Along the way, He Lingchuan had already spotted seven opera stages. Some of the wider market entrances even had two set up side by side. "With so many plays being staged all across the city, can the Jeweled Tree King actually enjoy them all?"
The singing and accompaniment were deafening. Even though He Lingchuan was standing right beside him, Second Master Shi couldn't hear what he said clearly.
Only the black cat's pointed ears twitched back and forth. Having caught every word, it leaped onto his shoulder to explain:
"It can see them. Every single tree in Fufeng City serves as the Jeweled Tree King's ears and eyes. Whatever people say or perform beside a tree, it knows it all."
He Lingchuan gave a thumbs-up. Impressive!
Yet thinking about it, many mountain spirits seemed to possess similar abilities. As the ruler of a kingdom and endowed with innate gifts, this was probably second nature to it.
"I heard that the Jeweled Tree Kingdom is the most peaceful and populous realm in Beijia?"
"Aside from the prefectures and commanderies directly governed by the emperor, you could say that." This time it was Second Master Shi who answered. "Among all the demon kingdoms, the Jeweled Tree Kingdom has lasted the longest—over five hundred years—yet it has fought the fewest wars. Fewer than thirty... times, was it?"
The black cat corrected him: "Thirty-two times."
"An average of one war every seventeen or eighteen years." He Lingchuan counted on his fingers. "Is that considered few?"
It seemed his definition of "few" differed somewhat from that of the people in Beijia.
"Compared to the other demon kingdoms, that's already pitifully few. Look at Shanyu Kingdom—they're in the middle of a civil conflict right now," the black cat explained. "If Beijia's emperor declares war on an outside power, the Jeweled Tree Kingdom has to send troops to follow along, and those are counted in the tally as well. Since it's peaceful here, there are plenty of residents. I moved here from Shanyu Kingdom myself."
"What happened in Shanyu Kingdom?" He Lingchuan had heard that Shanyu Kingdom was renowned for its birds of prey, essentially serving as the cradle for Beijia Kingdom's aerial forces.
"The Junior Sima was arrested and thrown into prison. Everyone thought he was a good official and had to be framed. Who would have guessed he'd die suddenly in prison, and rumored in a gruesome state, too? A lot of high officials couldn't stomach it and wanted the sovereign to deal with the murderer, but the royal court merely pushed forward a scapegoat. So folks refused to let it rest."
"Just over one Junior Sima?"
The black cat licked its paw. "Oh, there are plenty of other things. It'd take a whole year to finish explaining them all."
He Lingchuan grew curious. "With civil strife in Shanyu Kingdom, Lingxu City doesn't intervene?" After all, it was happening within their own empire.
The black cat blinked in surprise. "Each kingdom manages its own affairs. Why would Lingxu City interfere?"
"Aren't they afraid the unrest might spread?"
Second Master Shi sighed. "No matter how chaotic the various kingdoms of Beijia become, things eventually settle down in the end. Hasn't it always been like that over all these years? Lingxu City has probably long grown used to it."
Internal turmoil broke out locally, yet Lingxu City didn't lift a finger. What a peculiar system. No wonder foreign lands took it as an object of study.
Before long, the two met up with the caravan.
After squeezing and jostling through Fufeng City for more than an hour, the party finally passed through the north gate.
The road ahead opened up immediately, allowing their mounts to trot along briskly.
Flowers bloomed in profusion all along the route.
With the sixth lunar month fast approaching, it was already the season when hundreds of flowers blossomed together. From Fufeng City's north gate toward Mount Baiyun, vibrant colors burst forth everywhere, blossoms vying with one another in dazzling displays.
Even the humblest, most nameless blades of grass held up tiny white florets to suit the occasion. Seen from afar, it looked as though a dusting of snow had fallen across the green fields.
The mountain paths turned into flower trails, and waterfalls nearly looked like floral cascades.
A single glance was enough to know that spring filled the mortal realm.
The spectacle drew exclamations of wonder from the passersby. He Lingchuan overheard a mother and daughter ahead marveling:
"We took this very road returning to the city yesterday, and we didn't see nearly this many flowers!"
