Chapter 342

Chapter 342: Enlightenment, County Crisis

Lu Qing used the skills of a cultivator to select rice seeds.

The villagers, never having witnessed such a miraculous scene, were stunned.

Using his magic, Lu Qing quickly selected the best seeds from among the rice grains.

Looking at the plump, golden seeds in the bamboo basket, Lu Qing nodded with satisfaction.

“Grandpa Zhang, I’m done. You can take the rest.”

“That’s just a few. Is it enough for you? How about some more?”

Grandpa Zhang, equally astonished by Lu Qing’s recent display of magic, was stunned for a moment before recovering and quickly saying,

“That’s enough. I won’t be able to use any more for now.” Lu Qing smiled.

With his current level of cultivation, the amount of rice seeds he could enlighten at any one time was limited.

Furthermore, the spiritual fields cultivated on the mountain were not very large.

The selected seeds were more than enough.

“Okay, just keep this in mind. If it’s not enough, I’ll have everyone bring you more.”

Grandpa Zhang nodded, but didn’t continue to persuade him.

“By the way, Grandpa Zhang, thank you all for taking the trouble to help me collect rice seeds. I have some silver here. Please share it with everyone. It’s my small token of appreciation.”

Lu Qing pulled a purse from his pocket.

Before Grandpa Zhang could even say anything, the other villagers waved their hands.

“Ah Qing, what are you talking about? We’re all from the same village. A few rice seeds are nothing. Why should I give you silver?”

“That’s right. You’ve been treating us and never charged us for our consultations or medicine.”

“Yes, and we haven’t thanked you for the magic you cast a few days ago to protect the village yet.”

…

The villagers weren’t stupid.

They could sense the changes that had taken place in the village since the last strange phenomenon.

They knew Lu Qing had done something for the village, and it was something very good.

After all, everyone had noticed that they were not only sleeping better at night, but were also slowly becoming more energetic.

Some elderly people even noticed that their hidden ailments, accumulated over years of toil, were slowly improving.

Everyone knew that all these changes were undoubtedly due to Lu Qing.

In this world, good health was a rare commodity.

By comparison, the rice seeds they gave Lu Qing seemed insignificant, so why would they even accept money?

Fearing Lu Qing might force money on them, they simply shouldered their burdens and headed down the mountain, chatting and laughing.

The subject of much discussion was the magic Lu Qing had just performed.

Watching the villagers, ignoring the opportunity to offer him money and instead heading down the mountain on their own, Lu Qing……

After a few breaths, he smiled, shook his head, and put the money bag away.

Well, since it was a kind gesture from everyone, he’d accept it.

“I told you, no one wants your money,” said Grandpa Zhang. “You’re just too polite. It makes it easy to seem distant.”

“Grandpa Zhang is right,” Lu Qing humbly accepted the lecture.

“Ah Qing, do you only want rice seeds? Or wheat seeds?”

Just then, a voice echoed from the side. It was Old Man Lin, finally finding his chance, asking.

“Wheat seeds…” Lu Qing paused, “Does Grandpa Lin have any good wheat seeds?”

“Of course. I can’t say anything about the others, but as for the wheat seeds, I guarantee that no one in our village, not even in the nearby villages, has as good a wheat seed as mine!”

Old Man Lin beamed with pride at this mention.

Uncle Zhang, standing nearby, though somewhat dismayed by Old Man Lin’s boastful expression, nodded and said,

“Indeed, when it comes to wheat, Grandpa Lin truly does the best work among the nearby villages.”

Hearing even Uncle Zhang’s words, Lu Qing didn’t hesitate.

He nodded, “Since Grandpa Lin has such excellent wheat seeds, if you can, please give me some.”

After all, when the weather cooled, he could try to grow some spiritual wheat.

“Well, wait, I’ll get you some wheat seeds!”

Old Man Lin was overjoyed when he heard this, and immediately trotted down the mountain at full speed.

“Uh, Grandpa Lin, please slow down, I’m not in a hurry,”

Lu Qing shouted hurriedly, fearing that the old man would fall.

“Let him be,” Grandpa Zhang said with a smile, “This old man used to have a leg disease and could hardly get out of bed. You came back and completely cured him, and now he can’t wait to walk ten laps around the village every day.”

Lu Qing: …

The old man’s energy was a bit beyond his expectations.

