129: Dao Foundation Phenomena

Beside the field ridge, the Lightning Tribulation continued.

"Elder Xuanmu, my Azure Blade Willow won't have any accidents, will it?" Lin Yan asked, his eyes showing worry.

"Rest assured," Elder Xuanmu said with a smile.

"In the eyes of the Laws of Heaven and Earth, a spirit plant promoting to a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root is a form of 'overstepping,' a challenge to the established order. Therefore, the Heavenly Dao will send down a Lightning Tribulation to baptize and test it.

"This Lightning Tribulation is not just for destruction, but also for 'tempering.' Once it survives the Lightning Tribulation, the spirit plant's status will be completely stabilized, and it will become a true Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root."

Despite those words, Lin Yan couldn't help but worry.

Every bolt of heavenly lightning that struck down made his heart tremble with fear.

Fortunately, the Lightning Tribulation did not last very long.

Before long, the thunderous roars in the sky returned to silence, and the lightning flashes beside the field ridge dissipated.

The Elders held their breath and focused, all turning their gazes toward the Azure Blade Willow bathed in the sunset's afterglow at the center of the valley.

They saw that the transformation of the Azure Blade Willow was complete. It was no longer a simple emerald color; its entire body flowed with a warm, jade-like halo, and every willow leaf seemed carved from the finest emerald.

The entire willow tree stood there quietly, emitting a refreshing aura of life.

Everyone showed undisguised curiosity and immediately released their Divine Sense to carefully touch the Azure Blade Willow.

After a moment, several Elders looked at each other. Their faces first showed wild joy, which then turned into a complex look of amazement.

"What do you all think?" Elder Xuanmu asked.

An Elder with a white beard spoke slowly, a hint of disbelief in his voice:

"This willow... has already transformed into a living source of spiritual power! It doesn't need to absorb external Spiritual Qi; it can continuously exhale pure spiritual power on its own."

"It truly is an extremely rare Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root!"

Another Elder frowned slightly and pondered, "Although its output of spiritual power is stable, its grade... isn't very high. If measured by Spiritual Veins, it's likely only equivalent to a Rank 3 Low Grade Spiritual Vein."

A Rank 3 Spiritual Vein was a massive fortune for Purple Mansion Cultivators.

But those present were at least at the Golden Core stage, with no lack of Nascent Soul or even higher-level Cultivators; a Rank 3 Spiritual Vein was nothing to them.

"This is normal," another Elder added.

"I have examined its spiritual rhythm and found it to be extremely profound with infinite potential. It's just... it's still very young now and needs a long time to settle and grow before it can show its true power."

Upon hearing this, everyone finally understood.

While the Elders were focused on the Azure Blade Willow, Lin Yan felt a warm throb from within his Dantian.

His originally stable Sixth-Grade Dao Foundation actually had its roots tremble and its aura expand under the soaking of the Azure Blade Willow's spiritual rhythm. Like a seedling meeting sweet rain after a long drought, it greedily absorbed the life essence originating from the willow tree.

His heart skipped a beat, and he immediately focused his mind to carefully observe the changes within his body.

Within his Dantian, the Sixth-Grade Dao Foundation, which was originally shaped like a circular platform, was now quietly transforming.

Its shape was no longer round and heavy; instead, it released streams of essence that flowed into the phantom of the Azure Blade Willow above it.

The platform-shaped Dao Foundation continued to shrink, while the Azure Blade Willow phantom above it became increasingly solid.

Soon, a slender and resilient willow shadow appeared in the Dantian. Its branches were elegant, its leaf veins were like entwined gold threads, and its roots were tightly intertwined with the walls of the Dantian.

The platform Dao Foundation completely disappeared, replaced by the image of a spiritual willow.

Wild joy appeared on Lin Yan's face.

"Could this be the Seventh-Grade Dao Foundation?!"

He could clearly feel that the new Dao Foundation was much stronger!

Even the Dantian's spiritual sea expanded by thirty percent. The Spiritual Pressure became harmonious and restrained from the inside out, and every breath contained the clear radiance of the Wood Element. His entire being seemed to merge with the aura of this willow tree.

