Chapter 5: Chapter 195: Accidentally Obtaining the Three-Colored Flower

No wonder. As soon as Feng Jiuge entered this place, she knew that the aura here was different from the 'King's Altar' or other parts of the Flame Dragon Empire. This place was full of spirituality; otherwise, the flora and fauna here wouldn't be so brimming with vitality, and even the sky would not be so clear. This indicated that the place had not been destroyed or polluted.

It was precisely this kind of benign cycle that made this place so different from everywhere else.

"What is this place called?"

"Um, I call this place the Spirit Valley."

"That's a good name. Spirit Valley—it's very descriptive!"

"Follow me forward. I'll take you over there to take a look."

"Then we shall take our leave. Let's gather again when there is an opportunity!" After bidding farewell to the bamboo beasts, peach blossom beasts, and bird beasts, Feng Jiuge followed Long Zijie forward.

"Is there something ahead? Is there more to see?"

Following Long Zijie's pace, a small bamboo building appeared before Feng Jiuge's eyes. It was very exquisite; one could tell that the owner of this bamboo building had put a lot of heart into it. It was a two-story bamboo building with a window on both the east and south sides, and a balcony on the second floor. The balcony was filled with orchids—black, orange, and pink—they were incredibly beautiful, but upon closer inspection, there were only three stalks.

"Did you discover this as well?"

"Of course not! I thought the environment here was nice, so I occasionally ran out and built it myself. Not bad, right? Are you interested in going inside to take a look?"

"You built this?" Feng Jiuge was extremely surprised; it looked like a massive undertaking.

"How did you know about this place? Tell me! Maybe if I use your methods, I can find a beautiful place just like this!" Feng Jiuge was a bit excited, also hoping that she might have her own secret space in the future.

"Actually, Shiye brought me here when I was a child. You probably don't know my background, do you?"

"You aren't Zhan Tian's younger brother? Isn't your Imperial Sister Long Yuehua? Don't tell me you were adopted?"

Feng Jiuge's inner voice was mocking, *'Could a cliché plot be unfolding? Could it be that Long Zijie knows he isn't Zhan Tian's biological brother, so he fell in love with Zhan Tian, and they aren't actually brothers?!'*

"Of course not. Your imagination is quite vivid! Actually, because of my birth, my mother died during a difficult labor. Because of that, almost everyone believed that I was the one who killed my mother. I was ostracized, but my Imperial Brother was not, and Shiye also stayed by my side and grew up with me. Many times when I was unhappy, Shiye would bring me here to relax, and this little bamboo building was my resting point whenever I stayed overnight here."

"Oh, oh, so that's how it is." Feng Jiuge hadn't realized that the seemingly imposing Long Zijie had such an unknown past. No wonder he was so dependent on Long Zhantian.

Walking inside, she found that there wasn't much decoration. Downstairs was a set of rosewood tables and chairs and a set of blue and white porcelain tea sets. Upstairs, there was only a bamboo bed woven from bamboo; it was that simple.

"Mm-hmm, not bad. Minimalist style, I like it!"

"Minimalist style? What does that mean?"

"Hehe, it's actually just describing a room that is simple and unadorned, without excessive decorations, clear and straightforward." Feng Jiuge rubbed her head and said with a grin.

"These few orchids are quite special, very beautiful. I didn't expect you to have the leisure and inclination to grow flowers!" Feng Jiuge knew that the origin of these orchids was quite significant, so she changed the subject.

"Of course. These three colors of orchids are my treasures. I spent a long time on them, but now that they are alive, they don't require much effort from me; I just need to water them occasionally."

"Indeed. I've never even seen a flower with three colors, how could you have one? But I heard they are supposed to be 'Three-Colored Flowers,' so why are they three separate stalks?" Feng Jiuge's enthusiasm for treasures never waned.

"Actually, it's just that I have a predestined affinity with these three orchids!" Looking back, Long Zijie still felt there was an element of coincidence involved.

Speaking of which, once, Long Yuehua had secretly run out to gather herbs to prepare for refining an upgraded version of 'Three-Day Joy,' but she was spotted by Long Zijie. The young Long Zijie was curious about the outside world and also wanted to sneak out to play, so he clung to Long Yuehua.

Because Long Yuehua had not obtained permission from her Imperial Brother Long Zhantian, she had no choice but to compromise against Long Zijie's threats and take him along.

Long Yuehua took Long Zijie secretly into a deep, ancient forest a few kilometers away from the 'King's Altar.' The yin energy inside was very heavy, likely because sunlight rarely reached it, and the mist was very thick.

It was also Long Yuehua's first time coming to Heze, and she was not familiar with the situation here. Taking the risk of bringing Long Zijie along meant the pressure on her was not small.

