Chapter 1242 - 871: Peach Tree Revived

Zhang Chen looked at the withered branch of the Peach Tree in his hand, sighed lightly, and said, "Heaven and Earth have transformed, even the Innate Spirit Roots have withered away, the hope for advancement of all cultivators is severed, truly an unprecedented catastrophe."

Luckily, Zhang Chen still had choices; he could outlast this Heaven and Earth.

Luckily, he also possessed the Authority of the Five Elements, and he obtained a branch of the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu.

"Decree, take root and sprout anew!" Zhang Chen spoke golden words toward the branch of the Peach Tree in his hand. In an instant, he saw new branches emerge from it, a green leaf unfurl, and tender roots begin to push out.

"How is that possible! This is the Authority of the Great Dao!" The Queen Mother of the West, now closer to Zhang Chen, finally saw Zhang Chen’s methods clearly and exclaimed in disbelief, her eyes filled with incredulity.

Zhang Chen ignored the Queen Mother of the West’s words, realizing that the Peach Tree branch had revived. Yet, upon revival, the Origin of Heaven and Earth began to pour out, startling Zhang Chen so much that he immediately infused it with one of his Primordial Spirits, then stored it inside the Ascension Pool, placing it alongside the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu.

The Heaven-Reaching Jianmu descended Innate Primordial Qi for the Peach Tree to absorb, stabilizing its condition. At this time, Zhang Chen noticed that with the Tree of Life and the Peach Tree in his possession, the Innate Spiritual Qi born daily from the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu seemed insufficient.

However, fortunately, this situation would gradually ease and reverse as Zhang Chen continuously applied the Law of Time to the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu. But now, two problems lay before Zhang Chen: his Ascension Pool space was insufficient to fully accommodate the growth of the Peach Tree and the Tree of Life.

In the short term, issues may not be apparent, but with the continuous acceleration by the Power of Time, space constraints would inevitably hinder the development of the Innate Spirit Roots.

"But where should I find space for the Peach Tree to survive, or how do I learn the arts of opening a world?" Zhang Chen pondered, his thoughts shifting to the Queen Mother of the West.

"How can you possibly grasp the Authority of the Great Dao!" The Queen Mother of the West whispered, filled with disbelief beside Zhang Chen’s ear. "And you even have the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu in your possession!"

The Queen Mother of the West, knowing well Zhang Chen’s capabilities, sensed something amiss the moment Zhang Chen opened the space to retrieve the Peach Tree.

"Since you, Your Majesty, know that I possess the Authority of the Five Elements, the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu, and the Peach Tree, you should understand that I now have the means to outlast Heaven and Earth. However, for the Peach Tree to continue growing, it needs a minor world isolated from the Great World, so I beseech you, Your Majesty, to teach me the art of opening worlds." Zhang Chen requested directly from the Queen Mother of the West.

The two could now be considered to be in the same predicament; if one faced trouble, the other’s situation would be no better.

The Queen Mother of the West pondered slightly upon hearing this, then after a moment said, "It’s not difficult to create a world for cultivating the Peaches of Immortality. I already have a target in mind: you should harvest one layer from the Thirty-Three Heavens, refine it into a minor world, and then plant your Heaven-Reaching Jianmu and Peach Tree within it. This would form a complete, enclosed environment, sufficient for you to evolve a forest of Peaches of Immortality. However, once a minor world is created, it must be isolated from the influence of the Great World; otherwise, the Essence Qi within the minor world will flow toward the Great World and ultimately be devoured by it. Therefore, you must find a miraculous place that can separate the Great World from the minor world."

"Creating a minor world specifically for planting the Peach Tree is easy, but finding a place capable of isolating the devourment of the Great Thousand Worlds is not simple. I searched the entire world back then and never found it. If I had, I wouldn’t have buried myself in Kunlun for you to exploit." Stated the Queen Mother of the West.

Upon hearing this, Zhang Chen’s eyes lit up: creating a minor world is easy? But finding a place to separate it from the Great Thousand Worlds is difficult?

For him, it was quite the opposite. Creating a minor world was the most challenging, but he already had a place to hide from the Great World: his Eye of Heavenly Retribution.

Within his Eye of Heavenly Retribution, he could seal everything, hiding them within. If he managed to secure a minor world, hiding it there would certainly shield it from the Power of Celestial Punishment.

There was no need to inform the Queen Mother of the West about his situation. He directly expressed his hardship to her: "I currently have a way to shield from the Great World, but I lack the means to refine a layer from the Thirty-Three Heavens to create a minor world."

Even if his cultivation reached the Twelfth Tier, he still did not have the capability to refine a layer of Heaven.

"You have a means of shielding from the Great Thousand Worlds? I have underestimated you indeed!" The Queen Mother of the West responded, surprised, after a while said, "After I recuperate for a period, I can sacrifice to some extent to help you extract one layer of Heaven to create a world, but you must also agree to one condition of mine."

"Please, Your Majesty, speak." Zhang Chen quickly replied.

"Lift my restriction." The Queen Mother of the West stated.

