Chapter 350 - 221: Primordial Spirit Fruit (2)
A cold glint flashed through Fang Yue’s eyes as his body reacted instantly. He knew he couldn’t afford a single moment of carelessness against this golden ape.
While its strength was perhaps only equivalent to that of an Innate Grandmaster, battles with Spirit Beasts often involved many unpredictable factors.
The ape roared, its golden fur shimmering brilliantly in the sunlight. Its attacks were swift and fierce, each strike seemingly imbued with immense power.
Fang Yue’s movements were like the wind as he deftly dodged the ape’s attacks.
He wasn’t in a hurry to strike back; instead, he was looking for an opening.
He knew that against a Spirit Beast like this, the only way to secure a swift victory was to find its weakness.
After a few exchanges, Fang Yue had a rough understanding of the ape’s attack patterns.
He discovered that while the ape was powerful, its attacks were relatively simple and lacked variety.
Fang Yue decided it was time to take the offensive. With a single movement, he shot toward the ape like a bolt of lightning.
He balled his right hand into a fist and, with the force of a thunderbolt, smashed it into the ape’s chest.
A flash of panic flickered in the ape’s eyes, but it was an Innate Level Spirit Beast, after all, with a wealth of combat experience.
It immediately adopted a defensive posture, blocking Fang Yue’s straight punch with its tough hide.
THUD! Fang Yue’s fist slammed into the ape’s chest, making a dull sound.
The ape’s body shook violently. It staggered back several steps and spat out a mouthful of blood, looking utterly wretched.
"AWOOO—"
The ape let out a pained howl, its eyes fixed on Fang Yue in a furious rage. Baring its fangs and brandishing its claws, it charged.
The ape wasn’t particularly fast. Fang Yue slammed a palm onto its head, knocking it to the ground once more.
THUMP. The ape hit the ground and could no longer rise.
Ignoring the ape, Fang Yue walked straight to the ancient tree and plucked the fruit from its branches.
The fruit was oval, its surface shimmering with a golden luster. A single glance was enough to tell its quality was extraordinary.
Fang Yue carefully examined the fruit, then breathed a sigh of relief and muttered, "My trip wasn’t a waste after all. This really is the legendary Primordial Spirit Fruit!"
The Primordial Spirit Fruit was an incredibly rare Heavenly Material and Earthly Treasure, said to be formed from the condensation of pure primordial spirit essence.
Consuming a Primordial Spirit Fruit could drastically improve a Martial Artist’s cultivation and even had a chance of helping them break through a bottleneck. For Fang Yue, however, the need wasn’t so urgent.
His cultivation was already at a bottleneck; to advance, he needed to acquire Primordial Qi of four different attributes.
This Spirit Fruit alone wasn’t enough for him to break through his bottleneck.
Still, this Spirit Fruit was undeniably extraordinary. Whether he sold it or consumed it himself later, it would be of great use.
Fang Yue carefully placed the Primordial Spirit Fruit into his pouch, then turned to look at the golden ape on the ground.
The ape had lost its ability to fight, but its eyes, filled with rage and resentment, remained fixed on Fang Yue, as if demanding to know why he had stolen the treasure it guarded.
Fang Yue frowned slightly. He wasn’t one to kill wantonly. But seeing the Spiritual Monkey’s expression, it was obvious its hatred for him ran deep.
Besides, Fang Yue needed certain things from the ape’s body.
He walked over to the ape and carefully inspected its injuries. Then, he reached out and pressed his palm lightly on its body a few times.
The ape’s body trembled slightly, then went completely still, all life fading from it.
Fang Yue took several golden hairs and some special materials from the ape’s body. These things were very useful to him and could be used to create special elixirs and artifacts.
With that done, Fang Yue prepared to leave the valley.
However, just as he was about to leave, he suddenly sensed a powerful aura rapidly approaching.
