Cultivation a fantasy li.., p.22
Cultivation: A Fantasy LitRPG Adventure (Battle Mage Farmer Book 3), page 22
“Kuyuk?” Zayaat’s eyes went wide as he recognized the face of the Moon Guardian.
“Hello, Zayaat.”
“Aren’t you… well, clearly you’re not dead. This is a surprise. I had no idea you were the Moon Guardian.”
“Not anymore,” Kuyuk replied, shaking his head as he shot a furtive glance at John. “There is no High Priestess anymore, so there is no Moon Guardian anymore. Not until the next High Priestess is chosen.”
“And I will hold onto the mask, if you don’t mind,” said Togene, appearing at the edge of the platform and slowly making her way over.
With a bow, Kuyuk presented the mask to her and she tied it onto her belt next to the sun mask that was already there. Straightening, he turned and bowed to John and Ellie.
“Thank you for leaving us with our lives. You could have killed those who challenged you, yet you left every one of us alive.”
“Oh? Is that guy with the spear okay?” John asked, glancing toward the edge of the platform where he had flung the spear-wielding warrior from his first fight.
“Yes, Bugunutei is fine. A few bruised bones, but the fall is not that far and he was lucky enough to land on a tent.”
“Kuyuk is right,” Zayaat said, saluting John, “this was not how I wished for this assembly to go, but the fact that you spared those you fought against makes me doubly sure you are worthy of our trust. After today, many of our tribes will ride under the flag of the blue flame. There will undoubtedly be some dissenters, of course, but when they see the riches we bring back, no doubt they will turn from their path.”
Nodding, John felt a tug on his sleeve and looked down at Ellie, who was staring at him nervously, her eyes searching his face for any sign of his mana going out of control. Immediately understanding what she was concerned about, he patted her hand.
“I’m fine. Thanks to you, my control is much better these days. But there is a chance I’ll need to use my mana in a bit. Togene?”
“Yes?”
“I’d like to speak to you for a second.”
Hearing the not-so-subtle dismissal, Zayaat and Kuyuk both saluted John once more and then bowed to Togene before hurrying off the stage. Ellie was going to go with them, but John grabbed her hand to stop her.
“Would you mind getting Ferdie ready? I’d like a bag of seeds and the tools we brought packed on him.”
“Of course,” Ellie said, giving John a smile before hurrying off.
Watching her leave, Togene’s eyes narrowed slightly before she glanced at John. Though it was hard to detect, there was still a healthy sliver of fear in her eyes when she looked at him. As a sage level class holder, one of the very few in the world, fear should have been an emotion she had left behind, but the reality was quite different. Achieving the sage level had opened her eyes to some of the truths of the world, including John’s true strength, and the sight had terrified her. At the end of the last war, he had personally come to visit her, demanding peace and curbing the aggressive advance the Moritoi were about to take.
“I heard that you had passed away, or ascended,” she said, walking closer.
Nodding, John looked at her calmly.
“That’s what a lot of people have heard. But here I am.”
“What made you change your mind?”
“You mean about conquering the world?” John asked, his gaze drifting toward the horizon where he could see a large swath of darkened land. “It feels like it’s time. The end is coming. Well, an end at least. And evil forces are starting to move. You might say I’ve reached the end of my tolerance.”
“That is curious, since I feel like your tolerance has increased by leaps and bounds. The last time you were here, I feared that a single misspoken word would doom my people to a fiery death. Yet today you were attacked, insulted, and mocked, yet no one died.”
Taken aback, John reflected on what had just happened and realized Togene was right. He was changing.
CHAPTER 28
Shaking his head, John smiled and gestured toward the horizon, directing Togene’s attention to the band of darkened land in the distance.
“Many things are changing in this world. I want to invite you to see another thing that’s changing. Accompany me into the forbidden fields. I have something to show you.”
