Chapter 111: Making Use of Waste
Cheng Yuan knew the saying "more haste, less speed," so he didn’t continue his practice. Instead, he took two stalks of old ginseng, grabbed the leftover medicinal dregs, and hailed a taxi back to Villa No. 1.
The old ginseng was to help his grandfather recuperate.
As for the medicinal dregs...
’Their original forms were all potent Tiger and Wolf Medicines, all Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures. Even if they’re just dregs now, they should still have some effect on the Jujube Tree Immortal, right?’
’A perfect way to make use of waste.’
Cheng Yuan remembered the Jujube Tree Immortal once saying that with Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, its growth rate would increase dramatically!
’If the Jujube Tree Immortal can recover its strength quickly, my parents’ safety will be guaranteed.’
The Jujube Tree Immortal was truly worthy of being called an Elf of this world. Even without any Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures, relying solely on absorbing the Power of the Earth Veins, its growth rate far surpassed that of other plants.
After not seeing it for a few days, the Jujube Tree Immortal had already grown to over a meter tall. Although its trunk was thin, it gave off a feeling of great sturdiness.
Seeing Cheng Yuan return, the Jujube Tree Immortal was clearly a little excited.
It was unclear whether it was due to the gentle breeze or because it had recovered some of its Cultivation, but a few of the Jujube Tree Immortal’s branches were swaying lightly, as if expressing their joy.
Cheng Yuan reached out to stroke the Jujube Tree Immortal’s branches, then brandished the medicinal dregs in his hand and smiled. "Xiaozao, look what I brought you!"
With that, Cheng Yuan found a small trowel, dug a few small holes, and buried the medicinal dregs next to the Jujube Tree Immortal.
The Jujube Tree Immortal quickly sensed the Medicinal Power within the dregs and began to absorb it frantically!
Though they looked like mere dregs, Cheng Yuan had only managed to extract less than forty percent of the essence. The remaining Medicinal Power was locked within the dregs, impossible for him to refine.
Unless Cheng Yuan ate the dregs himself.
Unfortunately, Cheng Yuan didn’t have the stomach of a cow and couldn’t digest such coarse fibers.
For the Jujube Tree Immortal, however, there was no such trouble.
The Jujube Tree Immortal’s roots seemed to come alive, instantly wrapping around the dregs and frantically squeezing out and absorbing the Medicinal Power within.
The Jujube Tree Immortal’s absorption ability far surpassed Cheng Yuan’s. The Medicinal Power stored deep within the dregs, which he couldn’t access, was effortlessly drawn out by the tree!
In the blink of an eye, the volume of the medicinal dregs shrank severalfold!
And the Jujube Tree Immortal, as if it had consumed an Immortal Pill, shot up nearly half a meter at a speed visible to the naked eye!
This left Cheng Yuan utterly dumbfounded!
’Thank goodness he hadn’t thrown the dregs away!’
’Otherwise, the Jujube Tree Immortal would have missed its great opportunity!’
Suddenly, the Jujube Tree Immortal’s excited voice echoed in Cheng Yuan’s mind. "Master, do you have any more of these Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures? With ten more portions, I can recover my previous strength!"
Cheng Yuan grinned. "I have over sixty more portions!"
The Jujube Tree Immortal was ecstatic. "If there are over sixty more portions, Xiaozao might be able to advance to the next level!"
Cheng Yuan’s eyes lit up. "What’s the next level like? Can you take human form?"
The Jujube Tree Immortal: "..."
"Master, aren’t your expectations a bit too high? Taking human form only exists in legends. Unless I can shatter the shackles of this world and break the bindings of the Celestial Dao’s rules, it’s impossible. After entering the next level, I’ll be able to control my size to a certain extent and move within a small area. As my realm gets higher, I’ll be able to control my size to be smaller and smaller, and my range of movement will grow larger and larger!"
"Understood. I’ll continue to provide you with Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures."
"Thank you, Master."
As they were speaking, Cheng Yuan’s phone suddenly rang. It was an unknown number.
Cheng Yuan’s first instinct was to hang up, but then he reconsidered and answered. ’What if it’s Zhang Zhigang?’
"Hello?"
A soft, sweet, and somewhat anxious voice came from the other end of the line.
