The Fantastic Little Farmer

This mysterious phenomenon made Zhang Yun panic a little, but he quickly calmed down. Thinking about his portable Peach Blossom Spring Space, this was nothing. He could feel the wills of the fish, turtles, and crows he fed in there, and even communicate with and command them. Therefore, it wasn’t surprising that this eight-hundred-year-old tree possessed a tiny sliver of consciousness.

Fear and pleading!

This indicated that absorbing its Spiritual Qi like this would have a massive impact on the Ancient Rong Tree, perhaps even causing its death. The dilemma Zhang Yun had been unable to resolve just moments ago was instantly decided. The tree probably couldn’t protect the two villages, nor could it necessarily influence their Feng Shui, but it was incredibly difficult for it to survive until today. This was the result of centuries of growth. One couldn’t be too greedy.

Zhang Yun pulled one hand away and intentionally stopped the absorption process. This time, he made a further discovery. The Energy from those Ancient Artifacts would uncontrollably pour into him upon contact, with the speed increasing in proportion to the amount of Energy. The only exception was that Jade Seal, which contained a powerful Spiritual Qi that would trap the absorption, preventing it from flowing out.

This Ancient Rong Tree presented a different situation. It seemed to be forcefully holding back to avoid being drained, yet it couldn’t resist. However, when Zhang Yun consciously halted the absorption, its self-defense mechanism took effect. The Spiritual Qi was stopped and no longer poured in automatically. At that very moment, Zhang Yun faintly sensed another sliver of emotion: gratitude! After these two instances, it was proven that this Ancient Rong Tree indeed possessed a trace of will and understood simple forms of expression.

Zhang Yun withdrew both hands, jumped out of the flowerbed, and took another look at the massive banyan tree. It didn’t seem to have changed. It appeared that the small amount of Spiritual Qi he had absorbed hadn’t affected it much. Its consciousness was extremely weak, so Zhang Yun naturally wouldn’t be foolish enough to try talking to it. However, his unintentional action just now had opened up a new avenue of thought. In the future, he wouldn’t need to limit himself to antiques. Perhaps he could absorb Energy from towering ancient trees and historical architecture as well.

He silently sensed the Iron Ring again to check its current Energy level. The absorption time had been quite short, and the ancient tree had been resisting. Without the frantic, automatic influx, there shouldn’t be much.

23%!

A number surfaced in Zhang Yun’s mind. After absorbing the two Divine Master Cards last night, the Energy had risen from 15 to 20. That brief absorption just now had actually contributed 3%!

This was quite a pleasant surprise. He wondered if the Energy of living things was stronger than that of inanimate objects, or if this Ancient Rong Tree truly had an eight-hundred-year history. Looking at the Ancient Rong Tree again, based on this 3% inference, if he drained it completely, wouldn’t he gain dozens of percentage points of Energy? However, Zhang Yun was merely entertaining the thought. Since he had let it go, he naturally wouldn’t target it again.

Song Tie replied to the message, asking Zhang Yun to wait a moment.

Visually, Ancient Tree Back on the far side of the mountain was at most a ten-minute journey away. Coming uphill from there would likely take no more than half an hour on foot, and just a few minutes by motorcycle. Yet, Zhang Yun ended up waiting for over half an hour before he saw Song Tie riding over on his motorcycle.

“Boss Zhang!”

Song Tie rushed under the massive banyan tree, parked his motorcycle next to Zhang Yun, and eagerly came over carrying a black plastic bag.

Zhang Yun, who was resting on the edge of the flowerbed, smiled and waved in greeting while observing the man closely. There was dust rubbed onto Song Tie’s clothes and hair—the kind that remained even after being brushed off—and fresh mud lined the edges of his shoes.

This made Zhang Yun muse to himself. Having entered a tomb once himself, he immediately recognized the similarities. He suspected the man had just climbed a mountain and crawled into some Ancient Tomb.

“Did you get the stuff?” Zhang Yun asked with a smile.

“Of course! You’re so straightforward, Boss Zhang, so naturally I went all out!” Song Tie held the black plastic bag but showed no intention of handing it over.

