Chapter 286: The Golden Fruit Tree
Chapter 286: The Golden Fruit Tree
"Lord Lenz!"
"Lenz!"
"..."
As they walked, people greeted the burly man, their eyes also curiously glancing at Karl.
"Lenz!"
A red figure approached from ahead, a tall woman with a playful tone.
"Bringing in another new recruit?"
"Yeah." Lenz paused, clearly wary of the newcomer:
"Josie, what brings you here?"
"Nothing much." Josie, also a normally promoted late-stage legendary, examined Karl, a smirk forming on her lips.
"I'm also short-handed. How about letting me have this one?"
"No way!" Lenz's eyes narrowed:
"I don't have anyone available, and the Elder's task is urgent. You can wait for the next batch if you want someone."
"Hmm..." Josie seemed deep in thought:
"I recall you just took two newcomers from here two weeks ago. Did you go through them that quickly?"
"It's none of your business!" Lenz's expression darkened:
"Connie, let's go!"
Karl glanced at Josie and gave a faint smile, following Lenz as they continued on.
"Connie?"
Josie watched the two leave, her arms crossed over her chest, and spoke slowly:
"You'd better be careful!"
"Priest Lenz is known as the Newbie Killer. Those who follow him rarely end up well."
"Shut up!" Lenz turned and growled:
"Josie, don't think that just because you're a Six-Wing, this place is under the responsibility of the Second Elder."
"Let's go!"
Karl, deep in thought, nodded at them before quickening his pace to catch up.
Newbie Killer?
Disposable?
...
Before Karl could ponder further, they had arrived at a square. Lenz scanned the surroundings and spoke to Karl:
"You joined the Holy Sanctuary and immediately received the legendary promotion elixir, but you haven't actually carried out any tasks yet."
"The Second Elder wants us to pick some golden fruits. You'll come with me and distract the ferocious beasts guarding them."
"Golden fruits?" Karl's eyes widened:
"The legendary fruits that grow in the Divine Realm?"
The legend of the golden fruits was widespread.
It was said that long ago, a ship arrived at an uninhabited island, where a peculiar fruit grew. Out of curiosity, several crew members tasted the fruit.
The result was that soon after, those who consumed the fruit turned into gold.
Their fellow sailors were initially shocked, then elated, and brought back their golden companions, making a fortune.
Later, people searched for the island but never found it again. The legend claimed the island was located in the Divine Realm, and the fruit that turned people into gold was called the Golden Fruit.
"Indeed." Lenz nodded:
"Not only can the Golden Fruit turn people into gold, but it's also a spiritual fruit imbued with primordial power. When consumed by a Great Knight, there's a high chance of advancing to the Legendary rank, although..."
"... it's not as good as the elixir you took."
A dry smile appeared on his face.
Karl scoffed at the mention of the Golden Fruit.
While the Golden Fruit was poisonous to ordinary people, it was a rare tonic for Great Knights.
Even Legendary Knights could greatly benefit from it.
As for the Blasphemy Elixir...
It only turned people into monsters, a matter of time.
"Priest."
Karl spoke up:
"I have two friends. Can they join me on this task?"
"Of course." Lenz nodded:
"The ferocious beast guarding the Golden Fruit is the Hellhound, so it's natural for the two of us to handle it."
As expected, Reqi and Hume joined Karl as his assistants for this mission.
"The Holy Sanctuary indeed has a deep foundation, knowing even the location of the Golden Fruit."
Reqi tightly gripped her spear, her voice filled with excitement:
"We've come to the right place this time!"
"I heard the Holy Sanctuary has a complete map of the Divine Realm and can even locate the scattered fragments on the continent." Hume added:
"Although the gods have fallen, there are still many treasures in the Divine Realm. If we could find them all..."
His eyes lit up, and his breathing quickened.
Karl shook his head lightly.
He had indeed ventured into the Divine Realm, albeit a collapsed one, and it wasn't as idyllic as one might imagine.
However, the Cathedral possessed the legacy of the Moon Goddess, and it seemed likely that they could find some valuable treasures.
Take, for instance, the Golden Fruit Tree.
"What a pity!"
"I've already cultivated the Holy Demonic Transformation to the seventh level, so the Golden Fruit is of no use to me. If I were at the third level, consuming the fruit would have allowed me to advance swiftly. But it's still a great find for Riqier and Hum."
Calmly, Karl glanced to the side.
Not far away, the leaves rustled, and a man and a woman appeared, accompanied by five small figures clad in black robes.
The Cathedral's uniform system was strictly hierarchical.
The golden-threaded red robes denoted the elders, while the black-trimmed red robes belonged to the priests. The silver-threaded white robes, on the other hand, were worn by the novice priests.
Unlike the main world where Karl resided, the priests here had lost the blessing of the Moon Goddess and were no longer able to perform divine spells. Instead, they were purely knights.
Most novice priests were great knights.
As for Karl...
Having advanced through the consumption of the Blasphemy Elixir, he was a legendary figure outside the Cathedral's ranking system, considered an irregular member.
"Connie?"
The male novice priest nodded slightly.
"Let's go. We'll lure away the Hellhound."
"The Hellhound is a second-rank beast. How can we handle it with just a few of us?" Riqier furrowed her brows. "Even if Connie has become a legendary knight, he's no match for the Hellhound."
"Don't worry," the female novice priest said impassively. "Our task is to distract it, not to kill it, and we have other helpers besides Connie."
She pointed to the five slender figures beside her.
Riqier and Hum looked at them with uncertainty in their eyes. These five people had inconspicuous auras, like that of children who hadn't fully matured. How effective could they be?
But Karl knew that these five were likely five Blasphemy Knights, each one as formidable as a legendary knight.
Perhaps even stronger!
"Let's go!"
Karl casually scanned the area and spoke softly. "Which direction?"
"Follow me."
The male novice priest held a staff and cleared the path ahead, breaking dry branches and vines as he leaped forward.
Soon, they arrived at a dense forest shrouded in thick mist, making it difficult to discern the surroundings.
As they continued their journey...
"Look!"
Riqier whispered, her eyes fixed on the sight before them. "A golden tree!"
In the center of the forest stood a tree that towered above the rest, its trunk and leaves appearing as if forged from pure gold, still gleaming brightly despite the mist.
Upon closer inspection, several orange-yellow fruits adorned the tree, nestled among the leaves.
The tree resembled an apple tree but was much sturdier and taller, reaching a height of about forty to fifty meters.
"That's the Golden Fruit Tree," the female novice priest said. "According to the legends, at the core of the Divine Realm, there's a mother tree of the Golden Fruit, a fifth-rank magical plant."
"Connie!"
Her voice turned solemn. "It's your turn."
"Mhm," Karl replied, having already spotted the Golden Fruit Tree and the two Hellhounds lurking beneath it.
Two?
This didn't match the intelligence they had received.
Stroking his chin, Karl drew his sword and charged towards the Golden Fruit Tree.
Mid-air, he flipped his sword.
Gale Slash! A sword technique he hadn't used in decades, yet it remained as fluent as ever. The blade, enveloped in a gust of wind, slashed downwards.
A long, over ten-meter-long sword aura appeared.
"Huh?"
From a distance, Father Nikko's eyes widened in surprise. "Impressive sword technique!"
He noticed not only the technique but also the sheer ferocity of the sword strike, which explained how Karl could withstand the effects of the Blasphemy Elixir.
Perhaps...
With this thought, the sword aura had already struck the Hellhound, eliciting an ear-splitting howl.
A second-rank beast!
"Run!"
Karl shouted and sprinted away.
(End of Chapter)
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