That Touch of Verdant Green

Deep in the belly of a nameless mountain, Fu Qinglan sat cross-legged with her eyes shut. Though her eyes were closed, her divine sense was fully unfurled, blanketing the surrounding area. Any living creature that dared draw near was struck down in an instant. Before her, a circular array disc sat quietly embedded in the rock layer. Suddenly! The array disc trembled slightly. One high-grade spirit stone after another rapidly crumbled to dust, and even the supreme-grade spirit stone began to lose its luster. A torrential flood of spiritual energy was siphoned out, pouring into the disc. Fu Qinglan's eyes snapped open. *Hum...* A low chime resonated as light warped. In the next breath, a figure stepped out from within. "Luo—" *Pfft!* Before Luo Chen could steady his footing, he coughed up a spray of fresh blood. Cracks fractured his entire body inch by inch, and geysers of blood spurted from his exposed skin. "How did this happen?!" Fu Qinglan gasped in horror, rushing forward to support him. Once he found his balance, Luo Chen wiped the corner of his mouth. Pushing her hands aside, he tapped a finger against his chest. The cracked skin over his body immediately knit back together, and the surging blood receded into his physique. Gathering the dregs of his remaining magic power, he cast a Cleansing Art, erasing every trace of the blood spattered across the floor. In the blink of an eye, it was as if nothing had ever happened. Fu Qinglan swallowed hard and asked worriedly, "Brother Luo, are you all right?" Luo Chen tugged at the corner of his lips. "Aside from being low on magic power, nothing is truly amiss." "B-but just now, you..." Luo Chen waved his hand, disinclined to explain. However, as he stowed the heavily fractured array disc, he could not help but cast it a few lingering glances. Never had he expected that the Nascent Soul cultivators had posed little threat to him, only for the retreat route he had personally prepared to turn around and bite him. Indeed, during the spatial shifting, a vast number of restrictions had collapsed. The terrifying spatial compression forces had dealt even Luo Chen a severe injury. This was truly unexpected. Luo Chen had used teleportation arrays many times in the past and was fairly experienced. Other physically frail cultivators might fear the crushing pressures of teleportation, but he had never been troubled by them. Yet this time... *In the end, it was my lack of mastery over this array, combined with how hastily the disc was crafted.* Luo Chen quickly pinpointed the cause of the backlash—it lay with the array disc itself. His sole solace was that he had set the transmission distance to around five thousand li, which was not terribly far. Thus, the injury only looked catastrophic on the surface. With his formidable recuperative powers, circulating his source power restored him to pristine condition in a breath. Had it been an ultra-long distance across tens of thousands or even millions of li, the consequences would have been unimaginable. "The mirage cores are secured. Let us leave!" Luo Chen said. Though curious, Fu Qinglan merely nodded. Before Luo Chen, she retrieved a talisman. Channelling magic power into it, a misty, earthy yellow radiance enveloped the two of them, and in the blink of an eye, they sank into the rock and vanished. *** Shortly after their departure, an enraged roar echoed outside the mountain. "Get out here!" A verdant bamboo staff swelled to a hundred zhang in length, crashing down upon the mountainside. *Boom!* A billowing cloud of dust erupted. Paying it no heed, the Wang clan elder charged straight inside. Meanwhile, another figure snapped open a folding fan, unleashing a howling gale that dispersed all the smoke and grit. Shi Ju glared at the shattered mountain, his expression dark as thunder. "He fled! After unleashing such an immense technique, his magic power must have been virtually exhausted—how could he still manage to escape?!" Behind him, Gu Yuan flew over gracefully with Gu Chen. As he approached, he chuckled. "Since he dared to provoke us with just one man and one sword, he naturally had an escape route planned. Fu Qinglan, whom he was protecting, never showed herself from start to finish—she was clearly stationed as his rendezvous. Shi Ju, do not underestimate these wandering scoundrels." Shi Ju looked back and glared at him with venom. But then his face twisted into a sneer. "Right, you certainly thought through everything. And didn't you end up eating dust under his sword just the same?" Gu Yuan looked slightly awkward for a moment, but he soon gave an indifferent shrug. "How can you call it eating dust? We gained two mirage cores from this trip, so we didn't leave empty-handed. Unlike certain people who lost the bride and broke their soldiers—truly pitiful!" "You!" Shi Ju snapped his fan shut and pointed it sharply at Gu Yuan, his face flushed scarlet with rage. The gold-robed man stepped forward, placing himself between Shi Ju and Gu Yuan. Gu Yuan gave a light laugh. Deciding against provoking him further, he called to Gu Chen, and the two drifted away. Gritting his