Chapter 619 - 492: Top-grade Soul Nourishing Wood (Tier 2)

Ji An, filled with infinite hope, drove the clouds away and arrived at the Wood Element Spirit Plant Garden.

He hovered above a few tea trees, observing this lush land where the vibrant life of Wood Element spirit plants was perfectly displayed.

The white leaves of the Ghost Moon Cyan Jade Tree were like brilliant jade, and when the breeze blew, the swaying branches and leaves made a tinkling sound like a harmonious chime, creating a sense of void spirit.

This tea tree, which took root on Red Flame Peak a hundred years ago, was now as thick as a barrel, with more branches growing, making it even more lush than when he had left.

There was no need to ask; the annual tea production must have increased.

The leaves of the Cloud-Top Jade Tree were a verdant green, giving a sense of spring after the rain.

Of the three oldest spirit tea trees, two were Tier Two Upper Grade and one was Tier Two Top Grade, just as when he had left.

Among the second batch of tea trees planted, three Ghost Moon Cyan Jade Trees were now all Tier Two Middle Grade, while six Cloud-Top Jade Trees reached Tier Two Middle Grade, with the rest being Tier Two Lower Grade.

Looks like the Cyan Deer hadn’t been lazy, and with the spirit field’s grade reaching Tier Two Top Grade, this result was not surprising.

He was quite satisfied, with the tea tree planting already beginning to take shape. Once another batch of tea seeds is planted, expansion would no longer be necessary.

If something good becomes too common, it becomes cheap.

Ji An carefully checked and found no new tea seeds had formed. He decided to ask during dinner whether any new tea seeds were conceived during his absence.

Ji An began to inspect, carefully counting the number of Tier Two Upper Grade Jade Leaf Mulberries, which amounted to one hundred and twenty-six.

He was dissatisfied with this number. With over ten thousand Jade Leaf Mulberries on Red Flame Peak, this scale of top-grade spirit mulberries couldn’t produce much top-grade spiritual honey. This also indirectly indicated that the potential of Jade Leaf Mulberries might have reached its limit.

Ji An sighed softly; the lack of further enhancement in spirit plants’ tier was akin to a cultivator’s cultivation not advancing — the hope for growth was already severed.

In the future, when he breaks through to the Golden Core Stage, he would likely adjust the spirit seeds on Red Flame Peak and will need to discuss with the Beast Taming Hall whether large-scale reduction in mulberry tree planting would impact the sect’s normal operations.

If it would, he estimated he would keep things as they are.

There were fifty-four top-grade Biluo Trees and two top-grade spirit trees, slightly better than the Jade Leaf Mulberries but still not ideal.

Ji An no longer dwelt on these matters, casting spells on the spirit field.

Cyan Dragon’s Sky Chant shrouded the clouds, creating quite a spectacle.

...

As the sky gradually darkened, the Red Cloud Pine Forest resembled a burning sea of fire, with the crystal-like spirit light dyeing the sky a deep red.

He first drove the clouds around for a count, tallying forty-two top-grade spirit pines and one tier two top-grade spirit pine.

The magic techniques of Lin Lan and others had a diminishing effect on Tier Two Middle Grade spirit plants; if he were to leave, Red Flame Peak would not be able to sustain its former prosperity.

Ji An successively released the Azure Dragon Shocking Skill, Zhurong Divine Fire Spell, and Yellow Dragon Essence Enhancement Skill, with the magic intents of wood, fire, and earth elements intertwining vigorously.

He landed beside the Fire Crystal Ants’ nest, engaging in spiritual communication with the Ant Queen.

The Ant Queen was extremely happy, expressing a sense of fondness, showing no estrangement despite the long absence.

This is the advantage of a blood contract, ensuring maximum loyalty from the tamed beast.

Of course, the prerequisite is the master’s strength must surpass that of the tamed beast. If the tamed beast’s cultivation significantly exceeds the master’s, they wouldn’t mind turning the tables.

This is the biological nature to admire strength, felt more directly in demon beasts.

After about two ke, Ji An left the Fire Crystal Ants’ nest and went to the nearby place where the Jade Flame Purple Spirit Gourd was planted.

The gourd leaves were vibrant green, with veins in a reddish hue that glittered like a flowing river of fire, creating a pleasing contrast of red and green.

The gourd vine was a dark green mixed with dark red stripes, the vine as thick as a child’s arm, twining out of the wooden frame around a Red Cloud Pine.

Ji An reached out and held the vine, sensing its life essence, making a surprising discovery.

Inside, there were two energy transmission channels—one of wood element and one of fire element, forming a helix-like gene chain without intersection.

He distinctly remembered that when he left, there was only one energy channel in the vine.

"The Jade Flame Purple Spirit Gourd indeed lives up to its name."

Ji An realized that this spirit plant innately had dual characteristics of wood and fire elements, though it mostly exhibited fire traits, with wood acting as a support.

No wonder it can be used as material to refine spiritual artifacts that nourish fire element spiritual artifacts, because it inherently has wood element attributes.

The gourd vine was currently Tier Two Middle Grade, with Ji An noting no signs of small gourds developing, not even flowering.

From this, it appeared that waiting for it to bear gourds would take many years.

By now, the sky had completely darkened, but visibility in the Red Cloud Pine Forest remained high.

Ji An strolled away to a nearby spot, casting magic formulas to open the mimic array to enter the passage, and upon reaching the end, he opened the sealing array.

Rolling heat and intense fire element spirit mechanism surged forward, making Ji An feel as if he were inhaling flames.

The spirit vein node here had been elevated to Tier Two Top Grade, resulting in such a significant change.

Ji An saw the lotus leaves of the Cyan Leaf Red Lotus withering more than half, leaving a palm-sized patch of green.

