Chapter 20 - 20 20 Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit

20: Chapter 20: Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit 20: Chapter 20: Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit After returning home and exchanging a few words with his parents, Fang Bai noticed that they didn’t mention the forty thousand yuan he spent on his sister, indicating that his sister hadn’t told them about the matter. Fang Bai thought this was for the best, as it meant he didn’t have to waste his breath explaining himself to his parents. Once his parents had gone to rest, just as he did the previous night, Fang Bai chopped up the herbs, boiled a large tub of medicinal water, and took off his clothes to take a medicinal bath, using it to cleanse his marrow and expel impurities from his body. During the bath, Fang Bai found that the black substance his body expelled was much more than yesterday, and he could clearly feel the improvement in various aspects of his body. Indeed, the better the quality of the herbs used, the more effective the medicinal bath. He continued this routine until midnight before returning to his room to rest. Searᴄh the Novёlƒire.n(e)t website on Google to access chapters of novels early and in the highest quality. Of course, Fang Bai’s rest wasn’t a deep sleep like that of an ordinary person, but rather a silent circulation of the “Dragon-Tiger-Lion-Elephant Technique,” which brought him into a miraculous cultivation state. In this way, Fang Bai only needed to “rest” for two or three hours each day, which sufficed for a whole night’s rest for a normal person. That was one of the advantages of being a cultivator. Getting up at dawn the next day, Fang Bai checked on the “Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus” planted in the corner of the wall and was pleased to find it had taken root and started to grow. The wind was strong today, and it was a headwind at that, making running doubly difficult. However, for Fang Bai, body refinement required constant pushing of one’s limits for faster progress. He sprinted to the mountain outside the city and, like the previous two days, first practiced his cultivation technique, followed by breathing exercises, making the True Yuan in his Qi Sea, which was only the size of a grain of rice, even purer and more condensed. Since it was Sunday and there was no school, Fang Bai decided to roam around the mountain to see if he would have another encounter like when he discovered the “Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus.” The Wolong Mountain Range, being close to the several peaks near Zhongzhou City, had relatively gentle slopes. When the weather was nice, many citizens would come here for outings and fun, making it difficult for any rare herbs to grow. Fang Bai’s discovery of the “Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus” was something of a miracle. Fang Bai searched up and down the nearby peaks but found nothing special, so he followed the rugged mountain path deeper into the mountain. The Wolong Mountain spanned a thousand miles, with peaks stretching endlessly, rivers crisscrossing, and ravines intertwining. The forest inside was lush, and the flowers and plants abundant, a paradise for various wild animals. As Fang Bai walked along and searched meticulously, he didn’t find any special herbs with spiritual essence, like the “Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus,” capable of absorbing the True Yuan of heaven and earth by themselves, which left him somewhat disappointed. Around eight o’clock, feeling a bit hungry and not wanting to return empty-handed, Fang Bai started to catch pheasants and wild rabbits in the forest to roast and eat. Pheasants and wild rabbits ran incredibly fast in the forest and were very difficult to catch, but Fang Bai activated his True Yuan and exerted his full strength to employ the “Dragon Soaring to the Heavens” movement technique from the “Dragon-Tiger-Lion-Elephant Technique,” moving as nimbly as a Flood Dragon soaring through the heavens, his speed even surpassing that of the quick creatures. In just half an hour, he easily caught several pheasants and wild rabbits. Although he didn’t have salt or spices, the wild game from the mountain was fresh, tender, and delicious. After roasting, Fang Bai still found it extremely satisfying to eat. With his hunger sated, Fang Bai continued on his way. The deeper he ventured into the mountain, the more treacherous the paths became. If it were an ordinary person who had walked dozens of miles of mountain roads, they would have long since been exhausted. But Fang Bai treated this as a form of body refining and persisted through the intense fatigue with gritted teeth. Approaching noon, Fang Bai stopped by a small stream, drank heartily from its cool and sweet waters, spotted fish swimming in the stream, speared a few with branches, and fried them over a fire by the streamside. After eating and drinking his fill, Fang Bai sat cross-legged on a rock by the stream and circulated the “Dragon-Tiger-Lion-Elephant Technique” to recuperate, not continuing his journey until his strength was fully restored. “Eh? What is that…” As he passed a steep peak, Fang Bai caught a glimpse of something, a faint red shadow flickering halfway up the mountain, about dozens of feet high. After advancing to the second level, the “Accumulating Essence Realm” of the “Dragon-Tiger-Lion-Elephant Technique”, his senses had become acute, his eyesight especially sharp. He could clearly see things tens of meters away. Standing at the base of the mountain, he looked up at the red shadow and couldn’t help feeling overjoyed. “It’s the ‘Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit’! This extraordinary fruit, once matured, can be consumed directly or used to make elixirs. Its effects on cultivators are no less than that of the ‘Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus’!” Fang Bai craned his neck to gaze at the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit,” swaying with the wind, almost jumping with excitement. The leaves of the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit” were uniquely shaped and fiery red in color, like a blazing flame, whereas the fruit itself was heart-shaped, about the size of a pigeon’s egg, and looked extremely delicate and luscious. Upon observing, Fang Bai estimated that the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit” was still a while away from being ripe. He decided to pick it and take it home to plant, like he had with the “Seven-Leaf Golden Lotus.” If he could cultivate it on a large scale in the future, it would greatly benefit his own cultivation. The mountain was steep, but that was no hindrance to Fang Bai. He braced himself, using hands and feet together, and began to climb. A height of several dozens of feet, he would reach within a few minutes. Closely inspecting the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit,” he saw a pigeon-egg-sized fruit, fiery red and heart-shaped, trembling lightly in the mountain breeze, highlighted against a cluster of flame-like leaves. Carried by the mountain breeze, a strong, refreshing fragrance emanated from the fruit. Fang Bai took a deep breath, and his spirit was instantly revitalized, his tiredness swept away. This “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit,” growing on the steep mountainside, was hard to spot for those with poor vision, and it would be impossible to reach such a height of several dozens of meters without climbing tools, perhaps why it had remained undiscovered until now. Encountering this “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit” was indeed a stroke of luck for Fang Bai. Excitement sparkled in Fang Bai’s eyes as his right arm reached through a crevice between the rocks, gently grasping the stem of the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit,” ready to carefully pull it out and take it with him. That’s when a fishy wind hit him in the face, and upon smelling it, a faint dizziness burst in his head. Having seen and known much in his past life, Fang Bai realized the instant the fishy breeze hit that there must be a poisonous creature attacking him, and he silently cursed his luck. Before his eyes, a blur of color shot out like lightning from behind the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit,” from between the stone cracks, and lunged towards Fang Bai’s arm that was holding onto the fruit. Although Fang Bai was taken by surprise, he didn’t panic. He quickly retracted his right arm, letting go of the “Blazing Flame Scarlet Heart Fruit,” and focused on the colorful shadow, gasping in shock. The colorful shadow was a Five-Colored Flower Snake, as thick as an arm and about a zhang long. The snake, with half of its body coiled on a protruding rock, lifted its large triangular head high, eyes human-like, fixated on Fang Bai. From its mouth, a half-foot long, blood-red tongue flickered rapidly, producing a hair-raising hissing sound as if warning Fang Bai. “Wherever there are strange flowers and rare herbs, there must be spirit beasts guarding them. How could I forget this? This snake must be over a hundred years old. Judging by its color, its venom is definitely potent. I must be cautious!” Fang Bai had no intention of backing down, and neither did the Five-Colored Flower Snake seem inclined to retreat. Both human and serpent faced off, barely two meters apart.