Chapter 400: Spiritfruit and Spiritessence
Chapter 400: Spiritfruit and Spiritessence
Seekwood Heavenly Realm.
In a certain large settlement.
"We welcome the High Envoy."
Outside the settlement, over ten Spirit Folk with deep brown skin bowed respectfully towards a man with a green complexion.
The Spirit Folk lived underground, and all of them were Lower Spirit Folk with dark skin tones. Only the Higher Spirit Folk living atop the treetops had green skin, making them easily distinguishable from one another.
Usually, the Higher Spirit Folk resided on the treetops and rarely descended to the underground. The only reason they would come down was to collect tributes from the various underground tribes, and they would do so only once a year.
"How is the harvest this year?"
The green-skinned Higher Spirit Folk, standing with his hands behind his back in the center of the settlement, naturally exuded a hint of arrogance as he faced the bowing Lower Spirit Folk.
His aura was much stronger than that of the Lower Spirit Folk, and he constantly emitted a slight pressure. With each breath, the Primordial Essence Aura he exhaled interacted with the environment. If measured by the standards of the Grand Martial Path, he would be considered a Quintessence Realm cultivator.
Quintessence Realm.
This was one of the criteria to become a Higher Spirit Folk.
"To become a Higher Spirit Folk, those born underground as Lower Spirit Folk must cultivate to at least the Quintessence Realm to leave the underground and ascend to the treetops."
"This year's harvest is slightly worse than previous years. We only collected twenty Earthly Spiritfruits."
The elderly Spirit Folk leading the settlement knelt and replied respectfully to the Higher Spirit Folk.
A female Spirit Folk from the settlement then approached, holding a wooden tray with a pile of Spiritfruits, each about the size of an infant's fist and glowing with a faint green light.
Earthly Spiritfruits could only be cultivated underground with the help of the Seekwood Root System. The cultivation process was extremely complex and tedious. Even in large settlements, they could only harvest twenty to thirty Spiritfruits annually, and all of them had to be offered as tribute.
"Hmm, there are fewer than usual."
The Spirit Folk High Envoy frowned slightly as he looked at the Spiritfruits on the tray, appearing somewhat dissatisfied.
He turned his gaze towards the many Lower Spirit Folk before him, intending to reprimand them. However, he suddenly remembered something and shook his head slightly. Then, he said, "Since the harvest is poor, we'll let it pass this time. Consider yourselves having passed the test."
"However, all of you must be cautious from now on. It's almost time for the invasion of the Demons from the Outside World. If you encounter any Demons, do your best to deliver the news as quickly as possible!"
The Spirit Folk High Envoy spoke with suppressed gaze.
His words caused the surrounding Lower Spirit Folk to change their expressions. Even the elderly Spirit Folk's eyes trembled as he said, "Are those Demons... coming again?"
"It's around this time."
The High Envoy replied indifferently, then reached out to take the tray, collecting each Spiritfruit.
In truth, the High Envoy didn't care much about the lives of the Lower Spirit Folk. If these settlements were slaughtered by the Demons from the Outside World, it wouldn't be a bad thing for the Spirit Folk. It would naturally eliminate the useless and low-quality Spirit Folk, conserving survival resources for the Higher Spirit Folk.
For this reason, every hundred years, during the Demon invasion period, the various regions near the edges of the treetops would strengthen their defenses. Some settlements close to the edges might even temporarily evacuate and relocate to larger root nodes, while the underground settlements remained unchanged.
At most, the High Envoy would inform them in advance, without expending too much effort to specifically relocate and protect these outer settlements.
After collecting all the Spiritfruits.
The High Envoy's gaze became more indifferent as he glanced at the crowd and left without saying much more.
"We bid farewell to the High Envoy."
The elderly Spirit Folk and the others were all worried, but they didn't dare say anything. They bowed respectfully to see him off and then quickly began discussing how to deal with the Demon invasion.
...
The green-skinned High Envoy walked through the interconnected underground passages.
In previous years, when he came to collect tributes from remote places like this, he would stay for two days to enjoy himself. Although he didn't hold these Lower Spirit Folk in high regard, it was only right to indulge for a few days after traveling so far. However, during this critical period, the outer regions were filled with danger, and he might encounter the Outsiders who had invaded this world at any moment. He wouldn't linger for too long.
But.
As he passed through a spacious tunnel, he abruptly stopped.
His green eyes fixed on the figure ahead, his pupils visibly constricting. In his line of sight, there was an unfamiliar person whose appearance, attire, and skin tone were completely different from the Spirit Folk. Despite not sensing any aura from the person, his body broke out in cold sweat.
Outsider!
Just as he was collecting the Earthly Spiritfruit, he had clearly inquired with the tribe's people, and there were no unusual circumstances recently. How could an outsider suddenly appear here, blocking his path?
The Spirit Folk High Envoy's body instinctively reacted, and a green glow enveloped him. With a surge of inner energy, he was about to escape like a fish swimming through the heavens and earth.
However.
Before he could take a step.
The person before him stood with hands behind his back, and a faint light gleamed in his eyes. In an instant, the surrounding heavenly energy solidified, and a terrifying pressure enveloped the High Envoy, forcing him to kneel on the ground!
"With this appearance, are you a Higher Spirit Folk?"
Chen Mu glanced at the Spirit Folk High Envoy, aware of the division of the Spirit Folk into Upper and Lower Clans, and thus, was not surprised. However, encountering an Upper Clan member in the underground was somewhat unexpected.
