Plant VS Cultivation

Chapter 174 – The Taiyi Evergreen Scripture

"This is your identity token. With it, you'll be able to access many of the sect's facilities." Hou Chunyu didn't dwell on the matter of Xiaohua. After all, he had already obsessed over it long ago, and by now, he had given up trying to uncover her origins.

After raising Xiaohua for hundreds of years, Hou Chunyu had long since come to regard her as his own child.

"Thank you, Grandmaster!"

Gu Mo accepted the identity token with both hands. Like Qi Chunde's, his token was also made of wood and shared a similar design.

This meant that Gu Mo's status in Shennong Valley was now on par with Qi Chunde's.

"This is an inner disciple's token. The sect distributes a set amount of resources each year," Hou Chunyu explained the benefits granted to inner disciples, though he said nothing about the failed petition for Gu Mo to receive core disciple treatment.

"Let's go. I'll take you to choose your next cultivation technique first." Without waiting for Gu Mo to study the token further, Hou Chunyu took him away to select a technique.

Gu Mo felt a blur before his eyes—and the next thing he knew, he was standing in front of a tall tower.

"Once you've mastered the art of Wood Affinity, you'll be able to travel anywhere within the range of the ancient tree in an instant," Hou Chunyu explained as they approached the tower.

"You can go in and choose by yourself."

Hou Chunyu stopped outside the tower. Even as a Nascent Soul stage True Lord, he couldn't simply enter the technique repository at will.

"Yes!"

Gu Mo nodded and handed Little Carp, who had been tucked in his sleeve, to Hou Chunyu for safekeeping. Then, brimming with anticipation, he walked toward the tower. As he stepped inside, a stream of divine sense swept across the identity token on his person, then dispersed.

Gu Mo wasn't surprised. This was the repository of the sect's cultivation techniques—undoubtedly one of its most heavily guarded locations. It would be shocking if it didn't have measures for detection and protection.

"Sigh…"

Watching Gu Mo disappear into the tower, Hou Chunyu let out a long sigh. If Gu Mo had been granted core disciple treatment, this wouldn't have been where he obtained his cultivation methods. Instead, he would've entered a secret realm.

The techniques found within the secret realm weren't necessarily more profound than those in the tower. Both locations stored techniques of equal caliber—the only difference lay in the medium of transmission.

In the tower, techniques were engraved into jade slips. In the secret realm, however, they were inscribed within special spirit fruits. Core disciples could pick a spirit fruit containing the technique they sought and consume it to gain a direct insight into that technique's cultivation.

This moment of comprehension drastically accelerated one's understanding of the technique.

These legacy-bearing spirit fruits were one of Shennong Valley's greatest assets, cultivated by a powerful spiritual cultivator from the sect's past.

"Truly worthy of being a top-tier sect!"

As Gu Mo entered the tower, he was greeted by a sea of texts. Though the tower had looked modest from the outside, it was incredibly vast within.

Books, jade slips, bamboo scrolls, stone tablets—every kind of record imaginable was present. Some contained cultivation methods and techniques, while others held history or tales of the strange and bizarre.

Gu Mo scanned the area briefly, then didn't linger. He ascended to the upper levels. What he needed now was a technique for cultivation post-Golden Core, and such methods clearly wouldn't be found on the first floor.

He even skipped the second floor entirely and went straight to the highest level he could access. If he was going to pick a technique, it had to be the strongest one available.

Of course, the more powerful a technique, the harder it would be to cultivate—but that wasn't an issue for Gu Mo. As long as he had enough Solar Essence, he could brute-force his way through it.

"This is as far as I can go."

Gu Mo felt the restrictive formation ahead and realized he had reached his limit. There was still one floor above him—but what kinds of techniques were stored there? Perhaps that was where they kept the sect's top-tier secret arts and divine abilities.

After glancing around, he noted that this floor was much smaller than the first. Floating in the air were countless jade slips, each encased in a glowing orb of light.

Gu Mo casually reached out and grabbed one of the glowing orbs. A stream of information flowed directly into his mind.

"Cloud and Rain Art."

Gu Mo blinked in surprise, then realized what it was—an advanced version of the Minor Cloud and Rain Art. This one had already reached the level of a secret art.

He had long suspected that Shennong Valley, being the top sect for spiritual agriculture, must have more advanced agro-spiritual techniques. And sure enough, here it was.

Releasing the orb, he let it float back into place and reached for another one nearby.

