Zhang Ke, who was scrolling through the cultivators' forum, threw his phone onto the table. Then, he grabbed a cultivators' census form and furiously entered the data into the system. Seated beside him was Song Yu, who shifted sideways till he reached Fu Li. "Boss, I accepted a sponsorship two days ago and the company sent me a lot of snacks. Take some to Kunpeng daren later on, and help say a few good things about me along the way."
The fear from having a Kunpeng live above him had caused his appetite to decrease drastically. Even the feathers on his wings had started to drop. Getting a good night's sleep was practically impossible, nor could he swallow his food with ease.
"Don't be so nervous, it's not like the Kunpeng will eat you," Fu Li patted his bald head. For the Suanyu with weak offensive strength to have lived for so many years, it was probably because he had very little courage.
Song Yu smiled bitterly. Great yao like the Kunpeng were capable of eating anything. He just had to think about the Kunpeng being in his vicinity and his legs would inadvertently go soft.
"Fu ge, Song Yu," Xu Yuan walked in. "Just nice, both of you are around. We just received a report via telephone about a relatively odd situation. We might have to trouble you to make a trip."
"What happened?" Fu Li scanned the somewhat solemn expression on Xu Yuan's face and couldn't help asking, "Surely it's not some great yao who appeared again, requiring me to step in, right?"
"It's not clear at the moment," Xu Yuan shook her head. She took out a printed photo and held it out to Fu Li. "A few strange creatures appeared deep in the mountains of Yongliang Province. These strange creatures have three heads and cry for days on end without stopping. Their voices can travel as far as a hundred li. Although the local area has little human presence, rumors of ghosts have already spread."
Fu Li took the photo. The image on the photo was very blurry, but he could tell that the few people in the photo did indeed have three heads. In addition, they were slightly shorter and smaller than the average person. All of them were perched on a slightly odd-looking tree, making for an extremely strange sight.
"Isn't this the... Fuchang Tree?" Song Yu shifted forward to take another look at it. "The Fuchang Tree is usually by the side of the Langgan Tree. The three-headed people live and die for the Fuchang – their purpose in life is to pluck the Zhuyu fruits from the Langgan Tree, and then wait for the Fenghuang to descend." Song Yu let out a cryptic laugh at this point. "It's a pity that the spiritual qi is weak now and the Langgan Trees are close to extinct. As for the Fenghuang... who still sees them?"
Hearing Song Yu put things this way, the roomful of cultivators fell into a complicated mood. They were born for the Langgan Tree and Fenghuang, yet both were no longer around. They had felt that these three-headed people were incomparably ugly, but everyone was now sympathetic towards them.
Even their life's purpose was gone, how could they not cry?
"Then what should be done now?" Xu Yuan sighed. These three-headed people hadn't done anything wrong, so violence couldn't be used against them. That being said, they couldn't just allow them to continue wailing like that.
"Who said the Langgan Tree was extinct?" Fu Li was confused. "Isn't that tree with red fruit in the middle of the courtyard downstairs the Langgan Tree?"
"What?" All the cultivators looked towards Fu Li simultaneously. Why were they not aware that there was actually such an impressive fruit tree in their management bureau?
"So you guys didn't know what that tree was?" Fu Li was even more surprised than them. "You guys even dared to randomly plant a tree without knowing what it was?"
"The year the management bureau was built, there was a cluster of flowers planted in that area in the courtyard. Nobody knows what happened after that, but a tree grew there." Chu Yu had been with the management bureau for a longer period of time, so he knew of this development. "We wanted to remove it, but later realized that it had spiritual qi and never actively attacked the bureau's people. The boss felt that the tree might have the chance to gain intelligence and take on a human form, so we just let it remain all this while."
Song Yu: ...
The Langgan Tree was very rarely seen even during the ancient times. Yet, the management bureau so casually grew one, even letting it grow freely. If this wasn't because of heavenly law's darling, then what else could it be?
"No wonder that tree refused to let us eat its fruits. Anyone who tries to pluck them will be whacked. Turns out it only fancies the Fenghuang," Huang Can stroked his beard. "This tree might even attract a Fenghuang one day."
Song Yu scoffed. These yao cultivators with average cultivation really had quite a beautiful imagination.
"Not right," Zhang Ke suddenly turned to look at Fu Li. "Fu ge, I remember you plucking the Langgan Tree's fruits many times."
What a shameless Langgan Tree; it bullied the weak but feared the strong!
Fu Li smiled. "So?"
"I say, Fu ge is really domineering. Even the Langgan Tree bows down to you," Zhang Ke revealed a fawning smile. "Pluck a few more next time. That way, everyone can also have a taste of it."
A fruit only the Fenghuang could eat – it was high-class just hearing about it!
The rest looked down on Zhang Ke's fawning behavior, but in their hearts, they also very much longed for the Langgan Tree's Zhuyu fruit.
"Sure, I'll return after dealing with the three-headed people." Fu Li glanced at the time before telling Song Yu, "Get Chef Bao to keep a portion of braised spare ribs for me tonight!"
Then, he morphed into a ray of radiant light and flew out. Xu Yuan looked out the window foolishly. Only a long while later did she say, "But I haven't told Fu ge the location."
"No problem. The boss definitely has something on him that can give directions, so you don't have to worry," Song Yu rubbed his hands. "I'll go downstairs for a walk."
"Wait. Song ge, I'll go with you," Chu Yu hastily caught up to him. What a joke. Song Yu was definitely intending to sneakily pluck the Zhuyu fruit. Witnesses ought to have a share too.
"I'm going too."
The entirety of the bureau's higher-ups swarmed into the courtyard and surrounded the Langgan Tree, causing others to wonder if the higher-ups were intending to chop down the tree. Even then, there wasn't a need for so many people.
