Dusk deepened, and the young man sped through the scattered golden light on the ground. The roars of the monsters behind him faded, and ahead, the rich fragrance of the Heavenly Spirit Ganoderma wafted. Qing Feng's sword qi surged between his fingers, carving new trajectories in the rising night wind.
In the Thousand Moon Realm, with blades and swords clashing, everyone else was busy slaying demonic beasts and refining Blood Pills, but Qing Feng, like someone picking mushrooms, specifically targeted rare flowers and exotic herbs.
This day, he chased a Blood Ginseng that could run into a mountain cave, only to see the crimson ginseng doll floating in mid-air, its tendrils trembling like a sieve, clearly terrified by the madman's persistence.
Three hundred miles away, Elder Mo, who should have been protecting the alchemist, was stealthily chanting incantations. As he broke the fifth earth vein seal, the Blood Python's nest collapsed with a roar, and the soaring Demonic Qi stained the entire sky dark red.
“These idiots from the Beast Taming Sect, guarding a treasure mountain yet not recognizing its worth!”
He stared at the faint footprints on the ground, muttering to himself; all nine major Qi refining hubs seemed to have been gnawed clean by locusts, not even a single spiritual herb left.
At this moment, Qing Feng was crouched at the cave entrance, his eyes glinting with the green light of a hungry wolf. In his eyes, Blood Ginseng was more than just a life-saving elixir.
This sentient spiritual item was full of the essence of heaven and earth. The immense medicinal power that others could not bear was precisely the excellent fuel for him to break through to Nascent Soul. Yao Jin's notes said this item could burrow into the ground, but no matter how fast it ran, it couldn't escape the seventy-two Immortal-Trapping Talismans he had set up.
Elder Mo had no idea there was such an eccentric cultivator who specialized in plucking spiritual herbs. At this moment, he was happily rushing to the sixth seal.
As long as four more seals were broken, the Demon Sect's ultimate treasure, the Kirin Blood Vine, would appear. Then, using the power of the barrier to escape, the Beast Taming Sect wouldn't even be able to touch his shadow.
Thinking of this, his beard trembled with laughter, unaware that with each seal he broke, the Demonic Qi overflowing from underground flowed along the spiritual veins towards Qing Feng's cave.
The Blood Ginseng suddenly shivered, watching the young cultivator blocking the cave entrance pull out a pair of golden scissors. It finally understood why this madman could sweep through all the spiritual herbs in the Thousand Moon Realm. This Blood Ginseng was practically a living immortal pill, and Qing Feng was clearly a human-shaped alchemy furnace!
Ahead, sand and dust flew, and a four-inch-tall Blood Ginseng was frantically running with its roots spread out, a vivid expression of fear appearing on its body.
It sensed the murderous aura pressing closer behind it, and its heart wailed madly: The earth and wood spirits have sharply decreased recently; it turns out this damned human is sweeping up all the spiritual medicines!
In previous years, didn't trial participants hunt demonic beasts to gain breakthroughs? I've only just developed sentience and haven't even transformed yet. What use is it to you to catch me? Did you not see the ten-foot-long Scarlet Flame Tiger that darted through the forest just now? Go fight it!
The Blood Ginseng grumbled inwardly while fleeing for its life. However, the aura behind it grew closer. It hastily plunged its roots into the ground, and a yellow light emanated from its body, instantly burrowing into the earth—this was its innate life-saving skill, relying on earth Escape Technique to evade countless pursuits over thousands of years.
But this time, the situation was different. The Blood Ginseng had just emerged ten miles away to catch its breath when that deadly aura returned. It was so scared its roots trembled, and it hastily activated a second earth burrow.
Qing Feng followed unhurriedly. Although this heavenly and earthly spiritual item had no combat power, its ability to escape was unparalleled. However, after half a day of pursuit, he had figured out its pattern: this little thing could only burrow about ten miles at a time and could not go deeper than three feet underground.
“Your escape route is too monotonous,” Qing Feng chuckled. Seeing the Blood Ginseng rush into an ancient forest in a panic, where the earth qi was mixed and the soil thin, its yellow light immediately dimmed. He swiftly reached out and grabbed the wriggling ginseng firmly in his palm.
“Great Immortal, spare my life!” The Blood Ginseng trembled in its confinement, its roots curled into a ball.
Qing Feng's eyebrow twitched slightly. This spiritual item could actually speak human words, clearly having awakened complete sentience.
