Cultivation Starts from Farming Chapter 1: Transmigration, Encounter with Evil Spirit?

Midday.

High in the sky, the sun blazed fiercely, roasting the ground without pity.

Wooden shacks in the shantytown, thrown up in disarray—some tall, some short, some big, some small—jammed side by side, while the reek of excrement and urine grew thicker amid the sun's fierce heat.

Inside a rundown wooden shack in the southwest corner, Xu Ping sprawled on a bed that reeked of mold and odd smells, his gaze blankly fixed on the beams overhead draped in cobwebs.

Two days—a whole two days!

Nobody could grasp how he survived those two days!!

Just two days prior, Xu Ping had been a total shut-in, venturing out only for a major trip.

Normally, he stayed cooped up at home gaming, except for work.

That evening, he played games on his phone until deep into the night, falling asleep without realizing.

When he awoke, he was in a different world!

What's more, he'd possessed the body of a cultivator sharing his name.

Initially, Xu Ping figured it was a dream, but one incredibly long and lifelike.

It was only today that he fully integrated the original owner's memories.

He had no choice but to face the truth.

This isn't a dream!

"How the hell did this happen..." Xu Ping let out a heavy sigh.

He felt like bursting into tears.

On the surface, crossing over into a cultivator's body sounded great.

From the original owner's memories, mighty cultivators could survive for centuries or millennia, wielding powers to shift mountains and oceans.

Yet all that meant nothing for him.

This flesh was twenty-eight years old already, stuck at the third layer of Qi Cultivation, no genius or clan successor—just a lowly spirit farmer in Dongwu Market.

With this position and talent, what future could he expect?

If he had the option, he'd pick cruising in supercars and chilling in mansions over this transmigration.

...

...

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

After lying motionless for who knows how long, harsh knocks on the wooden door jolted Xu Ping from his reverie.

"Open up!"

"Fellow Daoist Xu, open the door!"

Xu Ping first planned to ignore it.

But the insistent calls made him hastily slip on his robe and rise to unlock the door.

Right outside stood an elderly man in rough hemp garb, his face etched with deep wrinkles, planted directly before the entrance.

A memory fragment surged up in Xu Ping's mind.

Old Sun was the man's family name; folks called him Old Sun, same as Xu Ping—a spirit plant farmer in Dongwu Market.

"Fellow Daoist Xu, hurry, hurry, got any Spirit Stones? Lend me a couple." The moment the door swung open, Old Sun clutched Xu Ping's sleeve, desperation in his voice.

Xu Ping's expression stiffened.

You're joking!

Straight up asking to borrow cash?

Should I give any?

"I got none myself! You know I only tend five acres of spirit fields—barely any Spirit Stones after daily expenses. What's going on?" Xu Ping's pulse quickened inwardly, though his face stayed calm, feigning worry.

"You... you..." Old Sun stamped in frustration yet ended with a drawn-out sigh.

"Alas, my greed got me. A few days back, remember I mentioned finding a treasure map and inviting you to hunt treasure with me?"

"You skipped it, so I headed out solo.

No treasure turned up, but a strange corpse instead. I paid it no mind.

These nights, nightmares plague me; now I'm terrified to even close my eyes, unsure if some evil clung to me..."

Xu Ping's heart raced, thoughts tumbling in turmoil.

Evil... demonic creatures!?

Far scarier than Demon Beasts, they devour cultivators' blood essence.

This... it won't drag me down too, will it?

Xu Ping subtly edged backward a few paces.

"Got an Exorcism Talisman?" Old Sun pleaded with Xu Ping, his bloodshot eyes brimming with desperate hope.

Whether from imagination or reality, Xu Ping sensed an unsettling, murderous aura around Old Sun.

"No Exorcism Talismans here either—they're way beyond what I can buy!" Xu Ping answered with feigned regret.

Old Sun's features drooped at the words: "Alas, screwed then. Got anything of value at least?"

How could anyone be this brazen?

Xu Ping swallowed a string of curses: "Nope, just a spirit farmer—where would valuables come from!"

"Fine, I'll hit up others for a loan!" With no Spirit Stones in hand, Old Sun didn't linger, shuffling off in defeat.

