"Hahaha! Nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peaches, at last! Mine, all mine!" Gungun raced along with the fruit basket in its arms, drooling as it spoke in delight.
There were countless spiritual roots in the Primordial World, but none surpassed the Ten Great Innate Spiritual Roots in quality. The Ren Water Flat Peach was one of them. It had once belonged to Dao Ancestor Hongjun, who later bestowed it upon the Queen Mother of the West when he appointed her leader of the Primordial World's female immortals.
Of course, barring any surprises, this spiritual root would eventually fall into the hands of the Golden Mother of Jade Pool and become a treasure that anchored the new Heavenly Court's fortune. But that was a story for later.
Of the Ren Water Flat Peaches, those that ripened once every three thousand years could grant enlightenment and immortality; those that ripened once every six thousand years could let one ascend amid rosy clouds and live forever without aging; those that ripened once every nine thousand years could grant a lifespan equal to heaven and earth, as enduring as the sun and moon.
As the first Iron-Eating Beast between heaven and earth, the mighty Gungun had an extraordinary origin and deep foundations. Lifespan was hardly a concern. As long as it did not fall in a tribulation, surviving until the immeasurable tribulation was essentially no problem. Still, the powerful spiritual energy within these Flat Peaches would benefit it greatly, too. Most importantly... these peaches were famous!
How could the mighty Gungun not love spiritual fruit of such exquisite quality?
"Awoo~" Gungun immediately took a Flat Peach from the basket. Its two little eyes lit up at the sight. Then its throat bobbed as it swallowed its ice pop, opened its mouth wide, and bit straight in.
"Smack, smack~" It chewed away. The peach juice bursting between its teeth, that sweet flavor, that fragrant spiritual energy-ah, wonderful, simply wonderful! Just what one would expect from a nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peach!
"I want more!" After chewing up and swallowing all the peach flesh, Gungun muttered to itself and took out another Flat Peach. Smack, smack... it finished that one, and then...
"I want more!" Gungun began enjoying its third peach...
After eating nine Flat Peaches in a row, it finally felt a little overfull.
Mm, nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peaches really are extraordinary. Just nine contain so much spiritual energy that even this mighty deity feels a little stuffed. Not bad, not... huh, wait!
If the mighty Gungun feels stuffed after just nine, how did that Monkey Sun manage to eat so many in one go? Didn't he get stuffed?
Something suddenly occurred to Gungun. It looked up at the sky, mouth slightly open in puzzlement.
Hum~ Just then, the space before it rippled violently. Hou Yi and Ao Yue appeared ahead, with Hou Yi still holding an arrow aimed at Ao Yue.
"Hm?" Sensing something, Gungun lowered its head and spotted the shaman and dragon who had suddenly appeared. It snapped back to its senses, hurriedly leaned backward, and slammed on the brakes. At the same time, it reached into the fruit basket for another Flat Peach, then put the basket away in the minor world it carried with it.
"Stop! Stop! Stop!..." Shouting for itself to stop over and over, Gungun gouged a long furrow into the ground with its paws. Finally, just before crashing into Hou Yi, it brought its round body to a halt. It breathed a sigh of relief, raised its paw, and offered him the Flat Peach. A brilliant smile spread across its plump face. "Great Shaman Hou Yi, this is for you."
Hearing Gungun's words, Hou Yi looked down at the Flat Peach in its paw and felt tempted. After all... this was a nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peach. Even as a Quasi-Saint, he had never tasted one.
There was nothing he could do about that. Unless the Queen Mother of the West offered him one, he could hardly bring himself to ask her for it. Attacking Western Kunlun over a peach was hardly realistic, either. Now that a Flat Peach was being offered right before his eyes, it would truly be a shame not to try it. But...
Hou Yi shifted his gaze back to Ao Yue before him.
This fellow brought the Flat Peaches. He's Eastern Emperor Taiyi's Dharma Protector. If I eat something he brought, it would disgrace my standing as a Great Shaman of the Witch Race!
At that thought, Hou Yi frowned. After hesitating for a moment, he tightened his grip on the Sun-Shooting Bow and gave Gungun a somewhat strained smile. "Thank you, Brother Gungun.
"Keep it for yourself. I'm... not interested in Flat Peaches." "Huh? You're not even interested in nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peaches? Your standards really are high, Great Shaman!" Gungun stared at Hou Yi in astonishment. Then it opened its mouth, instinctively about to eat the Flat Peach itself. Just before putting it into its mouth, it remembered that it was still stuffed, stopped, and put the peach away in its portable minor world instead.
Mm, I'll eat it tomorrow.
"Fellow Daoist Gungun, back then, you gave me a Dragon Pearl to heal my wounds. Today, as you requested all those years ago, I have brought you nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peaches. Does this settle the karmic debt between us?" Ao Yue turned his head and asked it.
"Mm-hmm, settled, all settled." Gungun looked at Ao Yue and nodded repeatedly.
Trading a Dragon Pearl from a True Dragon at the Taiyi cultivation level for so many nine-thousand-year Ren Water Flat Peaches, plus all the spiritual fruit Ao Yue brought me earlier on Softbone Prairie-I've really made a killing!
"Since you came to settle your karmic debt, and it is now settled, you can leave," Hou Yi told Ao Yue coldly.
Ao Yue frowned at those words, but did not leave immediately. Instead, he continued looking at Gungun and said, "Just now, I heard that you wanted the Dragon Pearls of those two Golden Flood Dragons?"
"Uh... yes, but not anymore. Great Shaman Hou Yi said he couldn't beat those two flood dragons," Gungun replied.
Hou Yi: "..."
When did I say I couldn't beat them? I clearly said I wasn't certain of victory!
"Heh!" Ao Yue chuckled, glanced at Hou Yi, and continued, "Then, if I were willing to help you, could you persuade Great Shaman Hou Yi to join forces with me against the flood dragons?"
"Huh? You want the golden Dragon Pearls, too?" Gungun froze at Ao Yue's question, blinked, and asked him in return.
"No." Ao Yue shook his head. "I have no interest in the Dragon Pearls. What interests me is those two flood dragons. We can subdue them together. Once we succeed, you get the Dragon Pearls, and I get the flood dragons. How does that sound?"
"Well..." Gungun scratched its head and glanced from side to side before asking Ao Yue, "Where's the great Meng Zhang? If you're interested in those two flood dragons, couldn't you have him join forces with you?"
At that question, a strange look flickered through Ao Yue's eyes. After a moment of silence, he said, "I sent him to attend to something else. Besides, I don't want to trouble him with everything."
"Oh, I see." Gungun nodded, then looked up at Hou Yi and asked, "Great Shaman, what do you think?"
"Joining forces with the Demon Race is out of the question!" Hou Yi declared firmly.
"This benefits the Witch Race, too. Each of us gets what we need. Why concern yourself with allegiance?" Ao Yue asked with a frown.
"If allegiance doesn't matter, why don't you leave the Demon Race? If you were merely the Ancestral Dragon's son, there would be no reason we couldn't join forces," Hou Yi said coolly.
"You!"
"Uh..." Seeing that these two Quasi-Saints seemed about to start arguing, Gungun raised a paw, hoping to talk them around. Otherwise, how about you don't join forces, just fight your own battles, and then I go collect the Dragon Pearls?
However...
"Roar! Roar!" Before it could speak, two Dragon's Roars suddenly thundered out, shaking heaven and earth.
At the sound, Gungun hurriedly covered its ears and scurried behind Hou Yi. Hou Yi and Ao Yue both frowned, the same thought passing through their minds: Golden Flood Dragons?
Before you continue