Chapter 489: Last Night’s Stars, Last Night’s Wind
Chapter 489: Last Night’s Stars, Last Night’s Wind!
Jiang Chen stood before the small teleportation formation.
Although he needed to verify if the destination was truly Azure Rock Peak, testing the array with his own body for the first time was out of the question.
Even the slightest deviation in the spatial runes could scatter him to the most desolate corners of the Azure Realm.
He could materialize in the sky, thousands of feet underground, at the bottom of the sea, or deep within a demon’s lair… that would be the end of it all.
Pragmatism dictated a safer approach. Jiang Chen summoned Crow Five.
The spirit bird had previously survived multiple incursions into the ancestral tomb. When it came to serving as cannon fodder… ah, adventuring, it boasted rich experience.
Crow Five landed upon the earthen dais, hopping cautiously as its dark eyes scrutinized the shimmering array.
Jiang Chen issued an instruction. “Cross over. Show me what lies on the other side.”
Gawu~The bird croaked in acknowledgment, leaping directly into the spatial distortion.
Its potential might be abysmal, but its lack of self-preservation was highly commendable.
Jiang Chen shut his eyes, seamlessly shifting his Divine Sense to share the bird’s vision.
A fractured blurring of light gave way to an unexpected sight: the Golden Miner, standing completely unharmed and offering a stiff thumbs-up with its right hand. The passage was safe.
Shifting the bird’s gaze, Jiang Chen surveyed the perimeter.
The projection confirmed it was indeed Azure Rock Peak. The array had stabilized at the mountainside, less than thirty feet from the entrance to the cave dwelling.
“I have indeed arrived at the right place!”
“Not a bad view, either.”
“The Feng Shui layout remains completely undisturbed.”
Crow Five took flight, carving three wide circles around the peak before alighting atop the Golden Miner’s metallic head.
Having rigorously vetted the environment for anomalies, Jiang Chen finally stepped into the semi-transparent veil of light. The spatial laws warped around him, transitioning his physical form from his pocket realm directly to Azure Rock Peak.
Crisp, untainted air.
The chill of the mountain winds.
A profound sense of familiarity.
A faint smile ghosted across Jiang Chen’s lips. “This new home will do nicely.”
He approached the cave dwelling’s entrance. The Spirit Guardian Tree remained in a withered, listless state, its vitality severely drained.
Little Shangxiang’s unique constitution was terrifyingly potent; even after all this time, the ancient flora had yet to recover from her presence.
Inside, the cavern was untouched. Save for the ambient restoration of Metal and Earth Qi, nothing had shifted since his departure.
An undeniable proof that the sanctuary had remained unbreached.
Jiang Chen thoughtfully stroked his chin. “That enigmatic boy… what was his name again? Li something?”
He had long theorized that the boy had secured Jin Xuanzi’s true legacy.
The artifacts left behind in this cave felt too deliberate, a meticulously crafted decoy designed to absorb the greed of wanderers.
The boy’s absence confirmed it: this location was either strategically irrelevant or entirely discarded.
The true spoils rested entirely in that young man’s hands. Jiang Chen simply had no way of knowing his current situation.
Since the boy had vanished into the Rain Pavilion, no ripples had disturbed the sect.
It appeared the inheritor was even more… inclined to slack off than Jiang Chen himself.
Leaving the cavern, Jiang Chen returned to the mountain’s exterior.
Looking at the spatial markers of the small teleportation array, he thought about it and felt leaving it exposed on the ridge was unwise. Channeling his mastery over Earth Qi, he seamlessly submerged the entire formation deep into the mountain’s bedrock.
While it meant arriving in absolute darkness, it also guaranteed complete concealment from prying Divine Senses.
This way, he could boldly travel between the two locations with peace of mind.
With the logistics handled, Jiang Chen kicked off the ground, drifting gently to the summit. He lay back against the cool stone, letting the night winds wash over him as he stared into the fathomless sea of stars.
The vast emptiness of the heavens offered a rare moment of absolute silence.
…
…
Dawn broke without fanfare.
Jiang Chen resurrected the previous night’s leftovers over a low flame, pairing them with a fresh pot of Spirit Rice porridge.
The three men shared a brisk meal before Old Jin and Old Mo took their leave.
Even within the same sect, a cultivator’s path was a solitary grind.
