Seizing the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit

Somewhere in the Ancient Forest, the group from the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan had been wandering for quite some time.

One of the White-Haired Men in the group seemed to have sensed a fierce, unfamiliar aura with a particular attribute.

"I seem to have sensed the bloodline aura of a Heavenly Demon Phoenix, but the purity of its bloodline surpasses even that of our Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan."

"Can you sense its exact location?"

Facing a senior Dou Venerate from the clan, the White-Haired Man nodded. He walked to the front of the group and led his clansmen toward the center of the Ancient Forest.

Not far ahead lay a flat expanse of land, but there was nothing unusual about the lush green grass.

"Is this what you sensed?" Some of the Dou Venerate experts were left speechless by the sight.

"No, this is merely a disguise." The White-Haired Man shook his head. With a solemn expression, he stretched out his hand. When he touched the empty space half a foot before him, a streak of Golden Light suddenly appeared out of nowhere.

The Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan members were also taken aback by the sudden Golden Light. It formed the shape of an inverted bowl, round on the bottom and broad on top, spanning roughly a dozen zhang. Though dazzling, it was concealed beneath layer upon layer of trees. Unless one came close, it would have been impossible to discover.

"This is..."

The White-Haired Man stared at the Golden Light barrier before him, his eyes filled with fervor. From this mysterious barrier, he sensed the bloodline of the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan!

"A Beast Spirit Shield. Only magical beasts of extraordinary strength can condense such a Beast Spirit Shield at the moment of death."

The White-Haired Man rubbed the light barrier, and his expression changed slightly.

"Not only does it carry the scent of the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan, it also contains a dense aura of the Ancient Void Dragon."

"Could there really be something from the legends inside..." The Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan members froze as they thought of that legendary object.

"We'll know once we open it." The White-Haired Man looked anxious. He bit his finger, and a thread of purple blood emerged from the tip. He lightly pressed it against the Beast Spirit Shield, leaving behind a purple streak of blood.

Only those with the same bloodline could open this kind of Beast Spirit Shield.

As the purple bloodstain was drawn, that spot began to ripple rapidly. Then the Golden Light barrier trembled, and a crack of Golden Light slowly tore open.

The White-Haired Man impatiently stepped inside, and the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan members hurriedly followed.

After everyone had entered, the Golden Light rippled, and the crack swiftly vanished.

Just before it closed completely, a black shadow silently slipped in after them...

The moment the White-Haired Man and the others stepped into the Beast Spirit Shield, their vision blurred. The verdant forest instantly vanished, replaced by a desolate plain.

The plain was vast, its ground covered in crimson sand that looked as though it had been soaked in blood.

Amid the crimson earth were occasional patches of chalky white.

Looking into the distance, the group discovered an ancient stone altar a hundred zhang tall at the center of the plain. A faint, imposing pressure spread from it, causing the Dou Qi within the White-Haired Man and the others to become sluggish.

"What a terrifying pressure. Could it truly be the thing from the legends..." A trace of fervor appeared on the White-Haired Man's face. His pace quickened as he swiftly entered the area.

With a tap of his toe against the ground, he shot toward the altar, rapidly approaching the enormous stone structure.

When he reached the middle of the altar and looked up, he could see bluestone steps stretching all the way to the summit.

He stared blankly at the end of those steps, the summoning sensation in his heart growing ever stronger.

Suppressing the urgency in his heart, the White-Haired Man lightly tapped the steps like a dragonfly skimming water. Within a few breaths, he appeared at the top of the altar.

At the center of the altar stood a stone platform of gold and purple. On it was a hollow about half a foot wide.

At that moment, a small sapling grew from within the hollow. It was no thicker than a thumb, yet it coiled and twisted like a Giant Dragon.

Most eye-catching of all was the fruit hanging from the top of the sapling.

The fruit was roughly palm-sized and entirely gold and purple. Upon closer inspection, its golden half was a miniature Ancient Void Dragon, twisted and coiled in lifelike detail.

The other purple half was a demon phoenix spreading its wings in flight.

"It truly is the legendary Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit!"

The Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan members who had followed behind stared at the fruit, greed appearing in all their eyes.

"The Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit... this phoenix is our ancestor, the Ancient Heaven Phoenix." The White-Haired Man's heart burned with excitement as he murmured, "This fruit requires the absorption of the life force of an Ancient Void Dragon and a Heaven Phoenix, and even then it has less than a ten percent chance of being born."

"Even in the records of the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan, it has only appeared five times. This is the sixth."

Perhaps that was why the crimson soil across this vast plain contained patches of white. An Ancient Void Dragon and an Ancient Heaven Phoenix had likely fallen here together.

"We must take the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit. If the Ancient Void Dragons obtain it, their overall strength will rise further. Then our Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan will remain under the rule of the Ancient Void Dragons forever, never to see the light of day!"

Without further hesitation, the White-Haired Man smeared his blood all over his hands before cautiously reaching out to touch the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit.

The instant the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit came into contact with the White-Haired Man's hand, it erupted with a blinding radiance.

Seeing that light, triumph appeared in the White-Haired Man's eyes.

Once he consumed the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit, the Ancient Void Dragons would no longer pose any threat to the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan!

And he would lead the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan to unprecedented heights, rivaling the Ancient Heaven Phoenix!

"I'll be taking it..."

Just as the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit transformed into a mass of golden-purple liquid, about to flow into the White-Haired Man's hand...

A black shadow suddenly flashed from afar like lightning and instantly snatched away the golden-purple liquid from the White-Haired Man's hand.

"Who goes there?!!"

Even the five Dou Venerates of the clan had failed to react at such speed, showing just how terrifying the black shadow's burst of speed was.

The golden-purple liquid lay obediently in the black shadow's palm. As the liquid disappeared, a pattern appeared on his palm—the unmistakable image of the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit.

"Hehehe, many thanks for the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan's gift. I'll gladly accept it." The black shadow's true form was a figure draped in a black robe that concealed both body and face. The strange black currents flowing from him made the Heaven Demon Phoenix Clan members deeply wary.

"Damn it! Give me the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit!!!" Seeing the treasure that had been within his grasp stolen away, the White-Haired Man roared in humiliation and fury.

"Elder Huang Xuan, kill him quickly! Snatch back the Dragon Phoenix Origin Fruit!"