Yuan Ming thought of this and dispersed the Fire Cloud in the sky, descending near Hua Zhi to act as her protector.

However, as soon as Yuan Ming landed, his legs suddenly went weak, his entire body experienced unbearable stinging pain, and it felt as if flames were burning inside his body. He almost wished he could tear open his flesh with his fingers to dissipate some of the scorching force.

"Poisoned? Could it be that there are enemies lurking around?" He was both shocked and furious, enduring the severe pain as he concentrated mana, sweeping his Divine Sense around him.

However, the surroundings were tranquil, with no enemies appearing.

Yuan Ming paused slightly, then suddenly thought of something. He turned abruptly to look at the Spiritual Flower on the purple-black cocoon, the faint fragrance hovering in his nostrils, finally understanding where the deadly poison had come from.

He tried hard to mobilize the remaining strength in his body to move outward.

After an unknown length of time, Yuan Ming finally could no longer smell the fragrance of the purple-black Spiritual Flower. He started operating the Nine Elements Technique, and his weakening body gradually recovered, the internal burning pain also gradually subsided.

After a long while, Yuan Ming finally returned to normal.

"The Spiritual Flower produced by Hua Zhi turned out to be poisonous, and so potent that even I almost fell victim," he silently remarked, feeling fortunate.

Yuan Ming looked at those purple-black Spiritual Flowers, his eyes sparkling, pondering something.

Quickly, three days passed.

The purple-black cocoon suddenly began to shake, and the purple-black Demon Vines also appeared to awaken from deep slumber, slowly swaying.

A few breaths later, all the Demon Vines fully awakened, and the purple-black cocoon slowly unfolded, revealing Hua Zhi's body, which seemed to have grown significantly and whose features were more delicate, with an aura that had fully reached the Second-level Middle Stage.

Recalling the incident in the underground palace of the Snake King Valley when Hua Zhi, having improved in strength, had once tried to attack him, Yuan Ming subconsciously became wary.

However, contrary to his expectations, Hua Zhi immediately sprinted over, rubbing against his body in a fawning, ingratiating manner. "Master, that Fire Cloud Secret Technique of yours is really incredible. It can even shatter the Scale Armor of the Ink Lizard Beast, enabling me to break through to the Second-level Middle Stage!"

Yuan Ming sensed the Beast Taming Runes within Hua Zhi's body and knew this demon's flattery was genuine, so he relaxed.

"You have been collecting quite a few small demon beasts recently; do you, perchance, mean to play the tyrant here in the Rain Ruins Swamp?" he said lightly, then looked into the distance.

The small demon beasts, watching from afar, did not approach.

"Life in the Rain Ruins Swamp is just too joyous; I can only find such diversions! Besides, I do this for your sake, Master," Hua Zhi replied.

"Explain how capturing these small demons is for my benefit?" Yuan Ming questioned, turning his gaze to Hua Zhi.

"Of course. I expand my territory here, gathering subordinates for you, Master. If you encounter formidable enemies in the future, you could lead them here, and at my command, these demon beasts would attack en masse. Together with our combined strength, even a Core Formation Stage cultivator might not stand a chance," Hua Zhi boasted, arms entwined boastfully.

"If your small demons can actually deal with Core Formation Stage cultivators, then those cultivators are far too easy to handle," Yuan Ming thought to himself, though he kept his doubts unspoken.

After shifting his thoughts, he spoke, "Have your subordinates gather various spiritual materials from the swamp, especially floral spiritual objects, and give them to me later."

"Okay, no problem. Leave this small task to me," Hua Zhi responded confidently, slapping her chest and promptly agreeing.

"Does that purple-black Spiritual Flower on you contain potent poison?" Yuan Ming then asked.

"I absorbed the Life Essence of the Black Toad, which allows me to devour various kinds of potent poisons. Coupled with my innate traits, I can produce Spiritual Flowers that contain potent poisons," Hua Zhi answered.

"This flower's toxicity is not mild. I plan to use it to refine Poisonous Incense," Yuan Ming stated.

"No problem. These seeds are easy to obtain. Master, just plant these seeds in the soil, water them daily with clean water, and soon they will take root and sprout, blossoming into these poisonous flowers," Hua Zhi extended an arm, a burst of green light flashing over it, quickly producing many purple seeds.

Yuan Ming hadn't expected the poisonous Spiritual Flower to be so readily available, and he was delighted. He collected these seeds, planning to plant them in the garden of his courtyard once he returned.

However, since the flower was poisonous, he would need to buy a set of prohibitions later to isolate the poisonous fragrance.

...

In the following days, Yuan Ming, inside a house in Little Lake City, devoted himself to cultivation, lighting Black Incense every seven days and possessing other Foundation Establishment Cultivators he had seen during the passing of powers ceremony to try and secretly learn various sects' secret techniques.

Of course, for various reasons, the learning process was not very smooth, but given Yuan Ming's prior experience of possessing the old emperor, he was prepared mentally and did not force the issue.

Soon, another three months passed.

He gradually learned several spells from other sects in Da Jin, including some not low-ranked spells with considerable power.

During this time, the reputation of the Xuanhua Spirit Incense Shop gradually spread, and as customers increased, Mu Yang found it somewhat challenging to cope, prompting Yuan Ming to pause his cultivation to personally receive them.

That day, a person stepped into the Xuanhua Spirit Incense Shop, and it was none other than Hu Tu, his face a deep black.

"Excuse me, which one of you is the owner here?" Hu Tu asked hesitantly.

Mu Yang stepped forward, ready to greet him.

"Mu Yang, this is an old acquaintance of mine, Hu Tu, come into the back room." Yuan Ming, who was in the back room, called out.

