Ginseng Fruit Tree

Led by Hongyun, Shi Mo soon arrived before a vast mountain.

The mountain was covered in lush pines and cypresses, with vegetation growing thick and vibrant. Ethereal immortal mist swirled and rose, creating a truly extraordinary atmosphere—it was undeniably a blessed land of an immortal mountain.

"What rich spiritual energy from the ley lines! And this Longevity Mountain is also protected by an Innate Chaos Restriction."

As he approached Longevity Mountain, Shi Mo clearly sensed the surging, concentrated earth-element spiritual energy here, as well as the fluctuations of that invisible Innate Chaos Restriction.

Before the mountain gate, an elegant Daoist with a three-strand beard and a horsetail whisk in his hand was already waiting. Seeing Shi Mo, his eyes brightened slightly as he bowed with a smile, "Zhen Yuanzi greets you, fellow Daoist!"

"Brother Zhen Yuanzi, I apologize for the intrusion!" Shi Mo hurriedly returned the gesture.

Perhaps due to the influence of the Earth Book, Zhen Yuanzi had a profound understanding of the earth element, which gave Shi Mo a feeling of particular closeness.

"Brother Zhen Yuanzi, little brother Shi Mo ran into Old Ancestor Minghe and came here in distress. You mustn't be stingy with your ginseng fruits now; you should bring out a few to help him steady his nerves," Hongyun added from the side.

Shi Mo was left speechless. I did arrive here in distress, but is it really necessary to bring that up? Do I have no reputation to maintain?

However, using ginseng fruits to steady his nerves—that was an idea he could get behind!

"Haha, on this mountain of mine, the ginseng fruit is the only thing worth offering to guests," Zhen Yuanzi said with a laugh, then busily and warmly invited Shi Mo up the mountain.

On the current Longevity Mountain, the famous Wuzhuang Temple of later generations did not yet exist!

Zhen Yuanzi was merely a powerful, reclusive loose immortal in the Primordial World with some foundation and destiny. He had no disciples under his tutelage, not even a single Daoist acolyte.

As for the two acolytes, Qingfeng and Mingyue, from the later Journey to the West, there was no telling where they were yet!

In a sun-facing valley on Longevity Mountain, the surroundings were lush with vegetation.

Inside the valley, however, there were almost no weeds, only a large tree with fragrant green branches and layered emerald leaves.

Its leaves resembled banana leaves, reaching a thousand feet in height with a trunk seven or eight zhang in diameter. A surging, rich vitality emanated as the branches and leaves swayed, clashing with the earth-element spiritual energy rising from the golden soil below to immediately conjure swirling, colorful clouds.

"What an excellent Innate Spiritual Root fruit tree. I fear this is the only Ginseng Fruit Tree in the entire Primordial World," Shi Mo exclaimed with bright eyes upon seeing the tree.

Hongyun could not help but add, "Indeed! It is truly enviable! Brother Zhen Yuanzi is blessed with such good fortune to possess both the Ginseng Fruit Tree and a defensive spiritual treasure like the Earth Book. If I had possessed a powerful defensive treasure back then, I wouldn't have been chased so miserably by Minghe."

Zhen Yuanzi stroked his beard and smiled without a word, while Shi Mo asked curiously, "Brother Zhen Yuanzi, has this Ginseng Fruit Tree always grown on Longevity Mountain?"

"Ever since I attained form, it has been here. The growth conditions for an Innate Spiritual Root are harsh; it is not easily transplanted," Zhen Yuanzi nodded.

"That is why I say Brother Zhen Yuanzi's luck is so enviable. Not only do you have a companion spiritual treasure, but also a companion spiritual root. As for me, I am Hongyun, who attained the Dao, and I was destined to wander without a home from birth," Hongyun said, shaking his head.

Seeing this, Shi Mo smiled, "Brother Hongyun, the growth conditions for Innate Spiritual Roots are indeed harsh. If Brother Zhen Yuanzi did not have the Earth Book to gather the spiritual energy of the ley lines, this Ginseng Fruit Tree might not have been able to grow so well."

"Fellow Daoist Shi Mo is truly a kindred spirit," Zhen Yuanzi said, his eyes lighting up.

