Vermillion Fruit, Enemies Meet on a Narrow Path

Zhao Guangyi slowly shook his head, his expression grave, a trace of awe flashing through his eyes.

"I've never heard of anyone reaching it. Most who ventured too deep into the forest—whether coveting Natural Treasures, hunting Demon Beasts, or driven by excessive curiosity—vanished without a trace."

Hearing this, Jiang Qinghe felt a chill run through him. He swept his gaze over the surroundings once more, etching that boundary line deeply into his mind.

By then, the sky had darkened, heavy Clouds pressing down as if about to swallow the last of the light.

Zhao Guangyi decided not to delay any longer and immediately turned back, setting out on the return journey.

So that his Junior Brother could become as familiar as possible with the outer region's environment, they did not take the same route they had come by.

This path had more dead branches and weeds, clearly one that no one had explored before.

Jiang Qinghe followed closely behind Zhao Guangyi, his steps steady and his mind alert at all times.

As they advanced, he occasionally Looked Up through gaps in the leaves overhead, glancing at the steadily darkening sky.

Just as he withdrew his gaze, a glimmer of fluorescence suddenly flashed at the corner of his eye.

The light was a deep, pure emerald green—brief, yet soul-stirring.

"Senior Brother! Look! What's that?"

Jiang Qinghe's heart skipped a beat. His voice carried surprise and urgency as he abruptly pointed toward an especially enormous ancient tree ahead and to the side.

At the sound, Zhao Guangyi came to an abrupt stop.

His first thought was that his Junior Brother had spotted traces of a Demon Beast. He swiftly turned around with a guarded expression and focused in the direction Jiang Qinghe was pointing.

On the trunk of that giant tree, some seven or eight zhang above the ground, beneath a thick, gnarled branch that jutted out at an angle, two fruits were tightly attached amidst dense dark-green moss!

The fruits were about the size of eggs, perfectly round, their surfaces flowing with a warm, restrained emerald-green radiance.

At first, Zhao Guangyi merely gave them a casual glance and did not pay them much attention.

There were plenty of strange flowers and exotic plants in the Wasteland Forest. A glowing fruit was not necessarily a rare treasure.

But when he carefully examined the fruits' shape and color—especially the strange Energy Ripples in the surrounding air that seemed to arise from their presence—

Zhao Guangyi's expression gradually turned puzzled. His brows furrowed slightly as he stared intently.

At last, his face filled with shock, and he blurted out:

"Vermillion Fruit! They're actually Vermillion Fruits!"

Watching the change in his Senior Brother's expression, inspiration flashed through Jiang Qinghe's mind.

"Senior Brother, are they some kind of Natural Treasure?"

Zhao Guangyi's eyes gleamed brightly.

"These Vermillion Fruits are the main ingredient for refining Foundation Solidifying Pills. They may not be Natural Treasures, but they come infinitely close. I never imagined we'd find them on the outskirts of the Wasteland Forest!"

He could barely contain his excitement.

"Junior Brother, do you know that when Xiao Hei went to Cangfeng City before, he intended to seek a Foundation Solidifying Pill to treat Master's chronic hidden ailment?"

"While the Vermillion Fruit itself cannot compare to the pure and vast medicinal power it possesses after being refined into a pill, it still contains incomparably pure essence of plant-life origin. Its nourishing and restorative power is especially gentle and potent."

"If consumed directly, it will surely be of tremendous benefit to his old injuries! This is simply fortune fallen from the heavens!"

Zhao Guangyi took a deep breath.

"Junior Brother, you truly are a lucky star! If not for your sharp eyes, we would probably have passed right by them."

Before his words had even faded, he could no longer suppress the urgency in his heart. He prepared to climb the tree and pluck the extraordinary Vermillion Fruits.

"Tap, tap, tap..."

Suddenly, a voice came from not far away, accompanied by the crunching sound of footsteps on snow.

"Well, well! Isn't this Brother Guangyi? What's this? Practicing tree-climbing skills in the forest?"

Jiang Qinghe turned toward the voice, and his expression darkened slightly.

