Chapter 226: The broken branch of the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree (6k)

Just like that, as time passed bit by bit, there was no movement at all around them.

A trace of embarrassment appeared on Xuan Yuan Shuo's face, and even more disappointment flashed in his eyes.

"My turn!"

Seeing this scene, Er Daye rubbed his hands and stepped forward, eager to try.

Zhou Qing almost couldn't help but roll his eyes.

Why are they all so naive?

However, remembering when he faced the inheritance left by the Old Old Peng Wang, he had bowed three times with the help of 【Daily Appraisal】 and successfully opened the five-colored barrier.

Afterward, Number Six, in the forbidden zone where she was located, had performed incense burning and kneeling bows under those few jujube trees that could provide temporary shelter, hoping to seek guidance.

And this world is too big and too mysterious; the more they reach their level, the more they can come into contact with certain things and believe in them with awe.

Thinking of this, Zhou Qing could understand them.

At this time, just as Er Daye picked up the Tai Yao Token, he suddenly realized one thing.

In the matter of killing the Peng Emperor, he seemed to have done nothing at all.

This time, he was purely following along to pick up the scraps.

Under Xuan Yuan Shuo's suspicious gaze, Er Daye had to laugh dryly and say, "Forget it, forget it. How can we master and disciple take all the good things in this world? People must learn to be content."

As he spoke, he threw the Tai Yao Token to Xuan Yuan Shuo.

After all, they were about to return to the mainland, and the matters here, including the five-colored barrier and so on, had nothing to do with them anymore.

Xuan Yuan Shuo was unwilling to give up and immediately put away the entire coffin.

"Such a venerable master falling in my Sacred Martial Dynasty is truly our dereliction of duty. I want to take him back and bury him properly to show my respect."

Xuan Yuan Shuo said with a serious face.

Er Daye could only see through it without saying it; after a brief search in this secret room, he took Zhou Qing and went out.

"Keep your voice down; that old monkey is back!" Xuan Yuan Shuo suddenly said.

Zhou Qing nodded, his gaze turning toward the four Demon Kings who remained unconscious.

Later, Er Daye and Xuan Yuan Shuo would use their methods to erase their relevant memories and implant some fictional memories, making everything happen without anyone knowing.

The three searched the cave dwelling carefully again, and after confirming there was nothing left, they summarized all their gains and prepared to split them evenly.

Looking at the suddenly empty cave dwelling and the two bargaining on the side, Zhou Qing let out a long sigh of relief.

This time, his gains were probably the greatest; he had directly condensed a thousand spiritual seals, and he was only two-thirds of the number of spiritual seals away from becoming a third-level formation master like Master Lin.

Besides that, he had personally experienced the feeling of a powerhouse in the Soul Severance Realm making a move, and incidentally extorted fifty supreme-grade spirit stones from two Demon Emperors.

Although the jade bed belonged to Xuan Yuan Shuo, he had taken the golden feathers of the Old Old Peng Wang on it into his own storage bag first.

And the insight jade slips left by Master Situ, as well as the remaining items in the cave dwelling, according to the previous agreement, he could also divide one-third.

As for Er Daye, just that ten-thousand-year blood ginseng was enough to make this trip a steady profit for him.

"Hmm?" Soon, he discovered that on a stone window position that had been chiseled out, there was actually a potted plant.

However, the plant in the pot was only a bare branch inserted horizontally into the soil, with no sign of life, like a piece of dead wood.

He never expected that this Peng Emperor was also a person who loved life.

However, not planting some flowers and plants in a good pot, but inserting such a piece of wood, was truly puzzling.

Just as Zhou Qing was about to turn and leave to see the progress of Er Daye and Xuan Yuan Shuo distributing the items, the four-colored flower that had been rooted in his sea of consciousness suddenly trembled violently.

Zhou Qing's eyes narrowed, and a strong premonition surged into his heart; he immediately turned his head to look at the potted plant.

For so long, this was the first time the four-colored flower had produced such a strong reaction to an external object.

Could it be that this pot hides some mystery?

Zhou Qing didn't hesitate and immediately performed 【Daily Appraisal】.

Soon, detailed information was fed back.

【Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree: This is a branch cut from the Immortal Divine Medicine—the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree. After tossing and turning for countless years, it was luckily brought out of a ruin by Situ Jiuyao.】

【However, he didn't recognize this item; he just picked it up after obtaining the five-colored formation disk. After the Peng Emperor Feng Xuan Ling killed him, he didn't find any relevant memories of this item, so he planted it here out of curiosity.】

【Unfortunately, what they didn't know was that the conditions required to plant the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree and make it live are extremely harsh.】

【But once successful, a practitioner only needs to meditate beside it to enter a state of sudden enlightenment, which can not only help break through bottlenecks and comprehend cultivation techniques, but even peek into the mysteries of the laws of heaven and earth.】

Seeing the information that came back, Zhou Qing's hands couldn't help but tighten, and his heart beat even faster.

"Immortal Divine Medicine? Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree? Sudden enlightenment? This, this, this..."

Suddenly, his shoulder was patted by someone, which directly startled him out of his trance.

"I called you twice and you didn't answer; what's wrong?" Er Daye handed over a storage bag with a confused face, his eyes full of concern.

Before Zhou Qing could answer, Xuan Yuan Shuo had already stepped forward and arrived at the potted plant.

His gaze swept over the potted plant, and suddenly the corners of his mouth turned up, revealing a smile: "I didn't expect this thing to be a treasure; your eye for things is not bad, kid."

As Xuan Yuan Shuo spoke, he reached out to pull out the wooden stick and examined it carefully in his hand.

Zhou Qing's heart tightened, and he secretly groaned.

He had been careless; he shouldn't have shown any strangeness in front of someone in the Soul Severance Realm.

But the next moment, to Zhou Qing's astonishment, Xuan Yuan Shuo just glanced at the wooden stick casually, threw it on the ground, and then poured out the soil in the pot.

"This flower pot is actually made of purple spirit silver; taking it out could also be worth two or three supreme-grade spirit stones," Xuan Yuan Shuo said, full of joy.

Er Daye immediately stepped forward, picked up the wooden stick on the ground, and looked at it carefully as well.

But he only stayed for a moment, then, like Xuan Yuan Shuo, threw the wooden stick aside without any attachment, and then quickly squatted down to rummage through the soil poured on the ground.

Before long, Er Daye laughed out loud: "Old Man Shuo, you were careless, weren't you? Take a look at what this is?"

As he spoke, Er Daye actually dug out a supreme-grade wood-attribute spirit stone with a somewhat dim color from the soil.

"Although it has lost some energy, it's still worth four or five ordinary spirit stones," Er Daye said proudly.

Xuan Yuan Shuo immediately covered his forehead with a look of regret.

Just now, he was afraid that Er Daye would snatch this flower pot from him, so he ignored the things inside.

Zhou Qing looked at the appearance of the two and was speechless for a while.

What is all this? Buying the box and returning the pearl?

It is also reasonable; the rarity of an Immortal Divine Medicine like the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree is beyond imagination, and ordinary people might not even recognize it.

Even Situ Jiuyao, who came from a fifth-level cultivation country and was well-informed, and the Peng Emperor, who was a Demon Emperor and had a natural affinity for various spiritual medicines.

Even Er Daye, who was a prince of a fourth-level cultivation country, was gifted, and had mixed in many sects, didn't recognize it, which shows its strangeness.

But soon, Xuan Yuan Shuo picked up the wooden stick again to look at it.

After all, using such precious purple spirit silver ore to make a flower pot and placing five-element supreme-grade spirit stones inside, the Peng Emperor would never do so for no reason; this wooden stick might really have something special.

Seeing this scene, Zhou Qing's heart tightened again, his heart beating fast, constantly praying not to discover the secret of this wooden stick.

"Sick!" After Xuan Yuan Shuo looked at it carefully and confirmed that it was just an ordinary dead branch, he muttered and threw it away again.

Then he looked at Er Daye and Zhou Qing, "It's about time; we can leave!"

Er Daye nodded and then looked at the four Demon Emperors lying there.

The two looked at each other, understood, and stepped forward, pointing at the center of the Demon Emperors' eyebrows, and began to construct memories before they fell asleep.

And Zhou Qing let out a long sigh of relief, and while the two weren't paying attention, he paced over without a trace and immediately put it into his storage bag.

Afterward, his face was full of joy.

