The issue of materials had been resolved.

Another obstacle hindering his Cultivation surfaced…

Time!

The work of managing the Hundred Herb Garden was trivial and time-consuming.

Daily inspections, record-keeping, assigning tasks to Laborers, handling unexpected situations (such as small-scale pest infestations or local Qi fluctuations), submitting reports to the Sect, and so on—these tasks occupied almost all of his daylight hours.

Cultivating at night was effective, but the time was ultimately limited, and efficiency would also suffer when he was fatigued.

He needed more uninterrupted time for Cultivation and for the Alchemy attempts he was about to begin.

Chen Ping’s gaze fell upon the old herb farmer, Wang Fa.

Wang Fa had been in the Hundred Herb Garden for decades. He was intimately familiar with the habits of various spirit herbs, common diseases and pests, and basic care techniques.

He was honest, diligent in his work, and most importantly, he had no ambition.

All he sought was to steadily earn the Spirit Stones issued by the Sect to support his Mortal family members.

In the evening, Chen Ping called Wang Fa alone to his small hut.

“Wang Fa, have a seat.”

Chen Ping pointed to a wooden stool in the room.

Wang Fa sat down somewhat awkwardly, his wrinkled face filled with confusion.

“Manager Chen, you wanted to see me?”

“Yes.”

Chen Ping got straight to the point.

“Wang Fa, you’ve been in the garden for a long time and have extensive experience. I’ve recently encountered obstacles in my Cultivation and need more time for secluded practice. I’d like to temporarily entrust the daily inspections, record-keeping, and assigning work to the Laborers here to you.”

Wang Fa was stunned. His cloudy eyes first showed surprise, then flickered with a trace of panic. He repeatedly waved his hands in refusal.

“Manager, this… this won’t do! I wouldn’t dare! How could I possibly handle such things…”

“There’s no need to decline, Wang Fa.”

Chen Ping’s tone was calm but carried an undeniable firmness.

“You know the affairs of this garden better than anyone. The inspections are just following a route once around, checking for any abnormalities—pests, withered leaves—things you can spot at a glance. I’ve already prepared the format for the record book; you just need to check boxes or write a few simple words under the corresponding dates. As for assigning tasks to the Laborers, just continue as usual.”

“If you encounter something you’re truly unsure about—like a sudden increase in reported losses or discovering a serious pest infestation—then inform me. I will come out for a fixed inspection once a week.”

He paused, took out a cloth pouch from his robe, and pushed it toward Wang Fa.

“This is one pound of Spirit Rice. While it’s not worth many Spirit Stones, it has slight effects on strengthening the body and prolonging life for Mortals. You’re getting on in years, Wang Fa; this might be useful. Additionally, starting this month, your monthly allowance of Spirit Stones will increase by one per month. I will issue it to you personally!”

Wang Fa looked at the cloth pouch and the extra Spirit Stone on the table; his breathing grew noticeably quicker.

Spirit Rice!

To Cultivators, this thing was insignificant, but to Mortals, it was a treasure that could extend life!

His grandson was frail and often ill… An extra Spirit Stone could also make life at home considerably easier.

“Man… Manager…”

Wang Fa’s voice trembled slightly.

“I… I will do my utmost! I won’t let you down! You can rest assured about the work in the garden; I promise to keep a close eye on everything!”

“Good. I trust you, Wang Fa.”

Chen Ping nodded.

“Starting tomorrow, the inspection logbook and the Laborer duty roster will be kept with you. Remember: if major issues arise, don’t make decisions on your own; report them to me promptly.”

The transfer of authority proceeded smoothly.

Wang Fa proved to be reliable and diligent; everything in the garden remained orderly and well-managed.

Chen Ping was completely freed from tedious administrative tasks.

He poured all his time and energy into his small stone hut. With doors and windows tightly shut, he isolated himself from all external disturbances.

Nighttime…

Chen Ping sat cross-legged and took a deep breath.

He took out a white jade vial, poured out one Marrow Cleansing Pill, and placed it in his mouth.

As soon as one Marrow Cleansing Pill entered his mouth, it transformed into a torrent of scorching yet pure medicinal power that instantly surged into all the Meridians throughout his body.

The familiar pain assaulted him once more.

Chen Ping clenched his teeth; veins bulged on his forehead as sweat instantly soaked through his clothes.

Holding onto a sliver of clarity within his mind with all his might, he operated the basic Circulation Cycle of the Evergreen Art. While guiding this violent medicinal power to scour his body…

He strove desperately to refine it, absorb it, and transform it into that faint yet tenacious stream of azure energy within his Dantian.

The ten Marrow Cleansing Pills were all the assistance he could obtain in the short term.

