Chapter 255
As she spoke, Xiao Qing felt a wave of self-destructive despair wash over her, her expression filled with reluctance.
The position of temple steward was not only a family legacy passed down through generations but also the reason she was respected today.
Zheng Fa understood in his heart—Xiao Qing had actually been trying quite hard.
In Ban Shan City, there was little in the way of formal knowledge transmission. Xiao Qing might have heard her ancestors recount some tales, but… the previous temple stewards were probably best at deceiving people and pilfering offerings.
Putting that aside, Xiao Qing was just a teenage girl, not a prodigy by any means.
Suddenly being tasked with managing thousands of people, even with the assistance of the elders, she would likely feel overwhelmed.
“Distributing offerings? How do we distribute them?”
Sister Zhang’s voice suddenly broke in.
“Um…,” Xiao Qing stammered as she tried to explain Zheng Fa’s rules.
Sister Zhang didn’t even take a breath; with a sweep of her consciousness, she laid out the distribution plan that had taken Xiao Qing ages to figure out, down to the last detail for hundreds of people.
“Goddess… you’re amazing…”
Xiao Qing’s eyes sparkled as she gazed at Sister Zhang’s statue, her admiration evident.
“You can be just as amazing.”
Zheng Fa felt a stir in his heart and suddenly spoke up.
“Me… can I really?”
“Of course.” Zheng Fa’s tone was light, and he continued, “You can become a competent and capable temple steward. Are you willing?”
“Absolutely! Yes!”
Xiao Qing nodded vigorously, her face flushed with excitement.
With a flick of his consciousness, a sphere of light flew from the statue towards Xiao Qing, and as it dissipated, two books appeared in her hands.
“Elementary Grammar—this contains the knowledge Zheng Fa learned from the Zhao family, primarily focusing on the foundational teachings of the Xuanwei realm.
“Elementary Mathematics—this is more about modern elementary school math.
Xiao Qing stared at the two books before her. Although she couldn’t read, she understood that this was a gift from the Thunder God, and her excitement was palpable.
“Do temple stewards need to learn these?”
Sister Yuan whispered.
“I don’t know about others, but I need to learn.”
“This poor girl… I was envious of her before…”
“Don’t say that, Sister… look how happy she is!”
“Well, if she could read, she wouldn’t be smiling like that…”
(End of this chapter)
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**Chapter 239: The First Lesson, What Makes a God**
Xiao Qing’s academic performance was less than stellar.
Though she was small in stature, she was already seventeen, having spent years unaware of what studying was. Now, suddenly thrust into learning—
It was quite a challenge.
Watching Xiao Qing nodding off beneath the statue, Zheng Fa paused his lecture and turned to Sister Zhang, asking, “Is my teaching really that hypnotic?”
He had some teaching experience—he had taught the Seventh Young Master.
Oh, the Seventh Young Master was also a fan of napping…
This made Zheng Fa doubt himself even more…
“It’s not that you’re a bad teacher,” Sister Zhang replied, “It’s just that this girl… or rather, she’s starting her enlightenment in the Tianbei realm, and the road ahead is long and arduous…”
Zheng Fa looked at Xiao Qing and silently agreed with Sister Zhang’s assessment.
He had started teaching Xiao Qing partly to gauge how resistant the people of the Tianbei realm were to the hypnotic effects of knowledge.
As it stood, the outlook was not optimistic…
---
In the valley below, the land had been tilled, and Xiao Qing, away from her books, was bustling about, helping women and children plant seeds.
The seeds had various origins—
Wild vegetables gathered from the mountains.
Wild rice pulled from the marshes.
And some small trees bearing wild fruits.
Zheng Fa found it quite remarkable:
The Tianbei realm lacked proper farmland, but that didn’t mean Xiao Qing and her group had a limited diet. On the contrary, they had a diverse menu, knowing over a hundred edible plants.
When Zheng Fa suggested planting some edible plants, the items they brought back opened his eyes.
Later, he realized—because they had so little to eat, they were willing to try anything…
If something didn’t kill them, they’d expand their culinary repertoire.
“Sister…”
Watching them plant all sorts of things, Zheng Fa communicated with Sister Zhang.
In the next moment, a brilliant beam of light shot from above the temple.
The peak where Ban Shan City was located shone like an extraordinarily bright candle, illuminating the gloomy sky.
Xiao Qing looked up.