Now it seems that all the things in the Peng Emperor's cave dwelling combined are probably not as valuable as this branch.

This time, he really made a fortune.

But whether he can plant this Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree and make it live depends on the next day's 【Daily Appraisal】 to see if it can give new clues.

Otherwise, everything is still in vain.

As for Er Daye, even if he told him, he probably wouldn't believe it.

And with his knowledge, he hadn't even heard of this Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree; the name of the divine medicine that popped up abruptly would definitely arouse his suspicion.

After all, every time he could recognize him after he transformed, Er Daye was already suspicious and curious; what if...

Zhou Qing looked at the two who were wholeheartedly erasing the memories of the Demon Emperors, weighed it over and over in his heart, and decided to hide the secret of the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree.

He didn't want to bring unnecessary trouble to himself because of a momentary impulse.

If things went wrong, the next one lying there having new memories implanted might be himself.

"The old monkey has left; are you ready?" Not long after, Xuan Yuan Shuo held the Tai Yao Token and said with a cold expression.

The two nodded, and as the cave dwelling was opened, the three immediately carried the four Demon Emperors and rushed out, throwing them into the shrub forest under the Black Feather Peak.

Afterward, Er Daye grabbed Zhou Qing and quickly left this Tai Yao Mountain.

It was only a few breaths later that the Chixiao Falcon, the Ghost Kite, and several other Demon Emperors slowly woke up.

Their eyes were still a bit blurry, but after receiving the emergency message from the old monkey, they instantly woke up, their expressions panicked, and they hurriedly ran toward the top of the mountain.

"Zhou Shixiong!"

"Old Four!"

When they saw Zhou Qing and the three return, Lu Yaoyao and Yan Xiaohu immediately stepped forward excitedly.

Zhou Qing nodded slightly, signaling that he was all right.

Xuan Yuan Shuo called Jiang Pojun and the others and ordered them to gather everyone who had seen him transform into a Jin Peng during Zhou Qing's competition that day.

"The matter here is finished; we will stay for two more days and then leave!" Er Daye looked at Xuan Yuan Shuo, his gaze peaceful.

Xuan Yuan Shuo nodded and then looked at Zhou Qing, smiling: "If you need help with anything later, this Prince will naturally send someone to find you; the reward will be the same!"

Zhou Qing smiled slightly and replied concisely: "Good!"

Afterward, the few separated and each went about their business.

"Master!" Er Daye and Zhou Qing stopped Lin Daochen and mysteriously handed him a storage bag.

Lin Daochen was confused, but when he saw the rubbed jade slips inside, his eyes instantly widened, full of disbelief.

"This matter is over, and Zhou Qing and I still have some things to do; I'm afraid we won't return to the academy for a short time. I hope these things can be of some help to Master!"

Er Daye said sincerely, his eyes full of respect for Lin Daochen.

Lin Daochen was full of emotion.

The person before him was a powerhouse in the Soul Severance Realm who sat on an equal footing with the Dean and was high above.

Yet he had no airs at all, and was even more respectful to his teacher than ordinary students.

"Thank you; being able to teach you and Zhou Qing is the luckiest thing in my life!" Lin Daochen's voice trembled slightly, and his eye sockets turned red.

Zhou Qing and Er Daye looked at each other, then bowed together, their attitudes respectful: "The students are also honored."

Three days later, everyone packed their bags and said goodbye.

But they had only traveled for less than two days when Er Daye controlled the space ship to stop.

Immediately after, in the forest below, a figure galloped over.

This person was none other than Lu Yuanzhi, who should have left long ago.

"Master Lu!" Seeing Lu Yuanzhi, Lu Yaoyao was full of shock.

She didn't want to see Imperial Consort Chen, but she couldn't bear to leave Lu Yaoyao behind, so she had actually stayed in this wilderness alone, waiting for them.

For a moment, Lu Yaoyao was full of heartache and shame.

Zhou Qing, who knew some of the inside story, was also deeply moved.

Lu Yuanzhi first bowed to Er Daye, and only then did a smile squeeze out of her cold face: "Why are you crying? You've become a little kitten. However, it's just right; in this quiet environment, I have reformulated a cultivation plan for you."

As Lu Yuanzhi spoke, she took out a jade slip and shook it.

Lu Yaoyao then wiped her eyes and nodded hard.

