Immortal Freeloader 86 (Patreon)

“I’m really glad that I could bypass sleep so easily,” I muttered as I once again used the cursed tunnel to leave, this time not collecting any of the Cursed Qi. With its flow stopping, taking any of it would be too noticeable, and under the circumstances, it was better to play safe. 

I still remembered the commotion that awakening my first Major Immersion skill had caused, enough to scare me despite being in a cave. Therefore, I actually made sure to move out of Zaim completely before finding a nice, deep cave and triggering my new rewards one by one. 

The amount of information that flowed into my mind as I activated Major Immersion calligraphy was impressive, but it didn’t shock me. Nor did the intense glow that stuck around for about ten minutes. 

In contrast, the glow from the Minor Immersion talisman technique faded after ten seconds, but the information that it brought together was complicated. Absurdly so. I had a feeling that, without the System protecting me, my brain would have leaked out of my ears. 

“I wonder just how the quality of my talismans is impacted,” I said as I pulled a paper from my storage ring, and drew a quick one. I used fully subdued Qi from my inventory, as at this point, I wasn’t exactly hurting for a mere strand, which helped the quality further. I drew a protection talisman, in case I needed against the imprisoned being once it woke up. 

The result: Yellow-Medium Grade. 

Incredible. At this point, after interacting with the cultivation world, I realized just how valuable such a high-grade talisman was. Too bad it was too valuable to be sold, even by Aisnam. Even giving them to Pearyin for self-defense, or using them myself was an unacceptable risk. Just their existence alone might trigger a hunt as cultivators desperate for a fortune risking their lives to kill her to find the source. 

“Now, to the star of the show,” I muttered, and triggered the formation lesson. 

The amount of information it triggered was far less than the talisman technique, yet that did nothing to hurt my growing smile. Learning how to draw better talismans was useful, especially since it was after just a dedicated study of one night rather than a lifetime. 

Formation lesson, on the other hand, was a true treasure. I paused, examining my new capabilities, and understanding exactly what I learned. 

It turned out, that my analogy about likening it to some kind of temperamental computer program was more accurate than I had first expected. The formation knowledge came in two main categories, one about the building blocks I could collect and how they could be used, and one about how it could be laid across a landscape based on its geographical features, Qi content, function … and hundreds of other features. 

The best thing, unlike talismans, it meshed well with my existing knowledge. My ability with spirit plants, for example, gave me a good idea about how to integrate living plants into their structure. A fascinating benefit, especially since, while I couldn’t use my subdued Qi to feed Pearyin, I could use it to hasten the growth of spiritual plants as long as I had enough fertilizer.

Which meant, savage beasts. Hundreds of them … thousands, even. 

“Oh, fuck,” I muttered as the realization hit. There was only one way I could bring around such a great number of savage beasts. 

Markas. 

Unfortunately, my only other option was the misty mountains, which was an even worse location than Markas. At least, in Markas, I knew cultivators wouldn’t be teeming in the wilderness. Misty Mountains was filled with high-level cultivators seeking fortune, including Foundation Establishment cultivators. 

If I established a large formation there and it was discovered, hundreds of cultivators would siege it, thinking that there was a treasure. Itinerant cultivators were like locusts, never leaving a bite untouched. 

In comparison, the challenge of finding enough seeds was much more mild. I already knew where I could find a spiritual plant enthusiast, one who might be willing to give me a lot of them if I visited her. Ideally, as a gift that would trigger the System, but if not, I was willing to pay with a talisman I had ‘found’. 

There were several more options, from asking — or faking — a letter from Aisnam to flat-out thievery, but I doubted that any of them would be necessary. The old lady had already been impressed by the star-crossed love story between her grand niece who had been trapped in a loveless political marriage and the genius martial artist, and I would be a very incompetent freeloader if I couldn’t use that to get a bunch of discarded seeds. 

Rabbit Dash once again proved its value as I covered the distance that needed weeks in mere a few hours, and soon, I was looking at the Verdant Mansion near the capital. I observed the mansion for a while, looking for changes. 

