Chapter 493 - 240: Not Enough Time, Make It Up with Immortal Arts

Chapter 493: Chapter 240: Not Enough Time, Make It Up with Immortal Arts

Yang Qi had studied animal ecology and behavior under Song Chunfang for over half a year. How could he be unaware of these risks?

But he still insisted on bringing Great Sage and the others over ahead of schedule, because he naturally had an ace up his sleeve.

That ace was the Hundred Trees Nourishing Body Array!

Since conventional methods couldn’t get the new enclosures into perfect condition in time, he would use extraordinary means to make up for it!

The Hundred Trees Nourishing Body Array, meticulously arranged with one hundred Wood Spirit Stones and one hundred trees over thirty years old according to specific orientations and the five elements, was far more than simple landscaping or scenery once activated.

It could subtly regulate the climate within the area covered by the array and even a certain range beyond it.

Temperature, humidity, air quality, and even microbial colonies would all shift toward a harmonious and perfect state most beneficial to living beings.

The special force field generated by the array could soothe the animals’ emotions and enhance their immunity.

It would prevent minor ailments and suppress major ones. Living within it long-term could even extend their lifespans!

This was the ultimate guarantee that gave Yang Qi the confidence to move the animals in early.

It was also what would become Xianlai’s true core competitive advantage, setting it apart from all other zoos in the future!

So, on the surface, Yang Qi instructed all the zookeepers and night shift staff to keep a close, 24-hour watch on their assigned animals and report any issues immediately.

Then, as night deepened.

Past one in the morning, the entire Xianlai Zoo was submerged in a slumbering tranquility, save for the landscape lighting in a few areas and the lights in the duty office.

The night patrol guard had just completed a round.

Yang Qi emerged silently from the villa where he lived.

He had changed into a dark tracksuit, his figure melting into the night like a phantom.

His cultivation at the Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer Perfection allowed him to perfectly conceal his aura and footsteps.

He avoided the few security cameras installed on the main paths and at enclosure entrances, relying on the Earth Listening Technique and his familiarity with the terrain to stick to blind spots and green belts.

Soon, Yang Qi arrived at a small hill near the administration and "Expert" buildings.

This was one of the peripheral areas designated for the Hundred Trees Nourishing Body Array, where the first batch of ten large trees, each over thirty years old and serving as array nodes, had been planted.

Standing in the center of the clearing formed by the ten large trees, Yang Qi fully activated his Earth Listening Technique, his perception sweeping the surroundings like an invisible ripple.

He confirmed that within a hundred-meter radius, there was no other movement—neither human nor large animal—aside from the low chirping of nocturnal insects and the rustling of leaves in the wind.

Taking a deep breath.

With a flick of his hand, Yang Qi retrieved ten Wood Spirit Stones from his Hundred Pouches Belt.

"Go!"

He chanted silently in his heart as he discreetly cast the Object Manipulation Technique.

As if pulled by invisible threads, the ten Wood Spirit Stones slowly levitated from his palm. Then, like fledgling swallows returning to their nests, they flew precisely toward the roots of the ten surrounding trees.

At the base of each tree, a fist-sized, concealed hole had been left during construction, sealed with a special anti-corrosion material.

On the original master plans, this design had been justified as an access point "for observing the ’special soil conditioner’ and ’subterranean microclimate regulation system.’" Only a few high-level executives and the construction supervisor knew their true location and purpose, and they were sworn to secrecy.

Now, the seals on these holes had already been discreetly removed during the final stages of construction, leaving only inconspicuous indentations that blended in with the color of the soil.

SWOOSH! SWOOSH! SWOOSH!

The ten Wood Spirit Stones fell unerringly into the depths of the ten holes and vanished from sight.

Without pausing, Yang Qi’s figure moved like a flash of lightning, weaving silently through the darkness toward the next array node area with its ten large trees.

Along the way, like the most seasoned night-stalker, he flawlessly avoided all light and security cameras, using the Earth Listening Technique to preemptively bypass the patrol guards’ routes.

One node, two nodes, three nodes...

Like a diligent gardener, he moved across the vast grounds of the Xianlai Zoo, following a specific sequence and path to plant one hundred Wood Spirit Stones into the roots of the one hundred large trees that served as array nodes.

With each Spirit Stone he planted, Yang Qi carefully sensed it, ensuring it established an initial connection with the tree’s root system and that the Spiritual Qi flowed smoothly.

The process seemed simple, but it was incredibly draining on his mind and Magical Power. If not for the fact that Yang Qi had reached Qi Cultivation Sixth Layer Perfection, his Magical Power far more abundant and condensed than that of cultivators at the same level, he would never have been able to complete such a precise array deployment on his own in such a short time.

By the time the last Wood Spirit Stone was planted beneath the final ancient willow tree on the edge of the Wetland Birdwatching Area, nearly an hour had passed.

Sweat beaded on Yang Qi’s brow, and nearly half of the Magical Power in his body was depleted. But his eyes were exceptionally bright, filled with anticipation.

’The preliminary preparations are complete.’

He took a few deep breaths of the cool, damp air. Not daring to delay, his figure flickered again and sped toward the core area of the Xianlai Zoo.

After arriving, Yang Qi sat down cross-legged. He first took out three Qi Condensing Pills from his Hundred Pouches Belt and swallowed them. He mediated for a moment to regulate his breathing, and only after some of his Magical Power had recovered did he take out two items.

One was a palm-sized Array Plate, dark cyan in color, its surface covered in complex, esoteric patterns.

The other was a scroll that looked ordinary but was actually woven from threads of Magical Power, upon which was marked a dense matrix of glowing dots—an array diagram.

The Array Plate and the array diagram were both provided by the System.

Yang Qi placed the Array Plate flat in front of him, then unrolled the array diagram to perform a final calibration, cross-referencing it with the positions of the surrounding ancient trees.