Spirit Plant Entry: Immortality Begins with Farming

The third day, before sunrise.

The silver light of a star falling to the bottom of the lake shines most purely in the darkest hour before dawn.

Light shines through the center of the lake, turning the entire lake into a huge, luminous sapphire, and the silver sand on the shore is edged with a cold silver.

Lieyun lay on the beach, its pale golden skeleton gleaming warmly in the lake's light. Along the edge of its right wing, on the newly formed, still somewhat fragile joints, was a thick layer of silvery-blue paste—crushed star-frost moss mixed with lake water. The paste was hissing, emitting very faint white steam; with each rise, the bone's color deepened, and its texture became more substantial.

"It itches," Lieyun muttered, its wings twitching unconsciously. "It feels like ants are crawling inside my bones."

"It's growing." Chen Yuan sat cross-legged beside it, eyes closed, his voice calm. "Endure it."

On the sand before him, the ceramic pot was no longer visible—completely covered by the wildly spreading mutated starfrost moss. The purplish-gold moss carpet was now the size of a tabletop, thickly spread out, and at the center of each clump of moss was a brighter, heart-beat-like, flickering core of light.

In the very center of the moss carpet, the blood ginseng had grown to the size of a fist, its surface interwoven with silver and purple-gold patterns forming a complex array that rose and fell slowly with each breath.

A thick, translucent, purplish-gold main root pierced the sand from its base, penetrating deep into the earth and firmly connecting with the earth's spiritual energy flow fifteen feet below.

The "thump...thump..." heartbeat coming from underground became deeper and slower.

Like a giant who has eaten and drunk his fill and is fast asleep wrapped in a thick blanket.

Bai Zhi sat by the lake, her moss-covered sword resting across her lap.

She didn't practice swordsmanship; she simply closed her eyes, a silver-blue light flowing beneath her eyelids, using her "eyes of keen observation" to observe the flow of spiritual energy throughout the valley.

After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, she opened her eyes. The silver-blue rings around the edges of her pupils were clearly visible, no longer appearing and disappearing as before.

"It's stable," she said softly, as if afraid of waking something. "The spiritual energy circulation is 30% more stable than yesterday. The mountain spirit's 'consciousness fluctuations'... are almost undetectable. It's sleeping soundly."

Chen Yuan opened his eyes, a hint of fatigue flashing in them, but more than that, a solid sense of relief.

Three days.

The last blackened cracks in the meridians were completely smoothed out by the pale golden life force.

The newly formed meridians are wider and stronger than before, like a river channel that has been dredged again after a flood.

The five stars in the sea of ​​consciousness rotated as steadily as if they were permanently attached to the spot. Even the azure vortex representing the split clouds had grown larger, and the wind it generated as it rotated made the entire sea of ​​consciousness more "transparent".

The price was that 70% of that box of Star Frost Moss was used up.

He carefully stored the remaining 30% in another jade box and left it untouched.

"Should we go?" Lieyun raised his head and tried to fan his right wing—"Whoosh!" The wind he generated was much stronger and more powerful than it had been three days ago, and a layer of silver sand on the beach was swept up, like a small sandstorm.

The itching in the bones transformed into a solid, powerful ache. The new bone tissue had fully grown, fusing seamlessly with the old skeleton, its color becoming a deeper, almost reddish-gold hue. As the air currents and feathers unfurled, a surge of azure light flowed like a mighty river, its power astonishing.

Chen Yuan didn't answer, but instead put his hand on his chest.

It wasn't near the heart, but slightly to the left—there, under the skin, was a very faint, bluish-green mark, like a curled-up vine leaf.

That was the last bit of "origin" left in his body when Qingyuan Vine sacrificed itself.

For the past three days, as his injuries have healed and his meridians have become unblocked, the mark has been slightly warm.

Especially at night, when the spiritual energy of Xingzhui Lake is at its peak, it feels as hot as if it's about to burn.

