My Portable Spirit Farm: Rise of the Humble Servant

Life returned to its established rhythm.

Cultivation, Alchemy.

Occasionally, he would set aside a proper rest day or two.

Regarding Bai Zhi’s words, he had always believed them deeply. Those who could care for him must have his best interests at heart.

Having acquired Divine Sense, Chen Ping’s control over Alchemy ascended to a new level.

The subtle changes in the intensity of the fire, the most delicate repulsion and attraction during the fusion of medicinal liquids within the furnace, even the slight differences in the purity of the medicinal efficacy—all could be keenly captured by his Divine Sense.

This gave him a more precise grasp of the vague concept of “when the fire is ready.”

His Alchemy frequency also increased.

Having stepped into the 1st Level of Qi Condensation, both his total Qi amount and his recovery speed were significantly enhanced.

Originally, he could only manage to start the furnace around ten times over three days. Now, within three days, he could consecutively start the furnace twenty times.

Each time he started the furnace was accompanied by total concentration and an intense consumption of Qi.

He set a rule for himself.

Three days, twenty furnaces.

Regardless of how many succeeded, he would stop immediately.

He would take the successfully refined Pills, refine and absorb their medicinal efficacy. Only after all the Pills were consumed would he proceed to the next round of refining.

As the number of times he refined Pills increased, his proficiency with the alchemical process also grew increasingly skilled.

Time slipped away quietly amidst the flickering of the alchemical fire, the permeating scent of medicine, and the charred smell of Waste Residue.

The scenery outside the window shifted from lush green to golden yellow, then from golden yellow to being covered with a thin frost.

In the blink of an eye, it was already year-end.

Nearly a full year had passed since that day when his Five Elements Waste Spirit Root was measured.

After this New Year, the Sect’s deacons would arrive as scheduled to examine the Cultivation results of the outer sect preparatory disciples.

The 1st Level of Qi Condensation was the minimum threshold to remain in the Sect.

Fail to meet it?

Then pack your bags and leave the mountain on your own. The Sect would not waste resources on those who showed no promise of return.

Half a year’s hard work had not been in vain.

Chen Ping stood in the center of his stone hut, looking at the freshly cleaned Alchemy Furnace.

His Alchemy skills were long past their initial clumsiness.

Starting the furnace twenty times and succeeding five or six times had become routine.

His Success Rate had also stabilized. Each furnace yielded at least three or four pills, sometimes five or six. Over twenty furnaces, he could harvest twenty to thirty Low-grade Spirit Nourishing Pills.

The Success Rate was between thirty to forty percent.

According to records in The Immortal Path, his current Alchemy proficiency had already reached the level of a Tier 1 Alchemist.

If there was still any gap to speak of, it was that he could only refine one type of spirit pill. Whereas a Tier 1 Alchemist needed to have a Success Rate above thirty percent for three different types of spirit pills.

Chen Ping had considered using his ability to refine Spirit Nourishing Pills as a condition to join the Outer Sect, become a Sect alchemy apprentice, and study under an Alchemist as a master.

Perhaps he could obtain more Cultivation resources and better Alchemy secrets.

After weighing the pros and cons, he chose to give up that idea.

He possessed peak 2nd Level Qi Condensation Cultivation. Even with a precious Dharma Artifact concealing his Cultivation level, it would still likely be detected by those powerful Alchemists.

At that time, an Alchemist would wonder how a Five Elements Waste Spirit Root cultivator like him could reach such a realm in such a short time under limited resource conditions.

Thus, the secrets about his body would definitely not remain hidden.

After much thought, it was still better for him to lie low properly until one day when he grew into a towering tree; startling everyone with one brilliant feat then wouldn’t be too late.

With an ample supply of Pills, his Cultivation also advanced by leaps and bounds all along.

The Qi cluster within his Dantian had grown nearly three or four times larger compared to when he first entered the first level and was much more condensed and refined.

The Qi cluster slowly rotated within his Sea of Qi, emitting a stable spiritual pressure.

Peak 2nd Level Qi Condensation!

He was just one full-force assault away from breaking through that thin barrier leading to the 3rd Level of Qi Condensation.

However, Chen Ping’s face at this moment showed little joy at the impending breakthrough; instead, it was shrouded in gloom.

