The autumn harvest is almost over, and now is the perfect time to fertilize the fields. If we delay, we'll miss this batch of winter wheat.
...
Lu Yuanshan opened his mouth to speak but then stopped.
Never mind cultivation for now, just talking about farming, this kid is quite professional?
After the mountains and hills, there was a vast plain.
The Ten Thousand Acres of Spiritual Fields made Lu Chen's eyes light up from the Magic Treasure flying boat.
Lu Yuanshan hadn't expected that both Lu Chen and Lu Qiangwei would get seasick and have a fear of heights.
Lu Chen also hadn't expected that the Tian Yuan Merchant Guild had such a strong foundation.
When the Magic Treasure flying boat took off from Panlong City, many young men and women who had joined the Tianlong Gate and Bi Yun Sect regretted it, beating their chests and stamping their feet.
They prided themselves on stepping onto the Immortal Dao, future cultivators who would stir up storms, yet they boarded the flying boat later than common mortals.
"One hundred acres, are you sure you can do it by yourself?"
"Whether I can or not, you'll soon find out."
"Your talent must be good; Sifang City also has better Cultivation Techniques..."
"Let's look at the Spiritual Fields first."
...
In Sifang City, the Magic Treasure flying boat landed on the port platform.
Merchant Guild flying boats were taking off and landing, and there were also flying boats from unknown Immortal Sects.
After stepping onto solid ground, Lu Chen's stomach stopped churning, and Lu Qiangwei's face was no longer pale.
"Vice Presidents, how is it... over there?"
A graceful young woman walked over quickly, asking in a low voice.
"Everything is normal, the intelligence was inaccurate." Lu Yuanshan shook his head gently and pointed at Lu Chen, saying, "Arrange one hundred acres of land for him."
"Ah?" Steward Lu Rong's expression froze.
Lu Yuanshan said helplessly, "This kid asked for it himself."
"Okay." Lu Rong nodded, and a booklet appeared in her hand as if by magic. She flipped through it, then looked at the Spiritual Fields outside the city.
"There's a Spiritual Field in the southeast of Sifang City, with three households farming it. They don't want to farm anymore, so you go; it's exactly one hundred acres."
Lu Rong said, then added, "As for accommodation, do you want to live near the East City Gate or the South City Gate?"
"Why do I have to live near the city gate?" Lu Chen asked.
Lu Rong smiled, pointing at the city wall and saying, "A thirty-foot city wall, only those at the Body Refinement Realm Ninth Level can easily climb over it. Even then, you have to greet the guard soldiers; they won't let you use a ladder or rope. Living near the city gate makes it closer to the fields."
"I can jump up there." Lu Chen said, looking up.
Lu Rong looked doubtfully at Lu Yuanshan, who was walking away. Is he really letting such a promising talent farm?
Even letting him participate in the Immortal Sect New Disciple Assembly would be more than enough, right?
"Try it." Lu Rong made a 'please' gesture.
Lu Chen took a deep breath, lowered his body, and then pushed off with both feet.
As the stone slab beneath his feet cracked, Lu Chen's body shot up onto the city wall like a firecracker.
By the time he jumped down from the city wall, Lu Rong had already chosen Lu Chen's residence.
She didn't choose it according to the standard for ordinary clerks for Lu Chen, but rather according to the standard for key cultivation targets of the Merchant Guild.
"You can come to the Merchant Guild to find me for anything. Here are the locations of the Spiritual Field and your residence."
Lu Rong gave Lu Chen two maps.
Lu Chen took the maps and headed straight for the Spiritual Fields along the city wall.
"The Merchant Guild only sent a kid like you to negotiate?"
In front of the field, a tall, thin middle-aged man sat on a lounge chair with his legs crossed, a blade of grass in his mouth, looking at Lu Chen askance.
Lu Chen ignored him and picked up the hoe on the ground.
The entire Spiritual Field had not been cultivated, let alone fertilized; its progress was far behind the adjacent Spiritual Fields.
"What, are you going to hit me now?"
Chen Mu stiffened and sat upright.
"Are you a Merchant Guild clerk?" Lu Chen asked.
