The plant was actually a stalk of Spirit Capturing Grass.
That’s right, Spirit Capturing Grass.
Spirit Capturing Grass everywhere across the mountains and plains, Spirit Capturing Grass that could be seen anywhere, Spirit Capturing Grass that, even when refined into pills, sold for only twenty Spirit Stones per bottle.
But the plant felt it was different.
It was more fragrant than other Spirit Capturing Grass, more beautiful than the rest. It grew in this abandoned little courtyard, and in this courtyard, no other Spirit Capturing Grass could survive for long besides it.
The plant considered itself the King of Spirit Capturing Grass.
The plant had always thought it was too dominant, too powerful, that it had absorbed all the spiritual energy in the courtyard, which was why no other spiritual herbs could grow. That was until one day, it overheard two people chatting while digging a canal.
“Why put the Spiritual Body here? This courtyard is so remote; drawing blood won’t be convenient.”
“There’s a dungeon underground in this courtyard, paved with Spirit-Blocking Stones. The spiritual energy is thin, making it the safest place for the Spiritual Body. Look, even the Spirit Capturing Grass here is stunted and wilted, small and shriveled—it’s clearly about to die.”
The small and shriveled Spirit Capturing Grass: “……”
Whether by design or accident, as the man spoke, he flung a shovelful of dirt onto the plant’s head with his pickaxe. The plant was immediately pressed flat into the ground.
The plant: “……”
The plant was furious enough to die.
That pile of dirt was too thick, too heavy. Its small body was completely buried, unable to see even a sliver of sunlight. Fortunately, it was Spirit Capturing Grass—even buried in the soil, it could continue capturing the sparse spiritual energy around it.
The plant was only angry for a short while before it stopped.
It thought, this place has thin spiritual power, and no other spiritual grass can survive here, only it can. That was proof enough of how amazing it was. If it grew somewhere else, it would surely be the genuine King of Spirit Capturing Grass!
The plant became happy again.
It decided it had to capture more spiritual power so it could grow legs, run to a place rich in spiritual energy, take root, and become the true King of Spirit Capturing Grass!
.
It took the plant many days of effort to finally drill its way out of the soil.
That afternoon, when it saw the sky again, a sudden wind rose in the courtyard, blowing away all the accumulated dirt below its waist.
The plant happily swayed in the wind.
Then it saw the youth nailed to the tree.
The youth looked down at it and smiled.
“Hey, what kind of grass are you? You smell so good. Hurry up and grow taller so I can have a taste.”
The plant swayed in the wind again.
It thought, who is this person? His smile looks so ugly.
.
Much, much later, the plant learned that this youth was the “Spiritual Body” everyone talked about.
His blood was channeled into canals to irrigate the Spiritual Fields, causing the spiritual grasses to grow wildly. Fed to mortals, it cured all illnesses. Mixed into Spiritual Pills, it multiplied their effects several times over.
His flesh, carved off slice by slice, had even more extraordinary effects.
Most impressive was his Spiritual Root—an exceedingly rare Myriad Absorption Spiritual Root, the genius of geniuses. And every time his Spiritual Root was dug out, it regrew. The extracted Spiritual Root integrated perfectly into others, turning them into cultivation geniuses as well.
On top of that, he possessed an Immortal Body—no matter how he was tormented, he wouldn’t die. He would live on forever and ever.
How tragic.
The plant thought.
Though it was also a very useful Spirit Capturing Grass, once plucked and eaten, it would die. Unlike this person, who had to die many times over.
This even subtly affected the plant’s Dao Heart—if a little grass had one.
The plant wasn’t sure if it wanted to become the King of Spirit Capturing Grass anymore. What was the point? It would only get found and eaten faster.
But the plant quickly adjusted—
It no longer wanted to be the King of Spirit Capturing Grass. It would cultivate diligently, transform into human form, become a cultivator, and achieve Ascension! Then it would never be eaten by anyone!
The plant began capturing spiritual energy even more diligently.
.
“Hey, do you want my blood? My blood is very useful for spiritual grass too.”
The youth nailed to the tree hooked up the corner of his lips and smiled that ugly smile again.
The plant gently swayed.
It didn’t want the youth’s blood.
Though everyone said the youth’s blood was very useful and powerful, the plant felt it was filthy, wrapped in endless pain, hatred, and resentment.
But the next moment, the youth leaned down and dripped the blood from the corner of his lips onto the plant’s leaves with a smile.
The plant jumped in fright and twisted its body with all its might, dodging that filthy drop of blood.
Ew~
The plant felt disgusted.
The plant breathed a sigh of relief.
“Ha!” The youth laughed. “So you really do have spiritual awareness. I’m not crazy!”
.
The youth began talking frequently to the plant.
He didn’t talk about how he became the “Spiritual Body” or how he was captured. He spoke of the outside world.
He described how vast the grasslands outside were, how abundant the spiritual energy was. He told of the myriad treasures in secret realms, all sorts of Demon Beasts, little cricket-like Treasure-Hunting Armored Insects that could find treasures. His stories were so fascinating that the plant shook its leaves, utterly entranced.
“Do you want to see the outside world?”
The plant nodded.
“Do you want to transform into human form quickly?”
The plant nodded vigorously.
The youth smiled and extended a leg covered in wounds, revealing a knife-slashed gash.
