Chapter 106: Withering, Flourishing, Birth, and Death

Beneath the river’s surface, carrying a mixture of curiosity and doubt, Jiang Chen returned to his small courtyard.

Of course, the once meticulously constructed Tranquil Heart Pavilion had now been reduced to ruins, with only fragments of broken walls remaining. The sole exception was a single peachwood tree, its twisted branches like coiling dragons, its jade-green leaves shimmering incongruously among the desolation.

Approaching beneath the peachwood, Jiang Chen noticed wisps of mist threading through its branches and leaves—an intense, concentrated spiritual energy.

“Although the leaves and branches seem ordinary, their essence has been fully spiritualized. This peachwood is truly a spirit peachwood, worthy of being used as a spiritual stone.”

“Judging by its size, if felled, it could likely be exchanged for a considerable number of spirit stones.”

After a careful examination of the peachwood’s condition, a thought stirred in Jiang Chen’s mind.

Yet the peachwood remained oblivious to his contemplation, instinctively radiating a natural aura of closeness.

“Let me see what secrets you truly hold.”

Extending his palm, Jiang Chen pressed it against the main trunk, attempting a deeper communion with the tree’s spirit. At that moment, his mind and the peachwood’s essence intertwined, and a series of extraordinary visions began to unfold within his consciousness.

Long, long ago, the wooden fish island was barren. A small peach tree sprouted tender shoots from the earth. It absorbed wind, frost, rain, and dew, growing steadily until it became a grand tree. Yet all things have limits—humans, so too the peachwood.

In a mere dozen years, the peachwood reached the end of its life and withered. After some time, though, the roots that should have decayed instead burst with renewed vitality, giving rise to a new sapling. It grew again, then withered once more, endlessly cycling through death and rebirth without cessation.

Through these cycles of life and death, Jiang Chen discerned two profoundly mysterious characters: “wither” and “flourish.”

As these words imprinted upon the depths of his soul, all his boundless true qi was stirred, spontaneously merging with the peachwood’s essence. In that moment, two fundamentally different energies blended perfectly—each containing the other within itself.

As time flowed on, under the illumination of the words “wither” and “flourish,” Jiang Chen’s boundless true qi began to undergo subtle transformations.

After a long while, the characters faded into nothingness, and the breathing of Jiang Chen and the peachwood gradually calmed.

“Decay and growth, birth and death—time’s passage is ever uncertain.”

Opening his eyes, Jiang Chen sighed deeply.

He seemed to have endured the baptism of countless years, his aura naturally heavy with the weight of time, though this soon dispersed.

“The resilience of life is laid bare before me. I wonder if this is a miracle born from the ordinary, or a marvel that was extraordinary from the start.”

Looking once more at the peachwood, Jiang Chen’s eyes glinted with appraisal. The tree’s exceptional nature far exceeded his original expectations. It was one thing to break through to the early Qi Refinement stage with the aid of a surge of spiritual energy, but the crucial point was that within the tree’s very being dwelled the essence of wither and flourish—truly astonishing.

Yet the peachwood remained bewilderingly unaware of Jiang Chen’s doubts.

Seeing this, Jiang Chen could only suppress the distractions within his heart for the time being. Compared to the prodigious Rat Spirit, the peachwood’s intelligence was far inferior—it operated more on instinct. This perhaps illustrated the difference between animal spirit communication and botanical spirit communication.

However, in terms of foundation and opportunity, the Rat Spirit was far behind the peachwood.

“I once thought it would take a long time before I could break through to the minor success of Qi Refinement. Unexpectedly, this time was a fortunate coincidence that propelled me forward.”

“Most importantly, the fusion of my true qi with the peachwood’s essence, borrowing the meaning of wither and flourish to temper myself, caused subtle shifts in my true qi. Its quality improved, albeit slightly, but undeniably so.”

Reflecting on his own transformation, Jiang Chen fell into deep contemplation.

For cultivators in Qi Refinement, the most crucial task is to train a pure breath of true qi. For this reason, any treasure or secret method capable of improving the quality of true qi holds immense value. Take the Frost Spirit Water, for example—if auctioned, countless would fight fiercely to obtain it.

As for treasures that can elevate superior true qi, such items were even rarer and more precious. After all, superior true qi is already first-class true qi, and once mastered, the Qi Refinement stage rarely faces genuine bottlenecks.

“With wither and flourish true qi, with the true meaning of decay and growth, if I can often blend my true qi with that of the peachwood, it might help my boundless true qi advance further, breaking through the limits of superior true qi and entering a new realm.”

With this thought stirring in his mind, Jiang Chen recognized the peachwood’s exceptional qualities and the profound mystery of cultivating wither and flourish true qi—it could assist him in refining his own energy. The only puzzling aspect was that the peachwood’s wither and flourish true qi was still at the lower grade level, which did not quite match the wonder it displayed.

“Well, I’ll explore these mysteries more slowly later. For now, there are other matters to attend to.”

Lowering his gaze, Jiang Chen looked toward the depths of Wooden Fish Island.

Having just communed with the peachwood’s spirit, he now knew that hidden deep within the island was a spiritual cavern.

“If Wooden Fish Island truly nurtured some treasure as the White Crane Daoist claimed, then this spiritual cavern must be where it resides.”

Recalling the records left by the White Crane Daoist and gazing toward the cavern’s location, Jiang Chen’s mind turned over possibilities.

After taking control of Wooden Fish Island, with a ‘strike and see’ approach, he had ordered a comprehensive search of the island—but no treasure of note was found.

“Let me see for myself whether it truly exists.”

With this thought, Jiang Chen communicated with the peachwood, instructing its roots to part the earth and stone, creating a path leading to the spiritual cavern.

This cavern lay hidden within Wooden Fish Island, threading through the island’s fractured ley lines. Were it not for the recent intrusion of the Blue Fish spirit revealing traces, outsiders would find it nearly impossible to discover. Even if they overturned the entire island, they would likely gain nothing and risk destroying the cavern entirely. The so-called spiritual cavern was essentially a remnant left behind after the collapse of the island’s ley lines.

Moments later, thanks to the peachwood’s efforts, a passage opened before Jiang Chen.

Shielding himself with true qi, Jiang Chen followed the path deep into Wooden Fish Island and encountered the spiritual cavern. At this moment, it was entwined by numerous roots of the peachwood, fixed firmly in place.

“So, it truly is a spiritual cavern.”

Gazing at the massive stone-like formation, self-contained and roughly the size of a room, Jiang Chen’s eyes flickered with interest. He had only seen such things in Daoist texts before—this was his first time witnessing one firsthand.

“After a ley line collapses, it manifests outwardly as a spiritual cave, and inwardly as a spiritual cavern. Both hold profound mysteries. The Lu, Wen, and Gao families of Qingyuan County have maintained dominance over other forces precisely because each controls a spiritual cave.”

Turning his thoughts, Jiang Chen stepped closer to the spiritual cavern.

With the peachwood’s assistance, he easily crossed the barrier surrounding the cavern and entered within.