As his silhouette shrank into the distance,

Xu Ping muttered curses under his breath: "What sort of folks are these!!"

A perilous world, an acquaintance possibly tainted by demonic forces.

"Should I just snatch a pail and bolt?"

Truth be told, fresh from transmigration and hit with this mess, all he craved was fleeing this nightmare spot for good.

Xu Ping massaged his aching temple, pondering for a moment with a troubled expression.

He appeared to... have no alternative!

Merely a lowly spirit farmer in Dongwu Market, lacking any backing, strength, or Spirit Stones, where else could he relocate?

Without crossing paths with the seemingly possessed Old Sun, life as a spirit farmer, though impoverished, remained fairly secure and steady.

However, if Old Sun truly harbored something sinister, who could say when he'd turn him into a quick meal.

"Sigh..."

"The immortal path brims with dangers..." Xu Ping sighed deeply.

He yearned constantly for the days prior to his transmigration.

Yet life marches forward, forcing him to carry on.

Gathering his feelings, he strove to rally his spirits.

"Oh no!"

Xu Ping's face twisted abruptly as he smacked his forehead.

In the last two days, his mind had been foggy, causing him to neglect the spirit fields entirely.

Those five acres of spirit fields outside served as his sole livelihood in Dongwu Market.

Any mishap there, and banishment from Dongwu Market would count as lenient punishment!

Founded by the Golden Core Longevity Sect, Dongwu Market deterred most troublemakers; its nearness to the wasteland rendered expulsion a near-death verdict.

At this thought, Xu Ping snatched the hoe from the corner and bolted out the door.

The spirit farmers' quarters sat close to the mountaintop market, under frequent patrols, making it comparatively safe.

Still, sporadic robberies by cultivators cropped up from time to time.

Reaching the field, Xu Ping spotted hordes of weeds sprouting across the spirit field.

Many towered fully two feet tall!

Bathed in spiritual Qi, these weeds grew tough and fast.

Weeds vie with spirit rice for nutrients and spiritual Qi—they had to be uprooted.

"Ptuh ptuh!"

Xu Ping spat onto his palms, gripped the hoe firmly, and set to weeding.

Farmwork was entirely new to him.

But drawing on the original host's memories, he proceeded methodically.

And so, from noon right up to near sunset, Xu Ping at last cleared all five acres of spirit fields.

"So tired!"

Sweat soaked Xu Ping through, every muscle screaming, his body feeling alien to him.

But the chores weren't done yet!

Weeding complete, irrigation came next.

This let the spirit rice soak up plenty of spiritual Qi and rainwater for vigorous growth.

Days had elapsed since Xu Ping last rained on the spirit fields!

Edges of many spirit rice leaves had begun yellowing faintly.

Xu Ping mustered his energy, took position by the field, formed hand seals, and drew mana from his Sea of Qi.

He unleashed the must-know technique for every spirit farmer—the Spirit Rain Skill!

Spirit plant farmers master four essential skills.

Spirit Rain Skill, Accelerated Maturation Skill, Geng Metal Finger, Spirit Nourishing Skill.

Among them, Spirit Rain Skill reigns as the utmost core.

This spell boasts six tiers: Entry Level, Skilled, Proficient, Minor Achievement, Major Achievement, Perfection.

Typically, hitting Proficient in Spirit Rain Skill qualifies one as a proper First Rank Lower Grade spirit plant farmer.

Otherwise, they're just basic spirit farmers.

Low-rank though it is, as a weather-altering spell, Spirit Rain Skill proves hard to master—without gift, even mid-to-late Qi cultivators stall at Entry Level.

Xu Ping lacked talent in Spirit Rain Skill too; years of farming left him at Entry Level.

Just enough to water standard spirit rice.

As the seals took effect, clouds swiftly amassed from every direction over the spirit field.

Moments later, a fine drizzle descended.

"Is this magic?"

For the first time beholding magic, Xu Ping found it utterly wondrous.

Suddenly!

Ding!

A notification flashed into his sight.

[Spirit Rain Skill · Experience +1]