Chen Shi returned to Qianyang Mountain two days later.
On the evening he returned to Huangpo Village, a big-headed little ghost erged from Qianyang Mountain and walked toward Huangpo Village, accompanied by a lantern ghost with a lantern for a head, used for illumination.
The little ghost arrived outside Huangpo Village, offered incense respectfully to Godmother Sangyu, and asked, "Sister Sangyu, has Provincial Graduate Chen returned?"
Sangyu accepted the incense and said, "Provincial Graduate Master says he is not here. Go back."
The little ghost acknowledged and returned with the lantern ghost to report.
The Chen household.
Chen Shi was using the Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush to trace the Luo Heaven Sacrificial Rite on the Huagai when he heard Sangyu's conversation with the little ghost. He said to Black Pot, "The Wuwang Prefect has waited for fourteen hundred years; what difference do a couple more days make? The mont I return, he sends a little ghost to hurry ."
His purpose in going to Great South Lake this ti was to find the brush tip of the Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush, fuse it with the Wuwang Spear, restore the Judge's Brush, and extend the Wuwang Prefect's lifespan.
The trip to Great South Lake was highly fruitful for Chen Shi. Not only did he find the Judge's Brush, but he also obtained the Dark Spring Swimming Dragon Sword, eradicated a major force under the Young Master's command—the Mountain-Moving Clan that survived by digging up graves and robbing tombs.
Moreover, another major force under the Young Master, the Fu Zheng Pavilion, also suffered a heavy blow.
Furthermore, Stone Ji Your Ladyship was one step closer to restoring her true body!
—Now, if Stone Ji Your Ladyship removed her head, the remaining body would be about the sa height as a normal woman, no longer the size of an ant.
He had also deified the Sage King Who Opened Zhangzhou, reassembled his Divine Manifestation, and gained so understanding of prehistoric remnants.
But more importantly, Chen Shi finally t the underworld marshal, A Zhuo!
A Zhuo was like his own uncle; those few days spent with A Zhuo were his most relaxed days.
He had returned dusty and weary, not yet having had ti to rest, when the Wuwang Prefect sent soone to look for him, presumably for the Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush. This annoyed Chen Shi sowhat, so he deliberately had Sangyu send the little ghost away.
"The Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush is just too useful."
After tracing the Huagai once, Chen Shi said to Black Pot, who was sprawled on the ground.
The Luo Heaven Sacrificial Rite on the Huagai had used up too much black dog blood. Black Pot had been bled and was now listless. It nibbled on a piece of exotic beast at twice before drowsily falling asleep.
Chen Shi, worried about Black Pot, went over to check and found it was just asleep, which slightly reassured him.
He inserted the Huagai into the Wooden Cart, so that when traveling, there would be sothing for shade. Moreover, the Huagai was incredibly powerful; it could be drawn out at any ti and deployed as a talisman-weapon.
Although it was a talisman-weapon, this treasure's power was no weaker than ordinary magic treasures. Once deployed, it covered an area of about an acre!
With twelve hundred deities suppressing it, wind, rain, thunder, and lightning were all under control—it could be called the strongest Nascent Soul Force Field!
If combined with the Dark Spring Swimming Dragon Sword for refinent, the Swimming Dragon Sword would shuttle under the Huagai, traveling between the yin and yang realms. It could truly be said that Chen Shi was invincible within his realm!
Even if a Spirit Transformation realm expert barged into the area covered by the treasure umbrella, it would be extrely dangerous; a slight misstep could an death!
"And the Wooden Cart also needs its talismans redrawn. It's best to add the protection of the Six Ding and Six Jia Deities, plus talismans for wind, rain, thunder, lightning, as well as talismans to ward off wind, water, and fire."
Chen Shi glanced at Black Pot and thought, "But it can't be done today."
The next day, Black Pot still lacked energy, and blood could not be drawn.
After paying respects to Grandpa, Godmother, and Scholar Zhu, Chen Shi imdiately drove straight toward Xuan Shan's direction.
"Little Ten is back!"
When passing by Madam Zhuang's hut, Madam Zhuang said, "Where are you rushing off to in such a hurry?"
Chen Shi offered her incense and smiled, "I'm going to see the Ginseng Grass."
Madam Zhuang said, "Recently, so cultivators ca, discovered the Ginseng Fruits' traces, and plan to dig them up to refine into life-extending spiritual dicine. They've gone into hiding."