"Spring Wind and Soothing Rain Art."

The moment he touched it, another stream of information entered his mind, and Gu Mo's eyes widened.

This was the next evolution of the Cloud and Rain Art, now at the level of a secret method—a tier above secret arts.

To lay it out clearly:

Minor Cloud and Rain Art: standard-level technique

Cloud and Rain Art: secret art

Spring Wind and Soothing Rain Art: secret method

And beyond that would be divine abilities.

Gu Mo even knew what the divine ability was—it was "Cloud-Wielding, Rain-Summoning", the innate ability awakened by Little Carp.

But after checking the surrounding orbs, he couldn't find that particular divine technique. Then again, it made sense. Divine abilities were exceedingly rare and critical to a sect's foundation. There was no way they'd be stored in an accessible location like this.

With that thought, Gu Mo's gaze shifted upward. He still hadn't reached the very top level. Perhaps Shennong Valley's most vital legacies were housed there.

Even though he hadn't found any divine techniques, Gu Mo had still discovered several advanced agro-spiritual methods. For example, the Minor Rejuvenation Art had upgrades—first to Rejuvenation Art, then to the even stronger Withered Wood Blossoms Anew Art. As for the divine version of that path, he had no clue yet.

Still, what he had seen was already astonishing. For all five of the core agro-spiritual techniques, this place held their technique, secret art, and secret method versions.

Truly worthy of being the top sect for spiritual agriculture! With such a complete system of legacy, it was no wonder Qi Chunde's master had looked down on the spiritual farmers of the Qinghe cultivation world—the gap between them was simply too vast.

"Whew…!"

Letting out a long breath, Gu Mo suppressed the excitement in his heart. He had come here to choose his core cultivation method—those spiritual farming techniques could wait until he had saved up enough sect contribution points to exchange for them.

"I found it!"

Before long, Gu Mo had found a cultivation method.

"The Taiyi Evergreen Sutra!"

As the information from the light orb flowed into his mind, Gu Mo's eyes lit up. Judging by the name alone, it wasn't hard to guess that this technique was likely the advanced form of the Qingmu Sutra he currently practiced.

Carefully reading the information transmitted from the light orb, Gu Mo confirmed his suspicion—this was indeed the follow-up technique to the Qingmu Sutra, and its effects were identical in nature, both focused on greatly extending one's lifespan.

This technique could be cultivated all the way to the Nascent Soul stage and beyond, up to the Soul Transformation realm. The ancient tier-5 trees in Shennong Valley were at precisely that level.

A technique that reached the Soul Transformation realm definitely counted as top-tier. Still, Gu Mo wanted to see if there were any other options available.

Soon, he found another technique.

"The Azure Lightning Codex!"

This was also a Soul Transformation-level technique and one focused on offensive power. Cultivating it would allow the user to convert their spiritual energy into lightning-elemental magic.

After skimming through its effects, Gu Mo shook his head. It was obvious this method wasn't suitable for him.

He went on to find several more techniques—some at the Soul Transformation level, others at the Nascent Soul level. The breadth of Shennong Valley's collection truly lived up to its reputation as a top-tier sect.

There were techniques of nearly every type imaginable. Gu Mo even spotted a sword cultivation method at the Nascent Soul level: The Azure Lotus Sword Manual.

However, Gu Mo's avatar had already successfully joined the Great Yan Sword Sect, so he naturally had no need for another sword cultivation method. The techniques preserved by Great Yan Sword Sect were clearly superior to this one.

After searching for a while, Gu Mo ultimately returned to the light orb containing the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra. It seemed this technique was still the most suitable for him.

"I wonder if there are even more advanced techniques above this one…" Gu Mo looked upward. He had a feeling there must be. After all, the name Shennong Valley wasn't just for show—but given his current status, he clearly didn't yet have access to such high-level secrets.

As it stood, the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra was the best technique available to him. For someone still in the Golden Core stage, a Soul Transformation-level technique was already more than sufficient.

And by the time he actually reached Soul Transformation, the sect's entire collection would likely be fully open to him. So Gu Mo had no need to worry about future techniques for now.

He took out his identity token and touched the light orb. Instantly, the orb dissolved, and a jade slip fell into his hand.

Sending his spiritual sense into the jade slip, a vast flood of information surged into Gu Mo's mind. But with his divine soul strength already at mid-Golden Core stage, he had no trouble absorbing all of it.

He soon learned far more about the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra—the earlier info from the light orb had merely scratched the surface.

