Chapter 411 - 379: Reunion and Transplantation

Chapter 411: Chapter 379: Reunion and Transplantation

Chu Mu leisurely walked out from the backyard, the corners of his mouth turned up in a slight smile. His bloodline research had been a success, and he was clearly in a good mood.

After a few steps, he suddenly stopped in the covered walkway and looked back. Above the Array Prohibition, several Sound Transmission Talismans hovered and flickered.

He raised his hand and swiped. The Sound Transmission Talismans shattered, and several messages flowed into his Divine Sense Perception.

He raised an eyebrow, and his vast Divine Sense swept out. In the courtyard, the family of three who were in mid-conversation felt a great terror suddenly descend upon them, only for it to abruptly vanish.

Before the three of them could react, a figure abruptly appeared in the courtyard.

Xu Yuan instinctively grew wary, but when he saw the newcomer’s face, his slightly serious expression instantly broke into a smile.

"Brother... Brother Mu!"

"Brother Chu."

"Uncle!"

The three of them spoke one after another.

"You..."

Chu Mu started to speak, but as he looked at Xu Yuan, whom he hadn’t seen in years, he was speechless for a long moment.

From the upheaval at Jingmen until now, although only a few decades had passed...

...it felt like a completely different era.

The little brother who once followed him around was now weather-beaten, with streaks of white visible at his temples. The green Magic Robe he wore was the same one Chu Mu had given him all those years ago. It was tattered in places, a testament to the hardships of the intervening years.

"You kid... you’ve grown up..."

Chu Mu patted Xu Yuan’s shoulder, finally managing to utter a sentence that seemed somewhat strange.

Foundation Establishment granted a lifespan of three hundred years, but the Qi Cultivation Realm did not. With a mere century or so of life, even on the long Immortal Path, Xu Yuan’s life was undoubtedly more than halfway over...

"Brother... Brother Mu..."

Xu Yuan’s eyes glistened with tears, and his voice choked with emotion.

"It’s alright. You’re here now, that’s all that matters. You’re here now..."

Chu Mu patted Xu Yuan’s shoulder again, his gaze fixed on the streaks of white in his friend’s hair. A gloominess settled in his heart.

’If I had been any later...’

He didn’t dare to think about it.

The Immortal Path was long, and countless interests were at stake, but the only person he could truly confide in was Xu Yuan.

’If he were gone... then I’d truly be all alone.’

"Chang Er, go prepare some food and wine!"

Chu Mu looked toward the shop and called out. Chang Er, who was busy working, immediately answered in affirmation.

Only then did Chu Mu turn to the mother and son standing bowed before him. He glanced at Xia Yu, then his gaze settled on the now-adult Xu Jinhua.

"This must be Jinhua, right?"

Chu Mu’s voice was flat, devoid of joy or sorrow.

The Immortal Path was long. After wandering alone for so many years, his emotions had long since grown faint.

He felt a brotherly affection for Xu Yuan, but that affection was reserved for Xu Yuan alone.

He clearly didn’t feel much for Xu Yuan’s Dao Companion or his son.

After some pleasantries, the food and wine prepared by Chang Er were served. As they drank and reminisced, the stories of years past flowed as freely as the wine.

After the upheaval at Jingmen, the two had parted ways, separated by vast distances.

Xu Yuan’s family of three had retreated with the Sun Family. Thanks to Chu Mu’s influence, no one gave them any trouble, and they enjoyed a period of peace.

But that peace only lasted for a few years, during which time they had two more children.

However, after a great battle, the Marketplace they lived in was breached. When the few Xie Family Cultivators who had looked out for them perished, their family’s life undoubtedly plunged from heaven into hell.

In the process of fleeing, those two children were also caught in the crossfire and killed.

This life of displacement and wandering lasted for several years. It only came to an end when the Vast Sea Chen Family began to waver, and the war between the Longevity Sect and the Righteous Alliance subsequently slowed down...

...

Halfway through the banquet, Xia Yu and her son tactfully excused themselves, leaving the two brothers, Chu Mu and Xu Yuan, alone.

By late night, the food and wine had been replaced several times. Although both had Cultivation and were resistant to the intoxicating effects of the Spirit Wine, in the atmosphere of a reunion after so many years, both men had become somewhat drunk.

"In all these years, have you tried for Foundation Establishment?"

Bolstered by the wine, Chu Mu finally managed to shift the topic.

"Foundation Establishment..."

Xu Yuan’s eyes were hazy with drink. Hearing those two words, "Foundation Establishment," he seemed to sober up a little, but that clarity quickly dissolved into a thick bitterness.

"Brother Mu, with a Wasted Spirit Root, is it really possible to reach Foundation Establishment?"

Before Chu Mu could answer, Xu Yuan answered his own question.

"It’s impossible, isn’t it? There’s no hope..."

"What hope is there for a Wasted Spirit Root? If it weren’t for the Elixirs you gave me, Brother Mu, even reaching Qi Cultivation Perfection would have probably been a pipe dream..."

Chu Mu fell silent for a moment. The shackles of one’s Spirit Root were far crueler than the grade of one’s bloodline.

With bloodlines, there was at least a faint, illusory glimmer of hope. He had painstakingly studied for many years, turning that illusory hope into a reality.

But as for Spirit Roots, he had yet to find any hope.

Compared to the traceable nature of bloodlines, the existence of a Spirit Root was far too ethereal—so close, yet so far away...

If not for the fact that all his abilities were based on his Spirit Root, and that he hadn’t yet reached a point of despair, with his current understanding of bloodlines, he might have long since switched to the bloodline path—a path that currently seemed to be a true road to the heavens.

"There are two paths."

Chu Mu set down his wine cup, his voice a little hoarse.

"The first is the orthodox Immortal Dao of Foundation Establishment. I can provide you with enough Foundation Establishment Pills to guarantee you break through."

"The second is the path of bloodline cultivation. This contains some basic knowledge about it. Take a look."

Chu Mu handed over a Jade Scroll, then picked up his cup and drank alone.

Foundation Establishment Pills were rare. Even with his current financial resources, it wouldn’t be difficult for him to gather the ingredients for a full batch of orthodox Foundation Establishment Pills.

But here in the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World, things were different.

In the Vast Sea Cultivation Immortal World, for the path of bloodline cultivation, Foundation Establishment Pills were not essential. However, their effects were clearly still of great use for reaching Foundation Establishment through bloodline cultivation.