The Gathering Fortune Pavilion was shrouded in spiritual rhythm.
This pavilion, which integrated the luck of the entire city, was now the most miraculous location in the City of the Wrongfully Dead besides the Bone Altar.
The unaging pine had been leisurely stretching its branches and leaves.
Since moving here, its life had been quite comfortable.
Every day, that Auspicious Noble named Jiu'er would water it with Fortune Spring Water. Beneath its feet were spirit veins gathered by the array, and it breathed in spiritual rhythm so dense it was nearly liquid.
It even felt that it would soon be able to advance in stage.
One truly had to follow an evil spirit to live the good life.
The unaging pine contentedly shook its crown. On its interlocking branches, two small pine cones, carved like green jade, were growing quite well.
These were its lifeblood, the crystallization of its hundred years of cultivation, and the hope for its future descendants.
Back when it was outside in those impoverished rural areas, it might not even produce one in a hundred years.
How long had it been? Just how long had it been?!
Two! Two whole pine cones!
The unaging pine calculated in its heart that if things continued at this rate, it wouldn't be long before its branches were covered in pine cones. By then, it would be the wealthiest Auspicious One in the City of the Wrongfully Dead.
It might even be able to complete its evolution by relying on this surge of luck.
The unaging pine was immersed in its fantasies of the future, its branches swaying with the wind. If it had a mouth, it would have loved to hum a little tune right now.
However, just then...
A cold wind suddenly blew past, and the unaging pine keenly felt an aura approaching that made its bark tighten.
It stiffened abruptly, not even daring to move its leaves.
"Old Pine, wake up. We have a guest."
"Stop playing dead; I know you're awake."
Chen Zhou walked into the courtyard of the Gathering Fortune Pavilion with his hands behind his back, a smile on his face that made the unaging pine feel hair-raised.
"I see your needles are becoming more oily and green. You haven't been sneaking extra drinks of Fortune Spring Water lately, have you?"
The unaging pine's trunk shuddered violently.
It hurriedly hid the two newly grown pine cones deep within its thick needles, then the entire tree assumed a withered appearance of being "very weak and very old."
Chen Zhou walked under the tree and patted the rough bark.
"Alright, stop acting."
"We have new guests in the house. They are all talented people and will be part of our City of the Wrongfully Dead from now on."
"I was thinking that I can't mistreat them; I should give them a meeting gift."
Chen Zhou looked up, his gaze accurately locking onto the pine cones hidden tightly by the unaging pine.
"You see, as a senior in our city, shouldn't you show some hospitality?"
"!!!"
The unaging pine instantly bristled.
Again?!
It didn't mind that kid Jiu'er last time since he was an Auspicious Noble who watered it, so it had accepted it.
Who was it this time? Some random cat or dog?
This was its flesh and blood, its cultivation, its children!
The unaging pine shook its branches desperately in protest.
How long had it been? Just how long had it been?!
Did this evil spirit have no conscience? He couldn't just keep plucking from the same tree, could he?
"Unwilling?" Chen Zhou's eyebrows arched, his tone cooling significantly. "It just so happens that I brought back a plant from the Southern Region as well. She has an auspicious god destiny. I think it would be quite nice for her to take over the Gathering Fortune Pavilion."
Thud.
Before he finished speaking, a green pine cone had already fallen into Chen Zhou's hand.
The unaging pine's crown visibly wilted, as if it had aged ten years in an instant.
"That's more like it. You need to broaden your horizons." Chen Zhou pocketed the pine cone with satisfaction, but he didn't move his feet.
The unaging pine's heart skipped a beat.
What else did he want?
It had already given one!
An evil spirit shouldn't be too greedy!
But the unaging pine's mind turned quickly. It immediately extended a branch and pointed toward the Pool of Fortune and Longevity.
Chen Zhou looked over, his eyes landing on the giant black rock dozing in the Pool of Fortune and Longevity.
That was the Wanshou Tortoise.
Ever since the old tortoise arrived at the Gathering Fortune Pavilion, it had truly embodied the word "static" to the extreme.
Except for occasionally sticking its head out to catch a breath, it was basically no different from a rock.
Seeing that Chen Zhou had noticed the Wanshou Tortoise, the unaging pine immediately acted like a sycophant, plunging its branch into the water and curling it around the dreaming Wanshou Tortoise.
Splash—
The Wanshou Tortoise was hoisted out of the water with a look of utter confusion, its four short legs paddling helplessly in the air.
Its large, amber eyes were filled with bewilderment. Before it could react, it was placed in front of Chen Zhou by the unaging pine.
The Wanshou Tortoise blinked blankly and slowly retracted its neck. It was slow to react and had no idea what was happening.
"What is the meaning of this?" Chen Zhou asked, looking at the unaging pine.
To save its own pine cones, the unaging pine decided it was better to sacrifice a friend than itself.
The unaging pine extended several branches as thick as iron and, like a vigorous bathhouse attendant, pinned down the Wanshou Tortoise's heavy shell.
Creak— Creak—
The branches rubbed frantically against the tortoise's back.
The layer of old shell plates on the Wanshou Tortoise's back, which were carved with the traces of time, began to loosen one by one under the unaging pine's violent scrubbing.
Then, the unaging pine picked up a plate and flatteringly handed it to Chen Zhou.
The Wanshou Tortoise let out a huge yawn and stared blankly at the object in Chen Zhou's hand, thinking that the black piece that fell off looked a bit familiar.
Hmm... the patterns looked like mountains... like rivers...
They were actually quite beautiful.
Chen Zhou smiled at it, and it followed suit with a silly grin.
A full thirty seconds passed like this.
The silly grin on the Wanshou Tortoise's face froze.
Wait, that didn't just 'look' like it; those were its back plates.
"Ang—!!"
The Wanshou Tortoise finally realized. Its eyes widened in horror, and it let out a tragic cry like that of an old bull.
It struggled desperately, its four thick, short legs kicking wildly in the air in an attempt to retreat into its shell.
But it was too late.
To protect itself, the unaging pine had used its full strength. Several main roots tightly bound the Wanshou Tortoise's limbs, spreading it out wide.
Chen Zhou raised an eyebrow as he looked at the plate in his hand.
"Exactly. You are both auspicious objects from heaven; there's no reason there wouldn't be good things on the Wanshou Tortoise's body."
The outer shield plates of a tortoise shell would naturally fall off as it grew, a process commonly known as molting.
Chen Zhou felt that he was simply helping the Wanshou Tortoise with its metabolism so it could grow faster, so he felt no psychological burden at all.
Thus, he also joined the ranks of the shell-strippers.
The unaging pine even used its branches to hold the Wanshou Tortoise's head straight to make it easier for Chen Zhou to work.
"Don't move. It'll be over soon. There are only thirteen plates in total; I'm counting."
Chen Zhou's hands moved with lightning speed, and the plates on the tortoise's back soon fell off one by one.
【Wanshou Tortoise Shell】
【Grade: 6-stage heavenly treasure】
【The Wanshou Tortoise Mountain-Peak Plate contains the essence of a thousand years of the Wanshou Tortoise's lifespan.】
【Increases fortune and adds to one's lifespan. Wearing it can subtly repair damaged destinies and replenish lost luck and longevity. It is also an excellent material for refining defensive artifacts.】
"This really is good stuff."
Chen Zhou's eyes lit up.
Finally, as the last back plate fell, the Wanshou Tortoise had been completely stripped of a layer of skin.
Although there was a layer of new, tender shell underneath, for an old tortoise, this was a humiliation akin to being paraded around naked.
Rate on N.U.
