Reincarnated as a Ginkgo Tree: I Create an Eternal Divine Kingdom - Chapter 8

The eight humans came from two villages: Zhang Family Village and Su Family Village.

Both villages were very remote, which meant the villagers’ knowledge was limited. Even so, the information they provided opened Su Mu’s eyes to the broader world.

This world was called the “Profound Sky World,” a realm ruled by cultivators. According to the understanding of these eight villagers, cultivator ranks were divided into Qi Refining, Foundation Establishment, and Golden Core, corresponding to the first, second, and third tiers of the beast classification system.

“It seems that my cultivation level is equivalent to that of a Foundation Establishment cultivator among humans,” Su Mu mused.

He was somewhat reassured to learn that the majority of the people in Zhang Family Village and Su Family Village were ordinary mortals. Zhang Family Village consisted entirely of mortals, while Su Family Village had a single cultivator: the village chief, Su Yan. Su Yan was at the early stage of Qi Refining, a level of power he had acquired by inadvertently consuming a spiritual fruit in his youth, which granted him magical abilities.

Because of this, the five men from the Zhang Family Village feared the Su Family Village and intended to kill the three girls to eliminate any threat.

Eight hundred miles away from the villages stood Nanjing City, where there were higher-level Qi Refining cultivators, though they were unaware if there were Foundation Establishment experts. Based on this information, Su Mu concluded that, for now, he was relatively safe within an eight-hundred-mile radius.

“This world, though it contains spiritual energy, seems to be a low-spiritual world based on the information I’ve gathered,” Su Mu thought.

A low-spiritual world was better than a world devoid of spiritual energy but still far from a high-spiritual world. In a world with abundant spiritual energy, the strength of living beings would be far greater.

For Su Mu, this was advantageous. His growth didn’t rely on spiritual energy, and as a still relatively weak entity, time was his most crucial resource. A low-spiritual world provided him with the perfect environment to grow.

“Given the modest strength of Zhang Family Village and Su Family Village, I don’t need to worry too much,” Su Mu reasoned.

However, Su Mu didn’t immediately kill the eight people. Before making that decision, he decided to conduct an experiment.

These eight were valuable test subjects.

“Spirit Ginkgo Fruit,” Su Mu whispered, conjuring six Spirit Ginkgo Fruits and having six of the villagers consume them. He gave the fruits to six people to see if there would be any adverse reactions, considering the possibility that some individuals might not be able to absorb the fruit’s power.

To Su Mu’s satisfaction, this didn’t happen. The six began to undergo a transformation similar to the crows’ earlier one.

Watching this, Su Mu’s eyes gleamed with understanding. It seemed his Spirit Ginkgo Fruit was effective not only on animals but also on humans, regardless of their physical constitution.

This realization made Su Mu even more cautious. The fact that his Spirit Ginkgo Fruit could entice humans meant that he posed a significant temptation to them—potentially more dangerous than any beast.

Before long, the six villagers completed their transformations. They had leaped from being ordinary mortals to becoming cultivators at the early stage of Qi Refining.

“We…” The six villagers woke up, overjoyed to find themselves transformed.

Shing!

The next moment, they all turned to look at the ginkgo tree before them.

Although they had been under the influence of Phantom Snow Eyes, they still retained some awareness of their surroundings. They knew that the source of their transformation was this extraordinary ginkgo tree.

“Let’s go,” the men from Zhang Family Village exchanged glances and quickly turned to leave. They knew their limitations. Controlling such a powerful entity was beyond their capabilities. Instead, they intended to offer this secret to someone powerful to maximize their benefits.

At this moment, they were too focused on leaving the area to even consider harming the three girls from Su Family Village. The place felt too eerie for them to linger.

The two villagers from Zhang Family Village who hadn’t received the Spirit Ginkgo Fruit were even more resentful toward the tree, eager to get away as quickly as possible.

Su Qin and Su Xue from Su Family Village were equally decisive.

“We should leave,” Su Qin and Su Xue said in unison.

But Su Yao hesitated. “Big Sister Qin, Big Sister Xue, if you want to go, you should go on ahead,” she said.

“What are you going to do?” Su Qin and Su Xue frowned.

“We survived, and I even gained spiritual power, all thanks to this divine tree,” Su Yao said reverently. “I want to stay here and pray to the divine tree for a while.”

“Divine tree? This is just a ginkgo tree spirit,” Su Qin snapped.

