Chapter 119: Over 300 Years Old
A heavy downpour began as they drove out of Beihai City. The road was treacherous and in terrible condition.
They bounced along like this for over an hour before the sky started to clear up, but the road was still a wreck.
Finally, after driving for nearly three hours, they were about to reach the flower seller’s location.
"This damn weather. One minute it’s raining, the next it’s sunny," Su Miaoke couldn’t help but complain.
The ground after the rain was incredibly muddy, almost impossible to walk on. The road surface was covered in yellow sludge.
"The road ahead is impassable. We’ll have to walk from here," Chu Feng said.
Su Miaoke’s expression soured when she heard this. "Are there really still places without even a paved road? That’s ridiculous. We’re not that far from Beihai."
"Sigh. Who can say about these things? There are always some people who don’t do their jobs," Chu Feng lamented.
In truth, he had a deep understanding of such matters.
After all, his own village had been just like this many years ago—impassably muddy when it rained and choked with dust when it was dry. Just leaving the mountains had been an immense struggle.
It was only in recent years that roads had been built to connect every village and reach every home.
Su Miaoke was wearing high heels and had never imagined the conditions here would be so awful. After opening the car door, she was at a loss for what to do.
"Don’t get out of the car yet. I’ll carry you on my back. It’s still about two kilometers, and you can’t walk on this kind of road in high heels," Chu Feng said.
"Hmph. And here I thought you were actually going to make me walk by myself," Su Miaoke said with a haughty look, but the corners of her mouth lifted into a smug smile.
"You’re my wife, after all. How could I bear to let you suffer like this?" Chu Feng said with a smile.
With Su Miaoke’s build and weight, carrying her was nothing to Chu Feng.
He hoisted her onto his back with absolute ease, feeling no strain at all.
He was a Foundation Establishment Realm Cultivator, after all. If he couldn’t even carry his own wife, what kind of cultivator would he be?
This kind of road was very difficult to walk on. Even a person walking alone would have to be extremely careful. There were puddles everywhere, and you never knew how deep they were.
One wrong step and your entire ankle could be submerged.
So Chu Feng walked very cautiously. It took him more than half an hour to cover the distance of less than two kilometers.
"We’re almost there!" Su Miaoke shouted excitedly, spotting the village in the distance.
Chu Feng glanced at the village. It didn’t look very big, probably only a few dozen households. Moreover, most of the villagers seemed to be the elderly, women, and children.
The young people had basically all left to find work. After all, there wasn’t much of a future—or a fortune—to be made by staying in a small mountain village like this.
After asking for directions at the village entrance, Chu Feng and Su Miaoke walked up to a rather old-looking house.
The house looked its age; decades ago, it would have been considered a nice building.
"Excuse me, is Master Wu home?" Chu Feng asked.
A moment later, an old man nearing his sixties emerged from inside.
"Are you the bosses who want to buy the lotus flower?" the old man asked.
"Yes, we’re the ones buying the lotus. We contacted you yesterday," Su Miaoke said.
Chu Feng looked at the old man, a flicker of curiosity in his eyes. ’An old man from such a remote mountain village knows how to use the internet? And even how to find customers?’
"Come, come inside and we’ll talk," Master Wu said, ushering Chu Feng and Su Miaoke in.
Upon entering, the arrangement of the room gave both Chu Feng and Su Miaoke a pleasant, soothing feeling.
The entire atmosphere here was remarkably good. No matter how troubled one’s emotions were, entering this place felt like being cleansed, and they immediately calmed down.
Once inside, Chu Feng learned that this Master Wu was one of the few educated people in the village. He was a Feng Shui Master who also knew his way around the internet, frequently shopping online and keeping up with current events.
As for the Winter Lotus, it was actually an heirloom left by his ancestors, which he had only recently discovered, tucked away at the bottom of a chest.
He only knew it was a Winter Lotus thanks to information passed down from his ancestors, which described it as containing vigorous life force—a truly life-saving treasure.
But Master Wu had no other choice. His only son had racked up a huge debt to loan sharks from gambling and desperately needed money to repay it. Otherwise, his son’s life would be forfeit.
That was why, left with no alternative, he began trying to sell the Winter Lotus online, asking anyone and everyone.
But after asking around for a long time with no luck, he came across the notice Su Miaoke had posted about purchasing rare ingredients and contacted her.
"It’s just about lunchtime. Why don’t you sit and have a simple meal with me? We can talk while we eat," Master Wu said hospitably.
"Master Wu, please don’t go to any trouble. We’d like to see the Winter Lotus now, if we may," Chu Feng asked.
"Of course. Wait here, I’ll go get it for you." A short while later, Master Wu returned carrying an exquisite wooden box.
Although the wooden box looked a bit old and dusty, Chu Feng could tell with a single glance that the object was at least several hundred years old.
When Master Wu saw Chu Feng staring intently at the wooden box, he chuckled. "What is it? Does the boss recognize this box?"
Chu Feng shook his head. "I don’t recognize it, but I can sense that the material is extraordinary, and that it’s several hundred years old."
Hearing Chu Feng say this, Master Wu’s eyes lit up, and he gave Chu Feng a thumbs-up. "Truly a boss from the city! You have a keen eye. This wooden box was passed down by my ancestors. It’s over five hundred years old now—a family heirloom, you might say."
"So the Winter Lotus is inside?" Chu Feng asked. He had no interest in such a box; his only target was the Winter Lotus.
"Yes." Master Wu nodded and then opened the wooden box.
When the box was opened, a vibrant lotus flower appeared before the three of them.
Both Chu Feng and Su Miaoke’s eyes widened in amazement.
Although the lotus appeared no different from an ordinary one, it was exceptionally fresh and even emitted a faint, delicate fragrance.
"How old is this lotus?" Su Miaoke asked curiously. She suspected the old man might have just freshly picked it and placed it in the box.
"According to my ancestors, it should be over three hundred years old by now," said Master Wu.
"What? Over three hundred years? That’s impossible, isn’t it?" Su Miaoke’s eyes widened, finding it utterly unbelievable.
After three hundred years, even bones would have turned to dust, let alone a flower. She couldn’t quite bring herself to believe his claim.
Chu Feng, however, stared intently at the lotus. Circulating the Spiritual Power within his body, he immediately sensed a dense life force emanating from it.
"It’s definitely a Winter Lotus. It should be three hundred and fifty-six years old," Chu Feng stated.