Joining Forces, the Extraordinary Treasure Gourd

"It's actually those few. This is going to be troublesome."

Chen Zhengchu's gaze continuously swept between the two teams opposite them. His brows furrowed slightly, and a rare note of gravity entered his voice.

He turned around.

When the upright figure beside him entered the corner of his eye,

his expression eased somewhat.

"Good thing Deng Huo was clever enough to bring in a powerful ally. Otherwise, even if we stumbled upon such an opportunity today, we wouldn't have the slightest hope of competing for it."

With that thought,

Chen Zhengchu's attention returned to Lu He.

"Still, are there any powerful cultivators surnamed Lu in the Azurehold Herb Garden? Why don't I remember one?"

Name after name flashed through his mind.

At that moment,

"Senior Brother Chen, what did you mean just now by 'those few'?"

Deng Huo could not help asking from the side, his heart tightening involuntarily.

He had originally thought this opportunity was as good as theirs.

After all, their team had no fewer than two geniuses ranked near the top of the Scorching Sun Golden Ranking. Even among the many teams on Prodigy Island, such a lineup could be called luxurious.

The two teams opposite them should have been nothing to fear.

As for the group of Rogue Cultivators at the cave entrance, they looked numerous, but were in truth a heap of loose sand. Deng Huo had not taken them seriously.

On the other side,

Chen Zhengchu came back to himself and pointed at one of the teams.

"The leader of that team is called Xu Yang. He is also a Beast Pavilion seed, and he's very strong. Ten days ago, he was already ranked one hundred and thirty-second on the Golden Ranking. He has never gotten along with me, so we need to watch out for him."

"And that other team—"

He paused, suddenly turning solemn.

"There are two leaders. One is Gongshu Jing, from a branch line of the Gongshu Clan of the Famous Artifact Pavilion. He ranks one hundred and nineteenth on the Scorching Sun Golden Ranking.

"The other is from the Demon-Suppressing Pavilion. His surname is Hao, his given name Wu, and he ranks one hundred and thirty-ninth on the Scorching Sun Golden Ranking."

As soon as his words fell,

"Hiss—"

Deng Huo and the other three looked at one another and inhaled sharply in unison.

"So that means... five top Golden Ranking geniuses have gathered before this cave?"

Hu Changting's pupils contracted as he clicked his tongue in disbelief.

He had not counted those monsters ranked in the top hundred of the Golden Ranking.

Almost every seed knew that those people cultivated the core high-grade methods of the Ten Great Powers. They had come to Prodigy Island for only one purpose—

a Dao Palace slot and the inheritance of a Heavenly Being!

In other words, they and those monsters were not even in the same world, nor did they share the same goals.

Thus, whenever strength rankings were discussed, everyone tacitly excluded them.

This was a rule acknowledged by the many seeds on Prodigy Island.

And once those monsters were excluded,

whether in strength or talent, these five were undoubtedly among the absolute elite of Prodigy Island.

For a moment,

Hu Changting and the other two could not help looking at Chen Zhengchu and Lu He beside them, then glancing at the two teams opposite who were concealing their auras. Finally, their gazes landed on the Rogue Cultivators gathered before the cave.

A faint trace of sympathy rose in their hearts.

How miserable.

They had finally found an opportunity.

Yet even if they were beaten to death, they would never have imagined that six mantises, sinister to the bone and immensely powerful, were lurking nearby and watching them.

"By the way, Brother Lu, can you tell us your current Golden Ranking placement?"

As Chen Zhengchu watched the scene, he seemed to suddenly think of something. He hurriedly turned back and stared straight at Lu He.

The other three also turned their gazes toward Lu He, their eyes full of curiosity.

They had actually wanted to ask this question for a long time.

Hearing this,

Lu He answered casually, his tone calm. "I passed the Ancient Demon Pass yesterday. I'm currently one hundred and seventeenth."

The Scorching Sun Golden Ranking was public. So long as one entered the Ancient Demon Pass, they could look it up. There was naturally no need to hide it.

As his voice fell,

the surroundings instantly went silent.

"One hundred and seventeenth on the Scorching Sun Golden Ranking?!"

Deng Huo nearly thought he had misheard. Yet Lu He's calm expression did not seem false, and his eyes immediately widened as his breathing grew heavy.

"One hundred and seventeenth—

"Once Senior Sister Gu and the others return, wouldn't he be able to join their team directly? With those monsters looking after him then, he might become a top powerhouse of the Inner Garden in the future."

Deng Huo tried hard to steady his emotions. When he looked at Lu He, a trace of envy silently entered his eyes.

What the Deng Clan had desperately pursued seemed to be... within easy reach for the youth before him!

Beside Deng Huo,

Hu Changting and Zheng Jingren remained unable to recover for a long while.

"One hundred and seventeen, one hundred and twenty-seven... Haha, this opportunity is in the bag!"

