Above the Great Dao

Chen Shi's heart was pounding wildly. He hurriedly followed Can'er towards the Imperial Garden: "I hope the Wu Qi that grows out isn't some kind of plant-human climbing up the Purple Tree!"

Hu Feifei was very curious and put down the memorial, following behind them.

In a moment, the three of them arrived at the Imperial Garden in the harem, only to see some vines hanging on the ancient Purple Tree. The hundreds of years old stump of the Purple Tree had already been drained and withered.

Looking up, Chen Shi saw a person hanging from the tree.

A completely naked person.

Hu Feifei screamed, quickly covered Can'er's eyes, picked her up, and hurriedly left as if fleeing.

Chen Shi looked up to observe; the man on the tree had a tall and well-proportioned physique, with delicate skin. Various strange Witch Sacrificial Dao Patterns appeared on the surface, they were the Dao Patterns of the Undying Immortal Method, but more intricate than those Chen Shi had seen before.

Chen Shi's heart stirred slightly: "I, Yang Bi, and Zhong Wuwang all comprehended the Undying Immortal Method, but what we comprehended only included the skeleton. The true Undying Immortal Method, however, grows flesh, organs, and features from the inside out, starting with the skeleton. But the physical body also has the Undying Immortal Method, which evolves from the skeletal Immortal Method! Only the Undying Immortal Method, which encompasses both skeleton and flesh, is complete!"

He regretted a bit inwardly. If he could stay here to observe the resurrection process of Wu Qi, he might gain the complete Undying Immortal Method!

The man hanging on the tree was middle-aged and handsome, though his eyes were closed, he exuded a noble and otherworldly aura, except for being unclothed.

His hair was disheveled and growing slowly, with a stalk on his forehead. It was a gourd stalk, fixed onto his head.

Chen Shi was stunned, leaped up, and touched Wu Qi's head.

The stalk indeed grew on Wu Qi's head. To be precise, Wu Qi grew from the stalk!

When the gourd ripens, the stalk falls off. A gourd is not a melon; once the stalk withers and turns yellow, the gourd is ripe and can be plucked.

Chen Shi's expression was peculiar; Wu Qi didn't grow from the soil or trail, which didn't bring him much relief.

"When plucking Wu Qi, there's definitely going to be a bald spot on the head."

Chen Shi steadied his mind, tentatively called out, "Wu Qi Dao Brother? Wu Qi Dao Brother? Can you hear what I'm saying?"

Wu Qi slowly opened his eyes, his gaze clear yet confused, looking around aimlessly.

Chen Shi called a few more times, and only then did Wu Qi focus his gaze on Chen Shi, his facial muscles slowly moved, forming a smile.

He opened his mouth and uttered his first word in this life.

"Grandpa!"

Chen Shi blinked, pondering over and over, feeling something was off.

"Xiaochengzi, Xiaochengzi!"

Xiaochengzi hurried over, "Your Majesty ordered."

"Find him some clothes."

Chen Shi instructed, "Make sure they fit well and look nice. Also, assign a few people to keep an eye on him and see when he matures. Report to me anytime!"

Xiaochengzi acknowledged and quickly left.

"Grandpa, Grandpa!" Wu Qi called out.

Chen Shi stood beneath the vines, after a moment, shook his head and left, thinking, "The Undying Immortal Method is a peerless art created by Wu Qi melding the Witch Sacrificial Dao Patterns and the Three Pure Ones Dao Skill. This Cultivation Technique first restores the physical body. Once the body is restored, the memory recovers. Wu Qi might only have recovered some childhood memories, taking me for his grandpa. When he matures, on the day the gourd ripens and the stalk falls off, he will regain all his memories, no need to worry."

He took out the Purple Heaven Gourd, inside was a gourd seed.

"Where should this gourd seed be planted?"

