My family tree hollow connects to the modern era : Chapter 36

On the third day after the seeds were sown, the grapes were ripe. Bunches of beautiful purple jade grapes hung from the vines under the corridor, and under the sun, they were as translucent as jade, so beautiful that one could not take their eyes off them. For the sake of these grapes, Uncle Gao and Uncle Bi had not slept soundly for three days, guarding them daily, terrified that if they looked away for a second, a passing bird would peck at them. Bai Zhizhi, holding scissors, walked around the vines and picked the best-looking bunch, *snip*. With that swift move, Uncle Gao and Uncle Bi could not help but clutch their hearts, fearing he might accidentally poke something else. Yue Zhihuan covered her mouth and laughed; it was the first time she had seen them so nervous, but she knew how precious spirit fruits were. In the past, when her brother and the others exchanged contribution points for them, a single bite each was all they got. They often lamented that if spirit soil were not so rare, with their bloodline’s innate planting skills, they might have already filled all of China with spirit plants.

After Bai Zhizhi cut the grapes, Yue Zhihuan ran into the house and brought out a prepared box. She opened the lid, waiting for Bai Zhizhi to place the grapes inside. The box was specially made to seal in spiritual energy and maintain freshness. Bai Zhizhi looked at the box in her hands and asked, “Why put them away? If they are ripe, just eat them.” Yue Zhihuan opened her mouth in a silent “ah,” then realized that since Bai Zhizhi had grown them, he was entitled to eat them all; he did not need to wait for everyone to return like they did. She just wondered if he would be angry if she secretly saved her share for her brother. Though she did not gesture or type, Bai Zhizhi understood her intent and pointed to the vines on the corridor: “Look, there are still plenty. Some aren’t quite ripe yet and will need a few more days, so your brother and the others will have some when they return. You don’t need to save any for them.”

Uncle Gao chimed in, “Zhizhi, didn’t you say you wanted to earn money to buy skins? If you sell this bunch, it would be enough to buy many of them.” Bai Zhizhi replied, “I have money. Jiang Lin gave me the money from the water spirit crystals, which is enough to buy a lot. Just eat, eat! We’ll just grow more when we’re finished.” Bai Zhizhi took out a pot of spirit spring water, cast a cleansing spell on the grapes, gave them a quick rinse, and tossed them into a small basket. He beckoned to Meitianli and Lurenjia, who were squatting in the distance, looking too embarrassed to approach: “Come and eat! You’ve been guarding them day and night; why act so shy now that they’re ready to eat?”

Meitianli pointed at himself, “For me? Can I really eat them?” Bai Zhizhi grabbed a handful and threw them: “Catch!” The two dove forward, scrambling to catch the grapes, which were flying like petals scattered by a goddess. These were spirit fruits, after all; if one got crushed, it would be heartbreaking. Meitianli had always been laid-back; since Bai Zhizhi gave them to him, he would eat them. It would be a waste not to. He popped a grape into his mouth and chewed it, skin and all. The taste was absolutely divine. The rich fruitiness combined with spiritual energy, a fresh and sweet fragrance rushing straight to his head. The pure, natural spiritual energy was absorbed by his body and flowed through his meridians into his dantian. While one small grape would not immediately raise his cultivation, he could clearly feel how clean the energy was. If they had been eating these since childhood, he dared not imagine what their cultivation levels would be today.

Meitianli ate without a burden, and after finishing his share, he sidled up to Bai Zhizhi to ask for a few more. Lurenjia, however, stared at the grapes for a long time, confirming that Bai Zhizhi had really given them to him and wouldn’t ask for them back, before carefully eating them. Tasting them slowly, chewing them finely—so this was what spirit fruit tasted like; it was truly delicious. Uncle Bi held the small box, intending to tell them to put the skins inside so he could bury them in the soil to nourish his vegetables, but everyone was eating the grapes without spitting out the skins, even Huanhuan was chewing them up. In the end, only Bai Zhizhi dutifully spat his grape skins into Uncle Bi’s box.

