Chapter 2042: The Changes in the Talent Tree

On the starship, Lu Ye was toying with the Fire Gourd. This item was the One-Element Realm's most prized treasure, and Lu Ye had coveted it since the day he first saw it.

According to feedback from the Asura Field, seven treasure gourds had grown on the Creation Vine. If all seven could be gathered, they would replicate the wonders of creation. Lu Ye didn't know what kind of wonders these were, nor had he ever considered collecting all seven gourds, as the difficulty was immense. He now possessed the Pill Gourd, the Sword Gourd, the Fire Gourd, and had clues for a Wind Gourd. As for the remaining three, their whereabouts were completely unknown; he had no way of finding them.

Had it not been for Changfeng's mischief this time, Lu Ye would not have acquired the Fire Gourd so easily.

Considering he was ambushed by Changfeng, apart from losing an incomplete Sword Gourd sword energy and eight Treasure Blood clones, he suffered no other substantial losses. Obtaining the Fire Gourd was certainly not a bad deal!

Upon careful examination, he indeed sensed a fiercely unusual exotic flame within the Fire Gourd. That day, Yuan Se had wielded this treasure to contend with Shangchen Yue from the Formless Palace, creating a massive display of power. Had Shangchen Yue not summoned a Heavenly Jade Sword Qi beforehand, Yuan Se might truly have suffered defeat. When Yuan Se unleashed the Fire Gourd's power then, Lu Ye felt his Talent Tree react, unequivocally indicating the high quality of the exotic flame within the gourd. If the Talent Tree could absorb it, there would surely be benefits.

Observing closely now, Lu Ye realized that the miraculous flame nurtured within the Fire Gourd was indeed extraordinary. Such a fierce flame was certainly beyond the resistance of an average Sun-Shining cultivator. Even he, relying solely on his own abilities, would have little power to resist this miraculous flame.

Lu Ye couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness.

For cultivators, cultivation was a lengthy process. After finally achieving the Sun-Shining realm, one might expect to dominate the cultivation world, yet in reality, they might not even be able to withstand the power of a single artifact. This was, undeniably, a tragedy.

Fortunately, although there were many artifacts in this world, Ma Bin had mentioned that most were treated as realm-guarding treasures by major powers and were not easily used. The example of Shen Yun wandering around with the Sky Net Umbrella was ultimately rare; it was Shen Yun's overconfidence in the umbrella's invincibility that led to its direct destruction when it encountered a true stellar treasure. Currently, the damaged Sky Net Umbrella was in Hua Ci's possession, placed by her side for nurturing, though it was uncertain if it could ever fully recover.

The miraculous flame was fierce, but that was for cultivators; for the Talent Tree, it was a great tonic.

Without hesitation, Lu Ye slightly activated the Talent Tree's power. Invisible roots immediately extended into the gourd's opening. The next moment, Lu Ye felt a wondrous heat being frantically absorbed by the Talent Tree.

Although the miraculous flame in the Fire Gourd was potent, he already had the Sword Gourd as a trump card, so whether he had this flame or not didn't make much difference. If an opponent couldn't be defeated by a peak strike from the Sword Gourd, the Fire Gourd would likely be of no use either.

He quietly observed the changes in the Talent Tree, and soon, a puzzled expression appeared on his face. He didn't feel any increase in the Talent Tree's fuel reserves. This was clearly abnormal. Until now, whenever the Talent Tree absorbed fire-attributed energy, its fuel reserves would increase for Lu Ye's future use. Since the Talent Tree's first transformation, Lu Ye had been able to easily perceive its fuel reserve status, so he always knew whether the reserve was increasing or decreasing. However, this time, after the Talent Tree absorbed the miraculous flame, there was no increase in fuel reserves whatsoever.

Instead, the Talent Tree itself seemed to undergo a subtle, wondrous change. This change was so minor that Lu Ye wouldn't have noticed it had he not been intimately familiar with the Talent Tree's condition. Lu Ye calmed his mind and continued to investigate.

Within the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, the miraculous flame in the Fire Gourd completely vanished, fully absorbed by the Talent Tree.

Upon examination, Lu Ye clearly noticed that the firelight on the Talent Tree had become slightly denser. This change... Lu Ye was first startled, then delighted. He had experienced this kind of change several times before; it was a sign that the Talent Tree was about to transform!

So far, since he acquired the Talent Tree, it had undergone three transformations.

When Lu Ye first obtained the Talent Tree, it could only help him refine elixirs ingested into his body, thereby boosting his cultivation speed. However, after the first transformation, the Talent Tree's power significantly increased. It developed roots that could extend outside his body, allowing Lu Ye to absorb and refine external spiritual energy, spirit stones, and similar resources, greatly accelerating his cultivation speed. At the same time, he also gained Talent Tree clones.

During the second transformation, the Talent Tree gained the ability to derive spirit patterns. Under its derivation, various spirit patterns became simpler, and Lu Ye could inscribe new spirit patterns on its leaves.

By the third transformation, the Talent Tree could accelerate the deduction of spirit patterns by consuming fuel, and its innate power became gentler, allowing it to be used on others. Without this change, Lu Ye would not have been able to help the Merfolk resolve their bloodline curse-poison back then; the Talent Tree's power, if unleashed, would likely have incinerated the Merfolk cultivators on the spot.