Frowning slightly, Togene observed the land John had pointed to. The forbidden fields were the site of an ancient battle between a dozen Mages that had devastated the land, leaving dense mana in both the soil and the air. The mana had corrupted both the plants and the animals that lived there, twisting them into bestial abominations rivaled only by the undead that shambled about. Occasionally the beasts and undead would surge out of the forbidden fields seeking fresh meat, forcing the Moritoi to deploy their warriors to stop them.
“In the forbidden fields? What could be there that’s worth seeing? I have been over almost every inch of that land, and there is nothing there but death and decay.”
“For now,” John said, smiling at her skeptical words. “Just come with me.”
Heading back down from the Sky Stones, John and Togene didn’t move quickly, instead walking along normally, as if they weren’t two of the most powerful beings in the world. They didn’t speak as they walked, each occupied with their own thoughts until they finally arrived at the tent where Ellie was harnessing Ferdie. The giant bull let out a happy moo when he saw John and nudged him for a treat. Accepting the bit of mana John gave him, Ferdie turned his head and saw Togene standing there and froze, his eyes growing wary.
Beasts didn’t have the same mana system as humans, but their sense of mana density and purity was unmatched, and even though Ferdie didn’t know anything about the division of class holders, he could tell that the unassuming old woman was terribly dangerous. More dangerous, in fact, than anyone he’d ever seen, with the exception of John of course.
“This is your bull?” Togene asked, peering at Ferdie.
“Yup. Let me get one more thing, and then you can hop on.”
“What a powerful beast,” Togene said, her eyes filled with wonder.
“He’s pretty good,” John agreed.
Grabbing a rake, he helped Togene up onto Ferdie’s back and then told Ellie he would be back in about three days. Together, John, Ferdie, and Togene left the camp, watched by thousands of eyes. Unsure what exactly John was doing, Togene finally couldn’t conceal her curiosity.
“What is the purpose of this?”
“This? This is a rake. It’s used for farming,” John said.
Rolling her eyes, the old woman shook her head.
“I’m not an idiot, I know what a rake is. I’m asking you why we’re doing all of this. I could take you where you wanted to go in an instant. And you could do the same. Why the theatrics?”
For a moment, John was silent as he thought about her question. They were slowly approaching the forbidden fields, and already the land was starting to show signs of mana poisoning. Thanks to the mixture of forbidden level spells that had been used there, the mana was so thick that anyone under the legendary level would die as soon as they came into contact with it. With a sigh, John glanced up at Togene and then let his eyes scan the horizon.
“I’ve been learning a lot about the world recently. I feel like up until this point I’ve been like a toddler with the sharpest sword in the world, but finally I’m starting to grow up. And as part of that, I’m discovering the value in being, well, normal. Sure, I could use my power to move us to our destination swiftly, but to what end? We’ll get there just as well by walking. I’m still exploring it, but I’m finding a lot of benefit in not being the most powerful being in the world. Sure, it’s nice being able to wave your hand and have what you want, but I’m only now realizing just how much of this world I’ve been missing.”
Falling silent, John continued to lead the way forward, even as the land underfoot turned dark, as if it had been badly burnt. The mana concentration in the air began to spike and Ferdie took an excited breath, sucking in the surrounding mana. However, as soon as the mana entered his body the bull made a disgusted face and spat it all back out. Though the mana was concentrated, it was incredibly impure compared to the mana John gave him, and as far as he was concerned, such mana wasn’t worth absorbing.
After nearly an hour, John and Togene had entered deep into the wide plain where the battle had taken place in ancient times. Both of them had restrained their auras, but Ferdie’s was the opposite, having grown stronger as it was reflected in the increasingly dense mana that hung in the air. Due to the bull’s powerful aura, they hadn’t encountered any other beasts, though occasionally Ferdie would turn his head to look into the distance, a combative look in his eyes.
Patting Ferdie on the shoulder, John finally stopped advancing and looked around. If he wasn’t mistaken, they were currently standing on one of the ancient fields that had been used to grow food for the Moritoi’s ancestors in days long ago. It had returned to grass a long time ago, and the dense mana had burned that grass away, leaving the ground bare. Figuring this was as good a place as any, John helped Togene down and then took the tools he had brought off Ferdie’s back.