Chen Shi was a bit troubled, Lady Houtu said the greatest use of the Purple Heaven Vine is to gather nature's spiritual energy and convert it into Taiqing Purple Qi. The best planting location is undoubtedly in his Void Great Realm, but Lady also said that the Purple Heaven Immortal Monarch made this mistake, because the Great Realm is in the void where spiritual energy is thin, thus the converted Taiqing Purple Qi is insufficient.

If planted in Xinxiang Imperial City, if faced with external enemies, they would certainly covet the Purple Heaven Vine, even drawing many unnecessary foes.

——From the degree of importance Lady and the Purple Heaven Immortal Monarch placed on the Purple Heaven Vine, this treasure is likely invaluable. Carelessly planting it might even bring catastrophe to the West Bull New Continent.

"The Purple Heaven Vine needs fertile soil to root, or one could refine a piece of fertile soil into a treasure that can be carried around. This way, the Purple Heaven Vine can be kept at hand. The amount of Taiqing Purple Qi converted by the Purple Heaven Vine can even determine whether a place is a Holy Land."

Chen Shi blinked, land capable of planting the Purple Heaven Vine would certainly be extraordinary, ordinary soil probably couldn't sustain or grow the Purple Heaven Vine at all.

"Lady said that the Fusang Tree in the Xuanhuang Sea grows from the belly of the Golden Crow. The Golden Crow is fertile soil, thus supporting such an astonishing Divine Tree. Could it be that planting the Purple Heaven Vine also requires finding a similar power corpse for planting?"

He immediately rejected this idea, as no such immortal corpse could be found in West Bull New Continent. Even killing a Heavenly Venerate might not be enough to plant the Purple Heaven Vine.

Moreover, planting on a corpse, during the offering, it might even raise the corpse together, which would be truly terrifying.

"I am not of the Demon Path, how could I do such a thing?"

After pondering, Chen Shi went to Gao Gang to request an audience with Lady Houtu, thinking, "Lady is named Houtu, surely she will have a solution."

Liu Daoist saw him coming from afar and showed a look of anticipation. Chen Shi braced himself and approached, giving a formal salute, "Liu Daoist, please inform them that their foster son has come to visit."

Liu Daoist acknowledged but did not move, saying, "Your Majesty, about those three willow leaves of this humble Daoist..."

Chen Shi said, "Did you remember what I said before? No? Then I'll put it simply, which two things should I say? After thinking it over, I feel these two words are most appropriate. If there's a need to add to them later, I will. So..."

Liu Daoist looked at him in bewilderment as he walked under the tree and entered Houde Palace.

"I just want to get my willow leaves back..."

He murmured, "True King Chen wouldn't just take them from me, would he? He wouldn't..."

Chen Shi entered the palace and breathed a sigh of relief. Lady Houtu was still paging through an account book, and Chen Shi noticed it seemed to be getting thicker.

"Your Majesty is bullying little Liu again."

Lady Houtu looked up, half-smiling, and said, "The magical treasure he painstakingly refined, you should return it to him, lest he keeps on chattering about you. He's quite pitiful, rooted here, unable to leave, having to rely on this palace's incense to get by. He's not skilled in anything else, with only three leaves, yet you bear to take them?"

Chen Shi said, embarrassed, "It's not that I don't want to return them, but those three leaves were burned to bits by the Purple Heaven Immortal Monarch's magical treasure. I nearly fell into the Purple Heaven myself. Now I am empty-handed and don't know how to repay him. I do have another immortal artifact, but I fear it's not as good as his willow leaves."

Lady Houtu pondered briefly and said, "Just return him three strands of Taiqing Purple Qi."

Chen Shi smiled and said, "Godmother, I came for this very matter. May I ask, godmother, how should this gourd seed be planted?"

Lady Houtu laughed, "Just plant it in the soil."

Chen Shi said, "I fear the soil in the mortal world may not support such an immortal plant's growth."

Lady Houtu laughed, "The yellow earth here can grow anything. Just take it and plant."

