Volume One: The Misty Immortal Palace Chapter 124: The Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit

Chapter 124: The Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit

Inside the inner walls of the gourd, golden symbols were densely packed, shaped like tiny swords. These were more than just scriptures of the Sword Technique; they were the profound principles of the Way of the Sword. Each symbol contained sword intent. To cultivate the "Sword Technique of Slashing the Void," one must first achieve a sudden enlightenment of this sword intent, rather than merely understanding the scriptures.

Previously, when Zhou Hao opened his Golden Heavy Pupils to observe the symbols on the wall, he had treated them solely as scriptures without any defenses. Consequently, the sword intent within the symbols surged into his eyes all at once. He had been utterly defenseless, the ocean-like sword intent invading his spirit and consciousness, leaving his life and death hanging by a thread.

At that time, it was only his stubborn will to survive, enfolding his near-shattering consciousness, that prevented his immediate death. It was not until Huohuo’s spirit and consciousness entered his inner world and awakened his subconscious will as a powerhouse—with a single cry of "questioning the sword" and a demand to know what defined the supreme sword intent of the world—that he finally attained enlightenment.

The so-called sword intent is, in essence, a pursuit, a form of self-confidence, and the will to transcend all things and reach for the title of the world’s greatest.

Having comprehended the sword intent, Zhou Hao looked again at the golden symbols on the gourd’s inner wall and found them behaving like living creatures, dancing joyfully and freely.

"Wow, Zhou Hao, look! These golden symbols are moving. They’re so cute, like they’re dancing!" Huohuo pointed forward, smiling.

"I see them. This means I have gained the recognition of the Sword Technique of Slashing the Void. They have accepted me as their new master," Zhou Hao smiled.

With a thought, a string of golden symbols drifted down from the wall and hovered before his eyes. It was the specific scripture for traversing barriers. Though it looked like a mere string of symbols, it held profound depth. As the saying goes, a mustard seed can contain Mount Sumeru; each symbol held the essence of a thousand sword paths.

While others saw symbols shaped like small swords, Zhou Hao saw a world of swords. Within, scriptures were densely woven, sword-mountains and sword-seas appeared, and countless barriers rooted in the void were easily traversed by a single, gentle stroke of a blade.

He saw that every time a sword was swung, a spatial node outside the barrier would rupture; the sword would enter through this node, and another node would rupture inside the barrier, allowing the sword to emerge.

Put simply, traversing a barrier meant utilizing the "Slashing the Void" capability to locate and rupture two spatial nodes—one inside and one outside—allowing an object to displace itself between the two points.

"Alright, let's head out!" Having finished his cultivation of the sword technique, Zhou Hao waved his hand, and the symbols returned to their original positions.

"Got it!" Hearing they were going out, Huohuo was so happy she nearly jumped for joy.

***

Yunmiao Immortal Mountain, Sword Practice Square.

Unlike usual, the square was empty today, save for the Turtle, the Green Snake, Yu Nan, and Xiao Shanshan. The peaks of the various immortal mountains remained as they had been the day before: gates tightly shut, with elders and disciples in seclusion, receiving no visitors.

Nangong Xun and the two Night Envoys had been severely injured by the full-power strike of the Slashing-the-Void Gourd and had since vanished without a trace. It was unclear if they were even still within the Yunmiao Immortal Palace.

As the Slashing-the-Void Gourd hovered in the air, two figures emerged from its mouth, instantly growing to the size of Zhou Hao and Huohuo. Yu Nan was the first to notice them.

"Thank goodness, you’re finally out! My senior sister and I have been praying for you for a long time," Xiao Shanshan shouted upon seeing them both appear.

"Sorry to have worried you. But this time, I truly owe it to Huohuo; otherwise, I would have been in grave danger," Zhou Hao said, exchanging a glance with Huohuo.

"It’s true, it’s true! Huohuo was so anxious last night. You two have a telepathic connection; she dreamt you were in danger, woke up in a fright, and then..."

Before Xiao Shanshan could finish, the Turtle interrupted: "And then she beat me up again! My tail was almost burnt off. Why am I so unlucky? Hmph, I knew I shouldn't have let you go into that gourd to cultivate. More trouble than it's worth."

"Oh? More trouble than it's worth? Are you sure? In that case, does that mean someone—or rather, some turtle—doesn't want the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit anymore?" Zhou Hao asked with a smirk.

"Yes, yes, yes! Of course I want it! Who said I didn't? That’s the main ingredient for refining the Nine-Turn Golden Pellet; I dream about eating one every night! But tell me, did you really learn how to traverse barriers?" the Turtle asked, sounding skeptical.

"Just watch!" Zhou Hao extended a hand, and the yellow-skinned gourd stood steadily upon his palm.

"Everyone, come closer. I need to cover you all with the gourd to traverse the barrier!"

The group gathered, and the yellow-skinned gourd rose, inverted, shedding a white light that enveloped them all.

With a *whoosh*, they flew toward the base of the immortal mountain. Before long, they saw the purple barrier, surrounded by thick, swirling purple mist.

"Such pure purple energy! Cultivating here for a day must be equal to three days on the mountain peak!" Yu Nan exclaimed.

"Then let’s come here to cultivate often in the future," suggested Xiao Shanshan.

"Indeed. Once the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit is plucked, this place will be open to everyone, and we can come every day," Yu Nan nodded.

"Alright, let's go in!" Zhou Hao formed a sword seal. The mouth of the gourd immediately shot out a sword ray, tearing a rift in the void. The gourd and the group then entered the rift.