"To bloom in full glory today, it must be to celebrate the Jeweled Tree King's jubilee."
He Lingchuan was genuinely astonished. "In an era when heaven-and-earth spiritual energy has waned, can the Jeweled Tree King's power still reach this far?"
Hearing this, the heart-protecting mirror remarked, "Back in the early Middle Antiquity, that would be nothing special. But being able to command a hundred flowers in this day and age means it really has some serious tricks up its sleeve."
"Then again, it also depends on the Jeweled Tree King's true form. It has lived for eight hundred years, so its influence over this city could expand bit by bit. Even advancing an inch a day adds up to something formidable over several centuries."
The Jeweled Tree King had cultivated its territory for so many years, and Fufeng City was its very core. Naturally, the city had been permeated in every dimension, without a single blind spot.
Following the stream of carts and horses, He Lingchuan arrived at Mount Baiyun on the northern outskirts.
The mountain was not particularly high, with an elevation of perhaps three hundred meters, and its slopes were gentle enough for even the elderly to climb.
Of course, Mount Baiyun ought to have been renamed Flower Mountain today. Wild blossoms of every hue competed for brilliance, with bees hovering and butterflies dancing amidst them.
After cresting the ridge and looking down, He Lingchuan couldn't help letting out a long breath.
The long slope on the sunny side was just as gradual and gentle; one could ride a horse clopping right down.
The slope ended at the edge of a lake.
Only then did he realize with a start that the summit of Mount Baiyun was actually a volcanic crater.
It had likely lain dormant for an immense length of time, allowing a vast crater lake—also known as a heavenly pool—to accumulate within. Its surface was as smooth as a mirror, without a single ripple.
In the center of the lake stood one, and only one, gigantic tree, its branches and foliage reaching toward the sky, forming a graceful, towering canopy.
The spread of the canopy was at least over one hundred and fifty zhang—more than five hundred meters across. Even from this distance, He Lingchuan could feel its peerless immensity.
Its trunk was impossibly thick, with aerial roots dropping down and taking root, effortlessly creating an entire forest from a single tree.
Viewed from afar, dozens of trunk-sized pillars jointly supported that colossal crown.
"To think that such a colossal wonder can still be seen nowadays!" Even the heart-protecting mirror chimed in with admiration. "It must have won great favor among the people to receive such bountiful origin power to nourish it!"
Where spiritual energy fell short, origin power made up the difference.
Second Master Shi did not dare point toward it. He merely turned his head to He Lingchuan and murmured, "That is the Jeweled Tree King, the star of today's jubilee!"
It was also a demon king of a generation, reigning over a vast territory.
He Lingchuan asked, "What kind of tree is its true form?"
Second Master Shi gave a soft chuckle. "I've heard it's seabed wood? Just hearsay, mind you."
"Hmph, half-baked knowledge." The knowledgeable heart-protecting mirror took over the conversation. "That is a Juluo tree!"
"So is it a Juluo tree or seabed wood?"
"There are several kinds of seabed wood, and the Juluo tree is the most precious and rarest among them," the mirror stated proudly. "Even in high antiquity, it wasn't commonly seen."
What was there to be proud of in just knowing that? He Lingchuan asked, "Seabed wood—is it the same seabed wood I know of, the kind that can harbor souls?"
"Every type of seabed wood can do that," the mirror explained. "Legend has it that they grow between the mortal world and the Azure Void, which is why spirits can reside upon them. Naturally, it grows in the physical realm as well."
He Lingchuan had already noticed that there was no soil at the Jeweled Tree King's base. In other words, it was rooted directly into the lakebed, truly living up to the name 'seabed wood.'
Looking at it this way, its true height counted from the roots was even more astounding.
The mirror's tone was brimming with longing: "If only I could get my hands on a branch, even just one."
"What good would that do?"
"To comprehend the interstitial laws between the Azure Void and reality, of course. Just like how I can feel the presence of the City of the Undead every day now," the mirror said. "Seabed wood inherently possesses that trait, and since this old tree has lived for eight hundred years, its insights on this must be far deeper. I'd love to borrow some pointers, just take a few pointers from it."