“Keep an eye on the surrounding area, I don’t want to be bothered,” John said, patting the bull on the shoulder. “I’ll call when I need you.”
Mooing happily, Ferdie turned and galloped away, his hooves shaking the ground as he quickly vanished into the distance. Staring after him, Togene had no idea what to think. Meanwhile, John was starting to measure out the ground, using stakes to mark out about an acre of land for the field he was about to prepare. Seeing what he was doing, Togene’s expression became incredulous. It increasingly looked as if John was going to cultivate a new field, right in the middle of forbidden land, but that was inconceivable.
As she watched him work, Togene’s expression turned stranger and stranger and suddenly she thought back to the first time she’d seen him. She had become a sage nearly ten years ago and had started quietly gathering her people for war, but a bit over four years ago a young man in a burning blue mask had appeared in her tent and completely crushed her in only a few seconds. Despair had colored her world as she discovered the vast gulf that existed between the sage level and the legendary level was dwarfed by the gulf that lay between her and the young man who came to challenge her.
He had made only a single demand. Peace. Peace or death. Shuddering as she remembered his calm words, she couldn’t believe that she was looking at the same person hunting for stones in the field in front of her. If she didn’t know without a doubt that John was the Eternal Flame, she would never have believed that the most powerful figure in the world would be doing common labor in a farmer’s field.
“Hey, come give me a hand. I didn’t invite you so you could watch me work,” John said, shocking Togene out of her daze. “Grab one of those hoes and help me remove any plants you find inside the area I marked.”
Getting to her feet, Togene picked up the tool John had pointed at and slowly began to work, often stopping and glancing at him. Seeing him throwing himself into the work, she slowly got used to it herself, and before she knew it hours had passed and the field was ready. Darkness had fallen over the forbidden fields and Ferdie had trotted back to where they were, a pleased and satisfied expression on his face. Seeing the large bull come back, John called him over and hooked up his harness to the small plow he had brought. As he connected it to the bull, he casually explained what he was doing to the bemused sage.
“Not too long ago, I had no idea how to do this, but it wasn’t that hard to learn. Should be pretty easy for your people to pick up. The straps go like this, around his chest and under his body. Man, Ferdie, you’re getting big. We’ll need to lengthen the harness again when we get back. Hold still.”
Hooking the last chain, John grabbed the plow handle and Ferdie began to pull it forward.
“Typically we wouldn’t want to plow right before we plant, but as long as we rake afterward, I think we’ll be fine. Besides, what we’re growing isn’t exactly a normal seed. Actually, hold on.”
Stopping Ferdie, John grabbed the two rakes and gave them to Togene.
“After I pass by, why don’t you rake the dirt for me? You don’t have to make it perfectly flat, just smooth it out a bit. This is going to save us a good bit of time.”
Following John, Togene felt as if the situation had become completely absurd. Never in a million years would she have thought she’d be helping the Eternal Flame prepare a field for planting. The strangest thing was that she had no idea what purpose he had in mind. It was common knowledge that food grown in mana-saturated areas was worthless except for feeding to beasts. If humans ate mana-saturated food, death was the kindest outcome they could expect. Yet here they were, clearly preparing a field for planting. The night was halfway over by the time they finished, and stepping back, John smiled happily as he surveyed the area they had prepared.
The next step was spreading the seed, which John did quickly, and then a final raking to bury the seeds at the appropriate distance from the surface. Brushing some dirt from his hands, John saw that Togene was looking at him strangely, as if wondering what sort of strange idea he would come up with next. With a laugh, John simply snapped his fingers, binding the nearby mana together to form a spell.
