Chapter 1649: Crazy Harvesting
"I bid one million five hundred thousand sacred stones."
That sharp-eared woman was very eager to obtain the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit and called out another high price.
...
Zhang Ruochen did not want to sell the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit right now. If he took it to an outside sacred store for auction, it would definitely fetch an astonishing price.
However, the group of cultivators present surrounded him, their eyes burning as they stared at him, giving Zhang Ruochen a massive headache.
The Eight-Armed Spider King saw Zhang Ruochen's predicament and stepped forward, saying, "Everyone, calm down. Have you ever seen a sacred fruit like this, which can help Half-Saints and Saint Kings improve their cultivation, put up for sale?"
Then, the Eight-Armed Spider King said to Zhang Ruochen, "Outside, even if you have countless sacred stones, you can't buy a treasure like the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit. So, to maximize its value, you need to trade it for other treasures that can't be bought with sacred stones."
"Barter?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
"Exactly."
The Eight-Armed Spider King knew Zhang Ruochen wasn't very familiar with the Sealing God Platform Assembly, so he explained, "The Sealing God Platform Assembly is divided into ten zones. One of those zones is specifically for free trade. Tonight, at midnight, that zone will open. You can bring the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit there to exchange with other cultivators for different kinds of sacred fruits."
Zhang Ruochen noted this, then clasped his hands and said to the cultivators gathered around, "My apologies, everyone. I won't be selling this Heart Moon Sacred Fruit. If you truly want it, you can bring other sacred fruits to the free trade zone at midnight tonight and trade with me."
The crowd knew it was difficult to buy the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit with sacred stones, so they just sighed and didn't press further.
Just as they were about to leave, a man in golden-threaded sacred armor arrived at the edge of the sacred pool.
This man had a golden spike growing from his head, exuded powerful aura fluctuations from head to toe, and his blood energy was thick, making all the cultivators present feel a chill down their spines.
"A master, at least a Three-Step Saint King, and one who can fight across cultivation levels." Zhang Ruochen thought to himself, feeling a surge of caution.
The snake-headed creature showed a surprised expression: "Golden Armor Imperial Guard—he's the Golden Armor Imperial Guard beside the Crown Prince of the Imperial Ancestor Divine Dynasty."
"Is the Imperial Ancestor Crown Prince here?"
"That shouldn't be possible. The Imperial Ancestor Crown Prince is always followed by a large group of cultivators, making a huge commotion."
The fair-skinned young woman saw the Golden Armor Imperial Guard, showed a delighted expression, quickly walked up, and asked eagerly, "Bei Yu, why are you here alone? Where is my senior brother?"
The Golden Armor Imperial Guard bowed to the young woman and said, "His Highness the Crown Prince is currently using the Red Cedar Treasure Ruler to pick the Kirin Supreme Perfection Fruit and cannot spare the time to come here."
The young woman showed an extremely disappointed expression and complained, "Doesn't he know that if I take the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit, I can break through to the Saint King realm in one go? The Heart Moon Sacred Fruit is very important to me."
"Compared to the Kirin Supreme Perfection Fruit, the Heart Moon Sacred Fruit is insignificant. His Highness instructed me to tell the Princess that when the free trade zone opens at midnight tonight, he will personally go and buy you a sacred fruit to enhance your cultivation," the Golden Armor Imperial Guard said expressionlessly.
...
In the distance, the Eight-Armed Spider King snorted lightly, "No wonder she's so arrogant and looks down on everyone. So she's a princess of the Imperial Ancestor Divine Dynasty."
Zhang Ruochen had read many books and had some understanding of the Imperial Ancestor Divine Dynasty. It was one of the three great divine dynasties of the Imperial Dao Great World, and the Imperial Dao Great World was one of the hundred most powerful great worlds in the universe.
The Thousand Stamen Realm hadn't even made it into the top hundred of the ten thousand realms.
So, a princess of the Imperial Ancestor Divine Dynasty was already a terrifyingly high status.
Zhang Ruochen asked the Eight-Armed Spider King, "What kind of treasure is the Kirin Supreme Perfection Fruit? It seems quite remarkable."
The Eight-Armed Spider King's spirit lifted, and a look of longing appeared in his eyes. "Of course it's remarkable. It's said that obtaining this fruit can create a prodigy with a Supreme Perfection Constitution. And a cultivator who already has a Supreme Perfection Constitution, after consuming this fruit, can even seize a divine destiny."
"Eating one fruit can cultivate a Supreme Perfection Constitution?" Zhang Ruochen was shocked.
Prodigies with a Sub-Perfection Constitution were rare, but they could still appear in various great worlds.
Because gods, at a certain cost, could use divine power to change some cultivators' fates and help them cultivate a Sub-Perfection Constitution. Or, like Mu Lingxi, cultivators with great fortune who received the inheritance of a Supreme Realm Great Saint could also cultivate a Sub-Perfection Constitution.
Beings with a Perfection Constitution were much rarer and quite uncommon.
As for beings with a Supreme Perfection Constitution, they were even rarer. Many great worlds couldn't find even one.
That's why Zhang Ruochen was so shocked.
The Eight-Armed Spider King laughed, "It's not that easy. Even with the Kirin Supreme Perfection Fruit, the cultivator's own constitution can't be too poor, and they need the assistance of some special environments to cultivate a Supreme Perfection Constitution."
"Each Sealing God Platform Assembly only produces a few Supreme Perfection Fruits, and each one is fiercely contested."
"We shouldn't even think about treasures of this level. Only the top experts of powerful realms are qualified to compete for them. Cultivators from other realms who try to compete will only humiliate themselves."
Zhang Ruochen's gaze fell on Mu Lingxi, and he wanted to help her obtain one.
