The chief steward of the Spirit Feather Sect who came to collect the spirit rice this time was Du Haifu.

However, Elder Gue also came along.

Du Haifu stepped off the Dharma Ship.

He looked at Qin Ming's spirit field, his eyes filled with shock.

He never expected that the little spirit farmer, who once struggled to survive, was now about to advance to a Tier Two Spirit Plant Master.

He had reached a height even Du Haifu had to look up to.

Elder Gue stood atop the Dharma Ship, also quietly looking at Qin Ming's spirit field, his expression dark and deep, lost in thought.

"F...Fellow Daoist Qin, shall we begin?" Du Haifu seemed to have something to say to Qin Ming, but with Elder Gue present, he ultimately held back.

Then, Qin Ming and Du Haifu both swung their spiritual scythes, beginning to harvest three acres of Five-Colored Spirit Rice.

Before long, Qin Ming had already harvested two acres by himself.

On the other hand, Du Haifu was progressing slowly, panting heavily, having only managed to cut a small handful after a long while.

The roots and stems of the Tier Two Five-Colored Spirit Rice were exceptionally tough, and given Du Haifu's cultivation, his efficiency was quite concerning.

After half an incense stick of time.

Qin Ming harvested the remaining half-acre of Five-Colored Spirit Rice.

After threshing all the spirit rice, he also put the straw into his storage pouch.

These could be used to make high-grade grass-woven mats, or burned for excellent fertilizer.

At this point.

Li Yan and his group from the nearby spirit field had just finished paying their spirit rice tax and were walking over.

Apparently, they also wanted to see what Qin Ming had reaped.

"Fellow Daoist Li, this year you harvested fifty pounds of Jade Crystal Rice, should be enough to secure the top spot, right?"

"You know, this Tier Two Spirit Rice is exceptionally hard to grow and the yield is extremely low."

"Producing fifty pounds of Jade Crystal Rice from just two acres, it seems Fellow Daoist Li put in quite the effort!"

"Heh! It's just so-so, pretty decent."

After saying this, Li Yan, along with a group of spirit plant masters, approached Qin Ming's spirit field and happened to see Du Haifu weighing the Five-Colored Spirit Rice.

In front of Qin Ming, five large bags of Five-Colored Spirit Rice were neatly arranged.

After Du Haifu weighed them with the Great Dipper Spiritual Artifact, he said with a trembling voice, "Tier Two Five-Colored Spirit Rice, har...harvested...five...five hundred and twenty pounds."

"A tax of thirty-five percent should be paid, which is...one hundred and eighty-two pounds."

After paying the spirit rice tax, Qin Ming swiftly stored the remaining three hundred plus pounds of Five-Colored Spirit Rice into his storage pouch.

Not far away.

The atmosphere in the air was somewhat quiet.

After a long time, someone finally broke the silence.

"How much?"

"Five hundred and twenty pounds?"

"Did I hear that right? That's Tier Two Spirit Rice!"

Li Yan's expression was like a jar of soy sauce had been spilled over it, he turned and left without a word.

The other spirit plant masters, being sensible, also followed and left.

Back on Qin Ming's side.

Du Haifu finished collecting the spirit rice tax and returned to the Dharma Ship to report to Elder Gue.

Elder Gue had naturally observed the entire process just now.

He took out a grain of Five-Colored Spirit Rice from the bag, inspecting it slightly, his eyes flickering.

Then.

Elder Gue flew down from the Dharma Ship, landing directly in front of Qin Ming.

His stiff face showed no sign of anger or frustration, but he forced a smile and asked, "I wonder, Friend Qin, if you could sell some of the Five-Colored Spirit Rice to this old man?"

He was also extremely envious of this batch of Tier Two Spirit Rice, but now Qin Ming's status was not what it used to be. He was no longer someone who could be exploited as easily as before.

"Sorry, Elder Gue, I have plans for this batch of spirit rice and do not intend to sell it." Qin Ming directly refused, not giving the other any face.

Qin Ming had long known the other was targeting him secretly and saw no need to play nice now.

He had already noted the other in his little black book.

Upon hearing this, Elder Gue's face twitched, extremely angry inside, yet he restrained from acting out.

"Fine! Fine!"

