234: Chapter 232 Master, can you ascend to heaven?

The water stains licked by Luo Xiling and the others were sent by Zhang Mu.

At that time, he was looking at the report organized by Geoffrey.

After researching for a while and getting a clue where to find the missing materials, he thought about checking on them to see if they were running around.

As it turned out, the group was almost starving to death.

It wasn't intentional, but he had forgotten to set "send lunch" or "call him for dinner" for "Fellow Daoist Liu."

Seeing them howling in hunger, Zhang Mu originally intended to control Fellow Daoist Liu to deliver food.

On second thought, he decided to take the opportunity to feed them diluted potions for strengthening the body and replenishing stamina, thereby creating an illusion of "successful cultivation."

He also intended to pave the way for the "Sword Control Art" later on.

The Sword Control Art was a supernatural ability Zhang Mu had meticulously designed for the Mountain Gate disciples.

In essence, it was similar to a wand; both were means to activate magic items through various methods.

The only difference between the two was that a wand relied on incantations, which was a voice unlock, while the Sword Control Art relied on sword seals, a gesture password.

As for the advanced spells later on, Zhang Mu prepared to continue developing them based on this—the user would not master magic power themselves but would merely act as a switch to activate magic items.

Having set the main tone, Zhang Mu was in a great mood. He put Geoffrey's report into his inventory, thinking about looking for some materials to conduct experiments later.

Then, with a slight thought, he arrived at the residence on the summit of Yuzhang Mountain where Luo Xiling and her group were staying.

The doors on three sides were tightly closed, and he couldn't hear any breathing. Looking up at the dimming sky, he muttered, "It's almost dark, and they're still at the back mountain?"

The changing of the sky and the strange celestial phenomena in this area of the Mountain Gate were not set randomly.

To create a sense of mystery, he deliberately did not manifest a sun or moon, but simply divided it into night and day, rotating every twelve hours.

Therefore, Luo Xiling and the others, who had set out at dawn, should have been chopping trees for ten hours already.

With nothing else to do, Zhang Mu didn't use his Mental Energy to check, but walked toward the back mountain with his hands behind his back.

Not bad; although this tree-chopping cultivation nonsense was total rubbish, they were quite diligent.

Satisfied with everyone's hardworking attitude, a smile appeared on Zhang Mu's face.

However, his good mood did not last long.

When he arrived at the spot, he looked around at the bald mountaintop and the tree stumps covered in messy, intersecting axe marks, and a deep doubt couldn't help but arise in his mind—where is my forest?

Although this forest wasn't very vast, containing only about seventy trees, it had cost him a lot of effort.

The trees were all species meticulously selected from the Saul Continent; besides being straight, tall, and thick, their ornamental value was also significant.

When the workers were planting the trees, Zhang Mu had even personally supervised the layout of the forest, thinking that in his leisure time, he could lie back on the dense branches and take a pleasant nap.

Uh, it seemed there was nothing to lie on now.

With a darkened face, Zhang Mu walked forward, having already guessed what had happened.

Sure enough, after crossing a small slope, he saw them gathered around the last tree on the open ground that sloped downward.

The Director, Luo Xiling, Zhao Qi, and Yue Ruo were at the center, all red-faced and shouting. Further out were four fortunate ones holding axes, looking at a loss, seemingly frightened by the volatile atmosphere among the four. Even further out, Ye Ming and Lin Miao stood with helpless expressions.

Zhang Mu had sharp hearing; even with dozens of meters between them, he could still hear their words clearly.

"I don't care, I've chopped the fewest, so the last one belongs to me!" Zhao Qi said as he dropped his iron axe and spread his arms to hug the tree.

"Heh," Yue Ruo sneered, "Don't think I don't know you under-reported your count. I'm the one who chopped the fewest!"

"Stop arguing!" the Director shouted with a wave of his hand, interrupting them. "I'm the Director, give this tree to me!"

