Chapter 503: Infant Spirit Fruit

Wang Changsheng quickly walked to the Fuluo Fruit tree, picked three Fuluo Fruits, and flew to the stone wall on the right.

The stone wall on the right had a massive pit, inside which lay a large cluster of red insect eggs. Scattered beside the eggs were dozens of golden spherical beads, each the size of a pigeon's egg.

Without much thought, Wang Changsheng collected all the insect eggs and metal beads. He then summoned his Vajra Bracelet and struck the golden-glowing stone wall, producing a dull clang of metal on stone.

This metal seemed to be a third-tier refining material, possibly even a fourth-tier one.

He then summoned the Nine-Curve Divine Sand, which transformed into a giant yellow blade. He swung it at the stone wall, and again, a dull thud resonated.

An earth-shattering roar came from outside, followed by Guangdong Ren's frantic voice: "Fellow Daoist Wang, hurry! The worm queen is returning to its nest!"

Wang Changsheng's divine sense detected a powerful aura rushing towards him.

He quickly put away his magic treasures, and a yellow light enveloped his body as he burrowed underground and vanished.

Enveloped in a shimmering yellow light, Wang Changsheng moved swiftly underground.

In a dense black forest, a black giant python, over ten zhang long, was confronting a crimson giant scorpion. Not far away, beneath a towering tree, grew two palm-sized black mushrooms, their surfaces marked with concentric golden rings.

The black python flicked its tongue, its cold gaze fixed on the crimson scorpion, whose tail stinger swayed, seemingly ready to launch a surprise attack at any moment.

The ground nearby suddenly became uneven, and Wang Changsheng emerged from below.

The two demonic beasts were startled and retreated immediately.

Wang Changsheng chuckled upon seeing the two beasts. They were just two high-grade second-tier demonic beasts; he had thought third-tier ones would be everywhere!

He summoned the Nine-Curve Divine Sand, which transformed into countless yellow flying needles, piercing through the heads of the two second-tier demonic beasts.

Wang Changsheng collected the corpses of the two beasts and walked towards the black mushrooms.

These two mushrooms were over five hundred years old, a small but welcome find.

A streak of light flew from afar and soon stopped above the dense forest; it was Guangdong Ren.

"Fellow Daoist Guang, are you alright?"

Wang Changsheng flew to Guangdong Ren and asked with concern.

"I'm fine. What about the Fuluo Fruits? You didn't fail to collect them, did you?"

Guangdong Ren asked, a hint of nervousness and urgency in his voice.

Wang Changsheng smiled faintly, took out two green wooden boxes, and handed them to Guangdong Ren. He had gained one Fuluo Fruit and a batch of refining materials, which was a considerable haul.

Guangdong Ren opened the wooden boxes and, upon confirming they contained Fuluo Fruits, his face lit up with profound joy.

"Due to time constraints, I didn't have time to dig up the Fuluo Fruit tree."

Guangdong Ren waved his hand and chuckled, "No matter. It's already great that we managed to harvest the Fuluo Fruits. Let's rest for a bit, then head to the next location. We should try to gather as many high-grade spiritual herbs and fruits as possible before the secret realm closes."

Wang Changsheng nodded in agreement.

Half an hour later, Guangdong Ren and Wang Changsheng transformed into two streaks of light, flying high into the sky and disappearing into the horizon.

Above a certain dense forest, Fang Mu stood, holding a dark, shimmering banner that continuously emitted wails and howls. His expression was cold.

There were dozens of large pits on the ground, and more than a dozen towering trees lay toppled, their cuts incredibly smooth.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress was covered by a layer of crimson light, battling a small zombie clad in black armor. A giant skeletal bird circled high above, its body wreathed in black mist.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress had a finger-sized blood hole in her left shoulder, bleeding profusely. Her bat wings also had several blood holes, leaving her heavily scarred.

The small zombie was invulnerable to blades and spears; giant wind blades struck its body, producing dull, clanking sounds.

"Time's almost up. Let's send you on your way!"