Uncle Gao leaned back in his reclining chair, fanning himself slowly, sighing, “I never expected that in my old age, I would get to eat such good things.” He had drunk tea brewed with spirit water and eaten spirit fruit rich in energy; he had fought battles in his youth and lived a peaceful life in his old age. His life could be considered quite satisfactory and without regrets. Before the grapes were ripe, the two elders took turns guarding them; now that they were ripe, the three young ones took over. They divided the bunch, but it was gone before they could really savor the taste. Since the rest were not yet ripe, they felt a bit anxious, eyes fixed on the vines. No wonder spirit fruits sold for so much; Lin Xiaoyang had told her that at the Wangting Clubhouse, a peach the size of a fist could cost tens of thousands.

They could not get enough of the grapes, but Bai Zhizhi was tired of looking at them. Now that Hel’s group was taken care of, he did not need to worry about them causing trouble for the courtyard, so he decided to go out for a stroll. Yue Zhihuan was worried about him going out alone, but she was too afraid to go with him. Beyond the alleyway, she rarely went anywhere; she did not like having to gesture to strangers. Meitianli said, “I’ll accompany him, that should work, right? Xiaojia, you guard the courtyard.” Uncle Bi waved his hand, “Just go out and play together. You’re young; have fun. The courtyard is protected by Zhizhi’s array, and most people can’t get in, so don’t worry.” Lurenjia did not answer; they were responsible for guarding Bai Zhizhi and the courtyard. If Huang Tianli followed Bai Zhizhi out, Lurenjia would have to stay; they couldn’t all leave.

Bai Zhizhi ignored them, grabbed the courtyard’s car keys, and asked, “You know how to drive, right?” Meitianli took them, “I do. Where do you want to go? We can’t go too far.” Bai Zhizhi pulled up a poster on his phone and handed it to him: “Here.” Meitianli took one look and let out a light laugh; the little fox demon was actually interested in esports tournaments. That was truly keeping up with the times. Unfortunately, the little fox demon only knew that there was a tournament with very skilled players, but did not know that one had to buy tickets to watch it.

The little fox demon stood at the entrance, unable to get in, puffed up with anger, and turned to Meitianli, saying righteously, “I want to go in.” Meitianli felt both amused and helpless, “Zhizhi, I’m not a turtle in a wishing pond; you can’t just make a wish and have it come true. You didn’t buy a ticket in advance, and we can’t just force our way in.” Bai Zhizhi looked at him with disdain, “Why are you so useless?” Meitianli pointed at himself, “Me? Useless? I’m not Aladdin’s lamp, I can’t just conjure tickets whenever you want. You’re asking for the impossible—is there any justice left?”

Despite saying this, Meitianli still took out his phone to see if he could find someone to fish them inside. Bai Zhizhi looked up at the tournament venue, contemplating the possibility of flying in from above. Before he could act, a voice from the side said, “Want to watch the team match? I can bring you in.” Both turned to see a young man in sunglasses looking at them with a smile, his gaze lingering mostly on Bai Zhizhi: “Do you want to go in?” Bai Zhizhi asked, “We didn’t buy tickets; why can you bring us in?” The young man replied, “I’m the manager of the JR team. You can pretend to be our logistics staff and enter with us. Want to go?” Just as Bai Zhizhi was about to say yes, Meitianli blocked him, “No need, sneaking in like that isn’t very good.” He whispered into Bai Zhizhi’s ear, “I’ll take you in.” Bai Zhizhi then kept quiet.

Seeing how guarded he was, the young man just smiled, “If you don’t need to, then I’ll be going.” Meitianli stood in front of Bai Zhizhi and just smiled at the young man. After the man left, Bai Zhizhi kicked Meitianli in the leg, “You just said you had no way to get in, and now you say you can? Are you lying to me?” The kick wasn’t heavy, but Meitianli jumped around dramatically, “I was just thinking of a plan! The moment I came up with it, that guy appeared. Listen, Zhizhi, there is no such thing as a free lunch in this world. You can’t just follow random people, or you’ll get sold and still be counting money for them.”

Don’t think that just because that guy wore sunglasses, Meitianli couldn’t tell. Who would kindly bring a stranger into a venue for no reason? There were so many people outside who hadn’t bought tickets; why didn’t he bring them? It was clearly because he saw how good-looking Bai Zhizhi was and was acting on base desires. Bai Zhizhi hummed, “Sell me? Who sells whom is yet to be determined.” When it came to schemes, who could compete with a fox? Meitianli laughed, “Fine, fine, they couldn’t sell you. Let’s go; if we don’t go in now, the match will be over.”

