Chapter 835
Blessed Land, [Earth Infant Fruit Tree]
"You look quite well, fellow Daoist."
"Your Highness, I have offended you in the past on the stage. Please forgive me."
"On the arena, even swords and spears have no eyes, so how can you speak of offense?" Zhao Yin said calmly.
"We should be on the arena today, and we must thank Your Highness for your leniency. I am unworthy of such a favor." Song Changsheng's words were not sarcastic, but came from the bottom of his heart.
On the stage, he was just an unknown nobody. Whether he won or lost, he felt no pressure. As an unknown, he was able to make it from the qualifying rounds to the finals and be the first to start the peak showdown. Even if he lost, he would still be the dark horse of this Five Academies Grand Competition.
You could say that from the moment he stepped into the ring, he had already won, in a different kind of way.
Zhao Yin is different. From childhood to adulthood, he has been surrounded by too many halos, and too many people have placed their hopes on him.
Therefore, in the eyes of most people, this competition was actually a foregone conclusion.
Losing a game with no suspense will shatter all previous glory and expectations, turning past honors into nightmares and bringing a tidal wave of backlash.
The immense sense of falling from the clouds is like an abyss, enough to swallow anyone whole.
Failure is often unacceptable because the public only likes the halo of invincibility and supreme honor.
Moreover, Zhao Yin was facing an opponent whose level was lower than his own. Given the aura he carried, admitting defeat would require immense courage.
If it were anyone else, they would probably choose to play another match to maintain their aura and status. After all, the first match was a draw, with both sides suffering heavy losses. A tiebreaker would be justifiable, and most people would recognize his victory, except for a few.
This is the best way to continue one's glory.
However, Zhao Yin readily admitted his defeat, his resolve so firm that he was no longer swayed by external things or gossip.
"It's not that I gave up, you earned all of this through your own strength, but your deceptive tricks won't work next time we fight."
Upon hearing this, Song Changsheng smiled slightly and said, "If there is another opportunity to fight with Your Highness, I will certainly not disappoint you."
The two players risked their lives and injuries on the field, yet now they were talking calmly like old friends, which was quite unexpected.
Just as Zhao Yin said, everything they did on the field was for the benefit of the forces behind them, and was not mixed with personal grudges.
Unfortunately, Long An clearly didn't understand this principle, and his gaze towards Song Changsheng was practically spitting fire.
It's ironic that Ji Liangyu was the one who kicked him out of the semi-finals, yet he harbored hostility towards Song Changsheng. Perhaps, in his eyes, Song Changsheng had stolen the glory that should have belonged to him.
"The five deans have arrived..."
With a loud shout from a guide official of the Great Zhen Immortal Dynasty, five True Lords descended from the sky side by side, clearly having met beforehand.
The old national advisor waved his whisk and stepped forward from the crowd, looking at everyone and saying, "His Majesty the King must attend to state affairs. This time, the five of us will open the Five Flowers Grotto Heaven."
Within the Five Flowers Grotto, the spiritual energy is abundant and the laws are plentiful. Cultivators below the Golden Core stage are prohibited from proceeding. The Zhulu Academy will arrange for instructors to give lectures to everyone.
The remaining cultivators, upon entering the Five Flowers Grotto-Heaven, must strictly follow the instructions and refrain from acting without authorization or making loud noises. Not a single blade of grass or tree may be damaged; violators will be severely punished.
"I will obey."
The old national teacher nodded slightly, then walked to the golden giant willow, looked up at its willow crown which was large enough to cover the sky and said, "I would like to trouble you, fellow Daoist, to open a spatial passage and send us to the Five Flowers Grotto Heaven."
Liu Zucan's golden branches swayed in the wind, with two exceptionally thick branches hanging down, forming an arch-like shape in front of everyone. The space in the center rippled as if a pebble had been thrown in.
"Om..."
The spatial passageway opened up before everyone.
This time, Song Changsheng finally understood something. This Liu Zu's mastery of the Dao of Space had reached an unimaginable level. He forcibly constructed a spatial portal with his own spatial Dao, which looked no different from a Nascent Soul True Monarch directly tearing through space to teleport, but the meaning was very different.
The spatial passageway it constructs is more stable, with the same effect as a spatial teleportation array. It does not require the escort of a True Monarch-level expert, making its superiority immediately apparent. It is not only the guardian of Zhulu Academy, but also the last line of defense for the academy's students.
