Xiuxian: I studied abroad in modern times

Chapter 556 The Nine Luminaries' Secret, Senior Sister's Careful Selection

"Nine Luminaries Heaven?" The old man was a little confused. "What kind of place is this?"

In the laboratory, Zheng Fa frowned slightly as he looked at the hibiscus tree.

"This is a secret place in Haori Mountain."

The old man and the others looked increasingly puzzled.

"Haori Mountain is the biggest enemy of the Nine Mountains Sect, and Nine Luminaries Heaven... is related to my most dangerous enemy."

Zheng Fa has always held Lu Yao in high regard.

Not to mention that the other party has accumulated profound knowledge and skills, and can be regarded as a strong person in each lifetime, he also created the Dharma Body Method.

Most importantly, how he became the Mahayana Buddha of Leiyin Temple is enough to give people pause for thought.

Even the Golden-Winged Roc of the Northern Continent might be related to it.

The old man was even more puzzled, scratching his curly hair as he asked, "Then why does the Fusang tree react so strongly to the Nine Luminaries Heaven?"

Zheng Fa shook his head and looked at Fusangmu: "You'll have to ask Fusangmu about that."

He looked at Tang Lingwu, who nodded slightly and pointed to the waveform on the screen, saying:

"Based on previous experiments, we have been able to interpret some of the reactions of hibiscus wood. There are two reactions that are the most basic and the most common, and we are relatively most confident in them."

"This relatively smooth and regular waveform is called reaction one. It should indicate affirmation, liking, and closeness."

"This steep, rapid curve is reaction two, representing the drastic changes in temperature, light intensity, magnetic field, and spiritual energy around the Fusang tree, indicating negation, fear, and disgust."

It may sound a bit broad, but when the hibiscus tree cannot clearly express its own will, we can only rely on this vague biological instinct to make inferences.

To put it simply, it's a bit like a lie detector.

However, what they measured was not the heartbeat of the Fusang tree, but the changes in temperature, spiritual energy, runes, and electromagnetic fields around it.

Zheng Fa thought for a moment, and his magical power began to circulate according to the path of the "Crimson Sky Jade Scroll".

The waveform on the screen immediately began to change.

"Yes, but there are also negatives, roughly 60% to 40%."

Tang Lingwu explained.

"So, this Fusang wood has both affinity and aversion towards the 'Crimson Sky Jade Scroll'?" Old Man Bai frowned. "What does that mean? It's a contradiction."

Zheng Fa glanced at Tang Lingwu, and seeing that she couldn't express any thoughts, he switched to the two cultivation techniques of Yun Zhenxian and Luo Sanxian respectively.

Both of these are fundamental techniques of Haori Mountain, and they are also derived from the "Red Cloud Jade Book". In terms of concepts and content alone, they are at least 60-70% similar.

What puzzled everyone was—

The intimacy shown by the Fusang tree has decreased by about 40%, which is consistent with the similarity of the cultivation methods.

However, reaction two rarely occurs; roughly speaking, it occurs only about one-tenth of the time for the "Crimson Jade Scroll," and possibly even less.

"That's strange," the old man muttered. "This Fusang wood doesn't seem to be entirely aimed at the cultivation technique, but it's still somewhat contradictory and confusing."

Teacher Tian frowned as well: "You mean, the hibiscus tree, by its very nature, is meant to split?"

"Although I don't want to say it, it seems like it."

The laboratory fell silent.

If that's the case, then there will be big trouble—Zheng Fa wanted to use the biological instincts of the Fusang tree to explore the secrets of this spiritual root, but if even the biological instincts of this thing are chaotic and disordered, then there will be far less information to be obtained, and it will be even more impossible to establish a bond with the Fusang tree.

Zheng Fa pondered for a moment, then said to Tang Lingwu, "Show me the previous experimental records."

Tang Lingwu tapped twice on the tablet, and a dense array of patterns and text analyses appeared on the large screen in the laboratory.