"Big Brother, are you abandoning me?"
Huh?
Cheng Yuan was baffled.
’He already had several messy romantic entanglements on his hands. Where did this girl pop up from?’
"Miss, I think you have the wrong number. My name is Cheng Yuan, and my number is 138-XXXX-XXXX."
"Big Brother, I didn’t dial the wrong number. It’s me, Shen Youchu, from the Hope Welfare Institute. Have you forgotten me?"
Cheng Yuan lightly smacked himself on the head. "Oh, it’s little Youchu! How could Big Brother forget you? I’ve just been a bit busy these past few days and haven’t had the chance! I’ll head over to the welfare institute in a little while to handle your adoption paperwork."
Shen Youchu’s tears turned to a smile. "That’s wonderful! I’ll be waiting for you, Big Brother!"
Cheng Yuan hung up the phone, delivered one stalk of old ginseng to his grandfather, and took the other one with him as he hailed a cab straight for the Hope Welfare Institute.
On the way, a thought suddenly struck Cheng Yuan, and he dialed Lin Ruoxi’s number.
Lin Ruoxi hadn’t made any progress on her end. She was thrilled to suddenly get a call from Cheng Yuan.
"Cheng Yuan, is there good news?"
"Not exactly... I wanted to discuss something with you."
Lin Ruoxi sounded a little disappointed. "What is it?"
"I’m thinking of adopting a little girl. Would that be okay?"
’Adopt a little girl?’
Lin Ruoxi was a bit stunned.
Seeing that Lin Ruoxi was silent, Cheng Yuan quickly added, "Ruoxi, don’t worry, my parents would be the ones raising her, for the most part. Is that okay?"
Lin Ruoxi’s mood improved, pleased that Cheng Yuan respected her opinion so much.
"I just wasn’t mentally prepared for this. What’s the little girl’s situation? If she’s well-behaved, I don’t mind. I actually like kids a lot."
Cheng Yuan breathed a small sigh of relief. "Her name is Shen Youchu. She’s an orphan at the Hope Welfare Institute. Her character is absolutely solid, and she’s very smart. In fact, it’s thanks to her that our Luocheng Patrol Office was able to crack that child trafficking case!"
"Alright then, bring her home. I’ll try to get along with her. If we get along well, she can stay with us. If we don’t, you can take her to your parents."
Cheng Yuan was a little displeased. "Ruoxi, you’re still calling them ’Uncle’ and ’Auntie’? I’ve already started calling your parents ’Mom’ and ’Dad’."
Lin Ruoxi’s voice suddenly grew quiet, and she stammered, "D-Dad... Mom and Dad."
After saying that, Lin Ruoxi quickly hung up the phone.
A faint smile touched the corners of Cheng Yuan’s lips. ’Another small step forward.’
「Soon, they arrived at the Hope Welfare Institute.」
Cheng Yuan paid the fare and got out of the car.
The old director’s health had recovered slightly over the past few days. He had hired a reliable security guard, and the welfare institute was up and running again.
Seeing Cheng Yuan walk into the welfare institute, the security guard approached him warily.
"Sir, who are you looking for?"
"Is the old director in? Could you please let him know I’m here?"
"Certainly."
The guard was in the middle of making the call when Shen Youchu, who had been waiting in the guardhouse for a long time, suddenly dashed out and leaped into Cheng Yuan’s arms like a little rabbit!
"Big Brother, you’re finally here!"
The guard froze for a moment at the sight, then quickly realized that this young man must be the Mr. Cheng that Shen Youchu had just been talking about!
The guard was filled with a sudden, deep respect for Cheng Yuan.
Although he had only been at the Hope Welfare Institute for a few days, he had heard the name Cheng Yuan so many times his ears were ringing with it.
The guard’s attitude became incredibly enthusiastic. "You must be the Mr. Cheng! I never expected you to be so young and handsome in person!"
"Yes, I’m Cheng Yuan."
"The old director said that Mr. Cheng is a great benefactor of our Hope Welfare Institute! If Mr. Cheng comes, there’s no need to announce you. You can go right in."
"Thanks, brother."
Cheng Yuan gave the guard a slight nod, then led Shen Youchu straight to the director’s office.