Chapter 19: The Alchemist of the Soil
Time: 1 Month Later (Inside Farming Space).
Real Time: 10 Days Passed (Outside).
Location: The Red Clay Area.
The artificial sun hung high and white in the boundless void of the Farming Space, casting a relentless, nourishing light over the fifteen acres of thriving greenery. The silence that once defined this dimension had been replaced by the vibrant, chaotic sounds of life.
Thump-thump-thump!
Two streaks of white and silver blurred across the black soil near the spirit spring. Silver and Snow, the twin Cloud-Horn Goats, were no longer the clumsy, wobbling newborns they had been just a few weeks ago. Thanks to a steady diet of Star Grass—which was ten times more potent than normal hay—and the constant nourishment of the Spirit Gathering atmosphere, they had grown with frightening speed.
They were now the size of large dogs, their chests broad and their legs thick with muscle. The nubs on their heads had elongated into two-inch spikes of solid, metallic bone that shimmered with a faint, dangerous light.
They were racing.
Above them, a red shadow dove from the sky like a falling meteor.
"Kreee!"
Little Gold, the Mutated Fire Crow, folded his metallic wings and dropped like a stone, aiming for Silver's tail feathers. It was a game of high-stakes tag that the three beasts played daily.
Silver, sensing the change in air pressure above him, didn't panic. The young goat slammed his front hooves into the dirt, executing a sharp, ninety-degree turn that sprayed black soil into the air. Little Gold missed by an inch, pulling up at the last second with a frustrated squawk and a gust of hot wind.
"Baaa!" Snow, the younger brother, took the opportunity to ram his head into the side of the wooden fence, testing his new strength. The solid iron-wood post shook violently, groaning under the impact.
Luo Feng watched from the porch of the tool shed, a small, satisfied smile on his face.
"They are getting fast," he commented, wiping sweat from his forehead with a towel. "Silver has the speed. Snow has the raw power. In another month, they might be strong enough to charge down a Layer 2 cultivator."
Nearby, Luo Xia sat in the lotus position on a woven mat. She wasn't watching the game. She was focused entirely on her breathing. Her cultivation base at Qi Refining Layer 2 had stabilized completely, and her aura was calm and steady. The chaotic energy of the playing beasts didn't disturb her; in fact, the vibrant life force of the farm seemed to ground her meditation.
"They are happy," Luo Feng noted, standing up. "But play time is over for me. The harvest is ready."
He turned and walked toward the southern edge of the farm, where the air shimmered with heat.
The Crimson Harvest.
The perimeter of the Red Clay Area looked like it was on fire, but not from flames. It was the crops.
The Crimson Fire Grape vines he had planted a month ago had fully matured. They wrapped aggressively around the wooden trellises Luo Feng had built, their leaves a deep, dark purple, almost black. Hanging heavy from the thick vines were clusters of grapes that defied logic.
They weren't purple or green. They were a translucent, glowing ruby red, pulsating with an inner light like beating hearts.
Luo Feng reached out to touch a cluster. The skin of the fruit was warm to the touch, vibrating with a gentle, humming heat.
"Grade 1 Spirit Fruit," Luo Feng whispered, inspecting the crop. "Full of pure, unadulterated Fire Qi. This isn't food for mortals. This is fuel for cultivators."
He carefully snipped a cluster with his shears.
Pop.
He pulled a single grape off the stem and popped it into his mouth. He bit down.
Splash.
Sweet, hot juice exploded in his mouth. It didn't taste like normal fruit; it tasted like honey mixed with chili pepper and liquid sunshine. A rush of heat traveled instantly down his throat, warming his stomach until he felt like he had swallowed a heating pad.
"Potent," Luo Feng nodded, feeling the rush of energy. "If a mortal ate this, they would burn from the inside out. But for a cultivator... this is raw power."
He began the harvest. He worked methodically, filling three large wicker baskets with the glowing red grapes. The smell of sweet spice filled the air, attracting Little Gold, who watched greedily from a fence post, drooling slightly.
"Not for you," Luo Feng warned the bird. "You have your chilies. These are for the experiment."
