You Cultivate, I Farm

“This must be Junior Brother Lu, I’ve long admired your reputation.”

“The True Sword Elixir brewed by Brother Lu is truly exceptional, many of our peers yearn for it but cannot obtain it.”

“Brother Lu, this is a Sister’s Communication Talisman, let’s exchange insights on brewing Spirit Brew when you have the chance.”

The other disciples from Sword Peak, though resentful of the special treatment the three Nascent Soul elders gave to Lu Xuan, still crowded around him, their words full of courtesy and even flattery.

“Alright, quiet! The Spirit Brew competition is about to begin!”

The young man slightly raised his head and reprimanded in a soft voice.

Everyone quickly returned to their seats.

The Sword Sect disciples participating in the competition gradually entered the palace. With a sweep of Lu Xuan’s Spiritual Sense, he counted over sixty.

“The art of Spirit Brew is still too niche. Among the nine Sword Peaks, only over sixty people have dabbled in it, and I estimate that only a small portion are proficient,”

“Let’s go over the rules of the Spirit Brew competition briefly.”

“The Sword Palace has provided five sets of materials for each type of Spirit Brew according to the data you submitted. Everyone must complete them independently here. If anyone is found cheating, they will be severely punished,”

the refined middle-aged cultivator stood and spoke with a deep voice.

Lu Xuan stood at his own wooden table, looking at the pile of Spirit Brew materials on the table, and once again marveled at the power of the Dongxuan Sword Sect.

“To be able to gather all the materials needed by Spirit Brew Masters in such a short time, the depth of the Dongxuan Sword Sect is unfathomable,”

he thought, and started processing the various materials.

Each Spirit Brew Master could register no more than three types of brews. A successful brewing rate did not mean everything; the main aspect was to observe the fine details of each step the cultivator took during the brewing process.

After all, if one had superb brewing skills, they would become apparent throughout the entire process. Therefore, evaluations weren’t based solely on the chance elements of the outcome.

Moreover, the final rank, quality, and effects of the Spirit Brew could also affect the final scoring.

There were four scoring levels: A, B, C, and D, and each level was further divided into upper, middle, and lower grades.

Before registering, Lu Xuan considered carefully and chose two types of brew that he was proficient in.

One was the Fifth Grade True Sword Elixir. In an environment like the Sword Sect, as long as the quality and success rate of his brewing weren’t too poor, it would earn him quite a few impression points.

The other was the Fourth Grade Ice Marrow Brew, with a lower rank than the former, but due to the plentiful planting of the Ice Firefly Grass and absorption of countless Spirit Brew Experience Packs, the success rate was extremely high, around ninety percent.

He calmed his mind, discarding all distractions, focusing his entire attention on the materials in hand.

After absorbing countless Spirit Brew Experience Packs and having brewed thousands of times in reality, Lu Xuan was thoroughly familiar with each step, his movements exuding an air of utmost naturalness.

The Divine Sense of the Primordial Infant True Monarch was extremely powerful, with every action of the Sword Sect disciples in the hall under their observation.

Lu Xuan was already a focus of attention, and his performance during the brewing process shone as brightly as the moon’s brilliance compared to the light of fireflies, drawing considerable notice.

“Graceful as flowing clouds, a feast for the eyes,”

“Every minute step is handled to perfection, not a single flaw to be found,”

“Worthy of the disciple who could brew the True Sword Elixir,”

“It seems that Huanzhen Sword Peak has come fully prepared this time,”

the three whispered to each other.

“The first batch has been successfully brewed,”

Just as the three were discussing Lu Xuan’s brewing level, a pure white Spirit Brew appeared in his hand.

Inside the Spirit Brew seemed to be countless fragments of ice, refracting a beautiful sight as it gently swayed, and one could feel a wave of cool air rushing over from afar.

“Fourth Grade Ice Marrow Brew, judging by its appearance, the quality can be defined as Superior,”

the gentlewoman’s eyes revealed a hint of admiration.

