Born with immortal seed

Chapter 142 Dragon Tooth Rice

"This humble old man pays his respects to Elder Bai."

Old Man Tong hasn't changed much since then; he still has gray hair, a goatee, and wears the robes of a sect leader.

I remember I was only at the third level of Qi Refining back then. Now that I'm this old, I've been able to advance to the sixth level of Qi Refining. I must have taken a lot of spiritual pills.

"Get up, we're old friends after all."

Bai Zichen couldn't help but feel sentimental. The four people who sat at the tea stall in front of the mountain gate that day had reunited at Qingfeng Sect.

“I have always worked in the fields, but the elder’s reputation is equally renowned… One of my grandsons has reached the age where he can cultivate and wants to become the elder’s disciple.”

Old Man Tong knelt on the ground and refused to get up, then kowtowed twice more.

"These are some small gifts I prepared for the apprenticeship ceremony. I would appreciate it if Elder Bai could take a look."

"I have no intention of taking on disciples, so there's no need to discuss that... Even as an outer disciple, you'll still have stewards to instruct you; that's how everyone goes through it."

Bai Zichen had anticipated that the other party would make this request, and his refusal was perfectly reasonable.

“I know that Elder Bai has a high threshold for advancement, and ordinary people are definitely not qualified. My grandson only asks for the status of a nominal disciple. I have been a spirit farmer all my life and have no hope of reaching the Foundation Establishment stage. I only hope that he can change his fate... Please take a look at this apprenticeship gift.”

Old Man Tong was as if he were possessed, convinced that his grandson would only have a future if he became Bai Zichen's apprentice.

Helplessly, Bai Zichen took the brocade bag that Old Man Tong was holding above his head. It was bulging and looked like it was filled with a lot of things.

"This is an improved large-sized spirit rice? It doesn't look like blood ginseng rice..."

The brocade bag was opened, tilted slightly, and a handful of plump, slender grains of rice slid into the palm of the hand.

This spiritual rice is full of vitality, each grain is about the length of a finger, and has already broken away from the shape of a rice grain.

Just by smelling it, you can smell the fragrance of the spirit rice, and it even makes you feel like you have a big appetite.

This is definitely a spiritual rice that can have a significant effect even on Foundation Establishment cultivators.

"Second-grade top-quality spirit rice, Dragon Tooth Rice!"

Old Man Tong read it out slowly and deliberately, staring intently at the brocade pouch, his eyes red as if it were a precious treasure.

"This is a wild spirit plant I found while surveying the terrain of the spirit fields near Jade Moon Lake. According to the sect's rules, such unexpected resources discovered by individuals have complete control over them. I've already secretly planted one batch and harvested thirty catties of Dragon Tooth Rice, all of which can be used as seeds for the next batch of spirit rice!"

"Is this enough as a gift for my little grandson to formally become his apprentice?"

Bai Zichen's lips twitched; Old Man Tong was inexplicably persistent.

He was certain that Dragon Tooth Rice was not among the various spiritual rice varieties passed down within the sect.

Since cultivating the Five-Crystal Glazed Body, he has become very interested in all kinds of body-refining pills and spiritual rice, and has read through a lot of information.

The Qingfeng Sect has a tradition of cultivating only one type of second-tier spirit rice, which is far from reaching the quality of Dragon Tooth Rice.

What Old Man Tong just said is very likely true.

Judging from what Old Man Tong said, the wild, second-tier top-grade spirit rice seeds had already been planted once.

That apprenticeship gift is far too valuable.

Dragon Tooth Rice seeds, along with the accompanying planting and cultivation methods, would probably be enough to impress some Core Formation cultivators and persuade them to accept a disciple.

"Why don't you just hand him over to the sect and ask an elder to take your grandson as a personal disciple? I reckon the sect would agree."

Bai Zichen poured the Dragon Tooth Rice back and began to seriously consider the matter.

“My grandson, like Elder Bai, has three spiritual roots. He has loved swinging a wooden sword around since he was a child... Only by becoming your disciple can he have a chance to succeed.”

Old Man Tong thought of his grandson, his eyes filled with doting affection.

"Please rest assured, as long as you are willing to accept my grandson, even if you only make him a disciple first, I will reveal all the Dragon Tooth Rice seeds and planting methods."

"But what use is Dragon Tooth Rice to me? Am I supposed to find a spiritual field to grow it myself? This kind of thing can only be truly useful in the hands of large forces. Even two or three acres wouldn't be enough for my own use."

Bai Zichen tapped the table with his finger. If he consumed Dragon Tooth Rice every day, over the years, he could further enhance his physical strength.

More importantly, this second-grade premium spiritual rice, which has never appeared on the market in Heishan, will definitely be snapped up once it hits the market.

"You probably don't know this, but when we went to the sect for a meeting last time, Sect Leader Gu said that we should take bigger steps... allowing elders to contract first- and second-tier spirit fields in Emerald Moon Lake, as long as they pay the corresponding amount of spirit rice every year."

Bai Zichen had not heard of this news revealed by Old Man Tong, so it must still be in the stage of discussion.

It's quite possible that even if the number of disciples in the Spirit Plant Hall has increased several times, the newly added spirit fields in Jade Moon Lake alone are many times greater than the number of new disciples.

The biggest challenge for Old Man Tong and that guest elder of Shennong Sect is the third-tier spirit field; they only hope to achieve a real breakthrough within a few years.

They cultivated Tier 3 Spirit Rice, breaking the monopoly of Wanbaoge in purchasing every single grain of Tier 3 Spirit Rice.

The remaining disciples of the Spirit Plant Hall have a low success rate in reliably developing second-tier spirit fields; their main goal is first-tier spirit fields.