"In your dreams!"

The two who were just glaring at each other immediately formed a united front: "Even if you dock our entire salaries, we won't give it to you!"

Seeing that his authority as a leader was ineffective, the clever Director shifted his strategy and started playing the emotional card: "Little Yue, and Little Zhao,

Haven't I taken good care of you over the years?

Food, drinks, supplies—was anything lacking?

Setting that aside, I'm the oldest. Out of respect for your elders, you shouldn't be fighting me for this, right?"

His words were not only earnest in tone but also perfectly coordinated with his expression, fully portraying the loneliness and solitude of an empty-nest elderly man.

Unfortunately, the two who had known the Director for many years didn't buy it at all.

"Hmph." Zhao Qi folded his arms across his chest and raised his chin. "I'm not Little Zhao, I'm Get-Lost."

Yue Ruo also responded with a cold laugh: "Every year you dock two hundred from my year-end bonus. Even after I exposed you, you still refused to admit it, insisting that the higher-ups didn't issue the full amount.

I remember it all."

The Director's face turned beet red, and he stammered for a while: "That... there was no choice. My wife keeps a tight leash on the money, so I had to find ways to open up new revenue streams, right?"

"Opening up revenue streams by taking from me?"

During the gap while the three were too busy arguing to notice anything else, Luo Xiling, who had been keeping her head down and staying silent for a long time, sensed her chance. Like a rabbit darting out of its cage, she stepped forward and felled the tree with three axe strokes.

*Boom—*

Stepping on the fallen trunk, she raised her head proudly, revealing a row of white teeth: "I've solved the conflict for you!"

"Not bad."

The three who were about to surround Luo Xiling turned around. Seeing the figure in white clothes and silver hair approaching, they hurriedly stopped their fooling around: "Immortal Xu."

Scanning the surroundings, his gaze finally landed on the wood pile stacked in a triangle on the ground nearby. Xu smiled brightly: "Everyone, very good."

"Master!" Luo Xiling ran over with a silly grin. "The feather sent by Martial Uncle during the day was amazing. I was full after just a few bites!"

"More than that, I feel like my strength has increased a lot. I couldn't even chop down one tree this morning, but this afternoon I could fell one in just a few strokes," Zhao Qi said excitedly.

His eyelids twitched; fortunately, there was a layer of illusion on the outside, so he didn't have to worry about them sensing anything unusual.

He had originally thought that for trees this thick, people without logging experience might not even be able to chop one down in a month. It turned out he had brought this trouble upon himself.

As Zhao Qi spoke, he walked to the tree Luo Xiling had just felled, swung his axe, and split the large tree in two with a couple of strokes. Then he said excitedly, "Immortal Xu, look, am I awesome?"

A warm smile rose on Xu's face.

He remembered Soren mentioning that there was a specialty tree in the Silent Forest.

Its texture was as hard as steel, but its lush leaves were a normal emerald green, and it would go through leaf fall and budding with the rotation of the four seasons.

"Mr. Zhao, do you like felling trees?"

"If I can get stronger every day, then I like it."

"Very well."

Xu turned his head to look at everyone: "Are you all the same as Mr. Zhao?"

They all nodded their heads vigorously. Only Ye Ming felt that Immortal Xu's expression wasn't quite right. While standing still, he also poked the back of Lin Miao's hand with his pinky as a reminder.

"Everyone's diligence has deeply moved me." The curve of his lips widened slightly. "Since that is the case, I must also show my appreciation.

Starting tomorrow, an incentive program will be implemented. Everyone must fell at least one tree a day. There will be rewards for success, and conversely, punishments for failure."

One tree?

Immortal Xu is truly a good person! This is clearly just an excuse to give us immortal fate!

Zhao Qi almost lost his grip on his axe and asked happily, "What if we exceed the quota?"

Seeing someone rushing to find their own death, Xu looked at him and said indifferently, "Naturally, there will be extra rewards, but correspondingly, the punishments will also be doubled."

