Chapter 9

Chen Mo still assumed the posture he used for cultivation, crossing his legs and closing his five hearts, with his hands stacked on his lap, palms facing up, and the small white bead placed on his palms.

He slowly calmed himself and then began to practice the technique according to the instructions on the transmission jade talisman. The cool sensation from his palms was very comfortable, and it seemed to carry a breath that he liked, making him want to explore it further.

As he slowly followed the technique, he circulated his true essence along the cultivation path, drawing it from his dantian and guiding it through his limbs and bones. When it passed through his palms, he felt a breath from the small white bead merge with his true essence, flowing along his meridians back into the dantian. The path it took was cool and refreshing, making his body feel light and warm. The true essence that emerged from the dantian seemed to have grown a bit, and he circulated it through his body again.

Is this spiritual energy?

Damn, this is spiritual energy. It feels different from what I usually experience, and there's so much of it that I can clearly feel it! Each time he practiced, the small white bead would inject a thread of spiritual energy into Chen Mo, and this thread seemed particularly suitable for him. After entering the dantian, it strengthened his dantian and his true essence, gradually making his true essence more powerful.

It was truly wonderful, exactly the feeling he wanted. Although the spiritual energy was still scarce, Chen Mo keenly felt his true essence gradually thickening after one cycle, and his meridians also widened. All of this was the result of the spiritual energy nourishing him.

He was so excited that he almost jumped three feet, but the spiritual energy he had just guided in immediately vanished without a trace.

Chen Mo was not surprised but delighted. Four years! Four whole years, and now he could finally feel the clear sensation of spiritual energy entering his body. He was deeply moved.

How foolish he had been, guarding the small white bead for four years and worrying every day?

But it wasn't entirely his fault. The small white bead was a treasure that his master, Ye Shang, had spent a hundred years to obtain. Although he didn't know its exact use and was betrayed before he could fully understand it, this still showed that the small white bead was a valuable treasure. Chen Mo cherished it greatly, keeping it in a hidden place and never showing it to anyone. Apart from himself, no one on Blue Sea Star had seen the small white bead.

He gently wiped away the tears of happiness from the corners of his eyes and said to himself, "With spiritual energy, I have hope for cultivation!"

Once he could guide the spiritual energy into his body and reach the first level of Qi Cultivation, he would be able to use talismans, arrays, and spells. Not only would his cultivation prospects improve, but he could also use talismans to help his aging parents, reduce their physical burdens, and earn money to support his family, easily solving his brother's school fees. The future path would be much smoother.

All of this began with his cultivation. At this moment, his resolve was unshakable.

He slowly calmed his excitement, sat down again, and tried to recreate the feeling from before.

It felt as if he and the small white bead had formed a cycle. Each time he completed a cycle, a thread of spiritual energy from the small white bead would merge with his true essence, circulating through his body, improving his physical condition, and gradually strengthening his muscles, bones, and blood. Finally, it would enter the dantian.

The faint and weak true essence circulated through his body, guided carefully by Chen Mo, traveling through all his meridians and blood vessels, returning to the dantian. With each small cycle, his aura grew stronger, though not by much, just a tiny bit. But this tiny bit gave him infinite hope.

In the blink of an eye, several hours had passed. He finally completed thirty-six small cycles, and his true essence, which was initially as thin as a hair, had become as thick as two hairs. This was a tangible change, unlike before when his true essence showed no noticeable improvement after cultivation.

Chen Mo slowly exhaled, then stood up. Holding the small white bead, he felt that the treasure seemed to have strengthened its connection with him after a night of cultivation.

Realizing the importance of the small white bead, he could no longer separate it from himself. So he found a small cloth bag to store the bead, tied it with a very sturdy rope, and wore it around his neck, close to his body.