Because it was an advanced version of the Qingmu Sutra, their effects were identical in nature. However, the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra was significantly more powerful. For example, its longevity-extending properties vastly surpassed those of the earlier version.

A cultivator practicing the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra could easily live several times longer than others of the same realm. Even when compared to long-lived spirit beasts, they would not be at a disadvantage.

The essence of cultivation is the pursuit of immortality—and in that sense, the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra pointed directly at the core of what cultivation was all about. From that perspective, it could be considered one of the most supreme techniques.

Unfortunately, aside from its lifespan-extending benefit, all of its other aspects were shortcomings. For instance, it lacked any offensive capabilities. No matter how long you lived, if your combat power was weak and you got cut down by an enemy, it would all be for nothing.

Additionally, the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra had one of the slowest cultivation speeds among techniques of the same level. Though it did offer significant lifespan benefits, slow progress remained a major drawback.

After all, why spend centuries grinding through slow cultivation just for longer life, when one could choose a faster-progressing technique to rapidly increase strength and break through higher realms? With higher realms came longer life and stronger battle power to seize even greater opportunities.

But none of these so-called weaknesses were actual problems for Gu Mo.

The lack of offensive abilities? Gu Mo had the Plant Frontline.

The slow cultivation speed? He had Solar Essence. As long as he had enough of it, his progress would be like riding a rocket.

If the weaknesses no longer existed, then in Gu Mo's eyes, this technique had only strengths. It was an absolutely ideal cultivation method.

After carefully reviewing the contents of the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra to make sure he wouldn't forget anything, Gu Mo released the jade slip. Instantly, it was enveloped in a new light orb and floated back into the air.

Then, Gu Mo turned and left.

His current clearance only allowed him to obtain a single technique. If he wanted more, he'd have to earn enough contribution points to exchange for them.

"Which technique did you pick?"

Seeing Gu Mo return, Hou Chunyu immediately asked.

He needed to know what Gu Mo had chosen so he could provide targeted guidance. This exceptionally talented grand-disciple was someone Hou Chunyu intended to cultivate carefully.

Although Gu Mo had yet to earn the sect's full trust, Hou Chunyu believed that as time passed and Gu Mo displayed even greater potential, the sect would change its stance.

"The Taiyi Evergreen Sutra!"

Gu Mo answered, then looked expectantly at Hou Chunyu, eager to receive guidance from this late-Nascent Soul True Monarch.

Until now, he had always cultivated through his own comprehension. But with a seasoned elder to guide him, Gu Mo felt his progress with the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra would be much faster.

"The Taiyi Evergreen Sutra, huh…"

When he heard Gu Mo's choice, Hou Chunyu felt a slight headache—not because it was a bad technique. On the contrary, it was an exceptional one. Techniques that could extend lifespan were exceedingly rare, and this one could even be cultivated to the Soul Transformation realm.

Such a method might seem mediocre to disciples from other sects, but for those in Shennong Valley, it definitely had its merits.

The longer a spirit planter lived, the stronger their combat strength and the more resources they could control. After all, many high-grade spiritual plants required centuries to mature. Without enough lifespan, a cultivator might not live long enough to harvest them and would die before reaping the benefits.

That said, the drawbacks of the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra also couldn't be ignored. It would slow down Gu Mo's cultivation speed and hold back his talent. Instead of surging ahead, his pace would drop to that of an average disciple.

And if he couldn't rapidly rise through the ranks and prove himself, how could he ever gain the sect's full recognition?

"Not bad. It's a rare longevity technique—after all, the entire point of cultivation is to attain immortality…" Hou Chunyu nodded in approval under Gu Mo's hopeful gaze, then began explaining the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra in detail.

Although Gu Mo might never rise to prominence or earn the sect's full support, if he cultivated this technique, he might end up being the grand-disciple who stayed with Hou Chunyu the longest.

As a Nascent Soul True Monarch, Hou Chunyu possessed an extremely long lifespan. Among his many disciples, unless one broke through to the Nascent Soul stage, they would all eventually perish from old age.

But reaching Nascent Soul was extraordinarily difficult. Aside from his already-promising direct disciple who had become a core inheritor, the rest had little hope.

Eventually, Hou Chunyu would watch them all die off one by one.

Yet Gu Mo, by cultivating the Taiyi Evergreen Sutra, could likely accompany him for a very, very long time—so long as he didn't go out courting danger.

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