Mu Lingxi saw Zhang Ruochen's intention and quickly said, "The stronger the constitution, the harder the cultivation. Cultivators with a Supreme Perfection Constitution face far greater difficulty when breaking through to the Great Saint realm than others. I don't want such a powerful constitution; it would only slow down my cultivation speed."
Zhang Ruochen knew that Mu Lingxi said this because she didn't want him to take the risk.
Trying to seize a treasure from the top experts of powerful realms was like snatching food from a tiger's mouth—extremely dangerous.
The Eight-Armed Spider King also advised Zhang Ruochen, "The Kirin Supreme Perfection Fruit is of a yang attribute, while this young lady's constitution leans toward yin. If she consumes it, not only will she fail to cultivate a Supreme Perfection Constitution, but it will also be very harmful to her body."
Zhang Ruochen frowned, "Does it also depend on the constitution and attribute?"
"Of course. Do you think cultivating a Supreme Perfection Constitution is that easy?" the Eight-Armed Spider King said.
Mu Lingxi showed a smile, "Hear that? Even if you got the Kirin Supreme Perfection Fruit, it would be useless."
Since it couldn't help Mu Lingxi cultivate a Supreme Perfection Constitution, Zhang Ruochen had to suppress his thoughts.
The Eight-Armed Spider King took his leave and went to search for other treasures.
Zhang Ruochen and Mu Lingxi walked away together. After going about a few miles and confirming there were no other beings around, Zhang Ruochen immediately used the Formless and Faceless Thirty-Six Transformations to change into a different appearance.
He also changed his clothes.
Mu Lingxi looked at him and asked, "What are you going to do?"
"Wait for me here. I'm going back to pick a few more Heart Moon Sacred Fruits."
Zhang Ruochen smiled at Mu Lingxi, then used his movement technique to return to the edge of the sacred pool.
Most of the beings by the sacred pool had already left, and a few new faces had appeared, studying the white sacred tree and thinking of ways to pick the Heart Moon Sacred Fruits.
Zhang Ruochen ignored them, held the wooden jar in his palm, and used the "Space Capture" technique.
"Swoosh—"
A branch of the white sacred tree swayed slightly, and a Heart Moon Sacred Fruit on the branch vanished into thin air, appearing in the wooden jar in Zhang Ruochen's hand.
Then came the second, the third...
Each time he picked a sacred fruit, the space around the white sacred tree became more solidified, making the next pick several times harder.
After picking five Heart Moon Sacred Fruits in a row, Zhang Ruochen tried to use Space Capture again, but his hand was repelled. His five fingers ached as if he had struck an iron wall.
"The Truth Divine Temple's methods are truly formidable. Even space power can't penetrate it."
Zhang Ruochen was unwilling to give up. He pointed his finger forward and slashed, tearing open a space rift.
But as soon as the space rift flew over the sacred pool, it was squeezed shut by an invisible force.
A puzzled look appeared in Zhang Ruochen's eyes. He slowly extended both hands and pushed forward.
His hands met resistance, blocked by a layer of invisible, viscous force. He couldn't reach into the space above the sacred pool at all, let alone pick the Heart Moon Sacred Fruits.
"The resistance is terrifying. It seems I really can't pick any more."
Zhang Ruochen sighed softly, feeling a bit disappointed. He took the five Heart Moon Sacred Fruits he had just picked and left the sacred pool to meet up with Mu Lingxi.
Behind him, a female human Saint King stared at the Heart Moon Sacred Fruits on the white sacred tree and noticed something unusual. She let out a startled cry, "Look! The Heart Moon Sacred Fruits on the sacred tree have suddenly decreased by five."
"How could such a strange thing happen?"
"Could it be that the cultivator who was just here picked them?"
"How is that possible? No one can pick five of the same sacred fruit."
...
By the sacred pool, all the beings were shocked. They immediately used their movement techniques to rush out, searching everywhere for Zhang Ruochen's trail.
But at that moment, Zhang Ruochen had transformed back into the frail scholar, walking alongside Mu Lingxi, and appeared at the bottom of a white bone slope more than twenty miles away.
The area around the white bone slope, spanning several thousand meters, was a stretch of yin soil.
Some bones were exposed on the soil's surface, emitting a white sacred light. They were all sacred bones. Some of the bones even gave off white flames.
A Ghost King Sacred Tree with a pitch-black trunk grew on the white bone slope, lush with leaves, bearing more than twenty Ghost King Fruits on its branches.
Around the white bone slope stood dozens of powerful beings, all trying to charge to the base of the Ghost King Sacred Tree to pick the fruits.
But the white bone slope held great danger. Several powerful Saint Kings had been severely injured, their bodies stained with blood, as they sat at the edge of the slope healing.
Zhang Ruochen observed for a while. After gaining some understanding of the white bone slope, he took Mu Lingxi's wrist and slowly walked away.
A moment later, Zhang Ruochen changed his appearance again and returned to the white bone slope alone. Using space techniques, he picked four Ghost King Fruits in a row, then drifted away under the shocked gazes of the cultivators.
Picking the Ghost King Fruits was far harder than the Heart Moon Sacred Fruits, so Zhang Ruochen could only manage four with all his effort.
Over the next two hours, Zhang Ruochen picked seventeen more types of sacred fruits, with quantities ranging from one to over a dozen each.
Soon, all the beings in the Outer South Courtyard knew that a lone space cultivator had appeared—mysterious in identity, extremely skilled, and able to pick sacred fruits as easily as taking something from his pocket.
This news reached the leaders of various great worlds, and someone made a judgment: "A Space Controller must have appeared. An ordinary space cultivator couldn't have such power."
(Chapter End)