Fang Yue’s heart tightened. He knew someone was rushing over. ’And judging by this aura, they’re definitely not weak.’
He quickly concealed his figure and aura, then hid off to the side to wait quietly.
Before long, an old man in a black robe appeared in the valley. He looked somewhat ancient, but his eyes glinted with a sharp light.
The old man scanned his surroundings, as if searching for something. When his gaze swept over Fang Yue’s hiding spot, it paused for a fraction of a second.
Fang Yue’s heart tightened, but he knew he couldn’t act rashly. ’If I reveal my position, it’ll just cause unnecessary trouble.’
The old man didn’t find any trace of Fang Yue. After making a circuit of the valley, he left in disappointment.
Fang Yue breathed a sigh of relief, silently thanking his good fortune. ’I only dodged that bullet through a combination of luck and caution.’
He didn’t dare to linger and immediately left the valley. He needed to find a safe place as soon as possible to sort through his new acquisitions.
~~~~~~~
After leaving the valley, Fang Yue quickly found a hidden cave in the surrounding forest to serve as a temporary refuge.
He knew that the Primordial Spirit Fruit and the materials from the golden ape were both extremely precious.
Moreover, that place had clearly been targeted by someone for a long time. He had simply beaten them to the punch and snatched their prize.
Therefore, he had to be extremely cautious in handling these spoils.
First, he took out the Primordial Spirit Fruit and examined it closely.
The Primordial Spirit Fruit emitted a faint fragrance, its skin shimmering with a golden luster, seeming to contain an endless amount of Spiritual Qi.
Fang Yue knew that while the Primordial Spirit Fruit couldn’t directly advance his cultivation, it could be used to create special elixirs or serve as an aid when he broke through his bottleneck in the future.
He decided to store the Primordial Spirit Fruit safely for now and research its uses later when he had the opportunity.
Next, Fang Yue began to process the materials from the golden ape.
The golden hairs and special organs he had taken from the ape all contained powerful energy and were highly Spiritual.
These materials were irreplaceable for Alchemy and Artifact Refining.
Although Fang Yue was not proficient in the arts of Alchemy and Artifact Refining, he understood their value.
He decided to sort and organize the materials for now, intending to find someone to help him process them later.
Alternatively, he could trade the materials directly for other items he needed.
After sorting through his spoils, Fang Yue began to cultivate. He knew that even though he had acquired some good things, strength was what mattered most.
Only by continuously improving his own strength could he better protect himself and those around him.
He also needed to break through his current cultivation bottleneck as soon as possible; otherwise, no amount of Heavenly Materials and Earthly Treasures would be of any real use to him.
Fang Yue sat cross-legged in the cave, closed his eyes, and focused his mind, beginning to circulate the Primordial Qi within his body.
As he cultivated, the surrounding Heaven and Earth Primordial Qi slowly began to converge, drawn into his body for Refinement.
Although his cultivation had hit a bottleneck, he couldn’t stop training. He needed to continuously accumulate Primordial Qi and experience to prepare for the eventual breakthrough.
The days passed, and Fang Yue’s cultivation improved steadily. The progress wasn’t fast, but every step was solid and firm.
He knew that the path of cultivation could not be rushed; only steady and consistent effort would allow him to go far.
While he was cultivating, many things were happening in the outside world.
The black-robed old man hadn’t given up on finding Fang Yue. He was still searching the nearby mountain forests.
But Fang Yue had left the valley long ago, and his concealment techniques were superb, so the old man found no clues.
Finally, half a month later, Fang Yue emerged from the cave and headed toward the small town where he had stayed before.
Fang Yue’s figure darted through the forest, as nimble as a panther.
He soon emerged from the forest and returned to the small town.
After restocking on supplies, Fang Yue paid for a spot with a caravan heading toward the nearby Liangzhou Prefecture City.
He chose not to travel alone in order to hide his tracks.
By mixing with ordinary people, he wouldn’t attract much attention and could better conceal his presence.