Starting as a spiritual plant master, may I eventually become the master of all lands.

Article 103

No sooner had Pang Xinyan left than another person appeared in front of the cave. Song Chuan's expression was strange; he had been quite busy today.

"Hey! Isn't this Junior Brother Song's cave? I've been looking for it for ages."

A cheerful voice came from behind, with the words "Junior Brother Song" and "Brother Wei" emphasized.

Song Chuan's lips twitched: "Senior Cheng, I dare not address you as a brother!"

"You brat, you're being sarcastic now. How's it going? Feeling good about reaching Foundation Establishment?" Cheng Tu squeezed through the opening in the mist and looked Song Chuan up and down.

"Not bad. I'm not very talented, so I'll be satisfied with just Foundation Establishment. Unlike Senior Brother Cheng, who still has the hope of Core Formation," Song Chuan chuckled.

Cheng Tu waved his hand and sighed, "Only now do I realize how difficult cultivation is after Foundation Establishment. We've known each other for over ten years, and in the blink of an eye, I'm almost fifty. My desire to form the Core Formation hasn't died out, but I'm not as certain as I used to be."

"Deacon Wang just told me that young people like us have plenty of time to find opportunities in the future, so Senior Brother Cheng, don't be discouraged. Come on, come sit in the cave. We've just settled in, so we don't have much to offer you. Please don't mind."

As Song Chuan spoke, he invited Cheng Tu into the stone hall of the cave.

The two settled down in the stone chamber. Cheng Tu looked around, his eyes showing a strange expression.

"What's the difference between your cave and a savage's dwelling? Why don't you decorate it? Isn't there a spiritual garden outside that comes with the cave? Why don't you plant some? You've seen so many spiritual plants in the Kongsang Mountains, what a waste of all your skills," Cheng Tu scolded.

"I just left the sect after reaching Foundation Establishment, and I haven't had a chance yet. Besides, I just reached Foundation Establishment and I'm penniless. The sect's spiritual plants aren't just free," Song Chuan said, shrugging.

"When you advance to the second-tier spirit plant master, the sect will give you some rewards," Cheng Tu said after thinking for a moment.

"Although I knew much more about spiritual plants than others of the same level during the Qi Refining stage, I still lack some skills to advance to the second-level spiritual plant master."

"So, what did you go out to do? Hehe, did you settle some old scores from when you were in the Qi Refining stage?" Cheng Tu asked slyly.

"It's nothing," Song Chuan said, his eyes suddenly becoming unreadable.

"There are quite a few people in the sect who, after reaching the Foundation Establishment stage, have had their entire families slaughtered. You know, who knows who will rise to prominence one day! When I was in the Qi Refining stage, I didn't have any grudges, and I felt that my cultivation was quite boring!" Cheng Tu sighed softly.

Song Chuan shook his head: "You really don't know how lucky you are. You've reached the Foundation Establishment stage at such a young age, and you even have a Core Formation master. You don't seem to have any worries. Many people would envy that."

"Sigh! There are even younger Foundation Establishment cultivators now!" Cheng Tu chuckled, then added, "Everyone knows their own suffering!"

"What's wrong? Senior Brother Cheng looks like something's on your mind." Song Chuan glanced at his face.

"Of course! I recently took on some ridiculous mission and will be away from the sect for a long time," Cheng Tu said with a sullen face.

"Oh? What kind of mission?" Song Chuan asked curiously.

"Are you familiar with the situation in Jing Kingdom?" Cheng Tu suddenly brought up Jing Kingdom, which surprised Song Chuan.

"Jing Kingdom? I've heard that its resources are almost depleted. I don't know the specifics. My family is in Ancient Sheep Town in the north, and small families are often isolated. I've been focusing on cultivation since coming to the sect, so I don't know much about Qi Kingdom, let alone other countries."

"The State of Qi is about to invade the State of Jing." Cheng Tu's expression was complicated, a mixture of helplessness and excitement.

