By now, Li Xuan had finally gathered all the spirit plant seeds distributed to him and stored them safely in his little stash.
That, in itself, was a form of hidden capital.
Of course, cultivating medicinal herbs was just a side hustle—something for the long game. Right now, Li Xuan had a much more pressing goal: finding a suitable spirit ring and breaking through his soul power bottleneck.
After all, he'd been sitting on full innate soul power for a while now. About time he did something with it.
"My martial spirit mutated after its second awakening, and I still haven't fully studied what kind of spirit ring would suit it best. Strength… I need strength." Sitting cross-legged on his bed, Li Xuan stared at his palm and muttered to himself as he focused on the next step.
He raised his right hand, palm facing upward, and began channeling his soul power into the spirit imprint embedded in his hand.
As the energy flowed in, a greenish glow began to shimmer from the imprint, rising from his palm like a flickering teal flame.
From within that ghostly fire, a translucent lotus seed slowly emerged, spinning gently in the air.
The seed began to quiver, then abruptly burst apart with a soft crack, reforming itself into a delicate lotus flower glowing faintly with blue-green light.
The flower floated in the air, its nine petals soft and silky, each emitting a faint, mystical shimmer.
"Well, aren't you pretty?" Li Xuan raised an eyebrow. "A martial spirit with both fire and wood attributes… I'm basically a walking alchemy lab."
This was actually the first time he'd properly looked at his martial spirit—the Nine-Heart Nine-Flame Lotus—since its second awakening. Back then, all his attention had gone into that mysterious little green bottle, and he'd completely ignored the fancy upgrade his martial spirit had received.
Now that he was ready to improve his soul power, the lotus finally made a reappearance.
If it had sentience, it would've probably cursed him out by now. Something along the lines of, "Oh, now you remember me, huh? Use me when you need me, ignore me when you don't? Typical scumbag."
Still, the lotus was undeniably high-quality, and the fact that it carried both wood and fire attributes made it especially suitable for someone pursuing alchemy. Li Xuan figured he'd primarily lean into the fire element going forward but didn't want to completely waste the wood affinity either.
At the moment, he was stuck inside the Sea of Flowers, which made hunting soul beasts more or less impossible. However, thanks to his handy green bottle, he could cultivate a four-hundred-year-old plant-type soul beast right here to create a spirit ring for himself.
And what better candidate than a plant-type beast with fire attributes?
"Let's start with the best one…" Li Xuan murmured, pulling out a single, rare seed from inside his robe.
The Heartflame Gold Chrysanthemum.
A top-tier fire-attributed spirit plant. If it could produce a spirit ring, it would be the perfect match for his martial spirit.
Of course, Li Xuan had a few backup plans. Aside from the chrysanthemum, he also had two other fiery spirit herbs and ten rare-quality plants as options.
But then a memory surfaced—one from the original novel.
Wait… weren't immortal-grade spirit plants incapable of producing spirit rings?
That thought made him hesitate.
If he killed this thing and didn't get a spirit ring out of it, he'd suffer a loss so great even the gods would wince.
For a moment, he stood there, torn between risk and reward.
If the Heartflame Gold Chrysanthemum could yield a spirit ring, it would be incredibly powerful for a first ring—practically cheating!
But…
"Immortal-grade spirit plants are rare, but not impossible to find again. This one's worth the gamble," Li Xuan finally muttered, clenching his fist.
Decision made, he sprang into action.
He found a flowerpot in the corner of the courtyard, filled it with soil, watered it thoroughly, then brought it back inside. With practiced hands, he planted the chrysanthemum seed and summoned the little green bottle.
Carefully, he dripped a single bead of green spirit liquid onto the soil where the seed lay buried.
The result was instant.
A blinding golden-red light exploded from the flowerpot, forcing Li Xuan to shield his eyes with his arm.
When the light faded, two golden sprouts had already broken through the surface and were growing at a visible pace.
In mere seconds, a chrysanthemum seedling stood tall in the pot, nearly thirty centimeters high. Its leaves were golden and radiant, its stem firm and elegant—like a noble born into the world of flora.
So this is what they mean by "immortal-grade." Li Xuan nodded in appreciation.
The plant continued to grow rapidly, spreading broad, golden leaves that sparkled with a soft internal glow. Soon, a surge of soul power swirled around the room, forming a visible vortex that shook the entire thatched hut.
Li Xuan's humble little house groaned under the pressure, creaking like it might collapse at any moment.
After a solid ten minutes, the soul power storm finally calmed.
The Heartflame Gold Chrysanthemum now radiated a thin layer of golden-red flame, making it appear even more regal and untouchable.
Li Xuan narrowed his eyes, staring at the fire.
A warm, pleasant sensation washed over him, like soaking in a natural hot spring. His entire body relaxed. His eyes began to glaze over, his mind drifting...
Then—sting!
Li Xuan flinched as a sharp pain shot through his palm. His spirit imprint had suddenly flared up, releasing a flash of teal fire that scorched his hand.
The pain snapped him out of his trance.
"Damn… that flame actually had a mind-altering effect? I nearly got seduced by a flower!" he muttered, wiping cold sweat from his brow.
Apparently, this Heartfire Divine Flame had a potent influence on the soul. Had the chrysanthemum been any older, he might not have broken free so easily.
Still, since he'd already fallen for the trick once, he figured it wouldn't work on him again.
After a short rest, he checked the plant's current stats:
[Plant: Heartflame Gold Chrysanthemum]
Grade: Immortal
Age: 100 years
Description: One of the most potent immortal-grade spirit plants. Naturally manifests the Heartfire Divine Flame—capable of burning the soul and clouding consciousness. Cannot be used in alchemy or consumed directly. Requires volcanic soil and intense heat to grow.
"Alright… once it reaches four hundred years in three days, I can absorb it as my first spirit ring," Li Xuan said to himself, nodding with satisfaction.
He carefully placed the flowerpot beneath the window, where it could catch the morning light. That done, he finally allowed himself to relax.
He pulled up the system shop, hoping for a pleasant surprise.
[System Shop]
One Meat-Two Veg Lunchbox — 1 point
WowWow Mineral Water — 1 point
Three-Eyed Golden Lion External Spirit Bone — 100,000 points
Barrier-Breaking Pill (Discounted!) — 1,000 points (Original Price: 2,000,000 points)
---
"You've got to be kidding me." Li Xuan rolled his eyes. "What's the point of listing these luxuries if I can't even afford a single toenail from that lion bone?"
He only had ten points left. After buying a boxed meal and a bottle of water, he'd be totally broke.
With a sigh, he made his purchase and sat back, eating his modest dinner by moonlight.
To be fair, he was starving, and the meal was surprisingly decent. In no time, he'd polished it off.
After settling accounts with the system again, he received the usual reward—ten measly points.
Lying back on his bed, full and a little annoyed, he yawned and stretched.
Moments later, he drifted into a peaceful sleep.