Chapter 141: Encounter with the Enlightenment Tea Tree, The Undead Mountain Vanishes

Within the pitch-black Undying Mountain, Chen Xing stood once again beneath the Enlightenment Tea Tree, accompanied by the two little ones.

Chen Mi had not followed them this time. Although somewhat reluctant, she remained deeply interested in the Three-Life Bronze Coffin and chose to stay behind to continue studying it.

Chen Xing did not mind and let her busy herself as she pleased. After instructing Meng Chen and his companion to guard Chu Ningdie, he brought the two little ones back to this place.

Looking at the rugged, coiling dragon-like trunk of the Enlightenment Tea Tree that looked far from pleasing to the eye, little Chenchen, cradling little Wu in her arms, puckered her lips and muttered, "Dad! How can this be an undying medicine? It's not cute at all!"

Chen Xing chuckled bitterly, crouched down, and gently explained, "Undying medicines were originally formed from true immortals who fell during the Immortal Ancient Era, so their shapes naturally vary! This Enlightenment Tea Tree is already considered one of the better-looking ones among them. If you don't think it looks good, how about Dad turns it into a small tree later?"

Little Chenchen nodded despondently, looking down at little Wu in her arms, still firmly believing the latter was much cuter.

Yet, what they did not notice was that the moment Chen Xing mentioned shrinking the tea tree, the trunk of the Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree actually trembled slightly.

In this world, all undying divine medicines were born with sentience, and their intelligence was no inferior to that of ordinary humans. It was precisely because of this that most of them chose to follow Supreme Emperor-level powerhouses. On one hand, they could receive the protection of these supreme emperors; on the other, they could seek greater fortunes, hoping to break the shackles of heaven and earth and transform into human form!

Regrettably, throughout the ages, the only one who had truly achieved this step was the Undead Emperor Wan Qing alone.

Even so, every undying medicine still chose to do this. After all, with the protection of a supreme emperor, no one else would dare harbor malicious intentions toward them. When the emperor's lifespan neared its end, they merely needed to pay the price of a single matured fruit, which did not cause any real harm to the undying medicine itself.

Previously, when Chen Xing had slain the Stone Queen in the Undying Mountain, the Enlightenment Tea Tree had desperately wanted to follow this supreme deity! Unfortunately, it was utterly incapable of leaving the Undying Mountain.

In its ancient memories, there was once a fellow named Wushi who had nearly tormented it to death in his attempts to transplant it. Ever since that time, it had completely dismissed the thought of following any powerhouse. There was no helping it—who told it that it simply could not leave the Undying Mountain?

Yet now, this incomparably terrifying existence had returned, and moreover, he had come specifically for it! The only thing that drove it to the verge of a breakdown was that the little girl holding the Xuanwu undying medicine actually despised its ugly appearance.

Fortunately, that powerhouse did not share that sentiment. He had explained its origins to the child and praised it quite generously.

This left the Enlightenment Tea Tree feeling extremely stifled. What a wonderful opportunity! What a formidable existence! What a pity—given its damnably troublesome special nature, everything would probably still amount to nothing in the end!

When it heard that this powerhouse had made up his mind to take it away by force and even turn it into a tiny tree, it could no longer remain calm. Wasn't this demanding its very life?

Envious as it was of the Xuanwu undying medicine in the little girl's arms, it ultimately decided to make a run for it! There was no other choice; if it didn't flee now, its old life would be forfeit.

Just as Chen Xing was preparing to harvest the Enlightenment Tea Tree, a scene unfolded that left the two little ones staring in utter astonishment.

That very Enlightenment Ancient Tea Tree suddenly wrenched its roots out of the soil, splitting them into two just like a pair of human legs, and actually took off running at full tilt!

Seeing this, the eyes of the two little ones immediately shone with joyful radiance! Little Chenchen even shrieked at the top of her lungs, "Dad! It's running away! Catch it quickly!"

Although he knew this fellow possessed such an ability, witnessing it with his own eyes still amused Chen Xing, leaving him between laughter and tears.

It seemed this was the very "naked run" the Black Dog had spoken of in the original trajectory! It really did look somewhat similar!

Hearing his daughter's cries, the corners of Chen Xing's lips curled upward. Running? Could it possibly escape? There was simply no need for him to make a move at all!

With a flick of his hand, a fruit materialized in Chen Xing's palm—it was none other than a Third-Generation Yellow-Middle Plum! He had specifically requested it from his younger sister Chen Mi before coming here.

Chen Xing crushed the fruit into a mist of water and casually tossed it onto the ground. Instantly, an immense wave of celestial spiritual Qi diffused through the air.