Many years had passed since the Talent Tree's third transformation.

Lu Ye had always sensed that three transformations were not the Talent Tree's limit, and he had been waiting for its fourth transformation. He wanted to know what changes would occur and what new mysteries would emerge after another transformation.

Unfortunately, over the years, no matter how many fire-attributed treasures Lu Ye absorbed, the Talent Tree showed no signs of transforming, not even a slight hint of possibility. Until today!

When the Talent Tree absorbed the miraculous flame from the Fire Gourd, this sign finally appeared.

The surprise came so suddenly that Lu Ye was momentarily caught off guard. He confirmed it repeatedly; it was indeed a sign that the Talent Tree was about to transform.

Of course, this was just a slight indication, and it was still too early for the Talent Tree to undergo a full transformation. Once it does transform, it will turn into a seed of fire and be nurtured anew.

But... why was this happening?

The Talent Tree took the time of an incense stick to absorb that miraculous flame. Calculated by absorption speed, the amount wasn't substantial, and the increase it could bring to the Talent Tree's fuel reserves in such a short time wouldn't be significant. Yet, the current situation was that the fuel reserves remained unchanged, but the Talent Tree itself had undergone a change.

After a moment of thought, Lu Ye vaguely felt that this must be related to quality! The Talent Tree's fourth transformation not only required a certain quantity of fire-attributed treasures to be absorbed but, more importantly, a guarantee of their quality! This was completely different from the previous three transformations, where transformation naturally occurred once a sufficient quantity was absorbed.

Previously, the fire-attributed treasures Lu Ye absorbed might have been of decent quality, but they were far from meeting the Talent Tree's requirements, so even when absorbed, they only increased the fuel reserves.

This time was different. The miraculous flame nurtured within the Fire Gourd was an exceptionally high-quality treasure, even across the entire starry sky. That's why it triggered the Talent Tree's change. This also explained why the Talent Tree reacted when Yuan Se first unleashed the Fire Gourd's miraculous flame, as it was beneficial for the Talent Tree's transformation.

These were all just Lu Ye's speculations, but they were likely correct. Verifying whether this conjecture was true would be simple: he just needed to absorb another miraculous flame of the same quality to confirm it.

With this thought, Lu Ye immediately began refining the Fire Gourd.

The nurturing and birth of miraculous flames within the Fire Gourd required substantial investment, similar to how sword energy was nurtured within the Sword Gourd. However, nurturing sword energy required various magic artifacts, while nurturing miraculous flames demanded large amounts of fire-attributed energy. Therefore, Lu Ye first needed to refine the Fire Gourd before he could begin nurturing the miraculous flame. Without refining it, he wouldn't even be qualified to activate the Fire Gourd's power, let alone nurture the miraculous flame.

Yuan Se had been sensible enough; when he handed over the Fire Gourd, he had already erased all his imprints on it, which would undoubtedly make Lu Ye's refinement much simpler.

"Lu Ye, we've reached the Wormhole," Yi Yi's voice reached his ears. The journey hadn't taken too long, and she had noticed Lu Ye was busy, so she hadn't disturbed him. Hearing her voice, Lu Ye opened his eyes, stood up, and stowed away the starship.

Before the Wormhole entrance, a Moon-Ya-level central battleship lay across the path. The Jade Snail Moon-Ya cultivator stationed there came forward to greet them. After a few brief questions, Lu Ye learned that all was peaceful, then led Yi Yi and Amber into the Wormhole.

After all, this wormhole was currently unstable. Only Sun-Shining cultivators could easily traverse it physically; others required the protection of a battleship to pass through. Therefore, even though many had heard that this wormhole connected to the Jade Snail Star System, no one dared to trespass easily. Perhaps when the wormhole stabilized in the future, people might use it to travel and explore Jade Snail, but certainly not now.

Passing through the wormhole, by the time his vision cleared, Lu Ye was back in the Jade Snail Star System, where he saw another Moon-Ya-level battleship stationed. A moment of reflection overcame him; he thought about how difficult it had been to return to Kyushu from the Myriad Manifestation Sea back then, even with the later ability to use the Soul Race ancestral land, it still involved some complications. Now, it was much more convenient.

When Lu Ye appeared, he immediately drew the attention of nearby cultivators, who came forward to greet him. He glanced around and noticed that many cultivators from the Three Realms had gathered there, apparently intending to enter the Myriad Manifestation Star System via the wormhole. However, because each passage required the protection of a battleship, such travel was only possible once a month. It wasn't time yet, so the cultivators were still waiting. After the battleship here traveled to the other side, it would return again. Though somewhat troublesome and costly in spirit jades, this was the only way to ensure sufficient safety.

Lu Ye didn't linger long, continuing with Yi Yi and Amber towards the entrance of the ancestral land.

It must be said that cultivators in the Three Realms were far happier now than in his time. Staying in the Jade Snail Star System, they could hone themselves in Kyushu's Asura Field, and if they felt bored, they could take the monthly battleship to travel to the Myriad Manifestation Sea. They would certainly not be idle.

The Jade Snail Star System in this state clearly showed signs of great prosperity. Once a certain level of accumulation was reached, its overall strength would inevitably experience a surge. Lu Ye eagerly awaited that day.