At this moment, he felt more comfortable than ever, both mentally and physically. He wasn't sure if it was an illusion, but he felt his senses had become much sharper. Since receiving the inheritance and cleansing his body, his true essence had always been as thin as a hair, and he had never noticed much change after each cultivation session. The growth was so slow that it was almost imperceptible. But this time, he could clearly feel the tangible increase in his power, the nourishment of his limbs and organs, and the comfort it brought.

At the same time, a foul smell reached his nose, making him very uncomfortable. It turned out that after cultivating and cleansing his body, some harmful substances had been expelled. This was the second time since receiving the inheritance four years ago that he had expelled harmful substances, and it was indeed effective.

He immediately rushed to the bathroom and thoroughly washed his body. The black, oily substance was very difficult to wash off, and it took him a whole bar of soap to clean himself. But looking at those black, oily substances, he felt they were particularly endearing. It was not easy to see them again after four years, and Chen Mo almost said, "Hello!"

After changing into clean clothes, he felt incredibly refreshed!

However, this was just the beginning, so he had to hurry and continue his cultivation. He was still in the stage of guiding spiritual energy into his body, and he still had a distance to go before reaching the first level of Qi Cultivation. Since he hadn't felt any bottlenecks during his cultivation, he knew he still had a lot of work to do.

Checking the time, it was almost 7 a.m. So Chen Mo quickly bought some breakfast and walked to the courier distribution center while eating.

For four years, except for meals at home, he rarely ate out. Even at school, he was very picky, choosing the best food from the available options. After cultivation, his heightened sense of smell made many foods taste different, often with a faint foul smell that made him feel nauseous.

Chen Mo knew that these foods were not good, as all the foods that made him feel nauseous and smelly were made from substandard ingredients. He had discovered this after a long period of comparison. Only the vegetables and grains from his home could give him some peace of mind, and he hadn't eaten any food that he could trust in the past four years.

Today, he had no choice but to eat, as he had been hungry all night after cultivating. So he picked a breakfast shop he often visited and bought some buns and soy milk. However, after taking a few bites, he had to throw the buns in the trash and only drink the soy milk, going to work with an empty stomach.

He hadn't expected that his sense of taste and smell would become even more sensitive after a night of cultivation. Foods that he could eat before now seemed somewhat unpalatable. He also realized how much harmful substances he had consumed over the years, as evidenced by the black, oily substances he had expelled that morning.

Suddenly, he had an epiphany. He would cultivate to the first level of Qi Cultivation and then return home to farm. As a cultivator, he had many talismans and spells in the transmission jade talisman that could help plants grow, as well as cultivation arrays for growing medicinal herbs. These could be used to grow crops. He didn't need the crops to have spiritual energy or be of a higher grade; he just wanted them to grow quickly, be healthy, and taste good, so he could at least feed himself. Otherwise, staying in the city with no high income and no access to organic food would mean going hungry every day.

Moreover, he could use his skills to grow vegetables, which would require less investment and yield higher returns. Once he mastered the cultivation of plant arrays and spells, it would be a significant help.

Additionally, he couldn't stay in the city, where pollution was severe and spiritual energy was scarce. If he returned home to farm, he could earn money, cultivate, and take care of his parents, achieving three goals at once.

He wished he could return immediately, but he knew he wasn't yet at the first level of Qi Cultivation, and he couldn't practice many talismans and spells yet. So he had to wait, feeling a bit dejected.

The joy of effective cultivation was overshadowed by the reality of his situation. He wasn't alone and had to consider practical matters, such as improving his family's economic situation before thinking about other things.

...

"Manager Wu, good morning!" Seeing that Manager Wu, the head of the courier distribution center, had arrived, he greeted him. He had been working part-time here for two years, and Manager Wu had always been very considerate of him, so Chen Mo respected him greatly.

"Chen Mo, you're here. Good morning!" Manager Wu nodded at Chen Mo but didn't seem as cheerful as usual, indicating he had something on his mind.

Chen Mo swallowed his words and quickly began sorting the packages, loading them onto the truck, and preparing to deliver them.