Old Bai and the others exchanged glances but didn't speak. Their faces were full of curiosity. Clearly, Zheng Fa seemed to have thought of something and was looking for clues in the experimental data.

After a long while, Zheng Facai seemed to have confirmed something and spoke:

"Lu Yao".

Golden flames burst forth from the hibiscus tree, lashing the surrounding air like willow branches.

"The second obvious reaction! Utterly negative!"

Tang Lingwu was both surprised and puzzled.

On the contrary, Zheng Fa looked even more confident. His figure slowly began to change, transforming into a dignified middle-aged man.

The reaction of the hibiscus tree was even more unexpected.

The sparks around it condensed into a ferocious, thick golden fire python, which roared as it pounced towards Zheng Fa.

Inside the laboratory, crackling and popping sounds filled the air, and amidst flashes of electricity, various sensors exploded one after another.

This doesn't even require sensors; it's obvious to the naked eye that Fusang Tree harbors pure, irreconcilable hatred for the middle-aged man Zheng Fa has transformed into.

The old man looked at Zheng Fa and asked curiously, "Is this Lu Yao?"

"Indeed, and they are also the greatest enemy of my Nine Mountains Sect."

"I think this Fusang tree dislikes this person even more than you do. How did you come up with that idea?"

“When I mentioned the character ‘Lu’ before, the Fusang wood reacted, and the ‘Crimson Jade Scroll’ is Lu Yao’s cultivation technique.” Zheng Fa explained, “Teacher Bai may not know that at the Dao Fruit stage, a cultivator is a cultivation technique, and a cultivation technique is a cultivator.”

"So you think that the Fusang tree hates Lu Yao?"

“Yes, and I only transformed into Lu Yao’s appearance just now,” Zheng Fa shook his head and said, “but the technique I used was not actually the Crimson Jade Scroll.”

There is only one explanation for this situation.

The "Crimson Jade Book" has a close relationship with the Fusang tree, at least in part, which makes the Fusang tree feel close to it.

However, because this technique was Lu Yao's fundamental method, and was disliked by the Fusang Tree, it caused the spiritual root to appear chaotic—

In reality, it was because Fusangmu had a conflicted feeling about the "Crimson Jade Book".

If it were the other two techniques, because they weren't as closely related to Lu Yao, Fusangmu would be more inclined to believe them.

"So, Fusangmu and Lu Yao have a deep-seated hatred between them," the old man said suddenly. "And what about the Nine Luminaries Heaven?"

Upon hearing this, Tang Lingwu glanced at the previous experimental records and was also puzzled: "When Zheng Fa mentioned the Nine Luminaries Heaven, the reaction shown by this Fusang wood..."

"It's a definite affirmation, a pure affirmation!"

She paused, seemingly feeling that the word "certain" was insufficient to describe the intensity of Fusangmu's reaction, and added, "You could even say it was a longing."

Recalling how the Fusang tree seemed to want to fly out of the preaching hall, Zheng Fa also felt that the word "longing" was used very well.

"But didn't Zheng Fa just say that Jiu Yaotian is related to his great enemy? This enemy should be Lu Yao?"

Zheng Fa nodded slightly.

"Isn't this contradictory again?"

“I have an idea,” Zheng Fa said. “There’s something inside the Nine Luminaries Heaven that the Fusang Tree craves so much that it has even forgotten its hatred for Lu Yao…”

Looking at the still volatile Fusang wood, which was engulfed in flames, the old man pondered for a long time before speaking: "If that's really the case, judging from this hatred, that thing must be very important to the Fusang wood."

Zheng Fa nodded slowly, and the laboratory fell silent again.

"Isn't it also important for you to fuse with the Fusang wood?"

Seeing the worry on Tang Lingwu's face, Zheng Fa shook his head: "I can't say for sure, but it's very possible."