Chen Zhengchu muttered the numbers over and over. His eyes gradually brightened, and his earlier worries vanished in an instant.

"Brother Lu, how about we spar on the Dao Combat Platform after we return?"

He suddenly raised his head and met Lu He's gaze directly, his eyes blazing with fervent fighting intent.

"Sure."

Lu He nodded slightly.

About half an incense stick later,

the three groups of Rogue Cultivators at the cave entrance were still locked in a standoff. With the opportunity right before them, no one dared strike first, for fear of becoming the target of all.

Seeing this,

"Yawn—"

Hu Changting stretched and muttered, "Are they going to fight or not? Are we just going to keep waiting?"

"Wait!" Chen Zhengchu replied without turning his head.

He seemed to sense something faintly, his gaze fixed firmly on the cave.

To one side,

Lu He stood with his hands behind his back, black mist flickering in and out of view within his sleeves as his calm gaze swept over the scene.

The Myriad-Dharma Marvelous-Insight Treasure Wheel turned faintly within his dantian. It had already clearly sensed the spiritual activity in the cave gradually boiling over.

The aura grew increasingly oppressive.

It was as though something was about to burst from the ground.

At a certain moment,

Riiip—

A piercing sound like cloth being torn abruptly exploded beside everyone's ears.

In an instant, dozens—perhaps over a hundred—pairs of astonished or intent eyes turned toward the sound.

Lu He narrowed his eyes.

Inside the cave, six zhang from the entrance, dense black fissures like a spiderweb abruptly appeared in midair.

At the center of those cracks,

a luminous immortal spring slowly forced apart space and squeezed into the real world.

Gurgle, gurgle—

Milky-white spiritual radiance spilled forth like a tide. Before it even reached the ground, it transformed into dense mist of spiritual activity, blanketing the surrounding area.

From cracks in the rocks, from the soil, grasses and plants abruptly took root and grew wildly.

In the blink of an eye, the once barren cave brimmed with vigorous life.

At that moment,

everyone stared at the immortal spring. More precisely, they stared fixedly at the miraculous vine emerging from its center, wholly translucent white, its veins flowing like a river of stars.

In merely two or three breaths,

the spiritual vine had already climbed across half the rock wall. At its end hung two green-skinned gourds, one large and one small.

Faint, shadowy light spilled from their mouths, and their spiritual energy was so dense it was nearly liquid.

"An extraordinary treasure born from a spirit vein!"

Someone's shrill scream completely ignited everyone's reason.

"The treasure is mine!"

"Whoever dares steal it dies!"

In an instant, spells roared and artifacts tore through the air in a chaotic explosion.

Nearly a hundred figures lunged madly toward the cave.

Sword light and talisman light intertwined, while blood splashed across the rock walls in an instant.

The Rogue Cultivators in the cave had completely gone red-eyed. Some wielded battered artifacts and hacked wildly, some crushed life-saving talismans to unleash bursts of spiritual light, while others concealed vicious spells and struck specifically from behind.

The three groups that had once been clearly divided had begun slaughtering one another, no longer distinguishing friend from foe.

An extraordinary treasure born from a spirit vein—even one of the lowest grade—was enough to trade at the Universal Treasure Merchant Association for a complete inheritance capable of cultivating one to the middle stage of Meal-qi, along with vast cultivation resources.

Clearly,

in their eyes, those gourds represented lifespan, represented a chance at immortality!

No one was willing to give up.

And former companions had now become mortal enemies blocking their path to immortality.

Ten breaths, twenty breaths... half an hour, an hour...

Time passed bit by bit.

Inside the cave, the figures gradually thinned out, while corpses lay strewn across the ground.

Amid the chaotic battle, someone slowly approached the spiritual vine and reached out to pluck a gourd.

The moment they saw this,

the ten seeds from the two teams opposite seemed to have agreed beforehand. They stopped concealing themselves and transformed into streaks of afterimages that swept through the sky, landing in the center of the battlefield.

"Idiots! Those gourds haven't fully ripened yet! Pick them now, and their value will plummet!"

A furious shout suddenly rang out.

One of the youths slashed out a long, narrow streak of blazing white sword light with one hand. Wrapped in scorching currents of energy, it cut directly toward the two Rogue Cultivators rushing at the spiritual vine.

The sounds of slaughter abruptly vanished.

The remaining thirty-odd Rogue Cultivators stopped fighting one after another, staring suspiciously at the ten young figures who had suddenly appeared before them.

These people all wore precious robes. Their mana was condensed but not released, and each carried an intimidating aura.

"From the island next door..."

"When did they come over?"

Many seemed to recognize where these ten had come from. Their pupils contracted for no reason, only for viciousness to replace the shock an instant later.

Over the past month, they had all heard, more or less, that the neighboring island had gathered many gifted disciples from Everharvest City's various immortal cultivation powers.

Some had even encountered these so-called "geniuses" before and knew full well that their strength could not be judged by common sense.

