Chapter 47: Title

The tiger fixed its gaze on Hu Mei, its predatory stare leaving her unnerved.

"Roar—" The deafening cry reverberated through Hu Mei’s skull, her ears buzzing.

Though she’d effortlessly comprehended the chubby cat’s intentions earlier, deciphering this wild beast’s growls proved far more elusive. She theorized the difference lay in the orange cat’s prolonged human coexistence versus this tiger’s solitary wilderness existence spanning unknown decades.

"It wants us gone," Hu Mei announced over her shoulder.

"Hostile toward us?"

"Mostly wary."

"It understands speech. Perhaps you could bridge communication," Li Canghai suggested, mirroring Hu Mei’s deductions. The scholar had already pieced together the situation.

After a series of intense exchanges and an hour-long wait, Hu Mei concluded her dialogue with the beast.

"It claims to have dwelled here eternally trapped until recently gaining passage outward. Before us, a few intruders were…escorted out by its fourth cub."

"Confirmed sentience?"

"Undoubtedly. While linguistically cruder than the fat feline, it comprehends complex concepts. Whether it’s a true demon remains unclear—there’s kinship to my half-demon nature, yet distinct." Hu Mei’s brow furrowed with uncertainty.

Li Canghai retrieved his phone, tapped futilely at the screen, then sighed. "No signal. I’ll seek a connection outside."

"What about us?" Anxiety threaded Hu Mei’s voice.

"Ninth-rank cultivation tigers fear Feiyu’s prowess." The scholar nodded toward Qiao Feiyu, who stood transfixed by the tiger’s primal majesty.

Hu Mei observed the now-calm predator and its curious cubs. Channeling spiritual energy through her half-demon heritage, she condensed a thumb-sized demon orb—a glowing manifestation of refined demon power known to enthrall mystical creatures.

The tigers’ collective gaze locked onto the pulsating sphere.

"Demon power crystallization," Hu Mei explained to Li Canghai’s raised eyebrow. "A peace offering against claws and fangs." Her chuckle held nervous edges, contrasting with the alpha tiger’s unexpected gentleness during their exchange.

Instinctive human fear warred with rational assessment—though outmatched in raw power, her arcane skills could overwhelm the beast’s physical might. The tiger proved this dichotomy by cuffing its cub aside before delicately accepting her offering, swallowing the orb with ceremonial gravity.

Chaos erupted instantly.

Ethereal Spiritual Energy around the great cat darkened to jade intensity, hues deepening like stormy seas. Li Canghai yanked Hu Mei backward, shield-stance adopted before his companions.

"Why’s its aura mutating?" Hu Mei’s voice cracked—no ancestral memory explained this reaction.

The cubs recoiled in primal terror until the white-furred sibling herded them to safety with insistent paw-swipes, maintaining order amidst the mystical maelstrom.

"The Spiritual Energy is in turmoil; something’s wrong with the spiritual flow in this area."

"It’s because of that creature." Li Canghai and his companions maintained a safe distance from the tiger. Channeling Spiritual Energy around their trio, he knew they’d remain protected unless directly targeted.

"We must withdraw. I believe this beast is undergoing spiritual metamorphosis."

"What? Metamorphosis?" Hu Mei’s eyes widened, disbelief coloring her voice. "Are you certain, Taoist Priest? The ancestral memories only vaguely alluded to such a possibility…"

During Leng Xingwen’s early days at the Special Bureau, he’d frequently conversed with members from Liang An’s Information Section 2 and Scientific Research Division 6. Their discussions about supernatural entities had yielded extensive archives.

In this new era of Spiritual Energy’s Awakening – following six centuries of end-time darkness and two millennia of scarce Practitioners – such knowledge became precious. Only through veterans like Leng Xingwen, steeped in ancient texts, could fragments of bygone eras be recovered. Their interrogations spanned deities, immortals, and legendary beings until the scholar developed a habit of avoiding Division corridors.

Though not prescient, the Bureau anticipated spirit manifestations given their prevalence in myths and folklore. Li Canghai’s elevated clearance, tied to his cultivation level, granted access to these archives – resources few bothered to explore despite their availability.

The Bureau’s intranet updated constantly, pushing notifications for each revised entry about emerging phenomena.

"This aligns with Leng Xingwen’s descriptions of spiritual metamorphosis."