Shi Mo replied with a modest smile, "I am merely familiar with the spiritual energy of the ley lines and have some experience, that is all."

"Since you and I are fellow practitioners, it is a rare occasion to meet here; we should certainly discuss the Dao and exchange insights," Zhen Yuanzi immediately suggested.

"Hey, I say, you two—we came here to eat ginseng fruit, so where have you wandered off to? Brother Zhen Yuanzi, can we pick a few fruits to taste first? You wouldn't be stingy, would you?" Hongyun urged from the side.

Zhen Yuanzi laughed in spite of himself and nodded repeatedly, "Fine, fine, you glutton! Let us pick a few fruits for Fellow Daoist Shi Mo to taste first, and we can discuss the Dao later."

With that, Zhen Yuanzi took flight, knocked down a few ginseng fruits with his whisk, caught them in his Daoist robe, and descended to the side.

Seeing this, Shi Mo inexplicably thought of the scene in Journey to the West where Sun Wukong stole peaches from the Flat Peach Garden. After receiving the ginseng fruit from Zhen Yuanzi, he recalled the many flat peaches he had seen in the orchards of the Kunlun Immortal Realm and immediately regretted focusing only on the Flat Peach Mother Tree back then and forgetting to swipe some peaches.

"I wonder if the peaches on those trees are ripe yet?" Just as Shi Mo was thinking this, Hongyun, who had already swallowed a ginseng fruit whole, urged him, "Little brother Shi Mo, what are you thinking about? Eat up!"

"Oh, it's nothing," Shi Mo replied with a faint smile, coming back to his senses. He looked at the fruit in his hand, which looked like a transparent, alluring infant less than three weeks old, and took a bite.

The flesh was incredibly tender and had a slight spring to it. Once it entered his mouth, it instantly transformed into a cool, vitality-filled energy that refreshed Shi Mo's spirit, making him feel as though the magic power in his body was boiling and had suddenly become purer and more refined.

"How is it? Little brother Shi Mo, how does the ginseng fruit taste?" Hongyun asked with a smile.

"Hmm, it is excellent!" Shi Mo nodded, "Among the spiritual fruits I have tasted, only the flat peaches produced by the trees in the West Kunlun region can rival this."

"What? Flat peaches? There are spiritual fruits in this Primordial World that can rival the ginseng fruit?" Hongyun was immediately astonished and asked curiously:

"What kind of spiritual fruit is this 'flat peach' you speak of? Why have I never heard of it? Growing in West Kunlun? I have been to West Kunlun, but I never saw them! Where exactly do these flat peaches grow?"

This Hongyun is quite the foodie! Seeing Hongyun's eyes glow at the mention of the flat peaches, Shi Mo thought to himself.

Even Zhen Yuanzi became interested, "Fellow Daoist Shi Mo, do these flat peaches belong to you?"

"Haha, little brother Shi Mo, let us go to West Kunlun then! When we arrive, you must treat me and Brother Zhen Yuanzi to plenty of flat peaches! Don't be as stingy as Brother Zhen Yuanzi," Hongyun laughed loudly.

"I would like to be generous, but that flat peach orchard is not mine. I only managed to transplant one tree, and I have no idea when it will bear fruit," Shi Mo said with a shake of his head and a smile.

Hongyun was stunned, "Not yours? You transplanted a tree, so did you steal it?"

"No, that's not right. You transplanted one? A flat peach orchard? Are there many flat peach trees?" Hongyun asked, his eyes widening in surprise as he turned to look at Zhen Yuanzi, "Brother Zhen Yuanzi, let's go! We should go get a few; they would surely grow if planted here."

"Oh, by the way, little brother Shi Mo, just how many flat peach trees are there in total?" Before Zhen Yuanzi could speak, Hongyun hurriedly asked Shi Mo again.

"This... I didn't count them carefully, but there should be a few thousand!" Seeing Zhen Yuanzi also looking intrigued, Shi Mo had just started to speak when Hongyun's eyes bulged, "How many? A few thousand? Little brother Shi Mo, are you sure that what you call a 'flat peach tree' is an Innate Spiritual Root?"