CHAPTER 53: CHAPTER 50 FAIRY FOREST

"This ’breath’ is useful, which is of course expected.

Most people’s deaths are nothing more than two kinds.

One is the decay of flesh and blood, organ failure leads to death.

Another is the collapse of the mind and spirit, the soul dissipates and perishes.

Zhu Zhengwei passing on a pure Heaven and Earth Soul Qi from the four-dimensional world, akin to a spiritual qi supplement, naturally rejuvenated his spirit significantly.

But this is just treating the symptoms, not the root cause.

One can live a few more years, extending the soul, but the body continues to decay, still leading to death.

This is primarily the direct cause of most ’Witch’s’ deaths. No matter how strong the brain and spirit, if the body dies of old age, without a vessel to hold the soul, extinction is inevitable.

At this moment, the people around all dismissed Zheng Weiwei’s words, but Zeng Ciwen took them to heart, pondering them with a different meaning.

"Passing a breath of life to me?"

He suddenly recalled the odd interlude with Zheng Linshou.

This elder was also honest about death, enjoying his twilight years, but this time seeing him, there was fear in his eyes towards death.

He suddenly wore a serious expression, "Zheng Family’s granddaughter, I have something to discuss with you alone, everyone else please leave first."

"Grandfather..." A hesitant voice emerged beside the sickbed, "You just came back from a critical condition, you need to rest..."

"It’s fine, all of you go out."

Zeng Ciwen waved his hand dismissively.

Soon, only Zheng Weiwei and the old man were left in the ward.

Zeng Ciwen, though not remembering what happened, felt as if he saw someone between life and death just now, feeling something was amiss, he kindly asked, "Zheng Family’s granddaughter, what does that breath mean?"

Zheng Weiwei thought about it and did not answer directly.

In her eyes, the former elder mentioned they had interaction with the old man in their youth and now giving a breath of life is to resolve karma.

If the old man doesn’t remember, there is no need to speak, only to increase worry.

Her grandfather Zheng Linshou, upon remembering, became troubled, not as carefree as before spending days gardening and raising fish, enjoying his retirement peacefully, now he is preoccupied daily.

If not remembered, then don’t say it.

So, she hinted, "Grandpa Zeng, do you remember a man with a tear mole?"

"Tear mole?"

These words triggered some sealed memories in him, he frowned trying to recall but couldn’t find a connection in his life, acknowledged, "Vaguely familiar, but can’t remember where we crossed paths."

Indeed!

Zheng Weiwei instantly understood.

This is quite normal.

After all, her grandfather Zheng Linshou also had his memory sealed, only by chance did he remember an experience from his youth.

"It should have been during your youth." Zheng Weiwei thought as a given.

After all, she would have never thought there was no prior interaction at all, it was merely because she brought someone in that they met just a moment ago.

Yes,

They had just met in a dream.

Yet Zheng Weiwei turned the matter into a seemingly logical direction, "You see, remembering the man with a tear mole could mean you met that person in your youth, perhaps in the nineties, at the founding of the country, or earlier during the Republic, in your childhood..."

"That person?" Zeng Ciwen thought, could it be someone older than himself, but they too should be near death... Combining with the shadow just seen, he felt incredulous.

"Seems remembered, but not fully remembered!"

Amidst hesitations, Zheng Weiwei couldn’t make up her mind, "Better check with my grandfather, see if he wants to explain it to you."

Zheng Weiwei called her grandfather, and soon Zheng Linshou arrived, after some indecision, he decided to reveal the truth to the other party.

"The man with a tear mole, an Immortal, he passed a breath to you to resolve your karma together."

Zheng Linshou recounted his own experiences, including the teacher he followed in his youth, and the miraculous past of a poor mountain village in Bamboo Scenic Village to the other party.

On hearing this, the old man was greatly shocked, his pupils dilated, his first impulse was to rebuke, "Don’t believe in supernatural nonsense!"

But in the next second, recalling the previous eerie experience and current physical condition, he sighed, "Alas! No wonder my body has recovered, but I still don’t remember what happened in the past. I wonder if resolving this karma gives another chance to meet such an ethereal figure?"

"I was thinking the same, wondering if there’s a fate to meet again." Professor Zheng Linshou also spoke up.

The elderly, lying in the hospital bed, believed he had seen him in his youth, similar to Zheng Linshou’s experience, but didn’t know what happened to him was just the beginning, about to start in a dream.

Even if he awakened, he wouldn’t remember much anyway.

But this development is exactly what Zhu Zhengwei wanted.

To not stir waves in reality, no suspicion from the real person either, peacefully continue aging and recovering, completely forgetting about the things soon to happen in their dreams.

...

Zhu Zhengwei sat back in the café, sipping coffee with a calm demeanor.

He had just dozed at the table for a moment, completing his task.

He successfully met the top expert in the field of biological genetics remotely in the ward.

"In ancient times, Wei Zheng played chess, slaying the Jing River Dragon King in a dream. Today, I, in a café’s drink, guide the destined into my Pure Land while asleep."

Zhu Zhengwei scratched his head, "But speaking like that carries a hint of ’Master and I, bound by fate, why not take refuge in Buddhism’—an eerie tone."

He stood up to go pay the bill.

"Time to head back."

Zhu Zhengwei walked out onto the street, watching the busy traffic, waiting for a bus to the station.

He felt this was a new start in life.

Perhaps, he really could be an Immortal for the whole world of humans, an observer, quietly watching the world change, secretly guiding some dying era’s giants, leading them into his Dream Net World as needed.

In the evening, he returned to his dormitory, a faint smile crept up at the corner of his mouth, "It’s done, everything is ready, almost time for the second closed beta."

"With two thousand Immortal Herbs to create an Immortal Herb Forest as experimental material, allowing this master to use at will, heck, harvest freely, see if Shiguang’s ’Witchcraft and Gu Beast Taming’ techniques in biological modification will unearth some interesting phenomena."

Click.

Zhu Zhengwei opened his eyes, finding himself on a coastline.

He looked at the number of people signing up for the closed beta, unexpectedly high numbers, unbelievably high.

"Did something happen these days? How did it become popular, so many people signed up?" Zhu Zhengwei felt something was off, but was too lazy to worry about it, choosing to let them in, as the second test was tonight, entering the server on time.

He reached out and let them in.

Rumble!

A massive number of servers entered.

Endless soul springs poured in, like an immense surge of energy, rapidly expanding the land.

Zhu Zhengwei stood in a sea at the world’s edge, watching the world’s border randomly generate and evolve, eventually stopping at a random island emerging from nowhere, on which green trees flourished, resembling a human paradise.

"Let’s set it here."

A vast number of Immortal Herbs began to birth here, descending one after another.

At the center of the island lies a lake, surrounded by blooming flowers, nearby an underground palace filled with ancient experimental tools and several tomb-like structures sealed within.

"Let’s start here with a reality-surpassing ecosystem, developing unique four-dimensional soul system organisms living only in the mind!"

"This is an ancient prehistoric relic, where plants and animals will mutate. This ancient island forest shall be called Fairy Forest."