Chapter 399: Spirit Rice Planning

Chen Mobai recalled what the sunglasses-wearing girl from the Divine Mechanism Pavilion had told him when she divined his fortune. He would face three tribulations when forming his Golden Core. One of these was the Heavenly Tribulation for Golden Core formation; he had initially wondered what it was, but now he understood. This meant that to avoid this tribulation, he simply needed to form his Golden Core within the Immortal Sect. With this, he would have overcome two of the three Golden Core tribulations. All he needed was to perfect his internal cultivation, ensuring his divine sense could guide the Golden Core formation process without being disturbed by inner demons. Then, there would be no major problems.

As Chen Mobai pondered, the dark clouds above the Evergreen Wood turned deep red, quickly bursting into fierce flames—a true fire cloud. Hong He and others had already stood up, watching strands of orange-red flames fall from the sky. Meng Hong's figure emerged, erupting with pure Skywood divine light. Centered around the fourth-tier Evergreen Wood beneath him, he activated a domain array. Beams of Skywood divine light shot skyward, colliding with the tribulation fire. Due to the elemental suppression, the Skywood divine light began to ignite and dissipate inch by inch. However, Meng Hong leveraged the geographical advantage, using the Evergreen Wood to power the grand array. As long as his divine sense was sufficient, he could continuously generate Skywood divine light. Moreover, as time passed, the Skywood divine light, after being tempered by the tribulation fire, transformed from its original pure verdant hue to a dark, profound blue-green, no longer collapsing on contact.

"It seems passing the Heavenly Tribulation won't be a problem?" Chen Mobai couldn't help but sigh in relief at the sight.

"Not necessarily," Hong He shook his head, voicing his concern. "This is just the beginning. Heavenly tribulations usually last for several days and nights. Elder Meng is at his peak vitality now, so the tribulation isn't a concern. The fear is not being able to endure until the very end." Hearing this, Chen Mobai's face also showed worry.

Just then, from two other Evergreen Woods, two earth-shattering aurae burst forth, transforming into two rising azure suns that shot beyond Giant Wood Ridge.

"Which fellow Daoist is peering?" Zhou Shengqing's sharp voice rang out. It seemed there were unexpected visitors during Meng Hong's critical moment of Golden Core formation.

"Don't worry, we're just here to observe, nothing else." Two streaks of spiritual light bloomed in mid-air, revealing two familiar figures. The one speaking was Nan Shidao, and beside him was Ji Zhensheng.

"Leave immediately, or I will consider it a provocation! Once Meng Hong forms his Golden Core, our Divine Wood Sect will undoubtedly mobilize all forces and raze your Trembling Mountain Peak and Six Armors Mountain to the ground!" Zhou Shengqing's words were icy. A divine tree in Giant Wood Ridge glowed with dark green divine light, which transformed into deep green currents swirling around his entire body, subtly forming lightning, making him appear like a Wood God.

"Hehehe, alright, alright." Nan Shidao merely chuckled lightly, with no real intention of fighting Zhou Shengqing, the top master of the Eastern Desolation. He and Ji Zhensheng exchanged glances, then silently flew backward, leaving the vicinity of Giant Wood Ridge.

Zhou Shengqing and Fu Zongjue didn't trust them at all. After a brief discussion, Zhou Shengqing followed Ji Zhensheng and the other, watching them fly out of Jian Guo's territory, while Fu Zongjue remained guarding Giant Wood Ridge.

"Even though we know it's a 'lure the tiger out of the mountains' strategy, we still have no choice but to follow it," Chen Mobai sighed, seeing Zhou Shengqing, the sect's strongest, being led away by Ji Zhensheng and the other. As individuals with deep animosity towards the Divine Wood Sect, if they saw Meng Hong showing real signs of successfully forming his Golden Core, they might stop at nothing to prevent it. Thus, Zhou Shengqing had to treat the situation with utmost caution.

"It's still due to the sect's insufficient foundation. If we had a Nascent Soul Ancestor guarding us, how would these mere clowns dare to show up?" Hong He said calmly, leaving Chen Mobai unsure how to respond.

"Elder Meng's Golden Core formation will likely have its success rate drop by another twenty percent due to this interference," Chen Mobai sighed, his face filled with worry. Fortunately, Ji Zhensheng and the other currently dared not completely fall out with the Divine Wood Sect. So, after retreating from Jian Guo's border, they stopped within the neighboring Snow Country. Zhou Shengqing didn't pursue them into Snow Country, as it was the territory of the Blowing Snow Palace. However, Kong Lingling pretended not to notice two Golden Core ancestors in her territory, allowing Ji Zhensheng and Nan Shidao to stand on the border between Jian Guo and Snow Country, confronting Zhou Shengqing.