Pre-end-time records told of animals cultivating into spirits. The congruence between historical accounts and Hu Mei’s inherited memories confirmed their theory.

Qiao Feiyu’s eyes began glowing with intensity as he spontaneously launched into martial forms.

"What’s happening to Brother Qiao?" Hu Mei gasped while being guided backward, astonished by his trance-like state.

"He’s communing with cosmic forces through martial enlightenment," Li Canghai observed, recognizing the signs from his own experience during the Ancient Stone Tablet’s emergence when he’d ascended to the Innate Realm.

"But… inspiration from tigers?" The half-demon’s confusion stemmed from her unique duality – neither fully human nor spirit in cultivation.

"Taoist Priest Chen foretold this," Li Canghai nodded. "The awaited catalyst for his Innate breakthrough stands before us."

Hours passed. The tiger’s form condensed by half before Qiao Feiyu finally awoke, radiant with the perfected aura of one who’d transcended mortal limits.

The majestic beast approached Hu Mei, protected behind Li Canghai’s shield, and knelt with regal grace.

"Gratitude," rumbled a deep, unpracticed voice.

"You… you spoke?" Hu Mei leaned forward, equal parts startled and curious. "Why thank me?"

"Demon orb." The words flowed naturally this time.

Li Canghai sighed wryly. "We’ve inadvertently midwifed the Bureau’s greatest concern – the first confirmed spirit manifestation." His gaze fell upon Hu Mei, already dreading the voluminous mission report awaiting composition.

"I’ve attained the Innate Realm." Though Qiao Feiyu maintained his composed demeanor, the breakthrough in his cultivation still filled him with irrepressible elation.

"It too has reached the Innate Realm."

"How can you speak now? You were only growling earlier." Hu Mei emerged from behind him, approaching the tiger with narrowed eyes. "Is this due to your spiritual awakening?"

"Correct."

"Then I suppose we’re of akin nature now." Hu Mei’s tail swayed pensively before she tilted her head. "Yet why haven’t you taken human form?"

"Insufficient cultivation prevents it," rumbled the tiger spirit.

The litter of little tigers tumbled over to nuzzle against their parent, tongues rasping affectionately across its fur. Though diminished in stature, the maternal bond remained unmistakable.

"Are you male or female?" Hu Mei blurted after visible internal struggle, ears twitching with curiosity. Her initial assumption of femininity clashed with the gravelly baritone.

"Female." The great cat answered without hesitation, likely perceiving gender inquiry as no different from humans distinguishing man from woman.

"But your voice…" It’s like gravel in a tin can, brother tiger.

"What of it?" The spirit tilted its massive head.

Li Canghai observed their exchange before glancing at the waning light. He interposed himself with practiced diplomacy.

"Li Canghai, Tier One cultivator. We’ve matters requiring consultation, should you be inclined to discourse." His courteous tone carried subtle urgency – left unchecked, Hu Mei’s chatter might forestall crucial dialogue till moonrise.

The tiger spirit’s golden gaze measured the group’s collective strength before dipping its muzzle in concession.

"Speak then, human cultivator."

Li Canghai’s brow arched at the deliberate designation. Even Hu Mei, inheritor of ancient wisdom, never employed such taxonomic formality. Perhaps this revealed inherent racial divides – unlike the tiger spirit, Hu Mei had dwelled seventeen years as human in modern society. Her half-demon status hadn’t erased cultural identity.

(Notwithstanding bureaucratic reclassification: the household registry now bore her under "Spirit-kind," Identity Card amended accordingly. The Special Bureau in Zhongxia had prepared for such eventualities, the nation that harmonized fifty-six ethnicities easily accommodating a fifty-seventh – spirits embracing Zhongxia’s cultural ethos.

Parallel classifications existed for ghost cultivators like the Ghost in Red, spectral citizens retaining posthumous nationality if they’d been Zhongxia’s living subjects. Death’s transition warranted no revocation of belonging.)

"Let there be no misapprehension – we come without ill intent." Li Canghai recognized the unspoken calculus: had their party seemed weaker, claws might have answered words.

"We represent Zhongxia’s Special Bureau."

"These Daxing’anling forests fall under national sovereignty. All within Zhongxia’s borders answers to its governance."

The rote declaration came from Bureau indoctrination manuals, equal parts reminder of allegiance and diplomatic toolkit.