Spontaneous gatherings were a luxury of the past. They lacked the abundant free time they had possessed during Jiang Chen’s early days as an official disciple.
Before attempting his Golden Core tribulation, Mo Yu needed to return to his mortal roots to settle worldly karma.
Old Jin was occupied with caring for the spirit beasts reared in Beast Mountain.
As for Jiang Chen, his daily ledger was relentlessly full.
Between patrolling the Spirit Farm and managing an endless stream of trivial matters, there was little room to breathe.
To some extent, he had half-taken over the position of Farm Master, bearing far more responsibilities.
After a grueling morning of inspections, Jiang Chen had just settled down when his Communication Talisman hummed with spiritual energy.
He drew it from his robes, sensing Zhou Yan’s signature.
“Sixth Junior Brother, the Senior Sister, Third Junior Brother, and I are departing for a banquet hosted by the Luo River Bei Clan. Could I trouble you to tend to the rare botanical specimens in my third-grade Spirit Farm?”
“Consider it done. Enjoy the banquet,” Jiang Chen replied.
“Heh, I knew I could rely on you. I’ll bring back some of the Luo River’s finest spirit-delicacies as compensation!”
“I look forward to it.”
“We’re setting off now. Head up to the peak whenever you’re ready.”
With that brief exchange, Zhou Yan severed the connection.
Jiang Chen stared at the dimming runes on the parchment. “They say the capable are doomed to labor, but this is bordering on exploitation.”
Summoning the Shattered Moon Flowing Frost, he mounted the blade and launched into the sky.
He cut through the clouds like a silver comet, ascending toward the upper strata.
The colossal silhouette of Green Wood Peak soon dominated his vision.
Even now, the sheer scale of the three-thousand-foot-tall divine tree inspired absolute awe.
As his cultivation base deepened, so too did his sensitivity to the primal laws woven into the world.
To his refined senses, the ancient behemoth was a terrifying anomaly of nature.
It wasn’t merely passively venting Wood Spirit Qi; its roots thrummed with an unfathomable ocean of vital energy.
The canopy, known as the Qiongxin Domain, belonged exclusively to the Peak Master.
The primary boughs formed the Sanxiu Domain, housing the Deputy Peak Masters and Elders.
The mid-level foliage was the Cuiwei Domain, the sanctuary of the core disciples.
And the sprawling lower branches, the Qingya Domain, sheltered their subordinate disciples.
Bypassing the sovereign heights, Jiang Chen descended smoothly into the emerald architecture of the Cuiwei Domain.
The atmosphere here buzzed with a refined, scholarly energy.
While not crowded, the winding branch-paths occasionally yielded the sight of passing core disciples.
“Junior Brother Jiang!”
“Senior Brother Jiang!”
“A pleasure to see you out and about!”
Acquaintances and strangers alike offered warm, proactive greetings as he walked by.
It was basic sect politics. His tenure on Green Wood Peak was brief, but his Master represented the absolute apex of power, status, and terrifying backing.
Furthermore, Jiang Chen’s mild, unpretentious demeanor lacked the abrasive arrogance typical of elite disciples, effortlessly cultivating a foundation of unearned goodwill.
Navigating the social pleasantries with practiced ease, Jiang Chen finally arrived at Zhou Yan’s estate.
Core disciples typically either hollowed out a lesser branch or laid claim to a massive leaf.
Zhou Yan’s pavilion and private Spirit Farm were anchored upon an immense, jade-green leaf. The ambient Wood Spirit Qi was so viscous it felt like stepping into a finely tuned gathering Formation.
Having visited multiple times, Jiang Chen’s spiritual signature allowed him unimpeded access.
His gaze swept across the cultivated plots, rapidly analyzing the high-end botanical specimens Zhou Yan was nurturing.
Nine-Leaf Dew-Condensing Grass
A species that birthed only nine leaves in its lifespan, with highly concentrated Wood Spirit Dew crystallizing at the serrated edges.
It had mutated into a Twin-Stem variant, allowing the dripping dew to hyper-nourish the base into highly coveted Spirit Jade Roots.
Mystic Pattern Purple Ganoderma
The cap bore intricate, naturally formed Dao ripples that acted as a passive spirit-gathering matrix, endlessly siphoning ambient energy without conscious activation.
Mutated into a Twin-Cap configuration, it boasted thrice the suction velocity of a standard specimen.
