Dead branches turn into ancient trees

“It was in…” Li Fan furrowed his brow, as if trying hard to recall.

Xi Menyu stared intently at him, listening carefully.

“I can’t remember.” After a long moment, Li Fan shrugged, saying helplessly.

“You…” Xi Menyu’s expression stiffened. “How could such a strange thing be easily forgotten?”

He looked at Li Fan, full of disbelief.

“Fellow Daoist Ximen, why don’t you tell me what this withered branch is. Perhaps as you speak, I might recall,” Li Fan suggested with a smile.

Upon hearing this, Xi Menyu narrowed his eyes, his gaze sweeping back and forth across Li Fan.

Li Fan, however, showed no fear, meeting his gaze with a composed expression.

As if unsure of Li Fan’s strength, Xi Menyu ultimately chose not to act rashly.

He turned his body, revealing the withered branch he had been protecting behind him to Li Fan once more.

After a moment of silence, he finally said, “I’m not entirely sure about the origin of this item. At that time, my research on the Earth Veins had hit a Bottleneck.”

“Under the rule of the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance, the power of the Earth Veins is firmly locked by a protective formation that covers the entire territory. Without authorized permission, trying to use or research it is incredibly difficult. I tried many methods but still couldn’t find a Breakthrough point. Just as I was about to switch my research direction…”

“About two years ago, the power of the Earth Veins here suddenly became turbulent for some reason. It was like a chain reaction caused by an Earth Vein disaster thousands of miles away, powerful enough to destroy an entire state. I was overjoyed at the sight, of course, and seized this rare opportunity to absorb the overflowing Earth Vein power.”

“And this withered branch is what I discovered within the Earth Vein power.”

Xi Menyu slowly recounted, and Li Fan listened thoughtfully.

“Two years ago, it seems to have been the time of Crimson Flame Burning Sea. Was it Hongxi’s attempt to force out the Crimson Flame hidden in the Earth Veins by forcibly extracting Earth Vein power that caused this impact?”

The Xuanhuang World’s Earth Veins are interconnected. Even separated by thousands of miles, they can still influence each other. Previously, in the Congyun Sea, a submerged island had risen to the surface due to the distant ‘hundred mountains turning into plains’ event.

And the Earth Vein anomaly observed by Xi Menyu here might very well be the aftershock of that battle with Crimson Flame.

Li Fan looked at the withered branch, which was still continuously spewing yellowish-brown Earth Vein power, and asked, somewhat puzzled, “Earth Vein power is incredibly pure. How could there be a withered branch mixed in it? Ordinary trees would be crushed into dust by the immense pressure in the depths of the Earth Veins in just a few breaths. What is the origin of this withered branch that it can not only survive in the Earth Veins but also draw and activate the confined Earth Vein power?”

Li Fan then looked back at Xi Menyu: “The Immortal Alliance must not have discovered this Earth Vein anomaly yet, right? Otherwise, as it concerns the safety of the protective grand formation, they would definitely send people to resolve this hidden danger.”

Xi Menyu’s expression changed slightly, but he did not refute.

“This withered branch indeed possesses some kind of miraculous power. It seems to be of the same origin as the Earth Veins, so my small-scale extraction here for research will only be considered a normal fluctuation of the Earth Veins themselves.”

The withered branch’s eruption of Earth Vein power seemed to be intermittent, following a certain pattern. At this moment, it gradually weakened, and eventually, no more Earth Vein energy flowed out.

Xi Menyu carefully put away the jade bottle.

“Of the same origin as the Earth Veins?” Li Fan pondered these words carefully.

Xi Menyu then took out a Stone Slab from his storage ring. It seemed to have been peeled off from a rock wall somewhere, and the markings were extremely ancient.

The lines were quite abstract, but the content they depicted could be roughly understood.

Many small dots represented humans, performing sacrifices and living on the earth.

And underground, a large inverted tree grew.

Its roots were dense,扎根于大地的每个角落.

Its crown, however, extended deep into the earth, reaching the core.

“I discovered this when I was researching ancient and modern geological changes, in a geological fault somewhere. It should have been left by ancient Human Race groups.”

“It’s not just this one mural. I have found similar ancient records in various places throughout the Xuanhuang World.”

“I suspect that what we call Earth Veins are actually the roots of this Ancient Tree that have evolved. And this withered branch of mine belongs to that Ancient Tree.”

Xi Menyu explained.

“Although the information left by these Mortals is extremely rudimentary, and it’s seen from a Mortal’s perspective, so it might not be the complete picture. But precisely because it’s Mortal stuff, we Immortal Cultivators often implicitly ignore it. Therefore, records that should have been deliberately erased can instead survive,” Xi Menyu said with a sneer.

“Earth Vein Tree…” Li Fan stroked his chin.

“No.” Suddenly, he shook his head.

“Although it’s extremely similar to what I saw in the illusion back then, there are still some differences,” Li Fan stated with certainty.

Xi Menyu was not surprised. After a moment of thought, he said, “It’s possible that the Ancient Tree you saw is even older.”

“It might even be the source of the Earth Vein Tree.”

Li Fan was surprised: “The Earth Vein Tree also has a source?”

Xi Menyu took out several black stones from somewhere, crushed them, and sprinkled them onto the withered branch stuck in the ground. The black powder was quickly absorbed by the withered branch, and it seemed to become more vibrant.

“It is said that in the beginning, there was only one Mother Tree between Heaven and Earth, which controlled the fate of all living beings.”

“Later, a great change occurred, and the Mother Tree suffered heavy damage. Moreover, some branches fell from it and landed in the world.”

“One of them transformed into the Earth Vein Ancient Tree.”

Xi Menyu looked at the carefully tended withered branch with deep affection, and slowly said.

A glint flashed in Li Fan’s eyes: “Where did Fellow Daoist Ximen learn of this? It is truly unheard of.”

Xi Menyu’s gaze was fixed on the withered branch, and he did not answer.

Li Fan was stunned for a moment, then nodded slightly.

“Ah, now that Fellow Daoist has mentioned it, I seem to recall. It was here that I encountered that withered branch.”

Drawing the topography of Tianling State casually, Li Fan marked a location.

Only then did Xi Menyu withdraw his gaze from the withered branch, firmly memorizing the location. Then he erased the map.

“Time has passed. I have returned to that old place several times over the years, but I have never been able to see that withered tree again. So, Fellow Daoist Ximen, you shouldn’t hold too much hope,” Li Fan cautioned.

Xi Menyu chuckled: “Such a rare item is, of course, something that can be encountered but not sought. However, I have always been quite lucky, and once I finish my research on Earth Vein theory, I will definitely go try my luck.”

“Then I wish Fellow Daoist Ximen success in advance!” Li Fan cupped his fists, about to leave.

“You’re Fellow Daoist Han Wuyou, right?” Xi Menyu threw over a communication talisman. “I feel like you and I have some destiny. Keep this, perhaps we will meet again in the future.”

Li Fan put away the talisman and no longer lingered.

After his figure disappeared, the Immortal Cave door closed again.

Xi Menyu’s brows were deeply furrowed: “Heaven and Earth have Ruo Wood, consuming life day and night…”

“Could it still exist in the world?”