When they reappeared, the barrier was behind them. They stepped out of the spatial rift and beheld the magnificent scene within.

"Oh my god, is this the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit tree? It’s not at all what I imagined—it's huge!" Xiao Shanshan and Huohuo cried out simultaneously.

It was a purple world, a world containing only one tree. Standing beneath it, they looked up at the lush, hundred-meter-tall Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit tree.

Fallen leaves were interwoven, carpeting the ground, the leaves flowing with purple light, looking dreamlike. The great tree was rooted deep in the earth, its trunk so thick it would take thirty people to encircle it. The bark was a deep vermilion, cracked like dragon scales, and its canopy was vast and dense, resembling a purple cloud that blocked out the sky.

"Holy crap! Such a massive tree and not a single fruit?" The Turtle craned its neck, circling the tree, looking stunned.

"Don't worry. The tree is huge and leafy; it’s not easy to see every part at once. Let’s keep looking!" Zhou Hao said calmly.

"Found it! Over here!" Yu Nan had flown up to search and spotted a Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit hidden beneath layers of branches and leaves.

The others flew up and looked down where Yu Nan pointed. Indeed, there was a fruit, shaped like an apple, hanging from a branch. It was the size of a fist, looking as if it were cast from purple gold, its surface shimmering with a crystalline luster. It looked incredibly tempting.

"Yes, yes, yes! That’s the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit! Ordinary vermilion fruits are small, like plums; only the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit is this large, like an apple!" The Turtle’s eyes glowed as it pointed at the fruit below, shouting in extreme excitement.

"Good, let me pluck it!" Zhou Hao reached out his right hand, stretching it toward the fruit.

"Heh heh, do you really think it’s that simple?" Suddenly, an aged voice echoed throughout the barrier, and Zhou Hao and the others were shaken off the tree, falling to the ground.

"Who’s plotting against us? Come out! I promise I won't beat you to death!" Huohuo rubbed her bottom, scrambled up angrily, and shouted as she scanned the surroundings.

"Little doll, that’s a big mouth you have. I, the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit tree, have lived for so many years, and this is the first time I’ve heard someone threaten to beat me to death!" the aged voice resonated again.

"The Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit tree? It’s become a spirit!" Huohuo stared at the tree in front of them.

The others were also dumbfounded, staring at the tree in astonishment. It turned out that not only was the tree alive, it was sentient!

"What, you little dolls are allowed to transform from lotus flowers into human shapes, but I’m not allowed to speak human words?" An aged face appeared on the trunk, directly facing Zhou Hao and the others.

"Damn, I forgot about that. The Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit tree possesses wisdom. Although it’s hard for it to cultivate, it has some magical power and can understand human nature and speak human language," the Turtle said, slapping its forehead.

"So that’s it. Senior, you are the true form of the Immortal Tree. I apologize for my disrespect. However, the Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit is of great use to us; I ask that you be lenient," Zhou Hao said, cupping his hands toward the aged face on the tree.

"You may leave. This last Purple-Gold Vermilion Fruit has already been reserved. You do not have the fortune for it. Come back in ninety thousand years!" the old tree said calmly.

"What? Ninety thousand years! What good is it to me after ninety thousand years? No way! Give it to me now, or I’m just going to stay here and never leave!" the Turtle threatened shamelessly.

"That’s fine by me. I’ve been here alone for thousands of years, and it’s too boring. Finally, someone—or rather, some turtle—has come to keep me company," the old tree laughed heartily.

"You old geezer, you... you’re even more shameless than I am!" the Turtle pointed at the tree, cursing.

"Senior, may I ask who reserved this last fruit? Could it have been the Lord of the Yunmiao Immortal Palace, the Immortal Lord Yunmiao?" Zhou Hao asked.

"Indeed, it was Immortal Lord Yunmiao," the old tree replied.

"I see. But the Lord has already been murdered. So... how does that stand now?" Zhou Hao asked.

"No, I haven't finished. Immortal Lord Yunmiao reserved it for others. He told me that there were two young disciples, a man and a woman, who went to the Great Immortal's Cave Abode for trials. Both possessed immense talent and were the future pillars of the Yunmiao Immortal Palace. He said that if the Palace were to change hands, this fruit should be bestowed upon one of them to help them break through to the rank of Immortal Lord and quell the rebels! He said that only those two young disciples could enter this barrier, as the object they brought back from the Cave Abode was the key to this barrier," the old tree added.

After hearing this, Zhou Hao’s heart surged with waves of emotion. He was struck with awe at the Lord’s foresight; it was truly like divine calculation.

"The Lord was so certain that you and Su Qing would stand out and obtain the gourd," Yu Nan also marveled at the Lord’s prophecy.

"It’s possible Immortal Lord Yunmiao used that technique!" The Turtle seemed to have realized something.

"You know of it?" Zhou Hao and Yu Nan looked at the Turtle, their eyes full of anticipation.

"Soul-Wandering Through Time. By entering a soul state, one can travel the river of time and see the past and future. This is an immortal art that can only be performed by those who have reached the realm of the Great Immortal. It has many limitations—you can’t just see any time or place. There are distinctions based on time spans, people, objects, and locations. Furthermore, one only has a single chance to use it in a lifetime. And it’s not guaranteed to succeed; one might have their immortal soul torn apart by shards of time. Once Soul-Wandering Through Time is unleashed, the immortal immediately enters the final stage of the Five Decays of Immortals—the Decay of the Soul. Even if they don't die immediately, they will not last long. Only those already in the stage of soul decay would resort to such a technique," the Turtle explained the potential truth.