Guyinduo Fruit - Lesser Element - Ice

"The Gundo Mother Tree Realm." Xu Le committed the name to memory.

"That's right. This is the Mother Tree Realm, a true land of miracles. A place where you can communicate, trade, obtain news and secrets about the Four Great City-States, and even receive rewards from the Gundo Mother Tree. No one knows what you do here. You can betray, bribe, or assassinate. As long as you can afford the price, someone here will fulfill your request."

Xu Le had to admit that the fat man's voice was very persuasive, but his words did not sway him.

The Guyinduo Soul Tree's empty-mind effect was still active, so he remained calm.

He calmly glanced at the fat man, then at the woman facing away from him.

"I see. Thank you for the advice, sir. I'll keep it in mind."

The fat man froze briefly. After everything he had said, wasn't this kid surprised at all?

Wasn't he just a rookie who had only recently become a Warlock?

"Don't you find this place amazing?"

"Uh, it certainly is. Oh, right, are there only seven people here?"

The fat man gave Xu Le a thoughtful look and continued:

"Yes, only seven. Whenever we go to sleep after the Red Moon Calamity ends, the Gundo Mother Tree brings our souls here. The reason we were chosen is simple, too. Everyone who comes here has eaten a Guyinduo Fate Fruit."

Xu Le felt a slight jolt. A Guyinduo Fate Fruit?

Fate!

Was that the fruit Old Zhou and I fought over?

If the fruit Old Zhou and I fought over was Guyinduo Fate, then when did the Guyinduo Secret Language appear?

I don't have enough information!

"I see."

Seeing Xu Le lost in thought, the fat man pointed at himself, then at the Gundo Mother Tree behind him.

"I'm Old Four. Just call me Old Four here. Over there is the Gundo Mother Tree Soul Shadow. Go over and collect your reward."

"I get a reward even though I haven't done anything?"

Hearing this, the fat man, Old Four, smiled faintly.

"Stop hiding it. There's no point concealing anything here. It'll only make people think less of you. You must have done something, or you wouldn't be here."

Xu Le nodded slightly at his words. Apparently, these so-called Guyinduo rewards required certain conditions to be met during the Black Tide.

Wait... did he just say the Red Moon Calamity?

Xu Le thought back. The fat man had indeed said the Red Moon Calamity, not the Black Tide.

That clearly wasn't how an ordinary person from Deep Blue would describe it.

"Are you all from Deep Blue, too?"

"Isn't that obvious? If we weren't from Deep Blue, where else would we be from?"

Xu Le understood a little more. They're from Deep Blue, but they know about the Red Moon Calamity...

There was an information gap between the people here and ordinary people. They knew things the outside world did not.

"All right. How do I claim my reward here?"

"Walk up to the Gundo Mother Tree, and you'll know."

Xu Le looked at the Gundo Mother Tree, then at the fat man before him. Wariness stirred within him, and his mind began racing.

If this man isn't simply being kind...

Then he must have an ulterior motive for telling me so much.

I haven't revealed anything since arriving here, nor have I shown off any wealth.

Which means he's most likely after the reward from the Gundo Mother Tree.

What would the Gundo Mother Tree's reward be?

A fruit?

"All right. I'll go now."

Xu Le did not want to get into a confrontation with him right now. He slowly walked toward the Gundo Mother Tree. Gazing at its enormous trunk, he still felt awed.

The Gundo Mother Tree was not as close as he had imagined.

After he had taken several steps, its apparent size had not changed. In other words, the tree was still very, very far away.

Yet when he reached a somewhat closer spot, a familiar voice sounded again!

"Hello, young Spirit Medium."

"That voice... you're..."

Xu Le was shocked. This was the very voice he had heard when he advanced to Warlock.

He had originally thought it belonged to White Cicada, but now, that clearly was not the case.

"Oh, fate has brought us together once more, Spirit Medium. Claim your reward."

The voice fell silent without giving Xu Le a chance to ask any questions.

Then a pale blue branch curled around three fruits and brought them before Xu Le.

A strange mist surrounded the three fruits, emitting pale blue and pale gray light.

That radiance obscured the fruits' shapes and colors. An ordinary person would have no way to tell what lay inside.

But that posed no difficulty for Xu Le.

The Guyinduo Secret Language stirred, gradually revealing all three fruits clearly before him.

The first was yellow and looked like a lump of excrement.

[Guyinduo Fruit - Gluttony]

The second was blue. How should he put it? It looked roughly like a blueberry patterned with frost.

[Guyinduo Fruit - Lesser Element - Ice]

The last was pink, and it was also the fruit Xu Le possessed the most of.

