The ground shook violently, a tremor that rattled the teeth.

Jiang Chen didn’t need to guess the source. He’d felt this particular earthquake before. He sighed, wiped his hands, and walked out of the hut.

Sure enough, a pitch-black flying shuttle was jutting out of the earth at an awkward angle, its nose buried deep in the field ridge. A fresh crater scarred the soil beside it.

Tie Xin, whom he hadn’t seen in half a month, hopped down from the wreckage, stumbling as her boots hit the ground.

Jiang Chen frowned. “Your aim is getting worse. That was dangerously close to the Spirit Farm.”

Tie Xin giggled, waving a hand dismissively. “My bad. Got a bit buzzed before the flight. Depth perception’s tricky.”

“If you mess up my fields,” Jiang Chen said, his voice flat, “the wine supply dries up. Permanently.”

Tie Xin froze. The threat cut through the alcohol haze instantly. She straightened up and raised a hand in a solemn pledge. “Understood. Next time, I’ll aim for your bedroom.”

Jiang Chen choked on his retort.

Tie Xin grinned, swaying slightly as she closed the distance. “So? Where’s the goods?”

Jiang Chen didn’t reach for the wine barrels. instead, he unclipped the Jade Green Gourd from his belt and held it out.

Tie Xin’s eyes lit up. “Is this a new wine storage prototype?”

“No,” Jiang Chen said.

“Then what is it? A paperweight?”

“It’s my new storage artifact,” Jiang Chen explained. “It’s called the [Jade Green Gourd]. And yes, technically, it can store wine.”

Tie Xin blinked, her memory jogged. Right. The Jade Green Gourd. It was a known artifact model. Market price for a finished unit hovered around two to three hundred Mid-grade Spirit Stones. Even a custom commission would cost a small fortune in fees.

She looked at Jiang Chen with new appreciation. This Foundation Establishment Spirit Farmer was clearly sitting on a pile of cash.

“It’s a High-Quality Spirit Tool,” Jiang Chen continued, “with multiple spirit patterns engraved by Hong chui. I need your professional opinion. How many array formations can it handle?”

Tie Xin stepped forward and snatched the gourd from his hand. She turned it over, tracing the lines with long, slender fingers. The jade surface was warm and smooth, glowing with a faint verdant luster. Several distinct spirit patterns spiraled elegantly from the mouth to the base.

She might have been seeing double, but her hands knew the language of Qi flow better than most sober masters.

“Not bad,” she muttered, tapping the surface. “The structure is solid. Based on the spirit patterns, you’ve got two options: either two sets of Low-level Arrays, or a single High-level Array.”

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow. “Any recommendations?”

Tie Xin didn’t answer. She just held out her hand, palm up, and gave him a look that said, No wine, no wisdom.

Jiang Chen sighed. He retrieved a fifty-catty barrel of Top-quality Spirit Wine from the gourd and handed it over.

Tie Xin frowned. “Where’s the new Golden Wine?”

“That stuff is potent,” Jiang Chen said firmly. “You tell me about the arrays first. You can drink the hard stuff after business is concluded.”

Tie Xin considered this. The last time she drank the Golden Wine, she had passed out until midnight. He had a point.

She cracked the seal on the Spirit Wine and took a massive swig. “Ah. That hits the spot.”

She wiped her mouth and leaned against the cratered ridge. “Alright, listen up. If you go with the Low-level option, the standard loadout is one Attack Array and one Defense Array. Or, you can swap the attack for a Support Array.”

“Attack and Defense are self-explanatory,” she continued, counting on her fingers. “Support Arrays are the wildcard—boosting cultivation speed, enhancing recovery, that sort of thing. Price-wise, Attack and Defense are the cheapest. Support Arrays usually cost a few dozen stones extra.”

Jiang Chen nodded thoughtfully. “As a Spirit Farmer, I rarely leave the farm. A Defense and Support combo seems like the logical choice.”

“Standard configuration for homebodies,” Tie Xin agreed. “Only the crazies who go out hunting demons or exploring ruins bother with Attack/Defense or Attack/Support hybrids.”

“And the High-level option?” Jiang Chen asked.

“Low-level arrays require fewer spirit pattern nodes, so you can fit two,” Tie Xin lectured. “High-level arrays are resource hogs. You only get one slot. You have to choose: power or versatility.”

Jiang Chen couldn’t decide immediately. “Give me the numbers.”

Tie Xin took another leisurely sip. “For the Low-level combo—Attack plus Defense—you’re looking at 75 Mid-grade Spirit Stones. Attack plus Support is 98. Defense plus Support will run you about 110.”

“And the High-level single arrays?”

“High-level Attack: 150. High-level Defense: 160. High-level Support: 180.”

Jiang Chen winced. Expensive.

He fell silent, weighing the costs.

Tie Xin didn’t rush him. She dragged a wooden chair from the porch, flopped into it, and nursed her drink. She was in a win-win situation. Alchemists, Array Masters, Talisman Masters, Blacksmiths—they were the four pillars of the cultivation economy. Cultivators needed [Spirit Gathering Arrays] to train, [Breakthrough Pills] to advance, [Protective Talismans] to survive, and [Spirit Tools] to fight.

No matter how high the price, cultivators would hold their noses and pay. It was a seller’s market, always.

Finally, Jiang Chen spoke.

“I choose the High-level Array.”

He had done the math. Two low-level arrays offered versatility, but raw power and efficiency scaled exponentially with rank. A single High-level array was simply better future-proofing.

“Good choice,” Tie Xin smirked. “I have six Wood-attribute High-level Arrays in my catalog. Two for each category.”

She began to list them, ticking them off on her fingers:

Attack Arrays:

[Poison Vine Bind Array]: Releases a potent paralytic toxin while restraining the target.

[Wood Spike Volley Array]: Instantly manifests and fires a barrage of armor-piercing wooden spikes.

Defense Arrays:

[Green Wood Body Protection Array]: An autonomous shield that blocks incoming attacks.

[Thorn Reflection Array]: A reactive shield that reflects a percentage of damage back to the attacker.

Support Arrays:

[Spirit Gathering Wood Nurturing Array]: significantly accelerates the absorption of ambient Spirit Qi.

[Vitality Concealment Array]: Masks the user’s aura, cultivation level, and life signature.

Jiang Chen ran a quick diagnostic of his current capabilities.

Offensively, he had the Vine Bind spell and his Companion Green Lotus. Defensively, he relied on Ironwood Armor and the Lotus. Support-wise, his Green Lotus Art already provided superior concealment capabilities, rendering the [Vitality Concealment Array] redundant. As for Qi absorption, his diet of Top-quality wines and his max-level cultivation technique made the [Spirit Gathering Array] less critical.

His weaknesses were clear. His offensive and defensive options were functional but basic.

“Made a decision?” Tie Xin asked, watching him closely.

Jiang Chen took a deep breath.

“I choose…”