Queen Mother of the West

"This does not seem to be ordinary mist." Zhen Yuanzi looked at the hazy clouds shrouding a considerable area, his expression somewhat startled and suspicious.

Shi Mo, who was likewise staring at them with a frown, closed his eyes and sensed them carefully. Only then did his expression shift as he murmured uncertainly, "Could these clouds be some special innate spirit treasure?"

"What is going on with you two?" Hongyun, who had caught up afterward, was also stunned as he looked at the hazy clouds. "These clouds..."

"Shi Mo, look!" Zhen Yuanzi suddenly turned his head, his face filled with astonishment.

Shi Mo and Hongyun instinctively turned to look as well, and both froze.

"I-I am not seeing things, am I?" Hongyun's eyes widened slightly in disbelief.

"You are not." Shi Mo took a deep breath, his heart equally unable to remain calm. In the distant sky, the familiar scene of the Kunlun Immortal Realm had appeared, rapidly approaching them as if the entire Kunlun Immortal Realm were flying over.

The Kunlun Immortal Realm was flying. It sounded unbelievable, but it was the truth.

"W-What is going on?" Zhen Yuanzi was completely baffled as he faced the Kunlun Immortal Realm flying ever closer through the sky.

But Shi Mo seemed to think of something, his expression shifting. He noticed that the approaching Kunlun Immortal Realm had a discernible boundary, as though it were revealing a world within a mirror.

In the blink of an eye, the Kunlun Immortal Realm had reached the hazy clouds. The clouds trembled, then spread forth to envelop the Kunlun Immortal Realm.

Wrapped in the hazy clouds, the Kunlun Immortal Realm shrank, transforming into a massive mirror!

"The Kunlun Immortal Realm was actually a world within a mirror?" Seeing this, Shi Mo, Zhen Yuanzi, and Hongyun all realized the truth.

At the same time, Shi Mo also understood why the Kunlun Immortal Realm could preserve the Peaches of Immortality, and why the place where the Flat Peach Mother Tree grew, despite not being the main peak of the mountain range, still possessed such a great primary spirit vein. It turned out that the innate spirit treasure, the Kunlun Mirror, absorbed the spiritual energy of the earth veins to sustain the energy channel of the world within the mirror.

Once the Kunlun Immortal Realm had shrunk to the size of a small mountain, the hazy clouds parted, and a mature woman in a blue dress stepped out. "I did not expect three fellow Daoists to visit my West Kunlun realm. Forgive me for failing to welcome you from afar."

"Queen Mother of the West?" Shi Mo, Zhen Yuanzi, and Hongyun exchanged astonished glances upon seeing her. Then Shi Mo narrowed his eyes at the clouds enveloping the entire West Kunlun mountain range. "The clouds... the Western Plain-Colored Cloud Realm Banner?"

"Hm?" At that moment, Shi Mo, Zhen Yuanzi, and Hongyun suddenly changed expression and turned to look. From the direction of Nine Tripod Iron Fork Mountain, a streak of light shot toward them.

Wherever that streak of light passed, space twisted and churned chaotically. As it drew near at incredible speed, they could clearly see the Yellow Central Plum within it. Before Shi Mo and the others could react, the Yellow Central Plum had already crashed into the hazy clouds.

Once Shi Mo came to his senses, the corner of his mouth could not help twitching.

"An innate spirit root?" Queen Mother of the West was also rather surprised.

"Queen Mother of the West, I was the one who obtained that Yellow Central Plum. I had not yet found a suitable place to plant it, but I never expected it to choose one itself," Shi Mo said helplessly.

As if sensing something, Queen Mother of the West smiled in surprise. "It truly has taken root within my West Kunlun realm."

"What do we do now? Who does it belong to?" Hongyun asked instinctively.

Shi Mo shot Hongyun a speechless look, then turned to Queen Mother of the West with a slightly awkward smile. "Queen Mother of the West, would it be convenient for us to enter your West Kunlun realm and take a look?"