teeth, Shi Ju watched their retreating figures, his hand gripping the fan's handle as though he might crush it to splinters. Just then, frenzied, furious roars came from inside the mountain. He looked down to see the Wang clan elder behaving like a headless fly, hurling away massive boulders yet failing to uncover any trace of Luo Chen. "Wang Yifu, he escaped long ago! What are you still searching for?" The Wang clan elder raised his head, grief and fury writ large across his features. "He caused my young master to be eliminated! Even if I must search the blue heavens above and the Yellow Springs below, I will drag him out!" Shi Ju scoffed and turned to leave. Yet after taking a few steps through the air, he suddenly turned back and tossed over a jade slip. "If you find him, send me word." The Wang clan elder froze for a moment, but quickly nodded. "I will certainly inform you! And should you encounter Desolate Hermit first, this old man hopes you will notify me as well!" Shi Ju grunted in acknowledgment and hurriedly returned beneath Three Rainbows Falls. Qi Xiongcheng stood there looking utterly exhausted, cradling a large gourd with a ruptured belly. Upon seeing Shi Ju, he gritted his teeth and said, "Young Master, I only managed to recover five mirage cores, and this gourd..." "Useless trash!" A fan came striking across. Qi Xiongcheng's eyes flickered with struggle, yet he did not dare to dodge. *Crack!* His body, tempered to the third realm of body cultivation, split open into a ghastly bloody furrow. Shi Ju did not bother sparing him another glance. A mere family slave, and such an incompetent one at that. Had he known earlier, he would never have brought him inside; the man had proven nothing but an encumbrance. Shi Ju swept his gloomy gaze across the surroundings and remained silent for a long time. Only after a good while did he speak in a chilly tone. "Leave the gourd! You and Wang Yifu will take separate paths to search for Luo Chen and Fu Qinglan. Once you locate them, do not alert them—notify me first. Furthermore, if you encounter other fellow disciples along the way, send word to me as well." Qi Xiongcheng asked, "Do you intend to join forces with the other true disciples to deal with Desolate Hermit?" "Join forces?" Shi Ju curled his lips in contempt. "Desolate Hermit merely caught us off guard. What need is there to unite anyone to slay him? What I need right now are mirage cores. My fellow disciples have surely accumulated quite a few, especially that fleeing Gu Daosu!" At the mention of Gu Daosu, a flash of cruelty crossed his eyes. Without a Dao Protector and unable to act with complete abandon as Shi Ju could, Gu Daosu was nothing more than a tender lamb, ripe for the taking! *** Atop Heaven and Earth Peak, within a grand hall. More than two months had elapsed since the Alchemy Saint's ascension and the opening of the grotto-heaven. The various visiting factions had departed one after another, and the Tianyuan Dao Sect's internal assemblies had long since concluded. Those who lingered were almost entirely representatives of the various clans keeping watch over the competition's results. Gathered together, they spoke of distant lands, shared cultivation insights, and traded speculations regarding the contest's final outcome. To pass the time, quite a few took out valuable treasures to wager on the results. Originally, setting aside their own juniors, the figures most favored by everyone were the scions of the three Great Houses and the junior of the Xiang clan. Yet two months ago, when the Wrathful Vajra was eliminated, everything changed. The name Desolate Hermit Luo Chen had surfaced once more in their ears. In truth, that name was no stranger to these clan representatives. The first time came when he broke precedence as an itinerant cultivator to enter Heaven and Earth Peak and become an External Guest Elder. The second time came during the Alchemy Saint's ascension, when the Alchemy Saint gave him one of the five Heavenly Mechanism Pills! One had to realize that the remaining four pills went either to the three hidden recluses of Mount Lanke or to the guest from the Alchemy Saint's homeland. Both recipients made perfect sense. But what right did Luo Chen have? A gift to Heaven and Earth Peak's Star Gate? What a joke—how had none of the four late Nascent Soul elders received such a gift? Had the grotto-heaven not opened and compelled Luo Chen, as a Dao Protector, to enter immediately, these people would have acquired that Heavenly Mechanism Pill from his hands right then and there. Even setting aside underhanded ploys like theft and coercion, so long as one offered ample compensation, an itinerant cultivator from the wilderness would surely be tempted. Alas, Luo Chen had entered the grotto-heaven. Everyone had hoped he would not consume the pill too quickly, yet the news that arrived first was that he had fought two against one and defeated both the Wrathful Vajra and Perfected Tianshan. This was the third time Luo Chen's name had been thrust before them. And this time, it meant that the path to comprehending laws for the Xiang clan's prodigy, Xiang