The moment the water mist touched the ground, the Enlightenment Tea Tree, which had already fled several hundred zhang away, abruptly halted and stared fixedly at that cluster of mist.

Under the astonished gazes of the two little ones, the Enlightenment Tea Tree sprinted back toward them at a speed even faster than when it had fled!

Arriving at the spot where the mist had landed, the Enlightenment Tea Tree directly thrust its roots into the damp soil infused with the essence. In an instant, its entire trunk began to shudder, and its massive canopy swayed violently back and forth, as if overcome by extreme agitation.

Indeed, at this moment, the Enlightenment Tea Tree was agitated to the verge of madness. A mere fruit actually contained such a massive amount of undying substance—this filled it with a joy bordering on insanity!

It was not excited merely because of these substances; after all, the undying substance contained within a single fruit was ultimately limited and could not fundamentally alter its destiny.

What thrilled it was the realization that if this powerhouse possessed more such fruits, it could finally leave this ghost of a place in his company! The only reason it had never been able to leave this region was precisely because the burial soil here contained a trace of undying substance that it relied upon.

In this world, undying substance was an absolute supreme treasure! In the eyes of some, its preciousness even surpassed that of Imperial Artifacts!

Yet, due to unknown reasons, such undying substances had long since neared exhaustion, with only a tiny fraction remaining within the major restricted zones. This was also the reason why those supreme beings retreated into the forbidden zones after self-slashing; after all, even this wispy thread of undying substance could extend their lifespans to a certain degree.

Seeing that the Enlightenment Tea Tree had run back on its own accord while its trunk continued to quiver endlessly, little Chenchen asked curiously, "Dad! What's wrong with this tree? Is it sick?"

Chen Xing smiled faintly and replied, "No, it's just very happy right now!"

Little Chenchen nodded thoughtfully, though in her heart she still could not comprehend why someone would tremble when they were happy. Weren't people supposed to tremble only when they were terrified or ill?

Seeing that the Enlightenment Tea Tree had gradually stopped shaking, Chen Xing spoke up:

"I know you cannot leave this place casually, but the reason is nothing more than your dependence on celestial spiritual Qi! Oh, right! The celestial spiritual Qi I speak of is what you refer to as longevity substance! As long as you follow us, I can uproot the entire Undying Mountain and take it with me, keeping you connected to the Undying Mountain just as before. Furthermore, I will reward you with a fruit of this kind every single century. How does that sound?"

Faced with such generous terms, the Enlightenment Tea Tree did not hesitate in the slightest. Its massive canopy bobbed up and down incessantly, signaling its willingness to go with Chen Xing! Now that it had Chen Xing's promise and the prospect of leaving this place in the company of such a powerhouse, it was naturally more than willing.

At this moment, the Enlightenment Tea Tree was immensely elated. The undying substance contained within this single fruit was equivalent to what it would take centuries to absorb within the Undying Mountain.

With the prospect of receiving another one every hundred years from now on, it suddenly felt exceedingly wealthy and almost pulled its roots out of the ground to leap for joy in celebration.

What it failed to notice was that the Xuanwu undying medicine tucked inside little Chenchen's arms was currently gazing at it through its tiny, mung bean-sized eyes with an expression of utter disdain! That look clearly conveyed that it viewed the tree as an absolute bumpkin!

Seeing that the Enlightenment Tea Tree had agreed, Chen Xing said no more. A vast expanse of white clouds materialized beneath his feet, bearing the two little ones and himself into the air.

Immediately afterward, Chen Xing waved his hand, and the Undying Mountain—which had stood firmly in this place for countless epochs—began to sway slowly!

Within the divine sense of the Enlightenment Tea Tree, it watched in sheer terror as the mountain ranges spanning thousands of li began to float into mid-air amidst violent tremors.

This was not the end. The moment the Undying Mountain completely detached from the ground, a beam of purple radiance shot from Chen Xing's fingertips, instantly wrapping around the entire mountain range.

In the span of a single breath, the gargantuan Undying Mountain shrank rapidly, transforming into an object roughly the size of a millstone. A glance at this artifact revealed it to be none other than a miniature version of the Undying Mountain, complete with a tiny tree rooted atop the diminutive peak.

Chen Xing nodded in satisfaction, gazing at the object which now resembled a fine work of art. Pondering for a moment, he flicked his wrist once more, sending another stream of purple light shooting into the artifact!

Under the pleasantly surprised gazes of the two little ones, the object formed by the entire Undying Mountain actually began to wriggle slowly.

Before long, it transformed into a sleek black princess hat, with a lush, vibrant green tree gracefully embracing the entire brim, making it look like an exquisitely crafted masterpiece.