Rise of the Wang Clan: Starting with a Portable Farm

Chapter 220: Life Spirit Fire

The Fire Jade Fungus was, in and of itself, a rare treasure.

For cultivators possessing Fire Attribute Spiritual Roots, consuming this herb could purify their constitution and permanently boost their cultivation speed, however slightly. Even a fractional increase over a lifetime of cultivation was invaluable.

Wang Hao would have paid a heavy price just for a seed. For a mature, intact Fourth Rank specimen? The value was astronomical.

He fixed He Qing with a cold stare. “You had better not be lying to me.”

“This Junior wouldn’t dare!” He Qing lowered his head, trembling slightly under the pressure.

Wang Hao reached out and took the jade box. He lifted the lid.

Inside lay a crystalline fungus, glowing with an internal crimson light. It was perfectly preserved, roots and all, radiating dense waves of spiritual energy and a rich, spicy medicinal fragrance.

Wang Hao had seen plenty of century-old spirit herbs, even some nearing the thousand-year mark. But compared to the item before him, those were trash. The sheer density of the spiritual fluctuations left no room for doubt.

Even if this Fire Jade Fungus wasn’t fully two thousand years old, it was undeniably a top-tier Fourth Rank Spirit Herb.

A standard Fourth Rank herb started at tens of thousands of Spirit Stones. Rare specimens could fetch forty or fifty thousand. But this? With its extreme age and potent fire attribute, it could easily sell for 200,000 Spirit Stones. In a heated auction, 300,000 or 400,000 wasn’t impossible.

Wang Hao frowned as he examined the container. “You put a Fourth Rank treasure in a common First Rank jade box?”

He clicked his tongue in annoyance. The medicinal potency was slowly leaking out. He immediately retrieved a high-grade white jade box from his own Storage Bag, transferred the fungus with delicate care, and slapped a Spirit Sealing Talisman on the lid to lock in the energy. Only then did he place it into his Storage Bag.

“Not bad,” Wang Hao said, his tone softening slightly. “It is indeed a thousand-year spirit herb. Speak your mind. We were friends in our youth; as long as your request isn’t excessive, I will satisfy it.”

“Treasure Offering” was always a transaction. No one gave away a fortune for free. He Qing had come here because the Wang family was about to hold their Golden Core Grand Ceremony—a time when they would value their reputation above all else. He was betting that Wang Hao wouldn’t dare tarnish the clan’s name by robbing him.

Seeing Wang Hao accept the herb, He Qing’s face lit up with relief. He composed himself and bowed.

“This Junior wishes to exchange this herb for two Foundation Establishment Pills. Furthermore… having drifted for half a lifetime, this Junior wishes to settle down. I ask to become a vassal of the Wang family and establish my own branch. I implore Senior to bestow upon me a Spirit Mountain! I swear that my lineage will be the Wang family’s most loyal sword!”

“Oh? You want to establish a family?” Wang Hao raised an eyebrow. “Is a First Rank Spirit Mountain sufficient?”

“Senior teases me,” He Qing said with a bitter smile. “I require the Foundation Establishment Pills to advance my cultivation. A First Rank mountain cannot support a Foundation Establishment cultivator. I require a mountain with at least a Second Rank Low Grade Spirit Vein.”

Wang Hao laughed, a cold, sharp sound.

“Do you take the Wang family for fools?”

“The Fire Jade Fungus is precious, yes. It is worth two Foundation Establishment Pills. But a Second Rank Spirit Mountain? Do you have any idea of its value? Even if you found another thousand-year herb, it wouldn’t be enough to buy a mountain!”

The Wang family had struggled for centuries to secure their current territory. They possessed only two Second Rank mountains and four First Rank ones. Handing over a strategic resource like that to an outsider was out of the question.

In the cultivation world, transactions between the weak and the strong were never equal. The Qingyuan Sect, for instance, would demand three times the market value when trading with vassals.

“This Junior wouldn’t dare!” He Qing fell to his knees, kowtowing rapidly. “I would not dare take advantage of the Wang family!”

