Sharpening the axe wouldn't delay the chopping — Purple Soul Grass was greatly beneficial to the growth of Dragon Blood Blossoms, so the two Wood Spirits' plan was to cultivate the Purple Soul Grass first, providing a nurturing bed for the Dragon Blood Blossoms that would be transplanted later.
Cultivating the Purple Soul Grass wasn't too troublesome. Although the seeds were gone, there was already mature Purple Soul Grass in the medicine garden, and with Mu Zhu and Mu Na performing their secret techniques to split and propagate it, it wouldn't be long before the entire Dragon Blood Island was blanketed in Purple Soul Grass.
Mu Zhu's estimated timeline was one month.
The two Wood Spirits were busy at work while Yang Kai found himself with little to do. Fortunately, Zhu Qing came over to keep him company for a few days, which kept him from getting too bored.
After meeting the Wood Spirits, Zhu Qing was quite astonished. She never imagined that Yang Kai would have such a peculiar race following him. She knew of the Wood Spirits' special abilities, and this gave her considerable confidence that Yang Kai would meet the Second Elder's requirements.
These past few days, it wasn't just Zhu Qing who had been visiting. Fu Qi and Zhu Lie had also come by several times, clearly wanting to check on progress — probably on the Grand Elder's instructions.
But without exception, Yang Kai had turned them all away at the island's perimeter. The two Wood Spirits were hard at work, and he had no intention of letting the situation inside Dragon Blood Island leak out. If the dragons developed any covetous thoughts toward the two Wood Spirits and demanded that he leave Mu Zhu and Mu Na behind, he'd be done for.
Fu Qi and Zhu Lie could only sigh in frustration. Despite making the trip every few days, they had no idea what was happening inside Dragon Blood Island.
After more than half a month of this, Yang Kai grew tired of it too and took the opportunity to beat both Fu Qi and Zhu Lie up.
After that, Fu Qi and Zhu Lie stopped showing their faces. The Grand Elder, left with no choice, could only try to probe Zhu Qing for information. At this point, the only person on all of Dragon Island who could get Yang Kai to speak honestly was Zhu Qing.
When the Grand Elder asked, Zhu Qing couldn't very well refuse to answer. Fortunately, Yang Kai had already briefed her — she simply relayed that the Grand Elder should wait six months for the results, and the dragons would not be disappointed.
Six months... it wasn't really that long, especially for the dragons with their extended lifespans. It was but the snap of a finger, well worth waiting for.
Dragon Blood Island changed with each passing day. Sure enough, just as Mu Zhu had said, after one month the Purple Soul Grass was fully cultivated.
More than half of Dragon Blood Island was blanketed in shimmering violet-green grass, beautiful to behold from afar. The areas where this grass grew were precisely the spots where the Dragon Blood Blossoms would be transplanted.
With the preparatory work complete, Yang Kai followed the two Wood Spirits' instructions and began retrieving the Dragon Blood Blossoms from the medicine garden.
Each time he brought one out, Mu Zhu and Mu Na would carefully transplant it onto Dragon Blood Island. As they worked, the two Wood Spirits' expressions were utterly meticulous, reverent as if on a pilgrimage.
Two days later, all the mid-grade Dragon Blood Blossoms had been transplanted. Several days after that, a number of ungraded Dragon Blood Blossoms were moved over as well.
Yang Kai had long since prepared his golden blood, following Mu Zhu's instructions — he'd filled a large jar and handed it over for their use. His bloodline showed no signs of regression, which put his mind at ease.
All that remained was to wait. With the two Wood Spirits handling everything, Yang Kai didn't need to intervene much. He found a spot, built himself a small wooden cabin, and spent his days sitting inside in meditation and Cultivation.
Occasionally he would step out to check on how the Dragon Blood Blossoms were growing, and from time to time one of the two Wood Spirits would come by to ask for more golden blood.
The days passed uneventfully. Zhu Qing spent a great deal of time here as well — whenever she had nothing else to do, she would come over to keep him company.
Half a year later. At the edge of Dragon Blood Island, Yang Kai stood with his hands clasped behind his back, hovering upon the wind, a forlorn expression on his face as he gazed up at the horizon — the very picture of a peerless sovereign lamenting the loneliness of being unmatched under heaven.
Suddenly, streaks of light appeared on the horizon — red, white, green, cyan, every color imaginable — hurtling toward him at tremendous speed.
Vast, ocean-like waves of dragon pressure swept outward, sending the blue waters rippling and crashing against the shore in a thousand layers of spray.
When the light faded, five figures materialized before Yang Kai.
All five Dragon Island Elders had arrived together: Grand Elder Zhu Yan, Second Elder Fu Zhun, Third Elder Fu Xuan, Fourth Elder Zhu Kong — and Zhu Qing among them.
The moment he appeared, Zhu Yan spoke urgently: "Boy Yang, Qing'er says you've finished everything here? Is it true or not?"
When Zhu Qing had come to notify him, he hadn't dared to believe it. Though Yang Kai had long since relayed the six-month deadline through Zhu Qing, now that the moment had actually arrived, he couldn't help but feel anxious, half-convinced that Yang Kai had been toying with him.
After all, the number of Dragon Blood Blossoms Yang Kai had stolen back then was no small matter, and he himself had admitted that all the mid-grade and above blossoms had been consumed by him. In such a short time, how could he possibly compensate for them?
Yang Kai smiled faintly: "Whether it's true or not, I invite the Grand Elder to see for himself." As he spoke, he gave Fu Xuan and Zhu Kong a slight nod in greeting. As for Fu Zhun... he couldn't be bothered!
Fu Zhun's expression remained icy, showing little reaction. It would have been truly strange if Yang Kai had shown her any goodwill — this attitude was the normal one.
Zhu Yan said solemnly: "Boy, you'd better not be making empty boasts. You know how important Dragon Blood Blossoms are to our Dragon Island. If you dare spout nonsense about this, this old man will absolutely not let you off."
Yang Kai let out a derisive snort: "They're just some measly Dragon Blood Blossoms — you make them sound like some priceless treasure."
Just some measly Dragon Blood Blossoms... Zhu Yan's face darkened at the words. They were one of the cornerstones of the dragon race — how could they possibly be "measly"?
Zhu Qing said: "Grand Elder, words are no proof — seeing is believing. You should go take a look for yourself."
Zhu Yan nodded repeatedly: "Indeed, indeed."
Fu Zhun had already flickered into motion, shooting toward the interior of Dragon Blood Island, her cold voice drifting back from a distance: "I'd like to see what kind of trick you've been pulling!"