Lin Mu first collected the two types of apples in large mortars that were used to crush herbs. He started by crushing the normal attribute less Immortal apples and turned them into a juicy pulp.
With Lin Mu's strength, crushing the apples was the same as tearing off a small feather. He crushed each apple with just a squeeze of his fingers and extracted its juice.
Once the apples were turned into a mush, he flipped the mortar's contents into a muslin cloth and squeezed it further gathering the fine juice into a larger container.
To this, he then added a few shards of Immortal Essence crystals.
Lin Mu had been advised by Xukong to add these as they aided in the growth of the naturally present yeast and promoted the fermentation process. With that done, Lin Mu thoroughly mixed it before adding it all to one of the gourds he had prepared.
The total amount of juice came down to about four liters which would probably reduce once the wine was ready. Still, this four liters of Immortal Apple pulp was still worth a lot.
Even the waste pulp that was left over could still be sold for a couple hundred mid grade Immortal Stones. And this was when most of the nutrients from it had already been extracted.
Lin Mu didn't waste this pulp of course and decided to give it to the Wood Spirit Tulip. The plant would still be able to make good use of the remaining pulp as fertilizer.
Next, Lin Mu repeated the same process with the Wood elemental Immortal Apples and extracted its juice before adding the Immortal Essence crystal shards.
This time around though, he could feel a far stronger energy from it than he did from the normal version. Lin Mu could only attribute it to the Wood Element within it as it gave off a strong feeling of vitality.
If it were not for the fact that Lin Mu had felt this several times and was used to it, he would have found it irresistible and might have just drank it all right away.
Thankfully for him, his will power was quite strong and he easily managed to hold himself from consuming it. He transferred it to the second gourd that he had prepare and plugged its cork.
"Time to seal it now." Lin Mu muttered and got ready for the important process.
Depending on how well a wine was sealed, the flavor and quality of it would vary. If it was not sealed properly, it would leak out energy and thus loose its efficacy.
But if it was sealed properly, it would not lose any energy and over time this energy would only get more potent. That was his aim and would allow him to gain the best benefits from the wine than he would from direct consumption.
In addition to this, Lin Mu had another aim.
'Hopefully Saintess would like this too. It should be ready in a few months or so.' Lin Mu thought to himself.
Since he wanted the wine to be finished fast, Xukong had told him to add the Immortal Essence crystal shards that would promote the growth of the yeast. This would in turn speed up the fermentation process which combined with the gourd and the formations would allow a good wine to be formed in a short time.
Lin Mu spent his two days of waiting time in this and left the Sleepscape when it was just a few hours before the day of decided meeting.
~SHUA~
Lin Mu opened his eyes in the real world and found the unfamiliar ceiling of the new bedroom above him.
"Guess this'll take a bit to get used to." Lin Mu said in a low voice.
He got up and went to take a bath before going out to the courtyard.
There he found a new scene.
The Saintess was sitting at her table as usual but was instructing Little Shrubby. The beast himself was standing next to one of the man fruit trees and had a small cloud of wood immortal qi swirling around him.
The twins were also there, coiled up on the table in front of the Saintess while watching Little Shrubby follow orders.
"Is this how I smooth it?" Little Shrubby asked the Saintess.
"Lighter, reduce the output." She replied.
Lin Mu who watched this was stunned.
'When did she learn how to talk to him?' Lin Mu was sure that she couldn't talk with Little Shrubby before.
But he didn't say anything and simply stayed there while watching the two do their thing.
"Add more constriction! Keep the output same but improve your controls. Channel the streak of qi into the plant and harmonize it with its own natural energies." The Saintess said calmly.
Little Shrubby did as was instructed and controlled the cloud of wood immortal qi, channeling it into a long streak that tunneled its way into the fruit tree.
The tree shook as if it was in a storm and several of its leaves fell off as well, but once Little Shrubby was done the tree seemed to have gained a new found energy.
A few moments later, the fallen leaves of the tree suddenly regrew and several more sprouts appeared on it too. These sprouts continued to grow and soon turned into larger branches that further grew twigs on them.
"Do it again." The Saintess ordered.
"Okay~" Little Shrubby seemed to be engrossed in it too, following the Saintess's orders to a T.
He generate another cloud of Wood Immortal qi around him and turned it into a long streak which then channeled into the immortal fruit tree. The newly grown branches grew even more and soon new buds opened up on them.
These buds were tightly closed for a few seconds before finally blossoming and releasing a refreshing fragrance.
Lin Mu couldn't help but feel that this fragrance was a lot stronger than the one he had smelled upon entering here. It was as if a transformation had occurred within the tree that was of a qualitative level.
He then watched on as the buds turned into full blown blossoms and soon wilted to give birth to young fruits.
"That's good." The Saintess spoke seeing the progress. "You did well," she praised to which the Little Shrubby responded by rushing toward her.
The Saintess rubbed Little Shrubby's head and stroked his fur, making the now kitten sized beast melt onto the table.
Lin Mu watched the adorable act, feeling rather cozy himself. But at the same time he didn't speak, as the moment felt a little too precious to be disturbed
A minute later though, he heard the Saintess speak.
"Are you heading out?" She asked, while continuing to stroke Little Shrubby.
"Yes. I'll be going to meet a potential seller." Lin Mu replied.
"A seller? Of what?" the Saintess inquired.
"I'm looking for Tyrant Bull Marrow." Lin Mu answered honestly.
As soon as the Saintess heard that, she stopped stroking Little Shrubby and turned to Lin Mu.
"Tyrant Bull Marrow? For body cultivation?" She questioned in doubt.
"Yes." Lin Mu nodded his head, noticing the dissatisfaction of Little Shrubby who nuzzled his head against the Saintess's hand that had stopped.
"Aren't you cultivating the Three Apertures Invoking Technique?" She questioned.
"Yes… but I am also looking to add another body cultivation technique to my list." Lin Mu answered. "The Tyrant Bull Marrow Secrets." He revealed.
"You want to cultivate a second body cultivation technique… that too a high quality one like the Tyrant Bull Marrow secrets." The Saintess spoke. "I don't know whether to call you brave or foolish." She added.
"I believe I can handle it. My master has given the approval as well." Lin Mu replied.
"I see…" Hearing that the Saintess didn't have anymore doubts. "Well if there's anyone that can withstand multiple Body cultivation techniques, it may as well be someone like you."
Lin Mu gave a little nod before looking towards the Immortal Fruit tree that had grown.
"What was that though? Were you teaching Little Shrubby?" Lin Mu asked feeling curious.
"You can say that. I was merely showing him a few tricks to controlling his own innate talent with the wood immortal qi." The Saintess replied much to Lin Mu's contentment.
He knew the Saintess's guidance was not simple and if she could teach Little Shrubby, the beast would progress at a great pace. In fact, even humans that got guidance from her might progress really fast and gain a lot.
But Lin Mu could tell that it was more than what the Saintess had said. It felt as if she had tailored the guidance specifically for Little Shrubby as the beast was able to act perfectly according to her commands.
Something like this could only be accomplished if the teacher herself was a master of the same.
"Master, look now I can grow more food for us!" Little Shrubby said with great joy.