Tang Lingwu looked up at Zheng Fa, pursed her lips and remained silent, but her face was no longer as bright as before.

"...Is there something in the Nine Luminaries Heaven that the Fusang Tree desires?"

The Nine Mountains Heavenly Palace, along with Lord Shuyu and the others, looked at each other in surprise.

"I'm fairly confident."

"This matter is of utmost importance," Uncle Pang immediately said. "The relationship between Fusangmu and Lu Yao is ambiguous; who knows if it's a trap?"

Zheng Fa turned his gaze to Senior Sister Zhang.

Senior Sister Zhang took out her Flying Immortal Brush and drew the Eight Trigrams in the air, beginning her deductions.

After a long while, she put away the Eight Trigrams: "I cannot deduce the relationship between the Nine Luminaries and the Fusang Tree. It seems that both the Fusang Tree and the Nine Luminaries have great secrets that I cannot see."

Uncle Pang looked slightly disappointed.

"But... Jiuyaotian should be beneficial to my junior brother, a great benefit."

Senior Sister Zhang's words invigorated everyone.

She didn't know much about Fusangmu and Jiuyaotian, but she knew Zheng Fa inside and out, and the difference in strength wasn't that great. Therefore, the accuracy of her deductions based on Zheng Fa's situation was high.

"How sure are you?"

"More than 60%."

“It’s not a safe bet.” Uncle Pang shook his head. “Last time when Zheng Fa went to Haori Mountain, he only wanted to infiltrate the Tianhe Sect, but Jiuyaotian… who knows what kind of thing is inside.”

Zheng Fa was also pondering the risks involved, while the Dragon Lord Shuyu asked in confusion, "How is it not safe? Don't we have the ability to resurrect?"

As she spoke, a hint of emotion lingered on her face: "Even if I die now, I might not be able to come back to life. The sect leader's One Breath Transforms into Three Pure Ones..."

“My master isn’t afraid of me dying, but rather… he’s afraid I’ll be trapped in the Nine Luminaries Heaven, that would be a real problem.”

Zheng Fa's words made the Dragon Lord Shuyu pause for a moment, then he nodded slightly.

"On the other hand, my trip to the Nine Luminaries Heaven may have seemed like an attempt to seek opportunities, but perhaps Lu Yao was deliberately trying to lure me in with the Fusang Wood."

Lord Shuyu suddenly realized: "That's more likely! In that case, we've aided the enemy!"

Even so, she still said:

"If we don't go, what will happen to the hibiscus tree?"

Uncle Pang still disagreed: "Even if we go, there's no guarantee that the Fusang tree can be dealt with."

"It's better than now."

Although the two were at odds, neither was without reason, and the others in the hall also looked somewhat conflicted.

Zheng Fa thought for a moment and then whispered a few words.

After a while, a short figure came from outside the hall, followed by a blue phoenix.

"Elder Han, what's wrong with Senior Sister Yuan...?"

"I've come to see what's going on."

The blue phoenix, full of self-righteousness, squatted on the beam.

Zheng Fa didn't chase her away. Senior Sister Yuan seemed a bit silly, but she was actually reliable, at least she kept her mouth shut. He looked at Elder Han and asked, "What's the situation at Haori Mountain now? Are the disciples' infiltration at Haori Mountain going smoothly?"

Because of his extraordinary abilities and experience, Han Lao is now the head of the intelligence department.

Although the intelligence division has a small number of people, it has a lot of external authority. Even Senior Sister Zhang doesn't usually interfere much; she just allocates spirit stones and hardly sets any budget restrictions.

Knowing the dangers faced by the disciples of the Intelligence Bureau, Zheng Fa was unwilling to take micromanagement and rarely interfered, only reviewing the intelligence reports compiled by the Intelligence Bureau.

Therefore, he didn't really know much about the recent situation at Haori Mountain—which shows that the intelligence department hadn't reached a clear conclusion yet.

