Chapter 81: The Fourth-Tier Spirit Fruit

Chapter 81: The Fourth-Tier Spirit Fruit

The crimson wolf howled in agony as Mu Feng's golden finger energy pierced its leg from a distance of seven or eight meters.

Mu Kuang roared and charged forward, his blade slicing through the air. The wolf rolled out of harm's way, narrowly evading the strike.

Bai Ziyue's sword, however, was swifter. Three shimmering sword shadows struck the wolf, leaving bloody holes in its body. Whining, the beast retreated, limping on its wounded leg, its crimson eyes blazing with defiance.

The wolf retaliated, spitting a fiery red orb at Bai Ziyue. With a sharp thrust of his sword, Bai Ziyue intercepted the orb, which exploded into a wave of energy, forcing him to retreat.

Boom!

Seizing the opportunity, Mu Feng lunged forward. Two golden streaks of energy shot from his fingers, punching through the wolf's torso. Drawing his blade mid-air, he slashed down with all his might.

Slash!

The wolf's head was cleaved clean off, blood splattering across the rocky ground. Its body twitched briefly before falling still.

With the beast dead, the trio turned to the injured herbalist nearby. His body was mutilated, and survival was impossible despite his lingering breaths.

Mu Feng sighed, ending the man's suffering with a quick strike to the heart. The herbalist's final look was one of gratitude as his life ebbed away.

Bai Ziyue picked up the herbalist's satchel, discovering a variety of herbs, including two stalks of Fire Flame Grass.

"Brother Feng, Fire Flame Grass!"

Mu Feng accepted the herbs with a faint smile, stashing them in his case. He then absorbed the residual blood energy from the wolf and the herbalist using the Shura Divine Jade.

After burying the herbalist in a makeshift grave and marking it with a simple stone, the trio continued deeper into the fiery valley, searching for herbs and slaying beasts along the way.

Four Days Later

In four days, they collected eight more stalks of Fire Flame Grass and slew several Purple Core-level beasts. During this time, Mu Kuang broke through to the second stage of the Purple Core Realm, while Bai Ziyue refined his techniques using beast cores.

Their explorations brought them to the outskirts of a volcanic region, marked as a yellow zone on their map—dangerous but not yet at the deadly core.

Standing at the base of a volcano, the group arrived at a bubbling lava pool. From a distance, they spotted a lone plant growing defiantly atop a rocky outcrop in the center of the pool.

The plant's fiery red leaves, shaped like flames, glimmered under the intense heat. Its six ruby-like fruits emitted a faint glow, filling the air with a tantalizing aroma.

"Red Spirit Fruit! A fourth-tier spirit fruit!"

Mu Feng's eyes lit up with excitement. These fire-attribute fruits, formed once every hundred years, were priceless treasures valued in the thousands of gold coins.

"Brother Feng, is that really a fourth-tier spirit fruit?"

Mu Kuang and Bai Ziyue marveled at the rare sight, understanding its incredible value.

"With these fruits, I can likely push my Nine Flames Exploding Fist to the Great Accomplishment stage," Mu Feng said, barely containing his excitement.

"But how do we get them? The pool is at least twenty meters wide. We can't jump that far," Bai Ziyue said, frowning.

"We could throw me across," Mu Kuang suggested.

Bai Ziyue rolled his eyes. "Even if we could throw you that far, how would you get back?"

Mu Kuang scratched his head awkwardly.

Mu Feng scanned the area, his sharp eyes catching a rock protruding from the lava. It was about seven or eight meters away from the edge and seemed stable. Testing it with a thrown stone, he confirmed its solidity.

"We can use that rock as a stepping stone," Mu Feng suggested.

Before they could act, voices rang out from behind.

"Look, Brother! What's that?"

"By the heavens, it's Red Spirit Fruit!"

Three rugged men emerged from the path, their eyes gleaming with greed as they spotted the fruits.

Clad in leather armor, the men exuded an air of menace. Their leader, a burly man with a flat nose and triangular eyes, smirked wickedly.

"Red Spirit Fruit! We've hit the jackpot!" the man exclaimed, his coarse voice filled with glee.

Mu Feng, Bai Ziyue, and Mu Kuang turned to face the newcomers, their gazes cautious.

Through Xi Yue's telepathic insight, Mu Feng quickly gauged their strength.

The leader was at the seventh stage of the Purple Core Realm, while his companions were at the fourth and fifth stages. Their cultivation levels significantly outmatched the trio.

The burly man sneered at Mu Feng and his companions. "You kids found the fruit first?"

"Yes," Mu Feng replied coldly.

"Well, you can leave now."

The man's voice was laced with menace as he flared his energy, exuding the oppressive aura of a Purple Core Stage Seven cultivator. His companions followed suit, their intent to claim the fruit for themselves clear.

The tension thickened as the two groups faced off, the treasure at the lava pool's center becoming the catalyst for an inevitable clash.