The mountains often had ginseng hunters, specializing in picking ginseng and spiritual herbs, often harvesting those that had cultivated into spirits. After picking them, they would send them to the city to sell to the city's masters to extend their lifespans.
Qianyang Mountain also had many such ginseng hunters.
Chen Shi asked doubtfully, "Where are they hiding?"
Suddenly, over a dozen heads poked out from under Madam Zhuang's skirt—they were the tiger-headed, robust Ginseng Fruits from the forest.
They crawled out from under Madam Zhuang's skirt, climbed up Chen Shi's pants legs, so sitting on his shoulders, so lying on the back of his head, and others hanging on him.
One Ginseng Grass stood on Chen Shi's chest, holding his face, looking at him seriously, babbling as it asked Chen Shi if he had been eating properly during this ti.
—When Chen Shi cultivated the Body of the Holy Embryo, he had starved until he fainted repeatedly, saved by their Ginseng Grass fruits, so these Ginseng Grass dolls rembered it very clearly.
"I've been eating on ti!"
Chen Shi plucked it off and said to Madam Zhuang, "Madam, keeping them with you isn't a long-term solution. There's sunlight in the small temple behind my head, and there's a plot of land in front of the temple. Why not let the Ginseng Grass live in my small temple for now?"
Madam Zhuang said happily, "That's wonderful. These old bones have been getting headaches from their noise lately. If you're willing to take them in, it saves a lot of trouble!"
Chen Shi focused his mind slightly, and the small temple behind his head emitted divine light, drawing these Ginseng Grass dolls into the small temple.
One radish, one hole—these big-headed dolls were planted outside the temple, with only their heads showing.
Sunlight shone from within the small temple, spilling onto them. One by one, the big-headed dolls transford into Ginseng Grass, each as tall as a person, sporadically bearing a few red fruits.
Chen Shi intended to mobilize the Three Lights Righteous Energy of the sun, moon, and stars to cultivate the Ginseng Grass, so he activated the Eight Gates Golden Palace. The Three Lights of the sun, moon, and stars transford into rich vital energy, flowing toward these Ginseng Grass.
Stone Ji Your Ladyship's cultivation had improved greatly; when operating the Eight Gates Golden Palace, the conversion speed of the Three Lights Righteous Energy was much faster, increased by fifty to sixty percent compared to before!
Chen Shi's heart stirred slightly as he glanced at Madam Zhuang.
"Madam, my apologies."
Before Madam Zhuang could react, the next mont, the world spun. When she regained her senses, she found herself already on the miniature shrine in the small temple, restrained by a force, with the Three Lights Righteous Energy from another spaceti continuously flowing in.
And in this temple, there was another miniature shrine, on which sat a woman whose head was several tis larger than her body, currently regulating the Three Lights Righteous Energy.
Madam Zhuang's magic power was vast and boundless, but she felt she was still far inferior to that woman.
Realizing this place should be the small temple behind Chen Shi's head, she relaxed and, imitating Stone Ji Your Ladyship, helped Chen Shi regulate the righteous energy.
This righteous energy from heaven and earth ca from the Ancestral Land, the Divine Continent, pure and untainted by any evil energy. As Madam Zhuang helped Chen Shi regulate the righteous energy, she felt the evil energy she had absorbed was gradually being refined, filling her with both shock and joy.
"Little Ten, this child, is truly good."
With Madam Zhuang and Stone Ji Your Ladyship regulating the righteous energy, it was as if Chen Shi had two powerful Primordial Spirits like Madam Zhuang and Stone Ji helping him cultivate. Besides the rapid improvent of the Ginseng Grass dolls, his own cultivation was also skyrocketing!
"Does the Innate Dao Embryo have this kind of cultivation speed?" Chen Shi wondered.
Suddenly, his small temple rumbled, divine light surged and flowed, and the space inside the small temple was actually growing!
This change had occurred once before, when the small temple grew a size larger and gained an additional miniature shrine!
Although Chen Shi was no longer surprised, thinking about gaining another miniature shrine still excited him imnsely.
One more miniature shrine was equivalent to one more Divine Embryo.
With three Divine Embryos, even if each was inferior to the Innate Dao Embryo, three together should at least match or even surpass the Innate Dao Embryo!
