Ascending from the mortal realm to become an immortal begins with taking charge of a grotto-heaven.

The sun rises and sets, the stars shift and the constellations move.

one year later.

As Zhang Li was drawing talismans in his cave, the restrictions outside the cave were gently triggered, sending out an alarm.

"Hmm? Someone's come to the door?"

Zhang Li put down the talisman brush in his hand, got up and went outside the cave.

Unexpectedly, the visitor turned out to be Liu Lin from Qingmu Valley.

Liu Lin, dressed in a plain green Taoist robe, greeted Zhang Li with a polite expression as he clasped his hands in a fist and said, "Junior Brother Zhang, I am truly sorry to have disturbed your secluded cultivation."

"Senior brother, please come in."

Zhang Li stepped aside to clear the passage to the cave, leading Liu Lin inside.

The two entered the hall and sat facing each other on either side of the bluestone table.

Zhang Li poured Liu Lin a cup of spiritual tea: "I wonder what important matter brings you to Lingyun Peak to see me today, Senior Brother?"

Liu Lin took the teacup and placed it in front of him, then got straight to the point: "To be honest, the reason I've come to visit today is regarding the transaction that my junior brother mentioned earlier. He said you have saplings of the Marrow Cleansing Fruit Tree; is that true?"

"As expected, it was about this matter."

Zhang Li smiled faintly and said, "Of course, how could I deceive you, Senior Brother? The seedling is here; please take a look."

After saying that, he patted his storage bag and took out a spirit tree sapling that was about a foot long. He then soaked the roots of the sapling in the spirit spring water.

Zhang Li placed the seedling on the stone table and said, "Senior Brother Liu, please make yourself at home."

Liu Lin quickly bent down to examine the sapling closely, his fingers gently brushing against its branches, his eyes filled with delight.

"That's right, it's a seedling of the Marrow Cleansing Fruit Tree! It was even cultivated directly from the tree seed, with no loss of its essence."

"Were they cultivated directly from tree seeds?"

Without showing any outward expression, Zhang Li murmured to himself.

The seedling of the Marrow Cleansing Fruit Tree in front of us was not cultivated directly from the tree seed. Instead, Zhang Li cut off a section of the main root of the fruit tree that was not fully matured and replanted it in the black field to encourage its growth.

This led him to unexpectedly discover that Kuroda also had the function of repairing the essence of spiritual plants, but this was not without cost; repairing the essence consumed more spiritual energy than accelerating ripening.

Liu Lin examined the plant for a long time before straightening up and looking at Zhang Li, his tone tinged with eagerness: "Junior Brother Zhang, let's not beat around the bush. The two Void Spirit Tea seedlings I propagated have flaws in their origin. Not only will the yield of the spirit tea be lower, but the effects will also be diminished. Their value is not comparable to your Marrow Cleansing Fruit Tree seedling. Are you really willing to trade with me?"

"Of course, Junior Brother doesn't know anything about cultivating spiritual plants. Even if this seedling is good, it would be a waste for me to keep it." Zhang Li smiled faintly, his gaze falling on the vibrant Marrow Cleansing Fruit Tree seedling on the stone table. He continued, "It would be better to exchange it for the Void Clarity Spiritual Tea Tree that you have already cultivated. It will be easier to take care of in the future, and the spiritual tea it produces can help me comprehend cultivation techniques and spells. In short, spiritual tea is extremely useful to me, so I won't lose out in this transaction."

Upon hearing this, Liu Lin shook his head and said, "That's not how it works..."

"Senior brother, there's no need for further words. Since I was the one who proposed this deal, I naturally understand the implications."

Zhang Li raised his hand to interrupt Liu Lin. If he had a choice, he wouldn't want to suffer a loss, but the mother plant was a sect property, and he couldn't exchange it even if he wanted to.

"In that case, I will accept your kindness, junior brother, but you must accept these spirit teas."

