My experience of grinding in another world

Chapter 314 Spying
Five days later.

At the bottom of the cliff, in the small storeroom of Danbao Pavilion.

Chen Mu handed over two hundred catties of yellow sprout rice and received sixty white jade coins.

Thirty percent of the reward was for the alchemy apprentice, and the other thirty percent was the reward of two hundred catties of the essence of the five grains.

Chen Mu returned the twenty pieces of white jade and exchanged them for a wooden stick.

The wooden sticks are two fingers wide and palm long, with a mountain pattern carved on one side and the words "two thousand catties of yellow sprout rice" carved on the other.

With this wooden strip, he can go to the General Affairs Department's warehouse to collect two thousand catties of yellow sprout rice.

……

The General Affairs Office's large warehouse was not far away, and it was also built by hollowing out the mountainside.

Compared to the small warehouse of Danbaoge, which was only the size of a basketball court, the large warehouse was much more spacious.

The top is as high as seven or eight stories.

Chen Mu stood at the door and looked inside, but perhaps due to insufficient light, he couldn't see the end at a glance.

As I watched, a strange sense of disconnect washed over me.

It was as if the inside and outside of the door were two different worlds.

After thinking for a while, Chen Mu finally discovered the anomaly.

The lowest cave dwelling in Danbaoge is located five or six meters above the main warehouse.

But this large warehouse is more than ten meters high.

This……

"Never seen it before?" The short, stout warehouse manager who was helping him with his business glanced at Chen Mu sideways.

"This is a method that can be summarized in a small package."

"The original cave wasn't this big."

"Similar to a mustard seed talisman?" Despite having seen many strange sights, this still greatly shocked Chen Mu.

"More or less," the chubby warehouse manager said calmly.

If this secret method were used in my own cave dwelling, my small three-bedroom apartment would immediately become a large single-level apartment!

"I wonder which highly skilled cultivator used such a secret technique?" Chen Mu couldn't help but ask.

"Want to learn? Or do you want to decorate your own cave dwelling?" Fat Steward glanced at Chen Mu.

"Let's talk about it when you become an alchemist."

Chen Mu paused, then couldn't help but chuckle. The fat man's words were unpleasant to hear, but they also made sense.

This secret technique, whether learned or performed by someone else, cannot be mastered without Taoist cultivation.

I'd better go back to practicing my elixir-making.

He then carried two huge sacks and left the warehouse.

……

Not far away, beside the arched doorway of a small warehouse, Bai Xiuwen squinted as he watched Chen Mu's departing figure.

He turned to the warehouse manager behind the long table and asked, "How much of the essence of the five grains did that new guy pay?"

The warehouse manager, who was in his sixties with white hair and beard, raised his head and looked out through the jade window.

"Two hundred catties."

"So little? It's really just for show." Bai Xiuwen shook his head in disappointment.

Two hundred pounds is the minimum requirement for submitting the task.

Does he really not know the Five Elements Qi Absorption Method?

pity……

"How do you know he wasn't faking it?" the old warehouse manager said calmly.

Bai Xiuwei's heart stirred, and three white jade coins immediately appeared on the long table.

The white-haired old warehouse manager brushed his sleeve across the table and quietly put it away.

"To consume the essence of grains in large quantities, you need a lot of yellow sprout rice."

"If you want to get yellow sprout rice from the main warehouse, you must exchange it for a wooden token from me."

"I'll keep an eye on things for you this month."

This month?
Bai Xiuwen's lips twitched. That old geezer is really greedy.

Forget it, it's more important to help Senior Brother Qi find some manpower.

Even if someone doesn't truly know how to absorb the essence of grains, they will eventually learn. Mastering it early allows for early planning.

A powerful backer, huh? Who doesn't have a powerful backer?

"If you willingly fall into their trap, what can anyone say?" Bai Xiuwen thought with a smile.

……

At the entrance of Chen Mu Cave.

As soon as he returned, he saw two figures standing in front of the cave entrance.

There were also four large bamboo baskets that reached chest height next to him.

Old Hao, is it still a pleasure?

Chen Mu narrowed his eyes.

"What happened?" he asked instinctively as he stepped forward.

"Something happened?" Shang Huanle chuckled. "Does Old Hao getting a wife count?"

Chen Mu chuckled and teased, "Weren't you going to the mortal world to take twenty or thirty concubines? What, you've given up?"

Before Old Hao could answer, Shang Huan spoke first: "Don't blame my Uncle Hao. No matter who falls into my future aunt's hands, they won't escape."

“My aunt’s looks… tsk tsk…” Shang Huan shook his head.

"What? As beautiful as an angel?" Chen Mu raised an eyebrow. Does this old man have that much charm?

"No, he looks like a burly man!" Shang Huan chuckled. "He's incredibly broad-shouldered and thick-waisted!"

"Go away, what do you know!" Old Hao glared and puffed out his beard, then said with a satisfied look, "That's called being healthy and fertile!"

Ah, your taste is truly...unique!
……

"What are these things?" Chen Mu pointed to four large bamboo baskets.

"Daily necessities: vegetables, meat, oil, and salt." Old Hao lifted the gray cloth covering the bamboo basket.

"This saves me a lot of trouble," Chen Mu said with a smile as he flipped through the pages.

