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

The news spread faster than Lu Qingchen had imagined.

Sun Zhiyuan learned about the situation in his field that very day.

Sun Zhiyuan naturally didn't believe it, so he went to Zhuangwei himself.

Sun Zhiyuan stood on the edge of the field, his gaze sweeping from nearby to distant, his expression shifting from doubt to shock, and then from shock to gloom.

There are indeed no diseases.

Not a single one.

No, some leaves have marks—faint, like faded spots.

Sun Zhiyuan squatted down, picked up a leaf, and stared at the mark for a long time.

He couldn't figure it out.

Once a spirit plant is infected with gray spot disease, it's basically doomed.

The sect still can't come up with a cure. Lu Qingchen is a newcomer who has only been a spiritual plant grower for less than half a year. Why is his field unharmed?

He stood up, his face so dark it seemed to drip water.

Zhou Ming also arrived.

He didn't react as strongly as Sun Zhiyuan; he just squatted by the field and watched for a long time. When he stood up, his expression was somewhat complicated.

"This kid is incredibly lucky."

He said it sounded like he was talking to Sun Zhiyuan, but it also sounded like he was talking to himself.

Sun Zhiyuan did not respond.

Wang Youde was the most direct, scratching his head and saying, "His field is the only one in the whole village that's unaffected; that's really strange."

Liu Wenhua rarely spoke up: "What's so strange about it? You can't always tell what's going on with spiritual plants."

Wang Youde opened his mouth, but then remained silent.

The tenant farmers were also talking about it.

Some say it was because Manager Lu was lucky, others say it was because the local earth god protected him.

Li Laosi squatted on the edge of the field, smoking his pipe, and said to the tenant farmers who had gathered around him, "I told you long ago that Manager Lu is a lucky man, but you didn't believe me."

"Old Li, when did you say that?"

"Why didn't you say so? I could tell the first day he came to the village that so many people had failed to cultivate that wasteland at the end of the village, but he managed to grow it right away. Isn't that a blessing?"

Upon hearing this, everyone was immediately speechless.

At the same time, upon closer reflection, it seems to make sense.

......

After leaving Qingmu Manor, Su Qingxue took the oil paper package and Zhao Demao's handwritten letter and rode her escape light to head towards the sect.

Senior Brother Qian stayed at Qingmu Village to continue assessing the losses of the remaining fields, while she went ahead alone.

Although Su Qingxue was only at the Qi Refining stage, she was equipped with a flying talisman issued by the sect—a talisman that allowed her to fly nearly a hundred miles, making it perfect for transmitting emergency disaster reports.

The letter was written by Zhao Demao and was concise and to the point: In the spiritual fields of Lu Qingchen, the spiritual plant grower of Qingmu Manor, some of the jade spiritual rice appeared to have symptoms of spiritual erosion disease, but it subsided on its own within a day. Three samples have been collected and are requested to be reviewed by the elders of the Spiritual Plant Hall.

When Su Qingxue arrived, it was already late.

She handed the sample and the letter to the disciple on duty at the Spirit Plant Hall. The disciple glanced at the signature on the letter, listened to her say a few words about the situation at Qingmu Manor, his expression changed slightly, he said "Wait a moment" and hurriedly went into the inner hall.

Before long, Elder Zheng came out in person.

"Where is the sample?"

Su Qingxue quickly handed over the oil paper package.

Elder Zheng took it and opened it on the spot.

The three Jade Rice plants, with their roots and soil still attached, were wrapped in oiled paper, their leaves intact, their roots moist, and they were well preserved.

Elder Zheng squatted down and picked up a leaf.

There is a faint faded mark on the leaf surface, with blurred edges, almost blending into the surrounding green.

He stared at the mark for a few moments, then turned over another piece—the same mark.

He stood up, took the sample, and walked quickly towards the quiet room.

After taking a few steps, he turned back to the disciple on duty and said, "Go and invite Elder Meng."

In the quiet room, three stalks of sacred rice were placed side by side on a stone platform.