"I didn't realize how strong and sturdy it felt in the past."
"Its leaves are such a deep green color, like faultless jasper."
"The luster of the rosy fruits are even more beautiful than jade."
"Boss Suanyu, good luck."
"Please call me by my name."
"All right, Boss Song Yu."
Song Yu inhaled deeply and flew up the tree. Before his hand could even touch the fruits, countless vines shot out from the Langgan Tree and flung Song Yu towards the ground. The effortless manner in which it did so made it seem as if it had merely thrown a chick.
Everyone: ...
This was a bit awkward.
Fortunately, Song Yu was very open-minded. He stood up with a pat of his buttocks and shook his head at his colleagues. "It seems we can only wait for the boss to return before eating the fruits." This Langgan Tree discriminated against half-bird yao cultivators like him.
"What is everyone doing?" Zhuang Qing stood at the top of the spiral staircase, staring with furrowed brows at the noisy group below.
"Boss," Xu Yu and everyone else laughed dryly. "We're plucking fruits. But this tree... won't let us."
Zhuang Qing recognized the fruits as the ones that Fu Li had brought home a few days ago. The tips of his brows shook. He did remember Fu Li mentioning that he had plucked them from the bureau, but he hadn't expected the fruits to have been plucked from this tree.
Zhuang Qing walked to the tree and looked around. "Where's Fu Li?"
Xu Yuan explained Fu Li's whereabouts. Zhuang Qing turned and glanced at the tree behind him. This tree turned out to be the Langgan Tree? Thinking of the few Zhuyu fruits at home that had already started wrinkling from sitting too long, Zhuang Qing decided to go back later and polish them off.
"Boss, why don't you give it a try too?" Chu Yu thickened his skin and asked. "All of us tried it, but this tree is just way too stingy, just like..."
Everyone cast sidelong glances at him at once. The tip of Chu Yu's tongue had a change of direction. "Just like Grandet."
Zhuang Qing glanced at him. He didn't move, because he had previously attempted to pluck its fruits. However, this tree was very resistant, so he never did it again. Now that the employees once again spoke of this, Zhuang Qing glanced at Song Yu, whose clothes were even torn. He remained silent.
After close to thirty seconds of silence, the Langgan Tree at the side suddenly moved. Its branches shook, and two vines swept up a few fruits, extending them to Zhuang Qing.
Zhuang Qing stared blankly for a moment before stretching out his hands. A few fruits fell into his palms. They were ice-cold, and even emanated a mild sweet scent. With a complex mood, he looked up at the Langgan Tree that hadn't even given him a leaf in the more than hundred years it had been at the management bureau.
"As expected of the boss, the Langgan Tree even took the initiative to give you fruits."
"Does the Langgan Tree discriminate against species?"
Zhuang Qing turned the fruits over in his hands. Suddenly, he let out a light laugh. He didn't know if he was overthinking, but he felt that the tree's sudden friendliness towards him was because of Fu Li. Turning around, he saw everyone else gazing expectantly at the fruits in his hands. After a period of contemplation, Zhuang Qing picked out the smallest fruit and shoved it at Chu Yu. "Share this."
Then, without care for the other people's reactions, he placed the fruits into his Qiankun pouch, turned, and left.
"One fruit for all of us to share?" Chu Yu held the Zhuyu fruit in a daze, unable to extricate himself from the shock even after a good length of time had gone by.
With such a degree of stinginess, did he feel no shame in being the boss of the management bureau? He looked up at the Langgan Tree. "Master Tree, how about giving us a few more?"
The Langgan Tree stood tall motionlessly, as if it was just an ordinary tree that understood nothing.
"A tree looking down on yao!" Chu Yu was incensed. Lowering his head, he stuffed the fruit into his mouth without the slightest hesitation. Then, he was beaten up by his colleagues till he cried out for his parents. Song Yu even threatened to beat him till he turned into a fish before giving him to Chef Bao to make braised fish.
From this, it could be seen that the emotional bonds between these colleagues were weak and lacking, unworthy of even a single fruit.
Layers upon layers of rotten tree leaves packed together could be found in the deep, desolate recesses of a mountain, giving off an oppressive aura. If one were to step on them, the leaves would reach above their shoes. Fu Li stood on a tree branch as he watched the three-headed dwarves in the distance crying bitterly from where they sat on the Fuchang Tree. He sighed. Their wails were indeed both loud and unpleasant to hear.
"Even if you cry till your throats are worn out, the Fenghuang won't return," Fu Li flew below the Fuchang Tree and spoke to the three-headed people. "Your lives will be gone if you're found by an evil yao."
The three-headed people were so frightened by the sudden appearance of a person beneath the tree that they hugged one another, forming a bundle as they jabbered something.
This was one of the ancient languages. Many yao cultivators could automatically understand human speech after taking on a human form and even mimic human languages. These three-headed people had very low cultivation and had to rely on the Fuchang Tree to live. Thus, they were much weaker than the majority of the yao cultivators when it came to languages.
Fu Li listened carefully before understanding that these three-headed people were asking who he was.
"I am Fu Li," Fu Li squatted and directly faced the eyes of a three-headed person who had jumped down the tree. "I know where the Langgan Tree is. As long as you protect the Langgan Tree, you'll definitely be able to wait for the Fenghuang."
He didn't think that these words would be able to move the three-headed people. But after the few of them whispered into one another's ears, they jumped down the tree together, and then dug out the Fuchang Tree from the ground, carrying the tree on their shoulders.
They so easily... believed him?
Fu Li stared blankly for a moment. "You're believing me just like that?"
The only three-headed person seated motionlessly on a tree branch turned to look at Fu Li. In somewhat shaky human speech, it said, "On... you, there is the smell of the Fenghuang."