Chapter 121: The Veinless Golden Leaf that Few Cultivate

“You’ve sprouted a leaf?” Ye Yiming’s face was a mask of doubt. “Do you feel any discomfort?” he asked Qin Haoxuan.

Qin Haoxuan nodded, then shook his head. “I feel very good.”

The spiritual energy in his body was circulating normally, flowing even more smoothly through his meridians than before. The power in his dantian was purer and more potent. Although he didn’t understand how he had managed to break through without actively cultivating, everything currently felt normal.

Still worried, Ye Yiming said, “Don’t speak. I will use my spiritual energy to check your body.”

He pressed his hand against Qin Haoxuan’s abdomen and sent a strand of spiritual energy inside. He found that the aura within Qin Haoxuan’s body was normal, the flow in his dantian was stable, and the energy in his meridians was circulating in an orderly fashion.

Ye Yiming then guided his energy to inspect the immortal seedling. Sure enough, at its very tip, a new leaf had grown. Although it was still small, he had indeed completed the breakthrough.

Seeing that Qin Haoxuan had truly sprouted a leaf and had not suffered a demonic deviation, the worry finally vanished from Ye Yiming’s face. For a weak seed to sprout a leaf within six months was already quite an achievement.

Right, how many veins does his leaf have? With this question, the relief Ye Yiming felt was replaced by a new tension. If Qin Haoxuan’s leaf had too few veins, it would greatly impact his future accomplishments.

Immortal leaves also had different levels of aptitude, which was determined by the number of veins they possessed. Veinless was the worst, and seven veins was the strongest.

Ye Yiming channeled his spiritual energy into Qin Haoxuan’s new leaf. As the energy entered, the joyful expression on his face turned bitter. He could clearly feel it… Qin Haoxuan’s leaf had no veins at all. Although he had broken through, he had produced the worst possible kind of leaf. His future development would be far inferior to that of disciples with multi-veined leaves.

“Your leaf has no veins,” Ye Yiming said, sighing inwardly, though he tried to sound encouraging. “To sprout a leaf in six months is already remarkable for a weak seed. Although this first leaf is veinless, you still have forty-eight more to grow. The veins on each leaf are different. Even a Purple Seed can’t guarantee that every leaf will have seven veins. Today, you were surely overcome with grief and were unprepared. Next time, when you are about to break through, prepare yourself properly, and you will definitely produce a leaf with three, four, or even more veins!”

Qin Haoxuan nodded. He could feel the vibrant life force coming from his seedling, which didn’t seem to match a veinless leaf. He secretly used his spiritual sense to inspect the leaf himself. To his dismay, he found that there were indeed no veins on it. In disbelief, he injected a stream of his own spiritual energy.

When spiritual energy was channeled into an immortal leaf, its veins would glow faintly, making them easier to count.

But even after injecting his energy, Qin Haoxuan saw no veins. He pushed more energy in, but was still met with disappointment. His leaf was completely veinless.

Just as he was about to withdraw his energy, he was surprised to see his leaf emit a faint golden light.

There were no veins, but the entire leaf was glowing. Qin Haoxuan pushed in a little more spiritual energy, and the golden light grew even brighter.

Aren’t immortal leaves supposed to be green? Why is mine glowing with a golden light? Qin Haoxuan was deeply shocked but did not dare to ask. If Pu Hanzhong were still his Guiding Senior Brother, he might have inquired, but he was not yet familiar enough with Ye Yiming to reveal such a secret.

Although the breakthrough had caused a minor stir, it was the final few days before the trial. Everyone, including the Purple Seeds like Zhang Kuang and Li Jing, was in deep seclusion for a final sprint. Thus, only a few people living nearby were aware of what had happened.

These few happened to be from Xu Yu’s faction. They were astonished that Qin Haoxuan’s Dao Heart was so firm that he had not only been unaffected by his senior brother’s death but had actually turned his grief into strength and broken through. Their opinion of him changed instantly, and they all rushed over to congratulate him.

Just as Qin Haoxuan opened his door to air out the room, the disciples crowded around.

“Congratulations on your breakthrough, Senior Brother Qin! To sprout a leaf in six months, I’m so envious!”

“Senior Brother Qin was so formidable before his breakthrough; you will surely command the winds and clouds now! Please look after this junior brother in the future!”