Elder Zheng and Elder Meng stood on either side of the stone platform, one examining the leaves and the other checking the root system.

The disciple in charge stood by, holding the object, not daring to utter a sound.

Elder Zheng measured the thickness of the leaf with a jade ruler, scraped off a small piece of the leaf surface with a knife, and observed it under a bronze mirror.

Elder Meng took a drop of root juice and dripped it onto the jade plate, then infused it with spiritual energy to test it.

The two worked for more than half an hour without saying a word.

Finally, Elder Zheng put down the jade ruler and straightened up.

The insect is dead.

His voice was a little strained, "The spirit-eating insects did indeed erode this spirit rice, but they all died. A substance was produced inside the spirit rice that killed the spirit-eating insects."

Elder Meng raised his head, his eyes filled with disbelief: "Not the medicinal liquid?"

"no."

Elder Zheng shook his head, "I have tested it, and there is no known residue of medicinal liquid. It is produced by the spiritual plant itself."

Elder Meng was silent for a moment, his voice tightening: "You've been farming for over a hundred years, have you ever seen anything like this?"

"no."

Elder Zheng's voice was as dry as sandpaper. "I have seen records in the ancient books—when spiritual plants of heaven and earth occasionally undergo abnormal changes, they develop resistance after being infected and kill off the pests and diseases."

"But those are ancient texts. I've lived to be this old, and this is the first time I've ever seen them with my own eyes."

The two looked at each other and saw the same meaning in each other's eyes.

"Report to the Palace Master," Elder Zheng said.

Su Mingyuan was in his quiet room reviewing the disaster reports sent from various villages when he heard a knock on the door and looked up.

Elder Zheng and Elder Meng walked in one after the other, each holding a stalk of spirit rice.

Su Mingyuan glanced at their expressions and put down the documents in his hand.

"What's wrong?"

Elder Zheng placed the spirit rice on the table and explained the test results.

Su Mingyuan listened without saying a word.

He picked up a stalk of sacred rice, examined the faded marks on its leaves, and then brought it close to his nose to smell it.

After putting it down, I picked up the second one and examined it carefully again.

After examining the three specimens, he nodded: "It is indeed a mutation of the spiritual plant itself!"

After a moment of silence, Su Mingyuan suddenly asked, "Who planted this spirit rice?"

"The spirit plant grower of Qingmu Manor." Elder Zheng glanced at the name on the letter, "Lu Qingchen."

Su Mingyuan's brows twitched slightly: "Lu Qingchen? That name sounds familiar."

Elder Meng chimed in, "The disciple recommended by Elder Sun last year possessed the lowest grade of the Five Elemental Roots and a flawed Azure Wood Spiritual Body. He passed the external assessment in third place and went to Azure Wood Manor. He was a disciple accepted by Zhou Yuandao on a nominal basis."

Su Mingyuan hummed in response and said nothing more. He looked down at the three spirit rice plants again.

"Elder Zheng, go to Qingmu Manor yourself to confirm the situation of that spirit field. If it is indeed a mutated disease-resistant plant, collect all the seeds and bring them to the sect, and reward the person handsomely."

"Yes," Elder Zheng replied.

Su Mingyuan paused, then added, "Furthermore, if the resistance properties of that batch of spirit rice can be extracted and utilized, we should quickly develop a medicinal liquid. The spirit plants of the seven villages cannot wait any longer."

......

Su Qingxue, who had been waiting outside for most of the night, soon learned the result.

"Is it confirmed?"

She looked at the deacon disciple who came out of the meditation room, her voice filled with disbelief.

"It's confirmed. Elder Zheng personally verified that the three spirit rice plants were indeed attacked by spirit-eating insects, but the insects are all dead."

"A substance is produced within the spirit rice itself that can inhibit the spirit-eating insects—it is a disease-resistant mutation of the spirit plant itself."

Su Qingxue stood under the corridor, remaining silent for a long time.

It turned out to be true.