Chen Shi was elated.

Lady Houtu said, "Once you grow the Purple Heaven Vine, you must return little Liu three strands of Taiqing Purple Qi as soon as possible. Go now, and call little Liu in for me. I'll explain to him to avoid him fixating on you."

Chen Shi bowed in thanks and walked out of Houde Palace. Before Liu Daoist could speak, he said, "Liu Daoist, Lady Houtu calls you in."

Liu Daoist had to swallow his words and enter Houde Palace.

Chen Shi left Gao Gang and returned to the mortal world, heading straight for Yellow Earth Slope.

Liu Daoist entered Houde Palace. Lady Houtu said to him, "Little Liu, His Majesty did not intend to keep your willow leaves. He encountered danger while doing tasks for this palace and used your Heavenly Immortal Triple Extremes Formation to block the Immortal Monarch's magical treasure, which was completely destroyed. He feels indebted to you and thus did not dare to speak of it. I just reprimanded him and asked him to compensate you. He agreed, once he grows the Purple Heaven Vine, he will present you with the first three strands of Taiqing Purple Qi, repaying the Heavenly Immortal Triple Extremes Formation."

Liu Daoist felt a sense of loss, very sorrowful.

This set of treasures, after all, took him hundreds or thousands of years to refine, and now being destroyed left him dejected.

Lady Houtu smiled and said, "Don't fret over losses and gains. This Taiqing Purple Qi is extraordinary. You were originally just an ordinary willow tree, and only gained Dao because you were planted in front of my temple, but your innate talent is too poor, ultimately hard to transcend, and there will be calamities for you in the future, not necessarily passable. His Majesty gifting you three strands of Taiqing Purple Qi would be enough to transform you, far surpassing before, and perhaps during tribulations, you'll be able to safeguard your life."

Liu Daoist was both surprised and delighted, quickly giving thanks.

The Lady laughed and said, "Thank me for what? It is His Majesty who wishes to repay you; if thanks are in order, thank him."

Liu Daoist agreed, smiling and said, "Next time I meet His Majesty, I will certainly thank him."

Lady Houtu waved her hand, and Liu Daoist departed.

Lady Houtu continued to look through the old ledger, softly saying, "West Bull New Continent, coming here was the right choice. This foster son, lively and vibrant, full of energy, can help me activate these stagnant old accounts collected over many years, and send these grudges on their way!"

Chen Shi arrived at Yellow Earth Slope. This yellow earth was immovable by anyone; Chen Shi had tried before, unable to shovel or carry any away. This time with Lady Houtu's permission, shoveling and cultivating was much easier.

Before long, Chen Shi had shoveled a five-foot-square block of earth and, full of excitement, planted the gourd seed.

"It's a pity there's no Dao Spring, otherwise after planting, watering it with some Dao Spring would surely help the Purple Heaven Vine to take root and sprout quickly... Eh?"

Chen Shi looked at the soil in surprise, seeing a small bump rising on the five-foot-square block of earth, something beneath the soil seemed to be pushing, soon lifting the soil block and revealing two tender sprouts.

"Growing so fast?"

As soon as Chen Shi thought of this, he suddenly felt nature's spiritual energy gathering from the direction of Qianyang Mountain!

He stood on Yellow Earth Slope, right beside Qianyang Mountain, and felt the spiritual energy in nature becoming increasingly rich, swarming into this tender sprout, even forming paths of rosy clouds!

"Is the Purple Heaven Vine really this powerful?"

Chen Shi looked back but saw no rosy clouds, and the spiritual energy in nature was quite sparse.

"No, it's the spiritual energy of Qianyang Mountain, it's too abundant!" His heart was slightly shaken.

Meanwhile, in Houde Palace, Lady Houtu was also startled, looking in the direction of Qianyang Mountain.

"Such abundant spiritual energy in nature... is this really a barren place ?" She stood up, showing a look of amazement.