Chapter 713 - Osmanthus Cake, Guhui: I’ll Handle it Personally
Chapter 713: Osmanthus Cake, Guhui: I’ll Handle it Personally
Nanan looked thoughtful. “A more nutritious fertilizer? Should we ask the wild game animals to poop blood?”
“I don’t mean it like that,” said Li Nianfan, sweating. “There are many other types of fertilizer apart from manure. There’s also wood ash which is the ash we can get by burning dead plants and wood. However, it seems like ordinary nutrients won’t work on these plants. I’ll let you know once I’ve found a more suitable fertilizer.”
‘Wood ash?’ Daji and others seared this term into their minds.
“Brother Li, let us go find some for you!” volunteered Dragin.
“Okay. That’s very kind of you,” said Li Nianfan with a smile before his tone turned sharp
“Yes!” Immediately, Dragin and the others brought their copied work for Li Nianfan to check. Their eyes were filled with anticipation for his praise.
“Very well done!” praised Li Nianfan with a smile. He flipped the pages and noticed that both Nanan and Dragin’s writing were still a little sloppy. “Nanan, Dragin, the two of you need to practice more calligraphy and poems like Shi Tuqin. It’ll surely benefit you both. Then, you two can become more cultured.”
Dragin and Nanan nodded and said in unison, “Yes, Brother Li.”
“Jiang Liu, you can rest for a while. Don’t tire yourself out,” said Li Nianfan to Jiang Liu who was still working hard at spreading the manure.
Jiang Liu wiped away the sweat on his forehead and answered, “I’m not tired at all. I can still work!”
Li Nianfan nodded and then went back to the four-part architecture with Daji and the others. It was clear that everyone knew what they had to do. Jiang Liu continued to work hard at the field while Li Nianfan himself took a lazy nap on his favorite chair. He felt indescribably comfortable with the warm sun shining down on him and the cool breeze lightly brushing against his skin.
The sound of Qin Manyun’s Guqin slowly drifted into his ear. Her playing was smooth and soothing, like a gurgling stream, flowing from the heart, bringing forth a sense of ease and tranquility.
After a long period of advanced studies, Qin Manyun’s Guqin skills had made great progress. She could play any style easily, and for this reason, Li Nianfan would randomly choose a music score for her to comprehend. This had become a source of joy for him—he could ask her to play anything his heart wished.
On the side, Shi Tuqin was painting. The eggs she painted had passed Li Nianfan’s assessment, and she was now learning still-painting— starting from painting a desk, a chair, and a bench next to her.
She first tried to paint the plants in the backyard, but to her shock, she realized that she could not see the plants clearly. Her line of sight was blocked by a layer of mist which was the endless trace of Wisdom floating around. It was obvious her level of cultivation was still not high enough for her to paint the plants. Therefore, she went back a step further and started drawing the table, chair, and bench made of plant materials. Even so, the lines of the table and chair she painted were still a bit skewed, making it hard for one to decipher its shape.
Dragin and Nanan were reading from ‘The Complete Book of Poems’. “The west wind blows over the old lake, and Mister Xian has grown many white hairs overnight. Drunk, he doesn’t know the sky is in the water, and the boat pressed on in the starry water.”
As they read out loud, they could clearly feel the artistic conception contained in the poem, and the Wisdom in the air rolled around with the sound of their voices.
Daji and Fire Phoenix were in the gym, practicing yoga. Their bodies were as soft as water, as if they did not have bones inside them. Each of their graceful postures made them the most beautiful scenery in the entire four-part architecture.
Little Fox was sitting under the pavilion, with one hand propped on her head and the other hand holding a chess book. She was sometimes frowning and sometimes relaxed as she moved her fingers around the chessboard in front of her.
Even in her human form, she was still very playful. She often teased Li Nianfan with her weird antics. Li Nianfan often melted when she called him Brother Li. The temptation of her beauty was unimaginable, and Li Nianfan was embarrassed by his thoughts. Therefore, he deliberately gave her some games to play in hopes that she would rein in her antics a little bit.
Unexpectedly, she became engrossed in chess and soon became addicted to it. Moreover, her talent for playing chess was simply unimaginable. Li Nianfan could see her rapid progress after a few rounds of chess with her. So, he gave her a chess book for some self-study.
