The young lady in the carriage, pure and radiant, had a hint of curiosity in her bright eyes as she asked him a question for the first time.

The two of them knew each other and were the same age, so there wasn’t much barrier in their conversation.

“Yes, I often go up the mountain to gather herbs, and I’m very familiar with the paths there.”

Henry Spencer suddenly realized that he could now look directly into those captivating clear eyes, even though his heartbeat still sped up a little.

“Hehe, Little Henry, I heard you knocked down Tommy Spencer from the village. Is that true?”

Ruby asked with great interest.

The carriage moved along slowly, and Henry Spencer answered with calm composure.

Unfortunately, that Miss Yang, after asking that question, said nothing more. When her beautiful eyes occasionally swept over Henry Spencer, there was a touch of noble reserve and coolness, keeping others at a distance.

Henry Spencer watched the exquisite carriage depart, and the last trace of disappointment in his heart drifted away with the wind.

The experiences from his previous life had greatly broadened his horizons. Toward the girl he once had a vague crush on but who was out of reach, his mindset was now much more relaxed and at ease than before.

Taking a gentle breath, he let his mind merge once again into the mysterious state of the breathing technique, his mind becoming clear and tranquil, free of distractions.

After the carriage had traveled some distance, Henry Spencer’s figure was long out of sight.

“Hehe, young lady, did you notice that Little Henry seems a bit different from before?”

“What’s different? Hmm, he does seem a bit taller.”

Grace Thompson gently brushed her silky hair. As for Henry Spencer, she didn’t dislike him, but didn’t have much fondness either.

“Little Henry seems more mature than before, and has a bit more… masculine charm. I remember he used to blush like an apple whenever he saw you, young lady, hehe. I think he still likes you now, but because his family’s situation has been so difficult lately, he’s buried those feelings deep inside.” Ruby said, pretending to be clever.

“You little rascal, have you fallen for him?” Miss Thompson’s words made her blush, and then she suddenly thought of something. “This time, I hope we can acquire a spiritual item at Second Uncle’s shop so I can break through as soon as possible. In at most a month, the ‘Wind Feather Immortal Sect’ will be selecting disciples. Opportunities like this only come once every ten years—I don’t want to miss it.”

……

When the scorching sun was high in the sky, Henry Spencer finally caught a faint glimpse of the bustling town ahead, and he breathed a slight sigh of relief: he’d made it before noon.

However, as he gazed at the brilliantly colored and radiant “Pinghua Town” under the blazing sun, a strange feeling suddenly arose in his heart.

Chapter 011: The Town’s Spiritual Vein

Under the blazing sun, Pinghua Town looked somewhat different to Henry Spencer than before.

While practicing the breathing technique, his senses were unusually sharp, allowing him to detect subtle differences in the atmosphere between the town and the village.

“Spiritual energy…”

A voice from the remnant soul of his past life echoed from the bright star in his mind.

“Spiritual energy?”

Henry Spencer’s eyes widened as he delved further into the information in his mind, combining the memories of both his lives.

With the memories of his previous life, he naturally understood the benefits of spiritual energy for cultivation.

“A spiritual vein! There’s at least a miniature spiritual vein in this town, otherwise the difference in spiritual energy wouldn’t be so great compared to the village.”

A flash of light appeared in Henry Spencer’s eyes.

“Heh, you’re not too slow. Since the ancient times, as the human race has flourished, cultivation resources have become increasingly scarce. In ordinary areas, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth is extremely thin. Only places with spiritual veins have high purity of spiritual energy, suitable for cultivation. The spiritual energy in this town is twice as pure as in the village,” the remnant soul from his past life said indifferently.

Twice as much!

He furrowed his brow, and suddenly understood:

Why the wealthy in the village all bought houses in the town.

Why the children in town, under the same conditions, cultivated faster than those in the village.

It was all because settlements at the town level were built atop spiritual veins. In an environment nourished by spiritual energy, people’s physiques and even their aptitudes were stronger than elsewhere.

“The spiritual energy from the spiritual vein should naturally diffuse into the world, but why… No, there must be a ‘spirit-locking array’ in this town, confining the spiritual energy from the vein within this small area.”

With the memories of his previous life, Henry Spencer quickly sorted out his thoughts and couldn’t help but take a sharp breath.

“The spiritual energy resources of the cultivation world have always been controlled by a few powerful forces. Those at the bottom are forever exploited and trampled upon.”

The remnant soul from his past life sneered, then faded from Henry Spencer’s mind.

Henry Spencer couldn’t help but ponder the meaning behind those words. Looking again at the town in his view, his expression grew a bit complicated.

At this moment, the tip of the iceberg of the vast cultivation world was revealed before his eyes.

……

Pinghua Town, under the jurisdiction of Huanglong City, was the commercial center for more than a dozen nearby villages with tens of thousands of people. The town itself had a population of four to five thousand, and was always bustling.

Even at noon, when Henry Spencer arrived in town, it was packed with people.

The ordinary townsfolk here were at least at the second or third level of body refinement, and there were even some at the fourth level.

Sometimes, you could even spot people in magical robes—if not from wealthy families, they might be scattered low-level cultivators…

“Creak! Creak!”