He was planning to purchase a batch of supplies in preparation for going into seclusion to gain experience. "Why not hire a few servants or maids to handle the chores?" Old Hao asked, puzzled, as he carried the supplies into his room.

Chen Mu helped carry a bamboo basket into the house, and upon hearing this, casually remarked, "I'm used to being alone."

He has many secrets and dares not leave a stranger by his side.

"Then let Shang Huan send you a batch of supplies regularly from now on."

"It will save you from running up and down the mountain and wasting time."

Chen Mu glanced at Shang Huan.

Seeing the other party's grinning face, he immediately realized that this was probably the same tactic as when they delivered furniture last time—another way to scare people.

"Okay," Chen Mu shrugged in agreement.

This is good, so he can stay away from worldly affairs and concentrate on alchemy in seclusion.

……

Inside the cave, in front of a square table.

The three of them had a meal and chatted.

"The identity of the alchemy apprentice at Danbao Pavilion is really useful," Shang Huan exclaimed.

"None of the arrogant brutes I recently hired dared to cause trouble."

Chen Mu crunched a piece of steamed exotic beast ribs, meat and bone together, into pieces.

My identity? They're probably afraid of my cultivation level.

These warriors from the Great Qian Dynasty had probably already received a warning before they arrived, and knew just how powerful the Breaking Illusion Realm truly was.

“Even a young prince from the Great Qian Dynasty obediently works as a peddler with me to make money,” Shang Huan said smugly.

Young Prince?
"Why would someone who doesn't live a life of wealth and luxury come here to reclaim wasteland and farm, suffering hardships?" Chen Mu wondered.

"I heard it's because of the constant natural disasters during the Great Qian Dynasty, which caused chaos throughout the land."

"The Jia family dynasty is unstable and in danger of collapse, so they came here to avoid disaster."

Natural disaster? Chen Mu suddenly realized.

Instability may be real, but annihilation is unlikely.

There's also the chicken coop passage supporting it from behind.

……

After meal.

Shang Huan handed Chen Mu a small cloth bag containing over six hundred white jade coins.

"This is this month's earnings. How about that, not bad, right?" Shang Huan said with a smug smile.

"Why are insect repellent incense products selling so well?" Chen Mu asked in surprise.

“Yuquan Mountain is located deep in the eastern ridge, where poisonous insects and miasma are particularly troublesome. So…” Shang Huan shrugged.

Chen Mu understood.

We've caught the right opportunity!

……

The next morning, after washing up and eating, Chen Mu went into the alchemy room.

A fist-sized incense burner was placed on the windowsill, and a wisp of black smoke entered, igniting the charcoal.

The aroma of the steaming hot pills, which calm the mind, slowly fills the air.

Chen Mu raised his hand, and two large bags of yellow sprout rice in the corner flew to the soft couch.

"Photography!"

The magic talisman drilled into the primordial talisman, and an alien force enveloped the yellow sprout rice.

hum!
The yellow rice grains vibrated and tumbled, sending up specks of white powder, like dust, that gathered into balls.

After a long while, Chen Mu put the essence of the five grains into a brown wooden box, sealed it, and put it away.

"It seems we can extract even more." He looked thoughtfully at the yellow sprouts that had turned into bran.

Chen Mu brought up the gray wall and checked the entries related to alchemy.

Five Elements Qi Absorption Method: 3243/10000/Third Stage;

Five Qi Hunyuan Method: 2896/10000/Second Order;

Alchemy (Bigu Pill): 1325/10000;

Wind and Fire Cardinal Spell: Limit;

Golden Pearl Talisman: The Limit;
Five Grains Symbol: Limit;
"If the Five Elements Qi Absorption Technique continues to improve in level, will it be possible to extract more essence of the five grains from the same yellow sprout rice?"

"Heh..." Chen Mu's lips curled up slightly: "No rush, there will be plenty of opportunities to gain experience in the Qi Absorption Technique later."

"Cultivating Taoist skills is more important; let's refine elixirs first."

He immediately took out the pitch-black alchemy furnace.

The five ghosts cleansed the black smoke, a small amount of materials were added, and the wind and fire pivot controlled the alchemy furnace, condensing the five primordial energies into a pill.

……

More than half a month later, in Chen Mu's cave, inside the alchemy room.

Chen Mu placed his hands on either side of the alchemy furnace.

click!
With a soft sound, the lid of the alchemy furnace rose into the air.

Heat rose, the air above the furnace distorted slightly, and a faint aroma of roasting wafted through the air.

With a breath control technique, he probed into the alchemy furnace from a distance of a hundred miles away. A milky-white pill the size of a longan flew out and spun around in front of Chen Mu's eyes.

He examined it carefully for a moment, then extended his right index finger, his fingernail grazing the pill.

A lump of pills the size of a mung bean was scraped off.

When placed in the mouth, it melts instantly, turning into a warm current that travels down the esophagus into the stomach.

"Haha, this tastes just right!" Chen Mu couldn't help but grin.

Let's take a look at the gray wall.

Alchemy (Bigu Pill): 6095/10000;

Although not yet perfected, it is already capable of refining fasting pills.

If you can refine elixirs, you can exchange them for cultivation techniques.

He's one step closer to mastering the secret technique of condensing the acupoints.

(End of this chapter)