After leaving Inuyama Castle, Xu Zhiqiu wandered around, killing any demons she encountered and strolling leisurely when there were none.
As she breathed in the fresh air, her mood brightened without her even realizing it.
An unpolluted environment really was better. The miasma at Inuyama Castle had nearly suffocated her. If she had stayed any longer, she would have either dropped dead from miasma poisoning or died from an attack of her illness.
The area was sparsely populated. After walking for a while, Xu Zhiqiu had yet to see a village. Instead, thick clouds and mist surrounded her, and she could hear flowing water.
The sun on the horizon was about to set.
She rolled up her sleeves and licked her dry lips. Her stomach happened to be growling too, so grilled wild fish would be dinner tonight.
When she reached the bank and was just about to step into the river, Xu Zhiqiu spotted peaches floating on the water.
She bent down and picked a peach out of the river. Turning it over, she saw a human face twisted in agony on its surface.
The sight jogged her memory. This thing had appeared in the story; she thought it was called a Human-Faced Fruit. She raised her head and looked upstream, toward where the floating fruit had come from. The mountain ahead and even the surrounding area were shrouded in mist.
Xu Zhiqiu tossed aside the Human-Faced Fruit and headed up the mountain with her bundle on her back.
If she remembered correctly, there was a Shikon Jewel Shard here. In that case, there was no way she was leaving.
The mountain was immense. The deeper she ventured along the stream, the darker purple the water became.
Plunk-
One Human-Faced Fruit after another fell into the water from above, landing with a series of plunks.
Xu Zhiqiu shaded her eyes with a hand and looked up, spotting a lush tree overhead.
Xu Zhiqiu gripped her sword hilt and surveyed the surrounding rock walls, then leaped onto a rock above her. With a spring and a hop, she made her way up with ease. Upon reaching the top, she found a wooden house built beside the cliff. Her destination, however, was the tree atop it.
Her toes touched the ground, and she looked around. A large tree with dense foliage grew at the cliff's edge, laden with Human-Faced Fruit.
"Human, leave this place at once." An aged voice rang out.
Xu Zhiqiu lowered her gaze toward the voice and saw a white flower bud in a potted plant beside the great tree's roots. At its center was an old man's head, his hair completely white.
She walked over and crouched down, studying the flower-bodied, human-headed figure. "Who are you, old man? How did you turn into a flower?"
"Alas, it is a shameful tale. I am the immortal of Peach Blossom Paradise, once Peach Fruit Man's master. A little over twenty days ago, a Shikon Jewel Shard was embedded in the Human-Faced Tree, allowing it to speak. It told Peach Fruit Man to eat the Human-Faced Fruit, and he obeyed in hopes of becoming an immortal. But anyone who eats too much Human-Faced Fruit will have their mind taken over by it."
"Then how are you still alive?" Xu Zhiqiu asked, watching the swaying flower.
The old immortal sighed again. "Following its instructions, Peach Fruit Man turned me into fertilizer for the Human-Faced Fruit so the tree could bear an Immortality Fruit for him. Once the Immortality Fruit ripens, it must be brewed into medicine to take effect. Only I know how to do that, so it spared my life."
As he spoke, he studied Xu Zhiqiu's face. Astonishment spread over his wrinkled features. "An undying soul? Are you an immortal too?"
"Heh, an undying soul?" In a residence somewhere within Inuyama Castle.
Naraku sat on the floor, watching the images transmitted through the mirror in Kanna's hands.
The scene it showed was precisely where Xu Zhiqiu was at that moment.
She certainly looks happy traveling alone, he thought as he watched the woman in the mirror.
In the mirror, a huge figure began emerging behind Xu Zhiqiu, though she had yet to notice him.
Kanna asked expressionlessly, "Should we send Kagura to help her?"
"Kagura has taken Goshinki to teach Inuyasha and his companions a lesson," Naraku said as he rose.
She's been gone for five or six days now. Though she hasn't met up with Inuyasha and his companions, seeing her wandering around so carefree on her own, smiling at other people-especially those young men-really pisses me off. Doesn't she know I'm still here at Inuyama Castle?
Judging by Naraku's movements, he was probably going himself. Kanna held her mirror and said nothing more.
An undying soul?
Xu Zhiqiu suddenly remembered that the Eight-Tailed Fox had said the same thing back in the Great Ming. Was her soul the reason her appearance had never changed since coming here?
"I'm not an immortal, but I do have some abilities," Xu Zhiqiu corrected him.
"Oh? An undying soul? Does that mean my Immortality Fruit will grow if I turn this woman's body into fertilizer for the Human-Faced Fruit?"
A deep voice came from behind her. Xu Zhiqiu turned and saw a somewhat youthful-looking man with an enormous body, short blue-green hair, large eyes with tiny pupils, and a drooping jaw.
He wore coarse hemp clothing that exposed his chest and belly. A gourd hung at his waist, and he leaned on a wooden staff entwined with leaves.
As Xu Zhiqiu sized him up, he was also sizing her up.
Xu Zhiqiu spotted a Shikon Jewel Shard in his belly. She drew her sword and met Peach Fruit Man's gaze. "Hand over the Shikon Jewel Shard."
"So you know about the Shikon Jewel Shard too. Do you think I'd possibly give it to you? Be a good girl and become my fertilizer!"
As he spoke, he raised his wooden staff, and yellow flowers immediately flew toward her.
Xu Zhiqiu drew her sword and swung it their way. A streak of sword energy appeared in the air, blasting through the flowers.
The sword energy slashed into the flowers, and they instantly dissolved under the attack of her spiritual power.
Seeing his attack fail, Peach Fruit Man froze for a moment, then split his mouth into a grin, wild with delight. "You're not a demon, so you really are an immortal!"
As he spoke, he grabbed the gourd at his waist.
"Young lady, watch out for his gourd! Don't let its opening point at you, or you'll shrink!" the old immortal warned from beside the Human-Faced Tree.
"Old man, your death is coming soon," Peach Fruit Man said, pulling at the gourd's stopper.
How could Xu Zhiqiu let him succeed? Gripping her sword hilt, she fixed her gaze on him and swung several streaks of sword energy his way to block his view, then leaped onto the tree, swift as flight.
She kicked the trunk several times, immediately sending a shower of Human-Faced Fruit tumbling down.
Several fruits struck the old immortal in his pot. He hurriedly twisted his stem. "Ow! Young lady, could you be a little more careful? Don't forget there's an old man down here!"
"Just watch out for yourself. An immortal, outwitted by his own tree. Heh." Xu Zhiqiu jumped higher, grabbed Human-Faced Fruit from the branches, and threw them at Peach Fruit Man to keep him from opening the gourd.
Mocked by a young girl, the old immortal looked sheepish. "Er, who could have known something like this would happen?"
Seeing Xu Zhiqiu about to strip away all his Human-Faced Fruit, Peach Fruit Man flew into a rage. He raised his wooden staff and fired a thick green vine straight at her.
Using the vine's attack as cover, he pulled out the stopper and aimed the gourd's opening at Xu Zhiqiu, a wicked smile spreading across his fat face. "Haha! Come into my gourd and become fertilizer for me, Peach Fruit Man!"
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