Qin Haoxuan forced a smile and replied perfunctorily, “The trial is in three days. You should all hurry back and cultivate as well.”

The disciples realized he was right and, after bidding him farewell, rushed back to their own rooms.

Not long after, Xu Yu, worried that Qin Haoxuan was still grieving, arrived with Murong Chao.

“Brother Haoxuan.” Xu Yu saw that although there was still sadness on his face, his spirits seemed good, and he looked as if he had been reborn. “Hey, you seem a little different.”

Qin Haoxuan smiled. “I’ve sprouted my first leaf.”

“You did? Brother Haoxuan, that’s wonderful!” Xu Yu was surprised, then beamed with a smile that came from the bottom of her heart.

Murong Chao, however, was shocked, his expression strange. He had thought Pu Hanzhong’s death would be a major blow to Qin Haoxuan, making a breakthrough a distant dream. In the meantime, he himself had advanced to the Fourth-Leaf. He thought the balance would finally tip in his favor, yet here was Qin Haoxuan, breaking through right after his senior brother’s death. Such a Dao Heart was simply terrifying.

“Oh, right! Brother Haoxuan, how many veins does your leaf have?”

Looking at Xu Yu’s expectant eyes, Qin Haoxuan answered calmly, “Veinless.”

“Ah!” Xu Yu froze. A veinless leaf was the worst of all and would directly affect his future.

Hearing this, Murong Chao was inwardly delighted. His own four leaves were five- and six-veined. He thought that although Qin Haoxuan had broken through, the gap between them would now only grow wider.

Xu Yu immediately regretted her reaction. He must feel terrible about this, she thought. She quickly tried to comfort him. “Brother Haoxuan, being veinless doesn’t matter. I heard Senior Sister Luo say there was once a very powerful weak seed whose leaves were also veinless, yet he cultivated all the way to the late-stage Spirit Tree Realm! Besides, we have the Qi-Circulating Powder, and Senior Sister Luo will be refining Qi-Circulating Pills for us soon. The next leaf will definitely be better!”

Qin Haoxuan smiled, his expression calm, showing no sign of disappointment. “There are forty-nine leaves in the Spirit Sprout Realm. I still have forty-eight more to go. You don’t need to worry about me, Sister Yu. The cultivation path is long; I won’t contest a single moment’s gain or loss. Both of you, thank you for your concern, but you should hurry back and cultivate.”

Hearing him say this, Xu Yu nodded happily, a great weight lifted from her heart. But his words shook Murong Chao, who secretly vowed to work even harder.

After they left, Qin Haoxuan was once again lost in thought. His leaf was veinless, yet it glowed with a golden light. What did it mean? He reread Pu Hanzhong’s letter, which had repeatedly mentioned their Master. Qin Haoxuan decided to go and ask Master Xuanji.

He took an Immortal Cloud Cart and traveled through the night to Nameless Peak.

Along the way, disciples of the Nature Hall greeted him with friendly smiles. Although they were strangers, Qin Haoxuan felt a deep sense of warmth, the feeling of belonging to a family. To him, this was something the other four halls, with all their power and glory, could never compare to.

As per Xuanji’s instructions, he was allowed to proceed directly to his master’s door. He knocked gently. “Master, it is your disciple, Haoxuan, come to see you.”

“Haoxuan, come in,” Xuanji’s kind and gentle voice replied.

Qin Haoxuan entered and bowed deeply. “Disciple Haoxuan pays his respects to Master.”

“Rise. There is no need for such formalities,” Xuanji said kindly, gesturing to a stool. “Sit.”

Qin Haoxuan sat quietly.

“You’ve come to see me so late. Is something the matter?” Xuanji asked, a trace of grief still on his face. “Are you satisfied with Senior Brother Ye?”

“Senior Brother Ye has treated this disciple very well,” Qin Haoxuan replied. “I came tonight to inform Master that I sprouted my first leaf this afternoon.”

Xuanji smiled happily. “Sprouting a leaf in six months! You’ve broken our Nature Hall’s record. That’s excellent! How many veins does it have?”

“Veinless.”

After he spoke, Qin Haoxuan watched his master’s expression carefully. Xuanji’s happy smile did not change in the slightest. There was not even a flicker of disappointment.