Avoiding the main entrance besieged by fans, Meitianli led Bai Zhizhi to the back door. After making a phone call, someone quickly ran out, and upon seeing them, immediately asked, “Excuse me, are you Mr. Huang?” Bai Zhizhi took a moment to figure out who Mr. Huang was, and then saw Meitianli walk over, “Yes, sorry for the trouble.” Bai Zhizhi suddenly realized that he had forgotten Meitianli’s last name was Huang; he had almost thought his last name was ‘Mei’ (No).

After entering with the staff, Bai Zhizhi asked, “Who is he, and why could he bring you in?” Meitianli explained, “He’s a staff member. I contacted the station manager. A while back, there was a haunting at their studio, and Xiaojia and I handled it. We left contact info, and it came in handy.” The tournament was being broadcast live on a major platform, which required various approvals and wasn’t just a simple stream; therefore, such events were usually hosted at local official TV stations or filmed by them. Since they were already at the TV station’s door, there was no need for a stranger’s help; he had just said that to tease Bai Zhizhi.

However, Bai Zhizhi noticed something else: “Do you have so many evil spirits around here?” In the short time he had been here, it felt as if evil spirits were appearing constantly. The family that had died in the courtyard, their killer had yet to be caught. Meitianli sighed, “It’s because we are in a turbulent period. I don’t know if it’s a good thing or a bad thing, but all sorts of messy things are inevitably appearing.” The frequent appearance of energy fields—on the good side, they could get more cultivation resources from them; on the bad side, wasn’t it because of the instability of the energy fields that they were appearing one after another? This was the turbulence of the environment.

Some experts predicted that as more energy fields appeared, the mystical realms that had been sealed off would slowly merge with the ordinary world. The environment would undergo a rapid purification and become better than ever before, but a rapid decay would follow, leading to a catastrophic disaster for all humanity. So, all these things—demons, ghosts, and monsters—were precursors to that disaster, much like ants moving before an earthquake; there would always be unusual signs. Though experts were rarely reliable—when the energy fields first appeared, some said it was because the planet’s magnetic field was faulty and had linked to outside realms—it was all just talk.

Bai Zhizhi didn’t understand the situation here. Every place had its own characteristics; the Demon Realm was characterized by demons, the Immortal Cultivation continent by practitioners, and here, it seemed, by evil spirits. The tournament scene was very lively. Bai Zhizhi didn’t know which team was which, having not looked at the posters carefully. He just knew there was a match between highly skilled players. He picked a random seating area and sat down. The people next to him immediately shoved a pile of stuff into his hands. “You’re sitting here anyway; just take it and have fun.” Meitianli saw that his own hands were also full and laughed, “Fan support culture has reached the esports scene.” Bai Zhizhi asked, “What does that mean?” Meitianli shook the glowing wristbands in his hands, “It means now that we’re here, don’t just sit there. Cheer for them.”

As soon as he finished, some impressive play occurred, and the section they were sitting in burst into thunderous cheers. Meitianli integrated very quickly, standing up and cheering while waving his hands. Bai Zhizhi was amazed by his ability to adapt to any environment; he had integrated into the courtyard the same way. It was terrifyingly good. Soon, Bai Zhizhi became focused on the game, realizing that there were so many strategies involved. He had thought it was just attacking and defending towers; it turned out the experience was completely different with skilled teammates. After watching for a while, Bai Zhizhi rubbed his chin, pulled Meitianli, and asked, “If I want them to play games with me, does it cost a lot of money?” Meitianli calculated, “If you want a championship team, maybe hundreds of thousands?”

He wasn’t sure. He didn’t play many games, as cultivation took up the bulk of his life, so he couldn’t grasp the commercial value of professional gaming. But reaching the championship meant they were famous, and the price probably wasn’t far off from inviting a celebrity to dinner. Bai Zhizhi replied “Oh,” and started calculating his little treasury; it didn’t seem like enough. The pocket money and bonuses Jiang Lin gave him were too little!

Bai Zhizhi had excellent eyesight. Even from a distance, he spotted the young man who had offered to bring them in. Even inside the venue, the guy wore sunglasses and had his arm around a girl, whispering in her ear occasionally; they looked very intimate. Just as Bai Zhizhi thought they were a couple, another girl sat on the guy’s other side, and his hand immediately wandered onto her leg. Bai Zhizhi tilted his head in confusion. Books said that in the human practitioner world, strength was respected, and it was normal for the powerful to have multiple partners. But this person wasn’t a practitioner and didn’t look strong at all; how could he have multiple partners? How strange.