"I must find an opportunity to eliminate these two factions." Zhou Shengqing looked at his two old adversaries across from him, secretly calculating how to initiate a second sect war.

Meanwhile, at Giant Wood Ridge, Fu Zongjue encountered two strange adversaries. One was a Golden Core ghost cultivator, possessing the physical body of a ghost-child primordial embryo, enveloped in shadow. Beside him was Madam Guo, whom Chen Mobai knew very well. Fu Zongjue did not act rashly, directly activating the power of Giant Wood Ridge's grand array. However, these two ghost cultivators did not attack. They merely stood outside the array, silently observing the phenomena of Meng Hong's Golden Core formation.

In the blink of an eye, two days passed. Meng Hong was simultaneously forming his Golden Core, hoping to transform his false core into a true one, and controlling the Skywood Divine Light Array to resist the descending tribulation fire and lightning. It was extremely arduous. Chen Mobai and others personally witnessed Meng Hong consuming various heavenly treasures and miraculous elixirs, including a piece of Soaring Void Immortal Ganoderma. Relying on elixirs and geographical advantage, Meng Hong finally persevered until the final core condensation. A wisp of golden light illuminated his Dantian Qi Sea. This golden light permeated his body, illuminating the surrounding void. The sky-filling tribulation fire, illuminated by the golden light, seemed to lose energy and began to extinguish.

"Did he succeed?" Chen Mobai's face lit up with surprise and joy at the sight.

"Half-successful. Next are the inner demons and the final part of the Heavenly Tribulation," Hong He sighed. Meng Hong had already used all his trump cards, yet he had only managed to condense the Golden Core. This Golden Core formation was practically doomed to fail!

As expected, on the fourth day, Meng Hong's face suddenly turned pale, a wisp of black qi flashed across his brow, and then the golden light in his Dantian Qi Sea abruptly dimmed, finally disappearing. The tribulation fire, originally extremely fierce and seemingly brewing a final powerful offensive, also vanished into thin air in the blink of an eye, as if it had received a signal. The sky became clear and bright once more. But the mood of the Divine Wood Sect disciples was grim.

After Meng Hong's Golden Core formation failed, the Golden Core ghost cultivator didn't linger, directly taking Madam Guo and leaving the skies above Giant Wood Ridge. Before long, Zhou Shengqing, his face as still as water, returned. The two ancestors first landed by the Evergreen Wood where Meng Hong was, gave him a healing elixir, and then called up Chu Zuoshu. Chu Zuoshu then came down and dismissed all the Divine Wood Sect Foundation Establishment cultivators nearby.

"Master's Golden Core formation failed, and he needs to recuperate. I will take care of him," E Yun said, expressing his wish to Chu Zuoshu.

"Mu Yuan will take care of Senior Brother Meng. However, since you've shown your sincerity, you two senior brothers can stay and look after him for a while," Chu Zuoshu thought about it and agreed. Zhou Wangshen also immediately spoke up in agreement. Thus, all three of Meng Hong's Foundation Establishment disciples remained. As for Chen Mobai, he left with Hong He, obeying the sect master's command.

"Forming a Golden Core is difficult indeed!" Yuan Chiye walked with them, sighing genuinely along the way, having lost confidence in his own Golden Core formation.

"In the neighboring Eastern Barbarian territory, the three great sects are willing to shelter rogue cultivators for Golden Core formation if enough spirit stones are paid. In the future, if I get the chance, I might not form my Golden Core within Giant Wood Ridge," Hong He suddenly said. The three great sects in Eastern Barbarian territory all had Nascent Soul Ancestors. Providing Golden Core formation venues for rogue cultivators was a significant source of income for them.

"The main issue is that our sect has too many adversaries in the Eastern Desolation. If we could just clear them all out, there wouldn't actually be any problems," Chen Mobai pointed out the core issue incisively. The Divine Wood Sect had been too complacent recently. Neither Meng Hong nor even the two ancestors had anticipated that someone would actually seize this opportunity to show up. Although they didn't engage in direct combat, they created enough deterrence for Meng Hong. Golden Core formation was inherently a highly subjective matter. After being disturbed by Ji Zhensheng, Nan Shidao, and the two ghost cultivators, Meng Hong's failure to form his Golden Core was only natural. However, this might also be because they had too high-profilely called back E Yun and others a few days prior, letting outsiders know the timing of Meng Hong's Golden Core formation.

