Chapter 406: Golden Flame Fruit Tree

Most immortal cultivation forces and individuals aware of Wang Changsheng's core formation were those who had dealings with the Wang family. Su Longzhai and his two companions, active in Korea and secretly plotting over their ancestral treasure, were completely unaware of Wang Changsheng's breakthrough. It would never have occurred to them that Wang Changsheng was a Core Formation cultivator.

Su Longzhai looked Wang Changsheng up and down, then spoke gravely: "Fellow Daoist Wang, I must be direct. If we find that you've sent people to follow us, do not blame us for being unwelcoming."

Wang Changsheng smiled calmly and said, "Fellow Daoist Su, rest assured. Our Wang family always keeps its promises."

"I hope so. You've traveled for a long time and must be tired. Rest for a night, and we'll set off tomorrow."

Wang Changsheng agreed, and he and Wang Changhao turned and left.

Early the next morning, as dawn broke, a red sun slowly ascended, bringing a touch of warmth to the land.

Wang Changsheng and his four companions left Blackwater City. Su Longzhai released a black flying boat, carrying them eastward.

A month later, Wang Changsheng and his four companions appeared in a vast, verdant mountain range.

"Fellow Daoist Su, you've been leading us in circles for a month. Haven't you had enough? If we had truly sent people to track you, you surely would have discovered them by now!" Wang Changhao complained. Wang Changsheng, however, remained calm; as long as no Core Formation cultivators were involved, Su Longzhai and his two companions wouldn't be able to turn the tables.

"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Wang, this time we're not circling. Just follow us; we're almost there," Su Longzhai forced a smile and offered reassurance.

"I hope so."

The mountain path was rugged, with countless treacherous peaks and cliffs, but this did not deter Su Longzhai and his four companions.

After the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, they emerged outside a narrow valley. Inside, weeds grew, and numerous scattered stones littered the ground, giving the area a desolate appearance.

Wang Changhao frowned, asking, "Is the ancient cultivator's cave dwelling here? If a formation were set up, no one would be able to escape." With Wang Changsheng by his side, there was naturally no issue, but Wang Changhao still needed to ask. If he seemed too calm, Su Longzhai might become suspicious.

Su Longzhai rolled his eyes and said, "Do you think I'm so idle that I'd lead you around for a month just to set an ambush and kill you here? Since you dared to come, you must have informed your family. If anything happened to you, wouldn't the three of us be unfairly accused of murder and treasure-grabbing? How would we continue to operate in Korea then?"

"Heh heh, I hope I was just overthinking things," Wang Changhao chuckled, sounding a little embarrassed.

Su Longzhai flipped his hand and took out five glittering silver talismans. He said, "These are Four Symbols Warning Talismans. There's one master talisman and four subordinate talismans. If anyone approaches this area, the master talisman will send an alert."

He threw the four subordinate talismans forward, and they transformed into four silver lights that vanished instantly into the surroundings of the valley. He then led the way in, with Su Longyang and Su Longyu following closely behind.

Wang Changhao looked at Wang Changsheng. Wang Changsheng nodded, and the two followed them in.

At the end of the valley was a cave entrance over three feet wide. The path inside wound tortuously, reaching its end after about a hundred steps.

Wang Changsheng extended his divine sense but detected no fluctuations from any restrictions.

Su Longzhai placed his hand on the stone wall and rotated it to the left. With a rumbling sound, the stone wall split in two, revealing a flight of bluestone steps. Su Longzhai and his two companions quickly descended.

"Eighteenth Brother, stay behind me," Wang Changsheng transmitted a warning, walking ahead.

The bluestone steps were long; it took them a quarter of an hour to reach the end. A stone chamber, over a hundred feet in size, appeared before them. Its walls were rough and uneven, appearing otherwise normal.

Su Longzhai summoned a yellow formation flag, which vanished instantly into the stone wall. After a dazzling yellow light illuminated the wall, an opening about ten feet wide appeared. Su Longzhai and his two companions entered.