She did not expect Lu Xuan to be able to brew a Superior Quality Fourth Grade Spirit Brew in such a short amount of time.

In contrast, even though other cultivators were brewing Third Grade Spirit Brews, more than half were still processing materials. Their movements were competent but lacked the natural beauty that distinguished Lu Xuan’s.

“The second batch.”

“The third batch.”

“The fourth batch.”

As each batch of Ice Marrow Spirit Brew was successfully unveiled, the surprised expressions in the eyes of the three Primordial Infant Elders grew increasingly intense.

It should be noted that the Ice Marrow Spirit Brew made by Lu Xuan was of the fourth grade, which belonged to the category of high-rank Spirit Brews. Most Spirit Brew Masters might not be able to master the recipe for a fourth-grade Spirit Brew in their entire lives.

Even within the colossal entity that was the Sword Sect, Inner Sect Disciples who mainly made third-grade Spirit Brews were commonplace.

Yet Lu Xuan, with five ingredients, was able to brew four batches of Ice Marrow Spirit Brew. While the sample size was indeed small, such a success rate could already be deemed terrifying.

Lu Xuan, with an unchanged expression, placed the four batches of Ice Marrow Spirit Brew into a jade vessel provided by the Sword Palace.

He felt that his state during this Spirit Brew competition was excellent, though he failed one batch inadvertently out of a desire to keep a low profile among the five ingredients.

“For the True Sword Liquid, let’s brew three batches,” he mused.

The True Sword Liquid was a fifth-grade Spirit Brew, much more difficult to brew than the fourth-grade Ice Marrow Spirit Brew. Plus, he had absorbed less of the Light Group Experience Package, and usually had a success rate of seventy to eighty percent during brewing.

If others knew, it would be considered too shockingly stunning.

He refocused his mind, his hands waving to cast shadows as he rapidly processed the Sword Palace’s provided brewing materials.

Unlike other Spirit Brews’ ingredients, those for brewing True Sword Liquid were primarily Sword-Attributed Spirit Plants, and were extremely difficult to handle. A single careless mistake could lead to total failure.

Lu Xuan, being greatly experienced, handled the materials with expertise, successfully processing all five batches.

The brewing process also did not disappoint the three Primordial Infant True Monarchs who had been attentively watching him.

Out of five attempts at brewing, he successfully obtained three batches of True Sword Liquid.

The three clumps of silver-gray Spirit Brew hovered in mid-air in a trigram formation, shimmering faintly. Upon closer inspection, the sparkling points of light were countless extremely fine sword beams.

“Disciple Lu has worked hard. Please rest to the side for now, and we will give the final scores after all disciples have finished brewing,” said the gentle woman with a smile, as she transmitted her message.

Half a day later, under the watchful eyes of everyone, the last disciple on the field finished brewing the final batch of ingredients in a fluster.

A moment later, amidst expectant and nervous gazes from the crowd, the three floated above the grand hall.

“Next, I will announce the scoring for the Spirit Brew competition,” said the arrogant young man slowly.

“The scores are synthesized based on everyone’s performance by the three of us. Those with objections may appeal to the Sword Palace,” he continued.

“Hundred Artisans Sword Peak, Yu Yinzhu, B average.”

“Purple Cloud Sword Peak, Li Xinghe, C high.”

…

One by one, the scores were pronounced dispassionately by the young man, bringing joy to some and disappointment to others.

“Chong Xu Sword Peak, Liang Yun, A low.”

Finally, the first A-tier score emerged from the young man’s mouth.

Lu Xuan had some impression of that Inner Sect Disciple from Chong Xu Sword Peak, who also brewed a fifth-grade Spirit Brew, but unfortunately only had one successful batch out of five ingredients.

“Qingwei Sword Peak, Xu Yi, A low.”

The second A-tier score.

Unbeknownst to many, only Lu Xuan was left.

Everyone, either openly or covertly, looked his way, guessing his score in their hearts.

“Huanzhen Sword Peak, Lu Xuan, A high.”

The young man’s voice floated lightly to everyone’s ears.