When the Sword Tomb collapsed earlier, a crack had briefly appeared. This crack appeared inexplicably and disappeared just as mysteriously. Gu Baiying quickly stepped forward and violently bombarded the ground with his Embroidered Bone Spear. The bones were scattered into two rows by the spear wind, but the ground was seamlessly closed – nothing could be seen.
“There’s a lot of spiritual energy down there,” Mendong murmured. “I can feel it – the Sacred Tree’s fruit is here.”
“But where exactly do we go down?” Tian Fangfang pressed half his body to the ground, putting his ear to the surface and listening repeatedly. Then he knocked with his Qianyang Axe, not leaving even a trace on the ground. He asked: “Why did only Junior Sister go down? Could it be because Junior Sister was recognized by the Sacred Tree? Junior Sister is the one with affinity to the Sacred Tree, so only Junior Sister can enter?”
“That’s indeed possible,” Mendong said with a tense expression. His two hair buns had already come undone during the earlier crisis. “Some spiritual trees and herbs in the cultivation world are nurtured by heaven and earth’s spiritual energy and have grown for many years. They don’t let people find them easily and will release a kind of spiritual domain, similar to a seal. Others can’t enter and can’t find the entrance either. The so-called opportunity lies in this. Only those who have affinity with a spiritual herb and are recognized by it can enter the spiritual domain – these are the truly destined ones.”
“Is that so?” Meng Ying’s voice came from the side. She spoke calmly: “But it seems there’s more than one destined person. Junior Brother Mu and Mimi are also missing.”
Everyone had been focused on Zanxing earlier and hadn’t noticed that Mu Cengxiao and Mimi had also disappeared.
“Uncle-Master, what do we do now?” Tian Fangfang looked at Gu Baiying helplessly. “We can’t even find the entrance to that spiritual domain. Junior Sister and Junior Brother won’t be in any danger, will they?”
Gu Baiying struck the ground with his Embroidered Bone Spear. Instantly, countless streams of yuanli burst from the spear tip and quickly spread into every corner of the ground.
The young man gritted his teeth: “Search. If we don’t find Yang Zanxing, I’ll tear this place apart.”
…
It was pitch black all around.
But within the darkness, there was a tiny glimmer of light flickering. This light grew larger and brighter, tearing open a gap in the darkness. Zanxing rubbed her sore bottom from the fall. A fluffy tail swept across her face as Mimi, holding an illumination talisman in her mouth, gently scratched the back of her hand, pulling her back from her daze.
This was a cave, the same as the cave where the Sword Tomb had been, yet different. There was the sound of trickling water flowing. Zanxing sat up and looked ahead.
In front of her grew a tree.
No, perhaps calling it a tree wasn’t quite accurate, because this tree was growing upside down.
The tree roots were anchored in the cave ceiling above, and further up was a black abyss with no visible bottom – who knew how high it went. The crown, however, hung down overhead. This tree grew black leaves, and within the dark mass, golden fruits hung heavily from the branches, very eye-catching.
“Is this… the Sacred Tree?” A voice came from beside her.
Zanxing was startled. Turning around, she saw Mu Cengxiao standing beside her, his expression equally surprised.
“Senior Brother Mu? How did you fall too?” Zanxing was surprised.
“Just now, when the Sword Tomb collapsed, I didn’t stand steady. When I woke up, I was already here.” Mu Cengxiao looked around. “But didn’t Uncle-Master and the others fall?”
Zanxing looked around and shook her head: “It looks like only the two of us are trapped here.”
Saying “trapped” was quite accurate indeed. The area was surrounded by cave walls on all sides, and when she probed with yuanli, it bounced back, indicating they couldn’t get out in any direction.
“What exactly is this place?” Zanxing muttered to herself.
“I heard Junior Brother Mendong say that some spiritual herbs and trees automatically form spiritual domains that others can’t enter, to protect themselves. Perhaps we’ve entered the Sacred Tree’s spiritual domain. But…” Mu Cengxiao looked puzzled. “Why did only the two of us come in?”
Zanxing: “…”
Why? What else could it be? Of course, it was because Mu Cengxiao was the protagonist of this story – all the world’s opportunities belonged to him alone, and no one else could have them. As for herself, she was probably an accident. If she hadn’t pulled Mendong aside and moved his position just now, it would probably have been Meng Ying who fell.
Thinking of this, Zanxing felt her palm aching faintly. She raised her hand to look at her palm, where the shape of a flower was already quite complete and now looked even more like it was about to burst through her palm to grow out.
Every time she changed the “plot” and rewrote her fate, this flower’s growth rate would accelerate, and the pain it brought would intensify. Zanxing did not doubt that when this flower completely separated from her palm and grew out of her hand, it would probably be the death date “Heaven’s Way” had arranged for her.
“Junior Sister, why do you keep looking down at your hand? Is your hand injured?” Seeing Zanxing staring at her palm without speaking, Mu Cengxiao casually asked.
Zanxing withdrew her hand and looked ahead: “I was thinking, could this be the Sacred Tree’s fruit?”
The giant tree before them looked truly extraordinary, and only a few scattered golden fruits hung from the treetops. These fruits were the size of wild fruits, round in shape, golden, and gleaming. Just smelling them made one feel the fragrant spiritual energy.
