Collecting the Gourd Vine

Looking at the gourd vine swaying gently in the Chaos Spiritual Pool—its Dao charm natural, its treasure light contained—and the seven innate gourds hanging from it, which, though not yet fully mature, already revealed an extraordinary aura and infinite potential...

Even Zhenyuanzi and Hongyun, with their firm Dao hearts and having seen countless primordial wonders, could not help but reveal a hint of hard-to-conceal fondness and unprecedented caution in their eyes.

Such a spiritual root was no ordinary treasure; the karma and future it entailed were likely profound beyond measure.

"Fellow Daoist Hongyun," Zhenyuanzi spoke slowly, his voice unusually deep and condensed in the cavern brimming with spiritual energy. His gaze, like the most precise ruler, swept over every inch of the gourd vine, every leaf vein, and the seven gourds still gestating.

"This vine's spiritual root possesses a vast vitality that this poor Daoist has never seen in his life. Moreover, it is guarded by the aura of world-opening merit and Xuanhuang Mother Qi. Its foundation is so deep that it is rare in the primordial, likely not inferior to the Innate Ren Water Flat Peach, the Yellow Middle Plum, and others.

The seven gourds it bears are spiritual objects born from the Innate Great Dao, each with its own mystery, and their future achievements are limitless."

He shifted his tone slightly, pointing at the seven gourds, his voice carrying a hint of insight after careful observation:

"However, judging by their aura, the treasure light is contained within and not fully released, and the Dao charm flowing through them still carries a trace of unripeness. For them to fully mature and fall naturally, they clearly require considerable time for accumulation and nourishment from heaven and earth's creation. This cannot be achieved in a short time."

Hongyun nodded deeply in agreement. His gaze lingered mostly on the gourd that resonated faintly with his own aura—a crimson one with cloud patterns flowing across it. The more he looked, the more he liked it. He replied:

"Fellow Daoist Zhenyuanzi, your eyes are as sharp as a torch, and your words are spot on.

If such a spiritual object were left to grow naturally in this Buzhou Mountain secret realm, it could absorb the divine mountain's spiritual energy, but when it fully matures and its treasure light soars into the sky, it will inevitably trigger celestial phenomena and attract other keen-eyed great powers to lurk and fight over it.

When that happens, a storm is bound to arise, adding countless variables and possibly even damaging the spiritual root's foundation."

He paused, a flicker of consideration in his eyes as he looked at Zhenyuanzi, then continued:

"Moreover... I observe that this environment, though nourished by the Chaos Spiritual Liquid and favored by heaven, ultimately relies on the overall qi vein of Buzhou Mountain. It was not specifically set up for this vine.

Its growth is stable, but it may not reach the most ideal, most perfect nurturing state. If we could find a blessed land more aligned with its origin, one that could better help it unlock its potential, perhaps..."

Hearing this, Zhenyuanzi revealed a knowing smile and clapped his hands, saying:

"What you are thinking, fellow Daoist, is exactly what this poor Daoist had in mind. Our thoughts coincide without consultation.

My Wuzhuang Temple on Longevity Mountain, after my original body transformed, retains the most primal aura of the Essence of Innate Earthen Energy. This aura is the richest and most fertile, with incredible marvelous uses for nurturing heaven and earth spiritual roots, far superior to ordinary innate spiritual qi.

Furthermore, I hold the Book of the Earth, the 'Classic of Mountains and Seas,' a supreme treasure that can mobilize the power of the primordial land's veins, gather the spiritual qi of heaven and earth from all directions, and perform fine control to create the most suitable environment for the spiritual root's growth."

His eyes blazed as he looked at the gourd vine, his voice filled with confidence:

"If we can transplant this vine into my Wuzhuang Temple, using the Innate Earthen Origin Qi as a foundation, supplemented by the earth vein essence mobilized by the Book of the Earth and the vast spiritual qi gathered for careful nurturing...

This poor Daoist is confident that this action will not only keep this spiritual root safe and worry-free, avoiding any future storms, but also greatly accelerate its maturation process. It may even allow it to reach completion several epochs earlier, with quality superior to its natural growth here. What do you think, fellow Daoist?"

This thorough proposal made Hongyun's eyes suddenly brighten, and a joyful smile spread across his face: "Wonderful! Fellow Daoist, your planning is excellent!

This kills two birds with one stone—it both protects this rare spiritual root from external interference and helps it grow better, allowing us to obtain the treasure early. Truly the best of both worlds! This poor Daoist fully agrees!"

With the plan decided, the two hesitated no longer. Transplanting such a precious innate spiritual root left no room for carelessness.

Zhenyuanzi stepped forward steadily to the edge of the Chaos Spiritual Liquid Pool, his expression turning solemn and dignified.

He took a deep breath, his whole body aura faintly connecting with the ground underfoot and the overall qi vein of Buzhou Mountain. He slowly raised his hands before his chest, his ten fingers moving like butterflies through flowers, yet seeming to contain the ultimate truth of heaven and earth, as he began forming extremely complex, mysterious dharma seals that invoked the Great Dao laws.

With his movements, the purest power of the Earth Law was drawn forth, and countless fine, dense-as-ants runes flickering with earth-yellow divine light appeared in the void.

These runes were not lifeless; they possessed living spirituality, accompanying Zhenyuanzi's deep and ancient incantation as they slowly wrapped around the gourd vine and the Chaos Spiritual Liquid Pool where its roots were deeply pierced.

This process was extremely slow and careful. Every rune that fell had to precisely match the spiritual root's own vitality flow rhythm, ensuring not a single bit of its foundation was harmed.

The power of the dharma seals acted like the gentlest hand, carefully and gently separating the spiritual root from the surrounding mountain rocks, earth veins, and even the space connection.

At the same time, they constructed a temporary but extremely sturdy protective barrier, ensuring that during the subsequent movement, the gourd vine's spiritual qi would not leak a single trace, and its root veins would suffer no damage.

Hongyun concentrated on protecting the dharma from the side, simultaneously activating his divine power. With his keen perception of energy flow, he assisted Zhenyuanzi in sensing the spiritual root's state, ensuring absolute certainty.

The earth-yellow rune cocoon grew thicker and thicker, eventually completely wrapping the entire gourd vine along with the small puddle of precious Chaos Spiritual Liquid beneath it, forming a spherical barrier about one zhang in diameter, emitting a soft and steady light.

Sweat appeared on Zhenyuanzi's forehead, showing that this action had considerable consumption for him.

He carefully lifted the light sphere containing the priceless treasure, and with his supreme dharma power, gradually shrank it until it became only fist-sized, steadily held in his palm.

Through the semi-transparent barrier wall, the miniature gourd vine inside could be clearly seen, still vivid green and vibrant, with the treasure light on the seven gourds stable as before.

He was slightly relieved, a satisfied expression appearing on his face, and was about to store the light sphere into his Sleeve Universe or a special dharma artifact for carrying spiritual objects.

However, just as his eyes unintentionally swept over the exposed pool bottom after the spiritual liquid pool was removed, his movement suddenly stopped!

Beneath the pool bottom, instead of the expected ordinary rocks or spiritual jade, lay a layer over a foot thick of miraculous soil, shimmering with a warm and mysterious nine-colored rosy glow, emitting endless creation and vitality and an indescribably heavy Wutu essence qi!

This soil appeared fine and soft, as if composed of countless tiny nine-colored light particles, yet it gave a feeling of extreme heaviness and stability, as if a single grain of sand could transform into a ten-thousand-zhang mountain, and a handful of soil could nurture a thousand-mile fertile plain, nurturing countless living beings!