From behind the dim forest trees emerged three familiar figures.

The man in front was burly, his face covered in flesh.

It was He Chong of Golden Thunder Martial Academy, who had caused trouble over Blood Activating Powder some days ago.

Following close behind was a figure with a gloomy face, his blade-like eyes nailed onto Jiang Qinghe.

It was Qin Wu, whom Jiang Qinghe had publicly defeated in the martial hall competition, leaving him utterly humiliated.

At Qin Wu's side stood Jin Yuqi, the daughter of Golden Thunder Martial Academy's headmaster.

Jiang Qinghe inwardly cursed his bad luck.

Of all times for this group to show up, they had to arrive just when the two of them had discovered the Vermillion Fruits.

He Chong strode forward with a fake smile on his face.

He narrowed his eyes and followed the giant tree beside Zhao Guangyi with his gaze, scanning upward.

In the dim light, the Vermillion Fruits radiating an emerald-green glow were especially conspicuous.

After several breaths, He Chong's tiny eyes narrowed, and even his breathing seemed to stop.

"Ver... Vermillion Fruits?"

After the brief shock, the greed in his eyes was impossible to conceal.

"Brother Guangyi, would you be willing to give me these fruits? I'll trade ten Bone Forging Pills and five hundred taels of silver for them."

Hearing this, Zhao Guangyi looked disdainful and let out a derisive snort.

"Are you trying to fob off a beggar? No deal. Not a chance!"

The flesh on He Chong's face quivered. Seeing that there were only two of them now, he immediately gave a cold snort, his voice turning icy.

"Zhao Guangyi, I've given you more than enough face. If you refuse to take the way out I've offered, then we'll settle it with our fists!"

With that, he shot Qin Wu and Jin Yuqi a look before stepping up before Zhao Guangyi and assuming a fighting stance.

While Zhao Guangyi and He Chong faced off, Jiang Qinghe had already inconspicuously placed most of his attention on Qin Wu.

After not seeing him for so long, the arrogant air around this fellow seemed to have subsided considerably. He was no longer as overbearing as before.

Yet the sinister glint deep in his eyes had grown even stronger than before, like a venomous snake coiled in the shadows, waiting for a chance to strike.

By then, Zhao Guangyi and He Chong had already fallen into a fierce melee.

Both were at Minor Accomplishment in the Bone Forging Realm. Fists and kicks flew, forceful qi crisscrossing the air.

Every collision erupted with a dull boom, shaking the snow piled on the surrounding dead leaves down in flurries.

They appeared evenly matched, and it was clearly difficult to determine a victor in a short time.

"Jiang Qinghe!"

Qin Wu had long since been unable to restrain himself. Ever since his public, crushing defeat at Jiang Qinghe's hands during the Martial Academy competition had wounded his pride, he had trained bitterly day and night.

The only obsession in his heart was to wash away that former humiliation and thoroughly trample the man before him beneath his feet.

He lunged forward, whipping out a fierce sweeping kick laden with icy killing intent toward Jiang Qinghe.

The force of this kick truly could not be mentioned in the same breath as his strength during their previous match.

Jiang Qinghe's eyes narrowed, and he inwardly sighed.

Born with a golden spoon in his mouth, Resource-stacked like this, his improvement in strength truly was on another level.

As the only son of the black market boss and a disciple of the Golden Thunder Martial Academy's headmaster, Qin Wu lacked neither Martial Arts Techniques nor cultivation methods. He consumed precious pills as casually as beans whenever he pleased.

His rapid pace of breakthroughs was nearly comparable to Jiang Qinghe's.

Unfortunately, he had been born at the wrong time—and chosen the wrong opponent.

Though both were at Minor Accomplishment in the Tendon Transformation Realm, Jiang Qinghe's physical strength far surpassed Qin Wu's, and he had even comprehended the rudiments of martial intent.

The outcome had been decided from the very start of their clash.

Jiang Qinghe did not reveal too much, using only enough strength to barely overwhelm his opponent.

Before the time it took an incense stick to burn, Qin Wu was retreating step by step in shock, until he finally had no strength left to fight.