Chapter 460 Elf
A huge flower bud, about to bloom, peeked out from the serrated, strange grass at Ji Rong's feet and quickly grew.
Ji Rong was attracted by its bright two-colored appearance. She bent down to admire the flower when she saw the flower suddenly open its mouth-like petals and bite at Ji Rong's ankle.
"How audacious the flower spirit is!" Ji Rong quickly took a step back. Her mind sank, and two thick brown roots immediately sprouted from under her wings. The roots extended rapidly, flashing with golden light in the air, and inscriptions appeared on the roots along with the golden light.
Ji Rong pointed at these strange creatures, grinned, and said, "Why are you blocking our way? This is not how you treat guests."
Brown roots swayed in the air, making crisp sounds like snakes whipping through the air, leaving behind streaks of the road. These strange flowering trees immediately shrank their crowns and curled their leaves, retreating and returning to their original positions.
Ji Rong then withdrew his roots, opened his beak, and cried out loudly, "Yuanjun, Yuanjun, could you please show yourself?"
As soon as she called out, the many plants swayed their branches and leaves, like ocean waves, rolling one layer after another. These rustling waves of leaves gathered in the air and sang out a deep, surging roar: "Yuanjun, Yuanjun, a guest has arrived; Yuanjun, Yuanjun, a guest has arrived..." which echoed straight into the Moon Shadow Mountains.
Before long, the sky seemed to darken considerably, and a huge shadow rose in the sky. Yuanjun's cold voice came from within, saying, "Lord Ji, what brings you here today?"
Ji Rong nodded and said, "Senior Yuanjun, it was I who came to find you. Are these plant spirits the result of your practice of the 'Plant Chapter'?"
Yuanjun laughed and said, "Yes, it's all thanks to the two mountain gods who brought these little guys back to life through the underground spiritual veins. Otherwise, they wouldn't have been able to grow. What do you think of these plant spirits?"
Ji Rong said, "Although many of them are not very intelligent, they are all simple and beautiful, and very enthusiastic. As soon as I landed, I was chased and bitten by a flower with a big mouth."
Yuanjun said with a slight distress, "They are not perfect yet, but they are born of the moonlit night, they are children of the night, they are my people."
However, my Moon Shadow Mountain Range is not large enough, so I can only raise a dozen or so kinds of creatures in this "Plant Chapter".
If your master, Ling Xiaozhi, were still alive, that would be wonderful; she possessed the remarkable skill of transforming the ethereal into a physical realm.
Upon hearing this, Ji Rong asked, "Senior, are you referring to the puppet realm created by Master?"
“Yes,” Yuanjun sighed. “It should be like the Puppet Realm, different from other living beings, specifically to house these plant spirits, but it should be larger than the Puppet Realm, at least the size of a province.”
Upon hearing this, Ji Rong asked, "Yuanjun, if you merely wish to create your own 'realm of plant spirits,' why not seek out some stars beyond the heavens to create soil, attach it to your authority, and then send these spirits there, watering them with spiritual energy and allowing them to grow freely?"
"Beyond the heavens?" Yuanjun disagreed, "Beyond the heavens are the remains of countless ancient gods, but it is a desolate place. It can be used as fuel for the Sun Lord, but it can no longer give birth to life."
Ji Rong retorted, "If we cannot give birth to life, then how did we come to be?"
I have heard that the outer heavens are vast and boundless, and the sea of stars is endless. Behind the remains of those ancient gods, are there life forms like us? Are there also origin streams and spiritual streams, or something even better than origin streams and spiritual streams?
I once heard the Immortal Lord of Extreme Yang say that those fragments of stars are very resistant to burning, and the black ash they turn into is also very fertile.
"With the sun shining and suitable soil, how could life not spring forth?"
Upon hearing Ji Rong's words, Yuan Jun's eyes suddenly brightened slightly in the dim light. His long tongue appeared and disappeared in the hazy mist. He said with certainty, "Little Ji Rong, now that you have become the ruler of all under heaven and possess the nine provinces, why do you still want to go to the outer heavens?"
Ji Rong laughed and said, "Being the first here doesn't mean I'm truly the first. Now that we've discovered the stars, if we don't explore them, then I'm no different from the Lord of the Sun; I'm just an insect guarding my home."
Yuanjun stared intently at Ji Rong and asked, "Aren't you afraid of death?"
Ji Rong shook his head and said, "Senior, if we're only considering whether we'll die or not, I think no one would be unafraid."
But we will all have that day eventually.
I have become the foremost here, possessing a long lifespan. If I am unwilling to change, then I, who am being supported, will grow stronger, while those who support me will grow weaker. This kind of spiritual practice is not what I want.
Rather than living a long, lifeless existence, I would rather use this strength to explore the outside world and discover new things.
The unknown is inherently unpredictable. I, Ji Rong, may perish on some ordinary day. When that moment arrives, my time will be up. My life will have been rich and fulfilling, so there's no point in fearing it.
Upon hearing this, Yuanjun's figure returned to the dim mist, and a lazy voice accompanied by a yawn came from within. He said, "Little Ji Rong, if you want to go, go by yourself. Why drag me along? I am already a very old Yuejun, not as young as you, and I can still cause trouble everywhere."
"Don't worry, I'm lazy by nature. Even if you die out there after you leave, I won't rebel."
Ji Rong smiled and said, "Senior Yuanjun, I will not go now. I will only leave after I have established a complete system of institutions in the Nine Provinces and found a successor."
You have plenty of time to think it over; there's no need to rush into a decision.
After saying this, Ji Rong bid farewell to Yuan Jun and continued towards the Danxue Mountains. Yuan Jun watched them leave, then once again submerged herself in the Moon-Washing Pool. She lingered on the Suspended Moon Platform, searched around, and used her tail to pull out the 'Grass and Trees Chapter'. She read it carefully, then irritably buried herself back into the mud.
However, less than a quarter of an hour after burying it, He dug it out again and carefully cleaned it.
The clear pool bottom became murky and yellowish because of Yuanjun's movements. Yuanjun held the jade book in her two hands and stroked the inscriptions and marks on the book with her other four hands. She muttered to herself, "These kids nowadays are really getting smarter and smarter. They know my preferences, so they gave me the book so easily. They wanted to take me to the outer heavens. They are really bold!"
But what she said sounded so convincing, I really want to try it... I should really think about it, really think about it.
While Yuanjun hesitated as she walked alone in the darkness, clutching the jade book, Ji Rong and her party had already reached the towering pass at the edge of the Danxue Mountains. The pass was marked by a stone dragon carved on the left and a stone tiger standing on the right, baring their fangs and claws, their eyes gleaming with a sharp light, making them quite imposing.
They discreetly concealed their auras, accepting the guards' inspection like ordinary cultivators, and looking around at the changes in the Danxue Mountains over the years.
As Ji Rong walked along, she noticed that the Danxue Mountains were becoming increasingly wealthy. She even turned to Shan Wudao and asked, "Uncle, you've traveled back and forth the most, so why didn't you mention that the checkpoints in the Danxue Mountains are now guarded by stone dragons and tigers?"
Shan Wudao said, "Why am I mentioning this? It was carved by the apprentices of the Refining Sect. Such crude skills can only fool some minor cultivators who don't often travel outside."
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