Chapter 288: Green Wood Forest (For the Silver Alliance Leader)
Chapter 288: Green Wood Forest (For the Silver Alliance Leader)
Green Wood Forest.
This place was the sacred land of the State of Mu, not only boasting a superior-grade, third-order spirit vein, but also surrounded by exotic flowers and rare plants blooming everywhere, competing in splendor and radiating countless hues.
Especially a patch of 'Evergreen Trees', lush and verdant, formed a forest.
This kind of spirit wood was merely ordinary after a few decades.
But once its age exceeded a hundred years, it would become a second-order spirit wood.
The spirit wood within the Evergreen Tree Forest was mostly first-order, with a small portion reaching second-order.
Even thousand-year-old, third-order Evergreen Trees were not considered rare.
The main material for Fang Xi's original 'Green Reaping Sword' was precisely this type of spirit wood!
On this day.
A streak of light, carrying the spiritual energy fluctuations of a Foundation Establishment cultivator, arrived outside the thin green mist and sent out a transmission talisman.
The light receded, revealing a young man with an ordinary appearance and an early Foundation Establishment cultivation.
It was none other than Fang Xi, who had altered his appearance using the Blurring Pearl and a secret art!
Not long after, the mist parted, and a Foundation Establishment-level escape light flew out to greet him, followed by a hearty laugh: "Nephew Cao. . . you've finally succeeded in Foundation Establishment."
"Uncle Zheng. . ."
Upon seeing this person, Fang Xi immediately cupped his fists and bowed, his demeanor extremely respectful.
"Good, good indeed. . ."
'Uncle Zheng' was around mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation; he appraised Fang Xi a few times, then sighed with emotion: "Back when your brother Cao and I explored that ancient cultivator's cave-dwelling together, he blocked that vicious curse for me. . . From then on, our bond was one of life and death. When Brother Cao perished, I was still very saddened. Before, when you wrote to me saying you had purchased a Foundation Establishment spiritual item in the black market and were preparing to break through to Foundation Establishment, I wrote back telling you to wait a little longer, nephew. . . I wanted to find a way within the sect – a genuine Foundation Establishment Pill was impossible to find, but there was still hope for an inferior one. I never expected you, my nephew, to succeed in Foundation Establishment in one go. . . ”
As Uncle Zheng spoke, his tone was deeply emotional: "If Brother Cao knew from the underworld, he would surely be overjoyed. . ."
Upon hearing this, Fang Xi also put on a sorrowful expression.
Currently, he was named 'Cao Chong Yun', and was the virtuous nephew of this Green Wood Sect Foundation Establishment deacon, 'Zheng Tie'.
His father was also a Foundation Establishment cultivator, who had been a sworn brother with Zheng Tie in their early years, but later perished in the Ethereal Valley Sect's invasion war. . .
In reality. . . all of this was naturally false!
Fang Xi followed Zheng Tie and entered the Green Wood Forest's mountain-protecting grand array, his heart still filled with emotion:
'Who would have thought. . . that the Situ Clan's meticulous efforts would ultimately become a wedding dress for me. . . '"
Not only was his current 'Cao Chong Yun' identity fake, but in reality, the original 'Cao Chong Yun' and his father were also fake!
All of this was a scheme Situ Qing Qing devised after retreating with her people into the State of Mu.
This woman knew deeply that demonic cultivators had no foundation in the Three Kingdoms; even if they gained temporary advantage, they would ultimately need to prepare three burrows like a cunning rabbit.
Among these 'burrows', she planned to place one within the Green Wood Sect!
This was called 'darkness under the lamp'!
'Cao Chong Yun' and his father were both disguised demonic cultivators from the Situ Clan, and even. . . the ancient cultivator's cave-dwelling where Zheng Tie formed a bond with them, was personally set up by the Situ Clan. . .
The so-called 'blocking of the vicious curse for him' was nothing more than a play they had directed and performed themselves.
Thanks to Situ Qing Qing's 'Illusion Spirit Root', doing such things was truly seamless.
These inside details were all recorded on a jade slip in Situ Qing Qing's storage bag.
Fang Xi even found 'Cao Chong Yun's' human skin among that pile of demonic path materials!
