The soul, when in a state of slumber, contracts into a tight, motionless mass.

When the soul is awake, it fluctuates with the shifting of the mind's consciousness.

Dragon Cypress soared into the sky. His Soul-Setting Ability activated, and upon perceiving, he confirmed that Ink Orchid had completed digesting the Divine-Grade Soul-Setting Fruit, fallen into slumber, and begun to evolve.

Gliding through the air, he veered towards the Azure Blue Reservoir.

"Dragon Cypress—"

"Azure!"

Dragon Cypress circled the reservoir once before landing on the western shore.

The common Azure Trees planted along the lakeside had also grown to heights of twenty to thirty meters. They bore fruit successively in autumn, and schools of fish gathered beneath the trees in the lake.

The Azure Tree was considered a fairly fast-growing great tall tree.

Contrarily, the Sea Blue Tree, also from the Creator Civilization, had not yet reached a height of three meters after four years of growth, growing even slower than the Fragrant Torreya Tree.

Dragon Cypress had initially planned to wait until the ten Sea Blue Trees planted downstream of the Azure Blue Reservoir flowered and bore fruit. He wanted to understand all the elements of its cultivation before considering planting the remaining fifty seeds.

Now, he couldn't wait any longer...

Dragon Cypress inquired, "Azure, do the Sea Blue Trees grow so slowly because of the temperature at Xianglan Mountain?"

Azure answered, "Yes. For half the year, they are dormant due to low temperatures."

"Oh—" Dragon Cypress paused, then asked, "Azure, besides temperature, is there anything else we need to be careful about when cultivating the Sea Blue Trees?"

Azure replied, "Nothing else. These trees have strong environmental adaptability."

Dragon Cypress then asked, "Shall I take thirty seeds and try planting them in the Areca Rainforest? It's tropical there."

Azure pondered before agreeing, "You could try that."

Azure continued, "Dragon Cypress, I've kept wild chickens, rabbits, toads, squirrels, and other small animals in the forest..."

Dragon Cypress guessed what was coming next and asked, "Did Spiked Cypress sneak here for a feast again?"

Azure exclaimed, "And Silver Cypress too!"

Dragon Cypress was silent.

Then he said, "I'll take care of them!"

Dragon Cypress couldn't help but remind Azure, "Azure, be careful not to let these miscellaneous creatures damage the Life Seed Plants."

Azure replied confidently, "They won't!"

Dragon Cypress chatted idly with Azure for a while, then wandered over to the Southern Gorgon Reservoir.

After advancing to the Evolution Mountain Lord Level, Southern Gorgon had noticeably become much smarter, was not easily fooled, and wasn't as playful anymore.

After a brief chat, Dragon Cypress bid farewell and headed back to the mountain. He inspected the area, then went to North Mountain and joined Giant Cypress at the entrance of Ink Orchid's cave.

He guarded it throughout the night, pondering deeply. Ultimately, he decided to descend the mountain. He continued explaining various kinds of knowledge to the Black Yellow Divine-Given Seed, directing Black Cory to lead the ants in gathering various animal and plant samples for it to recognize.

To evolve from the first Age Period to the second as a Mountain Lord, about 200,000 Source Stones worth of Origin Force Food are needed.

The Soul-Setting Fruit provided an enhancement effect equivalent to 300,000 Source Stones worth of Origin Force Food.

Ink Orchid, in her first Age Period, had undergone excessive strengthening, so the duration of her evolutionary slumber was extended.

It was even longer than Dragon Cypress had predicted, and she still hadn't awakened.

「On the seventh day」

Dragon Cypress returned to the mountain, guarding outside the cave.

「On the eighth day」

There was still no movement.

「On the ninth day」

Dragon Cypress began to panic.

「On the tenth day」

Early in the morning, a surge of intense Origin Force Fluctuation suddenly emanated from within the cave, quickly subsiding.

Dragon Cypress waited a moment, then activated his Soul-Setting Ability to perceive.

Ink Orchid's dormant soul began to stir; she was likely busy molting.

Dragon Cypress breathed a long sigh of relief.

Giant Cypress inquired, "Great King?"

Dragon Cypress calmly said, "The Second King has awakened. Giant Cypress, go hunt some fresh meat in the jungle and bring it back."

Giant Cypress acknowledged, "Yes, Great King!"

Giant Cypress led the ants away.

Dragon Cypress waited a bit longer, then pushed open the door panel sealing the cave entrance and peered inside.

Ink Orchid had already completed molting. She was holding a can of Ant Honey and drinking it.

Dragon Cypress called out, "Ink Orchid?"

Ink Orchid replied, "I'm okay. Just a bit weak."

Dragon Cypress told her, "You've been asleep for ten days."

"Oh—" Ink Orchid dropped the metal can. "No wonder I feel so weak."

Dragon Cypress approached, wiggling his antennae in greeting. Two Large Blue Ants followed, climbed onto the Throne, and began regurgitating Ant Honey.

This period of sleep and evolution had nearly depleted all of Ink Orchid's physical strength. She finally regained some strength after finishing the Ant Honey stored in the abdomens of the two Large Blue Ants.

