Big Data Cultivation

Chapter 657: Chapter 657: Good Things Come with Difficulty Chapter 657: Chapter 657: Good Things Come with Difficulty What obviously irritated Chairman Huang Fu was the condition of these Spirit Plants.

A few hundred-year-old ginseng is rare in the Earth Realm, so are mobile phones just everywhere in that other plane?

If only one or two Spirit Plants were a bit lacking in Spiritual Energy, Chairman Huang Fu wouldn’t care.

Even Cultivators occasionally encounter mishaps in their Cultivation, let alone Spirit Plants?

But when all of them are like this, even if she is the Tiantong Commercial Alliance branch chairwoman, she can’t help but feel it’s a waste of heavenly resources.

However, upon hearing Feng Jun’s reply, she was taken aback, “A declining secret realm? No wonder that… Which secret realm?”

Feng Jun gave her a grin but didn’t respond.

“You seem more like a merchant than I am,” Chairman Huang Fu spoke dismissively, “is a declining secret realm even worth all this secrecy?”

Feng Jun couldn’t really say much either; he took out a cigarette, lit it, and thought to himself, if you knew that the declining secret realm is actually a planet, would you remain unmoved?

Seeing his continuing lack of reaction, Chairman Huang Fu, too lazy to inquire further about the secret realm, said, “You really do have a teacher, huh?”

“Of course,” Feng Jun replied leisurely while blowing a smoke ring, “Oh yes, I’ve thought of what I want for my reward… Does your Tiantong Commerce Alliance have a manual for taming Spirit Plant herders? I’d like to buy one at a fair price.”

“Spirit Plant herders?” Chairman Huang Fu glanced at the drooping Spirit Plants again, “To take care of these subpar ones?”

“Not necessarily,” Feng Jun answered casually, “I plan to set up a Lingzhi Formation and plant these subpar products.”

This seemed pointless to Chairman Huang Fu; she shook her head and spoke disdainfully, “These Spirit Plants were damaged at the start, inherently deficient, and now it’s too late to cultivate them with a Lingzhi Formation – it’s inefficient.”

As she spoke with great certainty, as the dignified chairwoman of the Tiantong Commerce Alliance’s branch, she wouldn’t misjudge such a minor matter.

Feng Jun nodded slightly, “I know what you mean, but I want to do some research and see if I can find any patterns.”

Realizing he wanted to do research, Chairman Huang Fu had nothing to say; she herself had seen many obsessed individuals, and those who were obsessive often managed to achieve results.

But the next moment, she eyed him skeptically, “Are you going to set up the Spirit Plant Formation right here?”

“Of course,” Feng Jun glanced at her, his reply nonchalant, “It’s just a waste of some Spirit Stones, but no one will laugh at me.”

In fact, with those words, he was testing the waters, trying to gauge others’ tolerance for a Spirit Plant Formation appearing in the Mortal Realm.

Chairman Huang Fu didn’t consider such things at all. She replied indifferently, “All tests could seem absurd before success. If fellow Daoist is willing to become a Guest Elder in my branch, I can provide the necessary assistance, guaranteeing no one will laugh…”

She halted midsentence, turning her head in surprise toward Feng Jun, “The Spirit Plant Formation… it has been analyzed, hasn’t it?”

“I have a Spirit Plant Formation,” Feng Jun took out an Array Plate and waved it at her.

“Oh,” Chairman Huang Fu nodded, thinking to herself that she should have known, how could any random Formation be analyzed?

Feng Jun saw that she was unconvinced and inwardly chuckled, then threw in a twist, “I’m about to successfully analyze it.”

“Hmm?” Chairman Huang Fu paused, then her brows shot up, “Are you playing with me, fellow Daoist?”

Feng Jun replied seriously, “Playing with you… Chairman Huang Fu, such a phrase sounds rather wicked, it could easily lead to misunderstandings!”

Chairman Huang Fu didn’t quibble over the choice of words; instead, she asked anxiously, “What’s the cost?”

Feng Jun rolled his eyes, “You’re thinking too much; I’ve already agreed to sell it outright to Master Yan.”

Chairman Huang Fu was truly annoyed when she heard this, “Daoist Feng, you just said that we would talk, this… your words are still fresh in my ears!”

Feng Jun replied earnestly, “Before you arrived, I had already sold it to him; you can only blame yourself for being late… Merchants definitely prioritize profit, but integrity is the foundation, don’t you agree?”

Chairman Huang Fu rolled her eyes helplessly; what could she say? His point was valid, after all. The Tiantong Commerce Alliance grew so large mainly on integrity—while Tiantong does have a strong backing, there are many with strong backings, so why is Tiantong the most successful?

She sighed, saying helplessly, “Then, you can at least tell me how many Spirit Stones it sold for, right?”

Feng Jun gave her a glance and uttered three words, “What do you think?”

Even though Chairman Huang Fu knew it meant a refusal, she couldn’t help but respond, “If I’m asking you, that means I think you’d answer.”

This time, Feng Jun didn’t even bother making a face.

Then, he started an all-terrain vehicle, brought Chairman Huang Fu to enjoy a trip around the area, and after a bit of touring, they entered Mount Zhige.

Mount Zhige actually isn’t much to look at, especially since the mountain’s surface had been damaged due to jade mining. Adding to that, Feng Jun had been blowing up parts of the mountain, leaving chunks of bare rock everywhere. The once lush green mountains had developed an unsightly case of baldness, which was truly an eyesore.

Chairman Huang Fu didn’t speak again, and neither did Feng Jun, as if they were both mute.

On the way back, when Chairman Huang Fu saw that he was still not talking, she knew better than to push too hard and finally broke the silence, “I’ll go ask Master Yan about the details of your transaction, you don’t mind that, do you?”

