Ye Qin remained concealed behind a boulder deep within the jungle, thousands of feet away, his mind racing to devise a strategy for plucking the Vermillion Fruit.
The crimson vine clinging to the colossal tree was a major headache.
It had been a long time since Ye Qin last utilized the Great Immortal Body Technique, not since confronting the Old Ancestor of the Barren Spirit Ghost Island. He conjured two projections, each possessing one-third the strength of an early Nascent Soul cultivator, to probe the defenses. However, they were nearly annihilated by the crimson vine.
This outcome shocked Ye Qin, yet upon reflection, it was predictable.
A simple deduction revealed the horror of the blood vine. The Vermillion Fruit was a Spirit Fruit of the Deification stage, ranking between the thirteenth and fifteenth tiers. For the crimson vine to hold dominion over such a fruit, its own rank must be formidable, likely thirteenth tier or higher.
Regrettably, his two projections were erased before he could ascertain even a fraction of the vine's true power; otherwise, he might have gauged its tier.
The blood vine on the giant tree, failing to locate the intruder, thrashed wildly in the air for half an incense stick's time. The crimson glow gradually receded, the vine re-entwining itself around the trunk, transforming into inconspicuous, withered tendrils, devoid of any sign of life, perfectly camouflaged as dead wood.
Ye Qin watched the withered vine atop the giant tree from afar, hesitant to make any rash move.
The purple Vermillion Fruits, emanating the Human Spirit Incense, were visible but utterly unreachable.
The vine on this massive tree could effortlessly sweep across a thousand-zhang radius around it.
This short distance of a mere thousand zhang was lethally dangerous.
Ye Qin cycled through every offensive and defensive measure at his disposal: the Great Wing Warship, the Nascent Soul early-stage shapeshifting Skeleton Demon, the minor divine artifact, the Ancient Mirror of Swift Thunder, the Silver Merman Blade, and others. Still, he could conceive of no method to breach the blood vine's defense and secure the fruit.
All these tools employed Nascent Soul-level attacks. Against a Deification-stage vine, they likely wouldn't even scratch its surface.
After all, his two projections, wielding one-third the power of an early Nascent Soul cultivator, were instantly dispatched; these Nascent Soul means would mostly be in vain.
However, abandoning the quest now, simply leaving, was unacceptable to Ye Qin.
A single Vermillion Fruit could propel him to the peak of the ninth layer of the Nascent Soul stage in a short span, saving hundreds of years of arduous cultivation and granting far more time to prepare for the grand tribulation of the Deification stage. Any cultivator would covet such a heavenly treasure.
Cultivators dedicate the vast majority of their lives to advancing their cultivation, often regretting lost opportunities because they lacked sufficient time or resources to prepare for ascension tribulations.
Having gone to the trouble of reaching the Demon Realm and finding a spirit item of this caliber, turning back now was unthinkable.
He had to try something.
“If Nascent Soul means cannot counter this blood vine, then I must employ Deification means! The Ice Lotus Seed stored in my Violet Mansion, and that Nether Flame, are both Deification-grade spiritual items with immense destructive power. They should pose a threat to this blood vine!”
With this realization, Ye Qin’s resolve hardened. He took a few gulps of the Thousand Blossoms Spirit Brew while contemplating his approach.
In that short time, he had fully recovered his expended magic power.
He patted the storage pouch at his waist and summoned the Corrosive Bone Crocodile Skeleton Demon.
Subsequently, he used his divine sense to draw the Nether Flame out from the floating island within his Violet Mansion.
This Nether Flame carried an extreme destructive force; no physical body could directly touch it without instantly being incinerated to ash. Even moving it with divine sense was taxing, consuming nearly half of his spiritual power in the blink of an eye.
Ye Qin dared not delay. He commanded the Corrosive Bone Crocodile Skeleton Demon to hold the Nether Flame in its jaws.
As an early Nascent Soul ghost demon, the Skeleton Demon was capable of commanding high-grade ghost fire. Although the Nether Flame ghost fire was of a higher grade—a Deification-stage flame—the skeleton demon could barely manage it. Having the skeleton demon control the Nether Flame was the most suitable option.
