After Hong Yun took human form, rosy light swirled around him, transforming him into a young Daoist in a crimson robe. His features were gentle, his aura vast, and his cultivation had reached the mid-stage of the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm.
He bowed toward Zhenyuanzi. Though he said nothing, his gesture expressed his gratitude. Over these countless ages, Zhenyuanzi had taught him the Dao and protected him as he cultivated, forging a deep bond of cause and effect between them.
Although Zhenyuanzi had already reached the peak of the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm, he had yet to take human form.
His thoughts raced as he recalled what he had learned from his inherited memories: one's origins determined one's future achievements.
Though he was the Essence of Innate Earthen Energy, if he could absorb more of the Primordial Land's origin, he might further strengthen his foundations and increase his potential after taking human form.
His divine sense swept over the Ginseng Fruit Tree beside him, and suddenly inspiration struck.
The Great Dao had yet to recede, and the Heavenly Dao had yet to emerge. All things still had a chance to take human form.
The Ginseng Fruit Tree was an Innate Spiritual Root. If it took human form before the Heavenly Dao emerged, its future achievements would be limitless. But if it missed this opportunity, it might remain a spiritual root forever, with little hope of transforming into a living being.
For now, though the Ginseng Fruit Tree brimmed with spiritual energy, it had no independent awareness and lay as if asleep.
Zhenyuanzi pondered for a moment, then made up his mind.
First, he circulated the Kunyuan True Scripture and drew upon the Earth Vein Qi, subtly altering the terrain of the entire Longevity Mountain. He formed a greater Natural Formation to prevent his next actions from attracting unwanted attention.
Then his magic power surged, and he formed Mysterious Dharma Seals. With a low shout, he cried, "All Sources Return to Origin, Spiritual Root Enlightenment!"
At once, all thirty Ginseng Fruits on the tree glowed softly. The origins of twenty-eight of them flowed out like streams, converging into the two plumpest fruits.
The two fruits absorbed the origins of the others, and their light blazed. Their shapes gradually shifted toward human forms, their infant-like bodies stretching and changing.
Zhenyuanzi dared not delay. He forced out two drops of his Vital Blood and flicked one into each fruit while reciting the Enlightenment Incantation.
It was a Secret Method from his inherited memories. By using his own Vital Blood as a catalyst, he could awaken living beings.
After absorbing the Vital Blood, the two fruits blazed with light. At last, they broke free of the branches, fell to the ground, and transformed into a boy and a girl, both dressed as young Daoist attendants.
The boy was handsome and bright-eyed, while the girl was as delicate as carved jade. Both wore green robes and radiated pure Wood Spirit Qi.
"Greetings, master!"
The two attendants understood the Cause and Effect of what had happened as soon as they landed, and they bowed to Zhenyuanzi in unison.
Having been awakened by Zhenyuanzi's Vital Blood and absorbed the origins of many Ginseng Fruits, they possessed extraordinary foundations. As soon as they took human form, they had the cultivation of Mysterious Immortals.
Zhenyuanzi nodded slightly. "Since I awakened you both, I grant you the names Qingfeng and Mingyue. From now on, you will tend the Ginseng Fruit Tree and guard this place of cultivation."
"We respectfully obey, master!" the two attendants replied.
After awakening Qingfeng and Mingyue, Zhenyuanzi did not rest.
He knew that what came next would be much more difficult: refining the Ginseng Fruit Tree into a clone.
The risk was great. If he failed, he would damage his Primordial Spirit—and might even harm the Ginseng Fruit Tree's origin.
He had Hong Yun take Qingfeng and Mingyue to the edge of the formation to stand guard. Then he sat cross-legged and steadied his mind.
Three days later, once he had returned to peak condition, Zhenyuanzi suddenly opened his eyes. His hands formed seals in rapid succession, and he cried, "Primordial Spirit Separation, Spiritual Root as Body!"
A brilliant golden light shot from the crown of his head: he had forcibly torn half of his Primordial Spirit from himself.
Pain struck, and Zhenyuanzi nearly fainted. But he gritted his teeth and slowly guided that half of his Primordial Spirit into the trunk of the Ginseng Fruit Tree.
As soon as the Primordial Spirit entered the tree, a violent reaction erupted. The Ginseng Fruit Tree shook wildly, its branches and leaves rustling as it instinctively resisted the intrusion of a foreign spirit.
Zhenyuanzi had expected this. He repeatedly cast spells, using the shared origin between himself and the tree to soothe it while circulating the Clone Refinement method recorded in the Kunyuan True Scripture.
The process was agonizingly slow. Zhenyuanzi's face grew paler, and his aura weakened.
