Bi Mo Zhi Jian

Chapter 135 The Plantation of the Sacred Fire

That evening, An Jianyou returned, bringing back a full load of the Heaven's Net Hand.

Several trucks of supplies, gifted by the Investigation Bureau and acquired through trade, were also on their way.

An Jianyou herself had not entered the Illusory Realm.

She dared not.

Even though her mentor had said the danger level on the other side was not high, the previous experience had terrified her. The thought of entering the dreadful Illusory Realm alone was something she absolutely could not bring herself to do.

If she absolutely had to enter, she would need to seek permission from her mentor and find a strong ally.

However, since her mentor hadn't requested it, well… she wouldn't attempt it. Better to return sooner rather than later.

Leaving Yin Ling temporarily to negotiate new trade with the Investigation Bureau, An Jianyou returned alone.

"But Yin Ling said…"

"I'll go back after the order is finalized. Tell my mentor, I have no intention of being stationed here long-term. I'm a medical professional!"

"That's what Yin Ling said."

An Jianyou mimicked.

Although Yin Ling could have communicated with him remotely.

Still, Fang You hadn't planned for Yin Ling to stay there. Yin Ling was not only a physician but also the chief alchemist of the Pyre.

A lot of Pyre's current output depended on her. How could she be left in the secret realm to act as a liaison between Pyre and the Investigation Bureau?

But having a liaison in the secret realm was also important.

Who should be sent?

Heidiao was impossible. Heidiao was one of the organization's most crucial apostles, vital for training newcomers.

Xing Jinglei was for gathering materials. He wasn't even allowed to stay at the base anymore; Fang You had already sent him out to work.

Pei Hongjing was the chairman of the Pei Group, with many real-world affairs. Recently, he had opened Pei Security, recruiting awakened individuals from the populace.

He certainly wouldn't be willing.

Yiluoxi was similar. Fang You occasionally checked on her situation and found that the organization she had founded was actually growing.

It was indeed miraculous.

She had already recruited many awakened individuals and had a following of enthusiastic fans. In time, Yiluoxi's unreliable organization might actually become reliable and achieve a considerable scale.

"This isn't bad for Pyre," Fang You mused.

"It's equivalent to an outer organization, capable of supplying talent to Pyre."

Yiluoxi's people were Pyre's people, he felt there was no issue with that.

Of course, the small organization Yiluoxi created was still a mixed bag, requiring time for filtering. Pyre only needed talents with good character and potential.

"A formal apostle would be too much of a waste as a mere liaison."

"Let's select a subordinate apostle."

Subordinate apostles had their flaws and couldn't directly summon him in their minds, but in modern society, as long as they were out of the secret realm, there was signal for calls.

Moreover, even if direct communication was impossible, he could still switch to a subordinate apostle's perspective.

None of these were major issues.

The only problem was,

"Their strength is slightly weaker. The current subordinate apostles are all only first-stage awakened."

"Little Huan, bring up the panels of the subordinate apostles."

Ming Deng Fashi, Gou Ping'an, Xu Tian, and others. A total of 16 apostles, from the first and second batches, all awakened individuals.

The second batch had only just awakened. He focused his attention on the six individuals from the first batch.

Ming Deng Fashi had the highest accumulation of mystery. The Fashi was always traveling, exorcising malevolent spirits, and clarifying the path in his heart. Currently, his mystery value had reached 17.5.

"So fast. It's only been a few days."

"It's also because the conditions are different now. The Fashi frequently deals with two-star malevolent spirits and returns injured for treatment."

It was only natural that his mystery accumulated quickly.

He continued to scan downwards, and let out a "Hmm."

The mystery accumulation of the other apostles ranged from 6 to 9, significantly less than Ming Deng Fashi. But only Gou Ping'an's mystery value had reached 17.3, not much different from Ming Deng Fashi.

"If Gou Ping'an can advance to the second awakening this time, sending him to the secret realm as a liaison would be more suitable than Ming Deng Fashi."

"He wouldn't need to be stationed there long-term, just a few days or half a month. By then, there will be plenty of personnel to rotate."

"The third batch of members to join is also nearing confirmation."

"Xing Jinglei has already been sent to investigate the premonition of the mysterious realm gate in Donghuang previously. He alone can garner a decent evaluation."

"And An Jianyou, this girl should attempt her third awakening again. It shouldn't be delayed."

He emerged from the second secret realm entrance and arrived at the Baijiang Liaison Office. An Jianyou was sipping bubble tea, a look of pure bliss on her face.

However, when he mentioned the third awakening, a flicker of fear crossed her eyes. She blurted out,

"Mentor, are you coming this time?"

As soon as the words left her mouth, her face flushed crimson. She felt so embarrassed she wanted to dig her toes into the ground.

Half an hour later,

"Beep—"

The training ground doors opened. An Jianyou, head bowed, her face rosy, but the rosy cheeks indicated a very good mental state, signifying she had successfully achieved her third awakening.

The embarrassing process in the middle was unimportant.

After all, it wasn't Fang You who was embarrassed.