This was a stone cavern over thirty feet wide, with clear signs of artificial excavation on its walls.

Wang Changsheng keenly sensed a faint trace of fire spiritual energy here. If he hadn't cultivated a water-attribute cultivation method, which made him sensitive to fire spiritual energy, he might not have noticed it.

To the left of the stone cavern was a light red light curtain, with a flame pattern on its surface.

"This restriction is very robust. Most importantly, it slowly repairs itself. Unless we break this formation all at once, no matter how severely it's damaged, it will slowly repair itself. Later, let's all attack the formation together. We'll share any treasures we find equally." The talisman treasure he possessed could only be used once more. He couldn't guarantee there wouldn't be other restrictions behind this one, so out of caution, he invited outsiders to help.

Su Longzhai and his two companions each summoned two magical artifacts to attack the red light curtain. Wang Changsheng and Wang Changhao each summoned two low-grade Tier 2 puppet beasts to attack the red light curtain.

Seeing the four Tier 2 puppet beasts, a hint of greed flickered deep in Su Longzhai's eyes.

Four low-grade Tier 2 puppet beasts were worth at least six thousand spirit stones.

For a moment, continuous rumbling filled the air, and various spiritual lights intertwined.

With no one controlling the formation, it naturally couldn't exert much power.

After a quarter of an hour, Su Longzhai made a hand seal, and four green flying knives burst with light, fiercely striking the dim red light curtain.

"Boom!"

With a deafening roar, the red light curtain shattered, revealing a red passage before them. An unbearable wave of heat immediately assaulted them.

Wang Changsheng and his four companions had to apply a protective shield to themselves. Even so, they could still feel the intense heat.

Su Longzhai and his two companions showed delight. Su Longyang released a red, Tier 1 spiritual monkey, which walked ahead of them.

The passage was somewhat narrow, allowing only two people to pass at a time.

To their great relief, there were no offensive restrictions ahead.

The deeper they went, the higher the temperature rose. After passing through a long red passage, a red stone door blocked their way.

The five of them summoned their magical artifacts and puppet beasts, taking a quarter of an hour to finally break the stone door. The temperature inside the passage abruptly soared.

Behind the stone door was a stone cavern over thirty feet wide. The soil was fiery red, and the fire spiritual energy here was exceptionally dense.

In the upper left corner of the cavern stood a red fruit tree over ten feet tall. Eight fist-sized red fruits, with some golden patterns on their surfaces, hung from its branches.

Wang Changsheng's expression showed a hint of disappointment. He had thought it was a Core Formation cultivator's meditation cave! It turned out to be just a Tier 3 spiritual fruit tree. If he wasn't mistaken, some high-ranking cultivator had set up a formation here to cultivate spiritual fruits, but for unknown reasons, that cultivator had perished.

"These are Golden Flame Fruits! They're at least five hundred years old!" Su Longzhai was extremely excited. Eight Tier 3 Golden Flame Fruits, along with the Golden Flame Fruit tree itself, could fetch hundreds of thousands of spirit stones.

He exchanged a look with his two companions. Su Longyang and Su Longyu immediately understood, and the three of them surrounded Wang Changsheng and his companion.

"Fellow Daoist Su, what is the meaning of this? What about our agreement to share the treasures equally?" Wang Changhao's face showed an angry expression.

"Hmph, this place was left by our ancestors, and everything here belongs to us. Blame yourselves for being too greedy. Second Brother, Third Sister, kill them." No sooner had Su Longzhai finished speaking than an astonishing spiritual pressure burst forth from Wang Changsheng.

"Core... Core Formation cultivator," Su Longzhai stammered, dumbfounded.

He inwardly cursed, his hand moving towards his waist.

Wang Changsheng flicked his wrist, and the Vajra Bracelet shot out, splitting into two, then four, and so on... Hundreds of Vajra Bracelets struck Su Longzhai and his two companions. Without exception, all three fell into a pool of blood, their faces filled with disbelief.