5: Chapter 5 The Nine-Miracle Elixir of Immortality

On the mountain peak, there was no wind on any side. In the center was a spring pool, and beside the pool were over a dozen small trees of various colors. Pang Bo's eyes lit up at the sight, and he hurriedly said, "Ye Fan, Chu Qingqiu, there's food ahead! Let's get over there quickly!"

Having not eaten for a long time, Pang Bo was already starving. Ye Fan said seriously, "Haven't you noticed that these fruits are very brightly colored? In nature, the more vibrant the color, the more dangerous it is. These fruits might be poisonous."

"If we don't eat something, we'll starve to death here. Besides, these fruits might not be poisonous. Why not take a gamble?"

Chu Qingqiu, of course, knew that these fruits were the legendary nine wonders undying medicine. They were definitely not poisonous; not only were they non-toxic, but eating them could also improve one's cultivation Aptitude, offering endless benefits.

"Chu Qingqiu is right, Ye Fan. Don't overthink it; we have no choice right now."

With that, Pang Bo quickly ran forward, plucked the fruits from the trees, and began eating them in large gulps.

There were only thirteen cherry-like fruits growing on the thirteen trees. Chu Qingqiu also rushed forward; this was undying medicine, after all. If Pang Bo ate them all, it would be a huge loss.

While eating, Chu Qingqiu stored the fruits in his System inventory. In the end, each person ate two, and Chu Qingqiu quietly stashed away the remaining seven fruits.

"Strange? I just saw at least a dozen fruits. How did so many disappear all of a sudden?"

Pang Bo scratched his head, looking puzzled.

Ye Fan explained from the side, "Perhaps these fruits are like the legendary Ginseng Fruits—they vanish upon touching the soil. Those fruits probably fell to the ground and disappeared."

Chu Qingqiu remained calm on the surface, thinking to himself that Ye Fan had actually helped him smooth over this issue. Impressive.

"This place clearly looks extraordinary. It's likely as Ye Fan said; these fruits ripened and fell to the ground, where they were absorbed by the earth."

"I think this pool water is also unusual. If you're not full, we can drink some water."

Pang Bo nodded and said, "True. Since the fruits are gone, there's no use dwelling on it. Might as well drink more water."

Pang Bo took out a mineral water bottle and filled a few, taking several gulps. He immediately felt refreshed, and the fatigue from the journey vanished without a trace. His eyes lit up as he said, "This water is good stuff! After drinking it, my back doesn't ache and my legs don't hurt anymore."

Chu Qingqiu and Ye Fan exchanged a glance, used their respective containers to fill up on the water from the spring pool, and then drank frantically.

While drinking, Chu Qingqiu stored the Divine Spring Water into his System inventory. He decomposed several Divine Crocodile corpses to obtain some points and used those points to buy several large barrels. Soon, he had collected all the water from the entire spring pool.

"Wait, how did this spring water disappear so fast? Ye Fan, Chu Qingqiu, you two can really drink."

Pang Bo was bewildered once again. Such a large pool—even if the three of them drank until their bellies were full to bursting, they shouldn't have been able to finish it. How was it suddenly gone?

Pang Bo and the other naturally couldn't detect the System's methods, nor would they suspect Chu Qingqiu. They could only conclude that this place was indeed strange.

Hearing Pang Bo's words, Ye Fan's Face flushed red as he said, "The spring pool might have a leak; the water probably flowed underground."

Just then, the other classmates walked over. Looking at the dozen or so fruit trees that were now bare, Li Changqing said sarcastically, "Some people found food and ate it all themselves. They have no idea how to share with their classmates; how truly selfish."

Chu Qingqiu glanced at the fellow and retorted, "On such a large mountain, you couldn't even find a few wild fruits. Are you useless?"

"Yiyi, have some water."

Seeing Liu Yiyi, a former cheerleader for his soccer team, looking haggard, Ye Fan guessed she hadn't eaten anything along the way and handed her his mineral water bottle.

Liu Yiyi lowered her head, her small Face blushing slightly, and said, "Thank you, Ye Fan."

"Ye Fan, I want some water too!"

Li Changqing clamored from the side. After walking for so long, he was also incredibly thirsty.

Chu Qingqiu walked straight over and slapped him, saying with disdain, "You want some too? You want jack squat. Are you even worthy?"

Li Changqing clutched his swollen Face, saying in disbelief, "You dare hit me!?"

"You asked for it!" Chu Qingqiu responded indifferently.

"Fine, fine, fine! You just wait!"

Li Changqing's gaze was venomous. He swore in his heart that one day he would make Chu Qingqiu pay the price!

