285: Chapter 473 The sprouts of the Qingxuan world

On the third day of the Myriad Realms Reconstruction Assembly, a special guest arrived in the Qingxuan Realm.

They did not come through the cross-realm passage; instead, they descended from the stone platform.

Sitting in a wheelchair, Ye Wushuang was pushed by Shadow, passing through the golden light of the cross-realm passage to set foot on the land of the Qingxuan Realm.

Lin Xinghe knelt at the foot of the tea mountain to welcome them.

Her white hair fluttered in the wind, her cyan cloth skirt was stained with soil and tea leaf debris, and her knees bore two dark marks—remnants from kneeling too long before the withered old tea tree, stains that could no longer be washed away.

"Speaker Ye."

She lowered her head.

Ye Wushuang leaned forward slightly in his wheelchair.

"Disciple is no longer the Speaker.

Disciple is now just a tea grower."

Lin Xinghe raised her head, gazing at his graying hair and aged face. Her lips moved as if she wanted to say something, only to realize she didn't know what to say.

Shadow stood behind the wheelchair, holding the pot of freshly brewed tea.

He said nothing, only gazing at the tea mountain—most of the withered tea trees had already been cleared away, revealing bare slopes with exposed soil that looked like unhealed wounds.

Yet someone was planting trees on the slope.

Not transplanted large trees, but tiny saplings, tender and green, only as tall as an arm, swaying gently in the wind.

Those were new tea tree shoots, cultivated from the very last batch of seeds of the old tea tree.

Ye Wushuang gazed at those new shoots.

"How many have you planted?"

Lin Xinghe stood up, walked over to the nearest sapling, squatted down, and gently touched its tender green leaves.

"Three thousand.

Ever since the day the old tea tree withered, Disciple has been planting them.

One hundred a day, for thirty days.

Not daring to stop for a single day."

She paused.

"Disciple feared that if she stopped, she would no longer have the strength to plant them."

Shadow pushed Ye Wushuang up along the stone steps of the tea mountain.

The stone steps were very narrow, allowing only one person to pass at a time, flanked by bare slopes and newly planted saplings.

The wheels bumped along the stone steps, making a creaking sound, yet Shadow pushed very steadily, planting every step firmly.

When they reached the halfway point of the mountain, Ye Wushuang asked Shadow to stop.

He turned his head to look down the mountain—there was a flat piece of land, on which stood a small wooden cabin, and before the cabin stood a gigantic withered tree.

That was the old tea tree that had lived for over ten thousand years. It had withered, but its trunk remained—thick and covered in cracks, resembling a sleeping old man.

Beside the tree roots knelt a person.

That person wore a cyan cloth skirt, had white hair, a hunched back, and held a handful of soil in their hands, scattering it over the tree roots.

She scattered it very slowly, every handful done with meticulous care, as if tucking a quilt over someone fast asleep.

Lin Xinghe followed Ye Wushuang's gaze.

"That is Disciple's Master.

She guarded the old tea tree for her entire life.

When the old tea tree withered, she refused to leave.

Every morning when she woke up, her very first task was to kneel before the old tea tree, earth up its roots, and speak to it.

She said it was not yet dead.

Its roots were still alive.

When spring came, it would sprout again."

Ye Wushuang was silent for a long time.

"Is it still alive?"

Lin Xinghe gazed at the withered tree.

"Disciple does not know.

But Disciple's Master says it is alive.

It is waiting down below.

Waiting for Ama to come see it."

Shadow pulled out the new jade talisman from his bosom and placed it in the palm of his hand.

The jade talisman was glowing, a faint silvery white, yet still visible under the sunlight of the Qingxuan Realm.

"Master said that the root of the very first tea tree of the Myriad Realms is anchored deep within the deepest part of the Myriad Realms.

It will not die.

It will wait.

When the Myriad Realms need it, it will wake up."

Ye Wushuang took the jade talisman and held it tightly in his palm.

The jade talisman was warm, carrying the aura of the Ancient God of Annihilation as well as the aura of the old tea tree.

"It is down below.

Together with Guiying.

Guiying is keeping it company."