“This place is dangerous, Yao. If you don’t leave, we will,” Su Xue added.

Ignoring their words, Su Yao knelt down under the ginkgo tree, clasped her hands in prayer, and bowed her head.

Seeing her determination, Su Qin and Su Xue gritted their teeth and started to leave with the villagers from Zhang Family Village. But suddenly, they felt a strange sensation.

“Phantom Snow Eyes.”

The ethereal voice echoed once more.

Instinctively, they turned back to look at the ginkgo tree.

In the void behind the ginkgo tree, a pair of cold, emotionless eyes the size of lanterns appeared, radiating the icy stillness of a snow-covered world.

Buzz!

In an instant, their consciousnesses became clouded once more.

“Now that they’re cultivators, they can resist Phantom Snow Eyes longer,” Su Mu noted.

Before, these eight people had been controlled before they even saw the eyes. Now, the six newly transformed cultivators resisted for a short while.

But Su Mu’s resolve was cold.

The five men from the Zhang Family Village, along with Su Qin and Su Xue, had to die. These seven had no gratitude in their hearts. After receiving his benefits, they only thought of harming him.

Su Yao, on the other hand, showed a good heart.

After a moment of contemplation, Su Mu extended his branches, which swiftly pierced the two remaining villagers from Zhang Family Village who hadn’t become cultivators.

[48 years of lifespan]
[52 years of lifespan]

An average of 50 years of lifespan per person.

Next, Su Mu turned his attention to the five new cultivators.

“An average lifespan of 100 years!” Su Mu’s heart leaped.

Indeed, there was a difference between mortals and cultivators. In this ancient world, the average lifespan of mortals was 50 years, but upon becoming cultivators, their lifespan could extend to 80 years.

In total, Su Mu gained 600 years of lifespan, bringing his total to 1,000 years.

Su Mu then conveyed his intentions to the Snow Spirit Mink. Although they couldn’t fully communicate through thoughts, the Snow Spirit Mink could vaguely sense Su Mu’s desires.

The Snow Spirit Mink immediately dragged the seven corpses and the still-alive Su Yao to a location far from Su Mu.

Of the seven corpses, five belonged to cultivators, which were irresistibly tempting to the wild beasts in the area.

Sure enough, it wasn’t long before beasts appeared and tore the bodies to shreds, leaving no trace of Su Mu’s involvement.

This way, even if something unexpected happened, outsiders wouldn’t suspect Su Mu.

As for Su Yao, the Snow Spirit Mink guarded her closely, preventing any beast from approaching.

An hour later, Su Yao slowly regained consciousness.

She looked around in confusion, unsure of what had happened.

“How did I end up here? And why am I in such a sorry state?” Su Yao muttered, rubbing her head as a sense of unease grew within her.

As she scanned her surroundings, her face went pale.

She saw the remains of the other seven.

Their bodies were completely mangled, with the flesh devoured and even some bones gnawed on. If not for the tattered clothing, she wouldn’t have been able to identify them.

The sight struck Su Yao like a bolt of lightning.

Unbeknownst to her, several Spirit Crows were watching her from the sky.

This was Su Mu’s precaution in case Su Yao had been pretending earlier. If she showed any signs of ill intent, the Spirit Crows would be ready to kill her instantly.

Su Mu, having been human in his previous life, knew all too well the complexities of human nature. He couldn’t afford to be careless.

Thirty miles away from Su Mu, a small village sat nestled in the wilderness.

This was Su Family Village.

The sky had begun to darken.

“Those three girls still aren’t back?”

“I told them something strange is going on in the Ancient Wilderness, but they wouldn’t listen.”

Villagers gathered at the entrance of the village, holding torches.

Among them was an old farmer, his brow furrowed as he puffed on a pipe.

Su Family Village was a clan village, where everyone was related.

Su Yao was his granddaughter, and Su Qin and Su Xue were the granddaughters of his two brothers, who called him Grandpa as well.

“Grandpa.” A voice suddenly broke through the murmur of the crowd.

The villagers turned, their faces lighting up with joy.

Su Yao stumbled out of the darkness, looking utterly exhausted and disheveled.

But when the villagers saw her condition, their joy turned to concern.

“Yao, what happened to you?” the old farmer asked in a deep voice. He was the village chief, Su Yan.

But then his eyes widened in shock. “You… you’ve become a cultivator?”

“What?” The other villagers froze in disbelief.