Still, he persevered, using tremendous willpower to gradually merge his Primordial Spirit with the Ginseng Fruit Tree.
At last, after forty-nine days, the tree stopped resisting. Instead, it began to radiate an aura identical to Zhenyuanzi's.
The clone refinement had succeeded!
But the damage to his Primordial Spirit left Zhenyuanzi in an extremely weakened state.
He managed to give Hong Yun, Qingfeng, and Mingyue a few brief instructions before entering deep seclusion to recover.
Seeing this, Hong Yun immediately unfurled his Ten Thousand Mile Red Cloud form, enveloping all of Longevity Mountain to guard against enemy attacks.
Qingfeng and Mingyue stayed by the Ginseng Fruit Tree, cultivating while protecting Zhenyuanzi as he recovered in seclusion.
Time passed without measure in the Primordial Wilderness. Before they knew it, countless ages had gone by.
Zhenyuanzi finally awoke from his seclusion. Not only had he fully recovered, but his cultivation had advanced further, reaching the very limit of the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm. He was only one opportunity away from breaking through to the Da Luo realm.
Over those ages, Hong Yun had cultivated diligently and also reached the peak of the Taiyi Golden Immortal realm.
Qingfeng and Mingyue had progressed even more rapidly, both breaking through to the Golden Immortal realm.
"Congratulations, Fellow Daoist, on completing your cultivation."
Feeling Zhenyuanzi emerge from seclusion, Hong Yun came at once to greet him. Qingfeng and Mingyue also hurried over to pay their respects.
Zhenyuanzi nodded slightly, but his gaze fell on the Ginseng Fruit Tree. "Today, we'll complete the final step."
He knew that the Ginseng Fruit Tree's clone would stir up a Heaven and Earth Phenomenon when it took human form, so he immediately activated the Innate Grand Formation with all his strength.
Earth Vein Qi surged from Longevity Mountain, forming nine layers of thick earth that enclosed the entire mountain and cut off its aura from the outside world.
Once everything was ready, Zhenyuanzi focused his mind and established a Sensing Connection with the Ginseng Fruit Tree clone.
Suddenly, the tree radiated Ten Thousand Feet of Azure Light. Countless mysterious patterns appeared on its trunk: the Great Dao Inscriptions had manifested on their own.
The entire tree slowly shrank and changed shape, drawing in the surrounding spiritual energy like a whirlpool.
Gradually, its form became human. Its branches and leaves drew inward and merged into its body, the trunk became a torso, and its roots became legs that sank into the earth.
At last, the azure light flared and then abruptly contracted. A Green-robed Daoist appeared, his features bearing a strong resemblance to Zhenyuanzi's Previous Life, though he had a gentler air imbued with Wood Spirit Qi.
The moment the clone took human form, it possessed the cultivation of a Taiyi Golden Immortal. With the Ginseng Fruit Tree's origin as well, its vitality was immense.
Zhenyuanzi's main body remained in its original form as the Essence of Innate Earthen Energy, still not having taken human form. Yet through his clone, he could feel the wonder of having a human body.
Though their bodies were separate, their minds were linked. The main body could sense everything the clone saw, heard, thought, and felt.
"My true body has yet to take human form, so it would be unwise for me to travel far," the Ginseng Fruit Tree clone said. His voice rang clear. "I'll travel the Primordial Wilderness in your stead, seek out opportunities, and make preparations in advance."
Zhenyuanzi's main body trembled faintly, sending its approval.
He had planned to keep building his foundations and wait until the time was right to take human form. Now that he had a clone to act in his stead, things could not have worked out better.
Hong Yun smiled at the sight. "Wonderful! With a clone like this, you've gained a great head start. The Primordial Wilderness is vast; we could explore it together."
But the Ginseng Fruit Tree clone shook his head.
"Fellow Daoist Hongyun, wait. My true body needs someone to guard it while it cultivates. Please stay here with Qingfeng and Mingyue to protect Longevity Mountain. We can discuss traveling together after I return."
Hong Yun considered this briefly and saw the sense in it. Since Zhenyuanzi's true body had yet to take human form, it did indeed need protection. He nodded in agreement.
The Ginseng Fruit Tree clone cupped his hands toward the main body, then nodded to Hong Yun, Qingfeng, and Mingyue. He turned into a streak of azure light, flew out of the formation, and vanished on the horizon in the blink of an eye.
Zhenyuanzi's main body sensed the clone traveling farther and farther away, his heart at peace.
With the clone acting in his stead, he could focus on building his foundations. When the time came to take human form, he would surely astonish the world.
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