background and influence, otherwise, there would be no such thing as miscellaneous rogue cultivators.

"You mean you want to duel with Ma Family Village and need me to hold the line for you?"

Chen Ci looked Lin Banshan up and down: "It is rumored that the Ma Family Ancestor is a high-level expert who has attained a Dao Foundation..."

"That is not the case. I secretly went to scout Ma Family Village a few days ago. There is definitely no Dao Foundation cultivator in the village who has condensed Dharma Power. That Ma Family Ancestor has Hundred Apertures cultivation and relies on secret methods to extend his life; he cannot leave Copper Stone Mountain, otherwise, I would not dare to speak of forcing Ma Family Village to submit."

Lin Banshan's eyes narrowed: "After all, it is a miscellaneous lineage, inferior to the wonderful methods of my sect. However, Ma Family Village is good at raising copper corpses. If they don't listen to reason, I won't be able to handle it. But if that happens, the medicine field in Qingquan Village will be ruined, and no one will be able to plant a single spirit herb. Asking Brother Chen to hold the line also includes this concern."

Hundred Apertures cultivation, secret methods to extend life.

Chen Ci was slightly silent. He couldn't help but think that for this Ma Family Ancestor to have cultivated to the Hundred Apertures with a miscellaneous lineage, his talent and state of mind were likely top-tier. Yet, such a person probably couldn't find the key to the last few acupoints for the Qi-refining method, which is why he couldn't even build a Lower Grade Dao Foundation and could only be trapped in one corner, struggling to extend his life.

Longevity is hard to seek.

But this silence was taken by Lin Banshan as a polite refusal. He shook his head gently: "Brother Chen, please rest assured. If a magical duel and holding the line are truly necessary, there will definitely be corresponding compensation. I won't let you exert yourself for nothing; I just hope Brother Chen can assist me."

Lin Banshan came in a hurry and left in a hurry.

Chen Ci thought for a while and realized something. At the end of the day, he and this Lin Banshan had only met a few times. Why would this person trust him so much and invite him to hold the line?

A good impression?

Not at all. It was just that Lin Banshan still owed Chen Ci for two years' worth of frost sugar supplies. With this relationship, Chen Ci wouldn't just watch him get into trouble right in front of him; otherwise, if the person died, where would he go to collect the money?

This was much more reliable than any relationship between fellow sect members or friends.

"Good grief, I've become a creditor!"

Chen Ci's expression was strange; he felt he had been taught a lesson for no reason.

"Moreover, this Lin Banshan has a sense of pride in his heart and is clearly someone with aspirations for the Dao path; otherwise, he wouldn't dare to speak of forcing Ma Family Village to submit for the sake of a spirit spring."

Chen Ci rubbed his chin. Back then, regarding the frost sugar, he was probably the one who benefited from the name "He Mountain Frost Sugar," otherwise, this person might not have been so easy to talk to.

"Even such a person has to rely on alchemy and run to a remote place like Changping County in Xishan Prefecture to find a foundation and do some business to earn resources for cultivation."

Chen Ci frowned: "If low-level cultivators want to turn their lives around, they still have to rely on a craft. Although Nourishing Qi pills are good, they are ultimately miscellaneous pills that are not graded, and the market is limited."

So-called spirit pills naturally involve the changes of clear and turbid spirit energy.

Chen Ci did have two spirit pill recipes on hand.

Using the medicine-gathering spell as a base and spirit rice as the material, the Premium Bigu Pill produced could barely be considered the lowest grade of spirit pill.

Then there was the Nourishing Qi Green Ganoderma Pill recorded in the Sanyin Qi-Eating Method, which could be called a Lower Grade spirit pill.

Premium Bigu Pill, market price: one spirit pearl for five.

Nourishing Qi Green Ganoderma Pill, market price for a high-grade pill: about thirty spirit pearls each.

Looking at the dozens of Black Jade Rice plants in the backyard, then glancing at the lonely Corpse Ganoderma in the center of the field, Chen Ci subconsciously asked himself a question: what was his own foundation?

The three parts of yin land at Sanyin Temple?

Those thousands of acres of fertile land in Changping County?

"A foundation is hard to obtain."

Chen Ci frowned. The so-called foundation under his name actually belonged to the He Mountain Sect; he was merely holding it on their behalf.

"But spirit pills are also hard to obtain. Not to mention alchemy cultivation, even a complete pill recipe is worth a fortune. Could it be that my foundation lies in this Nourishing Qi Green Ganoderma Pill?"

"Doesn't this mean going around in circles and ending up back at the starting point?"

(End of chapter)