But... so what?

Their side had the numerical advantage, and their battle experience was far beyond what these little brats could match.

Thirty against ten—the advantage was obvious!

And—

"They must have immortal cultivation inheritances and all sorts of precious spiritual medicines on them..."

Someone shouted, his eyes filled with greed.

Boom—

Almost without needing any discussion, the remaining thirty-odd Rogue Cultivators joined forces in perfect tacit understanding. In groups of two or three, they moved to surround and kill the ten who had just appeared.

Then, in the next moment,

someone's expression changed drastically. Without the slightest hesitation, he fled toward the cave entrance.

There was no other reason.

Six of those ten had actually brought out artifacts!

The remaining four each drew several talismans as well.

"Damn it, isn't this just bullying?"

A middle-aged man reluctantly glanced back at the spiritual vine, then shifted his gaze to the ten young figures.

They merely stood within the cave, quietly watching their group flee. They showed no intention of stopping them whatsoever.

Hope immediately rekindled in the man's eyes.

"They're young after all and have no experience. They actually didn't wipe us out completely."

Secretly rejoicing, he swiftly turned back and returned, finding a hidden corner outside the cave where he concealed his aura.

The man was unwilling to give up just like that.

"Damn it, these little brats are truly sinister. They waited until we had nearly slaughtered each other clean before daring to jump out. I'll wait and watch for now. Maybe there'll still be a chance..."

Not far behind him, a pained sigh suddenly rang out.

Clearly, quite a few Rogue Cultivators harbored the same thoughts as that man.

Meanwhile, inside the cave.

The ten who had just fought side by side split into two teams once more, facing each other from across the cavern.

"Brother Xu, why didn't you stop those Rogue Cultivators? From what I know of those people who lick blood from knife edges, they won't give up so easily. For all we know, they might be waiting somewhere outside."

Gongshu Jing stood with his hands behind his back, his black brocade robe embroidered with intricate runes. Smiling, he looked at the man across from him, clad in a silver-white Beast Pavilion dharma robe.

Beside him.

Hao Wu held a pitch-black dharma artifact saber, silently wiping away the crimson bloodstains on its blade.

"Hmph. Then why didn't you and Brother Hao stop them?"

Xu Yang replied indifferently.

"Naturally, we had to stay on guard against that Brother Chen of your Beast Pavilion..."

Gongshu Jing teased with a smile that was not quite a smile, while a layer of eternal ice quietly condensed in the depths of his eyes.

"His gourd was nearly destroyed, yet he still didn't make a move. He really knows how to keep his composure."

"Brother Xu, it remains to be seen which of you is stronger, you or Brother Chen. But... when it comes to temperament, I'm afraid he has you beat."

"You—"

A nearly imperceptible flash of anger crossed Xu Yang's face. He immediately called toward the cave entrance, "Chen Zhengchu, how much longer is your team planning to wait?"

Upon hearing the call.

"Tsk, Brother Lu, it seems it is our team's turn to take over."

Chen Zhengchu gave a faint laugh, an intense confidence unconsciously surfacing on his face.

Not long after.

Tap, tap—

Accompanied by a series of footsteps, the figures of Lu He's group of five slowly appeared before the Rogue Cultivators.

"There's another team?"

"Isn't this too damn underhanded? They're all geniuses from major immortal cultivation forces. Three teams came one after another, and without exception, they all watched us Rogue Cultivators slaughter one another before coming out to reap the fisherman's profit?"

Someone could not help widening his eyes, his scalp beginning to tingle.

Inside the cave.

The moment he saw Chen Zhengchu.

Xu Yang finally let out a silent breath of relief.

"There are only two treasure gourds bred by this spirit vein. Across from us are Gongshu Jing and Hao Wu. If our two teams do not join forces, I'm afraid we won't even get half a gourd leaf."

He walked to Chen Zhengchu's side and spoke in a low voice.

At those words.

The corners of Chen Zhengchu's lips lifted, revealing a mischievous smile.

"Join forces? Of course we can."

"You... agreed?"

Seeing the other party agree so readily.

An expression of disbelief could not help appearing on Xu Yang's face.

He knew full well that the rift between them ran deep. He had already prepared himself for this fellow to ask an exorbitant price, but unexpectedly...

"This is a good thing. How could I possibly refuse?"

Chen Zhengchu said with a smile.

Sure enough, it still has to be fellow disciples. At a critical moment, they know to cast aside past grudges and stand united against outsiders! Had I... gone a little too far before?

A wave of emotion stirred in Xu Yang's heart.

Where he stood.

Chen Zhengchu patted Xu Yang on the shoulder, the smile on his face growing ever brighter.

This was naturally a good thing!

Their two teams would first join hands to eliminate Gongshu Jing and Hao Wu. Then he and Brother Lu would join hands again to drive this bastard Xu Yang away.

Two treasure gourds—one for each of them. Perfect!