“It’s you again.” Elder Mu looked up from his desk, immediately recognizing the disciple responsible for the recent influx of Top-quality Spirit Rice.

Jiang Chen clasped his hands together and performed a respectful, traditional bow. “Greetings, Manager.”

Elder Mu looked him up and down, a faint smile playing on his lips. “What brings you here today?”

“I have gathered 2,000 contribution points,” Jiang Chen stated, getting straight to business. “I wish to exchange them for a High-grade cultivation technique or spell.”

He ran through the options in his head. If his memory served him right, the list for Spirit Farmers was pitifully short—only three options: [Spirit Growth Art], [Vine Bind], and [Wood Spirit Nourishment Art].

Since he already had a variation of the growth art, he assumed he was here to flip a coin between the remaining two.

Elder Mu’s smile widened. He reached under the counter and produced a long string of jade slips. There weren’t three. There were over a dozen.

Jiang Chen blinked. “I thought there were only three?”

“For Qi Condensation disciples, yes,” Elder Mu explained, spreading the slips out like a winning hand of cards. “But you are Foundation Establishment now. The archives have opened up for you.”

Jiang Chen’s eyes lit up. He immediately began scanning the catalog.

First were the Cultivation Methods:

[Azure Emperor Longevity Art]: Extends natural lifespan. Grants an additional twenty years compared to peers at the same realm.

[Yi Wood Spirit Manual]: Converts Wood Qi into ‘Yi Wood Spirit Liquid,’ highly effective for healing injuries or nurturing delicate plants.

[Myriad Manifestations Art]: Focuses on stealth and utility, granting mastery over vine armor and wood-element escape techniques.

Next, the Offensive Spells:

[Thousand Vine Strangle]

[Green Wood Thunder Sword]

[Wither-Glory Nirvana Finger]

Defensive Spells:

[Mystic Wood Golden Body Art]

[Wood Spirit Substitution Art]

And finally, the Support Spells:

[Spirit Plant Empathy]

[Wood Spirit Void Step]

[Hundred Flowers Illusion Array]

[Heavenly Nectar Art]

[Spirit Seed Enlightenment Art]

[Ten Thousand Trees Spring Mantra]

“In total,” Elder Mu said, “three High-grade cultivation methods and twelve High-grade spells. These are designed to bridge the gap between Foundation Establishment and the Golden Core stage. Choose wisely.”

Jiang Chen narrowed his eyes, his mind racing.

He immediately discarded the cultivation methods. His [Green Lotus Art] was already a heaven-defying cheat; swapping it out for a standard sect manual would be a downgrade.

That left the spells.

“I want them all,” Jiang Chen muttered, his face twisting into a grimace of pure greed.

Attack, defense, utility—they all looked useful. But his 2,000 points were only good for a single ticket.

He took a deep breath, forcing himself to be pragmatic.

Offense is flashy, but survival is mandatory.

He gravitated toward Defense and Support.

He debated between the [Mystic Wood Golden Body Art] and the [Spirit Seed Enlightenment Art].

The former hardened the skin until it possessed the density of spirit wood, drastically increasing resistance to physical trauma. The latter was fascinating—at low levels, it accelerated plant growth, but at mastery, it could awaken plants into sentient Wood Spirit Guards.

“That one,” Elder Mu noted, seeing Jiang Chen’s gaze linger on the Enlightenment Art, “is popular. At mastery, you can raise an army of plant guardians.”

Jiang Chen raised an eyebrow. So it creates minions? I thought it might induce mutation like my Spirit Finger.

He thought about it for a moment, then shook his head.

He already had the [Jade Green Gourd] with its [Green Wood Body Protection Array] for automated defense. Technically, he was covered.

But the [Spirit Seed Enlightenment Art] introduced variables. Sentient plants were external forces. They could be destroyed, tricked, or—if he faced a powerful Wood cultivator—turned against him.

The [Mystic Wood Golden Body Art], however, was internal. It turned him into the tank.

Since my Wood Spirit Root is naturally weak in early-stage combat, I should max out my defense stats.

“I’ve made my choice,” Jiang Chen said.

Elder Mu handed over the jade slip containing the [Mystic Wood Golden Body Art].

Jiang Chen pressed the jade against his forehead. He injected his spiritual sense, and the information flooded his mind, imprinting the complex mnemonics and circulation pathways instantly.

He handed the slip back.

“Manager,” Jiang Chen asked, “if I gather another 2,000 points, can I come back for a second one?”

Elder Mu shook his head. “The 2,000-point price tag is a one-time welfare benefit for breaking through. The next one will cost you 3,000.”

Jiang Chen scratched his head. “Inflation touches us all, I suppose. 3,000 isn’t impossible.”

He bid Elder Mu farewell but didn’t leave the hall just yet. He headed to the trading counter to inquire about [Golden Crow Vine] seeds.

As a high-tier spiritual plant, the seeds were expensive. Jiang Chen’s balance now sat at a pitiful 5 points.

He sighed and retrieved a heavy sack from his storage bag. He had to liquidate another hundred catties of [Top-quality Spirit Rice] to cover the cost.

He did a quick mental inventory of his remaining stock:

1,700 catties submitted for missions.

800 catties for Chen Tian.

150 catties for Jin Fugui.

300 catties reserved for brewing.

500 catties allocated for the black market sales later.

He was cutting it close, but the math worked out.

Back at the Spirit Farm, Jiang Chen wasted no time. He rode his [Giant Leaf] down to the soil and began planting.

The [Golden Crow Vine] seeds were striking. They were the size of pigeon eggs, their shells covered in fine, spiral grooves. Each seed was dual-colored: one tip was a dark, metallic gold, while the other was a vibrant, fiery crimson.

Since Yu Caiqing only needed them for alchemy experiments, the quantity wasn’t massive. Jiang Chen planted one hundred seeds along the perimeter of the Grade-2 field, leaving the interior for the [Moonlight Grass] and his precious [Variant Mother Rice].

The [Golden Crow Vine] was the polar opposite of the [Moonlight Grass].

The grass thrived on lunar essence. The vine devoured sunlight.

Jiang Chen knelt by the first pit. Usually, a Spirit Farmer would inject pure Wood Qi to stimulate the seed.

But Jiang Chen paused.

The [Golden Crow Vine] started as a Wood-attribute plant but transitioned to Fire-attribute as it matured and absorbed solar essence. The Spirit Farm Hundred Records mentioned a theoretical technique: if one could inject a trace of Fire Qi during the initial planting, the vine’s growth speed and final quality would skyrocket.

For most Spirit Farmers, this was impossible. They were mono-element cultivators.

Jiang Chen, however, smiled.

He tapped into his Qi Sea. Alongside the vast green ocean of Wood Qi, there was a smaller, volatile pool of red energy—his awakened [Thunder-Fire Spirit Root].

Until now, he had only used it to light the stove for cooking.

“Time to see what you can actually do,” he whispered.

He pressed his finger to the seed. A surge of verdant energy flowed out, wrapped in a thin, crackling sheath of fire.

He buried the seed and moved to the next, eyes gleaming with anticipation. He couldn’t wait to see what kind of monster this vine would grow into.