The afterglow of the setting sun spilled across a vast expanse of farmland in the northwest corner of Yijia Town, shimmering like golden waves rolling in the breeze.
A group of five walked amidst those green waves. Two men dressed in cyan servant attire cleared the way, while in the middle walked a man wearing lavish crimson and black striped brocade. His attire was opulent and his appearance plump; his round physique clearly marked him as the young master of a wealthy and powerful family. Following behind were two pretty maidservants carrying baskets.
The peasants laboring away in the fields hurriedly stopped what they were doing and bowed in unison to the plump youth:
"Greetings, Young Master Mi! May fortune favor Young Master Mi!"
The plump youth addressed as Young Master Mi waved a hand with an honest, good-natured smile and replied, "Hehe, greetings to you all as well. Chunyue, Qiuhua, give out the rewards for this young master."
"Yes, Young Master Mi."
The two maidservants, Chunyue and Qiuhua, bowed slightly to Young Master Mi, reached into their baskets, and grabbed handfuls, scattering a sheet of silver light toward the surrounding peasants. It turned out that the baskets they carried were completely filled with Tianwu silver and copper coins.
"Thank you, Young Master Mi! Thank you, Young Master Mi!"
A crowd of peasants rushed toward where the Tianwu coins landed. These peasants were impoverished folk of Yijia Town who farmed the land for the Mi Family. Their monthly stipend was a mere one silver coin and fifty copper coins, so simply picking up a single Tianwu silver coin was equivalent to earning more than half a month's extra pay.
The plump youth looked on with a beaming smile at the peasants who were picking up money while expressing their gratitude, quietly walking along the main path in the middle of the spirit fields. The gentle breeze rustled the golden-green waves, carrying them away into the distance. On both sides of the main path stretched boundless spirit fields spanning tens of thousands of mu!
Those were all spirit fields belonging to the Mi Family.
The Mi Family was one of the four great clans of Yijia Town, as well as the largest grain merchant in Yijia Town and even Donghai City, possessing the largest apothecary and pill-refining firms in Donghai City. Moreover, the Mi Family's medical clinics were spread throughout the entire Dongshan Prefecture. Though based in Yijia Town, the Mi Family's financial power was second to none across the entire Donghai region.
This plump youth was none other than Mi Lan, the third young master of the Mi Family. Mi Lan was just eighteen years old. Though he had practiced martial arts since childhood, his aptitude was mediocre, and his cultivation realm was still only at the Eighth Layer of Body Refining. Because the direct lineage of the Mi Family had passed down the legendary "Fertilizer Body" through generations, he was mockingly nicknamed "Little Fertilizer" and "Fatty" by the scions of the other three great clans in Yijia Town.
According to records in the *Compendium of Myriad Spirits*, the Fertilizer Body was a mutated constitution born from the combination of a top-tier earth attribute and a top-tier wood attribute. It dissolved into earth and thrived on wood, possessing an innate affinity for both earth and wood. Its lifespan was thirty percent longer than that of ordinary people, and it provided a growth-boosting effect on plants, and even spirit herbs. There was historical evidence showing that if a Fertilizer Body stayed in the spirit fields for a long time, the growth rate of spirit herbs could be increased by up to thirty percent. For instance, a hundred-year-old Spirit Marrow Grass could mature to perfection in just seventy years, and the quality of the spirit herbs upon maturity far surpassed those cultivated by anyone else.
However, every gain came with a loss. The Fertilizer Body had an innate affinity for earth and wood, but its combat power was weak, making it practically the weakest at the same realm of cultivation. The majority of the direct descendants of the Mi Family possessed the Fertilizer Body, which was why they were known as the "Fertilizer Family."
The head of the Mi Family, Mi Quebi, relied on his cultivation at the Eighth Layer of Polar Transformation to rank among the top ten figures across the entire Donghai City. Furthermore, the Mi Family had adhered for generations to the philosophy of "harmony brings wealth, and keeping one's duty," so no one dared to provoke them.
Yijia Town, Xilai Teahouse.
Mi Lan sat squarely in the very center of the teahouse. Brewed on his table was the finest "Floating Life Like a Dream," a single sip of which left an immortal-like aftertaste. That was the most expensive tea in the teahouse—ten Tianwu silver coins for a single cup, an amount close to the salary earned by a spirit field farmer after toiling for half a year without eating or drinking. Young Master Mi only ever drank the most expensive things.
