novelraw Book 2: Chapter 54: Strolling in the Night Breeze
Book 2: Chapter 54: Strolling in the Night Breeze
Vol 2 Chapter 54: Strolling in the Night Breeze
In the morning, Sylutia sat at her desk and wrote down the knowledge and abilities she currently possessed, grouping them into two main categories: Verdant Nectar and Luminous Moon.
Verdant Nectar: Dew Prayer Method, Branch Grooming Method, Flower Blooming Method, Vine Overgrowth, Vegetation Frenzy
Luminous Moon: Lunar Radiance Breathing Technique, Meditation Method (Luminous Moon), Sylutia's Clear Spring
Insect Moth: Bee Dance Steps
If she wanted to advance into the Third Tier, she needed to choose which secret arts to condense into a crucial core. Right now she could join the Four Seasons Alliance and gain access to that organization’s four exclusive manors, or she could follow the details found in Meleranke Praying in the Lake to obtain the Silver Radiance Church’s advancement secret arts from that era.
Advance with Verdant Nectar, or choose Luminous Moon?
At present she could seal an Ability Card using her innate talent. In theory she could also try sealing a Core Card, but she did not know what the outcome would be.
She actually liked both paths, so being forced to abandon one felt uncomfortable.
She would study with Seraph for a while first, maybe find a way to have the best of both worlds.She closed her notebook, walked to the mirror, quickly tidied her hair, then cheerfully went downstairs.
It was October, swept clean by autumn winds, and the valley’s climate felt especially pleasant. The wheat she had planted earlier had all sprouted and grown tender green seedlings. Sylutia walked through the fields with a calm mind, then pressed a finger lightly to her brow. A flowing radiance appeared in her pupils as she gazed at the vast farmland ahead.
A sweeping panorama of greens unfolded before her, and within those seemingly identical shades she could distinguish hundreds of subtle color variations. That miraculous sight always drew her in.
(You changed the growth conditions of Wheat, expected quality +6, now Good - 54)
(You changed the growth conditions of Wheat, expected quality +8, now Good - 57)
(You changed the growth conditions of Wheat, expected quality +9, now Good - 59)
…
The girl bathed in the wind, one hand raised, and bits of emerald bioluminescence drifted into the fields on the breeze. Under her precise guidance, they merged into the wheat seedlings, grooming and altering their growth so they would achieve good quality early on.
This process also deepened Sylutia’s mastery of horticultural techniques for cultivating plants.
As the wheat’s growth improved, it fed back an extremely faint Verdant Nectar Aspect onto Sylutia. Although these Aspect forces were nearly undetectable, small accumulations eventually resulted in a steady increase in her Verdant Nectar Aspect.
If the wheat eventually condensed into a First Tier Aspect, it would provide even stronger feedback, just as when the purple alfalfa bloomed and she had to step into the Second Tier.
After grooming roughly twenty mu of wheat, Sylutia finished her tasks for the day and walked to a row of houses where the toads lived. The sun was nearly at noon and the croakers were finally waking, rubbing their bellies in a daze.
“Ribbit, slept so long.”
“We haven’t watered today, ribbit.”
“We must water, boss said, water every day.”
A few croakers came out and began picking up tools to work.
“We don’t need to water at noon, water again this evening.” Seeing their movements, Sylutia couldn’t help but remind them.
Watering now would be bad for the seedlings.
“Ribbit, ribbit we understand.” They obediently put down their tools, but now didn’t know what to do;
they were awake but not sleepy.
Seeing this, Sylutia thought for a moment, then said,
“You three, go to the storage and bring some sacks. Put about three thousand jin of the wheat from the cave storage into them. If you don’t have enough hands, wake up the others later to help.”
“Once it’s packed, come with me to the city tomorrow.”
“Got it, ribbit~” Hearing they could go to the city, the croakers were excited.
Life in the valley was nice, but the city would be new and full of different things to see.
In the afternoon, Sylutia continued organizing the notes she had taken while studying with Scholar Hyde, reviewing the various things she had learned.
Before she knew it, a year had passed.
Last autumn she had still been in Scholar Hyde’s classes with Komea and the others, learning and training together.
