128: itinerary in advance
Sun Chunchen's gaze finally landed on Chu Jingyu. "I won't beat around the bush; I want Xiaofan to set out earlier, in five days' time. A Treasure Pavilion trade caravan will be leaving then."
Chu Jingyu was startled. "Why so sudden?"
"Some annoying flies keep pestering me. Leaving early is the only way to get some peace and quiet. Plus, with this extra time, I can take Xiaofan on a study tour to other places to gain some experience."
The expressions on the faces of the Chu Family Member who heard Sun Chunchen's words were somewhat complicated.
Chu Jingyu sighed softly. He hadn't expected the separation from Xiaofan to come so soon. "Alright. In these next few days, we will prepare Xiaofan's luggage. When the time comes, I'll leave everything in your hands."
"You're too kind; there's no need for such formalities with me," Sun Chunchen joked with a chuckle.
Since the town lacked peace, Chu Jingyu invited Sun Chunchen to stay with them for the few days before Xiaofan's departure.
Once out of the town, Sun Chunchen seemed like a changed man, no longer as reclusive as before.
Every day, he would follow the farmers on Qixia Mountain down to plant medicinal herbs. Sometimes, when he saw the farmers using incorrect planting techniques, he, as the owner of Medicine Heart Hall, couldn't help but step in and nag them a bit.
The villagers knew he was a Contract Master and a guest of honor of the Main Family, so they didn't dare to argue with him. They did whatever he said; after all, if the Main Family blamed them later, they would have a valid excuse.
Because he was about to go on a long journey, Chu Shengfan couldn't always be by Sun Chunchen's side, accompanying him through the mountains and countryside.
One moment he was being dragged away by his mother to be measured for clothes or to choose fabrics and patterns he liked, and the next he was being taken to the family storehouse by his grandfather to pick out various spiritual items he might need in the future.
As for his father, after being summoned to the ancestral hall that night, he spent his time running back and forth between the town and the county seat. He delivered the promised 'Moon Worshipping Rabbits' and 'Medicinal Fragrance Powder-Eared Rabbits' to several major clans in the county seat and went to the Treasure Pavilion to purchase various spiritual materials and items.
The entire household seemed to have become busy because of his upcoming long journey.
Even his young younger brother and sister were preparing their own tokens of affection for his departure.
On the night of February 8th, Chu Shengfan once again came to the ancestral hall.
At this moment, there were only three figures in the ancestral hall: one illusory and two solid.
The illusory one was Chu Mu, and the two solid ones were the grandfather and grandson, Chu Jingyu and Chu Shengfan.
Chu Mu looked at the various spiritual items prepared on the ground, then glanced at the nervous Chu Shengfan and asked warmly, "Are you ready?"
Chu Shengfan took a deep breath and nodded. "I'm ready."
Chu Mu raised his hand slightly, and the various flower-attribute spiritual items in the courtyard quickly began to fly about.
Richly colored or elegantly pale petals formed a cluster of beautiful scenery in the courtyard.
Chu Mu tapped lightly again, and the fragrance trapped within the petals exploded in an instant. Elegant, rich, and distant scents merged perfectly and harmoniously at this moment, turning into a faint, ethereal exotic fragrance.
"Go."
Chu Mu flicked his finger, and colored silk threads pulled the 'Flower Medicine Butterfly' into the air. All the petals gathered around it, gradually submerging it.
After about a few minutes, all the petals, from the outside in, gradually turned into powder and disappeared into the wind.
The hidden form of the 'Flower Medicine Butterfly' also gradually revealed its current appearance.
Its size had molted from its original state of less than a palm's width to its current size of about a full palm, having grown slightly larger.
The shape of its dual wings still retained a petal-like appearance, except that each side had become three layers deep, with every part able to flutter freely.
Furthermore, the colors were no longer just pink and purple; each wing seemed to have tiny petal-shaped scales, with every small petal shimmering with a different color.
Overall, the colors were intricate, as if merging all the thousands of colors in the world into one.
The most miraculous point was that as its wings fluttered, its body constantly switched between illusory and solid states, appearing as a spiritual body one moment and a physical one the next.
[Race: Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit (Spirit Rank Species)]
[Rank: Uncommon Rank, Low-tier]
[Aptitude: Extraordinary]
[Status: Excited, Joyful]
[Attribute Affinity: Medicine, Flower, Spirit]
[Skills: 1. Flower Medicine Powder: The Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit vibrates its wings to scatter thousands of pollen grains, quickly repairing external injuries on the target.]
[2. Myriad Flower Fragrance: The Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit is always surrounded by fragrance, which has the effect of nourishing the Mental Energy of those who smell it;]
[The Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit can actively detonate the fragrance, causing a brief stun effect on all objects with Mental Energy within the target area;]
[The Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit can actively adjust the concentration of the fragrance in the air to repair the mental damage of all targets and apply a layer of barrier against mental-type attacks.]
[3. Myriad Flower Spirit Shield: Condenses a large number of illusory petals in the air to form layers of flower shields.]
[4. Spirit of Myriad Flowers: The Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit eats nothing but spiritual flowers. Consuming high-rank spiritual flowers allows it to rapidly increase its Realm and gives a certain probability of absorbing the spiritual flower's attribute affinity, thereby gaining the qualification to learn other types of skills.]
[5. Butterfly Spirit: The Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit consumes energy to enter a spiritual state. In this state, it only takes half the effect of non-mental attacks.]
[Evolution Path: Viewable upon ascending to Spirit Rank.]
Seeing the information after the 'Flower Medicine Butterfly' molted into the 'Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit', Chu Mu nodded in satisfaction. This skill panel could be described as luxurious; the seven hundred Source Spirits he had consumed were not wasted.
Although the current 'Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit' still didn't have many offensive means, its healing effects—whether for physical injuries or mental trauma—had been greatly enhanced.
'Butterfly Spirit' increased its own survival capabilities, 'Spirit Shield' provided the ability to protect the Contract Master, and 'Spirit of Myriad Flowers' gave its growth infinite possibilities.
Even if it lacked offensive means now, as the spiritual flowers it consumed increased and other attribute affinities were born, it wasn't impossible for attack skills to appear.
Furthermore, the current skill effects might not be its full version. After ascending to the Spirit Rank, it would surely have new improvements. At that time, the Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit's skill panel would only be more terrifying than it was now.
And today's evolution had not completely ended yet.
Knowing that Chu Shengfan was about to go on a long journey, Chu Mu had exhausted all the Source Spirits he had accumulated over many days.
Originally, he had planned to check the evolution paths for Chu Jingyu's 'Golden Armored Jade Pupil Beast' first, but since he might not see Chu Shengfan for a long time, Chu Mu prioritized using them on his two Source Beasts.
Before Chu Shengfan could calm down from the surprise the 'Myriad Flower Butterfly Spirit' had brought him, Chu Mu had already signaled him to summon the other Source Beast.
The 'Colorful Cloud Jellyfish', nearly thirty meters in diameter, appeared, floating quietly above the courtyard. Its long tentacles lay on the bluestone ground like dormant pythons.
The evolution of the 'Flower Medicine Butterfly' mostly required spiritual items related to flowers, but the spiritual items needed for the other evolution path of this 'Colorful Cloud Jellyfish' were varied and much more complex.