Qi, had become precarious in the extreme. After all, without a Dao Protector, hunting mirage beasts and solitary cultivation would both become arduous. They no longer held high hopes for Xiang Qi. Instead, Fu Qinglan was added to their discussions. Though her foundation was slender and her aptitude somewhat mediocre, she enjoyed the advantage of having only recently formed her Nascent Soul, making her closer to heaven and earth. Moreover, with a Dao Protector as ferocious as Luo Chen, she would have access to far more mirage cores for her cultivation. Just as they were in mid-discussion on this day, a vortex manifested in the hall once again. The Wang clan's true disciple emerged from the swirl, looking utterly bewildered. Seeing that it was him, the crowd was puzzled. His Dao Protector had not yet emerged, so how had he come out first? Behind him, the vortex began to seal slowly shut. Suddenly! A wisp of blood-red sword light darted out from the final aperture of the vortex. "Insolence!" A massive hand reached down abruptly, snatching the sword light into its grip in the nick of time. The Wang clan's true disciple turned white as a sheet at the sight, while the Wang clan ancestor was seized by a mixture of shock, rage, and relief. "Many thanks, Senior Brother, for protecting this junior!" Above, the Gu clan ancestor shook his head, then cast his gaze downward at his hand. "What sharp sword qi, what pure killing intent!" Clenching his fist, he shattered the sword qi by brute force. Only then did he look at the Wang clan's true disciple. "Were you eliminated by the master of this sword?" The Wang clan's true disciple finally collected himself. Trembling with lingering dread, he nodded vigorously. The Gu clan ancestor asked again, "Who was it?" Before the Wang clan's true disciple could answer, another vortex manifested in the hall. To everyone's astonishment, a delicate, beautiful woman collapsed onto the floor with a thud. Her face was as pale as gold paper, her aura utterly withered. To the perception of everyone present, her cultivation realm was tumbling backward at a speed visible to the naked eye. "It's Xiu'er!" "She actually used that secret technique!" The Gu clan ancestor's expression shifted dramatically. He immediately tossed out a medicinal pill and bolstered it with his magic power, shrouding Madame Xu within. At long last, under his ministrations, the decline of Madame Xu's cultivation was halted, stabilizing at the first layer of the Nascent Soul realm. "How did this happen?" Madame Xu slowly opened her eyes and said bitterly, "It was Desolate Hermit." *Desolate Hermit?* The crowd froze. The Wang clan's true disciple, who had been interrupted earlier, spoke up in fury as well. "It was Luo Chen!" *** Madame Xu and the Wang clan's true disciple were escorted out for medical treatment. Yet the discussions in the hall concerning the ongoing contest in the Mirage Dragon Grotto-Heaven did not cease; if anything, they grew all the more fervent. Among the crowd, Fu Chaosheng shrank into a corner, terrified of drawing attention. Whenever swept by inquisitive gazes, he remained quiet as a cicada in winter, not daring to make a peep. In his heart, he complained about how Luo Chen had provoked three great clans in such a short span, yet he was equally grateful for how fiercely the man was striving and how faithfully he kept his word! *He has likely noticed the difference in the flow of time by now, yet he still exerts himself to this degree. It is this old man who has wronged him. Once he emerges, I must prepare a lavish gift to convey my apologies.* As these thoughts drifted through his mind, time slowly flowed on. A few days later, another vortex manifested in the hall! The one eliminated this time was none other than the Xiang clan's prodigy. Fu Chaosheng held his breath in dread, terrified of hearing Luo Chen's name again. When someone went to inquire, they learned that it was Shi Ju who had made the move to eliminate Xiang Qi. Fu Chaosheng could not help but let out a sigh of relief. Yet when he saw the Xiang clan ancestor cast a venomous glare his way, a bitter smile tugged at his lips. Clearly, the Xiang clan ancestor dared not harbor resentment against the Shi clan—one of the Twelve Great Houses—and instead pinned the blame onto the Fu clan and Luo Chen. After all, had Luo Chen not eliminated the Wrathful Vajra, Xiang Qi would never have been ambushed by Shi Ju while secluded in cultivation. *Fortunately, he joined the Star Gate beforehand and counts as a member of the Dao Sect. As long as he remains on Heaven and Earth Peak after coming out, he will not face retaliation from these clans. But my Fu clan will find things difficult! Ah, who cares? So long as Qinglan achieves something, offending any number of people is worth it. At worst, I will join Heaven and Earth Peak myself and use what remains of this old body to make some contributions to the sect. The sect would surely extend some protection to my Fu clan then.