Ten Years to Grow Trees, a Hundred Years to Cultivate People

"The aura emanating from this mountain seems unusual."

After traveling this far, Tao Ying's inner turmoil finally subsided, and she began to pay attention to the surrounding scenery and try to experience its atmosphere. Many of the feelings she experienced here were difficult to feel in the Mortal Realm or when her Soul Lock in her physical body.

Zhan Zhen smiled slightly and began to explain, "The high mountains in this world are all called 'Book Mountain,' which hide a lot of precious experience and knowledge, but they are not easy to obtain. Since we came to Scholar Forest, the Book Mountain are a major goal. There are mines in the mountains, from which we can absorb knowledge."

"Speaking of which, did you two find us in the Lin Zhong just now?" Chen Jing turned to look at the forest behind him. "I wonder what mysteries lie within these trees?"

Zhan Cheng responded, "Scholar Forest, Scholar Forest, refers to the dense forest on the plain. This forest is vast and almost boundless, and the outside world uses it to refer to this strange world."

Chen Jing's expression changed. "This is Scholar Forest? When I walked through it earlier, I didn't sense anything unusual inside; it seemed like an ordinary tree."

Zhan Zhen laughed and said, "That's natural. It takes ten years to grow a tree, but a hundred years to cultivate a person. Which tree in the Scholar Forest that has taken shape doesn't have a history of more than a hundred years? After settling down, it becomes lush and dense, and naturally looks the same as an ordinary tree."

"I'd like to hear the details." Chen Jing sensed the hidden meaning in the other person's words.

"Actually, when I first came here, I was also puzzled by this forest. Later, after listening to other people's explanations, I realized how powerful it was," Zhan Zhen said, pointing to the Doubt Frost on the ground. "This frost represents doubt, and it is everywhere. Any sapling that can break through the Doubt Frost shows that it is upright and will not be troubled by doubt."

"Third brother, don't be so mysterious," Zhan Cheng suddenly interrupted.

"Yes," Zhan Zhen shook his head, his tone changing, "Saying this isn't just for show. Each of these trees corresponds to a person in the Mortal Realm; they are the embodiment of their knowledge, learning, integrity, and thoughts."

"Oh? So, there are trees here that correspond to you and me?" Chen Jing showed an interested expression, seemingly intrigued.

"They exist, but they're not easy to find," Zhan Zhen said. He paused, seemingly organizing his thoughts, before continuing, "It's actually just like our learning process. In the beginning, we're just seeds of knowledge, and you can't tell if they're good or bad. But after learning something, remembering something, and gaining some insights, those seeds sprout."

"I see." Chen Jing's expression suddenly dawned on him, as if he had understood. "Reading books and accumulating some knowledge is like sprouting. This is something everyone can do. But after that, you need to be firm in your principles, gain insights from the books, and have principles for being a person and doing things. Only then can you be said to have taken root."

"Brother Chen is indeed exceptionally intelligent, grasping things at a glance." Zhan Zhen offered a slight compliment. "However, this is merely reading and memorizing. It's certainly not enough to truly learn. One must gain some experience and verify what is learned from books. This will lead to questions and doubts. Only by overcoming these doubts can one truly become a sapling here. Otherwise, it will be difficult to even sprout from the soil."

"Now that you mention it, Brother Zhan, I understand." Chen Jing nodded, his gaze sweeping across the woods once more. "I think even if a tree breaks through the Doubt Frost and grows to maturity, it won't be easy. The final form a tree takes is probably related to the State of Mind of the person it represents."

"That's right," Zhan Zhen nodded. "I've heard that if you can find the one that corresponds to you, there will be unexpected benefits. But Scholar Forest is vast and there are many trees. How can we find it?"

Chen Jing nodded slightly, then said, "That's true, but with such a lush forest, it can't just correspond to the people currently living in the Mortal Realm. The trees belonging to those who have passed away should still exist, right?"

"Yes," Zhan Zhen sighed, "The souls of the deceased may return to the underworld, but their knowledge remains here, growing and even developing. Even some doctrines that have been lost or extinct in the Mortal World can be found here."

Then, he said something that surprised Qiu Yan and Daoist Lu beside him, "It is said that the trees corresponding to Sage stand in the Lin Zhong. If one can find them and inherit their virtues, one can be reborn."

"Sage?" Chen Jing's eyelids twitched. "You say to inherit their legacy, but how?"

"The knowledge within each tree in this Scholar Forest is sealed by its bark. By peeling back the bark and touching it, one can gain insight. However, the knowledge and memories accumulated by a single tree are limited, and the roots of the trees in the Lin Zhong are interconnected. Breaking open one tree will subject one to a torrent of knowledge and wisdom!"

Chen Jing immediately realized the gains and losses involved. "If we only chose ordinary trees, but were overwhelmed by the information torrent of a vast forest, to the point that our souls almost exploded, it would be a losing proposition."

Zhan Zhen nodded and sighed, "That's right. The bark can block detection, but it's difficult to discern how much knowledge is hidden inside just by looking at it, let alone identify the person!"

The two didn't lower their voices, so everyone else could hear them clearly. Qiu Yan, who had been sensing the Doubt Frost formation with his eyes closed, also had some thoughts after hearing them.