The Failure.
Luo Feng moved his operation to the stone processing table he had set up near the Spirit Spring. He had prepared ten large ceramic jars—the same kind he used for the Cloud Mist Wine.
"The process should be similar," Luo Feng thought, rolling up his sleeves. "Crush the fruit. Filter the skins. Add the yeast. Seal and bury in the Spirit Soil. The Fire Qi should mellow out during fermentation."
He grabbed a handful of Crimson Fire Grapes and squeezed.
Sizzle.
The moment the skin broke, the juice hit the air. But instead of flowing smoothly into the jar, the juice began to hiss. The Fire Qi inside the Grade 1 grapes was volatile. Upon contact with the cool air, it reacted violently, bubbling and steaming.
Luo Feng frowned but continued. He filled the first jar with the red mash. The liquid inside was already bubbling, even without yeast. He sealed the lid tight with mud and a talisman paper.
"Bury it."
He buried the jar in the Black Spirit Soil.
He waited for six hours—an accelerated fermentation test due to the Time Dilation and the soil's properties.
BOOM.
A muffled explosion rocked the ground near the spring. Soil sprayed into the air like a geyser.
Luo Feng rushed over. The ceramic jar had shattered underground. The shards were smoking. The wine mash inside had turned into a black, charred sludge that smelled like vinegar and ash.
"Failed," Luo Feng crouched down, touching the ruined mess. The heat radiating from the hole was intense. "Why?"
Luo Xia walked over, smelling the acrid smoke, breaking her meditation. "Too hot?"
"Yes," Luo Feng analyzed, wiping the soot from his hands. "The Cloud Mist Wine was made from Star Grass (Neutral/Yin) and Rice (Neutral). It was gentle. But these grapes... they are pure Yang Fire. When I sealed them in a common clay jar, the pressure built up. The fermentation generated heat, adding to the Fire Qi. The jar couldn't handle the thermal expansion. It basically turned into a bomb."
He looked at the wasted grapes. His heart ached. These seeds had cost him 15 Spirit Stones. Every grape was money. Every drop of juice was cultivation base.
"I can't use common jars," Luo Feng realized. "And I can't just mash them. The Fire Qi needs to be stabilized before fermentation, or it just explodes. I need an anchor."
He needed a binding agent. Something to absorb the excess heat and ground the energy without destroying the medicinal properties.
His eyes drifted to the other crop he had planted a month ago, the one he had bought specifically for body tempering.
In the Black Spirit Soil, thick green vines were growing along the ground.
Iron-Skin Yams.
"Earth Element," Luo Feng murmured, his eyes lighting up as the theory formed in his mind. "Fire creates Earth. Earth contains Fire. The Yams are dense, heavy, and sturdy. If I mix the Yam starch with the Grape juice, the Earth Qi should act as a sponge for the excess Fire Qi."
The Second Attempt.
Luo Feng didn't hesitate. He went to the yam patch and dug up three large tubers. They were heavy, shaped like logs, with skin as rough as tree bark.
He washed them in the spring water until they were clean.
Step 1: The Stabilizer.
He crushed the Iron-Skin Yams into a fine white paste using a mortar and pestle. The paste was cold, heavy, and smelled like wet chalk.
Step 2: The Mixture.
He placed a thick layer of the Yam paste at the bottom of a new, thicker stoneware jar.
Then, he added the Crimson Fire Grapes on top.
Step 3: The Cold Crush.
Instead of using his hands, Luo Feng drew his Spirit Iron Saber. He closed his eyes and channeled his Moon (Yin) Qi into the blade. The metal turned frosty cold, rimmed with white frost.
Squish. Squish.
He used the flat of the cold blade to crush the hot grapes. The Yin Qi from the sword cooled the juice just enough to stop it from boiling instantly. The juice mixed with the Yam paste at the bottom, turning into a thick, pinkish slurry.
"It's not hissing," Luo Feng noted, watching the mixture closely. The Yam paste was absorbing the volatile heat, locking it into the liquid structure.
He sealed the jar. This time, he wrapped the outside of the jar in Iron-Wood bark for extra reinforcement.
