39: Strange Spiritual Plants, Death in Illusion

The aroma didn't enter through the nasal cavity but directly permeated the Divine Soul.

An indescribable freshness, carrying a hint of overbearing sweetness, seemed to cleanse all the weariness and dust from the depths of the Soul.

Among the team, several Disciples instantly had glazed eyes, their adams apples unconsciously bobbing up and down.

Even the Leading Elder, a Golden Core Elder, took a deep breath, a look of surprise appearing in his eyes.

Only Lin Gou.

The moment he smelled this aroma, every cell in his body let out an excited shriek.

"A-rank! This is definitely the taste of an A-rank death package!"

"Selling melon seeds and drinks in the front row. Is there a big shot who wants to perform dying on the spot? Oh, wait, that big shot seems to be me!"

His mind was frantically scrolling, yet his face remained weak and pale, as if he could collapse at any moment.

He quietly shifted his steps, hiding behind Zhao Linger, only peeking out half his head, curiously looking around.

"There must be Spirit Medicine remaining in the Alchemy Room ruins, everyone be careful!"

The Elder commanded in a deep voice, personally taking the lead and carefully pushing aside the collapsed jade pillars.

As the ruins were cleared, the source of the aroma was finally exposed to everyone's eyes.

In the center of the ruins, on a small patch of soil nourished by Spiritual Qi to resemble green jade, grew a strange plant no more than half a foot tall.

Its stem and leaves presented a nearly transparent, glazed luster.

At its top, a fist-sized fruit had formed.

The fruit was semi-transparent throughout, and inside, instead of pulp, was a slowly swirling, miniature, brilliant galaxy.

Billions of stars floated within it, emitting a dreamlike glow that dyed the surrounding air with a hazy color.

The aroma, enticing to the Soul, emanated from this very fruit.

Everyone was stunned.

Their breathing stopped at this moment.

Their hearts skipped a beat at this moment.

What kind of divine object was this?

Just looking at it, they felt a slight loosening in their Cultivation Bottleneck.

Greed, like wild grass, frantically sprouted in everyone's hearts.

Murong Fei's gaze became incredibly fervent.

He almost instinctively took a step forward.

"Don't move!"

The Elder's stern shout jolted him awake, and cold sweat instantly drenched his back.

But, it was still a step too late.

It wasn't Murong Fei.

It was an Inner Sect Disciple in the team, usually quiet and of mediocre Aptitude.

His eyes were already completely consumed by that galaxy.

On his face hung a smile of extreme infatuation, as if he had seen the Dao he had sought his entire life.

"My...my Dao Fruit..."

He murmured to himself, ignoring the Elder's warning and the exclamations of his fellow Disciples.

He stretched out his hand, like the most devout believer, slowly reaching out to touch the fruit with the swirling galaxy.

Time seemed to slow down at this moment.

Everyone's pupils reflected his finger, about to touch the fruit.

The fingertip gently brushed against that hazy glow.

There was no explosion.

No sound.

The Disciple's body instantly stiffened.

The next moment, a scene that made everyone's hair stand on end occurred.

His flesh and blood, like a punctured water bag, collapsed at a visible speed.

His plump skin rapidly lost its luster, clinging tightly to his bones, outlining the silhouette of a human skeleton.

His dark hair instantly turned gray and withered, then fell off like sand.

In just two or three breaths of time.

A living person turned into a shriveled corpse, skin and bones.

He still maintained the posture of reaching out, and the infatuation on his face was forever frozen.

That smile, at this moment, seemed so eerie, so terrifying.

"Ah!"

A female Disciple let out a terrified scream, breaking the dead silence.

Panic spread like a plague.

Everyone, like cats whose tails had been stepped on, frantically retreated, putting distance between themselves and that strange plant.

They looked at the still beautiful and dreamlike fruit, their eyes filled only with boundless fear.

That was not a divine object.

That was a demonic object that would devour life force and Divine Soul!

The Leading Elder's face was extremely solemn.

He stared intently at the plant, his Golden Core Stage Divine Sense repeatedly sweeping over it, yet he still couldn't discern any clues.

His knowledge was top-tier in the Qingyun Sect, but the object before him was unheard of and unseen.

The team was at an impasse.

To move forward, they had to face the unknown death plant.

To retreat, no one was willing.

Amidst this oppressive silence, a faint but unusually firm voice rang out.

"Let me!"

Everyone looked in the direction of the voice, their expressions varied.

It was Lin Gou speaking again.

He stepped out from behind Zhao Linger, his "pale" face now filled with righteous indignation.

In his eyes, a light flickered that no one else could understand.

"A-rank evaluation! It's definitely an A-rank evaluation!"

"Divine Soul-related death, the rewards are the most generous! I'm rich, I'm rich!"

"This isn't poison, this is a perfect tonic delivered right to my mouth!"

His heart was ecstatic, but his face showed a tragic resolve.

"Elder, Senior Brothers and Senior Sisters!"

"If this thing is not removed, none of us can pass!"

"Who knows what other Opportunities lie ahead? Are we to stop here?"