"It's a deal!"

Ye Ming glanced at the others, who looked as if "pie had fallen from the sky," and said, "Immortal Xu, is it okay if Lin Miao and I don't participate?"

"As you wish."

After saying that, Immortal Xu seemed to have something urgent to attend to, and his figure suddenly vanished from the spot.

"Ye Ming, are you stupid? You're passing up a free opportunity?"

"I..."

Immortal Xu calls Senior Brother Kunpeng his brother, which means they are from the same lineage. Could their personalities also be similar?

The thought flashed through Ye Ming's mind, and he immediately changed his tune: "Um... I feel like the physical improvement isn't very obvious. I need to take some time to test it tomorrow."

"What about Lin Miao?"

"Same as me." Just as Lin Miao started to speak, Ye Ming spoke up to stop her, while subtly casting her a look.

She didn't quite grasp the meaning, but the trust built from long-term companionship made her nod instinctively: "I'm the same as Brother Ye."

"How strange." Yue Ruo looked at Ye Ming and then at Lin Miao, muttering as she turned to join the group denouncing Luo Xiling for being cunning and treacherous.

...

Zhang Mu left Yuzhang Mountain and very urgently exited "The World," then summoned a Portal and arrived in the Saul Continent.

He then rushed to Moza Village and dragged Mihe out.

Nearly stumbling from being dragged, Mihe slapped away Zhang Mu's hand from his arm and asked frantically what had happened.

Had the Kingdom attacked again?

"Attack my ass. Hurry up and take me to the Silent Forest to find some trees."

"What trees?"

"I don't know the name, I just know the wood is hard."

"Oh, let's go."

Grabbing Zhang Mu's wrist, the surrounding space instantly blurred.

He seemed to have seen them before. Soon, the two stopped somewhere in the Silent Forest, surrounded by trees like those Soren had described.

Zhang Mu pulled an iron sword out of his Storage Pouch and swung it horizontally.

*Clang—*

The crisp sound of metal clashing echoed around, and Zhang Mu's smile gradually became wicked.

Afterward, he and Mihe returned the way they came and found over ten knights in Gur City—the upper limit for Mihe's Swift Travel Technique—and they all went to the forest.

They worked until evening, uprooting about a hundred trees and stuffing them all into "The World" before returning to Gur City.

Before parting, Mihe asked him if he still wanted to learn the Swift Travel Technique.

Zhang Mu told him there was no hurry.

The words on the magic book for the Swift Travel Technique had completely disappeared, so he could only learn it through Mihe's oral instruction.

Since he had things to deal with first, he would learn it later.

He returned to the Blue Star.

It was already eight o'clock in the evening, with only ten hours left until dawn. He didn't rest and rushed non-stop to the workshop at Jiu Jin Mountain.

Then, he worked through the night using Puppet Art to manufacture eleven magic items in the shape of axes—they had no supernatural functions; the only special thing about them was that they were hard enough.

After putting away the axes, he opened the light gate to "The World" and stepped inside, planting all the "iron trees" on the summit of Yuzhang Mountain.

With everything prepared, Zhang Mu gave a wicked smile and turned toward the small courtyard.

...

Dawn.

Luo Xiling and the others were pacing in the courtyard. After a while, a Peng burst out from the clouds in the sky, passed over their heads, and with a cry, transformed into a Kun, vanishing into the sea of clouds halfway up the mountain.

"Respectfully seeing off the Immortal."

"Respectfully seeing off the Martial Uncle."

Having passed safely, everyone smiled with relief. They went together to the Eatery to finish breakfast and then walked toward the back mountain.

Walking in a long line on the mountain path flanked by bushes, Ye Ming said, "Fellow Daoist Liu told me yesterday that we can go down the mountain for experience once we've succeeded in our cultivation.