He lifted his head, desperation in his eyes. “Besides this herb, this Junior possesses a piece of intelligence. It concerns a supreme treasure. In my humble opinion, its value exceeds the Fire Jade Fungus by several times. If Senior agrees to my request, I will reveal the location!”

“A treasure more valuable than a two-thousand-year-old herb?” Wang Hao’s interest was piqued. “Let’s hear it.”

“This…” He Qing hesitated, glancing at the door.

“What? You don’t trust me?”

Wang Hao’s gaze deepened, turning heavy and oppressive. He let a sliver of his spiritual pressure weigh down on the kneeling man.

He Qing crumbled under the gaze, lowering his head in submission.

“If you don’t speak, how can I assess its value?” Wang Hao said coolly, retracting the pressure. “If you don’t trust me, feel free to take your secret to the Qingyuan Sect. See if they bother negotiating before they search your soul.”

He Qing’s face went pale. He knew the Qingyuan Sect’s reputation—they were wolves who swallowed people without spitting out the bones. He would never walk out of their gates alive.

After a moment of internal struggle, he gritted his teeth.

“In the same location where I found the Fire Jade Fungus… I discovered a Heaven and Earth Spirit Fire.”

“I may be ignorant, but even I know the value of a Spirit Fire. Senior, is the location of a wild Spirit Fire enough to exchange for a Second Rank Spirit Mountain?”

“A Spirit Fire?” Wang Hao leaned forward, his eyes gleaming. “Are you certain?”

His last encounter with a Spirit Fire—the Dry Sun True Flame seized from Si Zhiheng—had been a game-changer. It had boosted his combat power, alchemy, and weapon refining to new heights. His condensed Fire Lotus technique was now far superior to anything a standard Foundation Establishment cultivator like Wang Longyou could produce.

“I wouldn’t dare deceive Senior!”

If it was truly a Heaven and Earth Spirit Fire, then a Spirit Mountain was a fair trade.

Of course, Wang Hao wouldn’t give him land near Qingniu Market. The Wang family needed manpower to develop the desolate islands surrounding their new base overseas. There were several small islands with Second Rank veins near Giant Turtle Island. If He Qing succeeded in reaching Foundation Establishment, he would make an excellent pioneer vassal.

Once he moved overseas, he would be entirely dependent on the Wang family for protection and trade. He wouldn’t dare to be disloyal.

“Do you know what kind of Spirit Fire it is?” Wang Hao asked.

“Please forgive my ignorance, Senior. I only recognized that the flame was extraordinary, but I could not identify its type,” He Qing admitted honestly.

“No matter. Describe the environment, the shape, and the color of the flame.” Wang Hao had studied numerous texts on spiritual objects in Wanxiang City. He could likely identify it from a description.

“I found it in a massive cavern within the Broken Origin Mountain Range,” He Qing explained. “The cave is infested with Demon Beasts, so I dared not approach closely. I only saw it from a distance. The flame was… green.”

“Green?”

“Yes, a vibrant green. And the surrounding area was lush with Spirit Grass and herbs. The Fire Jade Fungus came from the periphery of that cave.”

He Qing looked at Wang Hao with pleading eyes. “Senior, those other herbs weren’t as old as the Fungus, but they were still centuries old. A Spirit Fire plus a garden of ancient herbs… surely that is enough for a mountain?”

Green flame. Lush vegetation thriving nearby.

Wang Hao’s heart skipped a beat.

Could it be the Life Spirit Fire?

This type of flame was notoriously weak in combat. It lacked the destructive power of the Dry Sun True Flame. However, as the name suggested, it contained immense, concentrated vitality.

It was the holy grail for alchemists and spirit planters.

In alchemy, temperature control was critical. A moment of carelessness could burn the medicinal liquid and ruin the pill. But the Life Spirit Fire was different—it naturally protected plant matter. It wouldn’t consume the medicinal essence even if the alchemist made a mistake, providing a massive buffer for error.

For an alchemist, this flame was worth ten times more than any combat flame.