The moment the sun rises over the cliffs and sheds light on Starsword Peak, Lan Xiaohui is already hard at work planting the seeds to my specifications.
Our choice of seeds was not ideal, but I modify the formation of the [Auspicious Farming Method] to accommodate these logistical challenges. There is a part of me that deeply regrets that an entity such as myself — a sector-class strategic machine intelligence — is reduced to solving logistical problems. However, there is another part of me — and not my sentient core — that deeply appreciates the fact that I can be put to good use, even if it is something as simple as balancing inputs and outputs.
Not that a carbon-based intelligence could do it in less than ten years as there are about nine million potential combinations and conflicts.
Then again, a sword most certainly could never do it.
I discard that thought before my sentient core experiences an existential crisis.
“Take three steps forward, then plant three rows of Purple Soulgrass,” I tell Lan Xiaohui.
Doing her best impression of a machine, Lan Xiaohui follows my instructions to the letter.
Having a unit of distance based on Lan Xiaohui’s steps comes in useful, especially because it is easy for her to understand, which is precisely why I came up with the unit of measurement.
Wu Yulan stands off to the side and stares at Lan Xiaohui, equally as impressed as she is distraught by seeing her elegant and graceful friend covered up to her elbows in dirt. There are even smudges of mud on Lan Xiaohui’s cheeks which keep growing in size and number whenever Lan Xiaohui wipes the sweat off her brows and cheeks.
To Wu Yulan, something like this might seem unthinkable. In fact, this might even be the first time Wu Yulan had ever seen a farm or a farmer. Though, to call Lan Xiaohui a farmer would be a gross overestimation of her abilities.
To call this farming would be a gross underestimation of the larger truth.
The [Auspicious Farming Method] merely pointed out the relationship between pure water essence and wood essence herbs, in a suitable environment, that improves yield, growth time, and ambient Qi. The formation Lan Xiaohui created back then — and now — was applying the same principle on a larger scale, but it no longer had anything to do with the method itself.
This formation that Lan Xiaohui is creating now utilizes all five basic elements, as well as arranging them according to their Yin and Yang attributes while using the Qi Gathering Array in the center as part of the larger formation. In the end, while the plants are still growing, the Qi in the area will be weaker by between ten to fifteen percent; but when they are ready to harvest, it will increase by twice that much.
Unofficially, I call it the [Large Auspicious Farming Method Array], because that is what it is, though I suspect Lan Xiaohui would reject the name.
To Wu Yulan, and anyone else for that matter, this might seem like magic. Balancing the elements and attributes on such a large scale is the domain of the dedicated Spirit Farmer. Interestingly enough, according to the memories of those I devoured, none of them have ever seen or heard of a Spirit Farmer, and I can understand why.
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As the size of the field and array formation increases, so does the complexity. For an ordinary person, figuring out the exact diagram to balance the attributes would take an extraordinarily long time. Perhaps someone in the realms beyond Nascent Soul would have the lifespan to dedicate a hundred years or so to figuring out the exact procedure, but according to Lady Yue, there aren’t many of those on this continent.
For me, this is not an issue. A larger formation might take me a year or two, but for something of this scale, a day will do. Unfortunately, a larger formation would require extreme precision, and unless Lan Xiaohui decides to give up the sword and pick up Spirit Farming instead, it will have to wait until my perception and consciousness grow to a point where I can do it myself, or I find a way to give my owner more precise instructions.
At several points, I notice Wu Yulan fidget in a way that suggests she wants to offer her help to Lan Xiaohui, but she decides against it but that is not because she is afraid of getting her hands dirty. The guilty look on her face reveals that she is quite convinced that she would get in the way, rather than help.
Of course, Wu Yulan does not understand that she is no different from Lan Xiaohui in terms of skill. At least Lan Xiaohui had an interest in growing flowers, so perhaps my owner has a slight advantage.
I decide that it is finally time to open communications with this entity and I reach out mentally to her.
“Wu Yulan, you can assist my owner if you follow my instructions.”
At first, the girl blinks, surprised. I thought she would be more alarmed by my sudden words, but, in truth, I have no idea how these lifeforms perceive my [Telepathy]. Perhaps it is not a voice they hear — which might startle them — but rather a wayward thought that they know doesn’t belong to them.
Eventually, Wu Yulan’s gaze focuses on my form which is hovering next to Lan Xiaohui, and then the girl nods.
“What do I do, Yaoyue?” Wu Yulan asks.
At this, Lan Xiaohui glances toward Wu Yulan, confused for a brief moment, before she realizes what is happening. She smiles and returns to work.
“Take the Gold Fire Lotus seeds, walk to the Qi Gathering Array crystal, then turn east and walk nine steps forward.”
Under my instructions, they work through the morning and manage to finish three quarters of the array formation before something suddenly draws their attention, and they both turn towards the southeast and look up toward the sky.
They narrow their eyes to shield them from the glare of the sun, but the way their eyeballs move makes it clear that they are tracking something.
Perhaps sensing my curiosity, Lan Xiaohui says: “It’s someone flying on a sword.”
“Looks like they are coming here,” Wu Yulan says, now also covered in dirt, though she managed to keep the mud away from her cheeks after learning from my owner’s mistakes.
Lan Xiaohui nods in agreement with her companion and then steps away from the field — for tactical reasons. If she ends up in a battle again, the last thing she would want is to ruin the field that she and Wu Yulan painstakingly labored over the entire morning.
A minute after that, an entity enters my perception radius, landing a dozen steps away from the waiting Lan Xiaohui and Wu Yulan.
“Greetings, juniors,” the figure says, politely greeting the two with a formal bow. “I am Sun Yongzheng, a True Disciple, and I have come to personally greet you and welcome you to the sect.”
Sun Yongzheng. This name immediately evokes knowledge in me. Once again, the subprocesses operating my [Nooparallelism] have collected useful information.
Even though this person is only in the Peak of Foundation Establishment, after five years of practicing at the Galaxy Sword sect, they were still ranked tenth last year. There are many Core Formation cultivators in the Galaxy Sword sect, which means that this person’s unusual ranking, despite their lacking cultivation, is a sign of more than meets the eye.
“Greetings, senior,” Lan Xiaohui and Wu Yulan both say at the same time and politely return the greeting.