* *** The elimination of two Dao Protectors and two Nascent Soul true disciples seemed to have lit the fuse. Over the following period, more and more people were cast out from the grotto-heaven. And the vast majority of these eliminations pointed to a single culprit: Shi Ju. The man seemed to have discarded all scruples, launching rampant attacks. Rather than hunting mirage beasts, he targeted the various true disciples, plundering the mirage cores from their grasp. At times, even when the eliminated true disciples carried no cores, he would still lash out ruthlessly. Furthermore, armed with a plethora of magic treasures and possessing domineering, immense magic power, he proved too much for any slightly weaker Dao Protector. In one-on-one combat, he held absolute superiority; even when facing two at once, he showed no fear. In this manner, his edge shone glaringly bright, completely stealing Luo Chen's limelight within just a month or so. Fu Chaosheng cheered wildly in his heart over this turn of events. *The more arrogant Shi Ju acts, the better! So long as the ones eliminated aren't Qinglan and Luo Chen!* Though enraged and aggrieved, the other clan representatives dared not provoke the Shi clan after being eliminated, leaving them no choice but to swallow their resentment. Meanwhile, within the tightly shut Star Gate of Heaven and Earth Peak, Sect Master Mo Shouzhuo of the Tianyuan Dao Sect, who had lingered behind, was playing a game of chess with Chess Saint Ke Lianshan. Though the former possessed a higher cultivation realm, his mastery of chess fell short of the latter's. Consequently, Ke Lianshan appeared quite leisurely, having the spare mind to chat after placing his stones. "Shi Ju is far too ostentatious. Being so extreme is hardly a good thing." Mo Shouzhuo remained silent, contemplating his next move with stone in hand. Ke Lianshan asked, "Is it because his Nine Yang Physique makes him exceptionally suited to inherit that fire-element divine ability of the sect that you all indulge him so?" Mo Shouzhuo glanced up at him. He did not answer, but neither did he deny it. Ke Lianshan wore a look that said *just as I thought*. The Seven Great Divine Abilities of the Tianyuan Dao Sect were exceptionally potent, but the threshold to cultivate them was extraordinarily high. Only Soul Formation ancestors and Nascent Soul cultivators who had comprehended the power of laws in advance could practice them. Yet one of the fire-element divine abilities was an exception! Or rather, it was not an exception in itself; rather, Shi Ju was the exception. Because of his physique, he had a very high chance of learning that grand divine ability without first comprehending the power of laws. Once mastered, he would possess terrifying combat prowess! In these times of turmoil across the world, when the Dao Sect sought to take the reins of the Mountain Sea Realm, there was no shortage of those seeking longevity; what was lacking were warriors adept at and eager for battle. Rumors in earlier years claimed that a Soul Formation ancestor within the sect favored Shi Ju, and now it seemed that those rumors were not without cause. Ke Lianshan shook his head. "You wish to hone a fine blade, yet I fear you may grind out a double-edged sword. With him eliminating his fellow disciples like this, if no one manages to comprehend the power of laws during this competition, it will be an utter waste of the copious spiritual opportunities brought about by Fellow Daoist Chu's ascension." "It will not go to waste," Mo Shouzhuo finally spoke. "Among those who remain, someone will comprehend it." With that, he set down his stone. "Your turn." Ke Lianshan looked at the placement of the stone and chuckled in spite of himself. "Sect Master, your intention is far too obvious. Are you that afraid I won't see through it?" Mo Shouzhuo stroked his beard with a candid expression. What if he saw through it? In the end, conspiracies and trickery were minor paths in this world; when one possessed overwhelming power, one ought to sweep across everything with open, upright majesty. He might lose this game of chess due to his inferior skill on the board. But in the grand game of the Mountain Sea Realm, his victory was assured! For the Tianyuan Dao Sect was strong enough! *** In the northernmost reaches of the Mirage Dragon Grotto-Heaven, snow drifted heavily across the heavens, and vegetation lay withered. Amidst the peaks draped in silver, birds circled through the sky. Suddenly, a bird alighted upon a snowman. It pecked twice, then took to the skies once more. After it departed, the snow cascaded down in a rustle. The snowman slowly opened its eyes. Another twenty years had passed. This time, Fu Qinglan's seclusion had lasted far longer than he had anticipated. Fortunately, they had fled far enough back then, choosing a cultivation site situated in the extremely remote outer fringes of the grotto-heaven. Only because of this had they enjoyed twenty uninterrupted years of tranquility. *By my reckoning, the spiritual opportunities within the mirage cores should have been fully exhausted by now. Why has she not yet awoken?* Luo Chen felt a twinge of doubt. Suddenly, he looked down at the ground. Amidst the snow, a touch of verdant green caught his eye, soul-stirring and striking.