It was already around six or seven in the morning, and it was midsummer. Under the shroud of the mist, the forest fog began to slowly dissipate, allowing the path ahead to be faintly visible. Long Yuehua warned Long Zijie to stay close to her, and she turned back to look at him almost every five steps.

Just like that, every time she turned around, her younger brother was following behind her. Long Yuehua eventually saw sunlight piercing through the gaps in the trees, making the surrounding objects clearly visible. She relaxed her guard and, while occasionally talking to Long Zijie behind her, focused on finding medicinal herbs.

Long Zijie was originally following Long Yuehua, but he had absolutely no interest in her herbs. So, he kept his head down, looking at some saprophytic organisms and interesting plants on the ground. It was actually quite fun; he even saw ginseng that could walk and living spirit lingzhi that could teleport.

Having never seen such things, Long Zijie was mesmerized. He kept his head down and unexpectedly lost track of his sister, Long Yuehua.

It wasn't until Long Yuehua had gathered the herbs she wanted and turned back to call for Long Zijie that she received no response. Only then did she realize she had lost him.

At that time, Long Yuehua did not have the ability to divine Long Zijie's location, so she had no choice but to return the way she came, looking down at the footprints on the ground. Fortunately, it had rained recently, so the path was somewhat muddy.

Finally, halfway through, she found another fork in the road with footprints the size of Long Zijie's shoes, and she followed the tracks to search for him.

Over there, Long Zijie inadvertently looked up, but his Imperial Sister's silhouette was not ahead. Long Zijie looked around but could not find Long Yuehua's figure. However, being young, having seen so many interesting things, he truly did not want the journey to end like this.

Driven by the fearlessness of the ignorant, Long Zijie continued walking. But because the path was difficult to traverse after the rain, and unable to see the road ahead clearly, Long Zijie went "thud" and fell into a hole about six meters deep.

When he woke up, he realized he had fallen into a deep pit. Long Zijie tried again and again, but he still couldn't climb out, and eventually, he even injured himself. His arm was sliced open with a large wound. The pain and helplessness made Long Zijie somewhat regretful: "If I had known, I would have stuck close to Imperial Sister so this wouldn't have happened."

Long Zijie paced around inside the cave, seeing no way to help himself escape. Possessing a strong survival instinct, Long Zijie carefully inspected his surroundings and suddenly noticed a pile of dry grass that was very eye-catching.

Because in such a damp and shady environment, the fact that the dry grass had remained without rotting meant there was definitely something strange about it. Thus, Long Zijie carefully pushed aside the grass and discovered a hidden world inside.

Three orchids grew around a pedestal, and in the very center of the pedestal was a single orchid that combined all three colors, though it was somewhat withered and even its flowers had lost some color.

"Little brother, what is your name?" A weak, elderly voice made Long Zijie look around wildly, but he saw no one. Being young, he tried to bolster his courage by shouting at the wall, "Who are you? Don't mess around, I am a dignified Prince of the Flame Dragon Empire!"

"Little brother, your surname is Long! The surname Long is not common." The old man did not pay attention to Long Zijie's words, but his tone seemed somewhat gentle.

Even at a young age, Long Zijie could tell from that voice that the person was somewhat interested in his identity. Therefore, Long Zijie felt he had leverage to converse with the person.

"Come out first, and we'll talk face-to-face, how about it?"

"I have been right in front of you all along; it's just that you didn't know it was me speaking to you. I am that orchid with the three-colored flower."

Long Zijie was somewhat surprised; orchids could talk? He looked, and indeed, it was the orchid speaking to him. The three-colored orchid revealed its true form before Long Zijie; upon looking, it turned out to be a white-haired old man.

Changing his previous attitude, he asked kindly, "Elder, why are you here? What is your relation to these three orchids?"

"Little brother, I see you are injured. First, each of us shall pluck a petal, rub them together, and drip the juice onto your arm; it can stop the bleeding. Give it a try!"

Long Zijie did as he was told, and he also let down his guard. Sure enough, the bleeding from his injured arm stopped.

While he was surprised that such an effective medicine could be encountered like this, the orchid spoke: "I did not live here before, but later our clan was constantly being hunted, and only a few orchids were left alive. For the sake of our descendants' reproduction, we moved around to find homes, which is how I came here."

"Then why are the three orchids beside you different from you?"

"I used the cultivation I had attained to split myself into three different colored flowers. It was also for survival; I had no choice."

"So, I have now exhausted my life's cultivation and finally succeeded in raising my three children. Because they are not three-in-one like me, they have an innate defect—they cannot speak—but they are able to hear others talking."

"My lamp has run dry and my oil is spent; I no longer have the strength to move. I hope little brother Long can help me take some of them out to expand the orchid clan. Do not let too many people know, and try not to let people accidentally eat them." The orchid elder pleaded with Long Zijie.

"Of course, no problem, it's just a small matter. However, you don't need to worry; since the effect of this flower is so good, it should be fine even if they are eaten, right?"