Watching the Iron Claw Eagle plummet, Song Changsheng recalled his Treasure Gourd and took a drink. After recovering for a moment, he boarded his small boat and pursued it.
The Iron Claw Eagle had infuriated him to no end. Only by roasting and eating it could he quell the hatred in his heart.
With an injured wing, the Iron Claw Eagle had lost most of its mobility. By the time Song Changsheng arrived, it was lying in a thicket, breathing its last.
Seeing its pursuer, Song Changsheng, a hint of despair flickered in its eyes. It could only unleash a few more Wind Blades in a final act of defiance.
These posed no threat to Song Changsheng. With a flick of his finger, a bolt of Spiritual Force instantly pierced its head.
"The Spirit Fish are nice, but they have an owner. Try to be a little smarter in your next life." Song Changsheng shook his head. He was about to retrieve his spoils when his feet suddenly stopped.
His nostrils twitched. He took a few deep sniffs and thought in surprise, 'What is that scent? Just a whiff makes me feel refreshed and clear-headed. Could there be some kind of treasure nearby?'
Song Changsheng spread his Divine Sense, beginning a meticulous, inch-by-inch search of the area.
After circling the area, he actually made a discovery. At the bottom of an earthen slope, a tea tree, no more than a foot tall, swayed in the wind, emitting a strange and wonderful aroma.
Greatly intrigued, Song Changsheng moved closer to inspect it. He noticed a faint white mist rising around the tea tree. It had a forked trunk, and each branch bore over a dozen deep green tea leaves, with new buds just sprouting at the tips.
The leaves were oval-shaped with serrated edges, and the veins upon them formed patterns resembling soaring clouds. They looked truly extraordinary.
'This... could it be a Mist Concealed Tea Tree?' Song Changsheng wondered, a pleasant surprise washing over him.
He reached out, plucked a leaf, and placed it in his mouth to chew slowly. A bitter taste instantly flooded his senses, followed by a peculiar feeling.
Song Changsheng could clearly feel a unique power nourishing his Divine Soul.
'It really is Mist Concealing Tea! I can't believe I'd stumble upon such an opportunity here.' Song Changsheng was overjoyed. His eyes seemed to glow as he stared at the tea tree.
Mist Concealing Tea was a rare type of Spirit Tea. When its leaves were steeped, the resulting brew could nourish the Divine Soul and purify Spiritual Power.
The power of a Cultivator's Magic was not only closely tied to their Cultivation realm, but the purity of their Spiritual Power was also a crucial factor.
Furthermore, as one's Spiritual Power became purer, the total volume of Spiritual Power in their Dantian would increase, allowing them to sustain large-scale Magic for longer periods. For Song Changsheng, this was the tea of his dreams.
'But anywhere a Spiritual Object grows, there's usually a fierce beast guarding it. Why is it so quiet around this Mist Concealed Tea tree?'
Song Changsheng scanned his surroundings and noticed something amiss in a nearby thicket. Pushing aside the bushes, he discovered a huge bird's nest, and the aura clinging to it was that of the Iron Claw Eagle.
In that instant, everything clicked into place for Song Changsheng.
He had been wondering why the Iron Claw Eagle kept circling the area, refusing to leave, even returning to fight after being wounded.
It turned out the eagle had been waiting for this Mist Concealed Tea Tree to sprout. The leaves of the Mist Concealing Tea were not only effective for human Cultivators, but they had an even greater effect on Demon Beasts.
If they consumed the tender buds of a Mist Concealed Tea Tree, a Demon Beast's Divine Soul would benefit immensely, which in turn would accelerate the development of its Spiritual Wisdom.
And Spiritual Wisdom was a key factor for a Tier One Demon Beast to advance to Tier Two. That was why the Iron Claw Eagle had been so reluctant to leave, even after being injured.
Today, with the tea tree finally budding, it had tried to drive away the threat that was Song Changsheng. Unfortunately for the eagle, Song Changsheng's Cultivation had just broken through, allowing him to kill it outright. All its hard work guarding the treasure had been for nothing, as Song Changsheng now reaped the reward.
