Chapter 16 The Almighty Tree of Life: A Living Money Tree
Pengpengan was a little embarrassed: "Your Highness, we don't have any magic tax anymore..."
Nono added from the side, "We don't have any Leaf Coins either."
Magic tax? Leaf coins? Oh right, buying things doesn't cost money! Shu Xin slapped her forehead: "I forgot about that!"
Shu Shuxin had no memory of coins. When Shu Xin asked about magic tax and leaf coins, the two flower fairies were not surprised at all by her ignorance.
Thinking about it carefully, it's quite normal that Shu Shuxin would be completely ignorant about money since the Flower Fairy would be taken away by the patrol officer shortly after birth and sent directly to the Magic Tree in the royal city to be well cared for.
As for the magic tax and leaf coins, Shu Xin quickly figured it out—
To put it simply, the amount of magic tax is equivalent to the amount of gold reserves, while leaf coins can be directly equated with the paper money of Shuxin's original world. The "printing plant" responsible for producing and supplying leaf coins is the magic tree, or tree of life, that exists in every territory of the Garnar Kingdom in this magical world.
Leaf coins, as the name suggests, are coins formed from the leaves of the tree.
With just one drop of magic condensate, the Tree of Life can grow five thousand leaf coins.
According to Pengpengan, the leaf coins look very similar to human gold coins. Although he has never seen human gold coins, his mother’s father’s mother has.
Considering that Pengpengan had previously mistaken the humanoid Xi for a magical beast from another continent, Shuxin had reservations about his statement.
Shu Shuxin had never seen Leaf Coins. The Life Trees of the Land of Sin had all fallen, so Nonoli naturally couldn't produce Leaf Coins either. Furthermore, the Magic Condensate that Pengpengan brought had all been used by Shu Xin to unleash large-scale magic, leaving the Land of Sin with absolutely nothing.
Shu Xin didn't think there was a big problem. She took out a magic gem: "This was given to me by the Tree of Life before. I think with this magic gem, the Tree of Life should be able to grow leaf coins, right?"
The Tree of Life, the Almighty Tree of Life—
Shu Xin even wanted to sing a song for the Tree of Life!
As dusk settled and twilight descended, the once bare branches of the Tree of Life began to shimmer with a fresh and translucent golden-green light under the dim sky.
Upon closer inspection, one can see that they are light green leaves shimmering with a golden light. However, unlike the usual fan-shaped leaves of the Tree of Life, these glowing leaves are all perfectly round and appear to be exceptionally firm.
As the green light slowly dissipated, the golden light flowing on the leaves gradually solidified, and eventually all the round and soft green leaves turned into solid and heavy golden leaf coins.
The tree was covered with golden, glittering leaves, which made Shu Xin's heart bloom with joy. It was a living money tree!
However, Shu Xin did not expect that what Peng Peng An said was true; the Ye coin did indeed look very much like a gold coin.
"No wonder they're elves. They're truly favored by the gods no matter which continent they're on, even receiving magical plants of this caliber." Xi's sour voice came from behind.
Shu Xin turned around and saw a little lamb flapping its four little wings, flying in the air.
"Xi, good evening," Shu Xin greeted him in a cheerful mood. "Did you get a good night's sleep? As for being favored by the gods—"
The flower fairy with antennae and wings calmly spread her hands: "Perhaps, but judging from the current state of the riverside elves, it doesn't seem to be very good?"
The little lamb nodded: "Indeed, I have never seen such a miserable elf race. It can be said that they are on the verge of extinction." But then he shook his head: "The gods still favored them. Even though they have all fallen, they have left behind a legacy. Otherwise, these modified elves would not have been able to wait for you. You are the one chosen by the world's will."
A person chosen by the will of the world? Does that mean she traveled from another time? Xi seems to know a lot.
Shu Xin gave him a meaningful look: "Is that so?"
The little lamb looked away, gazing up at the tree full of gleaming gold coins. His tone was complex: "I really don't know if my luck is good or bad."
The two flower fairies next to them only noticed the little lamb above their heads when they heard the voices. Then they heard the other party talking about being on the verge of extinction, the fall of the gods, and the transformation of elves. None of it sounded like good news!
Peng Peng'an raised his eyebrows, about to start cursing, but Nuonuo pulled him back, and he reluctantly shut his mouth, though he was still fuming.
Noticing this, Shu Xin changed the subject: "Now we have enough Leaf Coins to buy Brown Crispy Wheat."
“Sir, the wheat market is just ahead,” Peng Peng’an introduced. “We can buy Golden Crispy Wheat first, and then Brown Crispy Wheat.”
The name Maiji initially made me think it was a market selling various types of wheat, but actually, Maiji is more like a construction site.
The reason I say "should" is because what Pengpengan pointed to and showed Shuxin was a vine growing in the air.
The gray-green branches crisscross, weaving together to form an aerial platform; the triangular, waxy leaves are wide and large, spreading out on the branches; and on the gray-red leaves, cup-shaped flowers bloom at varying heights.
The colorful flower fairies are walking on the leaves and rising and falling on the flower cups in twos and threes.
This scene was quite magical, quite fantastical.
Shu Xin checked herself over and confirmed that her overly ornate dress had been transformed into an elegant suit dress for a government official, and that her unique antennae and wings as a flower fairy had been properly concealed. She then gave Xi, who was lazily leaning against the carriage wall, a warning look before signaling Peng Peng to drive the carriage away.
It was only when she was about to leave that Shu Xin learned that when she came to the Land of Sin, she had ridden in a carriage drawn by a winged horse—the same winged horse that the flower fairies knew, which, in Shu Xin's eyes, looked exactly like the unicorn, a fantastical creature she had always imagined…
After harvesting enough leaf coins, Shu Xin took Peng Peng An and Xi out to buy wheat seeds the next day.
Shu Xin would bring Peng Peng An along, partly because Peng Peng An had previously been in charge of purchasing wheat seeds for the territory, and partly because Nonoli needed to stay in the Land of Sin to continue harvesting Leaf Coins, and also needed him to look after the slaves.
The reason for bringing Xi along was simply because of the magic emanating from him. After all, Maiji was not within the coverage area of the Tree of Life. In order to prevent herself from dying of suffocation while going out, Shu Xin forcefully dragged Xi off the bed—and also used a shrinking spell on him, turning him into the size of a flower fairy.
The identity of the Flower Fairy was still too precious, so Shu Xin used a shrinking spell on herself. As for the carriage and the Pegasus, they could be enlarged or shrunk without Shu Xin using any magic.
Peng Peng An drove the carriage down to the aerial platform covered with vines.
Xi Zhi stood up and helped Shu Xin as she was about to get off the carriage. As he helped her down, he complained irritably, "Go back quickly after you're done. I really can't stand being in this place!"
It wasn't just this place that was making her uncomfortable, but also the shrinking magic. Shu Xin felt as if she had been crushed and then crammed into a tiny cage the size of a fingernail.
Her hands and feet were starting to feel unresponsive!
A note from the author:
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I did a search and found that there really is an air plant that can grow without water or soil, called Old Man's Beard, which also has a nice name, Usnea Tillandsia.
As for the cup-shaped flowers, they are actually similar to those of the calla lily.
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