Old Man Lin quickly carried a bag of wheat seeds up. Lu Qing opened it and took a look. The wheat grains inside were plump and full. It was really no exaggeration, all of them were rare and high-quality wheat seeds.

“I didn’t lie to you, old man. I dare say there are not many people in this area who have better wheat seeds than mine!”

Old Man Lin said proudly.

“These wheat seeds are truly excellent, Grandpa Lin! I’ll buy them all.”

Lu Qing felt them and discovered that the vitality within them was even stronger than the rice seeds he’d picked out. He

immediately decided to keep them all.

“Why buy them? These are all gifts from me. Those guys just now didn’t even ask for money. How could an old man like me lose to them?”

Old Man Lin glared, his face stern.

It looked as if Lu Qing was insulting him by giving him money.

Lu Qing paused, and could only drop the question of money.

He was somewhat aware that Old Man Lin had a somewhat aloof and stubborn personality, and didn’t usually get along with many of the villagers.

Now, he was clearly trying to pick a fight with the villagers.

“Very well, Ah Qing, I’d like to thank Grandpa Lin for his kindness.”

Hearing this, Old Man Lin brightened up.

He chatted with Lu Qing for a while longer before heading down the mountain with Uncle Zhang.

“Young Master, the villagers in your village are quite simple and honest.”

After everyone had left, “Yan”‘s voice echoed in Lu Qing’s mind.

It could clearly sense everything that had just happened.

“Everyone has always been very kind to Xiaoyan and me,” Lu Qing said with a smile.

He recalled what had happened when he first crossed over.

In another village, Xiaoyan and he might have experienced something very different.

“Yan” didn’t speak, but it did understand why Lu Qing had gone to such great lengths to set up the formation in this village.

“Senior Yan, are there any special requirements before using this [Spirit Enlightenment Technique]?”

Lu Qing asked, carrying two kinds of grain.

“Nothing special. Your mastery of the [Spirit Enlightenment Technique] is already profound. Enlightening a few grains shouldn’t be a problem.”

At this point, Yan recalled Lu Qing’s previous understanding of the [Spirit Enlightenment Technique], and was still somewhat shocked.

The difficulty of the spell seemed almost nonexistent to Lu Qing.

He had only briefly comprehended it, yet he had already mastered it almost completely.

His comprehension was simply terrifying.

He felt relieved after hearing Yan’s advice.

After returning to the house with the spiritual grain and making some preparations, he filled a wooden basin with water. Then, telling Xiaoyan and Xiaoli not to disturb him for the time being, he entered the quiet room where his master usually refined medicine and practiced seclusion.

Once inside, Lu Qing placed the basin of water in front of him.

Then, concentrating his mind and calming his spirit, he gathered a touch of spiritual energy into his fingertips and gently tapped the water.

As his mind worked, he gathered a large amount of wood-element spiritual energy from the surrounding spiritual energy of heaven and earth, condensing it into a vital spiritual energy that merged into the clear water.

Before long, the basin of clear water transformed into a vibrant liquid, tinged with a faint green hue and imbued with the spiritual energy of wood.

Then, Lu Qing slowly poured the selected rice seeds into the wooden basin…

Just as Lu Qing was concentrating on cultivating the spiritual grain seeds, several figures appeared at the city gate of Cang County.

“Cang County, according to our recent inquiries, a major event occurred here over two years ago.

Wang Cangyi, an Innate Realm elder of the Tiancang Sect in the Northern Frontier, led his disciples to besiege a small aristocratic family here, reportedly seeking some treasure.

However, they were ultimately repelled by a mysterious master and disciple.

The youngest of the pair, a disciple at the Muscle and Bones Realm, defeated Wang Cangyi’s Inner Viscera Realm Perfection disciple. Furthermore

, it’s rumored that a disciple from the Tianji Tower also appeared in Cang County and prevented a major Innate Realm battle.

All the information suggests that the young man is most likely Lu Qing, the one on the Hidden Dragon List.”

The leading figure, gazing at the county gate ahead, spoke gravely.

“Indeed, and the one who killed Xuanming and the others in the Holy City that day also seems to have had a master.

Therefore, Lu Qing is very likely the person we’re looking for,” another figure said.

“Elder You, what should we do now? Should we return to the Secret Realm to report?” another figure asked.

“Not yet. These are just our guesses. We need further confirmation.”

The leading figure shook his head.

“How can we confirm this?”

