My Portable Spirit Farm: Rise of the Humble Servant

Chapter 173: Foundation Establishment Level 2

From a distance, the queue looked like a long, winding dragon.

Cultivators had flocked here from every corner of the region, drawn by the rumor of miracles. For the vast majority, their goal was singular: to secure a High-grade, or perhaps even a Top-grade Spirit Pill. They weren’t looking for daily supplements; they were desperate for a battering ram to smash through their cultivation bottlenecks.

The true world of Cultivation was cruel. Not everyone could live like Chen Ping, popping Top-grade pills like candy beans.

For the average cultivator, a Top-grade pill was a strategic resource. It was a lifeline that could increase the success rate of breaking a minor bottleneck by 10% to 20%. In the hands of small clans or minor sects, a single bottle would be treated as a family heirloom, reserved strictly for nurturing their most promising geniuses.

Even in a behemoth like the Qingyun Sect, reserves of Top-grade pills were shallow. Such treasures were jealously guarded, allocated only to True Disciples and the elite of the Inner Sect.

If the outside world knew that Chen Ping used these priceless treasures merely to speed up his daily meditation, they would scream in outrage.

It was a reckless waste of heavenly treasures—a sin against the Dao itself.

Chen Ping ignored the commotion outside and stepped into [Chen Ping’s Pill Shop].

The interior was pristine and organized. The flow of customers was continuous but manageable, lacking the chaotic noise of the street. Wang Fa had clearly proven his worth as a manager. He had hired two quick-witted disciples at the early stages of Qi Condensation to handle the counter, allowing him to step back and oversee the broader operations.

When Wang Fa saw Chen Ping enter, his face lit up with undisguised reverence. He rushed forward, his knees bending instinctively to perform a grand prostration.

Chen Ping raised a hand slightly. A gentle current of Spiritual Energy swept out, catching Wang Fa and holding him upright.

“There is no need for that, Wang Fa. We are both cultivators now. Treat me as you would a senior, not a god.”

His tone was calm, but it carried an unquestionable weight.

As he spoke, Chen Ping swept his Divine Sense over his subordinate. Wang Fa, who had only stumbled upon his Immortal Fate near the age of fifty, had made shocking progress. Fueled by the massive supply of Top-grade Marrow Cleansing Pills Chen Ping had invested in him, Wang Fa had already reached the peak of Qi Condensation Level 1. He was just a hair’s breadth away from Level 2.

More impressively, he had achieved this while managing the crushing workload of a booming business. Such diligence and grit were rare. In just one year, he had built a foundation that even some talented youths would envy.

Chen Ping inspected Wang Fa’s physical body and soul. Apart from some slight fragility in his soul—likely a symptom of mental exhaustion from overwork combined with a shallow cultivation base—there were no hidden dangers.

“Your soul is slightly weary,” Chen Ping noted. “It stems from managing too many affairs with a weak spirit. Once your cultivation rises, your mind will strengthen, and this issue will resolve itself.”

Chen Ping handed over a Storage Bag filled with the fresh batch of High-grade True Essence Pills. As Wang Fa received it, he bowed respectfully and offered a suggestion.

“My Lord, the Sect’s Contribution Hall has approached us. They are aggressively purchasing High-grade Rank 2 cultivation pills. Their offer is fair, and it would save us the trouble of retail sales. Should we consider selling a portion directly to the Sect?”

Chen Ping paused, considering the logistics.

“We can, but we must strictly control the volume. Supply the Sect with no more than 100 High-grade True Essence Pills per batch.”

Wang Fa blinked, confused. “My Lord, since the Sect is willing to buy, why not sell them everything? Wouldn’t it be better to save time and effort?”

Chen Ping shook his head, his eyes sharp.

“Wang Fa, we are running a business, not a manufacturing plant for the Sect. If we sell our entire output to a single buyer, we hand over our pricing power and our distribution channels. We lose our autonomy.”

He paced slowly behind the counter. “If the Sect buys our stock, they will simply turn around and release it through their internal exchange or as mission rewards, pocketing the difference. We retain the majority for retail to keep our shop relevant and our customer base loyal. Furthermore, by controlling the supply, we dictate the price.”