"Asking the obvious, I'm a tenant! I'm not under your Merchant Guild's jurisdiction!" Chen Mu said, "If you dare to hit me, I'll report you to the City Guard Commander!"
"I won't hit you. I just want to remind you that this land is mine now. You three families should quickly find some work. While everyone is busy with farming, work is easy to find now."
Lu Chen said.
Chen Mu's expression changed, and his tone hardened: "Don't try to scare me! If it's a four-six split, then it's a four-six split. If you don't agree, this land will just remain barren! Anyway, there are no idle people to farm this land now!"
"Four-six? Who gets four and who gets six?" Lu Chen asked curiously.
"Of course, we get four, and your Merchant Guild gets six."
"That's so exploitative? When I was farming in Qingquan Town in Panlong City, it was a five-five split with the landlord!" Lu Chen said.
"Right, you think so too!"
Chen Mu was a bit surprised, momentarily unable to tell if Lu Chen was friend or foe.
"What kind of rice and wheat are grown in the fields, what's the yield per acre, and how much silver can it sell for?"
Lu Chen continued to ask.
Chen Mu frowned and explained, "Luyue Rice and Luyue Wheat, with a yield of a thousand catties per acre. Two harvests a year make two thousand catties, and one catty sells for one tael of silver."
Lu Chen gasped, no wonder Lu Daye said he wanted to get rich!
When he was farming in Qingquan Town, the yield per acre was the same, but one hundred catties only sold for one tael of silver.
But here, one acre of land yields two thousand taels a year, and one hundred acres would be two hundred thousand taels of silver a year!
A five-five split would still leave him with one hundred thousand taels of silver!
Lu Chen couldn't help but look at the money box Lu Qiangwei was holding, which contained Lu Chen's "huge sum" saved over the years: three hundred taels of silver!
"Where did the Merchant Guild recruit a bumpkin like you? In Sifang City, decent places all use Spirit Stones!"
"One Spirit Stone is ten taels of gold! One hundred thousand taels of silver is only a thousand Spirit Stones."
"According to the current two-eight split, after deducting miscellaneous expenses like seeds and fertilizer, a year's hard work isn't even enough to order a courtesan in Xianyun Pavilion!"
Chen Mu said repeatedly.
Lu Chen casually said, "Just farm, why are you ordering courtesans?"
"You haven't even grown all your hair yet, why do you think I'm ordering courtesans?"
... Lu Chen.
"Isn't it for listening to songs in Jinxiao? Those are songs sung by cultivators!"
... Lu Chen.
Lu Chen calculated on his fingers; even with a two-eight split, he could still earn one hundred eighty Spirit Stones a year.
A thousand taels of gold, ten thousand taels of silver—if this were before, he wouldn't even dare to dream this big!
Lu Chen shook his head and got ready to work in the field.
"What exactly are you here for?" Chen Mu walked beside Lu Chen, examining him closely up and down.
"Didn't you see? I'm here to farm."
"Why are you farming my land?"
"Steward Lu Rong said that your three families don't want to farm anymore, so this land is mine. Seriously, you should hurry up and find work. Once everyone finishes their busy farming season, jobs will be really hard to find."
Lu Chen said kindly.
"Kid, are you messing with me?" Chen Mu's eyes widened.
Lu Chen ignored him and struck the ground with a hoe.
"Alright, alright, playing mind games with me, you're too green, I'm telling you! Let's see how you farm these hundred acres of Spiritual Fields by yourself!" Chen Mu scoffed and carried his lounge chair away.
He didn't notice, however, that Lu Chen, working in the field, was swinging his hoe faster and faster.
"My Realm is loosening!"
"As expected of a Spiritual Field!"
"My talent and potential are no longer limited to the Body Refinement Realm, but have reached the Qimai Realm!"
"In a few days, I'll be able to Breakthrough, and by the time of next year's harvest, I'll be able to Breakthrough another big chunk!"
Lu Chen's figure moved quickly through the fields, faster than farmers jogging.
A farmer in the adjacent Spiritual Field, who was fertilizing, just glanced over and was stunned into immobility.
"What is that thing digging the ground?"
"That couldn't be a person, could it?"
"He's even more like an ox or a horse than an ox or a horse!"