Therefore, in order to motivate the disciples, the tentative plan is that each elder can contract 500 mu of second-tier spirit fields and 5,000 mu of first-tier spirit fields.

Each year, 5,000 catties of second-grade spirit rice and 50,000 catties of first-grade spirit fields need to be handed over.

The contract period shall not exceed thirty years.

If the minimum required amount of spiritual rice is not delivered in a given year, the contracting elder will be responsible for the difference.

When Bai Zichen heard this plan, he realized it was clearly an attempt to curry favor with the six elders of their Jade Moon Lake.

Aside from those six, the other elders have properties thousands of miles away, and there won't be suitable people to oversee the output of the spirit fields, making the risks even greater.

"Dragon Tooth Rice is harvested once a year. According to Old Man Tong, each acre can produce thirty catties of spirit rice... This business is definitely worth doing."

A quick calculation reveals that once this spiritual rice business reaches a certain scale, it will be incredibly profitable.

"Did Senior Brother Gu say anything about whether he would submit this contract proposal?"

"Master Gu said that there will be several issues to vote on next week."

"I am the most knowledgeable person about the spiritual fields on Jade Moon Lake... When the time comes, I will pick a contiguous area for Elder Bai, and I will know exactly which spiritual fields are the most fertile and which have the most abundant harvest."

Old Man Tong was filled with anxiety, unable to calm down until he heard a reply to his grandson's request.

"Next month, what's your grandson's name?"

With the right staff and proper operation, one could potentially earn tens of thousands of spirit stones a year.

Bai Zichen was worried about not having enough spirit stones and was even planning to form a caravan.

It's like a pillow being delivered to someone just as you're about to doze off; how could you let it pass you by?

"Tong Huan...Replying to Elder Bai, his name is Tong Huan."

Old Man Tong's wish was fulfilled, and his excited voice rang out intermittently.

"Let's go and see which area of ​​spiritual land is most suitable for planting Dragon Tooth Rice."

Bai Zichen acted on his thought immediately, summoning the colorful patterned white cloud robe and taking Old Man Tong into the sky.

The entire Feiyue Lake area is divided into three sections of suitable spiritual fields for cultivation.

According to the old man Tongtong, the Longya rice has extremely high requirements for water quality during its cultivation, and it needs to be watered twelve times a day.

To achieve this, one would either need to hire a large number of disciples to get up in the middle of the night and perform the Cloud and Rain Technique every hour.

Alternatively, one could choose to build a special irrigation system by a lake, drawing water from Lake Emerald Moon, which would then automatically spray water at regular intervals.

"Here, here, and here... all are suitable for growing Dragon Tooth Rice. Elder Bai, you can go and recruit a group of spirit plant masters first. Once this news is announced, spirit plant masters will be even more sought after."

High in the air, Old Man Tong pointed out several locations based on his many years of farming experience.

The Lingzhi Hall's target progress is 8,000 mu of second-tier spirit fields, but less than a third of them have been cultivated and planted with spirit rice.

Bai Zichen silently kept all of this in mind, waiting for the elders' decision to contract the spirit fields to be passed before applying for the second-tier spirit fields.

As for first-tier spirit fields, it depends on the number of spirit plant masters you recruit during this period.

Bai Zichen sent Old Man Tong back, leaving the bag of Dragon Tooth Rice with him. As for the specific cultivation techniques, he would only truly impart them to Tong Huan after Tong Huan became his disciple.

Back at Baiyulou, Bai Zichen summoned Lu Song and Cai Heng to his presence.

"I'll only give you one instruction: for the next month, I want you to frantically search for disciples with experience as spirit plant masters, and once you find them, recruit them into your teams as much as possible."

"You can even spread the word that I might take the best performer as a disciple..."

If we only consider 500 mu of second-tier spirit fields, with Old Man Tong overseeing the overall direction, and one spirit plant master for every 25 mu, a total of 20 spirit plant masters would be needed to take care of them.

There are also 5,000 acres of first-tier spirit fields. Even if one spirit plant master can take care of 100 acres, it would still require 50 spirit plant masters.

'No wonder Gu Xisheng introduced the system of elders contracting spirit fields. Even with the sect's resources, it wouldn't be enough to cultivate all the land even after a hundred years of development. It's better to unleash the potential of each elder, allowing them to invest their personal resources, so that the sect can enjoy a larger return for every acre they develop.'

Bai Zichen decided that if there were still not enough people, he would select a few more from the Bai family members later.

The Bai family of Mozhu is famous for cultivating spiritual bamboo, but growing spiritual rice is also an important source of income.

Therefore, many members of the Bai family are skilled in farming, and with the help of the Yi Mu Qing Shen Technique, the spiritual fields they cultivate always yield a harvest that is two or three points higher than those of others.

Lu Song and the other man, of course, dared not question Bai Zichen's reasons for doing so, and immediately split into two groups.

Cai Heng first went to the dock at Feiyue Lake, which was a gathering place for miscellaneous disciples. Those without fixed duties used this place as a place for communication.

He himself had come from among the menial disciples, and he was most skilled at dealing with these people. He quickly became one with the large group of unfamiliar menial disciples.

Lu Song then went to the General Affairs Hall's branch in Feiyue Lake and issued an elder's mission in Bai Zichen's name.

We will hire a first-tier mid-grade or higher spirit plant master for six months. There is no limit to the number of people we can hire. The reward is that Elder Bai Zichen will provide guidance on one cultivation difficulty.

A few days later, the elder tokens vibrated rapidly, indicating that there were important matters that all elders needed to evaluate.

"We have no choice but to go this time. The elders' contracting of the spirit fields is probably also a topic of discussion in this meeting. We must hope that nothing goes wrong."

Bai Zichen sat on his colorful white cloud-patterned robe and leisurely returned to the long-lost mountain gate.

(End of this chapter)