Chapter Thirty-Two: Wen Yue’s Perception

Upon returning, Wen Yue found the table still laden with food. Having no appetite, she gathered everything into her storage space, deciding to save it for later.

She hadn't yet dealt with the tiger skin. After a simple inspection, she scraped off the layer of fat on the hide but left the rest as it was; she hadn't learned the proper processing techniques yet, but the fat had to go regardless. Tossing the hide into her storage space, she set it aside.

Then there were the entrails. They were edible, but lacking the patience to process them, she used a Golden Blade Technique to mince everything in the basin, turning it into high-quality fertilizer.

Suddenly, she remembered the second-level Qi Refining porcupine she had forgotten. This was easier to handle. She took it out, skinned it with a sickle, and removed the entrails, which she also minced. There was quite a lot of waste; the organs from both animals filled several large iron basins.

Wen Yue decided to use this as fertilizer for her arrow bamboo patch. Bamboo thrived on rich soil, so there was no risk of over-fertilizing.

Having spells at her disposal was a blessing. She had planted the bamboo in neat rows, so she simply used the Earth Manipulation Technique to carve out trenches. However, having only just mastered the spell, she practiced on a patch of empty ground several times before daring to work on the actual field, fearing she might accidentally destroy the seedlings.

Holding the hand seal, Wen Yue slowly carved the furrows, feeling a sense of satisfaction. Even though this was far more exhausting than using a hoe, it was magic! She had a soft spot for spells, always feeling they were more sophisticated. Her ultimate goal was to free her hands; if a task could be done without manual labor, it was a simple task. Perhaps it was the residual laziness from her past life acting up.

It took her one or two hours to carve just six trenches. If she had used a hoe, she would have likely finished spreading the fertilizer and covering it with soil by now. But since this was a newly learned spell, she figured a slow pace was acceptable.

Once the trenches were ready, she used the Object Manipulation Technique to scatter the entrails into them, then used the Earth Covering Technique to bury them.

At some point, Little Gold Silk had wandered over to the edge of the field, looking at her master with deep skepticism.

"Master, you're really looking for trouble. It took you all afternoon to do this little bit of work, and you've exhausted yourself."

"What do you know? This is farming," Wen Yue insisted, seeing no issue.

"I know that! You would have been done long ago if you'd just used a hoe."

"But I'm honing my spellwork!"

"What does that mean?" Little Gold Silk operated entirely on instinct; surely spells were just things you used?

"I'm striving for instant casting. I want to be able to trigger a spell the moment I think of it, to use magic as freely as I wish. Plus, you know my spiritual energy is dense; if I can achieve instant casting, the damage output will be entirely different." This was Wen Yue’s ideal—an unverified one, but an ideal nonetheless.

"Oh! I see! Then do I need to think of some spells too?" Little Gold Silk was keen to keep up with her master and feared falling behind.

"Little Gold Silk, you're putting pressure on your master!"

"What pressure?"

"You're already so capable, and yet you work so hard. How can I, your master, possibly keep up?"

"But I still couldn't beat that old man next door," Little Gold Silk said, clearly dissatisfied with herself.

"You know he's an old man; how can you compare yourself to him? You've only been cultivating for less than a year."

"He wouldn't go easy on us in a fight just because I've only been cultivating for a year! Just like that wicked woman yesterday—she only picked on us because she thought Master was small and weak." The memory made her shudder. If Master died, she would die too; such was the price of a blood-bound contract.

"You're right. I'm not even as wise as you. Thank you, Little Gold Silk." Influenced by her past life's education, Wen Yue had been cautious, favoring a gradual approach, or she would have advanced to the fifth level of Qi Refining already.

"Master, what kind of spell do you think I should cultivate next?" Little Gold Silk envied the variety of spells at Wen Yue's disposal.

"Don't you plant-spirits rely on instinct in battle? Your current skills—entanglement, strangulation, and direct energy absorption through your root system—are already formidable. Not to mention your whip attacks. I can't think of anything else you need. If there's any weakness, it's that your stems aren't tough enough; you'd be at a disadvantage against swords."

"That wicked woman's blade nearly cut me yesterday," Little Gold Silk said, still fearful.

"As your spiritual energy level rises, the strength of your stems will naturally increase. No need to rush." In Wen Yue's eyes, Little Gold Silk was nearly indestructible; as long as Wen Yue lived, the plant-spirit was very difficult to kill.

"When it comes down to it, my strength is just too weak. Forget it, I'm going back to cultivate!" With that, she scampered off.

"Little Gold Silk is truly diligent," Wen Yue remarked, watching her leave.

Seeing such diligence filled Wen Yue with motivation. Since she had depleted her spiritual energy while working, this was the perfect time to cultivate. She didn't return to the house, choosing instead to sit in the courtyard. Having reached the fourth level of Qi Refining, she felt a qualitative leap from the previous levels.

In the first three levels, she could see her spiritual energy increasing with every session. But the fourth level was different; her dantian had expanded significantly, meaning the energy required to reach the fifth level was greater than the total amount needed for the first three levels combined.

Fortunately, she had resisted the temptation to advance earlier; it would have made her foundation unstable. No matter how impatient she was, she couldn't gamble with her foundation.

There were many ways to increase her strength. Since her spiritual energy cultivation was relatively easy and didn't consume much time, she decided to learn a new skill—one that would enhance her combat prowess.

Given her full-value wood spiritual roots and natural affinity for spiritual plants, alchemy seemed like a logical path. However, Wen Yue didn't intend to rely on pills to boost her energy, so their usefulness to her was limited.

She chose the most difficult path instead: array and talisman crafting. She was currently broke and lacked materials, but she could solve the material problem by crafting her own talismans, and since talismans and arrays were inseparable, she could eventually use them to set up defensive formations. Of course, that was a long way off.

She began combing through the materials provided by Ao Qing. Whether she had the aptitude or not, she would try. If it didn't work out, she would just switch. At worst, she would have to lay low in this field for a while longer.

Having made up her mind, Wen Yue dove into the documents and began to study.