Han Yu had anticipated that his Blood Refining would outpace his Qi Refining.

With a continuous supply of his own essence blood, the Blood Refining Technique advanced at a frightening pace. Even after he deliberately throttled his speed, it still eclipsed his orthodox cultivation.

Demonic Cultivators were infamous for two things: rapid progression and ruthless, bizarre arts. But the cost was steep. Their path violated the natural order, created endless enemies, and often led to madness. Those who didn’t die from their own psychotic breaks were usually hunted down and slaughtered by righteous cultivators.

Fortunately, Han Yu showed no external signs of corruption. His eyes and hair remained normal, and he carried no scent of blood. Between the Thousand Illusions Secret Art, the Breath Concealment Technique, and his public record of slaying spies and demons, no one suspected a thing.

Upon reaching the fourth layer of Blood Refining, his essence blood reserve grew from forty-some drops to sixty-eight. The purity and potency of his blood far exceeded that of any standard Demonic Cultivator at the same level.

This breakthrough gave him another layer of insurance. The fourth level of Qi Refining wasn’t far off, either.

Han Yu stepped out of the Steward’s Hall to find Senior Sister Li and Hua Qi speaking with a group of Outer Disciples from the main peak.

Leading them was Bai Lingyun, who looked visibly annoyed.

Flanking him were Meng Bao—Han Yu’s old opponent from the Laborer Disciple competition—along with Wang Teng and Li Xuan. Having entered the Outer Sect together, the four seemed to have formed a tight clique.

Spotting Han Yu, Bai Lingyun waved immediately. “Han Yu! Han Yu! Come here!”

Han Yu walked over, puzzled. Meng Bao, Wang Teng, and Li Xuan greeted him warmly, and he returned the courtesy.

“What brings you all to the Spirit Field Department?”

“I’m looking for Zhu San! That bastard needs to pay for trying to ruin me with that Spirit Root Refining Art!” Bai Lingyun fumed. “I wasted two full months on body refining and couldn’t even breach the first layer! If I had started the Spirit Root Refining Art first, I’d have burned my lifespan just to wait for death!”

“You wanted to cultivate that?” Han Yu asked, feigning surprise. “Isn’t it forbidden?”

Bai Lingyun flushed red. “I… I thought Zhu San meant I had a special destiny with the technique. Since others couldn’t master it, I thought maybe I could.”

He sighed. “My great-grandfather told me that if I insisted, I first had to reach the third layer of Body Refining. These two months taught me that my talent for body refining is mediocre at best. If I had rashly started the secret art, no pill in the world could have saved me.”

Two months ago, Bai Lingyun had swallowed Pig Third’s “destiny” pitch hook, line, and sinker. Now that reality had hit, he was here for revenge.

Before Han Yu could reply, Senior Sister Li waved a hand dismissively. “Zhu San deserves punishment. Go ahead and vent your anger.”

She pointed them toward Pig Third’s location.

Bai Lingyun beamed. He led his friends off to find the culprit. They returned shortly after, looking satisfied. Bai Lingyun was still naive at heart; a few curses and a scolding were enough to settle his grudge.

“Han Yu! Why are so many disciples meditating in the fields?” Bai Lingyun asked, glancing around.

Perhaps because he saw Han Yu as a peer, he was chattier than usual. The sting of his past defeat seemed to have faded.

“The harvest is approaching,” Han Yu explained. “For about ten days, the spiritual energy in the fields becomes dense. It’s an opportune time for cultivation.”

“Is that so?” Bai Lingyun looked enlightened. “I was studying talisman crafting in the Talisman Department, so I missed out on these details!”

Han Yu felt a twitch of speechlessness.

Ordinary Laborer Disciples spent their days farming, hauling water, and carrying heavy loads. Even those in the Talisman Department were usually stuck processing raw paper. Bai Lingyun, however, was already learning to craft talismans.

Having powerful elders truly gave one a head start in everything.

After Bai Lingyun and his group flew off, Han Yu and Hua Qi inspected the fields, then sat down to cultivate for a while. Senior Sister Li abstained; her cultivation base was too high, and drawing energy from the crops would reduce the yield.

Not long after, a large crow, spanning over four feet, swooped down and landed beside Han Yu.

Han Yu stood, letting the bird perch on his arm as he walked out of the field.

“Senior Brother Han, your crow is truly magnificent!” Pig Third called out from a nearby furrow, grinning shamelessly.

Despite being older and having a higher cultivation base, the man had no qualms about calling Han Yu “Senior Brother.”

Han Yu shot him a look. “Didn’t Bai Lingyun just teach you a lesson?”

“Senior Brother Bai is kind-hearted. I apologized sincerely, and he let me off!” Pig Third laughed.

Suddenly, the large crow launched itself into the air. It dove into the crops and snatched up a squealing, struggling Spirit-Stealing Rat.

It circled Han Yu once, cawing twice.

“Go on,” Han Yu said softly.

He knew it was taking the prey back to feed the other crows, aiding their awakening. The crow crushed the rat with its talons and flew off toward the forest.

Pig Third watched with naked envy. “Senior Brother Han, that bird is incredible! That rat is worth two jin of spirit rice! Why let it eat the profits? Wouldn’t it be better to exchange the carcass?”

Han Yu stared at him. “Exchange it with whom? You?”

Pig Third recoiled as if stung. “No, no! Absolutely not! I wouldn’t dare!”

He scurried away, terrified to say another word.

Since Han Yu’s Beast Taming Technique was public knowledge, he didn’t need to hide the large crow’s activities. That day, it hunted down seven Spirit-Stealing Rats and carried them back to the forest. The Laborer Disciples, helpless against the pests, were immensely grateful.

Some Outer Disciples, however, politely asked Han Yu to keep his crow away from their plots, preferring to handle the rats themselves to claim the bounties.

Senior Sister Li and Hua Qi found it amusing, noting the bird’s intelligence in stockpiling food.

That night, the large crow returned with three new fledglings. All three possessed spiritual energy and could cast the Wind Blade Technique.

Han Yu used the Spirit Nurturing Technique and his essence blood to bind them.

His flock now contained eight crows capable of casting Wind Blade.

A day later, three more crows awakened, becoming low-grade spirit beasts. Two wielded Wind Blade, but the third surprised Han Yu by spitting a burst of fire—the Flame Technique.

He had assumed the entire flock would be wind-aligned. This was a welcome anomaly.

Within a few days, two more wind-attribute crows joined the ranks. Han Yu now commanded thirteen spell-casting spirit beasts.

In the fields, the Green Grain Spirit Rice finally ripened for harvest.