Before they knew it, the sun had climbed high, its heat drilling through the gaps in the bamboo forest.
Gu An and Zhang Song were combing the feathers of the spirit chickens. This was a daily task.
Colorful-Feather Chickens were naturally active, often messing up their feathers, and also loved cleanliness. If they saw uneven feathers, they would peck them off. If one didn't comb them, in just a few days, they would be bare and bald in patches.
Just then, a green leaf flew over from afar. Gu An looked at it with envy.
Although this Sky-Traveling Leaf was only a Low Grade magical artifact, flying artifacts were inherently expensive, their price matching that of ordinary Middle Grade magical artifacts.
Gu An had only ridden a Spirit Boat once when he came from Blackstone City to the Qingyuan Sect; he had never been up in the sky before.
Every year at this time, sect cultivators would come to collect the spirit chickens and then complete the Handover and send them to Qingyun Tower.
In previous years, Gu An had also seen this Sky-Traveling Leaf magical artifact twice. He figured that this year, Deacon Wang would still be the one to come.
After a moment, the leaf magical artifact flew closer, and a middle-aged cultivator jumped down from it, smiling as he greeted Steward Liu.
"Brother Liu, how have you been lately?"
"Very well indeed. Eat well, drink well, and the days are peaceful."
Steward Liu shook his head, his expression carefree.
After some pleasantries, they finally got down to business.
"Brother Wang, I wonder how many spirit chickens the sect needs this year?"
"The sect hasn't been stable lately. The Demon Beast Unrest in the northern Cloudmist Mountains has been frequent. A nearby market has already been breached by demon beasts. The Headmaster has ordered the Qingyun Towers in Cloudsmoke Market and Cloud Lake Market to withdraw."
"The number of spirit chickens needed this year has also decreased. Your Green Bamboo Peak's Spirit Chicken Farm will provide one hundred and twenty. If that's not enough, I'll go to other peaks to collect."
"That's fine, Brother Wang. You must stay and have a few drinks with me today. Old Man He from the peak just gave me two jars of Green Bamboo Snake Wine. The taste is absolutely wonderful!"
"Haha, then I won't refuse."
Gu An followed behind the two, listening to their conversation, trying to analyze some useful information.
Steward Liu and this Senior Brother Wang had been close in their youth, so every time they handed over the spirit chickens, he wouldn't make things difficult; instead, he provided many conveniences.
In return, Steward Liu also gave Deacon Wang plenty of perks.
The sect was well aware of this. If the water is too clear, no fish can live, so there was no need to interfere!
Anyway, the sect only provided so much spirit grain and Spirit Bran. If you had the skill to raise more, that was your own ability, as long as the sect's tasks were completed without error.
as long as you handed over enough to the sect, the rest was your own.
Steward Liu led Deacon Wang to his small courtyard. Steward Liu's residence was right there in the Spirit Chicken Farm's small courtyard.
This small courtyard wasn't much bigger than Gu An and the other's small courtyard, but its refinement far surpassed it.
The small courtyard wasn't large, but it was extremely serene and secluded.
A pool of quiet water reflected the sky's light, with two spirit fish swishing their tails inside, stirring up half the pool's cloud shadows.
Beside the pool stood a hexagonal small pavilion, its flying eaves and interlocking brackets like an immortal crane spreading its wings. Inside the pavilion were a small table and four stone stools, truly elegant and tasteful.
Beside the pavilion was a clump of green bamboo, each stalk like green jade, each leaf bringing coolness. When the wind came, it rustled, and the bamboo shadows danced.
"Gu An, Zhang Song, you two go kill two Colorful-Feather Chickens. Gu An, you go to the kitchen to prepare them. Zhang Song, you assist."
Steward Liu instructed the two.
Gu An's family ran a restaurant. His parents often took him into the kitchen, intending for him to inherit the family business.
Now he couldn't inherit the family business, but Gu An had learned some basic skills. After coming to the Qingyuan Sect, unwilling to eat the pig slop from the communal kitchen, he had figured out a few dishes on his own.
Steward Liu had once tasted Gu An's bamboo-fragrant chicken pieces and praised them endlessly, complimenting Gu An's talent. He had Gu An make it many times.
And Gu An was happy to do it, because each time he could get a few pieces for himself.
Zhang Song went to cut bamboo, while Gu An went to the chicken coop to catch chickens. After observing for a while, he chose two plump chickens with bright feathers.
"You two it is."
"Today, this Daoist will send you to reincarnation!"
Two water-blue spiritual Qi threads extended from Gu An's hand. With a sudden bind, he caught the two plump chickens in his hands.
Seeing that Zhang Song hadn't arrived yet, Gu An went ahead to kill the chickens himself.
Although the Colorful-Feather Chicken was a spirit chicken, an adult chicken was only at the first layer of Qi Refining. Killing it was no different from killing an ordinary chicken.
He gripped both wings tightly with his left hand, pinched the comb with his right hand and pulled it back, exposing a patch of fine down on the neck. He plucked a tuft of down from the chicken's neck.
He turned spiritual Qi into a blade. The water-blue blade edge slanted in a cut. A line of crimson fell, dripping into droplets.
Gu An then cast a Cleaning Spell. All the feathers fell off, revealing the goose-yellow skin underneath.
