Chapter 37 Metamorphosis

A warm glow shone through the darkness, and Ji Rong floated up and down as if millions of years had passed; she was neither confused nor afraid, as if this was how it was meant to be.

She wandered in the darkness, embraced by warmth, feeling free and at peace;

She didn't know how much time had passed when some light began to pierce through the darkness, and she vaguely felt that she was about to leave.

With a crisp "plop," she opened her eyes and found herself sitting on a leaf, while on another leaf next to her slept a beautiful bird, shimmering like a phoenix.

She only glanced at it, but felt dizzy and fainted.

When Ji Rong woke up, she found that only half a day had passed.

She raised her foot to stand up, but stumbled and tripped. Ji Rong was puzzled, so she closed her eyes and looked inward. She found that the spiritual energy in her meridians was surging. She hesitated and thought, "...This is...an advancement?"

When Ji Zhuang returned home, he saw his younger sister, Ji Rong, who had advanced to the Illusionary Realm. He happily flew low around the cave for a while with Ji Rong, and then taught Ji Rong to adapt to the qualitative change in power that had occurred during the Illusionary Realm.

Ji Rong was not used to it, so Ji Zhuang gave Ji Rong the tools he used to make pottery jars. Since Ji Rong did not have wings or claws, he could only use his feet, claws, and wings to make them.

But at that time no one really needed the pottery jars she made, so Ji Rong started playing with mud every day.

At night, she and Gu Qingqing cultivated under the moon, but she could no longer see her own spiritual platform.

When she was asleep, she always dreamed of a giant tree growing in the clouds, with dazzling feathers occasionally peeking out.

Neither Ji Zhuang nor Gu Qingqing could answer her question. The three of them had their own unique experiences in cultivation, and they were all feeling their way across the river.

But this is how ordinary cultivators of all races cultivate. It should be said that almost no cultivator would dare to say that their cultivation is done step by step.

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As her cultivation level increased, Ji Rong's appetite also grew considerably.

She was always very hungry, but fortunately Gu Qingqing had money now; otherwise, Ji Zhuang alone wouldn't have been able to support Ji Rong.

But Ji Rong still felt uncomfortable after eating too much. Gu Qingqing thought for a moment, then took out the bottle containing the immortal spring water and slowly poured it into Ji Rong's mouth, leaving half a drop hanging on the bottle.

Upon seeing the Immortal Spring, Ji Rong involuntarily leaned towards it. She opened her beak and licked her lips with lingering satisfaction. Feeling much better, she took the bottle and poured some into her mouth, wanting to taste a little more.

Gu Qingqing let Ji Rong take the bottle away; the last glimmer of hope she held for her mother, Gu Chan, was finally gone.

She knew that this celestial dew must have been collected by Huang Pinjie.

Although the Immortal Dew is precious, her mother works for Wang Yue, who guards the Immortal Spring.

If it were her mother who loved her, how could it be just a few drops? Gu Qingqing felt a deep sadness in her heart.

"Ha... She shouldn't have had such fantasies. What is she expecting?"

Her mother was a true empress; if her mother had been as kind as Aunt Huang… she probably would have died long ago.”

Gu Qingqing scratched at her own claws, and a nameless rage rose from her heart and manifested in her palms.

Cultivating the Tao is not for one's own benefit; Heaven and Earth will not tolerate it!

After consuming half a drop of the immortal spring, Ji Rong quickly felt drowsy and rushed to her nest to fall into a deep sleep. The surrounding spiritual energy swirled and surged towards her like crazy.

Gu Qingqing stared at Ji Rong's innocent sleeping face, and her shattered heart gradually warmed up. These two little birds who had taken care of her for more than ten years were the gifts that Aunt Huang had left for her.

Gu Qingqing took out one hundred spirit crystals and placed them in Ji Rong's nest. Then, those one hundred spirit crystals turned to ash at a speed visible to the naked eye.

Gu Qingqing stared blankly at the pile of ashes.

On the path of cultivation, talent, luck, and cultivation resources are all indispensable, and the spiritual energy required for Ji Rong's cultivation is so enormous.

Gu Qingqing thought to himself that they could not stay in this barren and expensive Ligu City any longer; they could not afford to spend any more time there.

They will move when Wu Buyu returns.

Knowing that Ji Rong needed a massive amount of spiritual energy, Gu Qingqing fed Ji Rong several thousand-year-old spiritual herbs from her storage ring.