He Lingchuan had never expected that, as a mirror, it would be so eager to learn.
By now, most of the commoners had stopped along the long slope, finding open patches of ground to kneel and sit. The more devout among them performed five-point prostrations toward the Jeweled Tree King, murmuring prayers under their breath.
He Lingchuan happened to pass by one such devout believer, hearing his prayer begin with, "Supreme Holy Venerable Lingxu of Boundless Merit, Founder of the Era and Anchor of Antiquity..." The man recited the exalted titles of roughly six or seven deities, followed by the Beijia Demon Emperor, and only at the very end did he name the star of today's jubilee, the Jeweled Tree King.
Yet judging by the man's solemn expression, dignified posture, and the sheer fluency with which he chanted, these were by no means slighting words; it was simply the standard opening ritual.
It made sense. The northern demon kingdom revered gods and spirits, so it was hardly surprising that they instructed commoners to pray day and night.
Of course, most of the populace treated this trip to Mount Baiyun as a family outing. After prostrating and reciting their prayers alongside elders and children, they began chatting and laughing freely, letting wild urchins and young demons run loose across the hillsides, making the scene resemble a springtime picnic.
On the saddle, the black cat stared fixedly at two nests of plump, white hamsters, its two white-pawed forelegs kneading frantically against the sheep's back, its eyes glued to them.
He Lingchuan had to remind it, "Hey, your drool is dripping onto the saddle."
If not for the fact that this was the resting place of the Jeweled Tree King, someone might well have started flying kites.
What He Lingchuan saw, however, was the Jeweled Tree King's tolerance toward the people of Fufeng City.
After all, a tree probably believed that joy shared with others was better than joy enjoyed alone.
Naturally, there were also many trees growing along the gentle slope. Supposedly, every one of them served as the Jeweled Tree King's ears and eyes, so no one dared cross any lines here.
Clear mountain springs gurgled down, gathering into more than a dozen small waterfalls across the terrain. He Lingchuan and Second Master Shi continued downhill along the stream, gradually approaching the lakeshore.
Two ape guards stepped forward to inspect them, waving them through after He Lingchuan presented the invitation.
Commoners could only sit on the slopes to watch the ceremony, but He Lingchuan held an invitation from the Grand Preceptor's Manor, entitling him to VIP treatment—resting in the covered verandas. As for Second Master Shi and the black cat, they were brought along under his wing.
Directly ahead, a row of buildings stretched along the lake, known as the Baiyun Residence. The central section rose five stories high, flanked on either side by long verandas. Because of the massive turnout today, the open ground before the verandas had been fully laid out with red carpets, covering an area the size of a sports field, which was now packed with people.
On its own, Baiyun Residence looked imposing and grand, but set against the backdrop of the towering giant tree behind it, it seemed delicate and dainty instead.
The VIP seats were situated within the verandas, and dedicated attendants guided the guests; one could not wander about at will.
At this moment, officials of the Jeweled Tree Kingdom filled Baiyun Residence inside and out, all conversing heatedly.
The Jeweled Tree Kingdom covered an expansive territory—three or four Fu Kingdoms combined could not match it—and its officials hailed from every corner of the realm. A grand festival like this was the perfect opportunity for socializing and networking.
Second Master Shi remarked with feeling, "Counting only the officials of the Jeweled Tree Kingdom present today, I'd say there must be over seven thousand... no, more than nine thousand people. The wealth and prosperity of this kingdom is evident."
And he was referring solely to officials.
There were also guards, attendants, cooks, and various other service personnel, bringing the total count to something even more staggering.
He Lingchuan recalled the banquet Zhu Xiyan had held for Zhu Xiu'er in Shihuan City. Back then, he had thought it grand, but the number of dignitaries in attendance hadn't even reached a tenth of today's spectacle.
While the fanfare for a young girl from the Zhu clan naturally couldn't compare to that of the Jeweled Tree King, according to He Chunhua, seventy to eighty percent of the dignitaries from Shihuan City had turned out for that affair.
Chapter 387