"Bury."
He placed it in the Black Spirit Soil.
"Now we wait."
The Success.
They waited for 3 Days (Inside Time).
Luo Feng sat by the burial spot. He could feel the Qi fluctuating underground. It wasn't violent like an explosion; it was rhythmic, like a slow, heavy heartbeat.
"It's holding," he whispered.
He dug up the jar. The Iron-Wood bark was warm to the touch, pulsating with heat, but the ceramic hadn't cracked.
He pried off the lid.
Whoosh.
A cloud of red vapor rose from the jar. It didn't smell like vinegar or ash. It smelled rich, spicy, and intoxicatingly sweet. It smelled like liquid fire.
Luo Feng used a bamboo ladle to scoop up the liquid.
It wasn't watery like the Cloud Mist Wine. It was thick, viscous, and deep ruby red, like blood mixed with lava.
[System Scan]
[Item: Flame Spirit Wine (Mid-Grade).]
[Ingredients: Crimson Fire Grape + Iron-Skin Yam.]
[Effect: Contains condensed Yang Qi. Highly effective for cultivation in Qi Refining Layers 4-6.]
[Side Effect: Causes extreme body heat. Not recommended for those below Layer 3.]
"Success," Luo Feng grinned, swirling the heavy liquid.
He poured a small clay cup full of the red nectar.
"Xia, don't drink this," Luo Feng warned. "This is too strong for Layer 2. It would burn your meridians. This... this is for me."
Luo Feng raised the cup and downed it in one go.
Boom.
It didn't slide down his throat; it burned a path down. The moment it hit his stomach, it felt like he had swallowed a live coal.
"Ghh!" Luo Feng gritted his teeth, his face flushing deep red.
Sweat instantly poured from his forehead. Steam rose from his shoulders.
The energy exploded outward from his stomach, rushing into his muscles and meridians. It wasn't the gentle nourishment of rice; it was a scouring flood. It burned away impurities in his blood. It forced his meridians to expand or burst.
Luo Feng dropped into a meditative stance instantly.
Circulate!
He guided the violent energy. The Iron-Skin Yam essence kicked in, coating his stomach and veins with a protective earthen layer, preventing the fire from burning his organs while allowing the Qi to be absorbed.
For an hour, Luo Feng sat there, glowing red like a heated iron bar. The air around him distorted.
When he finally opened his eyes, he exhaled a breath of hot, gray smoke.
"Incredible," Luo Feng rasped, clenching his fist. The air popped loudly in his grip. "One cup of this gave me more progress than ten days of meditation with Spirit Stones. My blood feels... heavier. Stronger."
He looked at the jar. There were about 20 cups in there.
"If I drink this entire jar over the next month," Luo Feng calculated, his eyes shining with ambition. "I won't just stabilize Layer 4. I will go half way to touch the barrier of Layer 5."
He stood up, feeling the raw power coursing through him.
"This wine... I cannot sell this," Luo Feng decided firmly. "Fatty Wang can have the watery Cloud Mist stuff. This Flame Spirit Wine is a strategic resource. It creates warriors."
He looked over at the field. He had harvested only one basket of grapes. There were dozens more on the vines.
"We need more jars," Luo Feng called out to Luo Xia, who was looking at him with awe. "And more Yams. We are going into mass production."
As Luo Feng began the labor of crushing more grapes with his icy saber, the sound of hoofbeats returned.
Silver and Snow, exhausted from their race, trotted over to him. They smelled the sweet aroma of the grape skins.
"Baa?" Silver nudged Luo Feng's leg.
Luo Feng laughed and tossed them the leftover grape skins—the mash that still contained plenty of heat.
"Here. You guys are Spirit Beasts; you can handle the spice."
The goats munched on the fiery skins happily, steam puffing from their noses. Little Gold landed on the rim of the empty wine jar, pecking at the dregs, his feathers ruffling with delight.
Luo Feng looked at the scene. The wife cultivating. The pets growing strong. The wine fermenting.
"This is it," Luo Feng thought, pouring another bucket of water onto the yams. "This is the foundation."
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