The skeleton demon showed apprehension toward the Nether Flame but opened its mouth and carefully grasped it.
Ye Qin conjured two more projections. Everything was prepared.
Under his direction, the skeleton demon slowly approached the giant tree, entered the open ground within the thousand-zhang range, and halted, fixing a "watchful" gaze on the vine clinging to the trunk.
Sensing a threat, the withered vine on the giant tree began to writhe, radiating a bizarre crimson luminescence.
However, this time, the blood vine did not attack immediately; it seemed hesitant, adopting a defensive posture.
The blood vine sustained itself by absorbing the blood and spiritual energy of demonic beasts to enhance its strength. The skeleton demon, being a ghost demon, was fundamentally different from a living creature; it possessed no vital blood or spiritual energy, only intensely corrosive corpse qi.
The blood vine could not draw blood or spirit energy from the skeleton demon; conversely, the corpse qi would erode it. An instinctual knowledge told it that fighting this ghost demon would yield no benefit, only a depletion of power.
This explained why the blood vine was reluctant to engage the skeleton demon proactively.
Seeing that the skeleton demon had successfully drawn the blood vine's attention, Ye Qin and his two projections stealthily moved from their rocky hiding place to the rear of the giant tree, spreading out to encircle the central trunk.
Success now depended entirely on this strike.
“Go!”
Ye Qin hissed the command, simultaneously ordering the skeleton demon and the two projections to launch an assault on the giant tree's blood vine from three different directions.
The skeleton demon let out a low roar, its four limbs exerting sudden force. Accompanied by a small hurricane formed from thick, black corpse qi, kicking up dust and gravel, it charged toward the giant tree.
The momentum of the two projections charging was no less imposing than the skeleton demon’s.
Simultaneously, Ye Qin himself shot toward the giant tree, aiming to pluck the Vermillion Fruit.
The two projections served only to screen and distract. The true hidden attack lay in the skeleton demon's Nether Flame and Ye Qin's own Ice Lotus Seed.
The thousand-zhang distance vanished in an instant.
The crimson light of the blood vine flared violently, thrashing with intense energy.
"Swish, swish!"
It transformed into four blood whips, slashing sharp crimson streaks through the air, targeting the two projections, the skeleton demon, and Ye Qin himself with lethal force.
The blood vine's attack speed was far superior to Ye Qin’s or the skeleton demon’s.
The skeleton demon made no attempt to dodge the incoming whips, instead opening its massive crocodile maw and erupting with a plume of Nether Flame.
"Crack~!"
The Corrosive Bone Crocodile was struck by a blood whip; dozens of its skeletal segments exploded, nearly destroying half its structure. It was blasted a thousand zhang away by the single strike, collapsing and unable to rise.
However, the tail end of the blood vine was struck by the Nether Flame that erupted from the skeleton demon's mouth.
At this moment, Ye Qin once again witnessed the terrifying might of the Nether Flame.
The moment the Nether Flame touched the blood vine, the contact point ignited instantly. This Deification-grade Yin Fire could incinerate all living things; even the resilient blood vine began to burn, segment by segment, turning to ash.
The blood vine likely never anticipated the Nether Flame's potency. It thrashed wildly, its crimson glow surging, directing its full power toward the flame, attempting to force it away. For a moment, it neglected Ye Qin, who was simultaneously closing in on the giant tree from behind.
Under normal circumstances, given the blood vine's strength, Ye Qin would never have been able to approach within a hundred zhang of the giant tree. But now, suffering unexpected heavy damage from the Nether Flame, it failed to react, allowing Ye Qin to reach the tree.
Ye Qin had no time to study the blood vine; his figure flashed, traversing the thousand-zhang gap. With a sweep of his sleeve, he plucked the nearest mature Vermillion Fruit from the canopy.
The fruit dropped into his sleeve.
Ye Qin rejoiced inwardly.
The Nether Flame had only managed to burn away a small section of the blood vine’s tip before the crimson light extinguished it. The Nether Flame, a devastating weapon capable of instantly killing Nascent Soul cultivators, was insufficient against the blood vine, managing only to sever a single segment.