At the same time, a phantom appeared behind Lin Yan.

In a vast spiritual sea, a tall and straight spiritual willow stood tall.

Its roots were planted in the Dantian, and its branches were reflected in the spiritual sea.

This phantom phenomenon attracted the attention of all the Elders present.

"Is this... a Dao Foundation Manifestation?"

"Lower three-grade Dao Foundations are rings, middle three-grade Dao Foundations are platforms, and only upper three-grade Dao Foundations generate phenomena!"

"Looking at this scene, it should be a Seventh-Grade Dao Foundation."

"How long has it been since this boy achieved Foundation Establishment, yet he has already attained a Seventh-Grade Dao Foundation? His future achievements are truly limitless!"

Everyone praised him one after another.

After a long while, the phenomenon behind Lin Yan dissipated.

His Dao Foundation stabilized, completely entering the seventh-grade level.

The Elders looked at Lin Yan with eyes full of approval and expectation.

Elder Xuanmu walked up to Lin Yan, solemnly patted his shoulder, and encouraged him:

"Lin Yan, you have done very well! All Heaven and Earth Spiritual Roots have extraordinary qualities, they just haven't manifested yet. Cultivate this Azure Blade Willow well; there might be surprises in the future!"

"This Disciple obeys!" Lin Yan responded solemnly, his heart excited.

"If you encounter any difficulties in the future, feel free to come to the Inner Sect to find us," Elder Xuanmu said.

"Yes," Lin Yan nodded.

Having finished their instructions, the Elders did not stay any longer.

They gave Lin Yan a few more words of advice and then turned into streaks of light, disappearing into the horizon.

The Grand Elder stayed until the end, clicking his tongue. "You kid, you're becoming more and more hard to see through."

"Haha, isn't that all thanks to your blessing, Elder?" Lin Yan laughed.

"I heard you've brewed a new spirit wine? When will you invite this old man to have a taste?"

"That's for certain."

...Finally, the Grand Elder also left with peace of mind.

In the blink of an eye, the bustling valley returned to silence.

Only then did Lin Yan have the time to carefully study his Azure Blade Willow.

[Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root: Azure Blade Willow]

[Growth Progress: 10,473 / 100,000,000]

[Dao Fruit Progress: 0.1%]

[Spiritual Root Trait: Greatly increases the Cultivator's Sword Dao comprehension]

[Growth State: None]

"It really has become a Heaven and Earth Spiritual Root, no longer an ordinary spirit plant."

"Judging from the growth progress, its grade has reached Rank 7!"

"The trait hasn't changed, but a Dao Fruit progress has appeared!"

This was a term that had never appeared in the System before.

"What is a Dao Fruit? Only 0.1%?" Lin Yan explored the Azure Blade Willow carefully with curiosity.

After a long time, he finally discovered a slight abnormality.

At the tip of a slender, tender branch, a light spot smaller than a grain of rice was hidden.

It didn't look like a dewdrop or an insect egg; it was more like a spark of starlight gently held by the willow silk, weak but stubbornly bright.

If the Azure Blade Willow hadn't been refined by him as his Lifebound Spirit Plant, with their Origins connected, he wouldn't have been able to detect such a subtle phenomenon.

"I wonder what use this Dao Fruit has, and how it should be cultivated?"

Lin Yan didn't dare to act rashly; this Dao Fruit was still too small, so he could only observe it for a while before making plans... A few days after the Azure Blade Willow's transformation, the Fire Crystal Rice in the spiritual field finally shed its last bit of greenness and entered the ripening stage.

Every stalk of rice was plump and juicy, its entire body as translucent as carved red crystal, and even the air carried a hint of scorching sweet fragrance.

Lin Yan couldn't wait to walk into the field and carefully harvest the Fire Crystal Rice stalk with the best appearance.

The rice ear felt warm in his hand, as if he were holding a clump of solidified flame.

"With Fire Crystal Rice plus the Transcendent Realm Brewing Technique, can I brew a spirit wine comparable to ten-thousand-year Five Elements essence?"