The time until complete withering seemed imminent, and once only the lotus seedpod remained, the speed at which the Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire germinated should accelerate.

The Phoenix Wood now was Tier Two Lower Grade, with light golden feather patterns on the bark appearing exceptionally spiritual, giving a sense of floating with the breeze.

The originally verdant leaves of the spirit wood were now slightly turning red, with a trend toward transforming into red leaves.

Ji An placed his hands on his hips and nodded with satisfaction.

He took out the fire coral, transplanted it to the edge near the wall, and planned to remove the sealing array once the Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire matured, allowing the Fire Crystal Ants to freely come and go.

With these excellent fire element pasture grasses, the Fire Crystal Ant colony would expand significantly.

According to the experience from the Gourd World, the Fire Crystal Ants consume the crystals on the surface of the fire coral, excreting a higher-quality red sand, which is ideal for improving the soil.

Ji An first unleashed the Azure Dragon Shocking Skill, and a Cyan Dragon appeared in this crimson area, with jade-colored spirit light raining down, the fire qi growing more vigorous and steaming.

He then successively released the Zhurong Divine Fire Spell and the Yellow Dragon Essence Enhancement Skill, and the Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire appeared at the top of the lotus seedpod, greedily absorbing the spirit light.

Just then, an unexpected change occurred: the Cyan Lotus Treasure Banner flew out without Ji An’s summons, accompanied by the majestic roar of the Cyan Dragon’s sky chant reverberating once again.

It shrank to only about an inch long, wildly rotating around the Heaven and Earth Spirit Fire.

As its master, Ji An could feel its joy and excitement.

"A pleasant surprise!"

Ji An laughed, noticing the Cyan Lotus Treasure Banner’s state was similar to when the Wuji Xinghuang Banner circled around the Gathering Essence Tree.

Soon, the red flame formed by the Magic Intent Transformation of the Zhurong Divine Fire Spell suddenly flickered, turning into golden flames.

Satisfied, the Cyan Lotus Heart-Burning Fire submerged back into the lotus seedpod, while the Cyan Lotus Treasure Banner circled a few more times before glumly flying back into its master’s body, returning to the dantian.

"Another reason to compete for the Heaven and Earth Spirit Fire."

Ji An was determined to obtain a seed of the Heaven and Earth Spirit Fire, not just for himself, but also for his spiritual artifact.

He left the magma pool, resealing the area.

...

An arched crescent moon rose in the eastern sky, and Ji An rode a gold cloud to the place where Copper Patterned Mulberry was planted.

As a breeze swept past, silver waves sparkled in one area, while golden light dazzled the eyes in another.

The night was so gentle, Ji An surveyed this territory, noting there were currently twelve top-grade Tier Two Copper Patterned Mulberries and only sixteen Top-grade Profound Leaf Sword Bamboos, which hadn’t increased much.

This outcome was actually better than Ji An had expected, given that under the cultivation of Foundation Establishment cultivators, the only suitable magic technique for these two spirit plants was the Thick Earth Returning Yuan Skill.

He employed a special technique to release the Azure Dragon Shocking Skill, triggering it in a manner that evoked vibrant growth without any wood element spiritual power fluctuations.

The Cyan Dragon appeared, with cyan-colored brilliance rushing to the clouds and then rapidly spreading.

He then cast the Yellow Dragon Essence Enhancement Skill, leaving amid the earth’s vibrations.

...

Ji An arrived at the entrance of the underground cave, and in the quiet of the night, Dahuang’s resounding snores could already be heard.

"This bear lives so healthily!"

Ji An smiled warmly, with a familiar touch and taste.

He employed the Earth Escape Technique, instantly arriving beside the Soul Nourishing Wood, bathed in silver radiance, its spirit wood shimmering with crystalline brilliance.

Golden Fur lay curled up under the tree, surprisingly also snoring away.

The brightness dazzled the eyes, and Ji An suddenly woke up, rushing to the Soul Nourishing Wood, placing his hand on the trunk to feel the vitality flowing inside.

"Tier Two top-grade, prosperous!"

He clenched his fist and waved it forcefully, marveling at the usefulness of the Golden Core Cultivator’s ashes.

The Tier Two top-grade Soul Nourishing Wood was even suitable for early-stage Golden Core cultivators.

At this moment, he suddenly realized how profound the foundations of those Nascent Soul Sect in Central Continent must be.

The ashes of Golden Core cultivators could quickly create Tier Two top-grade spirit woods; those sects probably had Tier Three spirit woods everywhere, and wouldn’t lack Tier Four spirit woods either.

Compared to the resource accumulation of those major sects, the Golden Spirit Sect was far behind.

Ji An furrowed his brows in thought for a moment, then lightly shook his head, feeling the gap might not be as large as imagined.

If the situation were truly like that, there wouldn’t be any business for smaller sects in the Cultivation Realm.

Golden Fur, feeling the vibrations of the earth, suddenly leapt up, screeching in a fawning manner upon discovering it was his master, shaking his brilliantly shining fur.

Ji An grinned, "Look how fat you’ve gotten now!"

Perhaps after long meals and then sleeping in the Spirit Beast Bag, it had grown several circles larger than before.

However, it appeared more ferocious and had the demeanor of some great demon.

Most importantly, the spiritual nature in its gaze hadn’t diminished, and it remained a suitable Spirit-Seeking Rat.

Ji An counted the number of Tier Two Upper Grade Earth Spirit Fruit Trees, totaling four trees.

"Not bad!"

He was quite pleased, forming a spell to cast magic for the spirit plants.

The leaves of the Soul Nourishing Wood, black as ink, glimmered with purple brilliance, while the Tier Two Upper Grade Earth Spirit Fruit Trees emitted five-colored radiance, decorating this somewhat dim underground area with vibrant hues.