He hadn't paid attention to it before. First, he needed to prioritize healing his wounds, and second... he didn't know what to do with it.

The Azure Vine is already "dead." It was sacrificed, its soul scattered, leaving only this little bit of its essence, like a seed that will never sprout, stuck in its flesh and blood.

but now……

Chen Yuan looked at the purple-gold moss carpet, then at the surging earth vein spiritual flow beneath it, and finally at the pure silver light in the center of the lake.

A thought, like a vine breaking through the soil, grew wildly.

"Rift Cloud," he said.

"Um?"

"You just said your bones were itchy, like ants were crawling on them?"

"Yes." Lieyun replied, puzzled. "What's wrong?"

"That's a good thing." Chen Yuan stood up, walked to the lakeside, squatted down, and put his hand into the cold lake water. "It means it's growing. As long as there are enough 'nutrients,' even inanimate objects can come back to life, and even remains can... sprout new buds."

Bai Zhi turned to look at him: "What do you want to do?"

Chen Yuan did not answer directly.

He took his hand out of the lake, water dripping from his fingertips, and drew a circle on the silvery sand.

"The Azure Vine, an ancient spiritual plant. I'll remember. It releases a weak but continuous amount of wood spiritual energy, and it's compatible with the earth's veins. Each mature plant can release the equivalent of 0.3 low-grade spirit stones of wood spiritual energy daily, within a range of three feet."

"Three cents," Chen Yuan repeated, "low-grade spirit stones."

He paused, then looked up at the sky above the valley, tinged pale purple by the morning light:

"What if it's not 'releasing spiritual energy,' but 'condensing spiritual energy'? What if it's not just releasing, but also compressing and solidifying the absorbed spiritual energy within the body, like a pearl forming in an oyster or fruiting on a tree, to form... a 'spirit stone crystal'?"

Lieyun's single eye suddenly widened.

Bai Zhi's breathing faltered.

"Impossible!" Lieyun was the first to object. "Spirit stones are creations of heaven and earth, naturally condensed from spiritual veins over millions of years. Spirit plants? At most, they store spiritual energy; how could they possibly 'generate' spirit stones on their own?"

"Why not?" Chen Yuan countered. "Blood ginseng can transform the blood energy of the earth's veins, and star frost moss can solidify the condensed dew of the earth's veins. The essence of the Azure Vine is a dual affinity between 'wood' and 'earth.' Wood governs growth, and earth governs bearing. If you give it an environment with extremely rich spiritual energy and extremely active earth veins, and then guide its growth direction so that it doesn't release excess spiritual energy, but instead directs it to a specific part, layer by layer, compressing and enveloping it..."

He looked at the greenish-blue mark on his chest:

"Could it think that it is 'producing a result'? And that 'result' just happens to be... the solid form of spiritual energy?"

Bai Zhi held the sword, her fingers unconsciously stroking the hilt: "...Theoretically, there's a one in ten thousand chance. But the Qingyuan Vine is dead, only a trace of its essence remains. How are you going to 'guide' it?"

Chen Yuan pointed to the purple-gold moss carpet beneath his feet:

Use this.

He walked back to the edge of the mossy carpet, sat cross-legged, and held his hands above the blood ginseng.

"The Blood Ginseng is now my symbiotic organism. It takes root in the earth's veins, absorbing and transforming spiritual energy to nourish the Starfrost Moss. And the gentle spiritual energy released by the Starfrost Moss, carrying my aura, soothes the mountain spirits." Chen Yuan's voice was steady, as if stating a proven fact. "So, what if I use the Blood Ginseng as a 'bridge' and the Starfrost Moss's spiritual energy as 'nutrients,' to graft the essence of the Azure Vine onto this symbiotic system, like grafting a branch?"

The wings of the Cloud Splitter suddenly unfolded completely:

"You want to plant another tree within the formation meant to appease the mountain spirits?! A tree that can 'generate' spirit stones?!"

