73: Chapter 73 Willow God's Speechlessness

Buried in the Willow Deity's embrace, Chu Tianjiao's nose was filled with a faint, pure fragrance of vegetation—not strong or overpowering, yet refreshing to the heart, as if he were in an immortal spiritual Realm from ancient times, making him involuntarily relax.

In his heart, he knew full well that such behavior was quite improper and even carried a hint of taking advantage of someone's vulnerability.

But the thought of Xiao Nannan's seemingly endless demands, compared to the gentle and stable embrace of the Willow Deity before him, gave rise to an indescribable sense of dependence.

Being able to use the excuse of being pressured by his wife to find a moment of solace in the arms of this legendary Immortal King was, for him, an almost luxurious happiness.

However, Chu Tianjiao also understood propriety and dared not indulge too much.

After calming his emotions slightly, he voluntarily withdrew from the Willow Deity's embrace, his cheeks slightly flushed, and awkwardly cupped his hands in salute: 'My apologies, Senior Willow Deity, for making a fool of myself. This Junior lost composure for a moment.'

Seeing his flustered and guilty appearance, the Willow Deity smiled faintly and gently shook her head: 'It's fine. Trivial matters between husband and wife need not be hidden. It's just that your wife...'

Halfway through her sentence, she herself paused, momentarily at a loss for words to describe it.

Having lived for endless ages, having witnessed Immortal Kings contend, seen the Dark Turmoil, and observed the collapse of epochs, she had never before seen a dignified True Immortal being 'drained' to the point of near exhaustion of spirit and energy by a woman in the human Dao Domain. It truly broadened her horizons.

'Sigh... In the end, it's all my fault,' Chu Tianjiao let out a long sigh, his face full of guilt and helplessness.

He did not conceal anything, recounting the events of that year truthfully to the Willow Deity.

From how, with his wedding to Xiao Nannan imminent, in order to force out the full potential of the Chaos Body within Xiao Nannan, he joined forces with Xiao Shitou to set up a death trap, faking his death before her, letting her hold his cold body in heart-wrenching agony;

To later watching her bear hatred alone, cultivate arduously to prove her Dao, sweep through forbidden zones, and then guard an empty home for fifty thousand years, yearning day and night, nearly descending into madness.

He did not hide any of these events, recounting them all to the Willow Deity exactly as they happened.

The Willow Deity listened quietly, slight ripples stirring in her clear eyes. By the time Chu Tianjiao finished speaking, the corners of her mouth couldn't help but twitch slightly, and her gaze toward him held a touch more helplessness:

'The way your wife treats you now is merely her own way of punishing you. In my opinion, she's still being rather light on you.'

'Ahem... Senior Willow Deity, do you also think what I did back then was wrong?'

Chu Tianjiao looked stunned. He had thought the Willow Deity would understand his well-intentioned efforts, never expecting her to directly side with Xiao Nannan. He couldn't help but wonder inwardly: Do all women side with women?

'What do you think?' The Willow Deity glanced at him faintly, her tone carrying a hint of helplessness,

'On your wedding day, personally designing a fake death in her arms, and dragging her own blood brother into the deception, making her struggle in despair and pain for fifty thousand years. Just how wicked did the two of you have to be to come up with such a method?'

'Cough, cough, cough...' Chu Tianjiao coughed repeatedly from her words, his face extremely awkward, and could only brace himself to defend,

'Wasn't it due to the circumstances? The potential of the Chaos Body is Heaven-Defying, but it requires extreme life-and-death pressure to fully Awaken. Look, after my and my brother-in-law's 'fake death,' Nannan has not only proved her Dao and become an Emperor but has also lived into a third life, with half a foot already in the immortal Dao. These are tangible results.'

'Results there are, but the harm is deeper.' The Willow Deity gently shook her head, her tone serious,

'There are countless methods to force out potential. With your means and Xiao Shitou's Sacred Body Foundation, you could have guided her in a gentler, more stable way.

Yet you chose the most brutal, most hurtful method. The way she is 'retaliating' against you now precisely shows that she loves you too deeply, too obsessively, to have transformed fifty thousand years of grievances into this kind of entanglement.'

Chu Tianjiao fell silent for a moment. The self-righteous 'well-intentioned efforts' in his heart were gradually replaced by guilt.

He had to admit that the Willow Deity was right.

Back then, he had indeed been too impatient, too obsessed with power, too eager for Xiao Nannan to grow quickly to the point of standing on her own, but he had overlooked the softest, most vulnerable part of her heart.

'Alright, Senior is right. It was indeed my lack of consideration back then that hurt her too deeply.' Chu Tianjiao admitted his mistake in a low voice, his tone much more sincere.

'It's good that you understand.' Seeing his sudden realization, the Willow Deity's face regained a gentle smile. 'After returning, apologize to her properly, be more patient, and spend more time with her. Given her feelings for you, she will naturally forgive you.'