"If the trees truly hold experiences and insights, and if we could sense them all, it might even help to foster the growth of Humanistic Fire Seed!" Thinking this, a thought struck him, "Chen Jing's family has records from their ancestors; they should be familiar with the significance of trees. Why pretend not to know and deliberately ask?"

Just then, a voice suddenly came from ahead, and it could be faintly heard that it was calling Zhan Zhen's name.

A young man flew over quickly. From a distance, Chen Jing could recognize the man's appearance, which bore a resemblance to the Zhan brothers, Zhan Cheng and Zhan Zhen.

Zhan Zhen then introduced, "This is my second brother, Zhan Fang. The three of us brothers originally came out to look for fallen leaves, but we noticed some commotion by the long river. My eldest brother and I went to investigate, while my second brother went to inform Mr. Bei."

"Fallen leaves?" Chen Jing looked puzzled.

Zhan Zhen made no attempt to hide anything. "Trees are difficult to access, but occasionally leaves will fall. As long as you can catch them before they hit the ground, you can learn something from the leaves without touching Doubt Frost."

As they were talking, Zhan Fang arrived. He first spoke a few words to Zhan Cheng to understand the situation, then looked at Qiu Yan with a look of surprise and uncertainty, and finally greeted Chen Jing and the others.

Having done all that, Zhan Fang didn't waste any more words and said directly, "Since you gentlemen are willing to rely on Mr. Bei, then you should wait at the camp for a while. Mr. Bei has not yet returned from the mountain."

"Dependence?" Tao Ying frowned.

His expression did not escape Zhan Fang's notice. The second son of the Zhan Household had been paying attention to the expressions of the group and spoke up at the right moment, "In the Scholar Forest, without the protection of a person Literary Path Creation, many things are inconvenient and many places are difficult to access."

Upon hearing this, Tao Ying couldn't hold back any longer. "We also have people here Literary Path Creation."

"Let's wait until Mr. Bei dispels the Doubt Frost that have tainted Brother Qiu before we talk about it," Zhan Fang shook his head, unconcerned.

When Zhan Cheng and Zhan Zhen went to investigate, their Heart Fire exploded, and they were almost tainted by the Doubt Frost. Qiu Yan intervened and dispelled it, taking the blame for them. So, although they didn't believe it, they didn't say anything. Zhan Fang had just arrived and hadn't experienced it firsthand, so he naturally didn't have as many concerns when he spoke.

But his words immediately changed Tao Ying's expression. The young magistrate had previously been dissatisfied with Qiu Yan, but now, hearing others say this, he felt that they were being looked down upon and felt a sense of shared indignation, wanting to refute him.

Just then, a voice came from the side. "I am perfectly fine, there's no need to trouble Mr. Bei. But since I'm here, the Essentials pay him a visit."

It was Qiu Yan, who had been silent the whole way, who spoke.

The others looked in the direction of the sound, and the expressions of the three Zhan Household brothers suddenly changed.

Qiu Yan opened his eyes and spoke with a normal expression, though his body was still covered in a layer of frost.

"The Doubt Frost is on him, yet this person seems to have a very clear mind?" Zhan Fang's thoughts raced. Logically speaking, being tainted by the Doubt Frost should fill one's mind with all sorts of questions, interfering with normal thinking and affecting even normal expressions and speech. Since it is a soul body and affects thoughts, it cannot be faked, and others can see something amiss at a glance.

But when he looked closely at Qiu Yan, he found that the other party's expression was normal, his eyes were bright, and he seemed to be in a clear mind.

"It seems Qiu Yan does have some skill; we should be wary of him. However, he's no match for Mr. Bei. After all, when Mr. Bei sparred with Bai Zhaoyuan, the frost didn't even touch him..."

Thinking to himself, Zhan Fang no longer dared to underestimate Qiu Yan and his Zhan Fang, and his attitude underwent a subtle change. This change was particularly noticeable to people in officialdom, and Tao Ying noticed it immediately, so he couldn't help but sneer.

Immediately afterwards, the group floated along and soon arrived at the foot of the Book Mountain.

They had flown here through shimmering white frost, but upon arriving here, they finally saw a patch of land untouched by Doubt Frost. The Zhan Household brothers landed on solid ground. Chen Jing and the others followed suit.

After flying for so long, landing here gives one a particularly solid feeling.

Several pavilions stood not far away, their presence incongruous with the forest and the foot of the mountain.

Qiu Yan landed on the ground, first thanking the Daoist Lu, then noticing several people coming out of the pavilion. These people were also dressed as scholars, and were all young, mostly in their twenties or thirties. At a glance, there were more than a dozen of them.

Among them, the figure of a finely dressed young man caught Qiu Yan's attention. As this man walked, the people around him intentionally or unintentionally made way for him.

"Brother Zhan Shi? These are the newcomers you mentioned? Hmm? Some of them have actually been tainted by Doubt Frost?"

The elegantly dressed young man approached, ignoring Qiu Yan and Chen Jing, and spoke to Zhan Fang instead. He noticed the white frost on Qiu Yan's body and frowned. "In the Scholar Forest World, Doubt Frost is like a plague. If it spreads carelessly, it will cause huge losses and is difficult to eradicate. It would be best if this young master did not land for the time being and stayed outside the camp."