'Thankfully, Grand-uncle Fifty-three is getting on in years and can't overexert himself. Otherwise, with his Qi Refining Great Perfection Cultivation, he surely would have discovered this tea tree if he'd chased the Iron Claw Eagle. This is my lucky day.'
Song Changsheng was in a fantastic mood, but the question of how to move the tea tree gave him pause. He wasn't a Spirit Plant Cultivator and had no skill in tending to Spirit Plants; one wrong move could damage the roots.
After mulling it over, Song Changsheng took a Magical Sword from his Qiankun Bag and excavated the entire block of soil in a three-meter radius around the Mist Concealed Tea Tree.
In an instant, a large pit appeared on the slope.
Song Changsheng carried the huge chunk of earth back to Lake Heart Island. He used the same trick again, digging a large hole and placing the entire block inside. After filling in the gaps around the edges, the Mist Concealed Tea Tree's crude and simple transplant was complete.
To encourage its growth, Song Changsheng also buried several Low-Grade Spirit Stones around its base.
The tea tree was currently at the Tier One High-Grade level. As long as it had sufficient Spiritual Qi, it would soon advance to the next level, and its leaves would become even more effective.
'First, I'll test out these new buds.' Song Changsheng plucked all the freshly sprouted buds and carefully stored them in a Jade Bottle.
He took out a porcelain cup, placed one of the tender buds inside, and poured in boiling Spiritual Spring Water.
A refreshing fragrance was instantly released. As the leaf steeped longer, it gradually dissolved into the brew, turning the liquid a pale, light green. A thin mist even seemed to rise from the rim of the cup.
"Worthy of a rare Spirit Tea. Just one sniff is enough to delight the Divine Soul," Song Changsheng said, his face a mask of pure bliss.
Once the leaf had completely dissolved into the brew, he, unafraid of the scalding heat, raised the cup and downed it in one go. As the fragrant tea flowed down his throat and into his stomach, a burst of pure energy erupted from his Middle Cavity Acupoint.
Song Changsheng immediately sat down cross-legged. He focused his mind, guarded his core, and poured all his effort into refining this new energy.
During the refining process, the energy split in two. One stream rushed into his Sea of Consciousness, nourishing his Divine Soul Power.
The other stream entered his Dantian and began to purify the Spiritual Power within...
「A day and a night later.」
Song Changsheng slowly opened his eyes. The hand seals for his Magic Technique shifted rapidly as he called out, "[Water Tornado]!"
A water tornado dozens of feet tall instantly formed on the lake before him. Its power was astounding, churning the placid surface of Bright Mirror Lake into a chaotic mess.
Fortunately, Song Changsheng hadn't forgotten this was a clan asset, and he dispersed the Magic after only a few breaths.
Watching the Water Tornado dissipate into nothing, he said with undisguised glee, "The Magic's power has increased by at least thirty percent, and its consumption has decreased. This Mist Concealing Tea is truly incredible."
This was a tangible increase in his combat power. If he had possessed this strength when he faced that group of Demon Cultivators, he wouldn't have been in such a pathetic state. He might have even been able to hunt them down instead!
'It's a shame, though. The Mist Concealing Tea has the greatest effect the first time you drink it. Until the tree advances to Tier Two, any further effects on me will be negligible.'
Song Changsheng looked at the few remaining buds in the Jade Bottle and began to consider what to do with them.
According to clan rules, they were his personal property. He could easily trade these leaves for cultivation resources.
But on second thought, he decided to hold onto them for now. After all, the tree only budded once every few years, making the leaves incredibly precious.
Keeping them on hand, whether for trading or as a gift to build connections, was an excellent option.
Just as he was about to put the tea leaves into his Qiankun Bag, a series of GURGLE sounds from the shore caught his attention.
He followed the sound to the water's edge and found a long, silver Spirit Fish blowing bubbles non-stop, its pair of small, beady eyes fixed on him.
Song Changsheng was stunned. It was the largest of the three Top-Grade Fish Kings in the lake. It had always deliberately avoided him, so why would it approach him of its own accord now?
He glanced down at the Jade Bottle in his hand, and realization dawned. "You want these tea leaves?"
...