The chicken stopped struggling and died on the spot.
[One of the Colorful-Feather Chickens you raised has passed away peacefully, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]
A voice sounded in his mind.
A stream of spiritual Qi simultaneously fell into his dantian.
What is this???
Gu An's heart shook. He couldn't even hold the chicken steady, and it slipped from his hands.
But Gu An didn't care. He was already immersed in ecstasy.
A golden finger. It was actually a golden finger.
I've waited for you for so long!
Gu An was overjoyed. In his previous life, he was just an ordinary university student. In this life, his aptitude and background were also ordinary.
Without a cheat, Foundation Establishment would be a major hurdle, and Golden Core would be an insurmountable chasm.
Now, with a golden finger, it couldn't be said that the path ahead was smooth, but it could be said that he was sitting among clouds and reaching the immortal path with ease.
As for conspiracy theories or pride, that was simply a joke. Who would crawl on the ground when they could fly?
A golden finger that's a trap? I only know that without it, I'd struggle to even reach Foundation Establishment.
Become an immortal! Eternal life! Let's work together and witness it!
Gu An's thoughts raced. He gladly accepted the life of being carried by his golden finger daddy.
"I need to give it a name. I can't just keep calling it golden finger, golden finger!"
"Got it. It gives feedback from spirit beasts, so I'll call it Spirit Source Feedback!"
But where did this 'passed away peacefully' come from? Gu An felt that this golden finger was a bit mischievous.
Although I raised it, I also killed it. It only remembers the kindness and not the grudge, right?
This spirit chicken really knows gratitude!
Oh well, having a golden finger is good enough. If it's not cultured, then it's not cultured!!
Gu An felt he could be understanding!
After a long while, Gu An finally calmed his emotions. His breathing slowed down, but his eyes were bright, as if filled with infinite hope.
"What are you doing? The chicken fell on the ground."
Zhang Song approached carrying bamboo, asking Gu An in a muffled voice.
"Nothing, Brother Song. You kill that chicken. I'll go wash this one."
Gu An handed the other, unkilled chicken to Zhang Song and ran out without giving him a chance to speak.
"Why not use the Cleaning Spell?"
Zhang Song was puzzled. He only felt that Gu An was acting foolishly and felt a bit worried.
Gu An didn't run far. He was afraid that if he got too far away, he wouldn't receive the spiritual Qi.
As for washing the chicken, of course that was just an excuse. He wasn't stupid. He just wanted to see if the golden finger required him to personally kill the chicken.
The voice in his head had already told him it required the chickens he raised. He had also killed quite a few chickens last year, and Gu An had occasionally fed them, but there was no spiritual Qi feedback.
This year's chickens had been fed by Gu An since they hatched, with only occasional help from Zhang Song and Steward Liu. Yet these chickens gave spiritual Qi.
Therefore, this golden finger might require that he did most of the feeding, but missing a meal or two didn't matter?
[One of the Colorful-Feather Chickens you raised has passed away peacefully, returning a Spiritual Qi Cluster to you!]
The voice sounded in his mind. Another stream of spiritual Qi fell into his dantian.
"Eh, why does this stream of spiritual Qi feel a bit more? Come to think of it, this chicken seemed a bit plumper."
Gu An stroked his chin, recalling, but his feet didn't stop.
Although he had a golden finger now, The Dao sprout has just emerged; the immortal embryo is still young. He was still a small cultivator at the fourth layer of Qi Refining and couldn't neglect Steward Liu's affairs.
Gu An walked into the kitchen. He split the bamboo, drained and washed it, then cut the two chickens into large pieces.
The bamboo tube couldn't fit a whole chicken, and cutting it into small pieces wasn't satisfying enough, so Gu An was used to cutting it into large pieces.
He put the chicken pieces into the bamboo tube, sprinkled in bamboo salt. Seeing that Zhang Song had pulled some bamboo shoots, he also cut some bamboo shoots and put them in. He used spiritual Qi to carve a piece of bamboo into a peg and drove it into the joint of the bamboo tube to seal it.
By this time, Zhang Song had also dried the bamboo branches over a fire until they were slightly yellow. This was the firewood for roasting the bamboo tube. It gave an original flavor, and the chicken meat had more bamboo fragrance.
Gu An placed the bamboo tube over the fire to roast. It made a slight crackling sound. The green skin first oozed some water droplets, then shriveled up, showing scorched yellow patterns.
The flames rose, licking the bottom of the tube, showing a hint of blue.
In the time it takes to burn an incense stick, the bamboo-roasted chicken was ready.
Gu An and Zhang Song each carried a tube to report to Steward Liu.
Steward Liu was in high spirits from the wine. He called the two to sit down and split open the bamboo tube. Gu An took the wine jar and filled the cups for all four.
The fragrance from the bamboo tube mixed with the clear fragrance of the bamboo wine, then was scattered by the mountain wind. Steward Liu and Deacon Wang talked freely, while Gu An and Zhang Song listened quietly.
Amid the clink of cups and the exchange of toasts, the restlessness that had just arisen in Gu An's heart seemed to be smoothed away by the mountain wind. He felt refreshed and clear-minded.28Please respect copyright.ＰＥＮＡＮＡWbq79Qm0Jj
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