'Yes, thank you for your guidance, Senior Willow Deity.' Chu Tianjiao bowed respectfully. 'Then this Junior will take his leave and go back to have a proper talk with Nannan.'

Watching Chu Tianjiao's somewhat disheveled retreating figure, the Willow Deity gently shook her head, her eyes filled with helplessness.

She turned around, her gaze slowly falling upon the ancient tea tree of enlightenment in the center of the courtyard, her eyes gradually becoming distant.

Its branches and leaves swayed gently, its tea fragrance faint. It seemed merely a top-tier Undying Medicine of this epoch, but in the Willow Deity's eyes, she saw an even more ancient past.

'The Immortal Tree of Undying from bygone days... After the great changes in heaven and earth and the collapse of epochs, I never imagined you would survive in such a manner.'

Over the past ten years, she had traveled through the Eastern Barren Lands, Southern Ridge, Western Desert, Northern Plains, and Central State, crossed Star Domains, and inspected dozens of ancient life-bearing stars. She had seen too many traces of this epoch and recognized many existences left over from ancient, chaotic, and even immortal times.

Among them, the most familiar to her were the so-called Undying Medicines of this epoch.

Others only knew that Undying Medicines were miraculous, capable of increasing Lifespan by ten thousand years and aiding one in becoming an Emperor. They did not know that the vast majority of these so-called Undying Medicines were formed from the indestructible Dao fruits of fallen Immortal Kings of old, evolving over endless ages.

It was precisely for this reason that the Great Emperors of this era could rely on Undying Medicines to live out a second or third life.

With a Foundation originally being an Immortal King's Dao fruit, even after enduring the erosion of time and the weakening of heaven and earth, they still retained the core Dao principles and vitality. Helping someone extend their Lifespan for one lifetime was naturally not a difficult task.

And this ancient tea tree of enlightenment before her was different from other Undying Medicines.

The Willow Deity recognized at a glance that its predecessor was the renowned Immortal Tree of Undying, famous even in the foreign Realms in the past, having attracted countless powerhouses to fight over it, nearly having its Foundation severed.

When this tree matured once, it could bear one hundred and eight tea leaves. Each leaf was imprinted with different rhythms of the great Dao, infinitely profound.

Unlike other Undying Medicines, the greatest function of the ancient tea tree of enlightenment was not extending Lifespan, but enlightenment in the Dao.

Not to mention the tea leaves; even just sitting quietly under the tree could stir the Dao principles of heaven and earth, accelerate cultivation, and bring clarity to one's own flaws. It could be called Heaven-Defying.

Precisely because its effect was too Heaven-Defying, it had suffered repeated calamities across countless epochs—either having its branches cut off or its roots dug up—nearing extinction. It was the most troubled, most tragic among all Undying Medicines.

As if sensing the Willow Deity's gaze that spanned epochs, the branches and leaves of the ancient tea tree of enlightenment trembled slightly, even its tea fragrance receding somewhat, carrying a hint of awe and nervousness.

Seeing this, the Willow Deity's voice softened a little as she gently soothed, 'Don't be nervous. I won't do anything to you.'

As her words fell, a gentle aura of the great Dao spread out. Only then did the ancient tea tree of enlightenment gradually calm down, its branches and leaves swaying gently as if nodding.

'Meeting is fate. That you have managed to survive to this day in this broken world is no easy feat. Whether you can return to the Peak of the Immortal Tree of Undying in the future depends on your own fortune.'

The Willow Deity raised her hand, condensing a drop of emerald-green, nearly crystalline life essence at her fingertip.

This drop of essence was different from ordinary vitality. It contained the supreme quintessence of her Immortal King Origin, Reincarnation Dao principles, and the great Dao of vegetation, ten thousand times more precious than any Undying Medicine.

With a gentle flick, that drop of emerald essence slowly landed on the main trunk of the ancient tea tree of enlightenment, instantly seeping inside.

In the blink of an eye, the entire ancient tea tree of enlightenment shuddered violently. Its originally somewhat withered branches visibly became plump and lustrous, countless new buds sprouting madly.

The leaves turned emerald green and dewy, the tea fragrance becoming several times more intense. A faint halo of Dao principles even surrounded it, its vitality flourishing to the extreme, as if it had instantly rejuvenated by several epochs.

'Thank you, Senior, for your blessing...' A faint yet clear Divine Thought transmitted from the main body of the ancient tea tree of enlightenment, full of gratitude.

The Willow Deity nodded slightly, a serene smile on her face. 'No need for formalities. If you can recover to the Realm of the Immortal Tree of Undying, it will be greatly beneficial for my future plans.'

In her heart, she understood clearly that once the ancient tea tree of enlightenment fully revived, it could set up an enlightenment immortal formation to assist her in recovering her Origin. It could also provide an ultimate cultivation ground for Chu Tianjiao, Xiao Nannan, and others, becoming a significant aid in the future rescue of Shi Hao.

After comforting the ancient tea tree of enlightenment, the Willow Deity did not linger any longer. She turned and walked toward the house.