Following the others, the group passed through the spatial passage in an orderly fashion and soon entered a completely unfamiliar world. Unlike the dark worlds of the other small worlds, the sky was a clear blue, and the sun shone brightly, bringing eternal light to this world.
In such an environment, a light drizzle was falling from the sky, and as far as the eye could see, everything was shrouded in mist, yet deep within that world, a pure white, hazy light emanated.
Song Changsheng reached out and caught some of the fine rain from the air. As soon as it touched his skin, it turned into pure spiritual energy and merged into his body.
"Spiritual energy transforms into rain..."
He closed his eyes and carefully sensed this world. The extremely dense power of the laws enveloped him completely, as if he were in the tide of laws. Apart from the time he created the world of laws, he had never had such a feeling.
The Wutong Small World is also a world containing surging laws, but the power there is chaotic and disordered, while the power here is orderly and more than ten times stronger.
It's no wonder that the Grand Master would keep cultivators below the Golden Core stage out of the area. Such an environment is indeed unbearable for them, but for cultivators above the Golden Core stage, this place is simply paradise!
As we all know, spiritual veins are indispensable for cultivators. A spiritual vein that matches one's cultivation level can make cultivation twice as effective with half the effort, and a higher-level spiritual vein can also significantly increase the speed of cultivation.
However, the highest level of a spiritual vein is only the fifth level, which is its upper limit and only corresponds to the Nascent Soul True Monarch realm of the human race. So how can cultivators at higher levels cultivate?
Besides roaming the heavens and directly absorbing the power of the laws, one can also improve cultivation efficiency by constructing a blessed land. To be precise, a blessed land and a grotto-heaven are two different concepts.
What lies before him now is a grotto-heaven, sufficient to satisfy the cultivation needs of cultivators at the Nascent Soul stage and below.
To construct a paradise requires a massive amount of precious spiritual materials and takes hundreds or even thousands of years to complete, and that's assuming there are enough materials.
Among the Nascent Soul level forces in the world, only one in a hundred can construct a treasure land. The Great Zhen Immortal Dynasty naturally possesses such resources. However, the one before us should be the result of the joint efforts of five major forces, in order to create a perfect living space for the precious [Earth Infant Fruit Tree].
And this is also the biggest secret behind the Earth Infant Fruit Tree's once-every-six-hundred-year ripening.
It should be noted that the growth cycle of most fourth-tier spiritual plants far exceeds six hundred years, and many third-tier spiritual plants are close to this cycle, such as the Yin-Yang Purple Tree, which is as long as five hundred years.
According to the normal growth cycle, it takes at least one or two thousand years for the [Earth Infant Fruit Tree] to mature. "If one could cultivate in such an environment for a long time, it would be a wonderful thing," Liu Yunxuan couldn't help but sigh. Although the Myriad Manifestations Palace had a profound foundation, it had not yet built a unique paradise of its own.
“If you cultivate for a long time, you will most likely get lost in the tide of laws. Do you think anyone can be like those two?” Gu Xueying gestured towards Song Changsheng and Zhao Yin.
Song Changsheng's mastery of the laws was no secret to the people of Wanxiang Palace. Among the contestants in the Five Academies Grand Competition, only Zhao Yin could surpass him, but in terms of numbers, he was far inferior to Song Changsheng.
They are all incredibly perceptive, but they focus on different aspects.
Only people like them can rapidly increase their strength while maintaining a clear mind when faced with the temptation and erosion of the power of the laws, and will not blindly pursue more power.
Even geniuses with unwavering Dao hearts, when immersed in a cultivation environment rich in the power of laws for a long time, will mostly try to come into contact with more of the power of laws. However, their comprehension and energy are far from sufficient to support this, and they will only fall into the dead end of trying to do too much at once.
The group followed behind the old national advisor, heading deeper into that world.
Along the way, the various rare and precious spiritual plants that were growing vigorously attracted a lot of attention, and even fourth-order spiritual plants were commonplace here.
It is said that these spiritual plants are the common property of the five major powers.
Under such circumstances, the fact that Bai Ding Ge can continue to decline is actually quite an achievement.
Soon, they arrived at the source of the light.
It was a tree, less than three zhang tall, crystal clear all over, as if carved from solid ice, and shrouded in a semi-transparent barrier.
Its branches bear twelve fist-sized fruits, and amazingly, each of these fruits is shaped like a baby, looking adorable, just like the legendary ginseng fruit.
