Chapter 84: The Golden Fire Fruit

The training inside Blazing Flame Mountain continued.

Time passed quickly. After witnessing Ye Wuxie’s breakthrough a few days ago, Long Feng did not immediately approach him again.

He understood one simple thing.

Just because Ye Wuxie had exposed some of his secrets during a breakthrough did not mean he would do it again anytime soon.

Breakthroughs were not something a cultivator could perform whenever they wished.

Every increase in cultivation required an enormous amount of energy and sufficient accumulation. The higher one’s realm, the more difficult it became to break through.

If Long Feng wanted to understand more about Ye Wuxie, waiting for another breakthrough could take far too long.

Therefore, when Long Feng noticed Ye Wuxie leaving his temporary cultivation area alone several days later, he immediately followed him.

This time, however, he did not remain as far away as before.

With the strange changes in his senses brought by the Demon Emperor’s Will, even the surrounding fluctuations were difficult for Ye Wuxie to notice.

Long Feng followed silently.

The deeper they went, the hotter the environment became. The ground beneath their feet had already turned dark red.

Occasionally, flames erupted from cracks in the earth, while scorching air swept across the mountain.

After traveling for more than an hour, Ye Wuxie encountered a group of disciples, or rather, two groups.

There were more than a dozen disciples from two different sects gathered in front of a huge cave entrance.

Among them were several Golden Core Realm cultivators, yet none of them entered the cave. Instead, all of them stared toward the depths.

’What are they waiting for?’

Ye Wuxie narrowed his eyes.

But he soon received his answer as a terrifying roar suddenly came from inside the cave.

"ROAR!"

The sound shook the entire valley.

Several weaker disciples’ expressions changed as they hurriedly circulated their spiritual energy to protect themselves from the powerful sound wave.

A moment later, a massive python slowly emerged from the cave.

Its body was covered in golden-red scales that shimmered under the faint light of the surrounding flames.

It was more than ten meters long, and its thick body was nearly as wide as a person’s waist.

Most terrifying of all was the aura coming from it.

It was comparable to that of a fourth-level Golden Core Realm human expert.

Ye Wuxie’s gaze became serious.

’That aura... that’s bloodline power.’

He could faintly sense an ancient aura hidden inside its body. ℴ

Although its cultivation was only equivalent to that of a fourth-level Golden Core Realm human cultivator, its combat strength was clearly much greater.

The python slowly coiled itself before the cave entrance, as if it were guarding this place.

Seeing this, Ye Wuxie was greatly astonished.

Why was such a powerful beast acting as a watchman?

He extended his senses toward the inside of the cave, and there he saw a plant.

It was a small, golden-colored plant. At the top of the plant hung a fruit.

The fruit was roughly the size of a fist. Its surface was covered in golden patterns, and faint flames seemed to burn inside it.

Even from this distance, Ye Wuxie could sense the rich energy contained within it.

His eyes lit up upon recognizing its origin.

’It’s a Golden Fire Fruit.’

It was a rare natural treasure that contained extremely pure energy.

Even for Golden Core Realm experts, consuming it could provide an enormous amount of cultivation energy.

Most importantly, the energy contained inside the fruit was extremely pure and violent.

If refined properly, it could greatly increase one’s cultivation. No wonder these disciples were gathered here.

But the problem was obvious.

Several disciples had already tried to attack the beast, yet none had succeeded.

A Golden Core Realm disciple stepped forward.

"Everyone, the fruit is almost mature. We can’t continue waiting."

His eyes remained fixed on the Golden Fire Fruit.

"That beast is too strong. We’ve already attacked several times, but we can’t break through its defense."

Another disciple frowned, clearly aware that the situation was unfavorable for them.

The fourth-level Golden Core Realm python was indeed frightening.

Its scales were extremely hard. Even attacks from Golden Core Realm cultivators only left shallow marks on its body.

And because of its rare bloodline, its physical strength was considerably higher than that of ordinary beasts of the same realm.

The disciples hesitated, but they couldn’t wait forever.

As the saying goes, men die for wealth just as birds die for food.

The Golden Fire Fruit had already reached the final stage of maturity. If the python consumed it, everything would be wasted.

As if realizing their intention, the python suddenly hissed.

Its triangular pupils swept across the gathered cultivators, and a dangerous aura spread from its body.

Boom!

The next instant, it suddenly attacked. Its enormous tail swept across the ground.

Several disciples hurriedly jumped backward.

"Attack!"

Someone shouted, and that voice was enough to break the strange tranquility.

The surrounding disciples immediately launched their techniques.

Spiritual energy exploded throughout the valley.

Sword lights, flame blades, palm strikes, and countless other attacks flew toward the python from all directions.