It seemed it was specifically for performing the 'Human Puppet Art'.
Although he couldn't use the Human Puppet Art, materializing Cao Chong Yun's appearance from the human skin and then impersonating this person posed no great difficulty.
After reading the various 'settings' in the jade slip, impersonating 'Cao Chong Yun' was also not very difficult.
After all, this person's parents were both rogue cultivators and had few friends.
His only 'uncle', Zheng Tie, only met him once every few years, and all crucial information had been noted.
Situ Qing Qing hadn't actually decided who would play the role; she had merely planned to send the Situ Clan's next young Foundation Establishment cultivator into the sect with a new identity.
As such, Fang Xi felt that he could also make use of these conditions for himself, and so he unceremoniously took Cao Chong Yun's identity.
After disguising himself, he gracefully arrived at the Green Wood Sect.
The two of them, one following the other, entered the Green Wood Sect's interior.
The moment he entered, Fang Xi felt a wave of pure spiritual energy wash over him, carrying a rich, vibrant essence of flora, and his face brightened with delight: "What rich spirit vein energy. . ."
"This is just the beginning? Our Green Wood Sect's spirit vein is the best among the Three Kingdoms!"
Zheng Tie said: "Among your spirit roots, the wood attribute is the most prominent. . . I had previously suggested to your father to send you to the Green Wood Sect for cultivation. . . Alas, let's not dwell on it. ”
Fang Xi naturally knew that Cao Chong Yun's persona was that of a superior-grade wood spirit root, considered quite talented.
After all, while the Green Wood Sect possessed various cultivation methods, it specialized more in wood-attribute cultivation methods.
However, it was too risky for a child to enter the Green Wood Sect; they were easily brainwashed, and it would be difficult to properly utilize the 'Human Puppet Art'.
The two arrived at Zheng Tie's cave-dwelling, and Fang Xi discovered that the spiritual energy of the spirit vein here was actually much richer than that of Dragon Fish Island.
In front of the cave-dwelling, there were also a few acres of spirit fields, filled with spirit plants.
"Haha. . . Nephew, look, this spirit field was allocated by the sect when your uncle established his cave-dwelling after Foundation Establishment, and I've planted various spirit plants in it; they now have fifty years of maturity. . . ”
"Nourished by the third-order spirit vein's energy, the spirit plants' growth rate is naturally much faster. . . ”
Zheng Tie said proudly: "These spirit plants are still considered to have shallow maturity. . . If you were to visit the core area, or even take a look at the Ancestor's spirit plant garden, the sight there. . . tsk tsk. . . ”
When he mentioned Lu Qing, he suddenly fell silent again.
Fang Xi took the opportunity to change the topic: "Your humble nephew has just succeeded in Foundation Establishment, and only has talisman arts to rely on. Now I don't know what path to take? ”
"The cultivation city in White Peace Immortal City is gone, which is indeed a problem for rogue Foundation Establishment cultivators."
Zheng Tie took a sip of spirit tea, his demeanor unhurried.
He had the appearance of a middle-aged man, with a face like jade, dressed in a green robe. He must have been a handsome man in his youth, and even now, he still looked quite charming: "So, what are your intentions, nephew? Do you wish to establish a Foundation Establishment-level force, or perhaps found a family? If so, I can make arrangements for you. . ."
After all, after the Ethereal Valley Sect's invasion, the major Foundation Establishment forces in the State of Mu suffered heavy losses.
There were still opportunities for second-order spirit veins.
"No. . . I am wholeheartedly devoted to the Dao; neither wishing to be the head of a force, nor to take wives and concubines to establish a family. . . ”
Fang Xi shook his head: "May I ask if your humble nephew can join the sect? ”
"Haha, nephew, you are truly wise, of course you can! " Zheng Tie patted his chest: "With your uncle vouching for you, this sect will surely treat you as one of our own. . . ""
"Many thanks, Uncle!"
Fang Xi bowed gratefully, overjoyed, then asked about the procedures and some taboos, especially concerning cave-dwellings.
The Situ Clan had actually investigated these matters quite thoroughly, but Fang Xi still decided to inquire further.