As he spoke, Liu Lin took out a square wooden box from his storage bag and pushed it over.

Even without opening it, Zhang Li knew what was inside the wooden box. Judging from its size, there must be a considerable amount of spiritual tea inside.

"Since you are so kind, senior brother, I will accept it. I will then entrust this fruit tree sapling to you."

"Thank you for your kindness, Junior Brother. However, please wait for two days. I will definitely present you with a complete Kongming Spirit Tea Tree in two days."

Liu Lin clasped his hands in a fist salute and solemnly expressed his opinion.

Zhang Li nodded slightly and replied calmly, "It's alright. I'm currently in seclusion in my cave, so you can come directly in two days, Senior Brother."

Liu Lin thanked him again and again, exchanged a few simple pleasantries, and then took his leave with the Marrow Cleansing Fruit seedlings, leaving Lingxiu Peak with light steps.

After seeing Liu Lin off, Zhang Li opened the wooden box. As he expected, it contained the Kongming Spirit Tea, weighing about a pound.

"Senior Brother Liu is truly an honest person!"

Zhang Li sighed softly and put the wooden box into his storage bag.

……

Two days later.

As agreed, Liu Lin visited Zhang Li again and handed over the promised Kongming Spirit Tea Tree.

Zhang Li planted the ethereal tea tree in front of Liu Lin in an empty stone chamber in his cave.

This stone chamber was originally where the previous owner of the cave cultivated spiritual herbs, and it just so happens to be used this time.

"Now that the tea trees have been transplanted properly, I, Liu, will not trouble you any further. Farewell."

As soon as he finished speaking, Liu Lin suddenly took out a jade slip from his storage bag and handed it over, saying:

"These are some insights I gained from cultivating tea trees. Junior brother, you can take them as a reference. I also included a tea-frying technique, which can enhance the flavor of the spiritual tea."

"Thank you, Senior Brother. Take care!" Zhang Li accepted the jade slip, returned the greeting with a cupped hand, and escorted Liu Lin to the outside of the cave's protective barrier.

After seeing Liu Lin off, he turned back to the stone chamber and, looking at the somewhat withered tea tree in front of him, Zhang Li dug it out again.

With Kuroda's ability to accelerate the growth of all spiritual plants, he naturally didn't need to work hard to manage them; he could simply sit back and wait to harvest the tea.

With a thought, Zhang Li appeared in the cave.

The Kuroda in front of me was completely empty.

Zhang Li planted the Kongming Spirit Tea Tree in the black field, and the Kongming Spirit Tea Tree, which had been somewhat withered, immediately stretched out, with the rich and warm spiritual energy from the ground continuously flowing into its branches.

In an instant, the original source that was missing due to the need for cuttings was completely restored.

Then it grew taller at a visible speed, with layers of branches and leaves unfolding, tender white buds emerging one after another, the leaves regaining their warm and green color, and a clear and lingering tea fragrance permeating the entire black field.

In a short while, this flawed Kongming Spirit Tea has undergone a complete transformation.

Zhang Li lowered his eyes and looked at the thriving tea trees. He nodded slowly, placed some spirit stones in the black field, and then returned to the stone chamber with a thought.

The box of spiritual tea that Liu Lin gave him was enough for him to use for a while; the newly grown tea should be left in the cave for now.

After dealing with the matter of the Kongming Spirit Tea Tree, Zhang Li once again devoted himself to drawing spirit talismans.

Half a year ago, he successfully drew his first mid-grade spirit talisman, the Fire Serpent Talisman. So during the latter half of his seclusion, he deliberately devoted more time to talisman making.

With a significant amount of time invested, his success rate in drawing the Fire Serpent Talisman is approaching 30%.

In comparison, he was slower in refining the Qi-Nourishing Pill, achieving only a 20% success rate despite the massive amount of spiritual materials he had accumulated.

Fortunately, he possessed a hidden world within him, otherwise he would have suffered a huge loss.