Originally, he had planned to take one pill every three days. Ten Marrow Cleansing Pills would last him one month.

Later, while reading The Immortal Path, Chen Ping learned that Pills could not be used so frequently.

Pills contained Pill Toxin within them.

After taking one pill, one often needed several days to cleanse the Pill Toxin from their body.

Otherwise, if Pill Toxin accumulated more and more within… at best, it would clog Meridians. At worst, it would contaminate internal organs and take one’s life.

Chen Ping could only take them Gingerly now.

Each pill was spaced several days apart.

He tried his best to allow his body to fully absorb the medicinal power while spending time expelling Pill Toxin.

He could clearly feel that after each dose, the impurities expelled from his body decreased, and the resilience of his Meridians slowly increased.

That wisp of Qi flow within his Dantian also grew and solidified by an extremely minuscule degree.

However, the aptitude of his Five Elements Spirit Root acted like a giant funnel; less than ten percent of even the purest medicinal power ultimately settled within him.

Over half a month passed, and he had taken three pills.

The effect wasn’t as good as he had imagined.

Fortunately, the energy flow within his Dantian had thickened somewhat and circulated more smoothly now.

Still, such progress, for him, was equivalent to over half a year of arduous Cultivation—truly significant.

Yet, there remained quite some distance before breaking through to the 1st Level of Qi Condensation.

The path of Cultivation is long and arduous!

Chen Ping shook his head with a light sigh.

During breaks from Cultivation, he would study that Introduction to Alchemy Records.

The thin booklet’s edges were becoming frayed from frequent handling.

He deconstructed basic Fire Control techniques into individual movements, repeatedly rehearsing them in his mind.

Although diagrams for processing medicinal materials were crude, he combined them with practical experience handling herbs in the Hundred Herb Garden, striving to understand their underlying principles.

That “Spirit Nourishing Pill” formula especially received meticulous scrutiny; he pondered every word and phrase, attempting to mentally reconstruct each vague step described therein.

Nor did he forget about The Immortal Path.

This thick volume encompassed everything imaginable: from basic Cultivation realm divisions (Qi Condensation, Foundation Establishment, Violet Palace, Golden Core…), common knowledge about Spirit Roots, illustrated records of common demon beasts, introductions to basic Talismans and Formations… to the geography of the Cultivation world, distribution of powers and factions, and strange tales and oddities.

It had everything one could ask for!

This became Chen Ping’s crucial window into understanding this vast unfamiliar world. Like a parched sponge soaking up water desperately, he voraciously absorbed all this knowledge.

Now he understood why Five Elements Spirit Root aptitude was called “Waste Spirit Root” and why cultivating was so difficult.

Not because a Five Elements Spirit Root itself necessarily meant poor aptitude—an ordinary Five Elements Spirit Root could still be called a Pseudo-Spirit Root—but because his Five Elements Waste Spirit Root possessed perfectly balanced attributes across five elements: completely even distribution like the water level in a bowl.

When Qi entered his body, the elements would counteract and annihilate each other immediately.

This resulted in exceptionally slow Cultivation speed—even slower than a typical Five Elements Spirit Root.

Additionally, through reading, Chen Ping learned about possible Sect and family powers standing behind shops in the Marketplace.

He also gained his first systematic glimpse into basics and practices like Talismans, Formations, Dharma Artifacts, and Pills—various Arts of the Cultivation world.

Knowledge dispelled some of the fear born from ignorance and gave him a clearer understanding regarding his own path forward.

He possessed a Five Elements Waste Spirit Root!

Alchemy might be his only chance of breaking through limitations imposed by such aptitude.

Only massive amounts of Qi provided by Pills could help him climb higher.

In the blink of an eye, another month passed.

One month flew by amidst arduous Cultivation and diligent study.

Chen Ping entered the Jade Pendant space.

According to descriptions found in The Immortal Path: higher age spirit herbs meant higher Success Rate for pill refinement and a greater chance of producing high-quality Pills!

The sight before his eyes filled his heart with joy.

Fifty Red Ginseng plants: roots thick and sturdy, skin a healthy reddish-brown color, lush ginseng leaves atop emitting rich Qi—clear signs of abundant medicinal efficacy!

Fifty Crystal Flower plants: petals with a semi-transparent crystalline texture refracting faint rainbow hues under the space’s soft light, emitting a clear, refreshing medicinal fragrance.

They not only matured fully but also possessed even stronger efficacy—most suitable for use in pill refinement.

All Marrow Cleansing Pills on hand were already consumed completely.

The Qi cluster within his Dantian had already grown from hair-thin strand thickness to toothpick thickness.

Only a final step away from reaching the 1st Level of Qi Condensation!