Chapter 1267: Chapter 1266: Tracing the Origin, Returning to the Starting Point

"Trace Origin Dao Fruit Prototype?" Fairy Eternity repeated quizzically.

"Tracing the root, returning to the starting point."

Although he had explained, Fairy Eternity still didn’t understand, "What’s the use of this?"

Lu Yang chuckled, "Just wait, I’ll find someone to practice on and then you’ll see what it does."

Lu Yang stretched leisurely, as he had lost track of time while comprehending the Dao Fruit Outline, not knowing how long his seclusion had lasted. But it surely wasn’t a short period, as his body had stiffened.

He walked out of his abode, the morning sunlight strikingly bright.

"Why are there so many herbs?"

Lu Yang was taken aback, looking out over fields of medicinal herbs spreading from the mountain peak to the foothills, plants of great age that even top-grade spirit stones might not procure, each one would cause a frenzy among Integration Period Cultivators if placed in the outside world.

Just how long had I been in seclusion for, and how did Sky Gate Mountain turn into a medicine garden?

Yun Mengmeng wore a straw hat, bent over with a jade vase in hand, catching dew droplets rolling off the leaf tips.

"Second-in-command, you’ve come out of seclusion?"

Yun Mengmeng, holding the jade vase, trotted across the fields towards Lu Yang, "Just in time to try some dew I’ve just collected."

"Dew?"

Was Sister Mengmeng collecting dew just now?

"I’ve just discovered it recently; the dew in the morning is very refreshing."

Lu Yang, puzzled, "Why not collect it directly with a magic skill?"

It seemed so cumbersome to catch dew drop by drop with a jade vase when a magic skill could gather several bottles in an instant.

"This is called ’living’."

Lu Yang nodded, pretending to understand, although he didn’t, he respected the notion.

He took a sip of the dew and, whether due to psychology or the true taste, remarked, "It is indeed refreshing."

"Right?"

"What’s going on with this medicine field? Has the medicine garden moved to our Sky Gate Mountain?"

"It’s just that it was quite a hassle to keep going to the medicine garden to pick herbs for cooking, so Little Lotus and I planted some here on the mountain. They are growing incredibly well; one-year herbs are growing as though they were ten years old."

"Little Lotus said it’s because I possess the Initial Form of Immortal Dao Fruit, and she has the Longevity Dao Fruit Embryo; both can promote the growth of the herbs."

This reminded Lu Yang of how enticing Fairy’s Eternity Dao Fruit was to the Little Medicinal Kings.

"Right, Chief Housekeeper and Second-in-command, let’s go over there, there’s something good." Yun Mengmeng suddenly recalled something and, without further ado, pulled Lu Yang towards the middle of the mountain.

Arriving mid-mountain, they were greeted by a riot of purples and reds, flowers enveloping the entire Sky Gate Mountain, their scent intoxicating.

"What is this?"

"It’s to celebrate the Second-in-command’s emergence from seclusion, quite beautiful, don’t you think?"

"This was an idea Little Lotus and I had, from the bottom of the mountain to the top, there are twelve different flowering periods. Starting from January, the herbs at the foot of the mountain bloom, all the way to the herbs at the peak in December."

"This way, Second-in-command, whenever you come out of seclusion, you’ll always see flowers," Yun Mengmeng explained with an innocent smile.

Fairy Eternity floated out, giving a casual but complacent remark, "Pretty, isn’t it? Especially for Little Yang?"

Without a second thought, Yun Mengmeng replied, "It’s also for the Chief Housekeeper, right? You also had a hard time accompanying the Second-in-command during his seclusion."

"Humph, as long as you know that Immortal too had a tough time."

Yun Mengmeng always felt that the Chief Housekeeper’s reaction was a bit strange, but didn’t dwell on it, "Second-in-command, you’ve been in seclusion for so long, is it finally over?"

"Of course, do you see who I am?"

"You’ve condensed a Dao Fruit Outline, what’s it for?" Yun Mengmeng was very curious, her eyes sparkling.

Lu Yang hesitated for a moment, feeling embarrassed to test it on Yun Mengmeng, "Let’s find Old Meng and try it on him."

On the way, Lu Yang asked, "Isn’t Senior Qinghe around?"

"The Demon Territory’s Creation Ancient Land has a lot of medicinal herbs that have been lost to time," Qinghe thought there were not enough varieties, so she went there to look for herbs."

