Chapter 95 Ginkgo Saplings

Canglan Town. A large mansion. The sun was high, and the sunlight was bright.

Mu An and the others were in the courtyard planting a ginkgo sapling bought from the street.

This place used to be the territory of a dead old tree. Considering aesthetics and the fact that a new owner should have a fresh start, the dead old tree had been uprooted. Its roots were rotten and riddled with holes.

Even without any external force, in time, it would have collapsed on its own one day.

"Out with the old, in with the new!" Renée muttered while squatting on the ground, using some special magic.

Thanks to her efforts, the ginkgo sapling was successfully planted, and she even accelerated its growth, causing several leaves to sprout.

Nina was watering it with a homemade watering can. It looked a bit crude, but it worked, and there was no need to be too particular.

Although everyone only returned around three or four in the morning, 'staying up late' was a common occurrence for a Cultivator. A short rest was enough to restore all their energy. Even going a few days without closing their eyes to rest was not a big problem.

Da Ya and Er Ya were still sleeping soundly inside the house. Having gone through a series of events, and being so young, their mental exhaustion was likely far greater than their physical exhaustion.

The Beggar, on the other hand, was different. Possessing the Ninth Level of Qi Refining Realm just like Xiao Qingzhu, she didn't feel very sleepy. She was squatting to the side, watching Mu An and the others work, while gnawing on a jianbing guozi.

"Brother Mu, what are you doing...?"

"Planting a tree."

"How elegant!"

"It's alright."

Xiao Qingzhu 'familiarly' hopped over the wall to visit again. After exchanging a few polite words, she acted as if she were in her own home, taking some breakfast from the stone table nearby. At the same time, she took out a Storage Pouch.

"Right, Brother Mu, I have two pieces of good news."

"Your bounty has been issued! It's a total of one hundred taels of gold and two Low-Grade Spirit Stones!"

One hundred taels of gold and two Low-Grade Spirit Stones? Hearing this, Mu An couldn't help but be stunned for a moment. If he remembered correctly, the bounty for solving the village massacre mission should have been fifty taels of gold and one Low-Grade Spirit Stone.

Seemingly noticing the man's confusion, Xiao Qingzhu pointed at herself with a hint of pride.

"That's right! I fought for this for you!"

"Normally, re-evaluating the danger level of a mission takes a very long time, but who else has the status of the Ninth Princess like I do?"

"I can still pull a few 'strings' like this!"

"Actually, solving the problem of the three evil Cultivators (Sixth Level of Qi Refining, Eighth Level of Qi Refining, Ninth Level of Qi Refining), and even a fused vengeful spirit at the half-step Foundation Establishment Realm..."

"The rewards for solving them should have been even more generous."

"But there's no help for it; the Imperial Dynasty is in turmoil, and resources are scarce. This is the limit of what I can do right now."

"To go any further, we would probably have to wait for professionals from the Demon Exorcism Bureau to go and re-evaluate it to increase the reward."

"But as I said before, the Demon Exorcism Bureau is currently short-handed and will almost never come to remote places like Canglan Town, so evaluation work is naturally out of the question."

Xiao Qingzhu felt a bit guilty about this. Mu An, however, didn't care that much. To him, one Low-Grade Spirit Stone or two Low-Grade Spirit Stones made no difference. Both were like a mosquito's leg—tasteless to eat, but a pity to discard.

"What about the second piece of good news?" Mu An asked casually. Xiao Qingzhu didn't play coy and told him truthfully.

"The second piece of good news is... after I sent people with an urgent eight-hundred-mile express message, the capital is about to send a Senior at the Foundation Establishment Realm over."

"With this, we will have more confidence in dealing with that great demon in the Cang River!"

Sometimes, if it weren't for the fact that a 'question mark' couldn't be materialized, Mu An would really like to put a sharp question mark over his own head. When he heard Xiao Qingzhu say there was 'reinforcement', the first thought that came to his mind was one sentence.

"Oh no! Someone wants to steal my kill!"

Of course, Xiao Qingzhu didn't do anything wrong. With different positions and different perspectives, naturally, the methods for solving troubles are also different.

"What specific Realm of the Foundation Establishment Stage is it?" Mu An asked casually. Xiao Qingzhu answered honestly.

"It should be at the Early Stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage."

Given the current scarcity of resources in the cultivation world, a Cultivator who can reach the Early Stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage is already a dragon among men. No matter where they go, they can be treated as a guest of honor and enjoy extremely high treatment. After all, many people may never even be able to make a Breakthrough from the Qi Refinement Stage in their entire lives!

And the arrival of this Senior at the Early Stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage was actually related to Xiao Qingzhu. Previously, when she heard from Mu An that a great demon was hiding under the Cang River, with formidable strength far beyond what a Cultivator at the Qi Refinement Stage could contend with, she had silently kept these words in her heart. Then... she turned around and summoned a great expert at the Foundation Establishment Stage from the capital!

On the other hand, upon hearing this, the man immediately checked his Rank. Hmm, Rank 155. If one were to simply divide one hundred Ranks into three parts, would he be considered at the Middle Stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage now?

[Warm reminder from the Myriad Worlds Gate App:]

[Even if you are in another world, you can still enjoy the benefit of a 50% chance to level up every 12 hours from the Source Power Array!]

[Since the player has not actively claimed it for many days, the benefits are now being automatically distributed! (Employees also enjoy this benefit)]

"Your Rank has been increased (Rank 155 → Rank 161), all attributes + 6144, free attribute points + 6144!"

[Hmm...] Mu An fell into deep thought. So, he is now considered a Cultivator at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage? Making a Breakthrough in Realms or whatever, it's so easy, it seems like there's absolutely no pressure at all!

Due to the distribution of the 'benefits', Nina and Renée's Ranks also saw varying degrees of increase, almost all by about 5 to 10 Ranks. In other words, Mu An now has three great experts at the Foundation Establishment Stage on his side. Two at the Early Stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage, and one at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage.

Hiss— I am a great expert at the Late Foundation Establishment Stage! Who can mess with me? Who dares to mess with me?!

Mu An shook his head, momentarily casting these edgy thoughts to the back of his mind. At this time, Xiao Qingzhu also continued,

"That Senior is expected to arrive tomorrow, and we should be able to make a move before the River God Festival begins."

"At that time, killing the great demon in front of the world will prevent more innocent children from losing their lives to it in the future."

In the past, she certainly wouldn't have dared to have such a 'crazy' idea. Slaughtering a 'deity' as referred to by the common people was a huge taboo and would involve heavy Karma. But the improvement in her strength and Realm had also boosted Xiao Qingzhu's self-confidence. Given more time to cultivate, she believed she could even slay a so-called great expert at the Foundation Establishment Stage all by herself! We Cultivators should naturally have the Aura of 'wishing to compete with the heavens'!

"Hmm." Mu An nodded, not saying anything more. As far as he was concerned, whether the 'Senior at the Early Stage of the Foundation Establishment Stage' that Xiao Qingzhu spoke of came or not, it was all the same. It wouldn't change anything anyway.

Incidentally, he had indeed said that the great demon hiding under the Cang River was far beyond what a Cultivator at the Qi Refinement Stage could contend with. But he had never said that a Cultivator at the Foundation Establishment Stage could definitely contend with it!