Ye Fan and Pang Bo shared the Divine Spring Water with a few classmates they were on good terms with. After finishing the water, everyone continued to wander through the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land.

Chu Qingqiu first took some of the Divine Spring Water to decompose in the System, then exchanged it for two "In a Square Inch Lies the World" Talismanic Incantations, sticking one on himself and one on Ye Fan.

With the boost from the Talismanic Incantations, the two were able to shrink the distance of the earth into inches. Ye Fan was completely dazed; mountains that clearly looked far away were reached in just a few steps.

There were several Sacred Mountains, each with a type of nine wonders undying medicine. In the original story, Ye Fan only ate the undying medicine from one Sacred Mountain, which allowed him to break through his iron-hard Sea of Bitterness. However, his Foundation was not perfect. If all nine types of nine wonders undying medicine were consumed simultaneously, a supreme Foundation could be forged. Later, during the Four Extremities curse, the accumulated medicinal power within his body could be awakened, thereby allowing him to achieve a Heaven-Defying change of fate and heal his Dao injuries.

"The taste of these fruits is quite good. Why don't we dig up these trees? If we plant them, maybe we can eat these fruits every year."

Chu Qingqiu rolled his eyes at him and said, "These trees are incredibly miraculous; they might not survive if moved elsewhere. Moreover, I have a feeling these trees are being guarded. Let's not get any ideas about them."

Ye Fan nodded and said, "True. We haven't even settled down yet, so carrying these trees around would be inconvenient."

Chu Qingqiu actually wanted to pack the trees up and take them away, but he feared being targeted by the Ruthless Emperor. If that happened, he would be in big trouble.

Coming with Ye Fan, the Ruthless Emperor might let him be for Ye Fan's Face, but if he took even the roots of the undying medicine, the Ruthless Emperor would certainly not sit idly by.

Chu Qingqiu collected seven of each type of nine wonders undying medicine. Of the remaining six fruits on each tree, Chu Qingqiu and Ye Fan each ate three. Although Ye Fan found it strange that the remaining fruits suddenly vanished, he didn't say much. Too many strange things had happened lately; the sudden disappearance of a few fruits didn't seem that odd.

When a Mortal eats so much nine wonders undying medicine, their body usually cannot handle the excess nourishment. However, both Chu Qingqiu and Ye Fan possessed extraordinary Physiques, so the excess medicinal power simply accumulated within their bodies without causing any major issues.

"Ye Fan, where did you two just go?" Pang Bo asked curiously when he saw the two return.

"Cough, nowhere. Just wandering around. The scenery here is quite nice." Ye Fan, having enjoyed the food alone, felt a bit awkward.

"Hmph! These two selfish guys must have sneaked off to eat something again," Li Changqing snorted.

"I think you're itching for another beating." Chu Qingqiu raised his hand as if to slap Li Changqing again. Seeing this, Li Changqing immediately retreated several steps and said with feigned bravado, "Chu Qingqiu! Don't go too far. Leave a way out for others so we can meet again in the future!"

Chu Qingqiu gave a thumbs down and said with contempt, "Trash!"

Li Changqing's Face turned beet red with rage, and his whole body trembled uncontrollably.

Class Monitor Zhou Yi rubbed his temples; these two were giving him a massive headache.

"Stop arguing. We're all classmates, what's the point!"

As soon as Zhou Yi finished speaking, the ground suddenly shook like an earthquake. The roars of savage beasts echoed through the mountain forests, and a pitch-black beast abruptly appeared before everyone.

Ye Fan said, "Run! This fellow doesn't look like he has good intentions!"

Before Ye Fan could finish, Chu Qingqiu had already slipped away, his body in motion. Fortunately, the black beast seemed to be molting and didn't give chase. Everyone escaped without further danger to a complex of palace buildings.

Everyone's body temperature soared rapidly, and blood-colored Qi swirled around them. They felt as if they were being burned by fire. Chu Qingqiu knew this was the erosion of the Desolate Power of the Desolate Ancient Forbidden Land. Having eaten the undying medicine, he would be fine.

In the midst of intense pain, everyone lost consciousness. Two hours later, Chu Qingqiu woke up. Having eaten all the types of nine wonders undying medicine, he hadn't changed much. The nine types of undying medicine had harmonized into one, and the Desolate Power could not erode him; he still looked like a young man of twenty-four or twenty-five. Ye Fan was the same. Because Pang Bo had happened to eat two undying fruits, the medicinal power offset the time erosion brought by the Desolate Power, so he didn't change either. But the others weren't so lucky.

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