The match went by quickly. Bai Zhizhi couldn’t distinguish the teams, only that the red-clad team won—and the red team was the one they were sitting with. Without paying for a ticket, he walked out with a pile of stuff: a small fan, cards, keychains, and a cute little whistle. He could give the whistle to Huanhuan so she could blow it if she needed something. Emerging from the venue, Bai Zhizhi stretched. Meitianli yawned, feeling that playing with a group of youngsters had likely caused his hearing to decrease by 10 points.

“Going back to the courtyard?” Bai Zhizhi put the free items into the bag provided to them, “Let’s go back. Let’s walk through the West Gate intersection; I want to go buy some crispy duck.” Meitianli laughed, “You are the fastest person I have ever seen to integrate into human society.” Bai Zhizhi looked up at him, “Integrating into your society isn’t difficult.” Meitianli shook his head, “You’ve only barely integrated. Do you know what true integration looks like?” Bai Zhizhi asked, “What does it look like?” Meitianli counted on his fingers, “You need a college diploma, the most basic social insurance and housing fund, which means you need a stable job, preferably as a civil servant—low stress and steady income. If you have those, you’re officially a ‘human expert’.”

Bai Zhizhi was about to ask what a university diploma, social insurance, or a civil servant was, when he saw a car drive past not far away. Sniffing the air, his gaze followed it. Meitianli looked in the same direction, “What’s wrong?” Bai Zhizhi said, “I smell the scent of an evil spirit. You really do have a lot of evil spirits here.” Meitianli was shocked, “An evil spirit? That car just now? What are you waiting for, chase it!”

As soon as he spoke, he saw the car stop at an intersection, waiting for the traffic light. Meitianli confirmed, “Is it that black car?” Bai Zhizhi nodded. Meitianli sent a yellow talisman flying out, which stuck directly onto the tire. After the light turned green, the car suddenly stalled and wouldn’t start. The driver tried switching the ignition several times, but the car remained unmoved. He looked at the young master in the back seat and said, “The car seems to have a problem; let me go check.”

While the driver was checking the car, someone ran quickly toward them. The driver didn’t care at first, but once the person reached them, they immediately pressed him to the ground. Bai Zhizhi followed behind to remind him, “Not him. It’s the person in the car.” Meitianli let go of the driver and stared at the person in the car. He didn’t feel the aura of an evil spirit, but Bai Zhizhi shouldn’t be spouting nonsense; having spent several days with him, he believed Bai Zhizhi wasn’t the type to mess around.

The driver climbed up from the ground, “Who are you people! Are you crazy? Believe it or not, I’ll call the police!” Meitianli ignored the driver, his face devoid of his usual smirk. He pulled the car door open. The young man in the car slowly turned his head, a pair of dead, silent eyes looking at him. Although he didn’t feel evil spirit energy, the person looked very wrong. Bai Zhizhi went, “Eh?” and said, “This aura… it’s the killer from the alleyway case.”

Liu Tao, sitting in the car, suddenly flung the door open and bolted from the other side at a speed impossible for an ordinary human. But faster than him was Bai Zhizhi. A flash of white light passed, and Liu Tao, who had just bolted, was kicked to Meitianli’s feet by Bai Zhizhi. Just as he tried to crawl up, Bai Zhizhi stepped on him, “If you want to kill people, just kill them—why did you deliberately plant demon energy on the corpses? You provoked me first; now that I’ve run into you, you deserve what’s coming.”

Liu Tao tried to struggle, but the person stepping on him had extraordinary strength; he couldn’t move at all. Just as he hesitated whether to abandon this shell, a talisman was stuck to his forehead. Meitianli casually pulled out a red rope and tied both his hands: “I don’t know how you were able to hide your malevolent energy so completely, but the speed you ran at just now isn’t something an ordinary person could do. Come back to the Bureau with me and we’ll talk.” Bai Zhizhi released his foot and looked at Meitianli, “I caught him.” Meitianli said, “I know, I know; I won’t steal your credit.” Bai Zhizhi retorted, “Who cares about your credit? I want the prize money. I caught an evil spirit; you should pay me.” Meitianli couldn’t help but laugh; how on earth did Captain Jiang raise this fox, and how did he raise him into such a little miser?