Downpour was a relatively simple water magic spell, but as soon as the dirty, twisted mana in the forbidden zone was forced into the spell construct, the heavy drizzle they were supposed to get transformed into a raging tempest that spat lightning, gouts of flame, and mud into the air. Along with the random manifestation of various elements, rain poured down as well, completely soaking the ground. As fast as it came, the spell vanished, burning itself out in record time. After double-checking to make sure the field had been watered sufficiently, John nodded happily and sat down by the edge of the field.
“This next part will take some time. We’ll wait around thirty-six hours.”
“Wait for what?” Togene asked, completely confused.
“For the crop we just planted. It won’t be ready to harvest, of course, but you’ll be able to see it growing. There are two things we’ll confirm.”
“And they are?”
“You’ll just have to wait and see,” John said, closing his eyes.
Seeing him start to meditate, Togene frowned and started to speak before thinking better of it. Being asked to wait for thirty-six hours wasn’t the worst request Togene had ever gotten, and besides, she was starting to grow curious about what John was attempting to do. She had a few ideas in the back of her head, but they were so crazy she didn’t pay them much attention. Instead, she just sighed and sat down, her eyes closing.
Time passed quickly for them as they sat next to the field. Ferdie wandered around the field, making sure that none of the nearby beasts came to bother them, and the hours ticked by, one after another. A day had passed when Togene’s face suddenly changed and her eyes snapped open in shock. She had been waiting quietly when she suddenly realized that the air around her had changed. Though it wasn’t incredibly drastic, the change still sent waves of shock through her heart. Seeing John open his eyes and gaze at her calmly, the old woman struggled to get her surging emotions under control.
“The mana… it’s changed!”
Nodding, John closed his eyes and let his senses expand, examining the surrounding mana carefully. Though it was still thick, there was a subtle shift in its composition. What made the mana of forbidden areas so dangerous was not only the density of the mana, but the fact that it was a mixture of a large number of different sorts of elemental attributes. The result was a poisonous blend of mana deadly to anyone who absorbed it. Yet now, the mana hanging over the field was thinner, and much more uniform in its elemental profile.
“This is because of the plants?”
“Yup. They absorb the mana and recycle it. That is, they re-release some of it into the air. What they release is a more neutral form of mana. Over their life cycle, which is around five weeks give or take, they’ll continue to do this. Yield depends on mana density, so I’m expecting around sixty bushels from this acre. Also, it’s edible.”
“What!?”
Nodding, John glanced down at the still-bare ground.
“Because it releases the bulk of the mana it develops, the plant is able to synthesize the rest of the mana, using the same process beasts use to strengthen their skin, bones, and muscles. Just like low-grade beast meat, eating these plants will strengthen the bodies and health of anyone who consumes them.”
Unable to believe what she was hearing, Togene stared at John, searching for any sign of deceit, but all she saw was clear excitement. The thoughts that had been floating around in the back of her head started to bloom, and she crouched down by the edge of the field.
“If that’s correct, if you’re correct, then this field is the most valuable thing in the world.”
“Eh, I dunno about that, but yes, I understand what you’re trying to say,” John said, nodding. “Within five weeks you’ll know if I’m correct. Unfortunately, I don’t have the time to spend hanging out here. I wanted to bring you to show you the change in the mana, which will only increase in speed as the seeds germinate and then grow fully.”
“I can spare five weeks,” Togene said, her gaze practically glowing. “I will not move from this place.”
“Well, actually, you can’t hang out here either,” John said, shaking his head.
Standing up, Togene turned to look up at John, her gaze hard. Seeing her aggressive look, John let out a laugh and lifted his hands defensively.
“Slow down. You can deploy some of your warriors here to guard this field, but I have something I need you to do for me. In exchange, I’ll give you four more bags of these seeds, enough to plant four more fields of this size. I recognize it isn’t much, but if handled properly, you should be able to get nearly three thousand bushels of wheat from them in just over five weeks, which you can then use to plant three thousand acres of farms. You’ll have to prepare the fields yourself, but even if your yield isn’t as good, you should be able to build up a farm big enough to support your people within a year.”
