After examining Lu Yun, Elders Yan and Wen proceeded to check the remaining Laborer Disciples. They conducted a thorough search of every stone hut and spirit field, ensuring no other spies lay hidden.

Once satisfied, they took the two exposed traitors and Steward Wang into custody and departed.

The other Deacons, along with the visiting Inner and Outer Disciples, summoned their Magical Artifacts and flew off, leaving the valley quiet once more.

Only two Outer Disciples—one surnamed Ji, the other Hua—remained at the Spirit Field Department. Until a new steward arrived, they were tasked with maintaining order, overseeing the Laborer Disciples’ cultivation, and guarding the crops.

“Everyone, return to your quarters. Cultivate in peace!” Outer Disciple Hua announced to the crowd.

“The Elders have personally purged the hidden threats here, and they are currently hunting down the Demonic Cultivator at the market. You Laborer Disciples can rest easy!”

As the crowd slowly dispersed, Sun Kang called out to two familiar figures.

“Junior Sister Liu, Junior Brother Han,” he said, waving them over. “Why don’t you both come to my place for a chat? After everything that happened today, you must be feeling uneasy.”

Liu Lan was indeed struggling.

She had once been close to Zhang Shan, only to discover he was a spy from the Spirit Beast Sect who had plotted against her. More recently, she had befriended Wei Kunyi, and now he was dead.

“No need,” she replied, her voice dull. “I’d rather go back and cultivate.”

“Be careful,” Sun Kang cautioned gently. “If your mind is cluttered with distracting thoughts, you might err in your Circulation Cycle. That could be fatal.”

Liu Lan gave a muffled acknowledgment and hurried away.

Sun Kang turned his gaze to Han Yu.

Han Yu, however, was anxious to assess the internal damage caused by forcibly activating the Spirit Root Refining Art five times. He shook his head.

“Senior Brother Sun, can we talk another day?”

“Alright, another day it is,” Sun Kang agreed. “Once you’re done with your work in the spirit fields, let’s go to the market together. We can relax and clear our heads.”

Han Yu nodded and returned to his stone hut.

He let out a long, heavy exhale. Sitting cross-legged, he began circulating the Green Grain Qi Cultivation Method to refine the lingering medicinal efficacy of the Mystic Heart Fruit.

He couldn’t rush. He had to calm down first.

Even though he had survived the ordeal and confirmed his safety, he couldn’t be hasty about resuming the Blood Refining Art.

He hadn’t fully calculated the toll the Spirit Root Refining Art had taken on his body. However, the benefits were undeniable—his aptitude had improved noticeably. The amount of medicinal power and spiritual energy he could absorb in a single day had increased.

Feeling the surge in his cultivation speed, Han Yu analyzed his situation.

If I hadn’t dispersed the Blood Refining Art, I wouldn’t have passed the Elders’ inspection. Furthermore, I wouldn’t have gained this boost in aptitude.

In a way, this disaster saved my life and improved my potential. It’s a fair trade. Spending another half month or a month to cultivate back to my previous state is completely worth it.

Only after reaching his daily limit for Spirit Breath growth did Han Yu slowly begin to probe his internal condition.

The damage from the Spirit Root Refining Art and the backlash from dispersing the Blood Refining Art were severe.

His Blood Essence reserves had plummeted, dropping to around five drops. A stinging pain persisted in the center of his chest, indicating that shattering his cultivation base wasn’t without consequence. It would likely require a significant amount of Blood Essence to repair the damage and eventually reform the blood talisman.

At the same time, his body was continuously consuming his remaining Blood Essence to heal its injuries. It was impossible to estimate exactly how many days a full recovery would take.

On the bright side, his Fire Spirit Root had been refined to forty percent.

Once he refined the remaining sixty percent, his aptitude would transform from Four Spirit Roots to Three Spirit Roots—a massive leap in potential.

“For now, recuperation and nourishing my Blood Essence must be the top priority,” Han Yu decided. “But I cannot neglect the Green Grain Qi Cultivation Method. As for the market… that will have to wait until I’m fully recovered.”

Plan set, Han Yu replicated a section of Spirit Blood Vine.