Tianwu coins had served as the universal currency throughout the thirty-thousand-year history since the founding of the Tianwu Empire. They were divided into Tianwu gold coins, Tianwu silver coins, and Tianwu copper coins, with one gold coin trading for a hundred silver coins, and one silver coin trading for a hundred copper coins. In a typical market, an old hen sold by a peasant cost only two copper coins. Beyond gold coins, there was also a kind of Tianwu Spirit Jade, which was born from mineral veins of spiritual essence through endless years. Overflowing with spiritual energy, it served as the universal currency for all sects, sacred lands, dynasties, and empires across the entire Wuji Continent. It could be exchanged for all mortal goods and immortal cultivation treasures within the Tianwu Empire, with a single piece of jade trading for one gold coin inside the empire's borders.
Young Master Mi sat alone in the center. At the direct northern end of the teahouse, a storytelling stage had been set up, upon which sat an old man and his granddaughter. The old man was heard saying: "Esteemed patrons, have you ever heard of the moniker of the Myriad Blood Crone?"
"Is the grandfather speaking of that Myriad Blood Crone who forcibly snatched hundreds of young boys and girls across various cities to practice the Myriad Blood Demonic Art and is currently wanted by the empire?" came the crisp and pleasant voice of the young girl.
"Indeed. Word has it that this Myriad Blood Crone was originally a brothel madam surnamed Zhang at the Chuanxiang Courtyard in Donghai City. For some unknown reason, that day Madam Zhang went out to buy rouge and stubbornly grabbed an old man resting in the shade by the roadside, claiming that he was peeping at her. Later, the authorities intervened and discovered that Madam Zhang had made a false accusation, whereupon she received a sound boxing from an inspector of the yamen."
"Then, Grandfather, since Madam Zhang was doing well as the madam of the Chuanxiang Courtyard, why would she practice that Myriad Blood Demonic Art?"
"Well, that was truly a coincidence. An outer sect elder surnamed Wang from the Netherworld Sacred Land was passing through Donghai City. Unexpectedly, that Elder Wang didn't fancy any of the blooming young maidens, but instead took a fancy to the middle-aged Madam Zhang. After a bout of romance and intimacy, Madam Zhang wept to Elder Wang about the injustice she had suffered. Elder Wang, perhaps having cultivated in the mountains for too long and overflowing with ungrounded compassion, gifted Madam Zhang a manual for the Myriad Blood Demonic Art," the storytelling old man said, striking his wooden gavel.
The young girl's fresh and slightly playful voice picked up right where the old man left off, asking: "Ah, so that's how the Myriad Blood Demonic Art came to be! Then, Grandfather, did that Madam Zhang get her revenge?"
The old man took a sip of tea and continued: "This Myriad Blood Demonic Art is formidable indeed. Legend has it that as long as one cultivates using the blood of ten thousand young boys and girls, one can ascend straight to the realm of the evil sages. In just a few short years, Madam Zhang practiced using over a hundred boys and girls, and already possessed the strength of the Polar Transformation realm. Now, that Madam Zhang was truly daring—you must know that our Tianwu Empire has always enforced strict laws and severely cracked down on acts that harm the populace, yet she actually managed to steal a hundred children. Truly formidable."
"Polar Transformation? Relying on this Polar Transformation cultivation, I'm afraid apart from a few individuals in Donghai City, this Madam Zhang could walk unhindered, couldn't she?"
The one taking over the old man's words was not the young girl, but Mi Lan, who sat squarely in the exact center of the teahouse.
"That's right, Grandfather. What happened to Madam Zhang after that?" The young girl glanced at Mi Lan and asked the old man.
"Naturally, she died," the old man sipped his tea and continued.
"Dead? When did this happen?"
"Is that true?"
"Which senior expert stepped in?" The patrons beneath the stage were dumbfounded and asked one after another.
"Ahem..." The old man took another sip of tea, coughed twice, and fell silent.
Mi Lan, sitting squarely in the center, froze for a moment before shouting aloud: "Reward."
Chunyue, standing beside Mi Lan, grabbed a handful from the basket and tossed it toward the stage. Dozens of coins went clattering into the tray on the young girl's table, yet not a single coin bounced out of the tray.
"Controlling objects through vital energy—the Qi Control Realm! Thank you, Miss; thank you, Young Master, for the reward." The old man hurriedly stood up and bowed in pleasant surprise toward Mi Lan.
The Qi Control Realm was the third of the Six Realms of Humanity. The six realms were Body Refining, Minor Accomplishment, Qi Control, Great Accomplishment, Polar Transformation, and Heavenly Vein. The maidservants Chunyue and Qiuhua had followed Mi Lan since they were ten years old, studying, practicing martial arts, and attending to Mi Lan's daily needs alongside him. After eight years, they had already reached the Qi Control Realm, and their martial arts aptitude could be considered top-tier.