She didn't dare let Ji Rong eat her fill every day, otherwise, when Wu Buyu came back, they would probably be so poor that they wouldn't even have the money to move.

Now, Gu Qingqing is counting down the days, hoping that Wu Buyu will return as scheduled.

There were only eleven days left until the six-month mark, and she only had sixteen spiritual herbs that were over a thousand years old. She thought to herself, "Old Wu, Old Wu, you must not be delayed on the way."

Fortunately, Wu Buyu was only three days late. He flew back to his cave, covered in dust. As soon as he landed, he strolled into the cave and lovingly beckoned Ji Rong over. He took out a jade box from a bulging pouch and placed it on Ji Rong's wing.

Ji Rong opened the box a little with her beak, and a sweet and refreshing aroma wafted out. Ji Rong's eyes lit up, and she was about to swallow it when suddenly Gu Qingqing swiftly grabbed her beak from the side, closed the jade box containing the top-grade Heavenly Elixir Grass, and threw it into her storage ring.

Wu Buyu glared angrily at Gu Qingqing, then transformed its claws into wings, ready to flap them.

Gu Qingqing suddenly stretched out four tails of different lengths and braced her claws against the ground, saying, "Old Wu, listen to me. You absolutely cannot give her too many spiritual medicines now, or Ji Rong will have a problem."

She said urgently, "If you promise me you won't give her any more elixirs today, I'll give you this Heavenly Elixir Herb."

Wu Buyu nodded, and Gu Qingqing breathed a sigh of relief. She then presented the jade box containing the Heavenly Elixir Grass to Wu Buyu with both hands.

Ji Rong wanted to come closer; hunger was churning within her, and she still wanted to eat. She felt she could still eat.

Gu Qingqing raised her paw and gave Ji Rong a sharp rap on the head, saying fiercely, "You've finished all the spiritual materials for today, now go to sleep!"

Ji Rong pouted and walked into her den.

Only then did Wu Buyu notice that Ji Rong's size had nearly doubled, and her aura was weak and leaking out, yet it was extremely, extremely appealing to him. He felt as if he had seen the paulownia tree where his parents had lived when he was a child.

Wu Buyu walked up to Ji Rong and carefully sensed her.

With a soft "pfft," a faint, coded rustling sound emanated from Ji Rong's body. Upon hearing this subtle sound, Wu Buyu's eyes welled up with tears, and he responded with a few low, clear chirps.

Looking at Ji Rong, who was already in the Transformation stage but seemed to have an unstable foundation, Wu Buyu turned his gaze to Gu Qingqing and asked, "When did she advance?"

Gu Qingqing then recounted the situation of Ji Rong and Ji Zhuang over the past six months to Wu Buyu in detail.

Finally, Gu Qingqing sighed, "Old Wu, it's good that you're back. In a few more days, I won't be able to support her anymore. Let's move."

The spiritual energy in this ancient city of Li is scarce. Ji Rong, Ji Zhuang, and I cannot even sustain ourselves through cultivation; we must rely on elixirs and immortal herbs to survive. But where do we find the funds to buy such things?

After she finished speaking, Gu Qingqing noticed that Wu Buyu had many wounds, big and small, on his body, and in many places he had lost all his hair.

So, she silently took the spiritual water and healing pills and gave them to Wu Buyu, not knowing what to say next.

Wu Buyu said nonchalantly, "This injury is nothing, it's just that I won't be able to fly for a while."

After saying that, Wu Buyu opened the storage bag and poured out all the jade boxes inside. The jade boxes were filled with top-grade spiritual herbs and materials. The rich aroma that leaked out made Ji Rong, who was far away in her nest, drool. She immediately twisted her bloated body and came forward again.

Wu Buyu said calmly, "If she wants to eat, then let her eat."

After saying that, Wu Buyu opened a jade box, inside which lay a top-grade Starfall Grass with flowers. Wu Buyu picked up the spiritual herb and put it into Ji Rong's mouth.

Ji Rong ate it with a "not bad" expression, then exclaimed, "I want more, can I have another one?"

Wu Buyu then gave Ji Rong another top-grade Snow Iris Flower, which she ate with great satisfaction.

Then Wu Buyu took out a storage bag full of spirit crystals and gave it to Ji Rong, saying, "Grandpa Wu won't be going to work for a while. This is our family's property. Please keep it safe."

As Gu Qingqing watched this heartwarming scene, alarm bells rang in her heart.