After binding with a genius, I became an immortal by exploiting loopholes.

He explained everything from the selection and cultivation of spiritual plants to soil improvement, fertilizer formulation, and the interactions between different spiritual plants.

Old Sun's words weren't very systematic; he just talked about whatever came to mind. But every word he said was the result of over a hundred years of experience spent in the spiritual fields.

Lu Qingchen sat upright, listening very attentively, occasionally interjecting with a question, but mostly just nodding and taking notes.

The gains from that night were greater than what he had made by spending months poring over ancient texts.

These experiences may seem scattered, but they can save a lot of trial and error when encountering practical problems in the spirit field later on.

The next day at noon, Lu Qingchen solemnly bid farewell to Elder Sun.

Old Sun stood at the entrance of the herb garden, waved his hand, and gestured for him to hurry down the mountain.

Lu Qingchen walked quite a distance, then looked back. In the morning light, the dark figure was still standing at the door, like an old tree with deep roots.

He took a deep breath and quickened his pace down the mountain.

Only after the young man's figure completely disappeared at the end of the stone steps did Old Sun withdraw his gaze.

The morning light shone on his wrinkled face, and the sharp glint in his cloudy eyes had vanished, leaving only a faint twilight.

......

By the time we returned to Aoki Village, it was already dark.

Lu Qingchen did not go straight back to his house, but went to Sun Han's residence first.

The lights were still on inside. Sun Han was sitting at the table flipping through the book "Basic Theory of Spiritual Plants". When he saw Sun Han push the door open and come in, he quickly stood up, leaning on his wooden cane.

"Qingchen, you're back."

"Um."

Lu Qingchen sat down at the table. "While I was gone, was anything unusual at the manor? Was there anything strange at the Spirit Protection Field?"

"no."

Sun Han shook his head. "While you were gone, I stayed by the field and didn't see any unfamiliar faces approach."

"Everyone in the village is busy with their own work, and no one is going over there."

Lu Qingchen nodded.

Before he left, his biggest worry was the protective spirit field. Although there was a protective array that prevented outsiders from entering, it would still be troublesome if someone became suspicious and spied around nearby.

Although Sun Han has difficulty walking, he is reliable and hardworking. With him keeping an eye on things at the village, I can feel much more at ease.

"You've had a tough time. How's your leg?"

"Still the same, I still walk with a limp, but it doesn't hurt anymore."

As Sun Han spoke, he added, "Don't worry, I won't neglect my duties of tending the fields."

Lu Qingchen patted his shoulder, telling him to rest early, and then turned and walked towards the Spirit Protection Field.

Night had fallen, and the village was completely silent.

Lu Qingchen took out the jade tablet and placed it on the light shield. The pale blue light screen trembled slightly and cracked open.

He slipped inside, and the light shield closed behind him.

Everything in the protective field is as usual.

The batch of high-quality spirit rice that had been deeply imbued with spiritual energy was still growing vigorously, and the spiritual light on its leaves shimmered faintly in the night.

Everything in the protective field is as usual.

The batch of high-quality spirit rice that had been deeply imbued with spiritual energy was still growing vigorously, and the spiritual light on its leaves shimmered faintly in the night.

He walked around the field ridges, checked the array flags and spirit stones of the Earth Qi Guiding Array again, and left only after confirming that everything was in order.

Back in the house, Lu Qingchen did not rest immediately.

He took out the jade slip that shimmered with a pale blue light from his bosom, pressed it to his forehead, and immersed his mind in it.

The restrictions on the Scripture Pavilion had long been lifted, and the complete incantation of the "Azure Wood Sword Technique" unfolded in my mind word by word.

The sword technique is divided into three levels.

The first level, "Condensing Qi into a Sharp Edge," involves compressing and condensing wood-elemental spiritual energy into a cyan sword aura that is then released to attack the enemy.

Getting started isn't difficult; the challenge lies in striking the right balance between "condensing" and "releasing"—insufficient compression of spiritual energy results in weak and scattered sword energy; excessive compression causes the energy to dissipate before it is even used.

The second layer, "Sword Qi Residue," involves leaving a wisp of residual energy within the enemy's body after the sword qi strikes, continuously damaging their meridians for several breaths. This is the core killing move of the "Green Wood Sword Technique."

The third level, "Azure Wood Consecutive Slashes," can only be used after mastering the first two levels. It can unleash several sword energies in one go, doubling its power, but it also requires far more spiritual energy reserves and control ability than the first two levels.

Lu Qingchen silently recited the first level's incantation several times, simulating the path of spiritual energy circulation in his mind—starting from the dantian, passing through the three yin meridians, gathering in the palm, and then compressing and releasing it outwards.

The whole process seems simple, but there are specific techniques involved in every step.

Especially the "compression" step, the incantation specifically states: when compressing, the spiritual power must not have the slightest distraction, otherwise the sword energy will dissipate before it is condensed, which will at least be a waste of effort, and at worst backfire on the meridians.

He closed his eyes and focused his mind, following the guidance of the incantation, drawing a wisp of wood-elemental spiritual energy from his dantian and slowly guiding it along the meridians in his arm.

Where spiritual energy passes, the meridians feel slightly warm.

Once it reached his palm, he began to compress his spiritual energy according to the sword technique's requirements—the originally soft, cotton-like wood-elemental spiritual energy, under his guidance, gradually tightened, from a fist-sized mass of pale blue light mist to only the thickness of a finger joint.

The lower you press, the warmer your palms become, your arms begin to tremble slightly, and fine beads of sweat appear on your forehead.

When compressed to the thickness of a thumb, the resistance increases sharply.

The spiritual energy began to tremble violently, like a live fish being squeezed and desperately trying to break free from his control.

Lu Qingchen gritted his teeth and steadied himself, pressing down even further—the cyan light in his palm suddenly brightened, and then with a soft "poof," the light dispersed into a pale cyan mist, disappearing into the air.

Failed.

He opened his eyes, looked down at his palm, where a faint warmth still lingered.

The compression force was not well controlled, and the spiritual energy could not withstand it at the last moment, and it dissipated directly.

He didn't rush to try again, but mentally reviewed the process from beginning to end—the compression speed was too fast, and the spiritual energy didn't have time to be evenly distributed. The more he pressed down, the more uneven the internal distribution became, and eventually, one place collapsed first, and then everything collapsed.

After resting for a moment, he closed his eyes and concentrated again, and tried a second time.

This time, he slowed down the compression speed, drawing the spiritual energy inward layer by layer, pausing for a moment after each layer was drawn in, allowing the spiritual energy time to be evenly stressed.

When he compressed it to the thickness of a thumb, the resistance arrived as expected. The amplitude of the spiritual energy tremor was smaller than the first time. He steadied his mind and continued to press down—a blue light shone in his palm, lasting for about two breaths longer than before, but in the end, he still failed to condense the energy and dissipated again.

Although it failed again, it was much better than the first time; at least we found the critical point of collapse.

Lu Qingchen opened his eyes and did not try a third time.

I tried it twice tonight, and the meridians in my arms are already starting to ache. If I continue to push myself, not only will the effect be poor, but it may also damage the meridians.

He went over the lessons of his two failures in his mind—the first time was because he compressed too quickly, and the second time was because the force distribution was not even enough, making it harder to stabilize the situation as it progressed.

These are all issues related to the timing and temperature; there are no shortcuts, and they can only be resolved through repeated refinement.

......