Those dozen disciples were geniuses from the seven great sects. How could they be weak?

The python roared and charged forward.

Its enormous body moved with astonishing speed.

Bang!

A disciple was struck directly by its tail and flew backward.

Blood sprayed from his mouth as his body crashed heavily against the rocky ground.

Another Golden Core cultivator rushed forward and struck the python’s head.

The beast twisted its body.

The attack landed directly on its scales.

Clang!

A metallic sound rang out, causing the cultivator’s expression to change.

"Impossible!"

His full-strength attack had only left a shallow mark.

Before he could react, the python opened its enormous mouth.

A terrifying golden flame erupted from within.

Feeling the danger, the surrounding disciples hurriedly retreated.

The cave entrance was instantly engulfed by fire.

The intense heat forced even the Golden Core cultivators to retreat several steps.

The disciples became increasingly anxious.

"This won’t work!"

"We need more people!"

"Call the senior disciples!"

But another nearby disciple immediately shook his head.

"If we call them, do you think they’ll let us have the Golden Fire Fruit?"

Everyone fell silent.

Indeed! There were many powerful Golden Core Realm disciples participating in the training. But most of them had already gone deeper into Blazing Flame Mountain.

The reason these weaker disciples had gathered here was precisely because they wanted to obtain opportunities before those stronger disciples arrived.

If they called for reinforcements, the situation would become even worse.

One Golden Fire Fruit and so many cultivators. Who would willingly hand it over?

"Then what do we do?"

"Continue attacking!"

Another disciple gritted his teeth.

"If we wait any longer, the fruit will mature completely!"

Having no other option, they attacked again.

This time, everyone held nothing back.

The python was forced backward several steps, yet it remained stubbornly in front of the fruit.

Its enormous body completely protected the cave entrance, preventing anyone from easily approaching the treasure.

Long Feng watched this scene from afar. His eyes moved between the python and the Golden Fire Fruit.

Just then, a strange vibration came from beneath the ground.

’What’s that?’

BOOM!

The next instant, the ground beneath them exploded.

A gigantic creature suddenly burst out from beneath the earth. It resembled a massive lizard.

Its body was covered in thick black scales, and its powerful claws were clearly designed for digging through the earth.

The creature’s aura was terrifying, around middle stage of Golden Core Realm, making it the strongest expert present.

The surrounding disciples were stunned.

"Another beast?!"

The lizard didn’t hesitate. It immediately attacked the python. Its enormous claws struck the python’s body with terrifying force.

Bang!

The python was thrown sideways. Several of its scales cracked, and fresh blood flowed from its body.

It hissed furiously and immediately counterattacked.

The two beasts collided. The ground shook violently beneath their bodies.

The lizard had the advantage in strength, but the python was more agile.

Its enormous body wrapped around the lizard’s torso, attempting to crush it with its powerful coils. The lizard opened its mouth and bit down.

The two beasts became locked in a terrifying struggle.

The disciples were completely stunned.

"They’re fighting each other!"

"This is our chance!"

Someone shouted, but no one dared to immediately enter.

The battle between the two beasts was too dangerous. A stray attack could easily kill a True Spirit Realm cultivator.

Then the lizard suddenly smashed the python into the cave wall.

BOOM!

The cave shook violently, pieces of stone fell from above.

The python’s body was badly wounded, but it still refused to retreat from the Golden Fire Fruit. Its enormous tail suddenly struck the lizard.

The lizard staggered backward, and blood flowed from the corner of its mouth. Neither beast was willing to give up.

The disciples watched nervously.

"Should we attack now?"

"Wait!"

"Let them weaken each other first!"

The battle continued, and the cave began collapsing around them.

Large pieces of rock fell from the ceiling, forcing the disciples to constantly move backward.

The python became increasingly wounded. The lizard wasn’t much better. Both beasts were covered in blood, yet their attacks remained fierce.

CRACK!

A section of the cave wall suddenly collapsed and a new opening appeared.

The cave that had originally been difficult to enter had now become connected to several smaller passages.

Ye Wuxie’s eyes suddenly lit up.

This was an opportunity.

The Golden Fire Fruit was almost mature. The two beasts were severely wounded. And the collapsed cave had created several paths.

That meant whoever moved the fastest could seize the fruit and escape before the others reacted.

Several disciples realized the same thing. Their gazes became heated as they stared at the golden fruit.

"What a fragrance!"

"The fruit... has ripened!"

The Golden Fire Fruit suddenly released a brilliant golden glow.

A rich fragrance spread throughout the cave.

The energy contained within the fruit also erupted outward, causing the surrounding spiritual energy to tremble. The fruit was fully mature.

"Go!" The disciples erupted into action.