Chapter 438: Chapter 427: Staying the Night
"The cherry blossom trees on this mountain, every single one of them was planted by my own hands, totaling three hundred eighty-nine thousand trees, but even with meticulous care, only one hundred eight thousand remain."
Tu Yingying was as familiar with the cherry blossom trees that blanketed the mountains as she was with her own belongings. She loved this scenery, but no matter how much she loved it, cherry blossom trees would become dead wood within decades to a century.
Wang Xuan admired the scenery and said, "This is the law of nature. Born here, buried here, everything is obtained from the heavens and the earth, and after death, it is also returned to the heavens and the earth.
Life and death have a cycle, and this is irreversible.
Even for us immortals, when the time comes, we too will collapse and die, our spirituality, vitality, and magical power turning into energy particles and returning to the heavens and the earth, back to the embrace of the origin."
"I can’t bear to see death and sadness, I guess I’m a bit fragile inside," Tu Yingying broke off a cherry blossom branch, pinching it between her fingers.
"Barely living a hundred years, always harboring worries of a millennium. The instability of the Wei and Jin dynasties is similar to the Earth’s current survival environment, also swaying in turbulent winds and rain.
But no matter how wavering in the storms, the wheels of history relentlessly roll forward, indifferent to personal sentiments.
Who among billions does not think themselves the most special in the world? But it is only at the moment of death that we realize we are just droplets in the tides of history.
How else can we live this life if not freely and happily?"
"Just a girl’s melancholy thoughts, you really do not understand romance, hmph." Tu Yingying shot Wang Xuan a glance.
Wang Xuan unfolded his Creation Domain, enveloping the entire peak, optimizing the genes of the mountains’ cherry blossom trees, making their life levels rapidly leap forward, evolving at a rate that would have taken generations to achieve in mere seconds.
After dozens of breaths, as the wind blew over the blossoms covering the mountains, they turned into falling snow, that momentary elegance enchanting all who beheld it.
The bare branches of the cherry blossoms, like jade, exuded a sense of texture, having evolved from a species with slight spirituality into a Spirit Seed.
The petals and fruits they bore could now be used as medicinal ingredients, allowing the Human Immortal cultivators to refine pills.
In the time it takes for a mere cup of tea, Wang Xuan transformed these one hundred eight thousand cherry blossom trees into long-lasting seeds, capable of living around a millennium if not met with misfortune, far exceeding the lifespan of these tree species.
"These cherry blossom trees shouldn’t die for the next few hundred years, you can admire them at your leisure," Wang Xuan said lightly, as if doing something insignificant.
Tu Yingying felt joy in her heart, witnessing the cherry blossom trees across the mountains rapidly sprouting buds, one flower after another blooming, their fragrance intoxicating.
She casually snapped off a branch, the spirituality and medicinal properties in the petals far surpassing ordinary cherry blossoms, all the cherry blossom trees across the mountains had become exotic species.
"Then this place will soon be lively. Those little foxes used to come just for the scenery; now, they’ll surely guard it daily and eat the cherry blossoms as meals.
They are stupid, silly, and gluttonous, knowing that I wouldn’t have the heart to drive them away, so the cherry blossom scenery here is probably going to be spoiled." Tu Yingying said with a smile.
"Then I did a bad thing with good intentions." Wang Xuan didn’t mind.
His Path of Creation had the effect of accelerating the evolution of plants and creatures, and with his profound understanding of evolution, making mid- to low-level life forms evolve was a trivial task.
The changes in this wildland would be difficult even for some True Immortals and seen as a miracle by ordinary people, but to him, it was as easy as lifting a finger.
The mountain was nameless, yet the person was renowned. Tu Yingying lived on this mountain, her father was a Demon Saint, and her mother had reached the Half-Step True Tier, hence she had no shortage of resources growing up.
However, due to internal competition, her access to cultivation resources significantly decreased upon reaching the Demon King level. To enter the True Tier and become a Demon Saint in the future, she would likely have to strive for her own resources.
The Qingqiu lineage had numerous branches, and internal resource struggles often resulted in hurt feelings, which was why she was sent to Abyss Mountain six years ago to investigate demons—a result of internal friction.
After all, the resources within the Qingqiu Fox Race were not even one-twentieth of Immortal Martial Mountain but had to sustain cultivators tens of times greater than Immortal Martial Mountain.
