After setting aside The Rice Village Diary, Zhou Qing picked up the second journal: The Cultivation Diary.
March 6, 1900 of the Douluo Calendar
"It's been several years since I last wrote in a diary. But my mother once said that keeping a diary is a way to leave a trace of oneself in this world. So, I decided to write one entry each year."
The tone of this diary was notably more composed than the previous one.
Zhou Qing and Tang San continued reading.
"This year, I broke through to Soul Sovereign. My mother passed away due to illness... Before closing her eyes, she told me a story:
In the southwest of Douluo Continent, across the sea, there exists another continent. There, various soul beast gathering places and numerous kingdoms like those on Douluo Continent are present.
She came from that continent.
The Sun Moon Continent.
I asked my mother, 'Why leave your homeland and come to Douluo Continent?'
She said, 'I accidentally entered a peculiar lake, surrounded by mountains, with crystal-clear water. In the center, there was a round golden lake emitting a warm golden light, like the sun. Surrounding it was a silver moon-shaped lake, both coexisting harmoniously...'"
Tang San's pupils suddenly dilated.
The Valley of Heaven and Earth Qian Kun Wen Qing Gu!
In the records of the Tang Sect, there are three legendary treasure gathering places: the Ice and Fire Yin Yang Eye, the Valley of Heaven and Earth, and Long Gu. Among them, the Valley of Heaven and Earth is considered the most significant.
According to legend, a celestial maiden fell in love with a mortal. When the Heavenly Emperor discovered this, he sent divine soldiers to capture her. The maiden pleaded, even willing to forsake her immortality to be with her lover.
Moved by her sincerity, the Heavenly Emperor decided to test the mortal's true feelings. Unfortunately, the mortal failed the test and was deceived by another celestial maiden.
Heartbroken, the first maiden fell to the mortal realm, creating a lake that mirrored the heavens and earth.
Unexpectedly, here on Douluo Continent—or rather, on another continent—such a legendary place exists!
This is truly a tremendous opportunity!
Zhou Qing turned to the next page:
"At that time, I was pregnant with you. I entered the lake and was enveloped by transparent golden and silver bubbles, arriving at a platform. I heard a celestial voice, beautiful like a goddess."
"She asked, 'Do you have a lover?'"
"I replied, 'No. Your father and I were introduced by our families. I don't understand love.'"
"Then she asked, 'What do you love?' At that time, my village had been destroyed by bandits. If I loved anything, it was you, the child in my womb."
"She then asked, 'Would you die for your child?' I thought the voice was strange. I was only six months pregnant. If I died, you would too. So, I retorted."
"Suddenly, I felt two sharp pains, though there were no visible wounds. The pain was so intense that I could hardly breathe. The voice seemed anxious and healed me. I knew she was a powerful soul master..."
"Next, she gave me two trials. The first was a physical challenge: to kiss my own belly for a minute. I was afraid of her power but complied. You know, being six months pregnant, bending was difficult. I nearly fainted..."
"The second trial was a heart's test. I don't know if it was an illusion, but I felt I returned to the past, meeting a boy from my village. In that dream, we grew up together, married, and were happy. Only when I became pregnant did I realize it was a dream. I chose to return to reality and chose you, because you truly exist within me."
"Finally, the goddess gave me two items as rewards..."
"One was the 'Seed of Nature,' emitting life energy to ensure your safe birth. The other was an egg of the Goddess of Light Butterfly."
Zhou Qing recalled that the Seed of Nature resembled the seed of the Golden Ancient Tree.
Now, he was certain: the Soul Saint from Holy Soul Village, with innate soul power level six, was undoubtedly influenced by that Seed of Nature.
Why not a full innate soul power?
Zhou Qing speculated that perhaps the Soul Saint's mother merely carried the seed, unaware of its use. Yet, even so, the seed guided the Soul Saint's martial soul toward the nature-based evolution.
And the future Golden Ancient Tree might be the sprout on the Lingyun Turtle!
If so, it makes sense.
The Golden Ancient Tree wasn't brought from the divine realm or transplanted from Star Dou Forest. It originated from his starting point: Holy Soul Village.
At least on this Douluo Continent.
And why could Ah Yin merge with the future Golden Ancient Tree? She must have started interacting with it in its juvenile form, allowing her essence to blend, preparing for future fusion.
This process might have begun when Tang Hao and Ah Yin chose to remain on Douluo Continent instead of ascending to the divine realm.
The mature Golden Ancient Tree is considered the core of the Douluo Continent's realm: the Heart of Life.
Such an existence surely possesses its own consciousness.
Even Tang San, newly ascended to godhood, couldn't oppose the realm consciousness of the entire Douluo Continent. He could only subtly influence it, nurturing the Golden Ancient Tree while allowing Ah Yin's essence to permeate it, preparing for her eventual integration.
Once this is achieved, Douluo Continent and perhaps the entire Douluo Star would be Tang San's domain.
And the energy required for the Golden Ancient Tree's growth...
Not to mention Ah Yin being the Blue Silver Empress, adept at nurturing plants, Tang San, now a god, could easily accelerate the tree's growth.
Considering this direction further...
Zhou Qing felt that if he were in Tang San's shoes, he too might succumb to such temptation...
"But now, there are still choices! I must not lose myself! Absolutely not!"
Zhou Qing took a deep breath and unconsciously glanced at Tang San, noticing his indifference to the Seed of Nature and the Light Goddess Butterfly egg...
Tang San's memories of the Valley of Heaven and Earth slightly differed from the original descriptions...
After all, he was a traveler from a martial arts world. Describing "Cupid" in such a manner felt off; portraying her as a celestial maiden was more fitting.
This adjustment also avoids the conspiracy theory that "Tang San's reincarnation was orchestrated by the Asura God," steering the story away from such a direction, which Zhou Qing found uninteresting.
Now, with this change, it's more understandable history has similarities.
Ps: read advance in patreon.com/XenTronix