At Last, the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit
The moment they stepped into the Beast Spirit Barrier, everyone felt a sudden blur before their eyes, as if they had passed through an invisible spatial barrier.
The lush, endless, and vibrant Ancient Forest behind them vanished in an instant, and the landscape changed dramatically, replaced by a vast, desolate plain stretching as far as the eye could see, filled with barrenness and death.
This vast plain is predominantly crimson. It's not the soil's natural color, but a dark red that seems to have been repeatedly soaked and permeated by endless blood, carrying an aura of tragedy and desolation.
Stepping on it, you can even feel a faint stickiness and coldness. In this dazzling crimson, there are occasionally some pale white spots like lime, scattered in patches, which stand out conspicuously.
An indescribable heavy pressure permeated every inch of the air on the plain, causing Lin Ming and the others who had just entered the place to catch their breath. The Dou Qi that was originally flowing smoothly in their bodies became somewhat blocked and stagnant at this moment, as if they were carrying an invisible thousand-pound burden.
"Such terrifying pressure..."
Lin Ming and the others exchanged glances, all seeing an undisguised look of horror in each other's eyes.
If the mere presence of pressure from countless years of residual power could cause these Dou Venerate and Dou Zong powerhouses to be in such a state, then how terrifying and earth-shattering must the owner of this pressure have been in life? It must have far exceeded their imagination!
Unlike Lin Ming and the others' solemn expressions, as soon as Zi Yan entered this strange space, her gaze completely ignored the surrounding environment and, as if drawn by a magnet, locked onto the very center of the plain.
There stands an incredibly majestic, ancient stone Altar, hundreds of feet high!
The Altar is dark gray in color and is made of countless huge, weathered rocks. Its shape is simple and rugged, carrying a sense of vicissitude and mystery that has traversed thousands of years.
The terrifying pressure that blocked Lin Ming and the others' Dou Qi originated from this ancient Altar, emanating faintly from it!
Zi Yan stared intently at the Altar, pondered for a moment, seemingly unaffected by the terrifying pressure.
She lightly touched the crimson sand with her toes, and her petite body transformed into a streak of purple light, flying towards the giant stone Altar without hesitation.
Seeing Zi Yan's actions, Lin Ming and the others quickly circulated their internal Dou Qi to resist the omnipresent pressure, and shouted to the people behind them, "Follow me, be careful!"
Immediately, the group also hurriedly activated their Dou Qi, their figures rising into the air with a slightly heavy weight, closely following behind Zi Yan, flying towards the Altar.
A moment later, everyone landed one by one at the bottom of the enormous stone Altar.
Upon closer inspection of this Altar, the ancient and weathered atmosphere is palpable. The rocks are covered with traces of wind and rain erosion and some blurred ancient carvings, as if silently telling a shocking Secrets that has been buried for a long time.
Standing beneath this Altar, humanity appeared so insignificant that Lin Ming and the others couldn't help but compose themselves, suppressing their inner turmoil and feeling a sense of awe.
Lin Ming and the others were positioned in the middle of the Altar. Looking up from here, they could see a staircase paved with huge Blue Stone that stretched all the way to the top of the Altar. The stone steps were long and steep, as if leading to the sky.
Zi Yan stared blankly at the end of the stone steps. The call from the depths of her bloodline became stronger than ever before, almost bursting out of her body! Her heart pounded uncontrollably.
"Call..."
Zi Yan let out a soft breath, trying to calm her churning blood, her face becoming unusually solemn.
Immediately, she stomped her foot on the hard rock beneath her feet, and her figure transformed into a purple streak of light. Like lightning, she ignored the heavy pressure and swiftly traversed the long Blue Stone steps. In a few flashes, she disappeared from everyone's sight and appeared at the end of the Altar.
"Quick!"
Seeing this, Lin Ming's heart tightened, fearing that Zi Yan would face unknown dangers alone. He immediately increased his speed to the maximum, bracing against the increasingly strong pressure, and rushed up the stone steps. Qing Lin, Xiong Zhan, and the others also gritted their teeth and followed closely.
When Lin Ming and the others finally stepped onto the top of the Altar, onto that flat and wide platform, what immediately caught their eyes was not the magnificent palace or the Treasure Hoard of treasures they had imagined, but Zi Yan's face, which was filled with utter shock and disbelief!
The playful smile that used to Zi Yan's face was gone. Instead, her gaze was extremely solemn as she stared intently at the center of the Altar, her small mouth slightly agape, as if she were witnessing something utterly unbelievable.
Upon seeing this, Lin Ming and the others were all startled and immediately followed Zi Yan's gaze.
As far as the eye could see, there was a strange stone platform, roughly ten feet in diameter, at the very center of the Altar.
The stone platform is not a single color, but rather presents two distinct shades of gold and purple. The two colors are like two intertwined yet opposing Giant Dragon, together forming the base of the stone platform and exuding an ancient and noble aura.
In the very center of that Gold-Purple Stone Platform, there was a groove about half a foot in size.
At this moment, what was stored inside that groove was not anything else, but... a small sapling, stubbornly growing out of the stone platform!