Her father had many wives and many children, and she was just one of them. To obtain cultivation resources, one either received gifts from elders or secured them independently.
Before the Divine Infant Realm, Tu Yingying spent most of her time on Qingqiu Mountain, but afterward, she worked hard to acquire resources herself. It was only after Wang Xuan allowed her to sell pills at Qingqiu Mountain that her life began to flourish.
The two reached the mountainside, where a dozen ancient palaces stood with a vintage charm, the blue bricks making the view ahead pleasing and the internal layout promoting a smooth flow of atmosphere.
"Greetings, Mountain Lord. Greetings, Taoist."
There were more than twenty maids here, each more charming than flowers, with dignified and beautiful appearances. Their etiquette was well-trained, demonstrating the depth of the Qingqiu Race’s heritage in their conduct.
The Fox Demons were all side-line Fox Maidens, reaching the level of Earth Immortal was no easy feat, with many striving for decades or even centuries to obtain some cultivation resources and guidance from higher-tier Demon Immortals. Becoming maids wasn’t unusual.
"Most of the Earth Demons’ servants are forcibly enlightened little demons of grass and wood by magic, or slaves from Otherworld, with very low status.
These maids I gathered only after accumulating wealth, otherwise supporting so many Fox Maidens would not have been easy," Tu Yingying said.
The Era of Mythology in Earth Civilization had no concept of family planning, with everyone rapidly enhancing their strength. It was precisely the interests extracted from the Otherworld that allowed the Qingqiu Race to proliferate into a vast group within centuries, with swarms of Earth Demons and Celestial Demons within.
Competing for resources and converting those resources into cultivation level and strength was why Earth Cultivators’ levels rapidly advanced but also why many remained poor.
Otherwise, how could Earth, which rose within mere centuries, compete with, or even overthrow and devour, those strong for millions of years, or level-five worlds?
"In a few days, I’ll send you an Insect Race army, about ten thousand in number, with three to five at the Peak of Celestial Tier, to guard your home," Wang Xuan said.
Chong the Thirty-Sixth had thousands of Insect Race colonies, giving one to Tu Yingying wouldn’t hurt.
"I don’t dare use them; others would gossip," Tu Yingying pondered with a furrowed brow. "Besides, I can’t afford to support such an army."
An army of Insect Race at the Peak of Celestial Tier, without intervention from a True Immortal, could easily sweep a region.
"Let them absorb Spiritual Qi; they won’t starve," Wang Xuan said casually. If they starved to death, so be it—their corpses could still serve as excellent weapon materials.
Moreover, sustaining them wasn’t hard; they could just find a Star Domain to feed on without any concern.
The offspring of Chong the Thirty-Sixth had already been relocated to a Star Domain several light-years away from Di Xuan Star, continuously growing stronger.
The mountain not only housed maids but also several sisters of Tu Yingying, all children of her father’s various wives, who had grown up together with the same father but different mothers. Their relationships were quite decent, but of course, Tu Yingying was the master of the mountain, determined by her cultivation level.
Wang Xuan’s arrival stirred the Fox Spirits, causing a lively commotion. After receiving some small gifts from him, which made them so excited they could jump, they were driven away by Tu Yingying.
"These foxes throw away their manners when they’re usually so proper; they truly need some serious discipline." Tu Yingying pretended to be annoyed.
She knew, though, that this was due to the yin-heavy-yang-light nature of the Qingqiu lineage. Despite the outstanding beauty of each Fox Maiden, more than seventy percent were unmarried and of age, with many Demon Saints not even married.
They were not in a hurry, given that Earth Demons had lifespans of thousands or even tens of thousands of years. At a few hundred years old, they were still very young, taking their time to find the right person.
Of course, upon seeing Wang Xuan, a man so majestic, the Fox Maidens, who rarely saw men, couldn’t help but feel excited.
The time flew by, and it was already deep into the night. Wang Xuan, having enjoyed the scenery, said, "It’s late; I should be going."
Tu Yingying looked at him with a face full of wistfulness.
Then, in a voice as soft as a mosquito, she said, "The road is difficult at night. Why not stay here overnight?"
"Isn’t that inappropriate?" Wang Xuan hesitated.
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