As for Xiao Bai, it was preparing food for everyone. Donned in an apron, Xiao Bai was monitoring the steamer, lifting one of the lids as a thick heatwave instantly filled the entire yard.
“Master, the osmanthus cake’s done!” Xiao Bai carried the steamer and placed it on the table.
“Osmanthus cake, here I come!” shouted Nanan and Dragin who rushed over in an instant. They were drooling as they looked at the osmanthus cake.
“I helped by grinding the glutinous rice. Wow, it smells so nice!”
“I was the one who rolled the glutinous rice dough so it must be delicious!”
Li Nianfan came over and said with a smile, “Patience, there’s enough for everyone.”
In the steamer was a round sweet-scented osmanthus cake. It was very pure and white, with a little light yellow osmanthus powder embellished on it which made it seem as if it was glowing. At first glance, it looked to be soft, chewy, and delicious.
Li Nianfan skillfully cut the sweet-scented osmanthus cake into several slices with a knife and distributed them to everyone. Although the sweet-scented osmanthus cake was made with glutinous rice, it did not feel sticky. Instead, it was smooth.
It was extremely soft. When they held it between their fingers, it could be easily formed into various shapes, but when they let go of it, it could quickly spring back to its original shape. This delighted them to no end.
Their eyes lit up when they bit into the cake. They felt as if they were biting into clouds, if the cloud was sweet. The taste of the osmanthus lingered for a long time even when they had long swallowed it.
Blackie got up with a grunt and galloped over with his little tail wagging. His eyes were filled with expectation.
“Calm down, Blackie. I’ve saved some for you, too. Here.” Dragin smiled and put a piece of sweet-scented osmanthus cake into Blackie’s mouth.
Outside the four-part architecture, Lord Angel and War Angel came again to deliver some feathers to the expert. Like last time, they did not dare to knock on the door. They simply stood by the door and waited quietly. Fortunately, they had the battle of the manure to entertain them while they waited.
They looked at the sky above the four-part architecture and their faces filled with shock and awe. They could clearly feel that there was a terrifying force rising in the four-part architecture. These forces could even disrupt Wisdom, causing it to vibrate, forming a turbulent vortex above the four-part architecture. Even Lord Angel felt his heart trembling, not daring to look at it directly.
“This four-part architecture’s definitely the scariest place in the world! No place can ever beat it,” said Lord Angel with fear.
“What’s going on in there? I sense that even the Power of Wisdom’s a child compared to what’s happening inside,” said War Angel.
“That’s something we definitely won’t ever understand in our lifetimes, so let’s just wait here quietly,” said Lord Angel as he tried to compose himself.
Time passed by slowly when finally, the door opened with a creak, and out walked Dragin and Nanan carrying wooden buckets with food for the wild game animals.
Lord Angel and War Angel greeted them immediately and respectfully said, “Greetings, Goddesses.”
“Hey, it’s you guys! Are you here to deliver more feathers?” asked Dragin and Nanan, surprised and happy at the same time.
“Yes. We’ve taken your advice and brought a lot more this time,” answered Lord Angel with a smile. Then, he took out all the feathers which amounted to a few big sacks.
“Hahaha, awesome! Brother Li used up all the feathers from last time and was just thinking about getting more,” said Dragin.
“We’ll deliver this to Brother Li while you two go feed the wild game animals,” said Nanan as she passed her ladle to Lord Angel. Then, she went back to the four-part architecture with Dragin.
Lord Angel and War Angel looked at the pig food in the big bucket in front of them and gulped involuntarily. ‘I’m a bit reluctant to give this good food to others…’
The wild game animals’ eyes widened as they stared nervously at Lord Angel and War Angel.
“Oi, are you thinking of stealing our food?”
“Don’t be so immoral. Be kind instead.”
“What are you waiting for? We’ll blame you if we can’t supply any manure to the expert.”
Lord Angel coughed softly and said, “I, of course, would never think about stealing your food. Here, have some. Eat slowly.”
At this time, Nanan and Dragin had already brought the feathers to Li Nianfan.
“Brother Li, a new batch of feathers just arrived!”
Li Nianfan was taken aback for a moment, and then, he said happily, “Let me have a look.”
Immediately, many feathers were scattered on the ground. There were pure white angel feathers, shiny black fallen angel feathers, and blood-red blood angel feathers. It was indeed very wondrous.