[Guyinduo Fruit - Lust]

Looking at the three fruits, Xu Le's eyes would have been blazing with golden light if they could glow.

A talent fruit!

Lesser Element - Ice.

Even if Xu Le did not know exactly how much this fruit was worth, he understood how rare it was.

For ordinary people, this was a truly priceless treasure, something that could get them killed.

Even among Warlocks, the most ordinary talent fruit had incomparable value.

The other two, Gluttony and Lust, were merely emotion fruits. They could not compare to a talent fruit at all.

The choice required no thought.

Just as Xu Le was about to reach out, the fat man, Number Four, spoke again:

"Wait a moment, Old Seven. Don't rush."

"Uh, what is it, sir?"

The fat man waved a hand.

"I'm worried you'll regret choosing the wrong one. The Gundo Mother Tree's rewards are extremely generous. These are genuine Guyinduo Fruits.

"But you only get one chance. The value of the reward fruits depends on what you did during the Red Moon Calamity.

"One thing to note is that you can't see what you're choosing each time.

"So make sure you think it through before choosing.

"If you want an extra reward, you can sacrifice a Gundo Relic or some Relic Words and pray for fruit to descend again.

"However, the fruits that appear the second time will be equal in value to the relic you sacrificed.

"So, kid, you'd better think carefully."

Xu Le narrowed his eyes and smiled.

"Thank you for the reminder, Brother Number Four. I've already made up my mind."

Without hesitation, he took the Guyinduo Fruit in the middle: Lesser Element - Ice.

When the fruit patterned with pale blue frost became visible in his hand, disbelief flashed through the fat man's eyes, followed by even greater greed.

With a calm expression, he came up behind Xu Le and spoke with feigned composure:

"Old Seven, if you aren't sure what that fruit is, I can identify it for you free of charge."

Xu Le's heart sank. So here it comes after all!

He glanced at the fat man. Though the man's aura was somewhat weaker than those of the others he had seen, he was definitely not someone Xu Le could afford to provoke.

Barring any surprises, Xu Le was probably the weakest person here.

What should I do? Should I agree?

He's probably trying to extort this fruit from me.

But if I refuse, what if he attacks?

If someone kills me in this soul world, will I be harmed in the real world outside?

If so, how badly?

If I agree, wouldn't taking shelter under Old Four be setting my sights too low? Shouldn't I find someone stronger?

All these questions required him to factor in emotions, so he could not decide immediately and began to hesitate.

Fortunately, Xu Le's thoughts moved very quickly in his empty-minded state. Even though he deliberated for a long time, only a few seconds passed from the fat man's perspective.

The fat man naturally noticed his hesitation and spoke again:

"What? Are you afraid I'll steal your things?"

Xu Le's fingers trembled slightly. He hated the thought of giving in.

But he did not know the rules here. He could not gamble on whether this threat could actually harm him!

Just as Xu Le struggled to decide, the woman sitting on the rock, who had remained silent all this time, spoke:

"Foolish."

"Huh?" Xu Le froze. Was the woman in red talking about him or Old Four?

While Xu Le was surprised, the fat man also shuddered slightly.

His reaction was far stronger than Xu Le's.

Looking at the red-clad woman's back, even his lips began to tremble.

"I-I-I... yes, I'm foolish. I shouldn't have done that. I'm sorry. If there's nothing else, I'll be leaving."

With that, the fat man practically scrambled away on his hands and knees.

He just ran away like that? Watching the fat man retreat into the distance, Xu Le was astonished.

He looked at the woman in red in confusion. Whatever the case, it seemed she had helped him.

Should I thank her? Xu Le asked tentatively:

"Were you helping me just now?"

The woman in red ignored him. Helpless, Xu Le could only think it through himself.

If the fat man really could steal my things, could I have escaped him?

No. The gap in our strength is far too great.

Then why did he say so much, acting friendly and trying to reason with me?

At that thought, Xu Le finally realized the answer.

"Because he doesn't dare, or he can't attack me here."

Having figured that out, Xu Le hurriedly nodded to the woman in red.

"Thank you, ma'am."

Hearing Xu Le's thanks, the woman in red finally turned around.

His first reaction upon seeing her was that she was beautiful!

She had a pointed, jade-like chin, sparkling eyes beneath sword-shaped brows rarely seen on women, a delicate nose, white teeth, and red lips.

Her long, cloudlike black hair fell over her shoulders, almost perfectly matching Xu Le's taste.

Graceful as a startled swan, elegant as a roaming dragon-that describes her perfectly!

But when Xu Le took in her full appearance, his heart tightened!

The woman was indeed beautiful.

But she... had only one eye!

Her lone eye fixed on Xu Le, filled with nothing but endless indifference.

"You called me ma'am?"