Chapter 161: Chapter 160: Withered Spirit Medicine

RUMBLE!

The Bishui Cave Mansion rumbled as its great doors swung open, and a figure in a black robe emerged. 𝐟𝕣𝗲𝕖𝕨𝗲𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝗲𝚕.𝗰𝚘𝐦

Seeing this, Luan Xiaochuan and the others, who were in the middle of a discussion, looked up, overjoyed.

"Your subordinates greet you, Cave Master!"

Glancing at the three of them, Qin Feng’s gaze fell upon Luan Xiaochuan. Two months had passed, and Luan Xiaochuan had actually broken through to the Condensing Vein Realm.

However, judging from his aura, his vital energy was flawed. He had clearly failed to condense a Top-grade Seed of Heaven and Earth, nor had he cultivated any Martial Arts Divine Abilities.

In fact, Qin Feng felt he was even a notch weaker than the three Outer Disciples he had killed.

"Cave Master?" As Qin Feng’s gaze fell upon him, Luan Xiaochuan’s expression changed. An immense pressure settled over his heart, as if he were being stared down by some Taigu Barbaric Beast.

’He’s this terrifyingly strong!’ Luan Xiaochuan’s face paled, and he hurriedly lowered his head. He had originally thought that after breaking through to the Condensing Vein Realm, he would at least have the ability to protect himself, even if he couldn’t stand on equal footing with Qin Feng. Now, he realized that his assumption had been completely and utterly wrong.

Under that gaze, Luan Xiaochuan felt like an ant beneath the foot of a Giant Beast.

"What happened? Was it so urgent you had to ring the Cave Mansion’s Golden Bell and call me from my seclusion?" Qin Feng retracted his gaze. After two months of cultivation, even without deliberately consuming Elixirs, he had already broken through from the Martial Arts Eighth Layer Middle Stage to the Late Stage of Martial Arts Eighth Layer Heaven.

THUMP.

Zhao Yuan dropped to his knees. "Cave Master, I deserve death! I have failed the task you entrusted to me. Please, Cave Master, deliver my punishment!"

’Zhao Yuan... Isn’t he the Steward of the Spirit Garden? Could something have happened to the Spirit Medicines inside?’

Frowning, Qin Feng looked at Zhao Yuan and said coldly, "Get to the point. What exactly happened? Did something happen to the Spirit Medicines in the Spirit Garden?"

"Cave Master... I..." Zhao Yuan’s face was flushed, his lips trembled, and the tongue-tied young man couldn’t get a single word out for the longest time.

Qin Feng’s expression darkened. He sent Zhao Yuan flying with a kick and strode quickly toward the Spirit Garden.

On the ground, blood trickled from the corner of Zhao Yuan’s mouth. He quickly wiped it away and scrambled back to his feet.

The Spirit Garden was located just a few hundred paces from the Bishui Cave Mansion, at the base of a rocky slope. Lush green grass grew along its edge, but this was no ordinary weed; they were stalks of precious medicinal herbs.

There was ginseng, Seven-leaf Nourishing Essence Grass, Bone-cleansing Grass, Antitoxic Purple Night Three-Ring Grass, and more. A type of small purple bamboo was also planted along the side.

It was a type of Half-Spirit Wood.

Generally speaking, Spirit Wood was more valuable than Spirit Grass of the same tier.

Every herb and exotic flower here was exceedingly rare and precious in the outside world.

Qin Feng was in no mood to inspect them, heading straight into the Spirit Garden.

"Lord Cave Master!" Several Low-tier Medicine Boys, who were watering the herbs and removing pests, quickly bowed their heads upon seeing the black-robed youth’s arrival.

A fence enclosed the Spirit Garden. Inside, a few stalks of Spirit Medicine emitting a faint Spiritual Light came into Qin Feng’s view.

In the center of the Spirit Garden was the Thousand-year-old Profound Yin Ginseng, which bore small purple flowers and seemed to squirm in the soil like an infant.

On a withered tree stump, drawing from the stump’s own vitality, grew the Jade Dragon Primordial Yang Flower—a crimson plant with seven orange-yellow blossoms.

Nearby was a red-and-black Yin-Yang Lotus the size of a washbasin, a Gentiana that automatically expanded and contracted like a snake’s gallbladder, a Double-headed Polygonum multiflorum, and a Red Dragon Yellow Essence.

Each and every Spirit Grass shimmered with a brilliant Spiritual Light.

On another withered tree stump, Qin Feng spotted a sickly-looking Lingzhi.

It was a Lingzhi as white as jade. Curiously, it had nine large, fleshy leaves.

This was a Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass. Having nine leaves meant it had a medicinal age of nine hundred years; it was only a century away from becoming a Thousand-Year Spirit Medicine.