"Junior Brother Chen, after you and I form our Golden Cores, do you think it would be easier to destroy Trembling Mountain Peak first, or Six Armors Mountain?" Hong He asked, surprising Chen Mobai.

"Senior Brother Hong has such confidence in forming his Golden Core!"

"With my talent, there's an eighty to ninety percent chance I'll form my Golden Core. If you fail, Junior Brother, I'd be very disappointed." Hong He's words left Yuan Chiye, standing nearby, unsure how to comment.

"Then let's destroy Trembling Mountain Peak first," Chen Mobai thought for a moment and gave this answer.

"First Trembling Mountain Peak, then Six Armors Mountain. By then, half of the spiritual vein lands in the northern Eastern Desolation will fall into our Divine Wood Sect's hands. We'll practically control all the spiritual lands bordering Cloud Dream Lake. Junior Brother Chen, your thoughts truly align with mine."

"What about after Trembling Mountain Peak and Six Armors Mountain? Senior Brother Hong, when do you think we should make a move on the Five Elements Sect?" Hong He was speaking with a self-satisfied expression when Chen Mobai suddenly asked something that choked him up.

"The Five Elements Sect... I'm afraid they won't be easy to deal with."

"If the two of us form our Golden Cores, plus Junior Sister Yin with her Heavenly Spirit Root, that would make five Golden Core cultivators in our sect. And if we include Martial Uncle Mo from Golden Light Cliff, wouldn't reclaiming the orthodox Five Elements lineage be a rather easy task?" Chen Mobai retorted. Although the Eastern Desolation was known as a barren land in the Eastern Region, its spiritual vein resources already far surpassed any Daoist academy in the Immortal Sect. If fully controlled, it could nurture several Nascent Soul Venerables. If capable, he wanted to unify the entire Eastern Desolation with the power of the Divine Wood Sect.

"What Junior Brother says makes some sense." Hong He hadn't thought so far ahead originally. After Chen Mobai's prompting, he suddenly felt that this endeavor had great potential. Furthermore, his cultivation required the aid of Cloud Dream Lake, a vast body of water. If he could truly unify the Eastern Desolation, then in the future, let alone forming a Golden Core, he might even have hope of forming a Nascent Soul.

"After Trembling Mountain Peak and Six Armors Mountain, why don't we first eliminate Blowing Snow Palace and Returning Heaven Valley as well, and then finally target the Five Elements Sect?" Hong He thought for a moment, adjusting his plan. He believed the Five Elements Sect was the strongest, and might even have hidden foundations left by a Hunyuan Ancestor, so it was better to leave them for last.

"I'm just afraid that after we destroy Trembling Mountain Peak and Six Armors Mountain, the Five Elements Sect will come at us before we even make a move on Blowing Snow Palace and Returning Heaven Valley," Chen Mobai shook his head. If he were the sect master of the Five Elements Sect, once he discovered the Divine Wood Sect had more than three Golden Core cultivators, he would certainly start forming alliances, at the very least supporting Trembling Mountain Peak and Six Armors Mountain to drag the Divine Wood Sect into a quagmire of sect war.

"Then we'll just have to play it by ear. Or, perhaps we could both form our Golden Cores in an outer domain, and after Junior Sister Yin forms hers, Junior Brother Chen and I return. Then, we directly reveal five Golden Cores and sweep across the Eastern Desolation with overwhelming force," Hong He's words were filled with schemes. Chen Mobai felt this strategy wasn't unfeasible. So, he sat down with Hong He halfway, took out a map of the Eastern Desolation, and the two began to deduce the fastest and most efficient way to flatten the Eastern Desolation, given the Divine Wood Sect possessing five Golden Core cultivators. Yuan Chiye, listening nearby, continuously wiped sweat from his forehead. He never expected these two could actually agree on such a thing!

Over the next few days, Hong He visited Chen Mobai whenever he had time. The latter, also concerned about Meng Hong's injuries after his Golden Core formation failure, stayed in Divine Wood City for a few more days.

Half a month later, E Yun sent good news. Although Meng Hong's Golden Core formation failed, he didn't forcefully push it, and coupled with the characteristics of the Evergreen Immortality Scripture, he only needed two to three years of recuperation to largely recover. However, after this, Meng Hong, being too old and severely depleted of vitality, no longer had a chance to attempt Golden Core formation again. If he were to still forcefully attempt Golden Core formation, then success would be the only option, as failure would mean death.

