Chapter 947: Spirit Eye Tree, Tianyuan Sutra

Lu Changsheng didn’t draw right away. He stayed with his wife, sharing how much he’d missed her and basking in tender warmth.

A few days later he remembered the pile of matters on his hands, and that Hong Lian was still waiting on Yangming Mountain. He left the Cave Heaven and headed to the underground palace to visit Zhao Qingqing.

After breaking through to Core Formation, she hadn’t hurried off.

She had been cultivating in the underground palace with the help of the Xuantian Spirit Vine.

Deep within, Zhao Qingqing wore a pale green dress. Her glossy black hair was coiled into a bun as she sat cross-legged beside the spirit vine. Vitality flowed around her. She seemed like a spirit born of grass and wood, carrying the fresh fragrance of new growth.

Hearing movement, she opened her eyes and whispered, “Husband.”

“Qingqing, congratulations on breaking through to Core Formation.”

Smiling, Lu Changsheng called out to her.

After her breakthrough, Zhao Qingqing’s looks and bearing had both risen notably.

What had once been merely pleasant now reached the level of striking.

But more than her looks, her temperament had transformed.

She seemed at one with the Xuantian Spirit Vine at her side, like a new leaf unfurling, calm and clear as spring rain soaking all things.

A faint breath of fresh wood and grass lingered about her, a quiet beauty that nourished without a sound.

“If not for your support, Husband, how could I have formed a core?”

Zhao Qingqing spoke softly, a touch dazed in her eyes.

She had formed a fifth-grade True Core.

But she knew well that without Lu Changsheng’s help—Condensing Crystal Pills and Five Elements Spirit Fruits—she would never have broken through.

Even if she got lucky, the result would have been a flawed core of the eighth or ninth grade.

A True Core would have been out of reach.

“Heh, I only did so much. The real work was yours.”

Lu Changsheng chuckled. He didn’t harp on the resources he’d given, not wanting to burden her.

Watching Zhao Qingqing’s aura merge with the vine’s breath, fresh and wood-scented, he lifted a brow. “Looks like this vine is helping you quite a bit.”

“Mm.” Zhao Qingqing nodded. The vine had boosted her Core Formation attempt and aided her since.

Under the Xuantian Spirit Vine’s nourishment, her wood-natured spirit body felt renewed, as if awakening.

She felt that in three to five years her spirit body would grow on its own into a middle-ranked spirit body under the vine’s care.

Though at the Core Formation stage a middle-ranked spirit body doesn’t help much, mostly enhancing plant and wood-related arts.

For her, that was already great.

“Oh?” Lu Changsheng arched a brow. He hadn’t expected Zhao Qingqing’s physique to suit the Xuantian Spirit Vine even more than his son Lu Qingyue’s Greenwood Spirit Body.

He guessed it was because she broke through beside the vine and her True Core had blended with the vine’s aura.

Also, her spirit body had started as lower-ranked, which made the effect more pronounced.

Once it rose to middle-ranked, using the vine to reach a superior spirit body would be nearly impossible.

“It’s fine. Just cultivate at Bihu Mountain in peace.”

Lu Changsheng smiled. “As for Azure Cloud Sect’s relocation to the Yue Kingdom, I’ll speak to them. You don’t need to worry.”

By now the Purple Light Sect had nearly pacified the Wu Kingdom. Once everything was settled they’d move in as a whole.

After their move, Yun Wanshang would lead the Azure Cloud Sect to settle at Purple Light Mountain.

Normally a cultivator like Zhao Qingqing would go with her sect.

But for something like this, one word from Lu Changsheng was enough.

“Qingqing will follow your arrangements, Husband.”

Zhao Qingqing didn’t know about the Yangming True Lord aspect.

But after so many years together, she knew Lu Changsheng wasn’t as simple as he appeared.

As the Yangming True Lord’s fame shook the Northern Region, the deputy city lord of the Immortal City of Damengze—Changsheng True Lord, who was close to the city—rose in standing as well.

Even Core Formation Grand cultivators and the Azure Cloud Sect’s Supreme Elders now treated Lu Changsheng with courtesy.

Lu Changsheng spoke with Zhao Qingqing with gentle concern, their feelings deepening as they talked.

“I still have some matters to handle. Once your realm stabilizes, send a message to call Qingyue home so he can cultivate here.”

After a while he stroked Zhao Qingqing’s smooth back and spoke softly.

He had two sons with Zhao Qingqing.

The eldest had average talent. With the Lu Family’s support he barely reached Foundation Establishment, then took over an industry under Bihu Mountain and had been away long-term.

The younger, Lu Qingyue, had decent talent. Not long after Foundation Establishment he requested to travel.

His cultivation speed wasn’t fast, but not slow either. He was at the fifth layer of Foundation.

He had the potential for Core Formation. Lu Changsheng planned to call him back and send him into the Timeflow Barrier in the third or fourth batch.