At night, after dinner, Sylutia went to the valley pool, looked up at the bright moon, and began training with the Meditation Method.
A silver lunar halo appeared over her again as she continuously sketched the moon’s shape and details in her mind.
The moon’s outline…
The moon’s color…
The moon’s details…
The moon’s scars…
…
(Meditation Method loop complete, completion +29)
(Lunar Radiance Breathing Technique loop complete, completion +22)
(Sylutia's Clear Spring familiarity increased, completion +18)
[Meditation Method Lv.2] (Luminous Moon): Bathed in moonlight, you trace the moon’s form, refining your spirit in the process. (Completion 412/600)
[Lunar Radiance Breathing Technique Lv.4] (Luminous Moon): You can use moonlight to recover stamina, heal minor wounds, and greatly improve the breathing technique’s sustain, while reducing side effects like hidden injuries. (Completion 436/1200)
[Sylutia's Clear Spring Lv.4] (Luminous Moon): A purifying, clear spring water imbued with cleansing power, able to wash away pollution from Aspects like Distortion and Dead Embers, or temporarily dispel other Aspect effects. (Completion 221/1200)
Cultivating plants in the daytime conveniently trained her Verdant Nectar-related abilities, but Luminous Moon abilities could not be improved that way;
they required quiet nightly practice. Fortunately the three could be trained simultaneously, otherwise she could at most raise only one ability to Lv.4.
That seemed normal;
during her adventures she had occasionally asked others and had not heard of anyone training multiple abilities at once. No wonder Bad Apple and the others took at least seven years in the Hidden Grove to reach late Second Tier after entering.
Karl had also said that they were considered talented;
when they entered the Hidden Grove they were evaluated as Tier Three talent.
Sylutia had been studying for nearly two months, and compared to before learning, her mental power had grown noticeably. She roughly estimated about a fifty percent increase. Before, when using Branch Grooming Method she could cover just over three mu;
now she could reach five mu.
However, according to what she was taught, there was a limit to the mental power increase provided by basic Meditation Method, and that limit differed among races.
An ordinary adult’s mental power is roughly 1, and the Meditation Method’s limit sits around 27–36.
Generally, First Tier Transcendents’ mental power is around 2–5, but if a Transcendent has a lunar trinity Aspect, theirs is around 3–9.
Upon entering the Second Tier, other Aspects’ Transcendents have mental power roughly 6–18, while lunar trinity Transcendents reach 10–27.
In other words, when a lunar Aspect Transcendent reaches the late perfection of the Second Tier, the basic Meditation Method’s gains have already hit the ceiling and cannot increase mental power further.
If building mental power were like building a house, the basic Meditation Method could at most let you build three floors;
beyond that it lacks the technical support, and you must find other methods.
The last time Sylutia had her mental power tested at the Hidden Grove association, her score was 12.24 — that was before she learned the Meditation Method. Now she estimated her mental power at around 18.
After training, Sylutia stood by the pool, closed her eyes, prayed, and cast Sylutia's Clear Spring. A shimmering water light appeared with a faint halo, then slowly purified and transformed into a clear spring with special effects.
Tomorrow she would have the croakers use this water to irrigate and remove field contamination.
Night deepened as she walked again through the moonlit fields.
The valley was especially quiet;
the croakers were asleep and no one else was moving, only the faint chirping of insects among the grass.
Unconsciously it had already been a year in this world. Sylutia’s fingers brushed the sharp green tips of the seedlings as she passed.
She realized she really liked these solitary moments, doing whatever she wanted, an unrestrained joy.
She lightly hopped on her toes, spun lightly in the air like a drifting dandelion seed, then landed again, her skirt catching a gentle current as she descended.
The small daytime worries slowly dissipated now;
her heart felt calm and peaceful like the evening breeze and the moonlight.
What is true tranquility? Perhaps knowing you are on a path you look forward to, and walking it step by step.
Sylutia was content with her life. Everything seemed to be proceeding in order.
Cultivating crops, accumulating little by little, waiting for the harvest;
learning knowledge to prepare for future journeys and freedom;
enriching herself so she could solve more problems for herself and others.
The life she once dreamed of on Earth was now unfolding bit by bit before her eyes.