When the strange noises from the small temple stopped, the space inside had expanded considerably, and sure enough, another miniature shrine had appeared on the right side of the temple.
Three miniature shrines: Stone Ji Your Ladyship sat in the middle, Madam Zhuang sat on the left, and the right side was still empty.
Chen Shi focused his mind slightly, and a Ginseng Grass doll flew up, landing on the miniature shrine.
However, the Ginseng Grass doll's cultivation was not high, so the cultivation boost it provided him was limited.
Seeing this, the other dolls pulled themselves out from the soil outside the temple door, ran into the temple, and squeezed together onto one miniature shrine to sit.
Chen Shi exclaid in surprise—these Ginseng Grass dolls squeezed together unexpectedly greatly enhanced the effect, making his cultivation speed much faster!
Black Pot rested until evening, feeling sowhat better. It was lying on a recliner reading a book when it saw Chen Shi return from outside, bringing lots of exotic beast and spiritual beast at to nourish it, warming its heart.
But thinking that once its body recovered, it would have to be bled again filled it with worry.
Chen Shi said excitedly, "...Black Pot, can you enter my small temple to cultivate? You have a spirit, right? My temple has gained another miniature shrine! Will you try?"
Black Pot wanted to slip away, but after hesitating, it put down the book and nodded.
Chen Shi summoned the small temple. Black Pot felt its vision blur, and it appeared on the third miniature shrine in the small temple.
That miniature shrine originally had many Ginseng Grass dolls, now squeezed everywhere.
In the miniature shrine, Black Pot involuntarily crossed its legs, sitting in the lotus position, with the soles of its feet and the Heavenly Aperture facing upward, feeling the vast righteous energy surging in—much faster than when it cultivated on its own.
"Woof woof!" Black Pot expressed amazent.
"What's all the barking?" Stone Ji Your Ladyship said, rather displeased.
Madam Zhuang was more amiable and said to Black Pot, "Doggy, the two of us combined can't beat her. It's best to swallow our pride and endure."
Chen Shi looked at the recliner. Only a scroll of Ghost Script remained on it; Black Pot was nowhere to be seen. Clearly, it had been drawn into the small temple along with its physical body!
"Strange, doesn't the small temple only accept spirits, not physical bodies?" he wondered, puzzled.
This ti, the changes in the small temple seed to have altered many things.
While Chen Shi was studying the small temple, the little ghost's voice ca from outside the village: "...Sister Sangyu, has Provincial Graduate Master returned?"
"Provincial Graduate Master says he hasn't returned ho yet," Sangyu said.
The little ghost left dejectedly with the lantern ghost.
A night passed. Chen Shi washed up in the morning.
At so point, Black Pot had already slipped out of his small temple to cook. Madam Zhuang had also slipped out to help Black Pot tend the fire. By the ti Chen Shi returned from paying respects to Grandpa, Godmother, and Scholar Zhu, the al was already prepared.
Black Pot and Madam Zhuang returned to his small temple to continue cultivating.
After eating, Chen Shi found that Black Pot had left him a bowl of black dog blood. Clearly, cultivating in Chen Shi's small temple was twice as effective with half the effort, making Black Pot voluntarily donate blood, saving Chen Shi the trouble and ti.
"Why hasn't Madam Zhuang ntioned going ho?"
Chen Shi was puzzled, but since Madam Zhuang wasn't going ho, it was just right for helping him cultivate.
"When Madam Zhuang can't stand it anymore and wants to go ho, I'll go get Xuan Shan into the small temple."
He hesitated. Xuan Shan was as profound and unfathomable as a Celestial True God. If he brought him into the small temple, would Xuan Shan get angry?
After the al, Chen Shi continued tracing the Wooden Cart and the Huagai.
By noon, Black Pot and Madam Zhuang slipped out of the small temple to make lunch for Chen Shi.
Seeing them so attentive, Stone Ji Your Ladyship sneered, "Bootlickers, thinking such tricks can raise your status in front of the Envoy. Hmph, is the Envoy such a vulgar person?"
Despite her words, she couldn't help feeling uneasy inside.
She occupied the best position among the three miniature shrines in the small temple. Although her cultivation was the highest, she also had many blemishes—she had repeatedly beco arrogant upon gaining advantages, even threatening to take down Chen Shi along with others.
Now, Black Pot and Madam Zhuang's performance made her deeply feel her position was insecure.