Lin Xinghe's tears streamed down.

She did not cry out loud, but merely knelt before that sapling, lowering her head for a very, very long time.

That noon, Ye Wushuang sat before the withered old tea tree for a long time.

Shadow pushed the wheelchair to the side of the tree roots, then retreated to the side, holding the pot of tea and waiting.

Lin Xinghe knelt on the other side of the tree roots, still holding that handful of soil without scattering it, simply cupping it in her hands.

Ye Wushuang reached out and gently touched the trunk of the old tea tree.

The bark was very rough, the cracks very deep, and in some places it had split open, exposing the grayish-white wood within.

But what he touched was not merely withered wood—he sensed that deep within the trunk, something was still there.

Not a heartbeat, but breathing.

Very slow, very light, as if someone was sleeping deeply, far away.

"It is here."

He said softly.

Lin Xinghe raised her head.

"Disciple knows.

Disciple's Master says it is waiting.

Waiting for Ama to come.

Waiting for Ama to come see it."

Ye Wushuang withdrew his hand and looked down at his palm.

There was a thin silvery-white pattern in his palm, stained from the trunk of the old tea tree. That was the aura of the old tea tree, the aura of the very first ray of light in the Myriad Realms.

"Ama will come.

She promised to come see every single tree in the Myriad Realms."

He paused.

"When she finishes her work, she will come."

Lin Xinghe scattered that handful of soil over the tree roots, stood up, and patted the dirt off her knees.

"Disciple will wait.

Wait for a lifetime."

That afternoon, Ye Wushuang and Shadow planted a tree on the tea mountain.

Not a tea tree, but a peach tree.

A peach tree branch given to them by the Chaos Lord, tender and green, bearing a few tiny buds.

Sitting in his wheelchair, Ye Wushuang used the small shovel he carried with him to dig a pit.

The pit was neither large nor deep, slightly crooked, but he dug it very earnestly, shovel by shovel. Soil flew about, falling onto his robes and Shadow's shoes.

Shadow squatted beside him, watching him dig.

"Ye Wushuang, are you tired?"

Ye Wushuang shook his head.

"Not tired.

Planting trees is not tiring."

He inserted the peach tree branch into the pit, scooped up soil with both hands, and filled it in handful by handful.

Once filled, he pressed the soil down firmly with his hands, then took the teapot from Shadow and poured the tea over the tree roots.

The tea seeped into the soil, making a faint sound as if whispering something.

Shadow looked at the tiny peach tree sapling.

"Second Master said that if a peach tree is planted here, when it grows up, the old tea tree will wake up.

When the old tea tree smells the fragrance of peach blossoms, it will know spring has arrived.

When spring arrives, it will sprout."

Ye Wushuang gazed at the peach tree sapling.

"It will wake up.

After waiting for over ten thousand years, it is time to wake up."

That evening, the afterglow of the setting sun spilled over the tea mountain, golden, the same color as Nian Yezi's.

Ye Wushuang sat before the old tea tree, Shadow stood behind him, and Lin Xinghe knelt to the side.

None of the three spoke, save for the rustling sound of the wind blowing through the newly planted saplings and the distant sounds of chickens crowing and dogs barking from the village at the foot of the mountain.

Guiying's voice came from the jade talisman in Ye Wushuang's bosom.

That jade talisman had been given to him by Shadow, who said that by carrying it, Guiying could hear him speak.

Ye Wushuang placed it against his chest, right over his heart, and Guiying's voice came from there, very soft and gentle, as if speaking from a very distant place.

"Uncle Ye, Disciple saw the old tea tree down below.

Its roots are anchored so deep, reaching all the way to the bottom of the abyss.

It is sleeping.

It is waiting for Ama in its dreams."

Ye Wushuang pressed his hand against his chest.

"What did it dream of?"

Guiying said.

"It dreamed of the first year when the Myriad Realms were born.

It was still a seed, sleeping in the soil.

Ama was watching it from above.

Ama said, 'Grow quickly, the Myriad Realms need you.'

It heard her, and so it sprouted."

Ye Wushuang's tears streamed down.

