One by one, Outer and Laborer Disciples harvested the Green Grain Spirit Rice from their fields, their faces beaming with joy. Hua Qi and Han Yu stood by, meticulously recording yields and assigning Minor Merits.

To encourage the sect’s recovery, the administration had implemented generous policies.

Laborer Disciples tending five mu of fields only needed a yield of over fifty jin per mu to keep thirty percent of the harvest and earn five Minor Merits. Inner and Outer Disciples with ten mu could keep half the rice and earn ten Minor Merits.

Practically speaking, any Laborer Disciple who put in genuine effort would walk away with at least seventy-five jin of spirit rice. Outer Disciples would secure over two hundred and fifty jin.

It was a significant windfall. Green Grain Spirit Rice was harvested every six or seven months. At this rate, Laborer Disciples could afford spirit rice balls daily, while higher-ranking disciples could feast on it twice a day.

Moreover, the cost of learning spells in the Technique Pavilion had been halved.

This revitalization wasn’t limited to the Spirit Field Department; similar policies were in effect everywhere. As the disciples of Wanchun Valley grew stronger, the sect’s overall power was bound to recover rapidly.

For the laborers in the spirit fields, there was an additional hidden benefit: Senior Sister Li was nothing like the sycophantic steward, Wang Hui. She cared only about her own cultivation and handled departmental matters with strict impartiality.

After registering the others, Han Yu, Hua Qi, and Senior Sister Li harvested their own ten-mu plots. They logged their yields and merits before delivering the rice to the Deacon’s Hall.

Han Yu walked away with two hundred and sixty jin of spirit rice and ten Minor Merits for his harvest. Additionally, his service guarding the fields—originally worth seven Minor Merits and four Qi Condensation Pills—was converted into a flat ten Minor Merits.

This brought his total to one Major Merit and thirty-five Minor Merits.

Senior Sister Li and Hua Qi exchanged their points for supplies and returned to the fields. Han Yu, however, stayed behind.

He visited the Technique Pavilion to inquire about the Jade Spirit Berry and the Qi Refining Spirit Boosting Pill. As expected, both were merely legends in the records; neither existed in Wanchun Valley or the Southern Region.

Han Yu had to abandon that hope.

He stood there with one Major Merit, thirty-five Minor Merits, and over ten days of accumulated replication charges. If he couldn’t buy speed, he needed to buy efficiency.

He was already well-stocked on Qi Refining talismans, pills, and herbs. He could exchange for a Magical Artifact, but that felt suboptimal. Formation arrays were too expensive and flashy for a disciple of his status.

What about Foundation Establishment items? I could replicate them later.

The thought broadened his horizons instantly.

He returned to the Deacon’s Hall and asked Deacon Liu if he could view the exchange list for Foundation Establishment items—just to “open his eyes.”

Deacon Liu didn’t mind. He casually listed a few items Han Yu could theoretically afford.

“Fifteen Minor Merits for a Foundation Establishment level Blazing Flame Talisman. Fifteen for a Geng Metal Talisman. Twenty for a Thunder Lightning Talisman.”

“And thirty Minor Merits for a Spirit Containing Fruit.”

Han Yu paused. “Deacon Liu, can a Qi Refining cultivator consume the Spirit Containing Fruit?”

“It is meant for alchemy,” Deacon Liu warned. “Direct consumption is wasteful. Moreover, the medicinal potency is too violent for a Qi Refining cultivator. It would damage your Circulation Cycle and Spirit Breath. Too much of a good thing becomes poison.”

Han Yu nodded and mentally crossed it off the list.

As he hesitated, Sheng Yan entered, escorting a sullen Lu Yun. Sheng Yan nodded at Han Yu before turning to Deacon Liu for instructions.

Seeing Lu Yun in trouble again, Deacon Liu’s face flashed with anger before settling into helpless resignation. “That vile spawn! Go on, take him away!”

Once Sheng Yan dragged Lu Yun into a side room, Deacon Liu turned back to Han Yu.

“I see you have merits, pills, and diligence. Your first question was about boosting Spirit Breath, not buying weapons. I can offer a suggestion.”

“Please enlighten me,” Han Yu said quickly.

“Based on your Spirit Roots, your absorption rate is maxed out with Qi Gathering Pills,” Deacon Liu explained. “But in terms of Wanchun Valley’s specific arts, you haven’t hit the ceiling yet.”

“Do you possess a Wood Spirit Root?”

“I do.”

Deacon Liu nodded approvingly. “Good. You have the root, and you practice the Green Grain Qi Cultivation Method. That qualifies you.”

He leaned forward. “Exchange your Major Merit for a piece of Thousand-Year Sunkwood Heart. It comes from the Ancestral Tree at our mountain gate. If you hold it while cultivating, it will grant you additional Spirit Breath growth daily for three months, bypassing your normal limit.”

“This synergy requires the sect’s technique, a Wood root, and the Ancestral Tree’s wood. All three are indispensable. It is a blessing left by our Patriarch.”

Deacon Liu’s eyes took on a nostalgic glaze. “When the Patriarch arrived from foreign lands with his Single Wood Spirit Root, he founded Wanchun Valley, planted the Spirit-Connecting Tree, and passed down the arts…”

He caught himself digressing. “Anyway. Do you want to exchange for it?”

“I am willing,” Han Yu said immediately. “Is my merit sufficient?”

“One Major Merit for one piece. Exactly right.”

“The value of a Major Merit lies in accessing treasures that Minor Merits cannot buy,” Deacon Liu said with a smile. He appreciated this disciple—bold, focused, and eager to advance despite his poor talent. The wood was a perfect fit.

The large stone tablet in the hall flashed with spiritual light, erasing the “Major Merit” from Han Yu’s jade token.

Deacon Liu retrieved a seven-foot-long jade box from the vault.

When he opened it, a wave of pure spiritual energy washed over them. Inside, submerged in nurturing liquid, lay dozens of thin, ring-shaped slices of brownish-green wood.

Deacon Liu transferred one slice into a palm-sized jade box filled with fresh liquid and handed it to Han Yu.

“It is effective for three months of cultivation.”

“After that, the wood becomes inert for training, but you can take it to the Artifact Refining Department. It remains excellent material for crafting a Magical Artifact.”

Han Yu accepted the box with both hands and bowed.

He left the hall, his mind racing. He had considered spending his remaining thirty-five Minor Merits on Foundation Establishment talismans, but decided against it. A Qi Refining level two disciple buying high-level nukes would attract too much suspicion.

He secured the jade box in his Storage Bag and stepped onto his Plantain Leaf. Instead of returning to the fields, he steered toward the Medicine Garden.

The Medicine Garden had suffered the worst casualties during the raid. The sect had transferred many Outer Disciples there to fill the gaps, including Sun Kang and Liu Lan.

Since he was passing by, he decided to pay them a visit.