“Business is about Xì Shuǐ Cháng Liú—a thin stream that flows forever. We must balance our partners, never relying on just one.”

Realization dawned on Wang Fa’s face. He looked at Chen Ping with renewed admiration. “My Lord is far-sighted! This humble one understands. I will restrict the Sect’s supply to one hundred pills immediately.”

Chen Ping nodded in satisfaction. Talking to smart people was efficient.

Before leaving, he retrieved a small jade vial and tossed it to Wang Fa.

Wang Fa caught it. As he inspected the contents, his hands began to tremble. His eyes widened, filled with shock and gratitude.

Top-grade Qi Gathering Pills!

For a cultivator at his level, this was a fortune. These were vastly different from the Marrow Cleansing Pills he had been using. A single Top-grade Qi Gathering Pill contained medicinal potency equivalent to ten Marrow Cleansing Pills.

With this vial, reaching Qi Condensation Level 3 wasn’t just a dream—it was imminent.

This wasn’t just a reward; it was an investment. Chen Ping was explicitly nurturing him.

“Thank you, My Lord, for this heavy gift!” Wang Fa bowed deeply, his voice choking with emotion. “Wang Fa will not let you down. I will cultivate with all my might and manage the shop with my life!”

Chen Ping waved his hand dismissively.

“Wang Fa, there is no need for speeches. Your results speak for themselves. If the day comes where you can keep up with my pace… I hope you too can seek this path of Immortality.”

Leaving the Marketplace, Chen Ping returned to his Green Mountain Cave Abode.

He sealed the entrance and took a deep breath, calming his mind. With a wave of his hand, ten jade bottles appeared before him.

Inside lay exactly 96 Top-grade True Essence Pills.

This was his war chest. He would use these resources to smash through the bottleneck and charge straight to Foundation Establishment Level 2.

He calculated the potency. These pills were enough to sustain over three months of high-intensity seclusion.

One month later.

Deep within the meditation chamber, the air hummed with power. Cyan spiritual light swirled around Chen Ping like a tangible storm, slowly retracting until it was completely absorbed into his pores.

He exhaled a long plume of turbid white air. His aura settled, heavy and profound like a mountain.

Foundation Establishment Level 2: Achieved.

The breakthrough had been smoother than he anticipated. The bottleneck had offered little resistance against the sheer quality of his resources.

But the true surprise lay elsewhere.

The sustained, high-intensity cultivation and the relentless refining of pill toxins had forced an evolution in his Whale Swallowing Technique.

Although he was still far from the ‘Minor Accomplishment’ stage, the efficiency of his digestion had spiked. Originally, his body could process the medicinal efficacy of three Top-grade True Essence Pills per day. Now, he could handle four.

It sounded like a small increase, but mathematically, it was massive. It meant his cultivation speed had jumped by another 33%.

Chen Ping ran the numbers in his head. Combined with the potency of the pills, his current cultivation speed was effectively 140 times faster than a standard cultivator meditating without resources.

140 times.

Even Chen Ping felt a tremor of shock as he verified the calculation. This was a heaven-defying speed.

He thought about the standard progression timeline for the Foundation Establishment realm. For an ordinary cultivator with average talent and no pills, moving from Level 2 to Level 3 would take roughly 35 to 36 years.

That was over 12,000 days of boring, repetitive meditation.

But with his Top-grade pills and the Whale Swallowing Technique?

Chen Ping clenched his fist, feeling the power surge through his meridians.

Three months.

In just three months, he would bridge a gap that took others half a lifetime.

At this moment, Chen Ping truly understood the terrifying power of resources and secret techniques. He also gained a newfound respect for Zhao Yuanqi’s theoretical framework.

Without these advantages, wanting to reach Foundation Establishment Grand Perfection—let alone the Violet Palace realm—was nothing but a fool’s dream.

If Level 2 to Level 3 took 35 years for a normal cultivator, then Level 3 to Level 4 might take 40. The later stages? Levels 5 and 6? Most cultivators would die of old age before they saw the peak.

For the masses, breaking through even a single minor realm was a cause for clan-wide celebration.

Time is precious.

Chen Ping did not indulge in arrogance. He closed his eyes, grabbed another bottle of pills, and sank back into the rhythm of cultivation.

With speed like this, every second wasted was a crime.