"You style me ‘human cultivator’ – does this imply you claim the spirit cultivator’s mantle? Permit me then to inquire: does your kind bear hostility toward ours?"

Amber eyes narrowed to slits before the tiger ground out through bared fangs: "No enmity lies between our peoples."

Truthful or tactical, the admission sufficed for now.

"Fox." The spirit suddenly addressed the half-demon.

"Eh? That’s not my name! I’m Hu Mei – Hu as in ‘moon’s companion’, Mei as in…"

"Return alone if you wish. The rest stay gone." With this, the tiger nudged her cubs toward deeper woods. Though outsized by her offspring, one flick of her striped tail silenced protests as she melted into the twilight.

"Ah…" Hu Mei’s voice trailed off as she attempted to call after them.

The tiger spirit bounded away through the foliage with powerful leaps, vanishing into the jungle as the cubs scampered close behind.

"She has no desire for discourse with our kind," observed Qiao Feiyu, breaking his prolonged silence.

"Evidently she disdains us ‘human cultivators,’ reserving her welcome solely for Hu Mei." Li Canghai chuckled dryly while rubbing his nose, unaccustomed to such blatant rejection.

When Qiao Feiyu proposed, "They belong to this unfettered existence," Li Canghai immediately countered, "You suggest we conceal this encounter from the Bureau." The younger man nodded resolutely, mindful of how reporting the spirit’s assistance might unleash bureaucratic complications.

After contemplative silence, Li Canghai turned to the others. "Hu Mei. Bai Ye. Your counsel?"

"Don’t consult me – I’m merely here as an observer," Bai Ye demurred, waving dismissively.

Hu Mei tugged nervously at her tail fur. "They thrive undisturbed here. Wouldn’t intervention betray their trust?"

"Does nothing strike you as peculiar?" Li Canghai’s voice sharpened as he gestured at their surroundings. "Of all regions in Zhongxia, why do spirits manifest here alone?" Though winter’s frost had coated the outer forest, this enclave had initially bloomed with false spring – now wilting blossoms drooped beneath encroaching ice crystals.

Recognition flashed across his features. "This eeriness… remember Fusang’s realm of the dead overlapping with the human world?" Extending his spiritual senses, he detected faint spatial fluctuations – not the explosive ruptures of their previous crisis, but subtle distortions like water droplets dissolving in an ocean.

Hu Mei shuddered at the memory of spectral hordes, yet protested, "This place lacks Fusang’s palpable menace."

"Precisely why I sought Leng Xingwen’s expertise," Li Canghai countered. "These anomalies demand…"

Their debate concluded with returning to Yang Xingyu, who lamented, "Spirits? And I missed it!" nearly tearing his hair.

Hu Mei groaned, "This report will plague me for weeks. What solution does Daoist Priest Li propose?"

"I need to consult Brother Leng," Hu Mei murmured listlessly.

Having slipped away from the camp, the pair remained unconcerned – with their cultivation levels, only the Innate Realm tiger spirit could threaten them.

Back at the campsite, Bai Ye and Qiao Feiyu stood guard. While the Practitioners feared no jungle beasts, their ordinary human guide required protection. Those who brought others into danger bore responsibility for their safe return.

Daoist Priest Li stepped aside to contact Leng Xingwen via phone.

High above the forest floor, Li Canghai balanced effortlessly on a swaying birch crown twenty-five meters tall, the device pressed to his ear.

Fortune favored Li Canghai indeed – had this call occurred two days prior when Leng Xingwen remained trapped in a secret realm, it would’ve gone unanswered.

"What you describe likely indicates a minor secret realm merging with our world through the Awakening of Spiritual Energy," Leng Xingwen’s voice emerged crisp through the receiver.

"Similar to your dwelling?"

"Comparable, yet distinct," came the reply. "These realms form naturally, their birthdates unknown until entrances manifest. Undiscovered realms typically conceal their gateways automatically."

"That tiger probably stumbled into a newborn realm by chance, then became trapped when its portal sealed. Our Moon Lake Wonderland maintains three controlled entrances through spiritual item governance, permitting voluntary access."

"Your encountered realm’s spiritual items likely sensed the Spiritual Energy resurgence, instinctively dissolving barriers to assimilate with our world. Normally incapable of transformation, that tiger spirit absorbed traces of Hu Mei’s demon power during the convergence."