The problem lay with the Pills.

He took out one Low-grade Spirit Nourishing Pill and placed it in his mouth.

The Pill melted upon entering his mouth. The familiar gentle medicinal efficacy spread within his body, propelling the circulation of the Evergreen Art.

Qi was increasing; its speed still far exceeded that of pure meditation alone.

But… Chen Ping clearly felt that the magnitude of increase was far too small compared to when he first took Spirit Nourishing Pills!

Initially, the medicinal power contained in one Low-grade Spirit Nourishing Pill was enough to match half a month of arduous Cultivation for him.

Nowadays, taking one felt equivalent to only a few days’ worth of arduous Cultivation effect.

The Pills were working, but their efficacy was drastically diminishing.

He had always carefully managed Pill Toxin issues; there wasn’t strong stagnation or blockage in his Meridians.

This was purely his body developing tolerance toward Spirit Nourishing Pills.

Drug Resistance!

That barrier to Qi Condensation’s third level seemed like it could be pierced with one poke.

But Chen Ping understood that given the Spirit Nourishing Pill’s now-weak effect on him, relying on gradual accumulation through persistent effort to gather enough Qi to break through it would require an extremely long time.

Thus, although three years’ time would be completely sufficient, he, Chen Ping, could not accept such slow progress toward a breakthrough.

There were more urgent matters: he must hide his true peak 2nd Level Qi Condensation Cultivation.

For someone with a Five Elements Waste Spirit Root, reaching 1st Level Qi Condensation within one year was barely reasonable.

If discovered by deacons that he was already at peak second level or even about to break through to the third level, any fool would think there was something majorly wrong with him.

At that time, whether the secrets on his person could be kept safe became unknown.

He needed better, new pill formulas capable of breaking Drug Resistance.

He needed an Art capable of perfectly concealing his aura, deceiving high-level cultivators’ detection.

His gaze swept over a corner inside the room.

There stored the fruits of a half-year of laborious accumulation: five small jade bottles quietly lying, containing a total of fifty Low-grade Spirit Nourishing Pills.

This currently constituted all the assets owned by him.

To the Marketplace!

He must go to the Marketplace soon and use these pills to exchange for needed items, completing a thorough update of his own Cultivation supplies and life-preservation methods.

Chen Ping hesitated no longer.

He walked to the stone bed and dragged out an old wooden chest.

Inside was a set of coarse linen clothes purchased the last time he returned from the Marketplace, along with some simple materials to disguise his appearance—plant ash, sticky tree sap, a few strands of dull-colored fake beard, and so on.

Before long, replacing the originally delicate-looking Chen Ping, a sallow-faced, scruffy-bearded, muddle-eyed middle-aged man appeared instead.

Chen Ping picked up a dark gray coarse cloth headscarf and carefully wrapped his hair, only revealing a few grayish-white strands on his forehead and a messy fake beard.

Finally, he changed into that stiff-washed, faded, patched coarse linen outfit.

After finishing all this, he faced the water surface, tried to slightly hunch his back, and let his eyes become muddled and vacant.

Good. Even he himself almost couldn’t recognize the person in the mirror anymore.

This current disguise method was simple and easily discovered.

But no way was this the best disguise method he was capable of achieving!

Therefore, purchasing a Dharma Artifact within the Marketplace for concealing Cultivation and identity was absolutely imperative.

He carefully inspected the stone hut once more… the Alchemy Furnace, the medicine residue jar, the daily utensils—all neatly arranged.

He confirmed nothing was left behind that could possibly expose identity clues, the Jade Pendant space, etcetera.

After finishing all this, the sun had already risen.

Pushing open the stone door, a biting cold air rushed against his face.

The medicine garden was desolate. The spirit herbs were still verdant under Formation protection, but the distant mountains were already covered with thin snow.

Year-end was approaching, and the air seemed to carry a trace of barely perceptible tension.

Chen Ping took a final glance at Bai Zhi’s tightly shut stone door, tightened his coarse linen clothes, lowered his head, and quickly merged onto the frost-covered small path leading outside the mountain gate.

His back soon disappeared amidst the withered yellow vegetation and jagged rocky corners intertwining.