One must know that ordinary spiritual medicines only possess a slight spirituality, a world of difference from truly opening their wisdom.
“Although this Blood Ginseng has developed spiritual consciousness, it ultimately cannot be considered a living creature. At most, it’s a spiritual monster formed from plants.” “Great Immortal, spare my life!” The Blood Ginseng trembled its roots, its features squeezed into a fawning expression.
“What good would it do to spare your life?” Qing Feng leaned against a green bamboo, sitting on the ground. Facing such a sentient spiritual item of heaven and earth, it truly stumped him.
Plant spirits were already rare, and those that could develop such spirituality were even rarer. If he were to destroy it like this, it might go against the celestial dao.
Although this world might not necessarily emphasize karma and retribution, it was still better to find some reason.
Seeing a chance to live, the Blood Ginseng eagerly recommended itself: “This humble one can gather Qi, and accompanying Immortal Master will double the Qi refining in the vicinity. Furthermore…” It twisted its ginseng body ingratiatingly, “This humble one knows all the hidden locations of spiritual roots in the Thousand Moon Realm.”
Seeing Qing Feng raise an eyebrow, the Blood Ginseng became even more eager: “Although my cultivation is shallow, I can find Heavenly and Earthly Treasures like Yin-Yang Ganoderma, Purple Cloud Yellow Heart Peach, and Handsome Lotus for Immortal Master.” Then, it even changed its address: “If Master is willing to take me in, this little demon is willing to form a Blood Contract and serve you diligently for this life…”
“Hold on!” A vein throbbed on Qing Feng's forehead. “Who taught you to make the bed and warm the covers?” He stared at the ginseng spirit, no bigger than his palm, finding it hard to imagine how this thing could warm covers.
“Perhaps it’s residual memories from the departed souls in the place where I took root.” The Blood Ginseng shrank its roots. “Since I developed spiritual consciousness, there have been some Random Thoughts in my sea of consciousness.”
With a flick of Qing Feng's finger, a drop of essence blood merged into the ginseng's body, and the Blood Ginseng obediently accepted the master-servant contract.
Upon sensing their souls connected, the little spirit actually hopped to the ground joyfully, gripping its fine tendrils to massage its master's back.
Qing Feng squinted, musing: When they return to the sect, he would teach it the art of regeneration. Then, these ginseng tendrils could be used as needed, truly wonderful.
“Master, please look, ahead is the Yin-Yang Ganoderma!”
“Three miles north, there’s a Purple Cloud Yellow Heart Peach, eating it extends life by a hundred years!”
“That Handsome Lotus on West Peak is best for strengthening the foundation and cultivating vitality.”
The Blood Ginseng hopped and led the way, confusing Qing Feng: “How do you know the spiritual items of the Thousand Moon Realm so well?” Could it be that these plants, which hadn't developed sentience, could communicate with it?
Cannot communicate! What's so good about this broken place?
“I've already explored this entire area. When I encountered spiritual medicines with unique properties, I marked them and waited for them to mature before devouring their essence to transform,” the Blood Ginseng replied, shaking its root tendrils.
Qing Feng shook his head upon hearing this.
Even in the human world, there were moral restraints, but cultivators had long since proven their dao through killing. What more in this Mystic Realm where the strong preyed on the weak?
He weighed the nearly bursting Qiankun Bag in his hand. The spiritual herbs he had plundered over half a month piled up into a small mountain, proving more substantial than his fellow disciples' desperate struggles.
“Master, hurry! The good stuff is all ahead. We need to pack it all up and take it before the Mystic Realm closes.” The Blood Ginseng scurried ahead, kicking up yellow dust, its diligence making Qing Feng feel ashamed.
Once the last mature spiritual herb was bagged, the red ginseng fawningly massaged his knee: “Next, shall we hunt demonic beasts? I know which ones have the fattest Blood Pills.”
“Fighting and killing is boring,” Qing Feng stretched lazily. “Let's find a place with abundant Qi refining and sleep until the Mystic Realm closes.”
The Blood Pills in his embrace were enough to heal Great Black's injuries. As for his Golden Core Ninth Level cultivation, the Blood Pills of Foundation Establishment demonic beasts were merely a drop in the bucket. It was better to catch up on sleep. This half-month of rushing around was much more tiring than cultivating.
“Sleep?” The Blood Ginseng tilted its ginseng head, full of questions. It remembered that cultivators were supposed to fight for treasures and break through realms, weren't they?
“Sleeping well leads to living longer. Where is the Qi refining most abundant?”