The Eternal Farmer: I Trade My Harvest for Immortality

Chapter 312: The Drain

Jiang Chen had laid his cards on the table, his determination absolute.

His conviction moved Elder Mu. “Very well. I will accompany you.”

Jiang Chen was taken aback. “You’re coming with me to the Zhao Clan’s newly developed sector?”

Elder Mu gave a slight nod. “If this is truly the omen of a disaster, it will affect far more than just the Zhao Clan. Countless Spirit Farms and their crops are at risk.”

Jiang Chen hesitated. “Then… how are we getting there?”

Elder Mu unfurled a map. “Show me the exact location.”

With the map oriented north, Jiang Chen scanned the upper portion and quickly located the Zhao Clan’s new territory. “Right here,” he said, pointing.

Elder Mu rolled the map shut. A dense thicket of roots erupted from the floor, instantly cocooning him and Jiang Chen before contracting violently.

In a flash, they vanished from the palace, leaving the distant onlookers to exchange bewildered glances.

“Elder Mu… he didn’t punish Jiang Chen?”

“Something feels very wrong.”

By all rights, Jiang Chen should have faced a penalty for breaking the rules. Yet not only was he spared, but he had also vanished alongside the Manager himself. Such a thing would never happen unless the situation was dire.

Though they resented Jiang Chen for flouting the rules with his authority as a Cultivation Envoy, none of them were fools.

***

Enclosed in the earth, Jiang Chen could clearly feel the flow of earth qi, a privilege of his Earth Spirit Root.

The implication was clear.

They were moving underground at incredible speed.

When he tried to extend his spiritual sense, however, he hit a wall. No, it was more accurate to say it was being actively suppressed. His senses were confined to his own body, unable to penetrate the living cage of roots to perceive the outside world.

Jiang Chen’s brow furrowed. *Is Elder Mu doing this deliberately?* he wondered. *What secrets lie buried down here that demand such secrecy?*

Of course, even with his spiritual sense blocked, he had another method. He could channel his consciousness through his Earth Spirit Root, letting it ride the currents of earth qi to map his surroundings.

But doing so would almost certainly alert Elder Mu.

Having an extra Spirit Root wasn’t unheard of; many cultivators pursued dual disciplines for that very reason. The problem was the elemental cycle: wood feeds fire, and fire creates earth. To display mastery over earth qi would imply the existence of a Fire Spirit Root as well.

After weighing the risks, Jiang Chen suppressed his curiosity. The potential gain wasn’t worth the exposure. He simply allowed Elder Mu’s power to carry him through the subterranean depths.

With a sound like splintering wood, faint light began to filter through their enclosure. As the roots shielding him retracted one by one, Jiang Chen finally saw his surroundings.

This was, without a doubt, the Zhao Clan’s newly cleared land.

“We’re here,” Elder Mu’s voice rumbled.

Jiang Chen blinked, momentarily stunned by their incredible speed.

“What are you waiting for?” Elder Mu urged. “Point out the problematic plots.”

Snapping back to reality, Jiang Chen nodded. “Follow me.”

He had memorized the location of every afflicted Spirit Farm and had even assigned at least one farmer to stand guard at each. Soon, they arrived at a two-acre, second-grade plot.

The farmer stationed there, a man who looked to be in his forties, practically jumped out of his skin at their sudden appearance. He scrambled to his feet, bowing hastily. “Greetings, Manager, Cultivation Envoy! I-I swear I haven’t been slacking off!”

Elder Mu ignored him. His gaze was fixed intently on the Spirit Farm before him. A thick, powerful root shot out from his body, stretching across the field. With a sickening thud, it plunged into the black soil and began to probe the depths.

The condition of the earth was instantly clear to him.

Jiang Chen turned to the farmer, whose brow was beaded with nervous sweat. “Have there been any issues since I left?”

The man shook his head so vigorously it was a blur. “I’ve been watching it constantly, just as you instructed! So far, nothing’s wrong!”

Jiang Chen shifted his gaze to Elder Mu. “What do you think?”

Elder Mu was contemplative. “This entire sector was developed at the same time. That means the concentration of earth qi and the level of fertilization should be nearly identical across all plots.”

The nutrient content of the soil depended on several factors: the richness of the earth qi, the application of fertilizer, the frequency of spirit rain, and even cultivation techniques like slash-and-burn. Some clans specializing in agriculture even installed Spirit Gathering Formations to accelerate the maturation of newly cleared land.

Before anyone could ask, the farmer chimed in, eager to absolve himself. “The Manager is right! Everything here is on a strict schedule—from clearing the land to dredging the earth qi, fertilizing, and irrigation. The teams we use have worked together for years!”

These “teams” were a network of specialists: cultivators with Earth Spirit Roots to prepare the land, disciples from Beast Mountain to deliver spirit beast manure, and disciples from the Rain Pavilion to conjure spirit rain. As the preeminent family in the region, the Zhao Clan worked only with the best. Carelessness or error was out of the question.

Elder Mu said nothing. He simply moved to an adjacent, healthy-looking plot and repeated the process, sending a root deep into the soil to sense its condition.

Though the two Spirit Farms were mere feet apart, the difference in their soil was undeniable.

One was normal.

The other was unnaturally depleted.

Elder Mu tested several more plots. By the time he returned to the first afflicted field, his expression had grown grim. “Little Jiang, show me the next one.”

“This way,” Jiang Chen said with a nod.

They spent the next hour testing the fields. When Jiang Chen had first conducted his inspection, fewer than ten acres were affected. Now, Elder Mu’s examination revealed that the blight had already spread beyond that. Some of the plots looked perfectly healthy on the surface, yet deep within the soil, the slow, insidious process of nutrient depletion had already begun.

“It’s already spread past ten acres!”

“The speed is alarming.”

“It seems the situation is far worse than we imagined.”

Jiang Chen and Elder Mu met each other’s gaze. A silent, grave understanding passed between them. The problem wasn’t the Spirit Farms themselves.

The real question, the terrifying key to this mystery, was where all those nutrients were going.

Soon, Jiang Chen led Elder Mu toward the Zhao Clan’s residential area, directly to the Spirit Farm that had once held the Thousand-Ear Golden Light Rice.

Zhao Feng had heeded his warning. He had posted Rong Fu to stand guard.

When Rong Fu saw them arrive—the Cultivation Envoy and the Spirit Farm Manager—his face went pale. He offered a panicked salute before turning to run and notify Zhao Feng.

Elder Mu paid him no mind. He strode down the embankment to the edge of the uncovered pit. A thick root snaked from his body, plunging into the dark maw. When it retracted moments later, it was slick with a grotesque sheen, covered in pulsating, bluish-purple pustules and dense clusters of glistening, gelatinous insect eggs.