Chapter 99: Symbiotic Relationship
'Ding,
The host has helped Merrick break his shackles of being a Qi Refining Realm Cultivator and helped him break through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
'Ding,
The host has changed Merrick's future by increasing his Lifespan by at least 150 years.
'Ding,
The host's Heavenly Talent [Heaven's Virtue] has been activated. He received 1000 Life Points.
'T-this…my Heavenly Talent triggered already?'
Looking at the series of system notifications in front of him, Ethan was pleasantly surprised.
Even though he knew that he would trigger the [Heaven's Virtue], Ethan thought it would trigger after Merrick actually consumed the pill and broke through to the Foundation Establishment Realm.
'Interesting. So, I will receive Life Points even before the impact of my good deed happens.'
Ethan thought only for a moment and stopped thinking when he saw the 1000 Life Points he received from this new talent.
'1000 Life Points in exchange for a Minor Foundation Pill…it's totally worth it.'
As Ethan previously said, the Minor Foundation Pill is useless to anyone having Mid-level and above grade Spirit Roots.
As for the cultivators with Low-level Spirit Roots, they can't afford the Minor Foundation Pill.
Moreover, for Ethan, Life Points are more valuable than Spirit Stones. So, he felt it was totally worth giving the Minor Foundation Pill to Merrick.
"Kai, I was able to find 10 Clearheart Lotus Seeds in the Family's Seed Inventory. The Elders decided to reward you with these seeds for giving us a Perfect Quality Clearheart Lotus."
Merrick took out a jade box from his storage ring and gave it to Ethan.
Previously, Ethan had asked Merrick for more Clearheart Lotus Seeds and the Lin Family decided to give all the seeds in their inventory as a reward to him.
"Thank you, Uncle Merrick."
Ethan believed he would be happy if he received five seeds but he got ten Clearheart Lotus Seeds. So, of course, he was happy as he hurriedly thanked Merrick.
"I will go and prepare for my breakthrough. I am going to shock everyone before the [Beast Extermination Trial]."
After that, they spoke for a while as Merrick repeatedly thanked Ethan and soon, he left the courtyard to consume the pill and complete his breakthrough.
"Kai, Elias, let's discuss the [Beast Extermination Trial]."
After seeing how excitedly her father was, Selena was also excited and wanted to do well in the [Beast Extermination Trial] with her team.
So, she started explaining many things about the Beast Extermination Trial for a couple of hours.
"Let's meet in the Family's Training Grounds tomorrow morning. I want to assess your strengths and weaknesses to come up with a proper plan."
Seeing that it was getting dark, Selena asked them to join her in the Training Grounds before leaving the courtyard.
"Master, I will go and cultivate."
Elias also went back to resume his cultivation, hoping to break through to the Level 3 Foundation Establishment Realm before the event.
"Once you finish the Azure Spirit Pills, let me know. I will give you more."
Ethan still had 40 Azure Spirit Pills, which were more than enough for both him and Elias at the moment. So, he informed Elias to ask him if he needed more pills.
'It is time to plant the Clearheart Lotus Seeds.'
Once Ethan was alone, he took out the 10 Lotus Seeds and started planting them on the edges of the Spirit Pond.
Even though the Spirit Pond was not big, it was able to host all ten Clearheart Lotus Plants along with the Dragonheart Lotus.
In fact, the Clearheart Lotus Plants seemed to be excited to be planted close to the Dragonheart Lotus.
'I thought the Dragonheart Lotus would be slightly angry, but its [Live Status] turned from Unhappy to Happy.'
Ethan had expected conflict between the Dragonheart Lotus and the Clearheart Lotus, given the stark difference in their ranks.
Typically, higher-grade spirit plants would suppress or even drain the vitality of lower-grade ones when planted close to each other.
However, to his surprise, the two plants flourished side by side, making Ethan happy.
[Spirit Plant Name: Dragonheart Lotus]
[Grade: Special Rank 5]
[Status: Happy: For some reason, I am able to calm my anger. It must be because of you guys...thanks for keeping me calm and happy. I will attract the Spirit Essence for you to absorb and thrive properly as thanks]
[Maturity: 9998 days]
[Spirit Plant Name: Clearheart Lotus]
[Grade: Special Rank 3]
[Status: Excited: Senior, it is our blessing to get a chance to help you in calming down. As for the Spirit Essence, we will be eternally grateful to you]
[Maturity: 200 days]
'Interesting…very interesting.'
Today, Ethan learned another new thing: the Clearheart Lotus and the Dragonheart Lotus can complement each other.
The Dragonheart Lotus…as its name suggests, it has a dragon's anger and gets angry easily. It was also for this reason that it always remained Unhappy no matter how much Spirit Rain and Spirit Essence Ethan provided for it.
On the other hand, the Clearheart Lotus exuded a pure, stabilizing aura that naturally complemented the Dragonheart Lotus's intense, fiery nature, calming it and making it happy.
'Wait a second…since it is happy, should I try using my usual farming techniques?'
Suddenly, Ethan got an idea and decided to give it a try.
[Flourishing Spirit Rain]
'Sprinkle'
[Green Pulse Art]
'Swiish'
Ethan completed one round and quickly checked their [Live Statuses] and [Maturity], only to be shocked.
[Spirit Plant Name: Clearheart Lotus]
[Maturity: 185 days]
[Status: Excited but tired: Thanks to Senior Dragonheart, we are able to absorb lots of Spirit Essence and Plant Essence in a single go. Farmer, we need a day to digest what we ate just now]
[Spirit Plant Name: Dragonheart Lotus]
[Maturity: 9988 days]
[Status: Happy: Farmer, unless you give me dragon blood, don't bother with the Spirit Rain and the Plant Essence until tomorrow. I hate eating side dishes without the main course]
'T-this…their maturity was reduced by 15 and 10 days respectively in a single round of my nurturing session.'
Ethan was shocked to see the huge reduction in the maturity of all the Lotus Plants in the Spirit Pond.
'Excellent, at this rate, I can harvest the Clearheart Lotuses in just 14 days, and since they are also helping the Dragonheart Lotus, I should nurture more of these Clearheart Lotuses.'
After seeing the benefits of nurturing the Clearheart Lotuses, Ethan decided, 'I will learn the Seed Condensation Method for the Clearheart Lotuses and mass produce them to speed up the growth of the Dragonheart Lotus.'
For now, Ethan didn't have a source to get Dragon Blood; however, he decided to use the Clearheart Lotuses to speed up the growth of the Dragonheart Lotus.
However, he was not in a hurry to learn it and decided to wait until the Clearheart Lotuses matured.
'Let's cultivate now.'
After taking care of the Lotuses, he took care of the Spirit Grass before cultivating.
'Toss'
He tossed an Azure Spirit Pill into his mouth to further boost his cultivation speed and continued cultivating.
The next day,
'Felix, I am caught up with something today. I will meet you tomorrow.'
Ethan informed Felix through the communication talismans they exchanged in the past before going to the Lin Family's training grounds with Elias.