Unlike the crystal-clear tree trunks and leaves, these fruits are a brilliant gold color, and the seemingly unrelated combination looks remarkably harmonious.
"This is... the Earth Infant Fruit Tree," Song Changsheng murmured softly.
Looking at all the fifth-tier spiritual plants in the world, the [Earth Infant Fruit Tree] is enough to rank in the top ten. The [Infant Formation Pill], which is made from it as the main ingredient, is sought after by countless people. If placed in a border region, even one of them would be enough to start a bloody war.
Even a powerful dynasty like the Great Zhen Immortal Dynasty could not monopolize a single Earth Infant Fruit Tree.
Song Changsheng and the others risked their lives for the sake of those small fruits on the branches, which represented the future of a certain power.
The five True Lords stepped forward together and each took out a waist token representing their respective academies. These waist tokens transformed into streams of light and converged directly above the fruit tree. Then, each of the five poured their magical power into them.
In an instant, the waist token shone brightly, projecting dazzling golden light. This golden light shone on the barrier, and the barrier covering the fruit tree slowly melted away.
The moment the barrier dissolved, a refreshing fruity fragrance spread, instantly invigorating everyone present.
A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, and the Earth Infant Fruit swayed gently on the branches, like a playful baby swinging on a swing.
The old Grand Preceptor stepped forward, held his whisk, bowed slightly to the Earth Infant Fruit Tree, and smiled, "In the blink of an eye, ten cycles of sixty years have passed. I would like to ask fellow Daoist to bestow upon me the fruit."
As soon as he finished speaking, the trunk of the Earth Infant Fruit Tree swayed slightly, and the twelve fruits on the branches fell one by one, which were steadily caught by the old national teacher with his whisk.
Clearly, this fruit tree, nourished by the spiritual energy and laws of countless years, has developed sentience. Perhaps, hundreds or thousands of years later, it will become another "Willow Ancestor".
How to continue their relationship at that time will undoubtedly be a difficult test for the five major powers.
"Thank you."
The old Grand Preceptor bowed respectfully and then said, "According to the final results of this Five Academies Grand Competition, the distribution plan for the [Earth Infant Fruit] is as follows."
With a flick of his whisk, four spiritual fruits landed in front of the other four True Lords.
He then gave three more to the Dragon Elephant True Lord, two more to the Tianshui Ji Clan and the Beast Taming Sect respectively, and kept the remaining two for the Imperial Preceptor himself.
Looking at the lone Earth Infant Fruit in his hand, and then at the four in Dragon Elephant True Monarch's hand, Thousand Refinement True Monarch sighed inwardly.
In this grand competition, the Myriad Manifestations Palace was undoubtedly the winner. It not only gained fame and recognition but also reaped the greatest benefits, taking away one-third of the twelve spirit fruits.
It is foreseeable that as long as the Myriad Palace does not experience any major changes in the future, its overall strength will surely take a leap forward, and other forces will also be able to develop steadily. Only the Hundred Cauldrons Pavilion will continue to decline.
As the youngest of the five major powers, it should have flourished like a young person, but unexpectedly, its peak period lasted so short.
Even though they were experts in pharmacology, they couldn't cure this "weak and sickly" condition.
Looking again at Li Chengye, who was dejected and seemed to have had his spine broken by the competition, he thought to himself, "Perhaps, we really should choose someone else..."
In contrast, Dragon Elephant True Monarch was overjoyed to be holding four Earth Infant Fruits, but he had to maintain a calm expression on the surface, which was quite a struggle for him.
Compared to their initial target of two, they doubled their goal, and all of this was achieved through Song Changsheng's sheer hard work and determination.
At this moment, he suddenly felt that Yi Tianzheng was being a bit petty. Such a precious treasure, winning the championship, and he only gave such a small benefit.
"I need to talk to the Palace Master about this when we get back. It's just too outrageous."
While people's joys and sorrows are not shared, for the five major powers, this is still a grand event that occurs only once every six hundred years.
The old Grand Preceptor smiled slightly and said, "Although the Five Academies Grand Competition has ended, there will be an exchange meeting and a Dao discussion meeting next. We gather once every six hundred years. Time waits for no one. This time may be our last farewell. I hope that everyone can do me the honor of attending and live up to our destiny."
As soon as he finished speaking, the trunk of the Earth Infant Fruit Tree behind him suddenly trembled violently, and dozens of crystal-clear leaves transformed into streams of light, shooting towards everyone present...
...(End of chapter)