Dragon Cypress helped open the metal case.

Ink Orchid expelled the fully nurtured Chestnut Bean Divine-Given Seed and incorporated it into her Life Pouch.

"All done!" With the dearly desired Orchid Grass Divine-Given Seed stored in her Life Pouch, Ink Orchid finally felt completely at ease.

Dragon Cypress reminded her, "What about the Soul-Setting Ability?"

"Right, oh~" Ink Orchid focused on perceiving. Her antennae straightened, twitched, and then she lifted her head, saying, "I can sense everyone's souls!"

Ink Orchid added, "It can almost cover the entirety of Xianglan Mountain!"

"Great!" Dragon Cypress exclaimed. "Ink Orchid, there's an additional ability for long-distance information transmission. Let's try it!"

Dragon Cypress said this as he turned and ran out of the cave. He took flight, landed at the Shanxi Reservoir, briefly composed himself, and then activated his Soul-Setting Ability.

He locked onto Ink Orchid's soul.

At the same time, Ink Orchid sensed it and anchored back to Dragon Cypress.

A wondrous soul connection.

A message was directly transmitted to Dragon Cypress's soul consciousness: "Great King?"

Dragon Cypress transmitted back, "Second King?"

Ink Orchid asked, "Are you at the Shanxi Reservoir?"

Dragon Cypress replied, "Yes~"

They were separated by more than 1,000 meters!

"Wow!" Ink Orchid cheered, amazed. "So awesome!"

This form of communication far exceeded the maximum range of spiritual power and could not be detected or intercepted.

Dragon Cypress suggested, "Let's test the maximum range."

Ink Orchid agreed, "Okay."

Then she added, "It's really mentally taxing. I need to rest for a bit."

The connection was interrupted.

Dragon Cypress also withdrew his Soul-Setting Ability. He headed west along the ridge and stopped, estimating he was about four kilometers from Ink Orchid.

He activated his Soul-Setting Ability again, locking onto Ink Orchid.

Ink Orchid immediately noticed and activated her Soul-Setting Ability, anchoring back to Dragon Cypress.

The connection was established.

Ink Orchid called out, "Great King! Great King!"

Dragon Cypress responded, "Hmm."

Ink Orchid asked, "How far?"

Dragon Cypress replied, "Four kilometers. By my estimate, this should be the limit of your current soul strength."

"Oh! That's far!" Ink Orchid exclaimed.

"Not bad," Dragon Cypress commented.

Ink Orchid mused, "Could the distance exceed ten kilometers if I ate a Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit?"

Dragon Cypress considered, "Probably more... No, it seems that won't work. The information exchange ability from the Soul-Setting Fruit is bilateral; you would also need to consume a Divine-Grade Six Paths Fruit."

"Yeah—" Ink Orchid sighed.

Dragon Cypress assured her, "Once we have enough Source Stones, I'll buy one for you too."

"Yay!" Ink Orchid cheered.

The connection was interrupted.

The test was completed.

Dragon Cypress retracted his ability, soared into the sky, and raced back to Ink Orchid's cave on North Mountain. He quickly tidied up and retrieved the Dominating Throne.

Dragon Cypress said, "Ink Orchid, there's one more small thing."

Ink Orchid asked, "What is it?"

Dragon Cypress mentioned, "The Divine-Grade Night Fragrance Fruit..."

Ink Orchid offered, "Dragon Cypress, you eat it."

Dragon Cypress decided, "Forget it. During the winter Roving Merchant trade, I'll send it to the Huagi Mountain Treasury en route. Later, I'll arrange for a Command Ant to eat it."

Dragon Cypress didn't dwell on it much.

The Divine-Grade Night Fragrance Fruit didn't bestow a great ability, but it contained extremely high Primordial Energy. Its empowering boost was substantial, equivalent to consuming Origin Force Food worth 100,000 Source Stones.

Ink Orchid needed to enhance her combat power and strengthen her Wind System Ability. At the very least, she could further improve her Comprehensive Physique.

The Night Fragrance Fruit was really of no use to her at all. Ink Orchid was unwilling, and Dragon Cypress was even less keen. Dragon Cypress had two abilities, Strength and Water System, that urgently needed enhancement.

He'd keep it for now, and later assign it to Fragrant Cypress or Round Cypress, who weren't involved in combat.

Dragon Cypress packed up and retrieved the Dominating Throne.

A celebratory dinner was held.

Ink Orchid stayed at Xianglan Mountain to rest.

「The next morning」

Dragon Cypress set off, carrying Black Cory.

The Chestnut Bean Divine-Given Seed also had to be sown on Southern Sour Jujube Mountain.

Black Cory also had to lend a hand by going to Southern Sour Jujube Mountain and directing the ant colony to dig a large pit.

Dragon Cypress then undertook a long journey. First, he transported the Divine-Given Remains back to Xianglan Mountain and ground them into sawdust. Then, he sent the sawdust to Southern Sour Jujube Mountain to create the optimal soil environment for the Chestnut Bean Divine-Given Seed.

「It was late autumn.」

Dragon Cypress took a few days to complete the autumn Roving Merchant trade.

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