"What?" Song Chuan was greatly shocked.

Invading the Kingdom of Jing? Wouldn't that ignite a major war? If the Kingdom of Jing is already depleted of resources, what's the point of invading?

Furthermore, although he had only just established his foundation and didn't have a deep understanding of the various sects in Qi, he still knew the basics. These sects in Qi didn't seem like the demonic path.

Could it be that I've really joined a fake sect? Whether it's fake or not is another matter, but the fact that it can invade other countries is pretty impressive!

"Don't make a fuss, it's still early. I heard from my master that things haven't been going well in the Well Kingdom these past few years. Their resources haven't been completely exhausted, and they have many spiritual wells, which are quite peculiar."

The invasion of Jing by Qi seems to be related to another demonic force in the west, which also harbors ambitions to invade Jing. Rather than this, Qi should simply annex Jing itself to avoid having a threat arising from its own borders.

The demonic forces! Song Chuan frowned deeply, realizing that his understanding of the demonic path was not deep.

Some low-level cultivators in the Qi Kingdom probably don't even know about the existence of demonic cultivators. Due to its special geographical location in the Eastern Region, the Qi Kingdom is relatively peaceful.

"Senior Brother Cheng, are you perhaps going to the Kingdom of Jing?" Song Chuan asked.

"That's right. The six major sects actually had a presence in the Jing Kingdom long ago. The Xuanhu Hall has opened many clinics there, treating both mortals and cultivators."

Because natural disasters and insect infestations frequently occur there, there's a type of demonic insect that our Qi Kingdom doesn't have. It's said that even the Yun Duan Great Mountains, which belong to the Kong Sang Mountains, don't have it. This demonic insect seems to live in extremely deep, special veins of the earth.

Song Chuan suddenly remembered the two Qi Refining cultivators from the Well Kingdom he had encountered before. After killing them, he obtained a strange insect crystal.

Turbid Heart Vein! The demonic insect Cheng Tu spoke of must have originated from this kind of geological vein in the Well Kingdom.

This turbid heart vein was mentioned in the "Earth Primordial Seed Cultivation Technique," and it is one of the important spiritual veins for cultivating the Dao Yuan Earth Seed during the Foundation Establishment stage.

Wow! I want to go myself.

But this isn't a good thing! This Jing Kingdom might have hidden demonic cultivators among its forces. If they encounter a Core Formation demonic cultivator, even ten of them wouldn't be enough to kill them.

Besides, although the "Earth Prison Seed Element Technique" mentions this lineage, it is not necessary to obtain its earth element; one can find other ones.

It's best to be honest; trouble is a dangerous place. Having overcome countless difficulties to successfully build your foundation, cherish your life.

"Aren't sect missions selectable? Why did Senior Brother Cheng choose to go to Jing Kingdom to carry out the mission?" Song Chuan asked again.

"My master told me to go, saying that I've had it too easy and needed to gain some experience. At first, I was quite resistant, but then I thought, well, I'm an adult and haven't experienced any real challenges, so it's good to see what it's like. Besides, I'm not alone."

Cheng Tu smiled and said.

"Isn't Senior Brother Xuan going?" Song Chuan suddenly asked.

"Him? He's always acting mysteriously and spends very little time in the sect. You used to be a junior, but now we're of the same generation, so I can tell you a thing or two."

"I can't figure out my senior brother. He doesn't do sect missions, but he's in the late Foundation Establishment stage, so his salary is higher, and he might have other income outside."

Cheng Tu shook his head and said.

This surprised Song Chuan; these two fellow disciples didn't seem to be very close. Back then, he always saw Cheng Tu following Xuan He around, and he thought the two had a deep bond as fellow disciples.

"That's true. Senior Brother Xuan is a late-stage Foundation Establishment cultivator, which is different from us. Does Senior Brother Cheng have any other fellow disciples?" Song Chuan asked, his eyes darting around, though he was clearly thinking something else entirely.

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