But I found that the mountaintop is surrounded by cliffs on all sides. How do we get down? We can't always rely on someone to pick us up and drop us off, right?"

"Fly! Like Master, whoosh—" As she spoke, she jumped up as if she could fly into the air herself.

"I asked Fellow Daoist Liu about this too.

To achieve physical flight, one must be at least in the Origin Realm."

"What is the Origin Realm?"

"Fellow Daoist Liu didn't explain, only said that those with stunning talent can achieve it in a hundred years."

"Ah?" Luo Xiling, who was at the front of the line, suddenly stopped. The people behind were caught off guard and a chain reaction pile-up ensued.

"Hiss—" Yue Ruo rubbed her forehead and first scolded Zhao Qi, "Is your back made of iron? It's so hard!"

Then she poked her head out from the line and looked at Luo Xiling at the front: "What's wrong with you?"

"Sister Yue, a hundred years! And that's for people with stunning talent! When will we ever make it?"

"Don't stop. It's been a while already. Be careful not to be punished by Immortal Xu for being late."

Once the line started moving again, Ye Ming, who guessed she had misunderstood, said, "You don't need the Origin Realm to go down the mountain for experience. You just need to master the Sword Control Art and basic sword techniques."

"Sword Control Art?"

Luo Xiling instinctively wanted to turn around and ask, but was stopped by the voice of the person at the end of the mountain path: "Everyone, hurry up."

Hearing Immortal Xu urge them for the first time, everyone tensed up and hurriedly quickened their pace, rushing to the summit.

"Wow!"

The small forest that had been chopped bald yesterday seemed to have been restored overnight as if by a miracle. She was extremely shocked: "Master, do the trees at the Mountain Gate grow this fast?"

"Be calm."

Without answering her, Xu waved his right hand in front of him, and eleven iron axes with blades reflecting a cold light appeared.

They were lined up in a row, suspended motionless in mid-air.

"To do a good job, one must first sharpen one's tools. Everyone, please."

Everyone stepped forward one by one to take an axe.

Newbie high-quality equipment +1, Newbie high-quality equipment +1, Newbie high-quality equipment +1...

After the axes were distributed, Yue Ruo turned back and saw Ye Ming and Lin Miao with empty hands, asking in surprise, "Immortal Xu, don't the two of them get one?"

"They declined the rewards and punishments, naturally."

"Oh."

She scratched her face and turned around, only to find to her shock that Zhao Qi and the others had already rushed into the forest to pick trees. She immediately started running after them.

Strangely, Luo Xiling, who had been scrambling to chop trees yesterday, didn't move this time.

Standing beside Xu, she blinked her eyes: "Master, can you go to Outer Space?"

Eh?

Is it because I am usually too gentle, or has her rebellious phase arrived?

Ye Ming noticed Immortal Xu had a misunderstanding and hurriedly said, "Immortal Xu, this isn't sarcasm, it's, uh, literal."

"Literal?"

Xu looked up at the sky: "Everyone, do you have doubts?"

"Well... if I had to say..." Ye Ming thought for a moment and asked, "An Immortal's physique is supernatural, making them almost a different species from humans. Why not go to Outer Space?"

"What makes you think I haven't?"

As his voice fell, the three were stunned. Ye Ming was the first to recover, taking a sudden step forward: "You've been there?!"

"When your realm is sufficient, it would be no trouble for me to take you for a tour."

"Really?!"

"Indeed."

"That's great!" Luo Xiling was overjoyed. Shouldering her axe, she turned and walked toward the forest. "Master, I'm going to chop trees right now and strive to one day..."

*Clang—*

"Holy crap! Even sparks came out! Is this a freaking tree?"

Beside a tree, Zhao Qi was shaking his numbed hands, his dropped axe lying at his feet.

Luo Xiling's back as she carried her iron axe went stiff.

After a long while, she slowly turned her head: "Master, what is the punishment?"

"You don't stop until the tree is broken."