"Visitors are rare here. Please, fellow Daoists, come in!" Queen Mother of the West was rather easygoing as she replied with a courteous smile.

Shi Mo breathed a sigh of relief. Together with Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun, he followed Queen Mother of the West through the hazy clouds. Beyond them lay a majestic range of snow-capped mountains. Mirror-like lakes dotted the snowy forests between the peaks, while azure birds and white cranes soared overhead, snow rabbits and spirit deer ran about, and immortal spiritual energy rose and spread through the air. It was utterly like an isolated immortal paradise beyond the mortal world.

"Queen Mother of the West, that mirror containing an immortal realm..." As they flew amid the snowy mountains, Shi Mo asked with mild curiosity.

With a wave of her hand, Queen Mother of the West summoned the mirror formed from the Kunlun Immortal Realm into her grasp.

"This Kunlun Mirror is fated to be mine. It suddenly flew to my West Kunlun realm this time—could it be related to the three fellow Daoists?" Queen Mother of the West asked with a smile.

Zhen Yuanzi and Hongyun were taken aback, instinctively looking toward Shi Mo. Shi Mo merely smiled. "Queen Mother of the West, since we helped you obtain the Kunlun Mirror, then the Yellow Central Plum..."

"Do not worry. Since it is yours, I naturally will not contend with you for it." Smiling faintly, Queen Mother of the West soon led Shi Mo and the others to the summit of a mountain in the West Kunlun realm, its peak like an enormous platform that had been sliced cleanly through the middle.

Looking at the Yellow Central Plum, which had already taken root on the mountaintop, Queen Mother of the West could not help saying, "Fellow Daoist Shi Mo, it seems this Yellow Central Plum is truly well suited to growing here. Do you intend to transplant it elsewhere, or..."

"Since it chose to take root and grow here of its own accord, I will have to trouble you, Fellow Daoist Queen Mother of the West, to look after it for me from now on," Shi Mo said, greatly surprising Queen Mother of the West.

"You intend to leave the Yellow Central Plum here? Are you not afraid that I might become greedy?"

"If you intended to covet the Yellow Central Plum, you would not have allowed us to come here. With those clouds outside shrouding this place, we would not have been able to force our way in," Shi Mo said. Queen Mother of the West's expression shifted slightly upon hearing this, before she smiled noncommittally. "Fellow Daoist, you have sharp eyes!"

"However, Fellow Daoist Shi Mo, do you intend for me to look after this Yellow Central Plum for nothing?" Queen Mother of the West continued with a smile.

Shi Mo was taken aback, then smiled. "When the Yellow Central Plum ripens, how about I give you three fruits?"

"Oh? Fellow Daoist, you are quite generous." Queen Mother of the West raised a brow and smiled. "But I have no intention of taking advantage of you. From each harvest in the future, one fruit for me will suffice. However, I have heard that Fellow Daoist Shi Mo sold quite a lot of millet to the Wu Clan. Could you give me some as well?"

Millet? Shi Mo's gaze sharpened at her words. "Do you mean acquired millet, or..."

"I imagine Fellow Daoist would be reluctant to part with Innate Millet. Some acquired millet will do," Queen Mother of the West said, causing Shi Mo to immediately relax.

Millet was tied to Shi Mo's grain business in the Primordial World. Naturally, he did not want to create a competitor for himself.

"Queen Mother of the West, may I ask out of curiosity, what do you need acquired millet for?" Shi Mo could not help asking.

Queen Mother of the West fell silent for a moment before replying, "It is not for me. King of the East needs it. He cultivates on Yingzhou Immortal Island in the East Sea, and many cultivators have gathered under him. The pure energy contained within acquired millet can assist cultivators in their cultivation."

"So that is how it is!" Shi Mo nodded in understanding, then said, "Queen Mother of the West, I can give you a small amount of acquired millet. But if he wants a large quantity, King of the East will need to trade with me personally."

Queen Mother of the West nodded repeatedly. "Very well. I will speak with my brother about it later."