“Don’t worry, I’ll transfer the money directly to your phone. We’re near your village. If I try to run, you just have to yell, and a whole crowd will chase me down and beat me up! Besides, the monk can run, but the temple can’t. You can always find me in Tianxin Village.”

Seeing his hesitation, Zhang Yun immediately pulled out his phone and opened the calculator app.

“Hehe! How could I not trust Boss Zhang? I just wanted to be polite so it doesn’t look like we’re only here to exchange money for goods.” Song Tie chuckled, a little embarrassed.

Zhang Yun kept his thoughts to himself, wondering what they even had to be polite about. Wasn’t this exactly an exchange of money for goods?

Song Tie placed the plastic bag on the edge of the flowerbed, then took out the Divine Master Cards and laid them out one by one.

Good lord, eight of them!

Zhang Yun had originally thought it would be great if he could get two more, but he had actually brought eight!

“Um… Boss Zhang, please inspect them. I guarantee they are exactly the same as last time. There’s definitely not a single dud making up the numbers.” Song Tie looked at Zhang Yun nervously.

According to their previous agreement, the base price was seven thousand per piece, with an extra thousand added for each additional one. By the eighth piece, the value had accumulated to fifteen thousand! Even a single unqualified piece would mean a massive loss.

“Alright.”

Zhang Yun immediately stepped forward, picking them up one by one to appraise them. Just like last time, he only needed to put on a show. Song Tie wasn’t lying. These came from the exact same place and the same batch! They all contained the same Spiritual Qi as the previous ones!

“How… how are they?” Seeing Zhang Yun finish so quickly and put them back into the bag, Song Tie grew even more nervous. He wondered if the inspection was too fast and if none of them held any value.

Zhang Yun smiled. “I thoroughly inspected the previous two, so I don’t need to look slowly. I can confirm these are all from the same batch!”

Hearing this, Song Tie finally let out a long sigh of relief.

“Then, then…”

Zhang Yun chuckled. “Let’s tally up the total. You do the math!”

Since it concerned money, Song Tie had clearly run the numbers multiple times beforehand to ensure his calculation method was flawless. He tapped away at his calculator with rapid speed.

“Making up the four thousand for the previous two pieces. The base for the new ones is seven thousand, so eight equals fifty-six thousand. Adding one thousand per piece, from one thousand to eight thousand, makes thirty-six thousand in total… Four thousand plus fifty-six thousand plus thirty-six thousand equals ninety-six thousand. Please take a look and see if that’s correct.”

Song Tie walked Zhang Yun through the entire calculation process.

“There seems to be a slight problem,” Zhang Yun said, shaking his head.

“There isn’t. I calculated it many times… I mean, that should be it, right?” Song Tie grew anxious. He definitely wouldn’t have intentionally overcharged him, so where was this deduction coming from?

“Four thousand is correct. Fifty-six thousand is also correct. Then I said the base for the new ones is seven thousand, and I add one thousand for each additional piece.”

“That’s right!”

“Which means the first one is seven thousand, the second one adds one thousand, the third adds two thousand, up to the eighth adding seven thousand. Calculate it again.”

Although they were worth this price, the original rate was five thousand per piece. The current comprehensive calculation effectively doubled everything, and Zhang Yun had already made compensations. He definitely wasn’t going to let this eight thousand difference slide.

Song Tie was a little stubborn, counting on his fingers and pointing at the Divine Master Cards while punching his calculator. Finally, he looked a bit dejected. He really had over-calculated by eight thousand.

Zhang Yun patted him on the shoulder. “Alright, based on the original price, these eight pieces would only be forty thousand. Anything loses value in bulk, and wholesale prices usually require a discount. I’m giving you eighty-eight thousand now. Are you still unhappy?”

Song Tie slapped his thigh. “AH! Because I calculated eight thousand too much at first, it feels like I took a loss. You’re right, Boss Zhang. This eighty-eight thousand, plus the previous ten thousand, basically means you’ve doubled the money! You’re very generous!”

Zhang Yun transferred the money to him directly. “Hehe, nearly a hundred thousand yuan is enough to get you a wife! So, can you tell me where you got them?”