"Fortune favors the bold! Cultivating Immortals is inherently Heaven-Defying!"

His voice was not loud, but every word was resonant.

"Someone always has to try and ascertain its true nature!"

"I...I will test this poison for everyone!"

As soon as these words were uttered, the entire crowd was astonished.

Even Murong Fei looked at him with the gaze one would give a madman.

Someone had just died, and their death was so tragic, and you still want to go?

"Junior Brother Lin! No!"

Zhao Linger was the first to react, grabbing his arm, her beautiful eyes filled with anxiety and pleading.

"It's too dangerous! Let's think of another way!"

Lin Gou turned back and gave her a smile that was uglier than crying.

"Senior Sister, don't worry."

"I have a tough life."

He gently broke free from Zhao Linger's hand, and under her gaze, which was so worried it almost shattered, he walked step by step towards the flower of death.

His steps were slow and heavy, as if each step carried the hope of the entire team.

That figure, in everyone's eyes, was incredibly tragic and incredibly tall.

Finally, he arrived in front of the plant.

That galaxy fruit exuded a fatal temptation.

Lin Gou took a deep breath, his eyes resolute, and under everyone's tense gaze, he actively and resolutely pressed his hand onto it.

Boom!

The moment his palm touched the fruit, an irresistible and terrifying suction force came from his palm.

Lin Gou's body did not shrivel like the previous person's.

However, his Divine Soul, at that instant, was forcibly pulled out of his Sea of Consciousness by a crude force!

There were no bizarre phenomena.

Nor was there any dizziness.

Instead, billions of lives, billions of deaths, were compressed into a torrent of information, which was violently poured into his consciousness in a millionth of a second!

Emperors and generals, peddlers and porters, Immortals and demons, ants and plants... all the joys and sorrows, loves and hates, were born and extinguished in an instant.

His Divine Soul was like a piece of paper thrown into a shredder, instantly torn, crushed, and reduced to nothingness.

"Dead."

"Ding! Host has died!"

"Method of death: Trapped in the illusion of the 'Reincarnation Illusion Fruit,' the Divine Soul withered and died!"

"Overall evaluation: A-rank!"

"Congratulations to the Host, you have obtained the Divine Soul defense secret technique 'Heart-Guarding Bright Mirror'!"

"Congratulations to the Host, your illusion resistance has greatly increased!"

"Congratulations to the Host, you have obtained the complete harvesting and processing method for the 'Reincarnation Illusion Fruit'!"

In front of the stone gate at the entrance of the ruins, Lin Gou's figure slowly condensed.

His eyes were clearer than ever before.

A sense of power and fullness originating from the depths of his Soul made him want to let out a long howl to the sky.

He suppressed the ecstasy in his heart and immediately began his performance.

He stumbled and ran towards the direction of the Alchemy Room ruins.

When he reappeared in everyone's sight, everyone gasped.

At this moment, Lin Gou was more miserable than after any previous "sacrifice."

His face was no longer pale, but a deathly gray.

His eyes were hollow and unfocused, as if he had lost most of his Three Ethereal Souls and Seven Corporeal Spirits.

The entire person was like an empty shell from which all vitality had been drained.

"Junior Brother Lin!"

Zhao Linger exclaimed, being the first to rush over and support his tottering body.

His touch was icy cold.

Lin Gou "woke up," and he looked at everyone, a trace of focus finally appearing in his hollow eyes.

His lips moved, his voice hoarse like a broken bellows.

"That fruit...is called, the Reincarnation Illusion Fruit..."

"Direct contact, the Divine Soul will be dragged into a Reincarnation illusion, until...it withers..."

"The method of restraint...is, is rootless water..."

"Use rootless water to water its roots, then...then it can be safely harvested..."

After saying these few broken sentences, he tilted his head and "fainted" again in Zhao Linger's arms.

The entire scene was in dead silence.

Everyone looked at the "unconscious" Lin Gou with eyes that regarded him as a monster.

Even in a certain death situation where his Divine Soul was sucked dry, he could survive?

And, once again, he used his life to exchange for the only way out!

This was no longer just powerful life-saving means.

This was simply a miracle!

"Rootless water! Who can condense rootless water?" The Elder's voice trembled slightly.

Among the team, a Disciple who Cultivated a water-element Cultivation Technique quickly stepped forward.

"Elder, this Disciple can!"

Soon, a handful of clear Spirit Water, free from any dust, was condensed and carefully poured onto the roots of the plant.

A magical scene occurred.

The galaxy swirling on the fruit gradually receded its light, and the aroma that enticed the Soul also disappeared.

The Elder personally took action and successfully harvested this "Reincarnation Illusion Fruit."

After this battle, Lin Gou's image in the team was almost godlike.

Just then.

From deeper within the ruins, a violent Spiritual Qi fluctuation faintly emanated.

Immediately after, an extremely arrogant laugh pierced through layers of obstacles, clearly reaching everyone's ears.

"Hahaha, you Qingyun Sect good-for-nothings, this Earth Rank Magic Treasure fragment, our Blackwood Sect will take it!"