Half a month later.

    At the foot of Low Mountain, in the Yellow Bud Rice Fields, the soil was dry and fluffy.

    Two palm depths underground, a slender and translucent grain of Yellow Bud Rice abruptly appeared.

    Then, centered on the Yellow Bud Rice, a circular area with the diameter of a forearm emerged, where a handful of Bone Powder materialized out of thin air and evenly filled the gaps in the soil.

    In the void, a cluster of chilly spring water was gulped out, moistening the soil around the Yellow Bud Rice.

    The Five Ghosts Bag was used to feed the vertical well filled with spring water.

    Two storage compartments contained seeds and Bone Powder, respectively.

    As Chen Mu strolled through the Yellow Bud Rice Fields, these scenes occurred in succession.

    Walking and planting along the way, it didn''t take much time before the ten acres of Yellow Bud Rice Fields were successfully planted.

    Chen Mu stood at the head of the field, silently calculating, "Including the newly rented ten acres next door, after paying the land rent, I could get around three thousand catties of Yellow Bud Rice."

    "Hmm... that''s enough for me to eat for a year," Chen Mu nodded in satisfaction.

    "It would be best to have a source of Exotic Beast Meat as well."

    Always buying it to eat was too uneconomical.

    "Try the Tongtian River?" Chen Mu was tempted.

    "Or better not. The waters of the Tongtian River are deep and the waves are strong. What if there''s a Dragon King?" Chen Mu sighed.

    Then, he subconsciously started to ponder the formula for a Drunken Bait, just in case it was needed.

    ...

    At noon, two meat and two vegetarian dishes were laid out on a square table.

    Old Hao sat opposite, and the two talked as they ate.

    "You really are quite diligent. You managed to get those twenty acres in order so quickly," Old Hao admired.

    "If there''s a good harvest this year, perhaps you could spend some money to learn how to grow medicinal herbs," Old Hao suggested after thinking: "It''s more challenging, but the yield is relatively higher as well."

    Medicinal herbs?

    Chen Mu''s interest was piqued; the return on Yellow Bud Rice was ultimately not that great.

    Growing medicinal herbs might be a good way out.

    "Here in the Lower Courtyard of Jilong Road, farming is ultimately not the way out," Old Hao suddenly lamented.

    "I''ve farmed all my life, saved up money to buy the Jade Seed Secret Method, the Perceptive Secret Technique, and even went to the cultivation retreats five times."

    "It sounds good, but when compared to others...," Old Hao shook his head and sighed.

    "Do you know about the Wu Mountain''s seven brothers?"

    Chen Mu narrowed his eyes and shook his head feigning ignorance.

    "A bunch of bullies," Old Hao said with contempt on his face.

    "They set up schemes to trick others, force people to help them farm, and enjoy the fruits of others'' labor."

    "Such evildoers can actually go to the cultivation retreats every year?!" Old Hao was both angry and envious.

    "Heh, those guys have met their match," Old Hao took malicious pleasure in their misfortune.

    "Old Second Zheng Jin, it''s said that he was directly killed by the leader of the Purple Bamboo Society."

    "Evil begets evil!" Old Hao exclaimed with delight.

    Chen Mu looked at the brand new Mustard Seed Talisman with thirty-five opening permissions with mixed feelings.

    People are indeed different from one another.

    "People like me who staunchly maintain their moral bottom line and are amiable are becoming rare," Chen Mu sighed helplessly.

    It''s good to be self-sufficient, but some just think about harming others for their own gain.

    "This must be your compensation for disturbing my peaceful life," Chen Mu said helplessly as he opened the Mustard Seed Talisman.

    He really was not that interested in such unexpected wealth.

    "Ah..."

    "Eh... this wooden cabinet''s material isn''t bad at all!"

    He cheerfully opened every drawer to check them one by one.

    The first thing that caught his attention was the various Jade Slip scrolls.

    "The Five Yin Black Evil Net, not a bad secret technique," Chen Mu browsed through the supplementary volume of the secret technique.

    The silken net could wrap around to control, cut to attack, and also be used for defense.

    Able to fight, defend, and control, it was a rare Secret Technique.

    "Too bad..." Chen Mu shook his head and put the booklet aside.

    He had seven or eight similar supplementary volumes of the Jade Seed Secret Method.

    Currently, his spare time was largely taken up by Spiritual Light Technique, he really had no energy to practice another secret technique.

    "The Three Elements Secret Seal? It would be a bit useful if I hadn''t mastered the Jade Seed yet."

    Chen Mu kept flipping through.

    "The Lesser Zhou Heavenly Spiritual Light Method?!"

    "Wow!"

    "You''re really damn rich!" Chen Mu held a piece of Jade Slip, gritting his teeth in envy.

    This thing was the most expensive Spiritual Light Secret Technique in the Scripture Transmission Institute, a full five hundred White Jade Coins!

    He flipped over the Jade Slip to check the front.

    The silver threads representing the True Intent of the secret technique had already dimmed and lost their shine. Only the backside, engraved with an outline and precautions, indicated how valuable this item had once been.

    "It would have been so good if you had bought it a few days later!"

    "Five hundred..."

    Despite such a huge expense, Chen Mu still found two hundred and thirty-seven White Jade Coins in the wooden cabinet.

    "Wealth sways hearts." Chen Mu realized suddenly.

    No wonder Zhang Tu''an was so busy recruiting people into the Purple Bamboo Society.

    "Could it be you''re making money by selling fake medicine to the members?" Chen Mu thought back to Zhang Tu''an''s sales pitch when he was selling Calming Pills.

    And that recipe that seemed to come from Shang Huan.

    Chen Mu glanced toward the middle and bottom drawers, which were filled with rows of neatly arranged white porcelain bottles.

    He casually opened a bottle and took a light sniff, Chen Mu couldn''t help but sigh, "Even if you mixed in just half of the real stuff, it would be better."

    "Thirty-five pills per bottle, and there are only five that are real Calming Pills!"

    "Compared to this, Shang Huan, that fat guy who thinks about faking and adulterating all day, actually seems to have a moral bottom line?!"

    "Heh..."