He walked out, not forgetting to add, "Remember to write down your awakening experience, especially comparing it to the previous one, detailing the differences, and then familiarize yourself with your abilities. I'll come back for you later."

"Y-Yes, got it!"

She replied, weeping inwardly.

Another embarrassing black mark added to her history.

But it was true that she felt a little more at ease during her awakening with her mentor present… Uh, the question is, should she include this in her awakening experience?

If she didn't, the report wouldn't be truthful. If she did, it would be too mortifying!

Ahhh!

Secret Realm, Pyre Base, Fourth Layer.

Located on the exterior of the aerial fortress, exposed and offering a view of the golden sea of clouds.

A gentle breeze whispered, caressing the heartstrings.

Fang You stepped onto the ground, which was still barren, with only patches of brown soil arranged in grids.

This was the Pyre Base's planting zone, which could only be established on the fourth layer.

"Planting Zone · Lv1"

"Description: The soil in the planting zone possesses self-regulating capabilities, meeting the planting needs of most mystical crops. This regulation is applied on a per-soil-block basis and provides a growth speed bonus of 2-10 times."

Establishing one planting zone required 150 spirit crystals, separate from the initial establishment of the fourth layer itself. It contained a total of nine soil blocks, arranged in a nine-palace grid. Each soil block was approximately one mu in size.

Not very large, but sufficient for planting some mystical crops.

Currently, only An Jianyou, who was still feeling embarrassed, and Wang Chui and his apprentices, who were crafting equipment, were in the base. Fang You, too lazy to find anyone else, rolled up his sleeves and got busy.

He used his Invisible Hand to plant special seeds and then accessed the 'Salvation Game - Base - Planting Zone' interface to check.

"Face Tree: Growing. Time until next stage..."

"Heart Fruit Tree: Growing. Time until next stage..."

Indeed, they had survived!

He had actually tried planting them outside before and used the 'Detect' skill to check their condition. Generally, they couldn't survive.

Mystical crops required very specific planting environments.

"It needs to be in a secret realm, or the Illusory Realm… no, even a special environment within the Illusory Realm."

"But my planting zone can do it, and even grow faster."

The bonus multiplier depended on the crop's tier. The higher the tier, the more precious, and the more demanding the environmental requirements, the lower the bonus multiplier, and vice-versa.

His most prized Mingguang Tree, a low-tier mystical plant, benefited from a tenfold growth bonus.

"The few Mingguang Trees transplanted here have also survived. With this, it won't be an issue to trim off some branches… they'll regrow quickly."

"And other mystical crops…"

Fang You was busy.

His Invisible Hand turned the soil, planting seeds, or transplanting trees.

His technique was crude. After all, he knew nothing about planting trees. He could only rely on Little Huan for theoretical experience and followed her guidance.

Fortunately, the special soil in the planting zone was potent enough. Even so, he estimated that many tree roots were damaged during transplantation—he had been rather rough when digging.

His crude planting method would likely also affect the growth bonus multiplier.

There was no other way; just surviving was difficult enough.

As long as they lived, it was fine.

However, having a professional would be even better. When planting 'Skill Seeds,' it was indicated that planting zones and planters could effectively reduce the consumption of skill seeds.

After working for half a day, he finally managed to plant most of the seeds, distributing them across the nine special soil blocks.

The Mingguang Trees occupied the largest area, taking up two blocks.

The remaining six blocks were occupied by over ten other types of mystical crops. The last block was reserved for rotating Skill Seeds.

It was quite crowded, with two or three mystical crops planted on the same soil block. This made regulation difficult, and he wouldn't manually adjust them.

The planting zone indicated that the growth conditions were worrying.

Worrying or not, it was the same as before: as long as they lived, it was fine. The rest could be handled by professionals in the future.

"Finished."

"Now we have mystical plants from both the Blue Star side and the Illusory Realm side of the secret realm. The variety of mystical materials has greatly increased. Yin Ling won't have to constantly complain about lacking materials anymore. Several stalled potions can likely be developed soon."

"And this is just the beginning. As time goes by, the scale of the planting zone will gradually expand, housing more types of mystical plants."

He looked forward to the day of the Pyre planting zone's harvest.

With that thought, he walked to a Mingguang Tree. With a grasp of his Invisible Hand, a branch emitting a faint glow flew into his palm.

"A living Mingguang Tree has a moderate effect in dispelling grey fog."

"A branch of a Mingguang Tree has a weak effect."

"Then, what is a more efficient way to utilize it?"

Within Fang You's pupils, the light of 'Detect' flickered incessantly as he stared intently at the branch, seeking to decipher more information.

There seemed to be a more efficient utilization method.

Branch, dispelling, utilization method.

Fang You thought of a word.

—Burning.

PS: Regarding honor levels, they are roughly XX Person, XX Holder, XX Official, XX Envoy. Fang You is not within this ranking. The current ideas are:

Ember Keeper, Flame Wielder, some kind of Official, Radiant Lamp Envoy/Guiding Lamp Envoy/Controlling Lamp Envoy... and so on.

Actually, I still think 'Controlling Lamp Envoy' sounds quite good. One who controls the guiding lamp, or 'Guiding Lamp Envoy,' pointing the way forward.