Han Sen listened carefully as Exquisite explained the situation to him in more detail. The star tree was guarded by seniors of the Very High. Every silkworm of the Very High was allowed one chance to claim star fruit from its boughs.
But how many star fruit could be collected would be determined by tests conducted by the aforementioned seniors of the Very High.
The test results correlated with how many star fruits could be obtained. Even if the results weren’t great, a participant was always guaranteed at least one. Ten star fruits was generally the most one could receive.
But the tests were highly variable depending on which Very High senior was administering them.
“The personality of your particular administrator is very unique. If he likes you, he will only ask you a few questions. Then, he will let you claim seven or eight fruits. If he doesn’t like you, he will give you a very difficult question. If you answer correctly, you will only be allowed a small number of star fruits… I hope the man will like you.” Exquisite’s eyes looked strange as she spoke.
“Is he often that unreasonable? Is there any point of a test if he just gets to decide regardless? Just make it a beauty contest or something, then,” Han Sen thought to himself.
Exquisite could feel what Han Sen was thinking, so she laughed. “The star tree belongs to the uncle alone. Who he shares the fruit with is entirely his decision. Being willing to share with those far younger than him is already a grand act of kindness. So, even if he gives you only one star fruit, you should still be appreciative.”
“I see. That makes sense then. If they are his items, then he can definitely dictate the distribution of them,” Han Sen said with a nod.
“This is just a small reward. My generation will soon begin testing silkworms in earnest. If you perform well when that happens, the resources you receive will far exceed the star fruit,” Exquisite said.
“How long must we wait?” Han Sen asked.
“There are thirteen of us in my generation. Now, there is only one little sister who has yet to decide on a silkworm. Once she has made her decision, the tests will begin.” When Exquisite spoke of her little sister, her eyes glimmered strangely.
Han Sen’s heart felt weird hearing this, too. But he carefully kept his thoughts away from the subject.
The little sister Exquisite was referring to was undoubtedly Li Keer. Li Keer wanted Dollar, so Han Sen knew all about that.
“Let’s go. We should head to the star tree.” Exquisite placed a hand on Han Sen’s shoulder. Then, she teleported Han Sen and Bao’er away from Underworld Lake.
There were still many Xuan Yellow Sutra pages left to collect, and Han Sen wanted to carry on fishing them all out, but it was a long task that he couldn’t rush. He would have to wait for the chance to fish again later.
When Han Sen saw the star tree, he was shocked. Its boughs almost blanketed the whole sky. It was like a big umbrella that formed a bridge between the land and the sky itself.
Many pieces of fruit hung from the tree’s branches. They looked like suns, and their light made the leaves of the tree shine like jade. It was so very beautiful, and Han Sen squinted against the light.
According to what Exquisite had told him, the test administrator’s personality was quite strange. But his story was a legendary one.
When a child of the Very High was born, it would be put into one of two factions. One faction was responsible for reproducing. They were the ordinary Very High, and they didn’t practice the Very High Sense. Their personalities were comparatively normal, and they retained emotions like an ordinary person would. They were similar to Liyu Zhen.
The other faction was the one Exquisite studied with. They learned the Very High Sense, and at the end of their practice, their emotions were practically non-existent. Their strength and combat prowess, however, were the best of the Very High.
When a Very High was born, it was decided which path they would take.
This man was like Exquisite. He practiced Very High Sense, and he had reached deified class with it. He had been only a step away from becoming a true god.
But then, he destroyed his Very High Sense and started anew. Not even Exquisite knew why the man had taken such drastic action.
But as he began practicing again, the elder guarded the star tree and never left its side. Even the other Very High didn’t know what level he was at currently.
“Uncle.” Exquisite brought Han Sen beneath the boughs of the star tree and bowed to the roots of the tree.
Han Sen and Bao’er looked in the direction she was bowing, and there, they saw a giant stone tree root. Despite being made of stone, the root still seemed to be alive and growing. There was a gray-haired man of the Very High sitting on it.
The wrinkles in his face appeared rougher than the bark of the tree. His white beard reached the ground. He remained sitting where he was, his eyes closed. He was so old that he looked like he’d been petrified.
Han Sen wasn’t sure what to make of the man’s appearance. With the power of the Very High, they could keep themselves looking young until the moment they died. Doing that wasn’t difficult. He wondered why this man’s face looked so old.
Upon hearing Exquisite’s voice, the old man opened his eyes. His eyelids were very wrinkly, too. He could barely open a small slit to see through. If one didn’t look closely, one would never realize that his eyes were open at all.
The old man looked at Exquisite. Then, he turned to Han Sen and Bao’er. With a rough voice, he said, “It is Exquisite. Have you brought your silkworm? Is it the big one or the small one?”
“His name is Han Sen. He is a crystallizer…” Exquisite introduced Han Sen and Bao’er to him.
“You selected a crystallizer? That takes a lot of courage,” the old man said. He observed Han Sen’s body well. He started to say something more, but he suddenly saw a person teleporting in front of him.
“Uncle,” the new man said, bowing to the elder.
“Liyu Zhen, what are you doing here?” Han Sen and Exquisite’s heart asked the same question.“Liyu Zhen, please wait aside for a moment. Allow me to help Exquisite’s silkworm conduct the test. Then it will be your turn,” the old man said, signaling him to stand aside for a while.
When Liyu Zhen heard the command, he bowed to the old man and said, “Uncle, if things are like that, why don’t we conduct our tests together?”
Han Sen and Exquisite, when they heard it, felt a shock. They didn’t know what was going on in Liyu Zhen’s mind to make such a proposal.
When the old man heard this request, he went silent. Then, he nodded and said, “Why not? We can save some time. Let us do the tests together, then.”
Exquisite was unsettled. Usually, ordinary Very High silkworms conducted their tests alone. And people of the Very High never had to undergo these tests at all. She was confused by why Liyu Zhen wanted to take a test, as well.
The old man seemed to understand what Exquisite was wondering. And so he said, “I have to travel soon. Others have recommended that Liyu Zhen protect the star tree in my absence. If he can pass the test, he will be in charge of the star tree temporarily.”
Han Sen felt lucky. It was good that they had come now. If they came when Liyu Zhen was guarding the star tree, there was a chance Liyu Zhen would deliberately make the test difficult for him.