A smile broke out of Li Nianfan’s face. “Wow, there’s a new color!”
“Brother Li, is it enough for you this time?” asked Nanan.
“Hahaha, yes! It won’t take me long before I have a complete set—a mat, a carpet, and bedsheets!”
Li Nianfan was looking forward to it all as the four-part architecture ushered in some changes, making his life more and more comfortable.
Meanwhile, at the edge of the Chaos Ocean in the first dimension, many Eldritchs had gathered. They were trying to come up with a way to open up a passage to the seventh dimension through the Chaos Ocean.
A mighty and majestic aura suddenly appeared, distorting the space around it. Guhui had arrived! Many of the Eldritchs were shocked and immediately saluted in awe. “Greetings, Ancestor Eldritch!”
They were puzzled as to what would actually make Guhui personally appear himself. For countless years, the Ancient Eldritch had become a legend-like existence among them. It was said he could create countless miracles and was destined to suppress the seven dimensions and bring the Eldritchs to their highest peak. He often worked behind the scenes and they had only seen him a handful of times.
“Is the passage to the seventh dimension still not ready?” asked Guhui coldly.
“We…we need a little bit more time.”
“You’re all useless! Do you know what I’ve missed out on due to all of your incompetence?” shouted Guhui furiously. “The fifth dimension’s Origins have already exposed itself. I could’ve gotten it if the portal was opened sooner!”
Everyone held their breaths, afraid that breathing would further anger Guhui.
“Choose a few people and I’ll personally send them to the seventh dimension!” said Guhui.
Everyone was taken aback for a moment, but then their surprise transformed into happiness.
“Things will be easier now that Ancestor Eldritch has taken over!”
“We deeply regret that you have to handle this personally due to our incompetence.”
Guhui waved his hand indifferently. “There’s only one condition. You all need to suppress the seventh dimension no matter what and bring back some Origins for me!”
A tall young man stood up and said proudly, “Ancestor Eldritch, allow me to go! I can guarantee you that no one will be able to defeat me once I’m there!”
“And me, too! No matter how powerful the people in the seventh dimension are, I’m sure they’re not as powerful as me!” said another.
One powerful fighter after another volunteered to go. They were raring with the desire to suppress the seventh dimension. In the end, 10 people were selected—they were all Wisdom Elites with three of them being second-step Wisdom Elites.
The leader of the group was called Gu Debai. With a flick of Guhui’s wrist, a mirror flew out and fell into Gu Debai’s hand. It was a double-sided bronze mirror and it was emitting a strange aura, making it very peculiar indeed.
“That’s called the Cross-Dimension Mirror. It can transmit items between two dimensions. Send the Origins back to me using the mirror as soon as you get your hands on it. Have I made myself clear?” said Guhui threateningly. He only needed another dimension’s Origins to be able to go wherever he pleased.
“Don’t worry, Ancestor Eldritch. Leave it to us,” said Gu Debai.
“Good. Get yourselves ready and I’ll send you to the seventh dimension.” Guhui raised his hand to cast a hand seal into the Chaos Ocean. Immediately, the turbulent Wisdom in the Chaos Ocean became a roaring scourge as time and space became distorted.
However, this chaos was finally suppressed by Guhui and an opening slowly appeared as the space violently oscillated.
“We’re off now, Ancestor Eldritch.” Gu Debai and the other nine Eldritchs took a deep breath in unison and excitedly stepped into the opening.
Amidst the Chaos of the seventh dimension, a pitch-black vortex emerged, and then, one figure after another shot out from it. They stood hovering in the void as they swept their cold eyes around their surroundings.
“So, this is the seventh dimension? It’s indeed extraordinary how thick their Origins of Wisdom is.”
“Not bad at all. We Eldritchs will definitely be able to produce more Wisdom Elites once we get our hands on the Origins here.”
“Stay alert. The fact that Guhe perished here meant that it’s more than likely they have a second-step Wisdom Elite amongst them. We should first find out what changes this dimension has gone through.”
Gu Debai stayed silent during the conversation and kept scanning his surroundings as if wanting to dig out all the secrets hidden within the seventh dimension.
Suddenly, his nose twitched slightly and excitement shot through his body. “I think I smell the aura of the Origins!” he exclaimed in surprise and joy.