Returning to the village to farm starts with activating the spiritual veins.

Chapter 5 The Supreme Elder

With the left hand, they separated the seedlings; with the right hand, they planted the rice seedlings.

Sun Ran stood in the paddy field, bent over and hunched over, oblivious to everything around him, skillfully planting rice seedlings with his hands.

Transplanting rice seedlings is both a technical and physically demanding task.

It hurts my back.

Even though he was a young man in his early twenties, he started to feel exhausted after planting rice seedlings in the field for more than an hour.

Not only did my lower back ache, but the muscles on the back of my thighs also felt sore and swollen.

I feel terrible.

There's no way around it; the action of transplanting rice seedlings is almost exactly the same as practicing a horse stance.

In addition, he did less farm work after starting high school and college. Now he's facing a high-intensity hell mode right from the start, so he's bound to suffer.

Fortunately, muscle memory is still there.

After the initial awkwardness, the speed of transplanting rice seedlings is gradually catching up.

With a few quick swishes, Sun Ran backed away while planting the last few rice seedlings into the paddy field, then reached into the wooden basin beside him...

empty.

He straightened up, rubbed his lower back, and turned to look.

His family's crescent-shaped paddy field is about three-tenths of an acre, but after almost an hour, he has only planted about one-fifth of it.

Alas, the task ahead is arduous and the road is long...

With a kick, Sun Ran followed behind the basin, stumbling along the path towards the field.

Another troublesome aspect of transplanting rice seedlings is the land itself.

Walking on the waterlogged mud was difficult.

If you're not someone who does farm work regularly, you probably wouldn't even know how to walk properly in the fields, let alone plant rice seedlings.

"Uncle, uncle, look, there are little fish..."

Sun Ran had just walked to the edge of the field and picked up two bundles of rice seedlings to put them in a basin when Sun An'an came running over, holding a small hand and presenting it to him like a treasure.

He peeked out and saw the little girl carefully cupping a shallow pool of water in her hands, with a small ground squirrel about five or six centimeters long lying in it.

"Wow, An'an can catch fish now?"

Sun Ran looked at the little girl and saw that she was covered in mud, almost like a little mud figure. He couldn't help but grin and pat her little head.

"How about Uncle stews it for you tonight?"

"Oh? No way! An'an wants to raise the fish, and raise them to be big and big!"

The little girl immediately became unhappy upon hearing this, pulled her little hands back, and ran towards the rice paddy on the side, shouting as she ran.

"Grandma, Grandma, Uncle is a big bad guy! He wants to eat the fish An'an caught!"

"You little rascal, I was just wondering where you ran off to. Did you go off to show off your treasure to your uncle again?"

"Hehehe...Grandma, let me help you pull up the seedlings..."

"Hehe, you little rascal..."

Looking at Zhou Yue'e scolding the little girl with a smile in the rice paddy next to her, and then looking at little Sun Ping who was diligently pulling up rice seedlings with his head down...

Sun Ran suddenly felt that the scene in front of him seemed somewhat familiar.

It seems like it was like this back then...

Mom, Dad, and my older brother...

I remember being just like that little girl back then.

Catching a tadpole or loach in the rice paddy can make me happy for a long time.

After watching for a while, he smiled and shook his head, then picked up a bundle of tied seedlings from the edge of the field and threw them into the basin.

Let's get to work, we've got a lot to do today.

He filled a basin halfway with rice seedlings, then happily placed the basin in the water and waded back to the spot where he had just planted the seedlings, his steps uneven...

And so, a few hours later...

"Come and eat, everyone..."

The shouts rang out, and the people working in the fields all looked up.

"Grandma!" Sun Ran exclaimed in surprise, pushed the wooden basin, and ran towards the edge of the field.

"Why are you here? Where is Grandpa?"

He approached an elderly woman with gray hair, who looked to be over seventy years old, and affectionately took her arm and asked her.

"Isn't that bringing food to my dear grandson? That old man is still minding the shop, ignore him."

Zheng Hongmei patted her grandson and said with a smile.

"Haha, your grandma talked about you all night long last night."

As soon as the old lady finished speaking, a middle-aged woman in her early forties next to her added with a smile.

"Third Aunt, you're here too."

Upon hearing this, Sun Ran quickly greeted his third aunt, Liu Huiying.

"Well, isn't that why I have to help you with all the logistical work?"