This sapling is extremely strange. It is only about the thickness of a thumb, but it does not grow straight upwards. Its trunk is winding and coiled, with a vigorous and domineering posture. In the shadows, it looks like Giant Dragon that has been shrunk countless times and is about to take off!
The tree has a translucent, glassy texture, and golden Dragon Qi and purple phoenix flames seem to flow slowly inside.
At the very top of this strange little sapling, instead of branches and leaves, hung a fruit!
The fruit was about the size of a palm, and its entire body was also in the colors of gold and purple. Moreover, these two colors were not mixed, but rather, like a yin-yang symbol, each occupied half perfectly with clear boundaries!
Upon closer inspection, one will discover that the golden half, with its winding and twisting shape and expression, is exactly like a miniature version of Ancient Void Dragon from the Void! The dragon scales, horns, whiskers, and even the domineering Dragon Might aura are all vividly depicted!
The other half, purple, is shaped like a divine bird spreading its wings and dancing gracefully and proudly. Its form is quite similar to the current Sky Demon Phoenix, but it is more ancient, more divine, and more majestic, full of Primordial Aura!
"This... this is a fruit formed from the combined forms of the Ancient Void Dragon and the Sky Demon Phoenix, in miniature?"
Gazing at this extremely strange and miraculous fruit, the rest of the Five Elements Sect members, including the well-informed Elder Di Kong, looked at each other, completely bewildered, their eyes filled with confusion.
With their ability to identify medicinal herbs and their knowledge, they had never heard of such a rare treasure that defied common sense! This was completely beyond their understanding of "medicinal materials."
"It seems... that terrifying pressure permeating this place... is emanating from within this fruit?"
Qing Lin sensed it carefully for a moment, his emerald green eyes filled with surprise and doubt, and he said in a low voice, his voice also carrying a hint of disbelief.
Upon hearing this, everyone was startled and immediately focused their attention to sense the surroundings.
Sure enough! The immense pressure that had been oppressing them ever since they entered this plain, causing their Dou Qi to be blocked, did indeed originate not from the entire Altar, but from the inside of this extremely strangely shaped fruit, half dragon and half phoenix, emanating continuously like breathing!
A single fruit could emit such terrifying pressure? This was something they, who considered themselves to be highly knowledgeable, had never heard of before!
Just as everyone was utterly stunned by this fact, Zi Yan, who had been staring intently at the fruit, finally spoke in a trembling yet unwavering voice, slowly revealing the true name of this heaven-defying object:
"This... is no ordinary fruit... this is the 'Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit'..."
Zi Yan's gaze remained fixed, as if lost in some ancient, inherited memory. She continued to murmur, "It... exists only in the oldest records of our Ancient Dragon Clan... That phoenix is not the current Sky Demon Phoenix, but their Old Ancestor, whose bloodline is even purer and nobler... the Ancient Heavenly Phoenix!"
"This fruit is not naturally formed by heaven and earth... Its appearance is subject to conditions so harsh as to be almost despairing... It requires the simultaneous absorption of the entire life force and Origin Blood Essence of a Primordial Ancient Void Dragon with the strength of Dou Sheng and an Ancient Heavenly Phoenix of the same level, released at the moment of their demise... Under some extremely coincidental Heaven and Earth Rules, there is only a probability of less than 10%... before it can be born!"
Zi Yan's voice carried a weighty historical weight. She looked around at everyone and said, word by word, "This kind of Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit has only appeared five times in the vast and ancient records of our Ancient Dragon Clan. And this one before us... is... the sixth time..."
Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit!
This name, like Nine Heavens Thunderclap, exploded in the minds of everyone except Lin Ming!
Although they did not understand its specific effects, they could imagine just from the conditions for its formation—requiring the life and Essence Blood of two supreme overlords of the Magical Beast World, and its rarity of appearing only five times—that the value and power contained in this fruit were truly extraordinary!
Zi Yan stared blankly at the true Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit, which existed only in legends. After a moment, as if she remembered something, she suddenly turned her head and stood on the top of the Altar, looking down at the vast crimson plain.
This time, with a clear understanding, the scene before me was completely different!
Those previously overlooked, lime-white patches scattered across the crimson earth were no longer chaotic blemishes in their eyes. They connected and extended, vaguely outlining the silhouettes of two enormous skeletons, so large they could blot out the sky!
A skeleton, winding like a mountain range, with a robust frame, even though it was just a skeleton, still exuded an absolute domineering and majestic power. The head was positioned directly facing the Altar, and the empty eye sockets seemed to still be gazing at the sky—that was the skeleton of the Ancient Void Dragon!
The other skeleton had enormous bone wings spread out. Even though the flesh and blood had long since disappeared, the shape of the wing bones was still beautiful and full of power, carrying the arrogance of a king of the sky—it was the skeleton of Ancient Heavenly Phoenix!
Two unimaginably enormous skeletons intertwined and fought each other on this plain, eventually sinking into silence together. Their Essence Blood and life force transformed into the cradle that nourished the birth of that heaven-defying fruit!
Here, a powerful Ancient Void Dragon and an equally powerful Ancient Heavenly Phoenix once perished simultaneously!
This is... the final battlefield of the ancient top-tier Magical Beasts overlords, and also their burial ground!