Chapter 39: The Jade Green Wutong

Qingnü could not resist the charm of the Jade Phoenix Theater Troupe and agreed to Chen Mobai.

After exchanging contact information, Chen Mobai went home with a hangover remedy.

At this time, Uncle Wang Jianyuan had already arrived with his cargo truck. Chen Xinglan was going to live in a third-stage spirit vein cave at Chixia Academy for two years, so he naturally had to bring a lot of luggage.

When Chen Mobai got home, Chen Xinglan and his wife were moving things. The former felt a bit more energetic after taking the hangover remedy Chen Mobai bought.

"Never again."

Although he said that, Chen Mobai felt that if the whole family gathered again, Chen Xinglan would still drink a lot.

With many hands, it didn't take long to pack and tidy up the bedding and clothes. Chen Xinglan comforted Tang Pancui, whose eyes were slightly red, and picked up his luggage.

"Alright, just let the son see me off. You stay at home and wait for me."

After the old couple said their goodbyes, Chen Mobai sat in the passenger seat.

Originally, Chen Xinglan didn't want anyone to see him off, but Tang Pancui was worried, and Chen Mobai also wanted to see Chixia Academy, so he went along.

Wang Jianyuan's driving skills were excellent, and they arrived at the destination, which was nearly forty kilometers away, in less than an hour.

"Is this Chixia Academy?"

Chen Mobai looked at the buildings nestled in a vast forest of wutong trees, feeling the extremely rich spiritual energy in the air, and couldn't help but take a deep breath.

"Cough... cough..."

Then he couldn't help but cough violently.

The spiritual energy here contained a warm heat, and without refining it into the Twelve-Storied Pagoda, his throat couldn't handle it.

The spirit vein here was a fire vein, which naturally made Chen Mobai, who had been nourished by a water vein recently, unable to adapt.

"Do you see that spirit peak?"

Chen Xinglan got out of the car and pointed to the deepest part of the wutong forest, the highest peak, towering into the clouds, shrouded in white mist, but unable to obscure the top of the spirit peak, where a huge, seemingly heaven-connecting Jade Green Wutong tree stood.

From a distance, the bark was as green as jade, the leaves as delicate as flowers, elegant and pure, with clouds and mist rising from it.

"Is this the four-thousand-year-old Jade Green Wutong?"

Danzha City, as one of the seventy-two blessed lands of the Immortal Sect, originated from this fourth-stage superior wutong tree. It witnessed the rise of the Immortal Sect and took root and flourished on this mountain range, gathering spiritual energy and suppressing the earth's veins, transforming an originally ordinary extinct volcano into the current fourth-stage spirit vein.

One could say that without this spirit root, there would be no Danzha City today.

"The top of that spirit peak is where Master Shiqing cultivates. My foundation-building cave is at the foot of the mountain."

Chen Xinglan had long applied to return to the academy for foundation-building on the official website and received approval. Since cars were not allowed in the school, the three of them carried their luggage and walked to the foot of the spirit peak.

Before entering the cave, they naturally had to register with the responsible teacher. Fortunately, the person in charge was Chen Xinglan's classmate, who had stayed in the school after graduation to handle logistics.

He looked at the school's stamped approval and immediately arranged a vacant third-stage lower-grade cave for them.

"The school hasn't changed much in thirty years. You know where the cafeteria is. If you want to save some merit points, you can also prepare your own fasting pills."

With the help of an acquaintance, everything went smoothly. Chen Xinglan got a new campus card, which allowed him to enter the cave and use most of Chixia Academy's facilities and benefits, such as attending classes, the library, and even the student-only elixir, magical tools, and talisman stores.

"Thanks, Old Yan."

Chen Xinglan's old classmate, Yan Xiang, not only helped him get the campus card but also gave Chen Mobai a small plant from his office.

"This is your son, right? I didn't prepare anything for our first meeting, so I'll give you this young wutong sapling."

Yan Xiang was a kind middle-aged man. It was a small wutong sapling with only two leaves. With his father's permission, Chen Mobai took it.

"When students enter Chixia Academy, they all receive a wutong branch and must take care of it until graduation. After graduation, they can take it with them, or if they don't want to spend too much time on it, they can plant it in the school. This wutong forest is how it came to be."

Yan Xiang pointed to the lush wutong forest covering the mountains, looking very proud. After saying this, he had other things to do and left.

"Alright, we won't disturb you anymore. If you need anything, just call me. It's convenient for me to drive over."

Wang Jianyuan moved the luggage into the cave, checked the time, and decided to leave.

"Let's have a meal together. Now that I have the card, the food at the Chixia Academy cafeteria is also excellent."

Chen Xinglan suggested, but Wang Jianyuan shook his head, saying he had another job in the afternoon and needed to go back. Chen Mobai naturally had to leave as well.

At the school gate, the father and son said goodbye. Chen Mobai was about to get in the car when he saw a familiar face.

"Teacher Chan, why are you here?"

It was Chan Si, who taught the array formation class. She was wearing a red dress today, looking very beautiful. But she was a student at Danzhu Academy, so Chen Mobai was surprised to see her at Chixia Academy.

However, she was not alone; another man in a blue robe accompanied her.

"It's you. Isn't it class time now?"

Chan Si was also surprised to see Chen Mobai at Chixia Academy.

"I'm seeing my dad off..."

After explaining, Chan Si nodded in understanding, looking at the wutong sapling Chen Mobai was holding and smiling, wishing Chen Xinglan success in his foundation-building.

"I'm here on my mentor's orders to introduce this senior to Master Shiqing."

The man in the blue robe also smiled and nodded at Chen Mobai but did not introduce himself.

After saying goodbye, Chen Mobai thought about Wang Jianyuan's need to return and did not chat much with Chan Si. He thanked her again for the Bishui Array and got in the car.

"Is he your student?"

The man in the blue robe asked after Chen Mobai left.

"Yes, he has a good personality, but his talent is average."

"Oh, really? Did I misjudge him?"

"What?"

Chan Si didn't understand what the man in the blue robe meant. He practiced a secret technique that could sense fluctuations in spiritual awareness. He felt a familiar, active yet chaotic sensation from Chen Mobai, which was typical of a cultivator who had just broken through to the late Qi Condensation stage but had not yet precisely controlled their spiritual awareness.

He thought Chen Mobai was already at the seventh layer of Qi Condensation at such a young age.

"I remember he just broke through to the fifth layer of Qi Condensation at the beginning of this semester. According to his spirit root, it's impossible for him to break through to the seventh layer in just a month, right?"

Chan Si recalled Chen Mobai's talent and said doubtfully. The man in the blue robe agreed and didn't think about it further.

"I'm sensitive to these things because I select students for the Immortal Sect. Maybe I misjudged him."

The man in the blue robe shook his head. He had been thinking about the questions for this year's college entrance exam, which had made him tense, possibly leading to a misjudgment.

"Let's go. You'll be locked up from now until after the exam."

"Being able to enjoy a fourth-stage spirit vein is a rare opportunity."

Chan Si led him to a cave at the waist of the mountain where the Jade Green Wutong was located. There were eight fourth-stage lower-grade caves, and the man in the blue robe, as this year's exam question setter, was isolated in one of them.

"I wonder when the Dao Academy and the Imperial College will come. After I finish the questions, they still need to review them."

Chan Si smiled but said nothing.