Sure enough, when Zheng Fa asked about the situation at Haori Mountain, Elder Han sighed slightly and shook his head, saying, "Haori Mountain doesn't seem to have much of an issue. Apart from the absence of the Ancestral Master and the slight panic, there doesn't seem to be any change."

"No abnormalities?"

"No."

"Was it our disciples who failed to gather any information?"

"Our disciples have indeed not yet infiltrated the core disciples of Haori Mountain, but they are very successful at gathering information."

At this point, Old Han's expression showed a hint of pride.

"Smoothly? How can it be smooth?"

"For this, we have to thank Master Yuan." Old Han chuckled and pointed to the blue phoenix on the beam.

Senior Sister Yuan tilted her long neck back towards the roof with an exaggerated arc, looking like a smug little bird.

"Thank her?"

“Recently, Master Yuan has been helping my intelligence department with training, and the results are remarkable, with students all over the world.”

Zheng Fa remained silent, looking Yuan Xiaoniao up and down, feeling only a bleak future for the Intelligence Bureau.

This place relies so much on brains, and sending Senior Sister Yuan to train her is just ruining it, isn't it?
What kind of training can she provide?
……

"Pancakes! Line up, don't rush, we'll have them all!"

In the three city markets of Haori Mountain, a man and a woman, two unassuming cultivators, stood in front of a stall.

The stall was crowded with people from all three races. A young man, who seemed to be a regular customer, said with dissatisfaction, "I'm not saying this to be mean, but you guys are setting up your stall later and later every day. How can you do business like this?"

The other stalls in the market had few customers before, so this one was the most bustling and attracted a lot of attention.

Upon hearing this, the male vendor couldn't help but show a somewhat complicated expression, but he refrained from speaking and simply said, "Tonight, I'm mainly preparing ingredients. All the immortals from Haori Mountain are here to show their support, so I need to prepare more."

"It's also because your pancakes are delicious. Not only are they delicious, they can also help with cultivation!" As he said this, the man's gaze swept over the two of them, and his expression showed some admiration. "I wonder where you got your secret recipe from."

Where is it?
It was taught by Master Yuan!
The male vendor poured the batter onto a round iron plate, spread it into a thin pancake shape with a wooden spatula, and then sprinkled various seasonings into it.

His movements were practiced, but his mind began to wander in confusion—how did I, a spy from Jiushan, become the tyrant of Haori Market?
The pancake recipe was taught by Yuan Zhenren. According to Yuan Zhenren herself, it was a product she had carefully developed after tasting most of the ingredients from the Nine Mountains Realm, the Hundred Immortals Alliance, and even the Xuanwei Realm, and combining them with several new seasonings researched by the Agricultural Academy.

It can be said that although the cost is not high, the selection of ingredients is the most rigorous and perfect, and it also has some medicinal functions—which are very beneficial to cultivators.

At first, they didn't believe it either.

Once they arrived at Haori Mountain, they had no choice but to believe.

When they joined the intelligence agency, everyone swore an oath to risk their lives for the Nine Mountains Sect.

Now it's finally come true. I'm so busy I feel like an animal, like I'm going to die.

In the distance, a middle-aged man walked slowly towards them. The male vendor paused, quickly put down the pancakes in his hand, and bowed to the man, saying, "Immortal Master Lu Yan!"

"Business is good?"

"May the immortals protect us."

Lu Yan glanced at the surrounding vendors, and they all suppressed the jealousy in their eyes, bowing and smiling obsequiously.

The male vendor took a paper bag from his pocket and handed it to Lu Yan solicitously, saying:

"My lord, this is something I made especially for you. It's still piping hot. It's a snack for the young master in the house."

Lu Yan reached out, took the paper bag in his hand, shook it, and squeezed it. The inside was hard and didn't look like a biscuit; instead, it showed the shape of spirit stones.

He nodded in satisfaction and laughed, "My unfilial son is just greedy; he wants to eat every day."

(End of this chapter)