He did not wipe them away, but simply sat there, gazing at the withered old tea tree for a very, very long time.

That night, the moon was very round.

Moonlight spilled over the tea mountain, a sheet of silvery white.

Ye Wushuang did not return to the stone platform; he slept beside the old tea tree, Shadow slept by his side, and Lin Xinghe slept on the other side of the tree roots.

The three of them surrounded the withered tree, like guarding a sleeping elder.

Guiying's voice came from the jade talisman, very soft and gentle, as if singing a lullaby.

Ye Wushuang closed his eyes, listening to that song, recalling matters from many years ago.

Back then he was still young, coming to the Qingxuan Realm for the very first time, tasting the tea brewed by Lin Xinghe for the very first time.

The tea was very bitter, and he furrowed his brows. Lin Xinghe smiled and said that bitterness was right, only through bitterness could there be sweetness.

Back then he didn't understand, but now he understood.

He said in his heart.

"Old tea tree, did you hear?

Guiying is singing to you.

It is saying spring is almost here, and you should wake up."

Late that night, wind rose on the tea mountain.

Not a cold wind, but a warm, gentle breeze blowing from the east, carrying the scent of soil and the fresh fragrance of the new tea tree shoots.

Ye Wushuang opened his eyes and saw something glowing on the trunk of the withered old tea tree under the moonlight.

Very faint, very light, silvery white, identical to the light of Guiying.

He braced himself against the wheelchair armrests to stand up, walked before the tree, reached out, and gently touched that beam of light.

The light dissolved at his fingertips, warm, as if someone was holding his hand.

That was the aura of the old tea tree, the aura of the very first ray of light in the Myriad Realms.

It was still here.

It was waiting.

Ye Wushuang knelt before the tree roots, pressing his forehead against the rough bark.

"Disciple is waiting for you.

Please wake up.

Ama will come to see you."

That early morning, before dawn broke, Lin Xinghe got up.

She walked to the old tea tree, knelt down, and pressed her hand against the trunk.

The trunk was warm, not icy cold, but warm, as if someone inside was holding her hand.

She closed her eyes and heard a voice.

Very soft, very gentle, like the wind blowing through leaves, or someone speaking from a very distant place.

"I heard."

Lin Xinghe's tears streamed down.

She did not cry out loud, but merely knelt there, her hand pressed against the trunk for a very, very long time.

Ye Wushuang leaned over from his wheelchair.

"What did it say?"

Lin Xinghe raised her head, gazing at the withered tree.

"It said, 'I heard'.

It heard Disciple calling it."

Shadow pulled out the new jade talisman from his bosom and placed it beside the tree roots.

The jade talisman was glowing, silvery white, identical to the light on the trunk of the old tea tree.

"Master, did you hear?

The old tea tree is saying it heard."

From the direction of the Annihilation Realm came a very, very soft echo.

Not a sound, but a heartbeat.

Very slow, very steady, identical to the heartbeat of the Myriad Realms.

He was listening.

That morning, Ye Wushuang and Shadow left the tea mountain.

Lin Xinghe escorted them to the foot of the mountain, holding a package of newly harvested Mingqian tea in her hands.

"Speaker Ye, this is this year's new tea.

Harvested from the new saplings cultivated from the old tea tree's seeds.

Please take it back and let Ama taste it."

Ye Wushuang took the package of tea and put it into his bosom.

"Disciple will bring it to Ama."

Lin Xinghe knelt down.

"Disciple thanks you on behalf of the Qingxuan Realm.

Thank you for coming to see the old tea tree.

Thank you for planting that peach tree."

Ye Wushuang leaned forward slightly from his wheelchair.

"No need to thank me.

Disciple is also a child of the Myriad Realms."

Shadow pushed the wheelchair into the cross-realm passage.

The golden light engulfed them.

Lin Xinghe knelt at the foot of the mountain, gazing at the gradually dissipating light for a very, very long time.

Then she stood up, turned around, and walked back up the tea mountain step by step.

Arriving before the withered old tea tree, she stopped, knelt down, and pressed her hand against the trunk.

"Disciple is here.

Disciple is waiting for you."