"Whoosh!"
A blood whip swept toward Ye Qin like a thunderclap. If entangled, his life would be forfeit in an instant.
"Ice Lotus Seed!"
Ye Qin was prepared. Without hesitation, he used his divine sense to retrieve the Ice Lotus Seed stored in his Violet Mansion and hurled it toward the incoming blood whip.
The Deification-grade Ice Lotus Seed burst forth with an intensely frigid aura upon striking the whip.
The rapidly approaching blood whip was instantly encased in ice, frozen stiff. Its attack speed plummeted by at least eighty or ninety percent. While still fast, it was now within a manageable range for Ye Qin, buying him precious time to retreat.
Having secured a Vermillion Fruit, Ye Qin rapidly recoiled, swiftly distancing himself from the giant tree. "Ancient Mirror of Swift Thunder!" Simultaneously, he waved his hand, launching the ancient, unadorned mirror to serve as a shield several feet large behind him.
Smack!
The slowed blood whip slammed heavily against the Ancient Mirror of Swift Thunder.
This minor divine artifact sustained several cracks upon the heavy impact, nearly rendering it half-useless.
Ye Qin tapped the ground lightly, executing two quick bounds to exit the thousand-zhang zone. Hearing the sound of the Ancient Mirror shattering behind him, a cold sweat broke out. This mirror, acquired from the direct lineage of Elder Yan and a long-time companion, was destroyed here.
Having one Vermillion Fruit taken, the blood vine guarding the giant tree went into a frenzy, unleashing torrents of blood whips sweeping thousands of zhang around, sending massive trees flying and mountains cracking.
Ye Qin dared not linger. Employing the Wind Control Art at full power, he vanished into the vast jungle wilderness within a few breaths.
The blood vine’s frenzy eventually subsided, and it reverted to its withered form, coiling around the Vermillion Fruit tree. Several Vermillion Fruits remained; the blood vine could not possibly abandon the giant tree to pursue Ye Qin. Furthermore, it was not a true beast; lacking eyes or feet, pursuit was impossible. Its range of movement was limited.
About half an hour later, a silent figure reappeared near the rock formation thousands of zhang away from the giant tree.
Ye Qin had returned.
He had fled in such haste that he couldn't retrieve the skeleton demon, so he naturally had to come back for it. A powerful Nascent Soul-level skeleton demon was not easily found in the East Sea Cultivation World. Moreover, the Ice Lotus Seed had been left near the battlefield; he hadn't had time to recover it earlier.
The skeleton demon was slumped beneath a large tree in the jungle, more than half its bones shattered and unable to move. Seeing Ye Qin appear, it parted its jaws, and a faint, dull gleam flickered in its black eye sockets.
It had been flung far from the giant tree by the whip, narrowly surviving. If a cultivator sustained such injuries, they would be crippled or dead; but for a skeleton demon, this damage was manageable—it merely needed its skeletal structure reforged. As long as the demon core was undamaged, the problem was minor.
Ye Qin assessed the skeleton demon's injuries with relief, waved his hand, and collected it into his spirit beast pouch for slow healing.
Ye Qin’s gaze swept over the ravaged battlefield.
The fragments of the Ancient Mirror of Swift Thunder lay scattered on the ground, ruined, and not worth retrieving. The Ice Lotus Seed remained intact, resting on the open ground near the giant tree, emitting a potent icy chill. The blood vine appeared wary of it and had not touched it.
Attempting to reclaim the Ice Lotus Seed would surely alert the blood vine, posing a significant risk.
He dared not act rashly now. Without the powerful means of the Nether Flame and the Ice Lotus Seed, approaching the giant tree again would likely cost him his life.
“I obtained one Vermillion Fruit capable of pushing me to the peak of the ninth layer of Nascent Soul, but at the cost of one Deification-grade Nether Flame, one Deification-grade Ice Lotus Seed, one Nascent Soul-grade ancient artifact, and the severe injury of the Skeleton Demon. This seems like a loss. I must find a way to retrieve the Ice Lotus Seed.”
Ye Qin felt a flicker of vexation, yet his demeanor remained composed.