A month later, everyone finally returned to the Bai Yu Taixu Academy.

Li Daoxuan, upon learning that Lu Yaoyao had returned, immediately came over excitedly.

Having not seen him for a period of time, the aura of the realm of understanding around him had become increasingly thick; presumably, he would be able to step into the Divine Transformation Realm in a few years.

Next, Er Daye planned to take Zhou Qing back to Taiqingmen to try and break into the first coffin.

But before that, he planned to go out for a period of time to seek some special items to first maintain the vitality of that ten-thousand-year blood ginseng.

Such a divine medicine that can take human form—if it withered and vanished in his hands, he would definitely regret it for the rest of his life.

Lu Yaoyao, after confirming that Zhou Qing would not travel far in the short term, followed Lu Yuanzhi into the academy's secret realm again to cultivate with peace of mind.

As for San Shixiong, Li Daoxuan seemed to have a small matter that needed his help, so the two left together.

In this way, the entire inner courtyard cave dwelling was left with only Zhou Qing and that old hen for company.

Now, he was finally able to calm down and carefully count the gains from this border trip.

Among them were nearly a hundred supreme-grade spirit stones, including eight fire-attribute and seven water-attribute spirit stones.

In addition, there were various miscellaneous items such as the Old Old Peng Wang's feathers, and he planned to find a suitable time to hand these items to Zhang Wan Bao and let him help handle them.

In short, for a long time to come, he would no longer need to worry about cultivation resources.

In his sea of consciousness, the blood curse had been lifted.

The battle with Jiang Pojun and others had significantly enhanced his realm of understanding.

The cultivation insights left by the two third-level masters Wu Tiangang and the fourth-level formation master Situ Jiuyao had benefited him greatly.

He himself had successfully condensed one thousand spiritual seals and was completely promoted to a second-level formation master.

Of course, the most valuable of all the gains was that branch of the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree.

During this time, he hadn't dared to take it out to avoid being discovered, but now, he finally had the opportunity to appraise it again.

Hope for good luck!

Following the appraisal, soon, pieces of information were fed back.

【Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree: This is a branch cut from the Immortal Divine Medicine—the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree. It looks like it has withered, but in fact, its vitality is dormant and its majesty is restrained.】

【If it can be planted with spiritual soil, watered with the Xuan Bing Sui from the bottom of a thousand-year cold pool, and arranged into a spiritual gathering formation with ten wood-attribute spirit stones, supplemented by spiritual liquid refined from three Yan Ling Flowers that bloomed in a place of extreme yang, there is hope to awaken its vitality.】

Seeing this, Zhou Qing could no longer hold back his cheers, directly startling the old hen that was dozing on the side, causing it to flap its wings and cluck non-stop.

There is actually a way to awaken it!

But—

Soon, Zhou Qing's face was full of worry, staring fixedly at the list of required materials.

Spiritual soil, Xuan Bing Sui, Yan Ling Flower, and wood-attribute supreme-grade spirit stones—of these four things, he hadn't even heard of the other three, and the only one he knew, the wood-attribute supreme-grade spirit stone, he didn't have a single one of.

And, he needed a full ten.

According to the current market price, the value of one wood-attribute supreme-grade spirit stone is equivalent to ten ordinary supreme-grade spirit stones, and it is often priceless.

After all, who would be willing to use a mid-grade spirit stone to exchange for one hundred inferior-grade spirit stones containing impurities for cultivation?

"Is it really a case of having the fate but not the opportunity?" Zhou Qing sighed helplessly.

But if he could really make this Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree regain its vitality, it would be equivalent to using the 【Sudden Enlightenment Post】 anytime, anywhere.

In this way, wouldn't the cultivation difficulty of the inscription-level "Hundred Tribulations Blood Curtain" he currently possesses be greatly reduced?

Especially when the cultivation is successful, this technique can not only be used to fight enemies, but even condense blood wing phantoms; after killing enemies within the range, it will automatically condense into 【Blood Phoenix Tribulation Crystals】.

The energy contained in these 【Blood Phoenix Tribulation Crystals】 is extremely pure and of great benefit to his cultivation, just enough to satisfy the huge energy required for his four-flower gathering top to promote his cultivation base.

This is simply a perfect cultivation closed loop!