"It's not a tree," Chen Yuan corrected. "It's a 'crystallizer.' A living tool that can automatically and continuously convert the earth's spiritual energy into spirit stones."

He closed his eyes.

In the sea of ​​consciousness, five stars lit up simultaneously.

The pale gold stars stabilize the essence of life.

The power of the silvery-white starlight seeped downwards, precisely locking onto a surging, milky-white spiritual stream fifteen feet underground—not the main stream, but a tiny branch clinging to it. The branch's spiritual energy concentration was only one-tenth that of the main stream, but it was gentler, "younger," and easier to guide.

The emerald green starlight resonated with the silvery-purple-gold patterns on the surface of the blood ginseng.

The green mark on Chen Yuan's chest began to heat up and wriggle, like a seed that had finally felt the spring rain and was desperately trying to break through the soil.

But he didn't let it come out directly.

He controlled the blood ginseng's root system, moving it slowly beneath the sand like the most skillful needle, piercing the tiny branch. It wasn't a forceful puncture, but rather a close embrace, a wrapping, a symbiotic relationship. The roots spread out like a net, gently gathering around the branch, beginning a slow and steady extraction of spiritual energy.

The spiritual energy drawn up is not directly injected into the source of the Azure Vine.

Instead, it first flows through the blood ginseng itself, where it is "dyed" by its symbiotic network—tainted with the aura of Chenyuan and the gentle characteristics of Star Frost Moss.

Then, guided by Chen Yuan, this purplish-gold, warm and jade-like spiritual energy flowed "pouring" onto the green mark on his chest.

The moment the first wisp of spiritual energy touched the mark—

hum!

Chen Yuan's body jolted violently!

It wasn't pain, but an extreme, almost dizzying feeling of "fullness" that exploded from my chest and instantly spread throughout my body! Like a riverbed that had been dry for a hundred years suddenly being flooded! The green imprint "came alive," twisting, expanding, and stretching wildly! It greedily devoured the purple-gold spiritual energy, and with each gulp, the color deepened and the shape became clearer!

Three breaths later, the mark was no longer flat.

It bulged out, like a bluish-green mole growing under the skin. Then, the mole broke through the skin—not a bloody bud, but a slender, tender, translucent bluish-green vine, its tip curled up like a shy antenna.

After the vines emerged from the skin, they did not grow haphazardly.

It "smelled" the scent of the purple-gold moss carpet beneath its feet, the aroma of blood ginseng, and the call of the branch of the spiritual vein underground.

Then, it "lowered its head" and, as if consciously, slowly and firmly planted itself towards the main root of the blood ginseng!

puff.

Tiny roots pierce the sand and moss, gently touching, entwining, and merging with the robust main root of the blood ginseng.

Like blood relatives separated for many years, finally reunited.

boom--

The entire purple-gold moss carpet suddenly shone with a burst of light!

The blood ginseng body throbbed violently, and the array patterns on its surface flowed at an unprecedented speed!

The underground branch of the spiritual vein, which was wrapped up, was being forcefully drawn out as if by a water pump, and the speed of the spiritual energy flow suddenly increased!

The newly sprouted green vines began to grow, thicken, and branch at a speed visible to the naked eye!

One main vine, three side branches, and nine tender leaves.

The leaves are not ordinary green, but a crystal clear cyan, like jade carving, with purple-gold light flowing in the veins, and with each breath, they bring subtle ripples of spiritual energy.

Ten breaths. Twenty breaths. Thirty breaths.

The vines grew to a foot tall and then stopped growing vertically.

Then, at the top, where the main vine connects to the side branch, a small, bluish-gold bud swells up.

The bud was initially only the size of a grain of rice, but as the vines continued to absorb the purple-gold spiritual energy, it began to expand slowly but steadily.

The size of a soybean. The size of a fingernail. The size of a walnut.

