28: Chapter 28 Finding a Place to Heal, Spatial Transformation, Planning for the Future

Leaving the boundaries of the Rotten Bone Forest, Ye Qing dashed dozens of miles eastward in one breath, until he was far from Blackwater Market and known danger zones, deep into a primitive old forest where human tracks were rare and ancient trees towered.

He no longer spared his Spiritual Qi, pushing his Light Body Technique to the limit. His figure shuttled through the forest like a ghost, while simultaneously pushing his newly Acquired Breath Concealment Technique to the limit he could currently maintain, his presence nearly merging with the grass and trees in the forest.

Finally, beneath a steep cliff completely covered by vines and ferns, he found a shallow cave formed by flowing water erosion.

The cave entrance only allowed one person to pass sideways, but the interior was a different world. It was a natural stone chamber several zhang in diameter, dry and ventilated, with sky light filtering through gaps in the top, and a small, clear underground spring bubbling up in the corner, forming a tiny pool.

"This will do."

Ye Qing carefully inspected the inside and outside of the stone chamber, confirming there were no Yao Beast dens or signs of other people's activity. He then set up a few simple Restriction warnings at the cave entrance—merely using Spiritual Qi to leave imperceptible marks on the roots of several vines; if anyone or any beast touched them, he would immediately perceive it.

After doing all this, his tense heartstrings relaxed slightly, and a wave of intense fatigue and weakness suddenly surged up.

The previous battle in the underground space looked like he had crushed his opponent, but it was actually extremely dangerous. The strange Demon Vine's Divine Soul impact was no small matter; had it not been for the space's will spontaneously protecting his body, he would have likely fallen for it. His final full-power blow, a variant of the "Pseudo-Fireball Technique," had drained nearly half of his Spiritual Qi, and the recoil from the explosion had also caused him some internal visceral shock.

He sat cross-legged in the dry center of the stone chamber, first taking an inferior Qi-returning pill obtained from the Loose Cultivator's Storage Pouch, silently operating his Cultivation Technique to regulate his breath and heal.

The pure energy continuously fed back by the space, coupled with the cooler, nourishing moon essence aura brought in after the moonlight jade tree took up residence, made his recovery speed far exceed the ordinary.

In just an hour, his Spiritual Qi had mostly recovered, and the internal visceral shock had also subsided.

Ye Qing did not get up immediately, but instead sank his consciousness into his internal space.

The next moment, the scene he "saw" made his heart shake violently, filled with surprise!

The space had undergone a massive transformation!

The originally fifteen-zhang diameter space had now expanded to nearly twenty zhang! The gray fog at the edges was denser and thicker, flowing slowly like the barriers of a world.

The black soil in the center had expanded to seven or eight zhang square! The soil was no longer purely black but faintly revealed a warm, jade-like luster; Spiritual Qi billowed into mist, rolling and surging, almost liquefying and dripping. The air was no longer filled with simple Spiritual Qi, but also carried a cool, pure, and soul-soothing moon essence aura.

The one-foot-tall moonlight jade tree was now quietly rooted in the very center of the black soil, where the Spiritual Qi was densest. Its silver-white body flowed with soft radiance, and the three moon essence fruits were crystal clear, the moon essence inside flowing like living water, slowly breathing in the Spiritual Qi and moon essence in the space.

With the jade tree as the center, strands of pure moon essence aura spread out, nourishing the entire space. Ye Qing could clearly feel that the "quality" of the space was improving, the rules were more perfect, and the slight difference in time flow compared to the outside world seemed to have become more obvious.

What surprised him even more was that the spiritual plants planted earlier had undergone astonishing changes in such an environment!

The earliest batch of moonlight flowers, which had only bloomed sporadically before, were now mostly in full bloom; the silver-white flowers were a size larger than before, their radiance brighter, and the moon essence aura they emitted resonated faintly with the jade tree. The parent plants had even sprouted new flower branches.

The iron wire vine shoots had grown to half a foot tall, the dark red vine bodies gleaming with a metallic luster, exceptionally tough.

The night firefly grass and purple thread grass were also growing vigorously, with full leaves, and their quality had significantly improved under the nourishment of the moon essence and abundant Spiritual Qi.