Given the nature of the Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass, once it reached a thousand years of age, it was guaranteed to advance and become a Xuan-grade Spirit Medicine.

But now, the nine jade-white leaves of the Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass were dotted with small brown spots.

The brown spots were formed by an invasion of pathogenic qi.

This was a sign that it was about to wither!

If this Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass were to wither, according to the rules, Qin Feng would be penalized one Merit Point. Qin Feng currently had zero Merit Points. As per the regulations, he would inevitably be demoted to a Fourth-level Outer Disciple.

Even Bishui Cave would be repossessed.

"What in the world happened to this Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass?" Qin Feng’s gaze darkened as he looked at Zhao Yuan, who had just rushed over.

With a wry smile, Zhao Yuan wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, pursed his lips, and said, "Cave Master, I am also at a total loss. I know this Spirit Garden is the most important place on our Heavenly Red Peak, so I’ve had it guarded day and night without a moment’s negligence. As for why this Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass developed so many brown spots overnight, I truly don’t understand."

Zhao Yuan glanced at Qin Feng and said in a low voice, "However, in my opinion, the appearance of these brown spots must be due to an invasion of malevolent yin qi. It’s not incurable. As long as we bathe it with Spiritual Dew, we can surely dispel this malevolent qi and restore its vitality!"

What Zhao Yuan said happened to align perfectly with Qin Feng’s own assessment.

’Based on this insight alone, Zhao Yuan isn’t completely incompetent!’

He nodded to himself, his anger subsiding slightly. Looking at Zhao Yuan, Qin Feng asked, "If that’s the case, why haven’t you applied the Spiritual Dew?"

"Cave Master, it’s not that we are unwilling, but that we are unable!"

"Unable?"

Qin Feng’s gaze fixed on Zhao Yuan and the other two. They were considered some of the few High-tier Medicine Boys on Heavenly Red Peak, yet they hadn’t even cultivated the Little Cloud Rain Technique to the 6th Layer.

Luan Xiaochuan, being the most quick-witted, understood the question in Qin Feng’s eyes. He gave a wry smile and stepped forward to explain.

"Lord Cave Master, you may not be aware, but while every Medicine Garden Disciple learns the Little Cloud Rain Technique, it is easy to learn but difficult to master. The first three layers of this Secret Technique are extremely easy to cultivate, but it becomes progressively harder. An average Medicine Garden Disciple would struggle to break through to the 4th Layer in under two or three years. Zhao Yuan is the most talented among us, and yet even with Lord Zhao’s talent, he only barely managed to break through to the 5th Layer of the Little Cloud Rain Technique after five years of arduous cultivation."

"To cultivate the Little Cloud Rain Technique to the 6th Layer requires great insight and a fortunate opportunity!"

"Among the various peaks of the Medicine Garden, disciples who have cultivated the first five layers of the Little Cloud Rain Technique are numerous, but those who can reach the 6th Layer are few and far between!"

"Is the 6th Layer of the Little Cloud Rain Technique really that hard to cultivate?" Qin Feng was a little surprised. When he had cultivated to the 6th Layer, he recalled that aside from it taking a bit more time, the breakthrough hadn’t been difficult.

"It’s more than just difficult. Many Medicine Boys get stuck on the 5th Layer for their entire lives!" Luan Xiaochuan and the other two said with wry smiles.

"The three of us were truly helpless, so we had no choice but to ask you to come out of seclusion, Lord Cave Master. You only need to take a trip to the Ten Thousand Dew Palace and either invite a Seventh-level Disciple or exchange for some Spiritual Dew. The Cloud Pattern Ganoderma Grass should still be salvageable!"

The Ganlu Hall was a division of the Medicine King Hall, and all the Medicine Garden Disciples who served there had cultivated the Little Cloud Rain Technique to the 6th Layer.

"I see. However, there’s no need for all that trouble. Leave the matter of the Spiritual Dew to me!"

A trace of a smile appeared on Qin Feng’s face.

"Cave Master, you..." The three of them were utterly shocked.

Luan Xiaochuan suppressed his shock and asked cautiously, "Cave Master, does that mean you can produce Spiritual Dew? Have you cultivated the Little Cloud Rain Technique to the 6th Layer?"

"That’s right. I have indeed cultivated the Little Cloud Rain Technique to the 6th Layer," Qin Feng confirmed with a nod. ’In fact, I didn’t just reach the 6th Layer. I cultivated all the way to the 8th Layer in one go.’

Even with just that admission, the three of them stared wide-eyed, their expressions filled with utter disbelief.

Before entering seclusion, Qin Feng had said he was going to cultivate the Little Cloud Rain Technique and the Geng Metal Breaking Killing Technique.

But that was less than two months ago!!

’He cultivated the Little Cloud Rain Technique to the 6th Layer in just two months?’ Their minds were reeling, as if they were trapped in a dream.