This was a sky she had never seen before, a thousand miles of azure, clear and devoid of clouds.
She had never felt such generous sunlight; the warm rays enveloped her, stirring an inexplicable urge to cry.
Beside her, a woman slightly older than her groaned.
“Auntie?”
“I just…” The woman touched her knee, “I feel like all the aches in my body have improved. This must be the grace of the Thunder God.”
---
“Is that enough?” Zheng Fa heard Sister Zhang ask.
He focused his spirit on the copper seal and realized that when Sister Zhang used the Rain-Stopping Thunder, she was perfectly following the “weather forecast” inscribed on the seal.
The difference was…
Zheng Fa’s weak foundation could only maintain clear weather in a small area.
But Sister Zhang was a genius in the Yuan Ying stage!
Xiao Yu Ying had previously mentioned that her cultivation was relatively low, and she might struggle with the heavenly arts…
True, he was in the Foundation Establishment stage.
But who didn’t have a caring and hardworking Yuan Ying sister?
Zheng Fa glanced at Sister Zhang’s statue, feeling as if the statue’s head was constantly displaying: Heavenly Merit Points +1, +1…
Sister Zhang seemed to understand his silence; she chuckled softly, a hint of pride in her laughter.
Sister Yuan couldn’t hold back:
“Sister Zhang, can we at least wait for Zheng Shidi to compliment you before you laugh?”
Zheng Fa quickly added, “Sister Yuan, your Thunder Tribulation technique is also quite impressive!”
“Really? Leave this to me, and you can rest easy!”
---
Zheng Fa observed the various plants in the valley, his spirit infused with spiritual energy, and a thunderclap echoed in the sky.
This startled Xiao Qing and the others in the valley.
This was the Spirit Wood Thunder that Zheng Fa had just experimented with in modern times; this type of thunder was something Sister Zhang couldn’t master…
The main issue was her lack of control over the thunder techniques.
While the Rain-Stopping Thunder and Thunder Tribulation also tested control, the primary challenge lay in the power of the thunder—something even a Golden Core stage Yuan Master like Sister Zhang didn’t lack.
But the Spirit Wood Thunder, being extremely delicate, was something Zheng Fa believed only he and his master in the Jiu Shan Sect could control.
After three thunderclaps.
Zheng Fa’s gaze was fixed on the various plants in the valley, particularly a few types of wild beans.
Sure enough, one type of bean began to slowly, gradually absorb spiritual energy, starting to transform into a spiritual plant!
“This… is this a spiritual plant?” Sister Yuan asked, dazed. “Have we just cultivated a new spiritual plant?”
“Sort of.”
Zheng Fa thought for a moment; it seemed the Xuanwei realm hadn’t heard of a similar spiritual plant.
“Is it really that simple… then why does Qian He Sect treasure their Huang Ya rice so much?”
Sister Yuan’s tone was filled with a sense of betrayal—she loved Huang Ya rice and had even thought about getting some from Qian He Sect to plant herself.
Of course, Qian He Sect hadn’t given her that courtesy.
Sister Yuan clearly held a grudge about it.
“Could it be… it’s not that Qian He Sect is stingy, but that Zheng Shidi is exceptional?”
Sister Zhang understood the value of the three Spirit Wood Thunders better than Sister Yuan; she turned to Zheng Fa and said, “You’ve mastered a secret method for cultivating spiritual plants…”
“Senior Sister, we’ve mastered a secret method together.”
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**Chapter 240: The Celestial Medicine Garden, The Cycle of Day and Night (4K)**
A month later.
“Is half a day enough for those children?”
Watching the bewildered children leave, Sister Yuan asked.
According to Zheng Fa’s rules, these kids came to the temple to learn in the morning and returned home before lunch, spending only two hours a day.
Zheng Fa paused for a moment and replied, “Sister Yuan, people in Ban Shan City have short lifespans. A five-year-old child is one thing, but a ten-year-old can already be considered a strong laborer… If they spend all day in the temple, their families might struggle to keep up.”
Having grown up on a farm, Zheng Fa understood well—full-time studying was a luxury.
Even when his father was alive, he had to help with a lot of work every day.
Let alone the fact that the conditions in Ban Shan City were still not as good as those at the Zhao family farm.
Considering the average lifespan in Ban Shan City was just over thirty, a ten-year-old could already be considered a youth…
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