Soul Land 5: The Rebirth of Tang San

Chapter 274: One Year

Zhang Haoxuan then got busy, and the primary reason was the Spirit Summoning Array!

He submitted a Spirit Summoning Array disc to the Redemption Society and quickly received a reply from the organization. Just as Tang San had surmised, the benefits of the Spirit Summoning Array were immense. A small, portable array for cultivation was truly miraculous and usable anywhere. Moreover, the richer the place's spiritual energy, the better its effects.

The demand for the Spirit Summoning Array was assured, and with the impressive network they had, the Redemption Society began to sell it. It was foreseeable that the Spirit Summoning Array would bring massive wealth, which was obviously a desirable outcome for the Redemption Society.

As for this, Tang San was unconcerned; his most important task now was improving his own cultivation.

Life energy assisted the human body immensely, both physically and mentally. The brain nourished by life energy would, in turn, nourish the sea of consciousness. As he cultivated in the Golden Valley, Tang San's divine consciousness recovered faster than he had initially anticipated.

Time passed day by day. While cultivating, Tang San most looked forward to Mei Gongzi's return. However, contrary to his wishes, there was no news of Mei Gongzi, nor any trace of where she could be.

Whenever he missed her, Tang San would take out the milk tea cup she had given him, finding solace in the item as he thought of her.

In the blink of an eye, a year passed, and Tang San was now twelve.

His previously depleted divine consciousness had fully recovered throughout the year, and now even surpassed its former state. His cultivation of the Mysterious Heaven Technique had also successfully advanced to the pinnacle of the seventh order, and that was only because he deliberately suppressed it as he focused more on restoring his divine consciousness and nourishing his body.

The Golden Valley was now brimming with various treasure plants. Under the influence of the rich life energy, any such natural treasures that arrived here grew at ten to a hundred times their normal rate. Zhang Haoxuan brought the ripe fruits to Redemption Academy and sold them to the students at low prices, allowing everyone to benefit from the Golden Valley's bounty.

Zhang Haoxuan himself had well and truly advanced to the pinnacle of the ninth order, both in spiritual power and bloodline power, and he was just one step shy from breaking through to the god level. On Tang San's advice, he continued to accumulate power. The more he accumulated, the greater his chances of a successful breakthrough.

The choice of location for the breakthrough was also crucial. Humans breaking through to the god level without being the vassals of a powerful demon or nymph clan was prohibited. Therefore, his breakthrough had to be done in secret.

The disturbance caused by breaking through to the god level was quite significant. It could spell disaster if it alarmed the god-level powers of the demon race. Zhang Haoxuan had not yet decided on the location for his breakthrough.

Over the past year, the most significant gain had not come from advancements in cultivation but rather from the sales of the Spirit Summoning Array discs. Once the Spirit Summoning Array hit the market, its price instantly skyrocketed. This item was useless to Demon Kings and the likes; however, the benefits of carrying a Spirit Summoning Array disc were evident for most demons and nymphs, who were not at the god level. It quickly became a desirable treasure among the nobility.

Had it not been necessary to limit the number of units sold to keep the price from falling, Zhang Haoxuan could have produced hundreds of them in a year without a problem.

Even so, this endeavor had brought them a substantial amount of wealth. The Redemption Society had made a hefty profit, and Zhang Haoxuan had received praise more than once for his contribution.

Tang San sat cross-legged beneath a golden tree in meditation, the Mysterious Heaven Technique's energy flowing through him like a mighty river. Though he was only twelve, his physique had grown to that of a seventeen or eighteen-year-old. His appearance had also become more handsome, and he now resembled his past-life self quite a bit. He knew that this was an effect of his divine consciousness, and once he returned to the god level, his appearance would likely become identical to his previous life’s.

In this regard, although Mei Gongzi had reincarnated without the memories of her previous life, she seemed to undergo a similar transformation. During their time together, Tang San noticed she looked and acted more and more like Xiao Wu.

A year had passed, and Mei Gongzi had not returned. Meanwhile, Kali City had become very peaceful. At least as far as Tang San knew, there was no news about the Ancestral Court targeting Kali City. Everything seemed to have calmed down, as if the Ancestral Court was unaware of the battle between the Crystal Phoenix Demon Emperor and the Peacock Great Demon King. Of course, Tang San was not privy to the amount of scheming happening in the shadows, so who knew what was going on behind the scenes.

After a year of growth, the golden tree had reached a height of ten meters. Spurred on by the Sky Swallowing Illusionary Chain Array, it grew lush and leafy, emitting an incredibly rich life essence.

The Crimson Fox girls benefitted the most from it. Each of them grew increasingly strong, healthy, and attractive; they were all in the prime of their sixteen or seventeen years of age, and they were at their most radiant under the nourishment of life energy.

Thanks to this rich life energy, the six most talented Crimson Fox girls had now reached the fourth order, while the rest had reached the third order.

Tang San was delighted by their progress in the study of arrays. The girls gathered daily not for any other purpose but to research and discuss knowledge about arrays.

Eager not to fall behind their peers, everyone worked hard. In a virtuous cycle, their insights into arrays actually surpassed those of the always-busy Zhang Haoxuan. They had also gained the ability to inscribe the Spirit Summoning Array. Tang San now let them try to simplify various arrays and inscribe them on array discs and various items. He estimated that they could start helping him inscribe arrays on hidden weapons in no more than half a year.

To him, the eighteen Crimson Fox girls were indeed his people. And since he had never intended to keep them in this valley forever, Tang San spared no effort guiding them. In addition to the Purple Demon Eyes, he also taught them the Ghost Shadow Perplexing Track to increase their ability to protect themselves.

In the mist, a red figure silently approached, the glowing arrow on the array disc in their hand disappearing as they did. It was Zhang Haoxuan returning.

"Mayor, good day!" The Crimson Fox girls stood up one after another, respectfully greeting Zhang Haoxuan.

Initially, they had intended to call Zhang Haoxuan Grandmaster, as, in a sense, they were Tang San's disciples. However, Zhang Haoxuan firmly refused, feeling somewhat ashamed because the knowledge he imparted to Tang San was far less than what Tang San had taught him. Thus, he asked the girls to address him simply as Mayor.

Tang San also awakened from his meditation and stood up, saying, "Master, you're here!"

"Mmhm," Zhang Haoxuan nodded.

Seeing that they had things to discuss, Red One led the girls away to a distance.

Zhang Haoxuan extended his hand to Tang San. A light flickered on the back of his hand, and a pale blue pattern emerged.

Tang San was taken aback, but then he smiled and cupped his fist. "Congratulations, Master, on being promoted to a Blue Class Redeemer."

Indeed, Zhang Haoxuan's Redemption rune had turned blue. This meant that he was only second to the Purple Class leadership.

Zhang Haoxuan gave a wry smile. "What's there to congratulate? This is all because of the Spirit Summoning Array. Also, the organization invited me to visit the headquarters. Not only that, but they’d like me to stay there."

"Ah?" Tang San paused, then understood why the Redemption Society would want to do this. The profits of the Spirit Summoning Array were astonishing, and having Zhang Haoxuan at the headquarters would undoubtedly make things safer... and more controllable.

Zhang Haoxuan said, "I will visit the headquarters, but I refused the transfer."