“According to the intelligence we’ve received, there’s a small, aristocratic family named Wei in Cang County, and they seem to have close ties to the master and disciple.

After dark, we’ll go in and capture two key members of the Wei family. Interrogate them, and everything will become clear.”

“That’s a good idea,” the others agreed immediately.

After all, they’d become quite adept at this sort of thing over the past

few days. So, they didn’t enter the city, but instead quietly lurked outside, waiting for nightfall.

The people of Cang County were completely unaware that a terrifying group of innate realm masters lurked outside.

Time passed slowly, until dusk approached, and as the city gates were about to close,

an elderly figure in simple clothes, carrying a bamboo basket on his back, appeared outside.

“Old man, it’s so late, and you’re still coming into the city?”

the city guard asked curiously.

The old man smiled affably. “I’m a doctor. I’ve been practicing medicine in a nearby village for the past two days. I’ve just run out of herbs and want to go into town to buy some.”

The city guard, observing the medicine basket on the old man’s back and the medicine hoe hanging from his waist, suspected nothing.

With a touch of respect, he said, “Doctor, please come in quickly. We’re about to close the city gates. If you’re any later, you won’t be able to enter.”

The old man nodded and slowly walked into the city.

After crossing several streets, they arrived in front of a large mansion.

The gatekeeper, upon seeing the old man, rubbed his eyes.

After confirming he was seeing correctly, he shuddered, then ducked down and ran down.

“Doctor Chen, what brings you here?” he asked respectfully .

“I was just passing through the county town and had something to do, so I came in to see if your master was here?”

the old doctor asked.

“Yes, yes, the master and his wife are both at the mansion. Doctor Chen, please come in.”

The doorman respectfully ushered the old doctor in. The other doorman had already gone inside to report.

Ten breaths later, the old doctor had barely entered the Wei family’s front yard when he saw Wei Xinghe emerge from the backyard, a look of surprise on his face.

“Senior Chen, how come you have time to visit us?”

The old doctor said with a chuckle, “I’ve been out doing free medical consultations lately. I happened to be in a few nearby villages these past two days, so I stopped by to see you.”

“So that’s how it is! Doctor, you truly are a compassionate doctor!”

Wei Xinghe’s respect for the old doctor deepened upon hearing this.

He knew the old doctor’s current cultivation was unfathomable,

having already reached a profound realm that even he, at the Xiantian realm, could hardly fathom.

Yet, even such a peerless master still humbled himself and traveled to the countryside to provide free medical treatment to ordinary villagers.

Such kindness was truly admirable.

“I’m just fulfilling my duty as a doctor,” the old doctor said. “By the way, Master Wei, I’ve come here to ask for your help on another matter.”

“Senior Chen, please tell me,” Wei Xinghe said quickly.

“I’ve been providing free medical treatment in several nearby villages these days. Today, in one village, I encountered some rather difficult illnesses that require urgent treatment.

Unfortunately, the herbs I have are almost all gone.

If I go to collect herbs now, I’m afraid it would be too late.

So I thought I’d come to you to buy some,”

the old doctor explained.

“Senior Chen, you’re really embarrassing me. It’s just a few herbs. Why are you so polite?

“What medicinal herbs do you need? Just tell me and I’ll have someone get them for you right away.”

Wei Xinghe said immediately.

“I’ve written everything down on this list. See if you can get it all.”

The old doctor took out a prescription from his sleeve.

Wei Xinghe took it, took a look, and immediately handed it to Wei, the chief steward.

“Ahai, go to the warehouse immediately, get these herbs out, and give them to Senior Chen.”

Wei, the chief steward, did not dare to neglect it and immediately took the list down.

“Senior Chen, where is Mr. Lu? Isn’t he with you?”

“Aqing, he has other things to do, so he didn’t come out with me this time.” The old doctor said.

“Then Senior Chen should not have had dinner yet. Why not join us?”

“Okay.” The old doctor didn’t refuse. He’d been busy with his free clinics these days ,

so he’d been casual about his meals.

He’d only eaten a little this morning.

Wei Xinghe immediately had the kitchen prepare a feast.

Not long after, Mrs. Wei also received the news and emerged from the backyard.

Upon seeing the old doctor, they exchanged pleasantries.

As the old doctor waited for his meal, the sky outside darkened completely.

Several figures quietly appeared outside the county town.

(End of this chapter)