After a few seconds of silence, Feng Jun replied, “As long as he’s willing to tell you, I don’t care. However, I want to emphasize one point… The price I gave him was a friendship price and doesn’t have much reference value.”

In truth, he didn’t think the price he sold to Master Yan was low. The greatest difficulty of the Analysis Formation Method was reverse engineering, but other than that, there were hardly any challenges. Following the reverse logic was also simple enough to easily glean some insights.

It was only because an entity like Wuyou Platform was not afraid of imitation that a behavior like Master Yan spending money to purchase a “patent” would occur.

And for Feng Jun, the most difficult part of reverse engineering was actually a piece of cake.

Therefore, he didn’t feel that the price he sold it for was inappropriate.

But at the same time, he didn’t want Tiantong Commercial Alliance to think that his analytical work was only worth that much.

It’s true that he could easily perform the analysis with his mobile phone and that it didn’t cost much, but there was only one Stone Ring, which he had luckily obtained and activated. That kind of luck—could it be bought with Spirit Stones?

Chairman Huang Fu was taken aback, then laughed again, “Fellow Daoist indeed has a good sense for business. It’s really a pity that you can’t join our Tiantong Commerce Alliance.”

“Worldly Trials is all it is. Let’s not bring this up again,” Feng Jun replied at a measured pace, “Nature takes its course, and I’ve always preferred to be unbound. If there were restrictions, wouldn’t that mean losing my true nature?”

Tiantong Commerce Alliance could promise you freedom! Chairman Huang Fu was on the verge of blurting that out.

However, being a branch chairman, she knew when something was beyond reach and naturally wouldn’t force the issue. So, she changed the subject, “My Commerce Alliance would also like to receive a friendship price. What must be done to gain your friendship?”

Feng Jun glanced at her, barely smiling, “Chairman Huang’s approach to gaining friendship is rather unique, isn’t it? To inquire about prices in such a manner?”

“It seems I was mistaken,” admitted Chairman Huang Fu candidly, nodding, “Friendship is priceless, half sentiment and half fate… Alright then, I’ll have someone fetch the beast taming technique right away. Would that be alright?”

Feng Jun was indeed in a hurry to get back and deal with the Flower Lord. That thing was a restless troublemaker, and with it around, others’ cultivation was bound to be affected—even having to be on guard during rest. Fortunately, as long as he was here, the other side remained inactive; otherwise, he would be even more anxious.

He nodded briskly, “Then I thank you. Oh, and it’s an unusual creature from the Qi Refinement Realm.”

A flash of surprise crossed Chairman Huang Fu’s eyes, “An unusual creature from the Innate Qi Refinement stage?”

This ‘innate’ has nothing to do with Innate Experts but refers to Spirit Beasts that were born at the Qi Refinement cultivation level, known as ‘Innate Qi Refinement’.

Such Spirit Beasts are considered rather unusual and typically come at a high price.

“Not exactly,” Feng Jun shook his head, “It’s a Gu Insect that lost its master and has become a nuisance to Spirit Plants. I want to bring it under control so it can peacefully become a Spirit Plant shepherd.”

“So it’s a blood Gu,” Chairman Huang Fu nodded, “To survive without its master is indeed rare… Does it hate its former master?”

After pondering for a moment, Feng Jun shook his head, “Hard to say.”

In his understanding, a Gu Insect and its master were supposed to have an understanding heart-to-heart, but the fact that the Flower Lord had survived after its master’s death was somewhat bizarre. Regardless, having been confined in a Spirit Plant garden for several hundred years, it would be strange if there were no resentments.

“Spirit Plant shepherd is also a method of Gu nurturing,” Chairman Huang remarked casually, “If it can communicate heart-to-heart with the Spirit Plant shepherd, both parties can promote each other’s cultivation. However… this method has many downsides and usually involves forceful control.”

“Chairman Huang is indeed knowledgeable and well-informed,” Feng Jun nodded subtly, his expression saying ‘Actually, I already knew that, but I still have to politely praise you,’ “Now that you’re aware of my needs, what do you think is more appropriate?”

“There is a beast taming technique that primarily focuses on ‘Telepathy’ which might be suitable,” Chairman Huang Fu quickly suggested an option, proving her broad knowledge, “I don’t know if it’s available at the branch, but if it is, I’ll have it sent to you… Just to be upfront, it’s quite expensive.”

Feng Jun was taken aback at the mention of the price, “Quite expensive… How many Spirit Stones are we talking about?”

“For a fair price, around a thousand Spirit Stones,” Chairman Huang Fu said casually, as though she was talking about “a thousand copper coins,” “Cash on delivery with Spirit Stones.”

Feng Jun’s mouth twitched, then he sighed, “Can’t afford it. Got anything cheaper?”

Being poor wasn’t shameful. Even Yu Meiren, who was at the Point of Transcendence, carried only several hundred Spirit Stones on him. Feng Jun felt there was no need to pretend to be wealthy—he might not have the money on him, but that didn’t mean he was without assets.

Chairman Huang Fu explained seriously, “A thousand Spirit Stones really isn’t much. With such a Telepathy beast taming technique, even if you helped tame beasts for others, you wouldn’t have to worry about earning a dozen or so Spirit Stones each month.”

She had a serious look on her face, but she was laughing on the inside. She didn’t believe that he had so many Spirit Stones on him—after all, you came to undergo Worldly Trials, not to go on a shopping spree in the Immortal Market. What would you do with so many Spirit Stones?

“Forget it,” Feng Jun shook his head, “I’ll take a trip to the Immortal Market after a while and just buy any book.”

“That won’t be necessary,” Chairman Huang Fu said with a smile, “If you can’t afford it, just owe it… What do you say?”