Spirit Link Leaf
The core fibrous material required for crafting high-end Communication Talismans. The purer the vein structure, the more astronomical the market value.
This had evolved into a Spiral Twining Leaf. The spiraled geometry drastically amplified spiritual resonance, enabling ultra-long-distance transmissions.
Moonlight Parasol Tree Seedling
An exceptionally fickle breed. Legends claimed a mature tree could entice divine avians to roost. Cultivation was notoriously agonizing; the entire Cloud Sea Sect held fewer than nine living specimens.
Miraculously, it had mutated into a Twin-Trunk Symbiotic Seedling. The intertwined roots formed a subterranean Moonlight Energy Pool, an esoteric resource capable of permanently refining a cultivator’s innate Spirit Roots.
Jiang Chen breathed a sigh of genuine respect. “Senior Brother’s planting and nurturing techniques are formidable. To obtain such rare spiritual plants…”
The entire garden had been overhauled since his last visit. He hadn’t expected everything to change so drastically.
While this was his first hands-on encounter with rare spiritual plants restricted to third-grade Spirit Farms, the methods for nurturing them were clear to him.
Without exception, they all required the same basic condition: gathering a greater density of Wood Spirit Qi.
Of course, the Moonlight Parasol Tree Seedling was a special case. Aside from Spirit Qi, it demanded actual lunar essence-a resource that was notoriously difficult to obtain.
Therefore, that specific requirement would have to wait until his next visit.
Wasting no further time, Jiang Chen extended his right hand. Releasing a fraction of his Magic Power, he elevated the already dense ambient Wood Spirit Qi to an entirely new level.
This required barely a fraction of his total reserves.
If he were to unleash the full power of his Heavenly-Grade Golden Core in tandem with the Chaos Dao Seed, the resulting effects would be unimaginable.
Instantly, the surrounding flora began to undulate, unfurling their leaves like pampered nobility waking from a deep slumber.
They exuded an aura of languid indulgence, yet pulsed with a vibrant liveliness.
Not long after, his Divine Sense suddenly detected someone approaching. Instantly alert, Jiang Chen quickly suppressed his already faint Magic Power even further.
Following this, all the surrounding rare spiritual plants returned to absolute stillness.
Moments later, a female cultivator drifted into view, appearing to be in the bloom of her early twenties.
She possessed a classic oval face, softened by the lingering innocence of youth.
Her flawless, porcelain skin carried a healthy, peach-like flush.
Elegant phoenix eyes rested beneath sweeping willow-leaf brows, framing a delicately rounded nose.
Her lips were naturally full and pronounced, carrying an effortless pout.
Plump earlobes suggested a destiny overflowing with fortune and prosperity.
She was clad in a tailored, light-green spiritual tunic.
Beneath it, she wore pale-yellow martial trousers, tightly bound at the ankles for unimpeded movement.
A translucent, moon-white gauze robe draped over her shoulders, rippling softly in the breeze.
She hovered just beyond the estate’s boundary, her bright eyes peering curiously into the garden, perfectly content to wait.
Assessing the intruder, Jiang Chen chose the path of least resistance. He feigned ignorance, turning his back to meticulously prune the nearest root cluster.
Yet, the girl’s patience proved to be an immovable object. Her unblinking gaze bore into his back; it was obvious she was fully prepared to wait out a glacier.
Accepting defeat, Jiang Chen dusted off his hands and turned. “Fellow Daoist, are you waiting for someone?”
The girl beamed, a dazzling smile that highlighted deep dimples. “I am Su Tiantian. You must be the Sixth Junior Brother that Senior Brother Zhou is always bragging about, Jiang Chen?”
Jiang Chen offered a measured nod. “I am.”
Su Tiantian scrutinized him with unabashed bluntness. “You certainly look ordinary enough, but if Senior Brother Zhou trusts you with his crops, you must possess some decent agrarian talent.”
Jiang Chen’s brows furrowed. “And your point is?”
Su Tiantian laughed, a light, melodic sound tinged with undeniable arrogance. “My mother wishes to summon you for a meeting.”
Jiang Chen blinked, briefly caught off guard. “And your mother is…?”
Su Tiantian lifted her chin, her voice ringing with absolute authority. “The Medicine Immortal of Green Wood Peak. Su Qingyao!”