"Master is still in a fairly good mood. He said that at least he used this Golden Core formation attempt to draw out those who harbored ill intentions towards the sect," E Yun said with a sigh of emotion. If not for this Golden Core formation attempt, he truly wouldn't have known how many wolves and tigers were secretly coveting the Divine Wood Sect.

"Senior Brother, since you've been guarding outside for a long time, you need to be extra careful," Chen Mobai said. He himself guarded Jian Guo, usually either at Giant Wood Ridge or in the Immortal Sect. Plus, having mastered Sword Fiend, he had the power to resist Golden Core cultivators, so he was relatively safe. But E Yun and the others were different. They often had to go to Cloud Dream Lake, the most dangerous and chaotic place in the Eastern Desolation. If they were targeted by someone with ill intentions, they could suffer greatly.

"Don't worry, Martial Uncle Nujiang of the Water Vein also guards Cloud Dream Lake. He has a good relationship with Ancestor Zhou and Ancestor Fu. If we encounter real danger, we can just hide in his Wind Rain Dock." Chen Mobai nodded upon hearing this.

"I bear the responsibility of guarding Yun Guo. Now that Master is out of danger, I also need to leave the sect. In the future, Junior Brother Xiao will take care of Master, and I hope Junior Brother Chen can look in on him when you have time."

"Certainly!" Even without E Yun's request, Chen Mobai had planned to visit Meng Hong after a while. After all, this former sect master had been very good to him.

E Yun left with Hong He. After they left, no one else came to visit. Yu Lian had long since been reassigned by Chu Zuoshu to Lone Soul Ridge. This time, however, it seemed Fu Zongjue dispatched a puppet body for him to take along. After all, the Void Stone mine was incredibly precious, and since ghost cultivators knew about that place, it was better to be safe.

Half a month later, Chen Mobai brought the second-tier Jade Bamboo spirit rice he had ripened with Azure Wood Divine Thunder to visit Meng Hong.

"You came all this way, why bring gifts?" Meng Hong had moved away from the Evergreen Wood's location and was now living in the courtyard where he usually fished. This place was also a third-tier spiritual land in Giant Wood Ridge, with small mountains, streams, forests, and a sea of flowers, considered a scenic spot within the sect.

"Spirit rice replenishes vitality, Elder. Eat more, and you'll recover faster." Chen Mobai handed the individually sawn Jade Bamboo spirit rice stalks to Mu Yuan, who thanked him, accepted them, and left to cook the rice.

"Oh, you brat actually managed to cultivate second-tier spirit rice. This stuff takes ten years to mature. Except for the Spirit Plant Department, which the sect forces to maintain a hundred-mu scale, no other sect cultivators actually bother planting it." As the former sect master, Meng Hong was very clear about the scale and yield of Jade Bamboo spirit rice. To diversify spirit rice distribution channels and prevent major merchant guilds from monopolizing it, the sect had invested heavily in supporting spirit rice cultivation. First-tier spirit rice was manageable, as it matured in one year and offered ten times the sect contribution points, so many Qi Condensation cultivators were willing to plant it. However, second-tier Jade Bamboo spirit rice required ten years of careful cultivation from sowing to harvest, so virtually no Qi Condensation cultivators were willing to undertake it. Qi Condensation cultivators generally took tasks from the Spirit Treasure Pavilion with the aim of earning a quick sum. The cultivation of Jade Bamboo spirit rice dragged on for too long. And in ten years, cultivating spiritual herbs would yield even more.

"I've improved some rice strains and cultivated 'Phoenix Tear Bamboo' spirit rice, which has a slightly inferior taste but matures in just six years—it's also a second-tier spirit rice. Additionally, I've crossbred Green Ridge spirit rice with Jade Bud spirit rice, and three samples have also grown to second-tier. If the latter's breeding is truly completed, I am confident I can compress the maturation cycle of second-tier spirit rice to three years, thereby achieving self-sufficiency in second-tier spirit rice." Within the sect, although high-ranking figures like Chu Zuoshu knew spirit rice was important, they had no means to change the current situation. While Chen Mobai wished to fill Giant Wood Ridge with spirit rice, one person's wisdom was limited. It just so happened that he was visiting Meng Hong today. As the former sect master, Meng Hong knew all the difficulties and could help Chen Mobai analyze whether they could be resolved.