Even the remnants and roots of the Demon Vine, piled at the edge of the gray fog, were being slowly and firmly absorbed by the space, converting the residual demon power and wood essence to feed back into the space.

The entire space was full of vitality, rich in Spiritual Qi, with moon essence flowing; it had initially taken on the shape of a "Blessed Land"!

"Twenty-zhang space! moonlight jade tree! Improvement in Spiritual Qi quality! Difference in time flow!"

Ye Qing's heart was uncontrollably excited.

This trip to the Rotten Bone Forest was highly risky, but the rewards were beyond imagination!

The value of the moonlight jade tree was immeasurable; not only could it continuously feed back into the space and nourish his Divine Soul, but its fruits were also treasures coveted even in the Foundation Establishment Stage. This transformation of the space had laid a more solid Foundation for his future cultivation.

"However, the tree that stands above the forest will be destroyed by the wind. The changes in the moonlight jade tree and the space must never be known to anyone."

He calmed down and began to plan.

The moon essence fruit could not be touched for now; he would wait until at least after his Foundation Establishment, or when he urgently needed to improve his Divine Soul. He would let the jade tree grow quietly in the center of the space, as a "Divine Tree of the Land," continuously optimizing the space environment.

The blooming moonlight flowers could be harvested at the right time. First-grade moonlight flowers were not too rare in a place like the Black Water Swamp; selling them carefully would earn him Spirit Stones without drawing too much attention.

The Demon Vine remnants, the miscellaneous items obtained from the Loose Cultivator he killed, and low-grade Materials he couldn't use could all be slowly absorbed by the space and converted into nutrients for expansion and growth.

"For the next period, this stone chamber will be my temporary base. On one hand, I will consolidate my Level 5 Qi Refining cultivation, optimize my offensive and defensive Spells, and practice the Breath Concealment Technique. On the other hand, I will use the space to accelerate the cultivation of moonlight flowers, and after they mature, I will sell them in small batches to exchange for cultivation resources and intelligence."

"At the same time, I need to understand the Black Water Swamp and surrounding forces more deeply. I might find clues about the sequel to that 'Basic Breath Concealment Method (Fragment)' in Blackwater Market. I also need to keep an eye out for higher-level Cultivation Techniques, Spells, and skill Legacies."

"The improvement of cultivation cannot stop. With the feedback from the moonlight jade tree and the expanded space, the Sixth Level of Qi Refining should not be far off. But every Realm must be polished to the limit for a perfect Foundation Establishment."

The plans emerged clearly in his mind.

He exited the space, opened his eyes, and the light in the stone chamber was already a bit dim.

He took out dry rations and clear water to satisfy his hunger.

Then, he took out the animal skin book recording a crude wood-attribute Cultivation Technique, which he had obtained from the bones in the Demon Vine's nest, and began to flip through it by the last daylight filtering through the crack in the cave entrance.

The Cultivation Technique was crude, even worse than the introductory Cultivation Technique of the Qingyun Sect, but some of the application concepts regarding the "nourishment," "toughness," and "entanglement" of wood-attribute Spiritual Qi gave him some inspiration, which might be integrated into the deduction of the "Spirit Nurturing Technique" or future wood-attribute Spells.

The night deepened, and the cries of night owls came from the forest.

Ye Qing closed the book and blew out the "grass candle" he had temporarily made from dried night firefly grass leaves, which emitted a weak light.

He lay down on the stone bed covered with dried grass, pillowing his arms, and gazed at the few stars leaking through the gap in the top of the stone chamber.

Inside his body, the twenty-zhang space was silently running, moon essence flowing, and spiritual plants growing.

Outside, the Black Water Swamp was full of dangers, but also hid countless opportunities.

From a Qingyun Sect servant to a Loose Cultivator in the Black Water Swamp.

From one zhang square to a twenty-zhang Blessed Land.

He had chosen the right path.

Developing steadily, step by step.

On the path to immortality, I shall plan slowly.

A faint, calm smile curled at the corners of his mouth.

Ye Qing closed his eyes and drifted into sleep.

In his dream, there seemed to be a silver moon hanging high, the jade tree glowing, and a world was quietly gestating and growing within his body.