"Having dwelled six centuries in isolation – for secret realms won’t open without external Spiritual Energy – this apex creature gained celestial favor when realms merged. The heavenly dao bestowed spiritual feedback, elevating it to full spirithood."

After this lengthy exposition, Li Canghai pressed, "Your recommendation? And why emphasize its unnatural ascension?"

"Notify the Special Bureau hierarchy. Spirit cultivators’ emergence brings ambiguous consequences, but human cultivators should remain cautious. Regarding its irregular transformation…" Leng Xingwen hesitated. "Ancient texts suggest spirit and human cultivators coexisted until powerful spirit clans vanished mysteriously."

"Later spirit cultivators relied on sixty-year cycles of imperial nectar moonlight to gain sentience. The end-time starved both Practitioners and nectar flow, causing spirit cultivators’ decline."

"Now Spiritual Energy revives without imperial nectar, yet spirits emerge. We must prepare." His tone hardened. "Regardless of ancient Practitioners’ stance toward Zhongxia, we share human cultivators’ interests against spiritkind."

"Those fragmentary records likely omit crucial details. Spirit cultivators’ return might complete the Nine Regions’ natural balance." Leng Xingwen sighed after hanging up. Let Li Canghai’s group decide their course – he’d no wish to play the villain here.

Knuckles rapped woodgrain.

Opening his chamber door, Leng Xingwen smiled at the benevolent elder before bowing deeply.

"Grandfather."

"Did you conclude your discussion with them so swiftly? I presumed they’d detain you with endless queries for hours, Grandfather," Leng Xingwen remarked with a composed smile, performing the traditional junior’s salute.

"Your tone suggests you endured thorough interrogation yourself last time," the elder chuckled, smoothing his beard as they settled by the tea table. "Sit – we needn’t stand on ceremony here."

The chamber, assigned by the Special Bureau, stood adjacent to quarters housing Leng family retainers and sect elders. With a graceful sweep of his sleeve, Leng Xingwen materialized an exquisite tea set upon the formerly empty table. He rinsed the vessels with practiced motions before decanting spiritual spring water from a celadon flask, the liquid hissing as spiritual fire coiled beneath the kettle.

This unannounced visit surely concerned their recent negotiations with the Special Bureau officials and the rumored audience with Zhongxia’s Commander.

"Their sincerity rings true," the elder observed, cooling his steaming tea with a breath of spiritual energy. When Leng Xingwen nodded agreement, he continued, "We’ve resolved to collaborate. Eternal seclusion in Moon Lake Wonderland serves none."

Leng Xingwen’s fingers paused mid-pour. "What concessions do we offer?"

"Legacy spiritual plants. Alchemical formulae. Resources to spare them decades of trial." The elder sipped his tea, eyes glinting. "Their boldness astonishes – envisioning cultivation for every citizen! Past dynasties craved obedient sheep, yet these moderns arm their flock with enlightenment."

Though steeped in tradition, the Leng patriarch’s gaze held keen interest as his grandson countered, "Lin Jing showed me their proposals. They offer opportunity, not guarantees. Each soul must forge their own path."

"Precisely why we’ll aid this daring venture," the elder asserted. "This isn’t mere Spiritual Energy Awakening, but the world itself stirring. When Heaven’s Dao fully embraces Practitioners again…"

His voice trailed off, charged with ancient longing. "I’ll remain to study their education systems. Instruct your father to dispatch experts and archives – sparing nothing but our foundational treasures. Their scientific planting theories and alchemical innovations warrant particular attention."

Leng Xingwen’s teacup clinked against its saucer. In this moment, his centuries-old grandfather seemed more vibrantly engaged than any youth.

Meanwhile, the Special Bureau’s headquarters hummed with renewed purpose. Ancient practitioners moved through laboratories and archives, their wisdom cross-pollinating with modern science. Agricultural specialists transplanted glowing spiritual herbs into hydroponic arrays, while field teams employed newly-learned harvesting sigils to gather lunar-blossom peaches without damaging their auric roots.

No longer besieged by spirit-beasts drawn to mismanaged energies, security teams finally sheathed their swords. In cultivation chambers above, translators pored over jade slips containing cultivation techniques unseen since the Han dynasty, their contents soon to be adapted for a new generation of Practitioners.

A new domain had emerged, with countless capital pouring in. Fortunately, government intervention prevented monopolization.

For 1.5 billion people, the expenditure on cultivation resources would be astronomical.

