31: Fruit of the World Tree

The surroundings remained deathly silent; the towering giant tree showed no reaction.

The attack Lin Mo expected did not happen.

"Continue."

Lin Mo's voice showed no signs of relaxation.

He swapped in a new magazine and raised his pistol again.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Gunshots echoed continuously through the forest.

His marksmanship was extremely accurate, but the distance was too great; at fifty meters high, even a slight breeze could cause a bullet to deviate.

Bullets whistled as they shot towards the upper trunk, with one or two occasionally missing, sparking against the hard bark.

Gu Zhixia, on the other hand, watched the sky with rapt attention. Whenever a fruit was struck down, she would dart out like an arrow, agilely weaving through the forest, always precisely catching it before it hit the ground, then quickly placing it into her cloth bag.

The two worked together flawlessly.

Soon, four magazines were empty.

The cloth bag was also full and heavy, containing at least thirty or more fruits of various colors.

"That's enough for now; let's take this many."

Lin Mo put away his pistol, leaving only the last spare magazine.

"We can't use all the bullets; we need to save them for emergencies."

Gu Zhixia nodded, slinging the heavy bag over her shoulder, her other hand still gripping her Six-Harmony Long Spear tightly, vigilant of her surroundings.

They had a bountiful harvest, but the unease in their hearts grew stronger.

It was too quiet here.

Just as they were about to turn and leave, Lin Mo's gaze inadvertently swept upwards.

His pupils suddenly constricted.

At the very top of the giant tree, on one of the thickest branches that almost touched the clouds, hung a unique fruit.

It was a brilliant golden color, emitting dazzling light, clearly visible even from hundreds of meters away, like a sun hanging at the apex of a temple.

His intuition screamed a warning to Lin Mo.

That thing was definitely not ordinary.

If he shot it down, something bad would surely happen.

"Zhi Xia, get ready."

Lin Mo's voice was very low, yet it carried an undeniable gravity.

"The highest one, I have a bad feeling about it."

Gu Zhixia followed his gaze and also saw the golden fruit.

She didn't ask a single question, merely held her Six-Harmony Long Spear horizontally across her chest, her knees slightly bent, assuming a standard defensive stance, her entire aura becoming sharp.

Lin Mo took a deep breath and raised the gun in his hand.

He focused all his concentration on the muzzle, the sight, and the small golden target hundreds of meters away.

Time, at this moment, became incredibly slow.

Bang!

The last bullet, carrying a sense of resolve, left the barrel!

The bullet cut through the sky.

Everyone held their breath.

The next second, the golden fruit fell, as if on cue.

This time, it descended extremely fast, with a whistling sound, like a golden meteor.

Gu Zhixia's eyes narrowed, she pushed off the ground, rocketing forward, and just as the fruit was about to hit the ground, she executed a daring slide, extending her palm to catch it steadily.

Almost the instant she touched the fruit, a system prompt popped up before Lin Mo's eyes, making his heart skip a beat.

[Name: fruit of the world tree (Mythical Grade Ingredient)]

[Effect: Direct consumption permanently increases all attributes by 5 points.]

A miracle!

This was simply a miracle!

But before he could recover from this immense surprise, the anticipated change finally occurred.

Rumble—

The ground began to tremble violently!

The entire island was shaking!

The giant tree before them, like a mountain, began to sway violently, as if an ancient deity had awakened from slumber, and countless leaves poured down like a torrential rain.

"Roar—!"

A deep, angry roar came from deep underground.

Immediately after, around the giant tree, the ground began to crack inch by inch, and countless thick, spiky vines burst out of the earth!

They twisted, coiled, and reformed wildly in mid-air, eventually forming humanoid monsters over three meters tall!

These monsters were entirely composed of dark green vines and hard tree roots, their bodies covered in a thick, armor-like layer of bark, their arms were two thick spikes, and at their chests, a blood-red cyclops eye locked onto Lin Mo and Gu Zhixia!

[Name: World Tree Guardian]

[Attack: 100]

[Defense: 100]

[Life: 1000]

"Run!"

Lin Mo roared, without any hesitation, turning and sprinting back the way they came!

The moment he turned, he had already sent the most urgent command via mental link to the Natural Selection, five kilometers away!

Gu Zhixia also reacted; she clutched the golden fruit tightly in her hand, following closely behind Lin Mo, moving at extreme speed!

Seven or eight World Tree Guardians took heavy strides, chasing after the two. Their speed was astonishing; each step left a deep footprint in the ground, and the entire jungle vibrated under their running!

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Even more deadly, their arms transformed into countless sharp vines, like arrows released from a bow, assailing the backs of the two from all directions!

Lin Mo didn't even turn his head, firing a shot over his shoulder!

The bullet accurately severed one of the fastest-pursuing vines, but more vines encircled them from all sides!

"Get lost!"

Gu Zhixia let out a cold shout. She suddenly turned, her Six-Harmony Long Spear dancing into a silver blur, deflecting several incoming vines with a series of clangs.

But the number of vines was simply too great!

A vine, like a venomous snake, silently emerged from underground and wrapped around Gu Zhixia's ankle!

Her body stiffened, and she was about to be overwhelmed by more vines!

At the critical moment!

Buzz—

A familiar engine roar came from the sky!

The massive hull of the Natural Selection, like a black ghost ship, broke through the mist in the forest, arriving just in time!

Boom! Boom!

Two tracking missiles, trailing long plumes of fire, descended from the sky, accurately hitting two of the foremost guardians. The violent explosions directly blew them into scattered fragments!

Immediately after, a scorching beam of energy shot from the bow, like the Grim Reaper's scythe, sweeping across and instantly severing a large swath of vines attacking the two!

The offensive was temporarily halted!

The side hatch opened, and a metal gangway was quickly lowered.

Gu Nianqiu was anxiously leaning over the deck railing, frantically waving downwards, her voice choked with tears.

"Brother Mo! Sister! Hurry up!"

Lin Mo grabbed Gu Zhixia's wrist, using the leverage to pull her free from the vines' restraint.

The two no longer lingered in battle, sprinting to the base of the gangway, climbing upwards hand over foot.

Finally, they scrambled onto the deck, stepping onto solid ground.

"Go!"

Lin Mo roared, about to control the Natural Selection to immediately ascend and leave this dangerous place.

But just then, another anomaly occurred!

The towering World Tree no longer pretended!

From its massive canopy, hundreds of gigantic tentacles, a hundred times thicker than the previous vines, suddenly extended!

These tentacles blotted out the sky, like a massive net descending from above, wrapping tightly around the enormous hull of the Natural Selection with an unavoidable speed!

Creak—Creak—

The piercing sound of twisting metal echoed!

The Natural Selection's engines roared in anger, its massive hull struggling violently, yet unable to break free from the terrifying restraint for a time!

They were caught!