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

"Something came up at the Spirit Plant Hall, so I came back for a visit."

Lu Qingchen did not elaborate.

Li Si nodded and didn't ask any further questions.

The matter of the Spirit Corrosion Disease was causing quite a stir among the Spirit Plant Masters, but the news mostly circulated between the farm and the Spirit Plant Hall. Outer disciples like Li Si, who spent all their time in the Array Dao Hall, were unaware of it.

He assumed that Lu Qingchen had come back to handle some routine official business.

Lu Qingchen didn't elaborate, her gaze falling on his face. "What's wrong? You look so pale."

Li Si opened his mouth, then closed it again.

He paused for a moment, his voice slightly hoarse: "Go take care of your business first, and I'll talk to you when you're done."

Lu Qingchen stared at him for a few moments.

Li Si isn't the type to keep secrets, so for him to be like this, something serious must have happened.

"What exactly happened?" Lu Qingchen asked.

Li Si shook his head: "There's no rush. Go to the Spirit Plant Hall to take care of your business first, and I'll talk to you slowly later."

Lu Qingchen stared at him for a couple of moments, then nodded without insisting, "Okay, I'll be back soon."

After saying that, he continued walking towards the Spirit Plant Hall, his pace quickening slightly compared to when he arrived.

......

The Spirit Plant Hall remains unchanged.

A small blue stone building, with two stone beasts at the entrance, and a disciple on duty dozing off in a chair.

Lu Qingchen gave his name, and the disciple in charge led him through the corridor, stopping in front of a wooden door and knocking.

"Come in."

Zhou Yuandao's voice.

Lu Qingchen pushed open the door and went in.

The room was simply furnished with a small table, a few chairs, and a landscape painting on the wall.

Zhou Yuandao sat behind his desk, holding a jade slip in his hand. Hearing footsteps, he looked up and his gaze lingered on Lu Qingchen for a moment.

"You've reached the second level of Qi Refining?"

Lu Qingchen respectfully replied, "This disciple has not dared to slack off at Qingmu Manor and recently managed to break through to the next level."

Zhou Yuandao nodded slightly and put down the jade slip: "This speed is not bad among the five spiritual roots. Keep up the good work. If you can maintain it, you may be able to comprehend the spiritual path and embark on the Foundation Establishment and Spiritual Mansion stages in the future."

His words were neither warm nor cold, but they were much better than his indifferent attitude during our last meeting.

Lu Qingchen responded and, at Zhou Yuandao's prompting, sat down in the chair opposite him.

Zhou Yuandao didn't exchange many pleasantries and went straight to the point.

"You did well in this Soul-Eating Disease; the sect has always been fair in its rewards and punishments."

He took out a wooden box from under the table and pushed it in front of Lu Qingchen. "After deliberation by the Spirit Plant Hall, you are awarded five hundred spirit stones and two Qi Cultivation Pills."

Lu Qingchen took the wooden box with both hands, opened it and took a look—the spirit stones were neatly stacked inside, and next to it was a small porcelain bottle containing two Qi-Nourishing Pills.

Next to the porcelain bottle were three palm-sized brocade pouches containing seeds.

"In addition, Elder Zheng said that your spirit protection field is just sitting idle, so he specially approved the selection of several mutated spirit plant seeds from the Spirit Plant Hall's seed bank for you to try cultivating."

Zhou Yuandao pointed to the brocade pouch and explained one by one: "The Vermilion Fruit Seed is a first-grade superior mutated spiritual plant. The fruit can enhance cultivation, but it has a long growth cycle and high requirements for soil."

"Jade Marrow Ganoderma, a first-grade superior product, can nourish the meridians and is most effective when taken during the Qi Refining period. Golden Leaf Orchid, a first-grade medium product, has leaves that can be used to make talisman ink. Its advantage lies in its fast growth and high yield."

"These three varieties are all allocated internally by the Spirit Plant Hall and cannot be purchased from outside."

Lu Qingchen was secretly delighted.

These three types of seeds are clearly very valuable, just from their descriptions.