He gave Qin Ming a meaningful look, full of threat.

Then he said no more and turned to board the Dharma Ship.

Qin Ming, with many cards up his sleeve now, was able to speak confidently, unafraid of a newly advanced Foundation Establishment Elder.

He next harvested the two acres of Red Silver Yellow Hemp as well.

Ten days later.

Qin Ming, with the Wood Talisman he obtained from Chen Qiaoling, went to the Spirit Feather Sect to participate in the trial assessment.

When he arrived, almost everyone was already present.

There were about a dozen High-Grade Spirit Plant Masters participating in the trial assessment this time.

Li Yan was among them.

Some were full of confidence, while others looked nervous.

Almost all the elders of the Spirit Feather Sect had come to watch.

When Elder Gue saw that Qin Ming was also in the assessment team, his brow furrowed and he questioned the goatee-bearded elder beside him, "Elder Liu, didn't we agree not to give this brat a chance? How did the last spot get given away?"

Elder Liu looked embarrassed upon hearing these words and responded with a forced laugh, "Ah! I didn't want to either, but someone came to me, and I happened to owe her a favor..."

Upon hearing this, Elder Gue's expression shifted but he said no more.

"Sigh! If this boy really passes the assessment, it shows it's meant to be, let him be!" Elder Zhuang sighed, showing his stance.

In fact, he had always appreciated Qin Ming's spirit plant talent and did want to take him as a disciple.

However, Qin Ming had no intention of joining the Spirit Feather Sect.

The teacher-disciple fate was not yet ripe...

A moment later.

The elders led the dozen or so High-Grade Spirit Plant Masters participating in the assessment to a restricted area.

Here, ancient trees towered and strange rocks jutted out.

In the end, the group arrived in front of a grassland, where seven huge wooden steles, each tens of feet high, stood in the center.

"This is the place where you all will participate in the Plant Illusion Realm Trial assessment."

"Once you use the Wood Talisman in your hand, you will enter the Illusion Realm. Each person will encounter different trial illusions. You will know once you enter."

"But regardless of the trial content that appears, the shorter the time used, the higher your rank will be."

Elder Zhuang introduced to the group and then waved his hand, a beam of white light shot forth, landing into the wooden array.

Instantly.

The wood array was activated, emitting a shimmering green light, soaring skyward, appearing quite mystical.

Li Yan stepped forward under everyone's gaze, crushed the Wood Talisman in his hand, and the wood array immediately cast a green light, enveloping him, and he disappeared instantly.

Qin Ming watched this and thought the opponent seemed quite familiar with the process, likely having been here before.

Subsequently, the other spirit plant masters followed suit one by one.

One by one, shadows disappeared under the green light.

Qin Ming also stepped forward, took a deep breath, and crushed the Wood Talisman in his hand.

In an instant.

He felt a sudden dizziness, and after a whirlwind sensation, when he opened his eyes again, he was inside a wooden hut.

Qin Ming's gaze fell on a stone stele at the entrance of the wooden hut.

He browsed it for a long time.

Only then did he understand that this so-called 'Plant Illusion Realm Trial' was created by a stunningly talented High-Tier Spirit Plant Master.

This kind of wooden array that allows entry into an illusion realm not only exists in the Spirit Feather Sect.

Many larger Spirit Plant Sects have preserved such wood arrays.

The trial assessment results are also commonly used throughout the Southern Wilderness Cultivation Realm.

For spirit plant masters.

Even if they do not pass the assessment, they can gain significant benefits in their understanding of the path of spirit plants, or in other aspects.

So the quotas are particularly precious.

Just after Qin Ming finished reading the introduction to the illusion realm.

A line of text suddenly appeared on the stone stele in front of him:

Choose the difficulty level for this Illusion Realm Trial

A, B, C, D, E, F, G

Qin Ming was taken aback, "You can actually choose the difficulty yourself?"

"The higher the difficulty, the greater the benefits?"

After contemplating for a moment and with the entry in hand, he calmly chose the 'A-level difficulty'.

Squeak!

As Qin Ming finished his selection, the wooden door of the wooden hut automatically opened.

The scene outside left Qin Ming's mouth gaping in astonishment.

"Damn!"

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