“Most likely.” Mu Cengxiao looked up and contemplated for a moment, then suddenly said: “I see – this Sacred Tree’s roots are above ground, but its crown is underground. It seems to grow upside down.”
With his explanation, Zanxing understood. The tree they had seen outside the snow valley, hung with spirit artifacts, was this tree’s root system. And the vines they had encountered in the underground were part of the root system. The real fruit-bearing crown and branches were down here underground. This way, even if someone found the treasure map, they would either stop at the tree hung with spirit artifacts outside, or come underground only to be killed by the Wuyou Sword. Even if they were lucky enough not to die under the Wuyou Sword, the Sacred Tree’s domain would ensure they could never find the entrance. No wonder, after all these years, no one in the cultivation world had ever been heard to find Sacred Tree fruits.
“It seems this tree is very clever,” Zanxing said, looking at Mu Cengxiao. “Senior Brother, shall we pick the fruit?”
At these words, Mu Cengxiao looked embarrassed. After a pause, he said: “That treasure map was originally given to you by the Serpent Witch, so the Sacred Tree fruit should rightfully belong to you.”
Zanxing stared at him, somewhat surprised.
The Mu Cengxiao in “Nine Heaven Summit” really wasn’t someone who would be polite to others. Any spiritual fruits or herbs, cultivation methods, or opportunities – if he encountered them, they were his. If they weren’t his, he would still seize them, forceful and domineering. Now that the plot had been twisted beyond recognition by her, even Mu Cengxiao had become a friendly, principled senior brother. Who knew how the future path would develop?
Suddenly inspired, Zanxing asked: “Senior Brother, have you ever thought about finding eight wives in the future?”
“How could that be possible?” Mu Cengxiao looked at her in surprise. “Why would you say that?”
Zanxing smiled: “Nothing, I was just asking casually.”
Mu Cengxiao seemed somewhat uncomfortable. He coughed lightly before saying: “Junior Sister, what happened before was a misunderstanding – let’s not mention the past anymore. Now that you and I are fellow disciples, I’ll treat you like a real younger sister. You… don’t need to do too much for me.”
Did he think she harbored inappropriate thoughts about him and felt burdened?
Zanxing patted his shoulder: “Senior Brother, you really needn’t misunderstand. Whether you like Senior Sister Meng or Miss Liu, I support you. It’s just that we don’t know if this Sacred Tree fruit can be casually picked right now. My cultivation is still not as good as yours, and I burned yuanli fighting the mirage woman earlier – I still haven’t recovered. It’s not suitable for me to act.”
“Even if the fruit is picked, isn’t it still for Uncle-Master to repair his spiritual meridians? So please don’t feel burdened. This is a very dangerous matter.”
Zanxing finished speaking in one breath, looking at him earnestly: “So, you should go pick it.”
What a joke – the flower in her palm was almost half exposed. Who knew if her picking would result in taking some opportunity that should belong to someone else? Mu Cengxiao was different – even if there might be traps or dangers in the fruit-picking process, as the protagonist, he would definitely turn misfortune into fortune and emerge safely. Such limelight should be left to Mu Cengxiao himself.
Mu Cengxiao didn’t know Zanxing was thinking so much. He only thought that Zanxing’s damaged yuanli was indeed a fact, so he didn’t think much about it and leaped toward the branches.
Getting closer, he could see that the fruit seemed alive, as if breathing, with golden light flowing on the skin and rich spiritual energy. Mu Cengxiao considered for a moment before tentatively reaching out to grasp the fruit. The moment he touched it, whether it was his imagination or not, he felt the fruit seemed to tremble.
He took a deep breath and pulled the fruit downward. The branch swayed slightly, and the fruit was picked.
Zanxing, on the side, finally breathed a sigh of relief.
The surroundings remained quiet – no danger occurred. The gently flowing water in the cave continued trickling, but… Zanxing’s breath caught: “Senior Brother, something’s wrong.”
By the underground water flow, there had originally grown a bunch of vines and weeds that didn’t attract attention. However, once this golden fruit was picked, many glowing flowers unknowingly bloomed from among the weeds. These flowers layered upon each other like lit fireflies, lighting up bit by bit from the darkness, stretching their petals and slowly blooming.
“What is this?” Mu Cengxiao flew back to Zanxing’s side, gazing solemnly at these flowers.
A sweet fragrance emanated from the petals.
“So fragrant,” Zanxing’s nose twitched. “Senior Brother, do you smell that scent?”
…
Above ground, everyone was trying to find the entrance to the spiritual domain. Mendong, who was lying on the ground listening for sounds, suddenly looked alert: “Liuhuan Ants?”
Several ants glowing with a faint green light ran across the ground.
Tian Fangfang looked curiously and asked: “What are Liuhuan Ants? These little ants look quite distinctive – can they be traded for spirit stones?”
“Where there are Liuhuan Ants, there is Liuhuan Grass, without exception,” Mendong murmured. “The fragrance of Liuhuan Grass, once inhaled, causes men and women to indulge in pleasure until their heart meridians rupture and their souls perish.”
“This is bad,” he said, standing up, looking toward the underground with a panicked expression. “They’re in danger!”