In particular, the Vermilion Fruit and Jade Marrow Fungus can enhance cultivation and nourish the meridians, which are exactly what he needs right now.

He showed only gratitude on his face, stood up and bowed: "Disciple thanks the sect."

Zhou Yuandao waved his hand and changed the subject: "Tell me the whole story of how you discovered the disease-resistant rice."

Lu Qingchen then repeated the same story, explaining it very simply, almost exactly the same as the version he had told Zhao Demao.

After listening, Zhou Yuandao did not ask any further questions, but simply nodded.

The quiet room fell silent for a few moments.

Zhou Yuandao held his teacup, seemingly pondering something.

Lu Qingchen sat opposite him, his back ramrod straight, waiting for him to speak.

"You have been my student for several months now."

Zhou Yuandao finally put down his teacup. "I have been busy with cultivation lately and have neglected to guide you. Now that you are here, do you have any questions about cultivation or spiritual plants? Please ask them all at once."

Lu Qingchen's heart stirred slightly.

This was the first time Zhou Yuandao had taken the initiative to fulfill his duties as a master.

He thought for a moment and raised a few questions that were indeed troubling him.

"When I practice the Spirit Cultivation Technique, my spiritual energy output is always uneven, and the coverage area is sometimes large and sometimes small. I don't know what the problem is."

Zhou Yuandao did not answer directly, but instead asked him to demonstrate the circulation path of spiritual energy on the spot.

Lu Qingchen did as instructed, but Zhou Yuandao interrupted him after a few moments: "The rhythm is wrong. The spiritual energy of the Spirit Cultivation Technique is not pushed out all at once. It must follow the breathing of the spiritual plant—the spiritual energy should follow when the leaves unfold and be withdrawn when the leaves close. You are only focused on sending it out, without considering whether the spiritual plant can receive it or not, so it will naturally be uneven."

Lu Qingchen adjusted as instructed, and it was indeed much smoother than before.

"Does the Spirit Cultivation Technique require adjusting the spiritual energy ratio for different types of spiritual plants?" he asked again.

"want."

Zhou Yuandao succinctly stated, "Jade Spirit Rice prefers soil, so the earth element should account for a slightly higher proportion of the spiritual power in the Spirit Cultivation Technique. Azure Spirit Grass prefers wood, so the wood element should be emphasized. Crimson Ginseng requires a balance of water and wood."

"You'll have to figure out the exact proportions yourself through practice; every plant grower has their own habits."

Lu Qingchen then asked about several obstacles he encountered while cultivating the "Azure Wood Spiritual Essence Technique".

Zhou Yuandao answered all the questions one by one. When he got to the key points, he even asked him to practice his cultivation technique on the spot and pointed out the stagnation of spiritual energy at several meridian nodes.

Throughout the question-and-answer session, Zhou Yuandao maintained a lukewarm attitude, but every word he uttered was to the point.

Lu Qingchen kept all of this in mind, and his impression of this cheap master changed slightly—although this person was aloof, he was indeed very talented.

It's just that it was never used on him before.

After the Q&A session ended, Lu Qingchen stood up and bowed, saying, "Thank you for your guidance, Master."

Zhou Yuandao hummed in agreement, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and the quiet room fell silent again.

Lu Qingchen waited for a while, and seeing that Zhou Yuandao did not intend to speak again, he stood up and bowed: "This disciple has no further questions and will not disturb Master's cultivation."

Zhou Yuandao nodded.

Lu Qingchen turned and walked towards the door.

After taking only a few steps, Zhou Yuandao's voice suddenly came from behind.

"etc."

Lu Qingchen paused and turned around.

Zhou Yuandao held his teacup, his gaze fixed on the tea, his brows furrowed slightly, as if he were hesitating about something.

A meaningful smile suddenly flashed through his mind when Old Master Sun stopped him after the meeting that day—"This apprentice I introduced to you is no ordinary person, is he?"

He remained silent for a few moments, then put down his teacup.

"Wait a moment."

Zhou Yuandao instructed his disciple to fetch someone.