“Alright.” Hearing Lu Changsheng bring up Lu Qingyue, Zhao Qingqing realized she hadn’t seen that son in a long time and wondered how he was doing.

Lu Changsheng didn’t lose himself in tender warmth. He had many wives and children waiting on him.

As he prepared to visit the Azure Cloud Sect to see Chu Qingyi, his son Lu Yunxiao, and Lu Shouzheng, he remembered he hadn’t used his daughter Lu Baixi’s lottery draw.

He silently said in his heart, “System, draw.”

【Ding, congratulations to the host for obtaining the treasure: Spirit Eye Tree!】

【Reward has been delivered to system space. The host can check it at any time.】

A crystal-clear little tree icon, like countless threads of spiritual essence condensed, rose from the lottery wheel as the system chime sounded.

“A Spirit Eye Tree? Talk about perfect timing.” Lu Changsheng chuckled.

After so many years of cultivation, he naturally knew what a Spirit Eye Tree was.

At the core of a heaven-and-earth spiritual vein lies the spirit eye.

Its aura doesn’t run dry. As it circulates and condenses day after day, it gradually forms efficacious treasures.

Spirit eye treasures come in grades. Broadly speaking there are the Spirit Eye Pearl, the Spirit Eye Stone, the Spiritual Eye Fountain, and the Spirit Eye Tree.

He already had many things like Spirit Eye Pearls, Spirit Eye Stones and Spiritual Eye Fountains.

Inside his Heavenly Yuan Lotus there were always several third-rank top-tier Spiritual Eye Fountains.

But a Spirit Eye Tree growing atop a Spirit Eye Fountain was something he had never seen.

The reason was simple.

The Spirit Eye Tree is of the fourth rank.

It can produce fourth-rank aura needed by Nascent Soul cultivators.

So its value is extremely high, and even Nascent Soul cultivators rarely own one.

With a thought he looked into the system space at the Spirit Eye Tree to check its exact grade.

【Treasure: Spirit Eye Tree】

【Grade: fourth-rank mid-grade】

【Notes: A wonder formed by heaven and earth, it can produce fourth-rank aura endlessly. Through spiritual vein formations it can create a quasi-fourth-rank minor spiritual vein.】

The description appeared before his eyes, simple and to the point.

“Fourth-rank mid-grade.”

Lu Changsheng’s expression brightened.

A fourth-rank mid-grade Spirit Eye Tree produced enough aura to supply a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator’s daily cultivation.

In other words, this tree solved his daily cultivation needs outright.

Even after he advanced to mid-Nascent Soul, it would still help.

But his first thought wasn’t to place it in his cave residence to improve the quality of aura.

Nor to keep it in the Heavenly Yuan Lotus as a portable spiritual vein.

He wanted to fuse it into the Sumeru Cave Heaven to upgrade Sumeru’s spiritual vein.

Though wasteful on paper.

Sumeru was his first third-rank spirit pet. For a hundred years it had silently watched over Bihu Mountain.

Limited by Bihu Mountain’s growth, it had remained stuck at the third rank all these years, unable to break through.

He had poured plenty of resources into Sumeru, but advancing to fourth rank was just too hard.

Only by borrowing the essence of a fourth-rank spiritual vein to perfect the cave heaven could it break through quickly.

Right now, the Spirit Eye Tree was the perfect primer.

Once he fused it into the Sumeru Cave Heaven, Sumeru could use the cave to surge into the fourth rank.

When Sumeru advanced, Bihu Mountain would no longer fear Nascent Soul assaults.

An early Nascent Soul intruder might even be suppressed like Xiahou Wuwo back in the day and thrown into the cave as a prisoner.

“Although this Spirit Eye Tree can only create a quasi-fourth-rank vein, once merged into Sumeru it should be enough to push the cave to birth a tiny true fourth-rank vein.”

Lu Changsheng thought it over.

After years of cultivation, Sumeru’s spiritual vein had already reached the extreme of third-rank top-tier.

With the Spirit Eye Tree as a primer, promotion to fourth rank shouldn’t be a problem.

He didn’t rush to hand the tree to Sumeru.

He planned to set it on Yangming Mountain first to help Hong Lian break through.

Though the spiritual vein on Yangming Mountain was enough for Hong Lian to冲击元婴, one more Spirit Eye Tree couldn’t hurt.

Aura produced by Spirit Eye treasures like the fountain or the tree is much purer than that of ordinary fourth-rank veins.

Especially this one, which wasn’t a lower-grade tree but a fourth-rank mid-grade.

“Once Hong Lian breaks through, Xingchen, Xiaozhu, Xiao He and Chensha should be ready too. Then there’ll be another rare draw.”

Having drawn the Spirit Eye Tree put him in a great mood. He suddenly found himself eager for the next draws.

