Peace lasted until noon.
Lin Chen was in the main hall, finally enjoying a cup of warm tea that did not glow, hum, or try to enlighten him.
"This," he said quietly, "is progress."
> System Notification:
Abnormal Calm Detected
Lin Chen froze.
"…I hate that sentence."
---
Outside, the disciples were training normally.
No chanting.
No bowing to vegetables.
No spontaneous breakthroughs.
Little Green was planted, motionless, obeying rules.
A sign beside it read:
BEING GOOD
Lin Chen relaxed slightly.
This was his second mistake.
---
A tremor shook the ground.
Not violent.
More like… rhythmic.
Thump. Thump.
Lin Chen rushed outside.
"Report!"
Zhao Feng pointed weakly. "Master… the soil is breathing."
Lin Chen looked down.
The farm soil was rising and falling gently.
"…Why is it breathing?"
> System Alert:
Subterranean Activity Detected
Cause: Excess Spirit Accumulation
Secondary Cause: Radish (Still)
Lin Chen glared at Little Green.
The radish held up a sign:
I AM NOT MOVING
"…I believe you," Lin Chen said carefully. "That somehow makes this worse."
---
Suddenly, the ground cracked.
A massive root burst forth.
Then another.
Then another.
They wove together, forming something like a wooden archway.
The disciples screamed.
Su Ming drew his sword.
"Master! Is this an enemy?"
Lin Chen stared.
"…No."
The system chimed.
> New Sect Structure Formed:
Spirit Root Pavilion (Natural)
Function:
– Enhances cultivation
– Stabilizes spirit energy
– Responds to sect intent
Origin: Farm
Lin Chen slowly turned to Little Green.
"…Did you do this?"
The radish hesitated.
Then slowly raised a sign:
I MAY HAVE STRETCHED
Lin Chen sat down hard.
---
The Spirit Root Pavilion pulsed gently.
Disciples nearby felt their cultivation stabilize.
One outer disciple sneezed—and broke through.
Lin Chen groaned.
"Great. Now we have architecture that cultivates people."
> Cultivation Feedback:
Qi Refinement Peak 7 → Early 8
Lin Chen blinked.
"…I didn't even sneeze."
---
News spread instantly.
Someone shouted, "THE SECT GREW A BUILDING!"
Another cried, "THE RADISH HAS TERRAFORMING SKILLS!"
Lin Chen roared, "STOP NAMING THINGS!"
---
To prevent chaos, Lin Chen officially named it himself.
"This," he declared, "is the Spirit Root Pavilion. It is a building. Not a deity."
The building hummed approvingly.
Lin Chen pointed at it.
"…Why did it react."
> System Note:
Structure is Semi-Sentient
Status: Loyal
Lin Chen laughed weakly.
"Of course it is."
---
That evening, Lin Chen wrote in his mental diary:
Prevent ascension
Prevent worship
Prevent infrastructure from becoming alive
He underlined the last one twice.
Little Green rolled slightly closer and held up a sign:
SORRY ABOUT THE PAVILION
Lin Chen sighed.
"…It's fine."
He looked at the glowing wooden structure, the calm disciples, and the silent heavens.
Azure Cloud Sect was no longer just strange.
It was evolving.
Unpredictably.
And somewhere deep underground—
Something old and wooden shifted slightly…