"In our Green Wood Sect, the best cave-dwellings are naturally reserved as tribute for Patriarch Lu. . . Besides that, there are a few superior-grade, third-order cave-dwellings, to be supplied to a few Foundation Establishment Perfected cultivators who are Core Formation seeds. . . ”
Zheng Tie said: "The remaining mid-grade and low-grade third-order cave-dwellings. . . can be allocated to Foundation Establishment deacons like us. This portion of cave-dwellings was originally somewhat insufficient; if you had come earlier, nephew, you might have even been assigned to a superior-grade, second-order cave-dwelling. . . But now, you can choose freely, though it's best to give the Affairs Hall some benefits, after all, even if you pass the cave-dwelling stage, you'll still have to deal with those people regularly for miscellaneous tasks. . . ”
Fang Xi understood.
Before the great war in the cultivation world of the Three Kingdoms, the Green Wood Sect had many Foundation Establishment cultivators, and many rogue Foundation Establishment cultivators from outside also joined, so naturally there weren't enough third-order spirit vein cave-dwellings to go around.
Now, however, many Foundation Establishment cultivators had died or been wounded, and even the Green Wood Sect's Ancestor was about to pass away, making it a precarious time. Given how astute and cautious rogue cultivators must be to reach Foundation Establishment, the number of people joining naturally decreased significantly.
Wouldn't resources and cave-dwellings become vacant then?
Immediately, Zheng Tie led Fang Xi all the way to the Green Wood Sect's Affairs Hall.
From the outside, the Affairs Hall appeared extremely conspicuous; it was a massive wooden palace with a spacious plaza surrounding it.
Numerous Green Wood Sect Qi Refinement disciples gathered on the plaza, staring at a colossal jade screen, on which various missions, along with their rewards, were updated in real-time.
As Foundation Establishment cultivators, the two naturally didn't need to wait in the plaza, and directly entered the palace.
"Senior Brother Zheng, what wind has blown you here? ”
After a disciple announced them, not long after, a person emerged to greet them: a long-bearded old Daoist in a green robe.
"Junior Brother Qian!"
Zheng Tie introduced with a smile: "This 'Cao Chong Yun' is my nephew; his background is clear, and after successfully achieving Foundation Establishment, he specifically came to join our Green Wood Sect!"
"So it's Daoist Cao. . . " Old Daoist Qian's eyes lit up, and he cupped his hands to Fang Xi with a smile: "It seems not long from now, I'll be able to call you Junior Brother Cao. Please, both of you, come inside. . . Conveniently, there's another cultivator who has just reached Foundation Establishment and wishes to join our Green Wood Sect; we can handle it all together."
"Oh? Who is it? ”
Zheng Tie followed Old Daoist Qian inside, while asking.
"It's a rogue cultivator named 'Tie Jiu', a genius who successfully established his Foundation on his own, recommended by Senior Brother Fu. . . ""
Old Daoist Qian replied with a smile.
"Someone who established his Foundation on his own? I've heard of this person before; he's a pretty good battle cultivator. . . ”
Zheng Tie chuckled.
A 'battle cultivator', as it was called, naturally referred to a cultivator who wasn't proficient in other crafts, but only specialized in combat.
The Green Wood Sect, as a sect of this type, was also very welcoming to such individuals; after all, battle cultivators frequently engaged in combat on the edge of life and death, making their cultivation breakthroughs relatively easier.
Fang Xi and Zheng Tie followed Old Daoist Qian into the inner chamber, where they saw two Foundation Establishment cultivators seated. One was an early Foundation Establishment cultivator, with a saber scar on his face, his expression fierce.
As for the other person?
Fang Xi had seen him not long ago; it was precisely that late Foundation Establishment cultivator with the monkey-faced masked figure!
"Senior Brother Fu. . ."
Zheng Tie quickly bowed, after all, the other party was a powerful late Foundation Establishment cultivator: "Last time I heard Senior Brother went out, it was to take on a secret mission. I never expected this mission would actually be to unearth a talent for our sect. . . ""
Hearing Zheng Tie's flattery, Senior Brother Fu's face darkened: "My mission, Senior Brother, is not worth mentioning. . . However, on this trip, I happened to bring back a talent for the sect, which can be considered a decent contribution. . . ""
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