The Creation Ancient Land was precisely where Jiang Lianyi had once fallen into slumber; it housed many ancient medicinal herbs. Lu Yang had considered getting a few of those herbs, but they were too delicate and couldn’t adapt to the external environment.

It seemed that Qinghe had a way of making them adapt to the outside world.

Most members of the Immortal Lineage came to Meng Jingzhou’s abode, coincidentally meeting him just as he stretched and walked out from his retreat.

"Old Meng, just out of retreat, did you make a breakthrough?" No need to sense his cultivation with Spiritual Sense, from Old Meng’s show-off expression alone, Lu Yang could be certain that Old Meng definitely had broken through.

"So-so, just Middle Tribulation Stage," Meng Jingzhou said modestly on the surface but gleaned information from Old Lu’s show-off expression.

"Did you also make a breakthrough?"

"Only a Semi-Immortal, nothing to make a fuss about."

"You actually succeeded?!" Meng Jingzhou was surprised; he had heard before the retreat that Lu Yang went around the world in search of clues to form the initial shape of Dao Fruits.

To his surprise, Lu Yang already had Semi-Immortal status with Mid-stage Tribulation Crossing Cultivation upon his return.

"Shall we spar somewhere?"

"Let’s do it!"

Both having made breakthroughs, they were eager to test their current abilities.

They chose a deserted area deep within the Seek Dao Sect. Yun Mengmeng was watching the battle from a tree.

"Let’s make it clear, we rely on our own strength; no using Imitation Fist for you, and I won’t borrow cultivation from our ancestors."

Meng Jingzhou recalled the last time he fought Old Lu who shamelessly used underhanded tactics—utilizing not only Imitation Fist to borrow cultivation but also the Initial Form of Immortal Dao Fruits. It would be a miracle if he could win against that.

"Okay."

In this deserted area surrounded by mountains stood a vast lake, and the two stood on the surface of the water, appearing as if they were nothing; the lake remained calm as a mirror.

Meng Jingzhou’s muscles bulged, veins popped, and his body was tense like a cheetah waiting for its prey to make a move.

Lu Yang drew out his Green Peak Sword, infusing the outline of the Trace Origin Dao Fruit into the blade.

Seeing Lu Yang move, Meng Jingzhou, who had been preparing for a long time, suddenly burst into action with a loud boom, raising a colossal wave in the lake. His speed was much faster than the waves—it looked as if the waves were chasing his footsteps from afar!

Lu Yang simply performed what seemed to be an ordinary set of Sword Skills, striking Meng Jingzhou’s tough, wall-like flesh. Meng Jingzhou raised his hand to block!

Clang!

The Green Peak Sword struck Meng Jingzhou, leaving behind only a shallow sword mark, and a drop of Pure Yang True Blood!

"Old Lu, didn’t you eat? Your strength is lacking!" Meng Jingzhou laughed heartily—such an injury he could heal in an instant with a single thought!

A subtle, inscrutable smile appeared on Lu Yang’s lips: "Is that really so?"

Meng Jingzhou was taken aback, "What do you mean?"

Before he could finish his sentence, his expression changed dramatically, as the realm he’d just broken into vanished into nothingness!

In just the blink of an eye, he had fallen from Middle Tribulation Stage to Early Tribulation Stage!

"What is this about?!"

Meng Jingzhou was certain he hadn’t been caught in an Illusion Technique; it was a true and direct fall in his realm!

Lu Yang’s face still bore that same smile.

Meng Jingzhou finally understood what Lu Yang was smiling about.

"The Initial Form of Dao Fruit that I condensed, the Trace Origin Dao Fruit Prototype, traces the root and returns to the origin. All things are in the cycle of Reincarnation, and thus is life, and so is cultivation."

"A more straightforward explanation is that it makes you return to the time just when you broke through to the Transcendence Tribulation Stage."

Meng Jingzhou’s pupils dilated – to return to the starting point, to lower one’s cultivation, was an ability against the natural order!

Fairy Eternity was suddenly enlightened; finally, she understood the purpose of Little Yang’s Dao Fruit Embryo and was very pleased.

"Isn’t this just suppressing your enemy’s realm lower than your own and then defeating them? Little Yang, you’ve learned the essence of the Invincible Elixir!"

Lu Yang: "..."

It’s not Fairy; how did my profound and inscrutable powers become so vulgar in your mouth?