Zhang Chen remained silent for a long time upon hearing this, then finally spoke, "If one day I prove the Dao of Primordial, I shall unconditionally lift Your Majesty’s restriction. Otherwise, should Your Majesty wish to kill me, I lack the power to resist."

Zhang Chen also sensed the impending crisis, contemplating early strategic planning, otherwise why would he make a deal with the Queen Mother of the West?

"Deal!" The Queen Mother of the West understood Zhang Chen’s difficulties; if he wasn’t confident in opposing her, why would he release her?

The Queen Mother of the West secretly sighed in her heart. She would rather sacrifice her origin to extend a helping hand to Zhang Chen—was it not an act of helplessness?

Although she was a Primordial level entity, she truly found herself powerless against Zhang Chen’s methods at this moment. She tried everything but couldn’t deal with that mark.

What’s more, Zhang Chen and she were now like insects tied to the same rope. If Zhang Chen could cultivate the Heaven-Reaching Jianmu, she too could use the Innate Qi to overcome her tribulation.

Helping Zhang Chen was also helping herself.

The conditions between them were agreed upon, and the atmosphere instantly became cheerful. Zhang Chen’s eyes looked into the distance, filled with a subtle sense of ease. For him, having the Queen Mother of the West by his side might not accomplish great deeds, but if she wanted to ruin things, she had countless means. Now, the temporary alliance of interests between them allowed him to breathe a sigh of relief.

"I must go into slumber. When the time is right, awaken me and seize the Thirty-Three Heavens," the Queen Mother of the West said.

Zhang Chen nodded: "Your Majesty, rest well. When the time is right, I will naturally awaken you."

He understood the Queen Mother of the West; she needed to get accustomed to the zombie body, which after Zhang Chen’s sacrificial refining and transformation, was akin to recreating a body for her. She needed complete familiarity with the body before aiding Zhang Chen.

The Queen Mother of the West’s presence disappeared. Zhang Chen stood in the mountains, uncertain whether she was truly asleep or pretending. However, it seemed to make no difference to him; what if the Queen Mother of the West knew those things? They were not significant enough to catch her attention.

"Zhang Chen, what benefits did you obtain inside the great tomb?" Fox Immortal Nannan approached expectantly, staring at him with wide eyes.

"Take this Innate Jade to play!" Zhang Chen tossed a piece of Innate Jade to Fox Immortal Nannan, and with it, she could go farther to handle matters for him.

"Innate Jade? With this Innate Jade to anchor my soul, I can break free from distance limitations and play farther away," Fox Immortal Nannan’s voice was filled with delight: "Zhang Chen, how did you find Innate Jade?"

Hearing Fox Immortal Nannan’s words, Zhang Chen glanced at her and tapped her head: "Don’t inquire about adult matters, child. Let me ask you, how far has the convoy of the escort agency traveled?"

"It’s still a month’s journey from Kyoto," Fox Immortal Nannan replied.

Zhang Chen nodded upon hearing this: "It’s still a bit slow. How’s that old fellow Prince Pingbian? What about the Demon Race and Yellow Heaven Dao? And Jinling City?"

Zhang Chen was particularly concerned about the external situation. He had been in closed-door cultivation inside the great tomb for nearly four years, and now he had completely grown into an adult, his clothes a size too small. As he spoke, he wove the Wood Power from the air to create a new outfit. Though the clothes were rough linen, they fit Zhang Chen perfectly.

"The Great Virtuous Master made a move, battling Hu Li the Immortal in Jinling City. Hu Li the Immortal was defeated in a single move, and ever since then, the Demon Race and Yellow Heaven Dao have not interfered with each other," Fox Immortal Nannan said, her words like a thunderclap, shocking Zhang Chen. "Hu Li the Immortal was defeated? And it was in just one move? Are you mistaken, Hu Li the Immortal is imbued with Tiger Power, a formidable Twelfth Tier expert!"

"Hu Li the Immortal was indeed defeated. He didn’t even see the Great Virtuous Master; a talisman flew across the void and immobilized Hu Li the Immortal for the duration of a tea break," Fox Immortal Nannan explained.

Zhang Chen was shocked upon hearing this—previously, Hu Li the Immortal said he would battle the Great Virtuous Master, wanting to borrow Zhang Chen’s Innate Spiritual Treasure. He had been delayed inside the great tomb, resulting in Hu Li the Immortal not borrowing the treasure and losing so cleanly.

"Had there not been an unfathomable ancestor in the Demon Race, they might have overturned. Now the Demon Race has yielded the Yangtze River region, and with Yellow Heaven Dao’s territory demarcated, neither side encroaches upon the other. Countless human clansmen have fled to the Yangtze River region, unexpectedly gaining the chance to survive," Fox Immortal Nannan remarked.

Zhang Chen inhaled sharply, "Countless clansmen converging in the Yangtze River region will lead to a surge in Incense Faith, and Yellow Heaven Dao will harvest an immense amount of Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi. By then, who knows what terrifying entities they will nurture."

"What about Prince Pingbian’s Mansion?" Zhang Chen inquired.

"Prince Pingbian’s Mansion is currently close to the Demon Race because the pressure from Yellow Heaven Dao is too great, leading the mansion to lean towards the Demon Race," Fox Immortal Nannan replied.