Chapter 77 - Chapter 77: Chapter 72 Fishingi

Chapter 77: Chapter 72 Fishingi

Translator: 549690339

“Could it be that All Niu, going up the mountain every day, is indeed bewitched?”

Someone saw Ah Niu carrying a basket passing by and couldn’t help but ask with concern.

“What do you know? Don’t look at how young Ah Niu is, he’s sharp! The mountain soil he came up with sells for fifty Wen Money a basket, worth several days of your wages.”

“Really? For real?”

“Could this be fake? The Yan Family’s Seventh Steward himself came in a horse-drawn carriage to buy a basketful. 1 heard he paid in cash.”

“That mountain soil is everywhere in the hills, how can it be worth so much? Quickly, tell us.”

“If 1 knew, wouldn’t I be rich by now? You should go ask Ah Niu about that.”

“Tomorrow, 1 must ask him. If there’s such a great way to get rich, let’s all get rich together!”

“Don’t even mention it, the corn Ah Niu planted this year is indeed growing very well.”

These villagers, having had their dinner, didn’t have much to entertain themselves and gathered together, most keen on discussing the long and short of other people’s affairs.

The entire village basically knew about Qin Niu’s sale of a basket of mountain soil for fifty Wen Money.

So what?

Even someone like the village bully Wang Haikun had no recourse— at most, he could forcibly demand a few baskets of the mountain soil.

To ask Qin Niu for the formula of the mountain soil is wishful thinking.

Back home, he closed his door.

Qin Niu left a portion of the Banyan Tree Blood for cultivating the Termites and the soon-to-hatch Worker Bees.

He would still need to wait at least ten days for the first batch of eggs laid by the Queen Bee to successfully hatch into adult Worker Bees.

He went to the backyard and cleaned out the clear liquid in the stone trough.

It probably was of no use anymore.

The energy inside had long been completely absorbed by the Treasured Sword.

He poured a jar of Banyan Tree Blood into it, while the other jars were tucked away in a concealed corner of the backyard, kept for future use.

The Treasured Sword soaked in the stone trough became excited once again.

It even trembled slightly.

The nurturing of a divine weapon involves several steps; a good divine weapon from the moment it is forged has its own life, filled with spirituality.

Even some weapons need a blood sacrifice after being made.

Typically, this requires killing a person to fulfill the sacrificial rites.

Such weapons become even more ferocious.

So, nurturing a weapon to bestow it with special abilities is only the first step.

The real success is when it gains a hint of spirituality.

Not just a lifeless object anymore.

What Qin Niu bought was just a common thick-backed Chopping Knife cast from fine iron, with a layer of Hundred-Tempering Fine Steel folded within.

In the eyes of a true expert, such a knife would hardly be noteworthy.

Yet, he used the Banyan Tree Blood to nourish it until it emitted a wisp of Blade Qi.

Now, as it soaked in the Banyan Tree Blood, it trembled slightly in extreme excitement, indicating that it had already conceived a hint of spirituality.

When this trace of spirituality stabilizes, it would become a true divine weapon.

Banyan Tree Blood is really something!

I wonder what it would be classified as right now? Tree Demon? Spirit? Or is it simply ancient, having absorbed the essence of the sun and the moon, evolved to possess some special abilities?

Unraveling this mystery would have to wait until Qin Niu’s cultivation becomes stronger.

Even now, with his current Threefold cultivation of ordinary humans, he’s still as insignificant as a speck of dust in front of the Ancient Banyan Tree.

This indicates it is even more powerful than imagined.

At first, when he was trapped by it, Qin Niu thought about cutting it down, but now the thought seems naively adorable.

It’s estimated even a Tenfold expert among ordinary humans would find it difficult to cut it down.

The night’s cultivation goes without saying.

Next day, he did not rush into the mountains.

Because Fourth was still evolving, without it, Qin Niu would enter the Ancient Banyan Tree but wouldn’t be able to leave. Going up the mountain without being able to cultivate would be a waste of time, right?

He planned to look after the corn in the fields today.

This season, flooding has devastated the fields; for the most part, half a year’s harvest has been lost to the waters.