"No, I must go find Zhang Wan Bao and ask!" The more Zhou Qing thought about it, the more excited he became; he couldn't sit still anymore and immediately got up and ran straight toward the Treasure Pavilion.

Arriving at this bustling place of trade again, Zhou Qing soon discovered two familiar figures; they were Xiao Cancan and Li Shitao.

The two were busy helping to greet guests.

Seeing this, Zhou Qing couldn't help but smile knowingly.

Remembering that after they set off from Lingyun Mansion and arrived here last time, they went to visit the Mansion Master of the Haomiao Mansion.

"Brother Zhou!" Soon, the sharp-eyed Xiao Cancan discovered Zhou Qing and was immediately pleasantly surprised.

Li Shitao subconsciously looked around, and after confirming that Yan Xiaohu hadn't come with him, a trace of imperceptible disappointment flashed in her eyes, and then she also walked up with a smile.

"I'm really sorry; we agreed to go to the academy to visit you, but I didn't expect Brother Wan Bao to insist on finding us to help."

Li Shitao said with a trace of apology.

Xiao Cancan also nodded repeatedly, echoing: "After all, he and I are both from Lingyun Mansion, and he is unfamiliar with the place when he comes here alone, so it's really hard to refuse. I just didn't expect his business here to be so good."

Xiao Cancan pointed to the bustling Treasure Pavilion behind her as she spoke.

The corners of Zhou Qing's mouth turned up slightly, revealing a meaningful smile.

This Zhang Wan Bao is a clever ghost; he must have spent a lot of effort to "trick" these two into helping, but this can be considered a case of one willing to beat and the other willing to suffer.

At the moment, he laughed heartily: "Business is like this; capable people can always make business flourish. Brother Wan Bao has an innate talent for business."

"It's really a relief for him that you two came to help. By the way, is he in the shop? I happen to have something to find him for."

Zhou Qing's gaze swept over the busy scene in the shop and then asked.

Xiao Cancan smiled immediately and said crisply: "He's inside; I'll take you there!"

As she spoke, she turned and led Zhou Qing toward the back of the shop.

Passing through the crowded crowd, when they reached the back room, they saw a fat figure concentrating on flipping through a thick account book, the brush in his hand occasionally recording something on the paper.

Hearing footsteps, Zhang Wan Bao looked up, and seeing it was Zhou Qing, he immediately got up in surprise: "Brother Zhou, why are you here?"

As he spoke, he hurriedly put down the account book and got up to welcome him, while ordering the clerk to brew a pot of fine spiritual tea.

Zhou Qing sat down with a smile, and while no one was paying attention, he quietly pointed outside, with a teasing smile on his face, and said jokingly: "What's the situation here!"

Zhang Wan Bao laughed and said: "Just like I said when I left last time, I have a lot of confidence in myself."

Zhou Qing immediately gave a thumbs up.

Zhang Wan Bao said gratefully: "This is all thanks to Brother Zhou; otherwise, I would probably still be wandering around Lingyun Mansion in a daze."

Zhou Qing hurriedly waved his hand and said seriously: "Don't say that; this has nothing to do with me. The one who really needs to be thanked is actually yourself; it is you who had the courage to step out of your comfort zone and live out another self."

After Zhang Wan Bao heard this, he scratched his head in embarrassment.

Soon he said: "Brother Zhou, is there anything you need this time?"

Zhou Qing also put away his smile and handed over a storage bag with a serious face, saying: "See how much it's worth?"

Zhang Wan Bao took the storage bag, and as his spiritual sense slowly probed into it, when he saw the things inside, his eyes instantly widened, his face full of shock.

Even his breathing became rapid; it was clear that he was startled by the various rare items in the storage bag.

Immediately after, his right hand gently pinched the mouth of the storage bag, and a dazzling golden feather appeared in his hand.

He immediately put it in front of his nose and smelled it, a look of thought appearing on his face, and after a moment he said: "This is... a Golden Winged Peng feather?"

Zhou Qing nodded; he had to admit that this guy Wan Bao could show extraordinary keenness and knowledge for all kinds of strange things.

Born to do business!

"These things are priceless; are you sure you want to trade them all?"

Zhang Wan Bao tactfully didn't ask about their origin, but with a trace of confusion in his eyes, he confirmed again.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 227 =====