BXBX NOVEL Chapter 139 - 137 Water Ling Peach l
“We have now reached the destination of our journey.”
High above in the sky, Senior Sister Yao pointed at a vast lake on the ground and said to Lu Xuan and the others.
The lake stretched for hundreds of miles, with more than ten small islands scattered across it.
The trio rested a little in Sword Gate Town before setting off together. In less than two hours, the flying boat magical tool had arrived near the destination.
“Several small clans live on those islands, mainly relying on raising aquatic beasts and planting spiritual plants for a living. We are heading to the Zhang family amongst them.”
“The current Head of the Zhang family once was an Outer Sect Disciple of the Sky Sword Sect. He was good friends with my teacher’s uncle, who assigned me to this task.”
“However, his repeated attempts to reach the Foundation Establishment Stage ended in failure, and he passed away due to exhaustion.”
“Due to this slight connection, my teacher’s uncle allowed him to help plant spirit plants. It’s sort of protection for them, I suppose.”
The beautiful woman explained, and the flying boat magical tool landed on one of the larger islands.
Over a dozen cultivators were already waiting on the island. Seeing Lu Xuan’s trio, their faces instantly broke into eager smiles.
“Greetings to Senior Sister Yao, greetings to the two Senior Brothers.”
The man in the lead was white-haired but looked quite energetic, probably at the Qi Practice Eighth Level. He bowed to the three.
“Elder Brother Zhang, you are too polite. You are much older than me, just call me junior sister.”
Senior Sister Yao gently raised her hands, helping the old white-haired man to stand upright.
Behind the white-haired old man, the crowd shared the same respectful attitude. Lu Xuan glanced at them, noting the crowd consisted of men, women, old and young, most at the intermediate level of Qi Cultivation, and even included monks in low-level Qi Cultivation.
After some small talk, Zhang Yu Tang, the head of the Zhang family, invited Lu Xuan and the others into a great hall.
“I heard that Senior Sister Yao was coming to help solve the pest problem, so I told the family to prepare in advance. As soon as the senior sister arrives, we can start eating right away,” Zhang Yu Tang said with a smile.
“Senior Sister Yao, two senior brothers, let’s try the freshly prepared spiritual fish.”
“This spiritual fish is a specialty of our Star Luo Lake. They lived deep in the water and are hard to come by. They must be caught using special means.”
After hearing this, Lu Xuan lifted the white jade lid on the table in front of him and a tempting aroma filled his nose.
He picked up a piece of near-transparent white fish meat with his chopsticks and put it in his mouth.
The fish melted in his mouth, and the delicious, tender taste hits the roof of his mouth.
“Good!”
He nodded, satisfied, expressing his praise.
“Really good, the last time I tasted this spiritual fish was several years ago. I’ve been carrying the taste with me ever since,” said the beautiful woman with a smile.
“Brother Zhang, over the years, you have improved in the level, and you have a hope to break through to the foundation stage.”
The white-haired old man shook his head with a wry smile.
“I am well aware of my circumstances. Though it seems I am very close to the Foundation stage, reaching the Eighth Level of Qi Practice was my utmost effort. Getting past that is like climbing to heaven.”
“Now, I just want to manage the Zhang family well, nurture a few excellent younger generations, make them strive to join the Sky Sword Sect and rejuvenate the glory of the Zhang family.”
“Oh, does the Zhang family have talented young geniuses this generation? If so, I can report it to Teacher Uncle He for you,” Senior Sister Yao seemed to ponder for a moment before she said with a smile.
“We have two promising ones. Cheng Xin, Cheng Ning, come and greet Senor Yao.”
Zhang Yu Tang clapped his hands. Two young men stepped out from the crowd and bowed to the beautiful young woman.
“Cheng Xin and Cheng Ning are the most gifted cultivators in the Zhang family this generation. Thirteen to fourteen years old, they both have already reached the Fourth Layer of Qi Cultivation, much stronger than me at that age. They have a hope to enter the Sky Sword Sect.”
The white-haired old man looked at the two robust young men, his expression filled with great expectation.
“Indeed, they are promising. Keep up the good practice and strive to enter the Sky Sword Sect together,” Senior Sister Yao said affirmatively to the two young men.
“This is the artifact I used during the intermediate level of Qi Cultivation. I always keep it. Today I give it to you two, hoping to see you in Sky Sword Sect soon.”
She took out two First Grade artifacts from her storage bag and presented them to the two young men.
The two young men hurriedly expressed their gratitude.
Lu Xuan and the other person were busy dealing with the spiritual fish in front of them.
The two of them came just out of the woman’s invitation and had nothing to do with the Zhang family cultivators, so naturally they wouldn’t behave like Senior Sister Yao.
“Brother Zhang, show us the pests that have been causing problems for the spirit plants.”
“Solve it sooner and get peace of mind sooner.”
After a hearty meal and drink, Senior Sister Yao said to the white-haired old man.
“Alright, I shall guide Senior Sister and the two brothers to see the spirit plants.”
Zhang Yu Tang, who had been waiting for this sentence, quickly nodded in agreement.
Lu Xuan and his companions followed behind him and the Zhang family cultivators. After a short walk, they entered a huge spirit plant garden.
The spirit plant garden was slightly different from the spirit field that Lu Xuan previously owned, as it wasn’t a field. It seemed to be built directly on a swamp.
The ground was damp, with many water puddles, and not far away was the sparkling lake.
In the spirit plant garden, there were hundreds and thousands of peach trees.
In this environment, the leaves grew extremely vibrant, revealing a water-lustrous glow.
Among the dense leaves hung numerous rosy peaches, with shallow water wave patterns on their surfaces.
“This is the Water Ling Peach planted by the Zhang family, a First-Grade spirit plant. The mature Spirit Peach can be eaten as a spirit fruit or used to make elixirs,” Zhang Yu Tang introduced to Lu Xuan and the others.
“Recently, a strange worm appeared in the Water Ling Peach. It usually hides in the sludge and is very hard to detect.”
“The strange worm, similar in appearance to the trunk of the Spirit Peach tree, isn’t significantly destructive, and low-rank Qi cultivating monks can handle it. But it can cause serious harm to the spirit plants.”
“The Zhang family has organized several large-scale pest clearance campaigns, but they failed to eliminate them completely. For every batch cleared away, a new batch emerges.”
“Concerned about the potential long-term effect on the growth of the Water Ling Peach, they had no choice but to seek help from the sect, hoping to successfully solve the pest problem with the help of the skilled Spirit Plant Master in the sect.”
Zhang Yu Tang described the details of the pest problem to Lu Xuan and the others.
“The Zhang family cultivators should have caught quite a few strange worms recently. Can’t you determine the species name from their external characteristics?” the plain-looking Yan Ping asked.
“After they were caught, the spirit plant masters in our family checked the classics and asked the cultivators from the other families on the island, but none of them had seen that kind of strange worm.”
“However, the depth of a small family can only go so far. Compared to the sect, it’s truly a world of difference. I believe Senior Sister Yao and the two senior brothers should be able to determine the species of the strange worm.”
The white-haired old man, Zhang Yu Tang, slowly spoke. Lu Xuan and the others then split up, each choosing a direction to closely observe the growth of the Water Ling Peach plants..