He consumed the blood-enhancing spiritual liquid within, then slowly guided the energy through the Circulation Cycle of the Blood Refining Art. He didn’t rush to reform the blood talisman; healing came first.

The next day, Han Yu went out to clear the spirit rice stalks from his field. It took a full day of labor to finally clean everything up.

Remembering Sun Kang’s suggestion, Han Yu didn’t immediately ask the steward for new Green Grain Spirit Rice seeds. He planned to wait another two months or so to sow them alongside Sun Kang and Liu Lan.

After the first harvest, the timing for the next planting was relatively flexible. As long as a disciple achieved one harvest per year, they weren’t forced to plant immediately.

Besides, the new steward for the Spirit Field Department hadn’t arrived yet.

Another day passed, and Han Yu received news from Sun Kang.

The Green Grain Market had indeed captured a Demonic Cultivator. That individual, along with the two Laborer Disciple spies captured previously, had all been executed by the sect.

Whether the captured cultivator was Old Daoist Li, even Sun Kang didn’t know.

On that same day, the new administration arrived at the Spirit Field Department.

The head steward was an Inner Disciple named Senior Sister Li. Dressed in blue robes embroidered with gold thread, she carried herself with an air of arrogance and spoke very little.

Rumor had it that Senior Sister Li was at the eighth layer of Qi Refining, possessed Dual Spirit Roots, and was only thirty years old. She had a boundless future—a height of cultivation that the Laborer Disciples could likely only look up to in despair.

The deputy steward was an Outer Disciple named Hong. He was at the sixth layer of Qi Refining, older, and experienced. He spoke with a smile and seemed quite amiable.

The arrival of an Inner Disciple as a steward clearly indicated that the sect was paying increased attention to the Spirit Field Department.

At first, the Laborer Disciples were nervous, fearing their lives would become more difficult. But after a few days, they discovered that Senior Sister Li and Senior Brother Hong were even less interested in micromanaging than the previous Steward Wang.

They only required disciples to register before leaving the department. Aside from that, everyone was left to live as usual.

Because these two new stewards had higher cultivation bases than Steward Wang, Han Yu became especially cautious.

He no longer allowed the large crow to lead flocks near the fields in broad daylight. He only permitted the crows to return under the cover of darkness to avoid drawing attention.

Meanwhile, alongside his daily practice of the Green Grain Qi Cultivation Method, his recovery of Blood Essence progressed steadily.

Firstly, his refined blood hadn’t returned to its original level, and the stinging in his chest persisted. It wasn’t yet time to reform the blood talisman and restore the first layer of Blood Refining.

Secondly, out of caution toward Senior Sister Li, Han Yu didn’t dare to rashly practice demonic arts under the nose of an Inner Disciple.

Twenty days passed in a flash.

Han Yu’s Blood Essence finally stopped being consumed by his body’s passive healing, indicating that the damage from the Spirit Root Refining Art was completely repaired.

His total Blood Essence had recovered to twelve drops.

The stinging pain in his chest had vanished. He could now reform the blood talisman and restore the first layer of Blood Refining whenever he chose.

Concurrently, thanks to his improved aptitude, the time required to reach the third layer of Qi Refining via the Green Grain Qi Cultivation Method had dropped significantly. Originally estimated at five more months, it would now only take about four.

On this day, Sun Kang arrived at Han Yu’s stone hut, a wide smile on his face.

“Junior Brother Han, come to my place for a meal. Let’s celebrate!”

Han Yu blinked in surprise. “Celebrate?”

Then, realization dawned, and he smiled. “Has Senior Brother Sun broken through to the third layer of Qi Refining?”

Sun Kang nodded, his grin widening.

“Congratulations, Senior Brother Sun!” Han Yu said, clasping his hands. “You’re one step closer to becoming an Outer Disciple at the fourth layer!”

Sun Kang laughed. “That’s still a long road ahead. I can’t compare to Junior Sister Liu!”

Chatting and laughing, the two arrived at Sun Kang’s dwelling. Liu Lan was already busy by the stove.

To celebrate the breakthrough—and because it was just the three of them—Sun Kang had decided to be extravagant. In addition to several side dishes, he had cooked a full jin of spirit rice.

After the congratulations and the meal, Sun Kang looked at his friends.

“In a couple of days, should we go to the market for a stroll?”