The only difference was that the inner courtyard was empty, with guards banished away, focusing on the outer walls. Bypassing them had been easy, and soon, I was in the inner garden. Sneaking in had been easy, which would have been an oversight if not for one fact. 

Even in her diminished state, she was many times stronger than her guards. 

She moved, noticing my presence, but she didn’t show herself immediately. I waited for her patiently, giving no sign that I noticed her movement. I was already being presumptuous by visiting her without permission and bypassing guards, but that could still be framed as a valiant action. 

Valiant was good, arrogant was not. 

I knelt as I waited for her, no matter how much it was annoying to keep waiting while I had more important things to do. I felt her probing me with her Qi, which I tricked with my essence to hide my real cultivation. 

She kept me waiting for an hour before she appeared. “Why are you here, boy,” she asked in lieu of greeting. 

“I come here to inform you that Aisnam has recovered, an esteemed cultivator,” I said. Technically, it was a risk, but a very small one. If she wasn’t on Aisnam’s side, she wouldn’t have spent what was without a doubt a fortune to purchase that pill, probably overpaying significantly. 

The Treasure Pavilion didn’t give me the impression of a business that worked on low margins. 

The three-month deadline I had earned was about to end, which lowered the risk even more. Moreover, with things in the capital heating up, and sooner and later, someone would decide that a week or two wouldn’t make too much of a difference, and would try to deal with Aisnam to get help from her opposing faction. 

That, or they would lead Tiger Fist to the Spring Palace, hoping to trigger a conflict between them and the mysterious cultivator. 

She examined me for a few seconds more, using her Qi to check whether I was lying. I was not. Though, if I were, I could have tricked her because she was using her medicinal abilities to check my reaction, and my abilities were better. 

“Very good. I was right to trust you, young man,” she said once she was confident I wasn’t lying and let her Qi go. “You earned a boon for yourself,” she said. 

[Cultivation Difference Bonus - 30; Pity Bonus - 40 (Capped)]

[70x Return - 3 Qi Strand]

A nice little reward, valuable because it confirmed her attitude. 

“I don’t need a boon,” I refused instantly. “I did everything for … well,” I added, pushing a deep blush to my face, which earned a nostalgic smile from her. It was a good way to bait her, but also I didn’t want her to reward me for my help, knowing that it wouldn’t trigger the System if she saw it as a transaction. 

“I insist,” she said. 

“Alright,” I said. “Then, I would like to learn if there is a way for me to qualify to get a token for Treasure Pavilion.” 

“Are you sure you want to use it for that? You won’t like the answer,” she warned. 

I nodded. 

“No, there’s not,” she said. “No martial artist could trade with it directly, even the royal family. Even for cultivators, anyone below Foundation Establishment could only earn one-time trade tokens with great difficulty. And, paying their price is even more difficult. That’s your answer. Are you satisfied that you wasted your boon for it?” 

I sighed. “I had to try. I wished that I could …” I said, then let my tone fade, doing everything to look like a love-stricken simp that lost his chance to help the target of his obsession, and watched her expression soften. “Your garden looks beautiful,” I said as I changed the topic, as if I was desperate to hide the depths of my sadness, looking like a kicked puppy. 

From there, it had been easy to swindle another crash-course lesson on gardening and spirit plant care, because I had already shown interest the previous time. I even managed to strongly hint her to give me a large sack of useless seeds so I could practice my spirit plant care for when I could get better seeds. 

When I finally left the compound, I had a pile of seeds that could only germinate after months of expert care and incredible effort that would prove counterproductive. 

And, several beautiful notifications. 

[Cultivation Difference Bonus - 30; Pity Bonus - 40 (Capped)]

[70x Return - Gardening, Minor Immersion]

[70x Return - Spirit Plant Care Lesson, Perfection, Minor Immersion]

Two of them were useful, and in the long term, far more valuable. Yet, they couldn’t compare more than a hundred notifications, each triggered by the seeds, mended and enhanced. 

[70x Return - Blue Spirit Blossom Seed, Profound-Peak Grade]

[70x Return - Green Water Lily Seed, Yellow-Medium Grade]

… 

[70x Return - Rainbow Endless Rose Seed, Profound-High Grade]