When it grows to the size of a walnut, the surface of the bud begins to crystallize—not into a hard stone, but into a warm, translucent jade-like substance, with a purple-gold halo slowly rotating inside, like a miniature starry sky sealed inside.

The beak of the cloud split open, forgetting to close it.

Bai Zhi gripped the sword, her knuckles turning white.

Large beads of sweat appeared on Chen Yuan's forehead, and his face was pale, but his eyes were frighteningly bright.

He could "see"—from the perspective of the "Eye of the Microscopic," an astonishing transformation was taking place inside that cyan-gold bud: a massive amount of purplish-gold spiritual energy was being drawn from the earth's veins by the vines and poured into the bud, where it was then forcibly compressed, layered, and solidified under the influence of some innate laws belonging to "wood" and "earth."

One layer, and another.

Like a shell nurturing a pearl, like a tree forming annual rings.

The concentration and purity of each layer of solidified spiritual energy far exceed those of ordinary low-grade spirit stones!

As the "Spirit Crystal Bud" took shape, the connection between the entire Azure Vine and the earth's veins became more and more stable, and the efficiency of extracting spiritual energy increased by another ten percent.

Furthermore, the vines themselves begin to release a strange, gentle woody aura, mixed with a faint, sweet herbal fragrance, which spreads out.

This spiritual energy is not domineering or scorching; it's like a spring breeze, gently brushing across the beach, the lake, and the cave walls, and then... seeping into the mountain.

The deep, slow "thump...thump..." heartbeat underground suddenly paused.

Then, it jumped halfway.

It wasn't the beating of someone waking up, but rather... a satisfied, languid "Hmm?", like someone in their sleep smelling the aroma of their favorite food and unconsciously smacking their lips.

The waters of Starfall Lake rippled gently.

The silvery light in the center of the lake softened a bit.

The crystals on the cave walls warmed up by one degree.

Even the taut strings in the air disappeared completely, replaced by a relaxed and pleasant tranquility.

The mountain spirit was not awakened.

It seems... to prefer it the way it is now.

Lieyun finally regained its voice. It stared at the emerald-like vine, at the bluish-gold bud at its tip, its voice hoarse:

"...When will that thing be 'cooked'?"

Chen Yuan took a breath and wiped the sweat from his forehead:

"At this rate, at least one can be formed per day."

"How much is one... worth?"

Chen Yuan estimated the concentration and total amount of spiritual energy inside the bud:

"At least... five low-grade spirit stones. Moreover, they are 'Wood Spirit Crystals' that have the wood attribute, are extremely gentle, and can be directly absorbed without refining."

Dead silence.

Then, Lieyun let out a suppressed, almost groaning sigh:

"Hold……"

Its wings went limp, and it lay back down on the beach, its single eye fixed on the Qingyuan Vine:

"Five yuan a day...fifty yuan for ten days...one hundred and fifty yuan a month...Chen Yuan, do we...not have to keep going?"

Chen Yuan didn't answer, but just looked at Bai Zhi.

Bai Zhi took a deep breath, closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, the silver-blue halo in her pupils was stable and bright.

"The mountain spirit's 'pleasure index'... has risen." She gave a precise description, "It has an almost 'addictive' fondness for the woody spiritual energy released by the Azure Vine. Now its desire to sleep is at least five times stronger than it was three days ago."

She paused, then looked at Chen Yuan:

"This is probably the safest place in the entire southern Xinjiang region."

Chen Yuan finally, slowly, exhaled the breath that had been stuck in his chest.

He lay down on the beach, the warm, silvery sand beneath him, the sky beginning to lighten, and beneath that sky, an emerald-like vine with a bluish-gold bud slowly growing at its tip.

"I'm not leaving," he said.

Lieyun twitched its wings, but did not object.

Bai Zhi placed the moss-covered sword beside her and lay down like Chen Yuan, looking at the sky.

The morning light finally tore through the night, and golden light poured in from the eastern mountain pass, sprinkling on the lake, the beach, and the two people, the vulture, and the vine.