Daily life of a cultivation judge

"Meifeng, do you even need the leaves? What that senior has given you should do a much better job than them.." said Yang Qing as he pointed at the green flame leaves tightly clutched by the young lady as she used her other free hand to play around with the water at the pond.

Amid their conversation after the middle-aged man left, the young lady revealed that her name was Meifeng which was something bestowed upon her by Lady Gild on the night she gained spirituality and full sentience.

It was a breezy night that day hence the name 'Meifeng' to mean beautiful wind.

"Do you want it back?" Meifeng fearfully said as she took a few steps back while tightly clutching at the green flame leaves.

"I thought you said it was now mine. Yang Qing are you going back on your word? I thought we were friends.." she added with tears welling up at the rim of her eyes with a look that said,

I can't believe you would betray me like that

Yang Qing couldn't help but rub his nose in embarrassment when he saw her look.

"No, I am not taking it back. It's just that the yin energy in the pond can do much more than the green flame leaves can for you.

I was just curious why you still seemed interested in them.."

Meifeng looked warily at Yang Qing afraid that he would suddenly charge at her and take back the leaves.

She looked at him for a short while before she finally said,

"I like the green flame leaves and it's not incompatible with the water. Who would let go of a good thing just because they had a better thing? They would keep them both.." she said with a matter-of-fact tone accompanied by a smug smile.

"I bet it's the same with you. That senior gave you a jar of wine that is likely to be of a higher quality than the frostberry wine. Does that mean you won't be drinking the frostberry wine anymore or any other wine that you may have that isn't to the level of the wine that the senior gave you.."

"Fair enough.." said Yang Qing with a defeated smile.

"Then let me help you refine it completely. Even though the green flame tree leaves have the effects of purifying and strengthening your body, ultimately your natures are a bit contrasting to one another, much of the effects would dissipate if you tried it yourself.

I can help you maximize its use with my affinity with both yin and yang energies.." added Yang Qing.

Meifeng narrowed her eyes in suspicion.

"You're sure this is not just some trick to get the green flame leaves back?" 

"No, it's not.." Yang Qing answered with a wry smile.

His response didn't like it convinced Meifeng much so he was prompted to take out a bunch of green flame leaves from his storage ring.

"I already have plenty more, so I really don't need those back.."

Meifeng jaws hung loose and her eyes widened in shock when she saw the piling green flame leaves in Yang Qing's hands.

The reason she was wary of Yang Qing in the first place from the moment he showed her the green flame leaves and his willingness to trade with it was because of how precious it was.

She may have not interacted with many treasures before but because of her origin as a spiritual plant, she could intrinsically feel how special the green flames were. 

Lady Gild had given her a lot of resources to nurture her over the years but none of them ever came close to the special resonance she felt with the green flame leaves.

If the leaves were able to trigger such a sensation from her it meant they were precious. The more precious something was, the rarer it usually was.

She figured a few moments ago Yang Qing wanted to ask back the leaves for that exact reason, but it turned out, her guess was completely off the mark.

"How could he have so many?" she wondered in disbelief.

Despite herself, she found her mouth moving on its own as it said,

"Could I have more?"

She hurriedly closed her mouth immediately after as she cautiously eyed Yang Qing's reaction with slight embarrassment on her face.

"While I would like to give you more, I wouldn't advise it. It will create an imbalance in you and even negatively impact some of your abilities.

The amount I gave you is enough. It's the maximum that your body can handle.." Yang Qing gently said as he put away the pile of leaves he had taken out.

"I know.." said Meifeng with a low embarrassed voice. Though she said that, Yang Qing saw the look of greedy regret flash in her eyes.

Not bothering to call her out for it as he would likely react the same way were he in her shoes, he went on to help her refine the green flame leaves.

Lunar Heart Lotus Flame

A white flaming lotus appeared on Yang Qing's hand. The flaming lotus released an ethereal, cool, and peaceful air that instantly stirred the soul of the parasitic purple flower spore sycamore tree.

The clone body closed her eyes with a relaxing tranquil look on her face while her main body swayed its leaves to the flickering motion of the flames.

An unexpected reaction occurred as the pond water rippled and white mist moved toward the white flaming lotus almost as if it was attracted by something.

Yang Qing was slightly surprised by the movement but he immediately concentrated as he made use of the mist to amplify the abilities of the Lunar Heart Lotus Flame which was a yin-based flame capable of refining and restoring the soul.

He usually used it at the Medical Valley to deal with soul-based injuries or mental exhaustion.

He intended to use the flames to help meld the green flame leaves into a wholly compatible nature with the parasitic purple flower spore sycamore tree that had a natural affinity toward yin energy.

The green flame leaves were swallowed by the white-flaming lotus that spun around creating a gentle blend of green and white flames.

The combined flames then floated toward the parasitic purple flower spore sycamore tree and instantly engulfed its whole body.

It looked like a flaming tree of green and white.

Yang Qing blended the nature of the green flame leaves into the tree using the white flames as a conduit.

The body of the parasitic purple flower sycamore tree was repetitively cleansed and strengthened using the two flames.

The process went on for almost an hour before it was finally completed. The green flames disappeared by themselves after the green flame leaves had been completely refined while the white flame disappeared when Yang Qing canceled out the Lunar Heart Lotus Flame technique.

The parasitic purple flower spore sycamore tree looked like it had experienced a complete transformation.

Everything within it now had a delicate vibrancy to it. Its stem and branches had a light green crystalline glow to them, while the leaves and the flowers had the quality of their colors shine with a gentle ephemeral luster that had an added charm to them.

The brushing of the leaves released a faint calming lullaby capable of inducing a sense of relaxation and sleep in all who heard it or set their eyes on it.