At that same moment, within the Sanctuary of Surasthana, Nahida suddenly felt a faint ripple within her consciousness.
She lifted her gaze toward Gandharva Ville, murmuring, "The Traveler…?"
Meanwhile, in Grand Narukami Shrine, Xia Ci felt a similar pulse in her heart.
Turning toward Sumeru's distant horizon, she mused softly, "Someone's praying for the Dendro Archon's blessing…"
---
On the ground below, Collei finished recording the video.
She opened her messages and sent it to Nahida.
"Lady Nahida, please check the footage."
"Received," came the reply almost instantly.
Collei thought for a moment, then decided to forward the same video to Mr. Xia. He'd probably enjoy it.
A few seconds later, her phone buzzed.
A new message from him.
"Nice video."
"(smile)"
---
Grand Narukami Shrine.
Under the Sacred Sakura Tree, Xia Zhi looked down at the screen, replaying the clip of the Traveler touching the statue.
So that was her.
The golden-haired traveler, and the little floating companion beside her—
Paimon.
If his guess was right, this marked the fourth element Lumine had mastered:
Anemo, Geo, Electro… and now Dendro.
With three under her belt, she'd already been able to go toe-to-toe with the Fatui Harbinger [La Signora].
Now that she'd added another, she might even stand against someone ranked higher.
According to Nahida, Collei would soon accompany Lumine to investigate the Doctor's dealings with the Akademiya.
When that time came, he thought with a faint smile, she'd probably handle it with ease.
---
For now, Xia Zhi decided to set aside whatever thoughts he had about the Traveler.
He put his phone away and opened the [Seed-Converting Box] for a look.
Even after a lengthy period of Time Acceleration, the petals from the Sacred Sakura Tree inside remained unchanged—still soft and fresh, as if they had just drifted down from the branches above.
Just as Madame Ping had said, they couldn't be transformed into seeds.
Xia Zhi removed the petals and opened the [Evolution] interface, placing the Box inside.
A notification instantly echoed in his mind.
"This item is currently in an [Worn] state and cannot be evolved. Please repair it first."
So he couldn't evolve it directly.
Switching to the [Shop] tab, he found an item he'd glanced at before:
[Repair Hammer]
Quality: Gold-tier
Type: Consumable
Trait: Repair
Effect: Can be used on any damaged item of equal or lower quality. Restores it completely.
Hidden Effect: None
Price: 500 points
He bought one. A small golden hammer materialized in his hand.
Then he retrieved the [Seed-Converting Box], raised the hammer, and gave the surface a light tap.
The system chimed again.
"Use [Repair Hammer] on [Seed-Converting Box – Worn]? The hammer will be consumed, and the [Worn] status removed."
"Yes."
The hammer dissolved into golden light, wrapping around the Box. Its surface gleamed brilliantly before the glow gradually faded.
When the light disappeared, Xia Zhi saw that the Box had changed.
Though Madame Ping had taken good care of it, centuries of time had inevitably left faint marks of age. Now, restored, it looked as if it had just been forged—flawless, inside and out.
He examined it for a moment before putting it back into his inventory.
Its status had updated from [Seed-Converting Box – Worn] to [Seed-Converting Box], and it was now recyclable.
He decided to test it again, placing more Sacred Sakura petals inside and casting Time Acceleration once more.
But even fully repaired, the Box still couldn't transform the petals.
Just as he suspected—its quality needed to be upgraded.
Opening the [Evolution] interface again, he placed the Box inside.
A moment later—success.
[Seed-Converting Box]
Quality: Platinum-tier
Type: Auxiliary Item
Traits: Seed Transformation, Nurture
Effect: Plants placed inside will, over time, become corresponding seeds. Seeds left inside will gradually improve in quality.
Hidden Effect: Plants placed inside can grow normally.
Recyclable Value: 1,000 points
After evolving to platinum-tier, it gained a new trait: [Nurture].
Xia Zhi studied it thoughtfully. Nurture, judging from its description, likely meant it could refine seeds into higher quality forms.
Curious, he tried placing Sacred Sakura petals inside again.
Even now, it still couldn't transform them.
So platinum wasn't enough either.
Switching to regular sakura petals, he activated Time Acceleration.
This time, a few pink seeds appeared inside.
He plucked one out and checked its data.
[Sakura Tree (Seed)]
Quality: Common
Type: Consumable
Traits: None
Effect: Special seed born from the Seed-Converting Box. Easier to grow, faster to mature.
Hidden Effect: Blossoms emit a fragrance twice as strong as normal.
Recyclable: No
Xia Zhi raised a brow at the hidden effect. So, stronger scent?
He picked up another seed and checked again.
[Sakura Tree (Seed)]
Quality: Common
Type: Consumable
Traits: None
Effect: Special seed born from the Seed-Converting Box. Easier to grow, faster to mature.
Hidden Effect: Grows thick and lush.
Recyclable: No
Different hidden effect.
He checked several more: "Vivid color," "Deep roots," "Long-lasting bloom."
Each one had unique traits.
So this was what [Nurture] did—it produced variations with improved qualities.
Though interesting, the differences were still within ordinary bounds.
These were just regular sakura trees, after all. Even with nurturing, they couldn't break into the realm of the extraordinary.
Satisfied with the test, Xia Zhi placed the Box back into the [Evolution] interface.
Moments later, another success.
[Seed-Converting Box]
Quality: Diamond-tier
Type: Auxiliary Item
Traits: Seed Transformation, Nurture, Spirit
Effect: Plants placed inside will turn into seeds over time. Seeds will improve in quality. Seeds may develop sentience.
Hidden Effect: Plants can grow normally. Lifeless plants will eventually regain vitality.
Recyclable Value: 10,000 points
A new trait appeared—[Spirit].
Its description was simple: "May develop sentience."
But Xia Zhi knew from experience—the simpler the wording, the stronger the result.
He placed more Sacred Sakura petals inside and tried again.
Time Acceleration.
Yet when he opened it, the petals looked the same—unchanged.
He frowned.
Diamond-tier was the highest he could currently reach.
An item of that rank was already considered a divine artifact.
The Sacred Sakura Tree was indeed extraordinary, capable of purifying the Abyss, but it wasn't above the level of Teyvat's gods.
So why didn't it work?
Could it be… because of the Law of Time infused in the petals?
He remembered that first day at the Grand Narukami Shrine, when he cast Time Stop.
Back then, only he, Xia Le, and the petals of the Sacred Sakura Tree were unaffected.
If the petals resisted Time Stop, then they would resist Time Acceleration as well.
Meaning—the Box might already be working, but Time Acceleration had failed to advance it.
If that was the case, he'd simply have to wait and let time pass naturally.
Xia Zhi sighed, shaking his head. He replaced the petals with ordinary sakura petals and tried again.
After another acceleration cycle, new seeds appeared inside.
He picked one up and examined it.
[Sakura Tree (Seed)]
Quality: Black Iron-tier
Type: Consumable
Traits: None
Effect: Special seed infused with a faint spiritual essence.
Hidden Effect: Blossoms emit a calming scent that soothes the mind.
Recyclable Value: 1 point
"Hm?"
Xia Zhi's eyes lit up.
That effect—he knew it well.
It was the same as the Calming Pill.
Even so, the effect was impressive.
After all, Calming Pills were silver-tier consumables, single-use only.
But this seed, even as a black iron-tier item, could produce an endless supply of calming blossoms as long as the tree stayed alive.
Meaning—anyone near the tree would enjoy a constant soothing effect.
This wasn't just a tree anymore.
In Liyue terms, it was a spirit tree—a living medicine.
----
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