Ordinary draws no longer interested him.

But he was still keen on the rare ones.

By his estimate, once three more of his children broke through to Core Formation, the system would grant another rare draw.

“Once Xingchen forms his core, he’ll become a third-rank alchemist within a few years.”

“Chensha too. It won’t be long before he becomes a third-rank beast tamer.”

“And Meng Meng is close to Core Formation. After she breaks through, Xiaochan and Ah Youduo can teach her poison-making.”

Thinking how his children could keep unlocking crafts after Core Formation filled Lu Changsheng with quiet joy.

Life felt wonderfully good.

With that mood, Lu Changsheng headed for the Azure Cloud Sect.

But when he arrived, he learned from Chu Qingyi that

his son Lu Yunxiao wasn’t at the sect. Yun Wanshang had taken him to the Wu Kingdom.

“That woman.”

Lu Changsheng was a little speechless.

He suspected that Yun Wanshang, having returned and heard he planned to visit and maybe take the boy out, had spirited their son away.

On second thought, she had been gone for years and separated from Lu Yunxiao.

Next she would need to help secure Purple Light Mountain in the Wu Kingdom, shuttling between Yue and Jiang, unable to spend time with him for a while.

So she had simply and openly kept Lu Yunxiao by her side to teach him.

After all, she valued this son immensely.

With Lu Yunxiao at Yun Wanshang’s side, Lu Changsheng felt at ease. He held Chu Qingyi close and spoke softly.

Chu Qingyi told Lu Changsheng that their son Lu Shouzheng didn’t seem a great fit for the Seven Luminary Sword Manual and that she wanted to teach him the Azure Cloud Sword Technique or another method.

Though he could cultivate the manual just fine,

as someone who also cultivated the Seven Luminary Sword Manual, Chu Qingyi had realized it didn’t fully suit him and wasn’t bringing out his gifts.

His current progress rested on his Heavenly Spiritual Root and keen comprehension.

“There’s such a thing?” Lu Changsheng hadn’t known.

Back then he taught Lu Shouzheng the Seven Luminary Sword Manual simply because the boy wanted to learn the sword.

He had kept an eye on his cultivation over the years.

There had been no problem with speed, grasp or understanding.

“Mm.” Chu Qingyi explained a few details she’d noticed.

For instance, his disposition didn’t quite match the Seven Luminary Sword Manual.

It posed no problem now but flaws would show after he reached Core Formation.

“Hiss… you’re right.”

Hearing her out, Lu Changsheng instantly saw it.

Issues of temperament matching a cultivation method can be minor or major.

For ninety-nine percent of cultivators they don’t matter.

But for a Core Formation seed with hope for Nascent Soul like Lu Shouzheng, you address them early.

His son was stubborn and competitive, but he didn’t have Lu Qingshan’s sharp sword edge.

“That’s my failure as a father.”

Lu Changsheng sighed softly. He blamed himself for not noticing sooner.

He cared about Lu Shouzheng but hadn’t been attentive enough.

At once he went with Chu Qingyi to see their son, to seriously check on his cultivation, analyze his situation and see if he had a suitable method on hand.

Over the years he had crushed the Yin Ghost Sect, settled the Liang-Yue War, subdued the Heavenly Corpse Sect, the Zhenhai Seven Sects, Beast God Mountain and more. Beyond vast resources there was another huge harvest—inheritances.

The Lu Family’s foundation in methods now surpassed many major powers.

Though Lu Ancestor hadn’t pored over all those inheritances, thinking of Lu Shouzheng’s situation he remembered a method.

The Tianyuan Sutra.

It was given to him by Tianyuan True Lord.

The latter had asked him to find a successor.

Lu Changsheng had flipped through it.

It was not only profound and abstruse but also excessively complex.

He had shown it to some of his most gifted children, but without a teacher none could even get started, so he’d set it aside.

Lu Shouzheng’s case made him think of it again.

With a Heavenly Spiritual Root and strong comprehension, maybe he could enter it.

But a system this complex demanded top-tier talent.

Otherwise the time sunk into studying divine abilities would delay his cultivation and cost more than it gave.

“Qingyi, wait here. I’ll head back.”

The jade slip of the Tianyuan Sutra wasn’t on him. He kept it in the Sumeru Cave Heaven’s Hall of Everlasting Life.

Soon after, Lu Changsheng returned from the Azure Cloud Sect to Bihu Mountain and brought back the Tianyuan Sutra’s jade slip.

“This method is something your mother and I obtained back then. It comes from a legendary cultivator eight thousand years ago, Tianyuan True Lord.”

“It is profound and deep, broad as the sea, and gathers his life’s legacy. Only those with exceptional talent and comprehension can master it.”

“He once asked your mother and me to find him a successor. Do you have the confidence?”

Lu Changsheng looked at his son with interest, curious whether he could master this method.