By planting this acre of corn, at least he wouldn’t have to worry about going hungry.

Hunting depends on luck.

Farming is the true path; as long as one doesn’t encounter a natural disaster, there will be a certain harvest.

Carrying a hoe, he went to the cornfield to check, and there were some weeds, but the corn seedlings had already grown taller than a person. The weeds posed no threat to them.

Qin Niu had never found farming as relaxing as it was now.

Carrying the hoe to the fields, he found there was hardly any work to be done.

“All Niu, I heard that Daoyuan Village got flooded and lots of people are fishing. Are you going?”

The one calling him was the villager Liu Shengli.

In his late twenties, he made a living by farming. His family owned two mu of infertile land and rented four mu from Wang Furen’s family.

If the harvest was good, they could live a decent life.

The Liu family was populous and one of the major clans in the village.

Liu Shengli usually ignored Qin Niu, but now he was surprisingly enthusiastic towards him.

As the saying goes, “Unwarranted kindness is either scheming or thievery.”

Most likely, he had heard that Qin Niu could sell a basket of mountain fertilizer for fifty wen money and wanted to curry favor to get the fertilizer formula.

People like that, Qin Niu naturally kept at a respectful distance.

“I still have work to do!”

Qin Niu declined politely.

His disliking for interactions didn’t mean he would offend others without reason.

Liu Shengli meant well by inviting him to fish together, even if he had some ulterior motives, Qin Niu could refuse in a friendly manner.

“Your corn seedlings are growing so well, they don’t need tending. By catching some fish, you could improve your life a bit. Come with me!”

Qin Niu was about to refuse.

Er Dan arrived, carrying a fishnet and holding a small bucket. It seemed he too was going fishing.

“Brother All Niu, Daoyuan Village is flooded; they say the water is receding. Let’s go fish together!”

Several little “child soldiers” followed behind Er Dan.

Don’t be fooled by their young age of five or six; each of them was an excellent swimmer.

They would dart into the river like loaches.

“Aren’t you afraid of your dad beating you?”

Qin Niu asked Er Dan with a smile.

“My dad approved today, and he said if I catch a big fish, he’ll reward me with two copper coins.”

“Haha, alright! 1’11 go with you guys!”

Qin Niu was only this casual when talking to Er Dan.

Liu Shengli watched this scene and thought to himself that Ah Niu was still just a kid at heart, enjoying playing with Er Dan and the other “child soldiers.”

With some effort, getting the mountain fertilizer formula from him shouldn’t be hard.

The Liu family had been woodcutters for generations, relying on the mountain to make a living.

Liu Shengli might be young, but he was very shrewd. It was said that his current wife was originally introduced by a matchmaker for his cousin, but because he found her beautiful and capable of managing a household, he charmed her into marrying him instead.

In theory, his cousin should have been very angry.

Yet Liu Shengli managed to find another match for his cousin, a flashy girl. His cousin, of course, was delighted and didn’t hold a grudge about Liu Shengli stealing his bride.

However, it was said that the wife his cousin married, while beautiful, was a lazy woman who loved to eat and dress well. As long as her own husband couldn’t satisfy her, she would threaten to go to the city to find a rich man to live with.

Now, Liu Shengli’s cousin was firmly under her thumb.

The family’s financial situation wasn’t great either.

He worked hard every day to earn money to provide for his beautiful wife.

Just last year, it was said that they had a child, but the child didn’t resemble his cousin at all.

The villagers didn’t dare to gossip about it.

“All Niu, you don’t have a fishing net, do you? I can lend you one,”

Liu Shengli offered to Qin Niu with goodwill.

“No need, no need. I’ll just bring a bucket and feel for fish with Er Dan and the others. You go ahead, or else if you’re late, all the big fish will be caught by others.”

Hearing Qin Niu say this, Liu Shengli also worried that the big fish would be taken by others, so after exchanging a few pleasantries, he hurried off.

In terms of wisdom, Liu Shengli had at best some small cunning and petty schemes.

He was far inferior to someone like Qin Niu, who had resolve and true wisdom..