In the afternoon, when Black Pot and Madam Zhuang slipped out to make dinner for Chen Shi, Stone Ji Your Ladyship also awkwardly slipped out and stamred to them, "You two, is there any place where this palace can lend a hand?"
Black Pot glanced at her and pointed at the bowls and dishes.
Stone Ji Your Ladyship went to the well and helped them wash the bowls and plates.
When the three of them returned to Chen Shi's small temple, Stone Ji Your Ladyship sat on the central miniature shrine with much more confidence.
After dinner, the little ghost and lantern ghost ca again at the village entrance.
"...Provincial Graduate Master says he is not ho. Please return," Sangyu said.
Thus, three to five days passed. Every night, the little ghost and lantern ghost from Wuwang City would co to inquire, receiving the sa reply.
The Wuwang Prefect hadn't been able to sleep peacefully these days. That night, he fell asleep and had a dream. In the dream, he saw Chen Shi offering incense to the Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush every day, murmuring incantations, and even using his own qi and blood to warm the Judge's Brush.
He went to demand it back. The Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush had developed a spirit—a delicate, beautiful young girl in her teens, who said to him, "Prefect, don't co looking for every day. I'm afraid Little Ten will misunderstand."
The Wuwang Prefect woke from the nightmare with a start, sitting up abruptly, panting heavily.
"I can't delay any longer. Tomorrow, I'll go demand it back myself."
That day, while Chen Shi was offering incense to the Judge's Dragon-Whisk Brush and the Dark Spring Swimming Dragon Sword, he suddenly slled an intoxicating fragrance coming from behind his head. He hurriedly entered the small temple and went to the temple door, only to see that the Ginseng Grass dolls now had clusters of bright red Ginseng Grass fruits on their heads.
These past days, relying on Stone Ji, Madam Zhuang, and Black Pot to regulate and refine the heaven and earth righteous energy, these Ginseng Grass dolls had grown rapidly, their strength greatly increased, and the Ginseng Grass fruits they bore were much more nurous than before.
Chen Shi excitedly went to Gangzi Village to see Granny Sha, smiling as he said, "Granny, are there any spiritual herbs in this world that can increase lifespan?"
Granny Sha said, "There are indeed so spiritual herbs and dicines that can increase lifespan. But they can only increase a year or two, and they're astronomically expensive—even selling this old body wouldn't be enough to buy them. These spiritual herbs and pill formulas are all controlled by great clans and holy lands like the Great Bao Guo Temple. Where would ordinary people get them?"
She was quite philosophical about it, smiling as she said, "Even a great expert like Bitter Bamboo, with all kinds of spiritual herbs and pill formulas, only lived to one hundred thirty or forty. Exhausting oneself to gain a dozen or twenty years isn't worth it. It's enough to live these few decades well."
Chen Shi took out a Ginseng Grass fruit and said, "Granny, try this!"
Granny Sha examined it and said, "This is the fruit from the Ginseng Grass dolls' heads, right? I've eaten them before. I'm on good terms with Madam Zhuang and the others; they were worried I'd die and gave a few to eat. Not much use."
Chen Shi smiled, "Try one more!"
Not wanting to disappoint his kindness, Granny Sha took the Ginseng Grass fruit and swallowed it, smiling, "This old body has twenty-four years of lifespan left; adding a few more months, what difference does it make..."
The dicinal effect dissipated, but this Ginseng Grass fruit seed sowhat different.
Granny Sha stood there in a daze, puzzled, "Little Ten, what did you give to eat?"
Although she still had twenty-four years of lifespan, she was already an old woman with crane-like hair and chicken-like skin. Now, she was visibly becoming younger at a rate visible to the naked eye.
Her skin gradually gained luster, her hair turned from silver to black, and her body grew taller, no longer hunched!
Ti seed to reverse on her, gradually transforming from a little old woman toward the Imperial Maiden form her Primordial Spirit could take!
Her lifespan was also increasing at an astonishing speed—from twenty-four years to thirty, fifty, eighty, one hundred, two hundred!
Her lifespan increased to five hundred years before slowly stopping!
"This isn't right, this isn't right!"
Granny Sha was both shocked and delighted, yet also sowhat flustered. She examined herself, murmuring, "This old body..."
Chen Shi smiled, "Granny, you're so young now; no need to call yourself 'this old body' anymore."
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