Fang Mu's eyes turned cold. With a hand seal, the black skeletal bird's dark glow intensified, and it plunged down from above.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress's face changed drastically. She waved her feather fan, producing a series of sharp "whooshing" sounds, and a large barrage of giant wind blades flew out, eagerly striking towards the skeletal bird.

The small zombie let out a strange roar and seized the opportunity to pounce on the beautiful woman in the blue dress.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress's eyes turned cold, and she summoned a light silver beast hide, its surface covered in faint silver runes.

A silver "blazing sun" lit up, enveloping the small zombie's body, and a shrill scream pierced the air.

The next moment, a streak of dark light shot out from the silver "blazing sun" without warning, striking the crimson light shield. The shield seemed to vanish, and the dark light instantly pierced through the beautiful woman's left shoulder. The dark light then circled her a few times, binding her tightly. It was not a physical entity but emanated an eerie, cold aura.

The silver "blazing sun" dissipated, revealing the small zombie unharmed, though its clothes were somewhat tattered.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress's eyes widened. The dark light was not a magic treasure; it was clearly some high-level magic spell.

"Zombies can use spells?"

The small zombie opened its mouth, revealing two fangs, and pounced on the beautiful woman in the blue dress.

A large burst of giant wind blades erupted from the beautiful woman's body, but none could sever the dark light.

In her despairing gaze, the small zombie flew before her, grasped her shoulders with both hands, and bit towards her neck.

"Hmph, you fool! Of course ordinary zombies can't use spells, but how could a Heavenly Corpse cultivated by me not be able to?"

Fang Mu sneered, mocking her.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress's body rapidly transformed into a mummy before their eyes, her very soul devoured by the small zombie.

The beautiful woman in the blue dress came from an extraordinary background and possessed many life-saving items. However, Fang Mu was the senior disciple of the Malevolent Yin lineage of the Yin Corpse Sect, a key cultivation target of the sect. His master was a Nascent Soul cultivator, and his divine abilities far surpassed those of cultivators at the same level. Moreover, his abilities had some restraining effect on the beautiful woman in the blue dress, which allowed him to successfully kill her.

"If this corpse is refined into a wind-attributed Heavenly Corpse, its divine abilities will surely be considerable."

Fang Mu looked at the corpse of the beautiful woman in the blue dress, his expression somewhat excited.

He recalled the small zombie and put away the beautiful woman's corpse, then transformed into a streak of light and descended to the ground.

On a somewhat desolate high peak, a golden-robed old woman with a face full of wrinkles stood on the mountaintop, holding a snake-headed staff.

Two streaks of light appeared on the horizon, rapidly flying towards the golden-robed old woman.

Soon after, the two streaks of light landed near the golden-robed old woman; they were Guangdong Ren and Wang Changsheng.

"Fellow Daoist Guang, why were you delayed for so long? I've been waiting for you for two days."

The golden-robed old woman complained, a look of displeasure on her face.

"My apologies, I encountered two high-grade third-tier demonic beasts on the way, which caused a delay. This is Fellow Daoist Wang. Fellow Daoist Wang, this is Madam Jin, whom I mentioned to you."

"This Wang greets Madam Jin."

Wang Changsheng greeted the golden-robed old woman, his tone quite sincere.

The golden-robed old woman was at the seventh layer of Core Formation, emitting a faint aura of malevolence.

According to Guangdong Ren's introduction, Madam Jin's exact background was unknown; she claimed to be a rogue cultivator and had cooperated with Guangdong Ren in hunting third-tier demonic beasts before.

"It's getting late, and the secret realm is about to close. Let's hurry and depart!"

The golden-robed old woman transformed into a streak of golden light and flew towards the sky, with Wang Changsheng and Guangdong Ren following closely behind.

After about fifteen minutes, they landed at the foot of a steep cliff. Not far ahead was an underground cavern with an entrance over ten zhang wide.

"Madam Jin, now that we're here, can you finally tell me clearly what spiritual fruit we are here to harvest?"

Guangdong Ren asked in a deep voice.

"It's an Infant Spirit Fruit. This fruit blooms every five hundred years, bears fruit five hundred years after that, and matures another five hundred years later. It can increase the chance of forming a Nascent Soul by twenty percent."