Liu Huiying laughed heartily, got up and walked towards a big tree by the field: "You must all be hungry, hurry up and find a place to sit down and eat."

"Great-grandmother, third-grandmother..."

At this moment, Zhou Yue'e also came up with her two little ones. The little girl did nothing as soon as she came up; she took a step with her short legs and ran over, throwing herself into the old lady's arms.

The old lady was so pleased with herself that she couldn't stop hugging the little one.

If it weren't for Liu Huiying and Zhou Yue'e, the two sisters-in-law, coming over to urge them, the old woman and the young girl would have been affectionate for who knows how long.

A few minutes later...

"Hey, is our college student impotent? Is he even capable?"

Sun Bolang came up from the field, wiping away sweat, and had just stepped under the shade of a tree when he saw Sun Ran's dejected appearance and couldn't help but laugh.

"Seriously, how can you talk about your nephew like that?"

Liu Huiying rolled her eyes at her husband and said displeasedly.

"Grandma, my uncle bullied me! He even hit me this morning!"

Sun Ran ignored him completely and turned to the old lady to complain.

"Pah, pah, pah! I just patted you on the shoulder, how did that turn into me beating you up?!"

Sun Bolang panicked upon hearing this, and before he could retort, the old lady chuckled, "Little San, come here..."

"Hahaha~"

Amidst a burst of laughter, he shamelessly approached his mother and said, "Mom, didn't we agree that you wouldn't call me that anymore..."

Snapped!

Before he could finish speaking, a slap landed on the back of his head: "So you're the one bullying my precious grandson, huh?!"

"Ouch~"

Sun Bolang covered his head, looking aggrieved: "With you protecting him, how could I dare to bully him!"

"I just said hello to him..."

"Still talking!"

"Okay, okay, I won't say anything then."

He sat down cross-legged on the ground, looking sullen, picked up a steamed bun, and stuffed it into his mouth: "I can't live like this anymore!"

He took a big bite of the steamed bun, then turned to look at his nephew's smug grin...

I'm so angry!

The family sat under the shade of a tree, chatting happily and eating lunch.

The two little ones were exhausted this morning, covered in mud from head to toe, which made the adults feel sorry for them.

They all showed concern and care, asking after our well-being.

Occasionally, other villagers would come over to say hello, chat for a bit, or respond with a few words.

Sun Ran was the one I asked the most questions about.

What are your plans for the future?

Have you found a girlfriend yet?

When are you bringing it home?

One after another, they took turns attacking, and even with his thick skin, he couldn't withstand it.

After quickly finishing his lunch, he ignored the aches and pains all over his body, quickly got up, and ran to the fields.

If he stays here any longer, forget about having a girlfriend; even his grandmother could probably come up with a name for his child!

He continued planting rice seedlings until almost 7 p.m., when it was getting dark, before finally stopping.

Even after a day of hard work, when you're exhausted, if you straighten up and take a closer look, you'll find that you've only planted about eight-tenths of an acre.

His family's 1.5 mu of paddy field was only half planted.

This achievement was only possible after the rice seedlings had been mostly pulled up and his mother had come to help with the transplanting.

Otherwise, it would be even less.

"It's fortunate that you came today, son, otherwise I would have had to ask Bo Liang and his wife for help."

Walking home, Zhou Yue'e held her little girl in her arms and smiled at her son.

"Isn't that what we should do?" Sun Ran replied with a smile, hugging Sun Ping.

"And An'an, An'an helped a lot too."

The little girl in Zhou Yue'e's arms raised her little hand and called out.

"Yes, yes, and Pingping too, she was great today, wasn't she?"

"Hmm~"

The family walked and talked, laughing as they went, and soon returned to the village.

Just as they were about to turn off at the next fork in the road to go home...

Hey~

Sun Ran heard a soft sound.

[New Quest Triggered: Help the Supreme Elder Resist His Inner Demons]

The Supreme Elder stationed in the Hundred Treasures Pavilion of the Sect Market is currently being tormented by inner demons and is in danger of losing his cultivation.

Task requirement: Help him drive away his inner demons.

Task Rewards: 2 random beginner-level items from the Treasure Pavilion; Sect Reputation +100

……

At the fork in the road, Sun Ran paused, startled.

Is the cheat code malfunctioning again?

Treasure Pavilion?

Supreme Elder?

Heart demon?

What does this even mean?!