"Rice strains are indeed key. If you've truly managed to improve a second-tier spirit rice strain that matures in three years, then perhaps in ten years, every Foundation Establishment cultivator in the sect could truly eat second-tier spirit rice every month," Meng Hong remarked with emotion. The Divine Wood Sect currently had 78 Foundation Establishment cultivators, but only one hundred mu of second-tier Jade Bamboo spirit rice was cultivated. These hundred mu of spirit rice were a fixed amount; it wasn't that a hundred mu were rotated annually, but rather that after these hundred mu matured and were harvested, they would be replanted in the same location. In other words, the Divine Wood Sect could only harvest one hundred mu of Jade Bamboo spirit rice once every ten years. Each mu yielded about three hundred catties on average. This amounted to roughly forty catties per person per year. This meager yield was nowhere near enough for a Foundation Establishment cultivator to eat for ten years; an ordinary Body Tempering cultivator would probably finish it in a month.

However, cultivators at the Foundation Establishment level already knew the benefits of spirit rice for the body. At least when conditions allowed, they would eat spirit rice with every meal. Once the sect-issued second-tier spirit rice ran out, they would go to external markets and merchant guilds to buy second-tier rice. If they couldn't afford second-tier, they would buy first-tier spirit rice, at least not making do with hunger pills for every meal like Qi Condensation cultivators. So, in reality, major merchant guilds like the Starry Sky Great Merchant Guild earned vast amounts of spirit stones annually in the Eastern Desolation through second-tier spirit rice. As for third-tier spirit rice, it went without saying. Golden Core ancestors never deprived themselves; even if the entire sect suffered hardship, the ancestors' rations would not be reduced. Most of the high-grade spirit stones in the Eastern Desolation were collected by those large merchant guilds through third-tier spirit rice. First-tier spirit rice cost one low-grade spirit stone for ten catties, second-tier spirit rice cost one mid-grade spirit stone for ten catties, and third-tier spirit rice cost one high-grade spirit stone for ten catties.

"First, solve the issue of second-tier spirit rice. As long as we cultivate more new rice strains, individual cases breaking through to third-tier will appear in the future. Then, cultivating these special cases to fill Giant Wood Ridge with third-tier spirit rice is not impossible either." As the top student in agronomy at the Dancing Artifacts Dao Academy, Chen Mobai was full of confidence in cultivating third-tier spirit rice in Giant Wood Ridge, a place rich in spiritual energy. However, one must eat one bite at a time. Currently, the Divine Wood Sect didn't even have enough second-tier spirit rice output.

"There aren't enough spiritual fields. Most of Giant Wood Ridge's second and third-tier spiritual lands are used for cultivating medicinal herbs. The sect cannot abandon this broader market for spirit rice," Meng Hong sighed. If one didn't eat spirit rice, there were hunger pills. But without elixirs, many people's cultivation would stagnate, leading to chaos within the sect.

"Doesn't the sect have a lot of barren land? If it could be reclaimed, it could add thousands of mu of spiritual fields." Chen Mobai had also spent two years in the Spirit Plant Department and knew that Giant Wood Ridge was vast but sparsely populated. Aside from the medicinal fields in the plains that were already occupied, many spiritual lands lay waste due to a lack of people. When Chen Mobai first joined the sect, he had personally reclaimed ten mu of spiritual fields. For example, the area of Little Southern Mountain, if he hadn't occupied it, would still be barren.

"Insufficient manpower," Meng Hong shook his head. "And even if the sect ordered people to reclaim it, the subsequent planting and maintenance would still require spirit plant cultivators. Thousands of mu of spiritual fields would need at least a hundred entry-level spirit plant cultivators, and the entire Spirit Plant Department combined only has that many, with most busy guarding medicinal fields." He agreed with Chen Mobai's idea in principle, but if this difficulty couldn't be resolved, it would remain just wishful thinking.

"If there's insufficient manpower, couldn't puppets be used instead?" Chen Mobai proposed his idea, which Meng Hong didn't understand, looking bewildered. The Immortal Sect had long achieved fully mechanized spirit plant management for large-scale cultivation; manual sowing and cultivation were rare. The Immortal Sect's spirit plant cultivators primarily focused their efforts on breeding and cultivating new species, such as Wenren Xuewei's new tea or Chen Mobai's agricultural spirit rice hybridization. Chen Mobai felt it was necessary for him to use the Immortal Sect's successful farming experience to benefit the Divine Wood Sect. Meng Hong's eyes brightened as he listened, feeling exhilarated and drawn in by the prospect Chen Mobai described.

"Elaborate!"