Upon hearing this, Hu Tu entered the back room.

"Hu Tu, it's been a long time," Yuan Ming said as he turned around and revealed his face.

"Immortal Master, is it really you? This place is the Immortal City, right?" Hu Tu exclaimed in surprise.

"From now on, just call me boss. No need to call me Immortal Master here, as everyone here is an Immortal Master," Yuan Ming stated.

"I see, the shop mentioned in the letter, is it this one?" Hu Tu suddenly realized as he nodded and looked around.

"That's right. If you are willing, you could stay here and help me look after the shop. If you have any questions, ask Shopkeeper Mu Yang," Yuan Ming said with a wink.

As soon as he had decided to open this Spirit Incense Shop, he had not planned on looking after it himself, as that would be too much of a waste of time. Employing Mu Yang alone was merely a temporary solution; he needed someone he knew to help manage and keep an eye on things. Sending someone from his family was inappropriate, so after thinking it over, Yuan Ming thought of Hu Tu, hence the shop was rented in his name.

He then used the Black Incense Possession to find out his whereabouts before hiring a member of the Small Scattered Alliance from the workshop to travel to the southern part of Da Jin in the Zhuo Continent and bring Hu Tu to Little Lake City.

"Of course, I can. I was just living a mundane life in Zhuo Continent, hoping to have a better life in Da Jin, but although the Jin people don't say it, their eyes are filled with discrimination. Here in Little Lake City, nobody looks at me with discrimination, so naturally, I am willing. As for the compensation, there's no need for it, I only have one request that I hope you will grant," Hu Tu spoke.

"You may speak freely, Hu Tu." Yuan Ming roughly guessed what was on Hu Tu's mind and said with a smile.

"These days, having seen the methods of the Immortals, I am extremely envious and wish to cultivate the Immortal Path. Please accept me as your disciple, Hu Tu will definitely be utterly devoted and repay your great kindness!" Hu Tu took a deep breath, bowed deeply, and made a grand gesture according to the customs of the Southern Border.

"Please rise, admiring the Immortal Path is a common desire, but cultivation requires certain qualifications, and not everyone can do it," Yuan Ming said as he helped Hu Tu to his feet, speaking slowly.

"I have some understanding of this matter; please inspect me, sir. If I lack the qualifications, I will accept my fate and will also take on the task of watching over the shop," Hu Tu said.

Yuan Ming nodded and grabbed Hu Tu's wrist, sending a thread of Mana into his body.

After advancing to the Foundation Establishment Stage, it was possible to test someone's Spirit Root with just Mana without the need for a Magic Artifact.

At this moment, Hu Tu appeared somewhat nervous, holding his breath and hardly daring to breathe, as if he was afraid that any carelessness might cause him to lose his Spirit Root.

"Huh, you actually do have a Spirit Root, quite lucky, it's the Four Spirit Roots of water, fire, wood, and earth," Yuan Ming said after a moment, his expression slightly surprised.

"Really?" Hu Tu was overwhelmed with joy and had already knelt on the ground, covering his face as he wept.

"Indeed, since you possess a Spirit Root, you can practice immortal techniques. I have a cultivation technique here; take it and ponder over it. If there's anything unclear, come ask me again." Yuan Ming took out a piece of white paper, swiftly wrote down the mnemonic for the Biluo Skill, and handed it over.

"Thank you, master, for bestowing upon me this immortal technique!" Hu Tu took the white paper with trembling hands and bowed deeply.

"Stop! I have no intention of taking disciples, you should still address me as boss, and I will call you Hu Tu," Yuan Ming said sternly as he held onto Hu Tu.

Seeing Yuan Ming's serious expression, Hu Tu did not dare to contradict and agreed meekly, feeling even more grateful to Yuan Ming in his heart.

"Hu Tu, you must take good care of this shop in the future. If you do well, I still have some Qi Refinement Realm elixirs and Magic Artifacts here that I can reward you with," Yuan Ming encouraged.

Having followed Fu Qing and others to Da Jin before, and then coming to Little Lake City with the Scatter Alliance, Hu Tu had gained some understanding of the Cultivation World and knew the significance of elixirs and Magic Artifacts. He happily agreed.

"Do not worry, boss. I have done business in both the Southern Border and Zhuo Continent, and I will surely live up to this important task and manage this shop well," he assured, patting his chest.

Yuan Ming understood Hu Tu's character well. Being somewhat cunning by nature, Hu Tu was indeed suited for doing business, or else Yuan Ming would not have invited him over.

Yuan Ming then took Hu Tu for a tour around the shop, introduced him to Mu Yang, and told them to consult with each other if there were any issues. He also informed him of some common knowledge in the Cultivation World and key points about selling Spirit Incense, before taking on the role of a hands-off shopkeeper.

He did not return to his neighboring residence, but chose to sit and cultivate in the back courtyard while keeping an eye on how Hu Tu managed the shop.

Hu Tu was quite shrewd in doing business. In just half a day, he had completely understood how to sell Spirit Incense and was quite adept at attracting customers. No matter how many questions the customers had, he patiently explained to them, keeping the shop orderly and without chaos. Whenever he faced questions he couldn't answer, he would ask Mu Yang. The two coordinated well, so Yuan Ming simply let Mu Yang stay in the shop as well.

After three days, feeling satisfied with no issues, Yuan Ming explained the Biluo Skill to Hu Tu twice and gave a few tips before returning to his residence at No. 86 to focus on his cultivation.

Of course, he would occasionally summon a soul crow to perch on a nearby tree to watch over the situation in the shop.

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