He continued to follow Yan Hong and the others, and had just arrived at the large settlement when, during their actions, Chen Mu detected unusual signs through the fluctuations of the heavenly energy. He traced the source of these anomalies, Chen Mu encountered a member of the Upper Clan of the Spirit Folk. The advanced nature of their heavenly energy allowed for effortless communication despite language barriers.
The Upper Clan member's attempt to escape was futile as Chen Mu's grasp of heavenly energy restrained him. The High Envoy's struggle and the hatred in his eyes were evident, as he muttered curses.
"Tell me where to find the Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid, and I might spare your life." Chen Mu's words, though in a different language, were clearly understood by the High Envoy.
However, the High Envoy showed no reaction and continued to curse.
With a wave of Chen Mu's hand, the heavenly energy compressed, crushing the High Envoy into dust, leaving no trace of bone or blood.
After the execution, Chen Mu calmly returned to the Spirit Folk settlement. Upon arrival, he witnessed the aftermath of Yan Hong and the other grandmasters' actions.
The once bustling settlement now lay in ruins, littered with the bodies of the Spirit Folk.
The thousand-strong settlement had been no match for the grandmasters, and the entire clan had been annihilated.
At the settlement's center, Yan Hong and Yan Zhengyang stood before a massive Seekwood root system, thick enough for several people to embrace, which pierced through the cave from below.
The surface of this root system bore signs of impact, indicating Yan Zhengyang's attempts to breach it.
Yan Hong reached into the fracture, her primordial essence and inner energy flowing as she struggled with the root.
After a moment, Yan Hong withdrew her hand from the broken root.
In her palm, a small cluster of verdant green spirit liquid appeared, emitting a faint glow. With just a cursory perception, she could sense the rich vitality and thick Earthly Spiritessence contained within.
Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid!
Gazing at the small cluster of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid in her hand, Yan Hong finally showed a hint of a smile.
Only extremely thick and special root nodes could possibly extract Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid. From the time they entered the Wood Seeking Heavenly Realm until now, they had finally obtained their first harvest.
The thick root from which the Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid was extracted now appeared dull and lifeless, especially near the carved fissure, where it showed signs of withering.
"Not bad, not bad at all," Yan Zhengyang said, a smile creeping onto his face as he observed the small cluster of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid in Yan Hong's hand. "This portion is almost two taels."
Although Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid was quite precious, it wasn't calculated by drops but by weight. Still, two taels of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid was still valuable. Most of the people present only needed two to three pounds of it.
This cluster was enough to satisfy one-tenth of a person's needs.
However, if divided among everyone, it wouldn't be much, and might even be slightly insufficient.
"Your Highness, I think that if we go through the settlements one by one, the efficiency is too slow. It's better to split up temporarily, taking advantage of the Spirit People's lack of response, and regroup when we reach the inner region."
After a brief moment of contemplation, a Grandmaster proposed this idea to Yan Hong.
The Wood Seeking Heavenly Realm had only been opened once in over a hundred years, and most of them were entering it for the first time, so they were naturally cautious. However, they hadn't encountered any trouble or danger along the way, and collecting the Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid was relatively easy, so someone was dissatisfied with the efficiency.
After all, there were nearly twenty Grandmasters present, and it was unknown how long it would take to explore and divide enough Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid among them. It might be better to split up temporarily and quickly sweep through separate areas.
After all, they were still in the outer region of the Wood Seeking Heavenly Realm, and the only threat here was the Spirit People's Ancestor. Temporarily splitting up reduced the likelihood of encountering the Spirit People's Ancestor.
As soon as this suggestion was made, others agreed.
Yan Hong held the cluster of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid, but hesitated for a moment before turning to Yan Zhengyang, "What do you think, Yan Lao?"
"There's risk, but it's worth a try," Yan Zhengyang replied after a moment's thought.
More than one or two Grandmasters had entered the Wood Seeking Heavenly Realm. It was a group of over a hundred, and by now, some might have directly attacked the treetops, fighting those higher Spirit People's settlements to seize the Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid.
The Spirit People's Ancestor was dangerous, but it was still just one person, and they couldn't split themselves. They were currently underground and in the outer region, deliberately concealing their actions, so the likelihood of attracting the Spirit People's Ancestor was indeed small.
If they were acting on the treetops, it would indeed be better to stay together. However, in the underground, they didn't need to be overly cautious.
"Alright," Yan Hong agreed, turning to the crowd and saying, "If you wish to split up temporarily, you may do so. We will regroup here in two days."
Even with their stealth, two days was enough time for the Spirit People to respond. At that time, the situation might become more dangerous, so it was best to regroup and act together.
"Okay," someone immediately responded, and without hesitation, their figure flickered and disappeared into the distance.
Chen Mu arrived a little later and heard the previous discussion, but he didn't react. Instead, he turned his gaze towards the Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid in Yan Hong's hand, observing it briefly before asking Yan Hong for a portion.
Yan Hong didn't refuse. With a light flick of her fingertip, she separated a small portion and let it fall towards Chen Mu.
"Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid..." Chen Mu stared at the small amount of spirit liquid in his palm, briefly examining it before slightly opening his mouth and swallowing a drop. He quickly digested it, not in a hurry to use this small amount of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid to temper his body, but rather to temporarily gauge its effect.
As he digested the drop of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid, he summoned the system interface to take a look.
The effect was indeed good. Based on the increase in experience, about ten pounds of Wood Seeking Spirit Liquid would be enough for him to temper his Heaven-Earth Body to perfection, and with some Earthly Spiritfruit in his possession, the required amount would be even less.
(End of Chapter)
Chapter end
Report