Even if not immediately required, preparations must be made for the future.

Currently, powering up through pills remains impossible. Even Leng Xingwen’s group possessed few of those precious medicinal pills, each treated as invaluable treasures.

The primary focus lies in analyzing medicinal pills and spiritual herbs with healing properties. For instance, a pill refined from hemostatic herbs can instantly stop bleeding when crushed and applied – two applications erase scars from non-critical wounds.

These remedies serve ordinary people as stop bleeding solutions and scar-removal cosmetics, extending beyond practitioner use.

—The state-approved cultivation techniques remain foundational, relying solely on absorbing Spiritual Energy. While pills cost money, Spiritual Energy permeates freely.

Certain plants even exhale Spiritual Energy during photosynthesis.

At month’s start, cities transplanted these energy-emitting flora en masse without depleting natural reserves.

First-tier cities spearheaded this transformation, leveraging the Awakening of Spiritual Energy to maintain current air quality and combat smog.

Less urgency gripped second and third-tier cities, as forested mountainous regions already brimmed with dense Spiritual Energy.

"Youyang? Are you accompanying me?" Leng Xingwen raised an eyebrow.

"My master chose to remain, studying that zither which birthed the instrument spirit," Youyang sighed. "I’m to handle sect affairs independently."

Their conversation paused as a statuesque youth approached.

"Ah Wei? Why aren’t you attending your father?"

"Family duties now fall to me," the light-blue robed youth replied wryly. "Father stays to explore this world and await Bai Ye of awakened bloodline."

"Everyone’s here?" A pink-clad girl bounded over. "Brother Bai! Brother Leng! Sister Youyang!"

"What now?" Leng Xingwen massaged his temples.

"Master insists we recruit disciples to prevent sect decline," chirped Lu He, the five-foot-tall dynamo whose delicate looks belied her reputation for flooring same-level opponents – a rare body cultivation prodigy.

Body cultivation’s harsh traditions made Lu He’s adoption peculiar: her eccentric master had sought "a cute inheritor to raise as a daughter."

At forty-something – youngest in their group – Lu He thrived in Moon Lake Wonderland, shielded by her doting master’s influence.

"Relocating already?" Bai Wei blinked. "Elder Lu Zhou abandons Moon Lake Wonderland?"

"We travel light," Lu He shrugged, eyes sparkling. "Master promised junior disciples! I’ll be senior sister – ha!"

Most Moon Lake sects maintained single disciple-master lineages. Only affluent sects recruited multiple, though mediocrity doomed most to mortal lifespans.

Bai and Leng’s bloodline-gifted clans rarely admitted outsiders.

"So we’re the advance party?"

"Others follow later," Youyang nodded.

"Brother Leng, look!" Lu He brandished a rose gold phone. "This world’s fascinating!"

"How?" Others leaned in curiously, their own devices delayed for elder prioritization.

"Uncle Lu from Division 6 gifted it after my assistance."

The group collectively winced. Division 6 meant testing – their shared ordeal after Special Bureau negotiations.

(They’d avoided medical experiments, but elders endured examinations. None escaped Division 6’s battery of tests.)

Acquiring phones through testing? Unlikely. Lu He’s cherubic charm had clearly beguiled Professor Lu from Scientific Research.

Special Bureau phones differed radically from civilian models, explaining the shortage. Authorities never anticipated Leng Xingwen’s entourage – weren’t ancient practitioners supposed to shun worldly affairs?

Unknown to them, Moon Lake Wonderland’s cramped confines bred wanderlust. Leng’s popularity and the venture’s significance drew overwhelming interest – thirty attendees represented severe rationing.

…

Li Canghai’s group ultimately reported Leng Xingwen’s warnings, urging Special Bureau restraint. Ironically, their counsel ensnared Hu Mei in bureaucratic duties.

"Your presence eases communications," Bai Ye consoled her.

"But adventuring with you…"

"Opportunities abound later," Yang Xingyu ruffled her hair. "Current missions carry risks."

Turning to Bai Ye: "Why summon you back?"

"Some ancient practitioner requests meeting," came the shrugged reply.

Emerging from Da Hinggan Mountains, the group now occupied a Special Bureau branch office. Bai Ye would fly to Capital City tomorrow; Hu Mei awaited headquarters’ envoy while Yang Xingyu, Li Canghai, and Qiao Feiyu departed for Hanzhou City.