Chapter 633: White-Haired Old Man, Gilded Fruit Tree

Song Qingming and the others rode the "Phantom Boat" and galloped west. After crossing several sea areas and reaching the land, they rested for a day in the small market they had visited before.

By the time the few of them crossed the Duanyun Mountain and reached the vicinity of the Floating Yunshan Range, it was already more than half a month later.

On this day, on a high mountain on the west side of the State of Zheng, a white escape light came from far to near. After circling in the air, it landed directly on the top of the mountain.

Song Qingming jumped off the flying boat, looked at the quiet surroundings on the top of the mountain, nodded with satisfaction, then turned to Song Qingyu and the two who had just jumped off the flying boat and said:

"This place is still quiet. Let's rest here for a night and continue on our way tomorrow!"

In the past two days, in order to quickly cross the State of Zheng, the few of them took turns helping to control the flying boat, and their magic power was also greatly consumed.

Although the Yunwu Mountain near Qinghe County in the State of Wei has never had demonic kings above the third grade, near the State of Zheng, because of the continuous intrusion of demonic beasts from the Floating Yunshan Range, demonic kings have begun to appear in the vicinity in recent years.

In order to make the next journey smoother, Song Qingming decided to rest on this mountain for a night before entering Yunwu Mountain to restore the magic power and state of the few of them, so as not to suffer losses if they bumped into a demonic king.

After nightfall, Song Qingming and the three sat cross-legged with their backs against a mountain rock, each holding a few spirit stones, closing their eyes and quietly restoring their own magic power.

Suddenly, a loud noise came from the south of this mountain peak, making Song Qingming, who was sitting on the ground, frown and stand up directly.

"Seventh Brother! It seems like someone is fighting over there." Song Qingyu, who was also sitting cross-legged, also heard this sound, hurriedly got up and asked Song Qingming.

Song Qingming nodded slightly upon hearing this: "You stay here, I'll go over and see what's going on!"

As soon as the words fell, Song Qingming turned into an escape light and disappeared directly from the spot.

In a mountain valley a few miles away, two Foundation Establishment cultivators wearing different clothes were desperately besieging a white-haired old man whose cultivation was about the same as theirs, but who already had quite a few injuries on his body.

That white-haired old man already had several injuries on his body, and his face was slightly blue. Although his own state was already very bad, he still desperately controlled the magic tool in his hand, forcing back the two who wanted to approach him.

The two who besieged him also knew that the other party could not hold on for much longer, so they were not too anxious, always standing in the distance to consume the other party, step by step, slowly compressing the other party's range of activity.

"Senior-Brother Bai, you have already been poisoned by my bee poison. Don't think about continuing to run. I advise you to obediently cooperate and hand over the thing. Junior-Brother and I can consider letting you go. Otherwise, it will be too late if you want to beg for mercy later!"

"Hmph! The words of you people from bandit backgrounds are not even believed by ghosts. This old man would rather destroy this item today than let it cheaply go to you two."

After the white-haired old man finished speaking, a spiritual light moved in his hand, and he had an extra golden, shining spiritual fruit. After throwing it into the air, a light blade was slashed out by the long knife magic tool in his hand, wanting to destroy this spiritual item on the spot.

"Quick, stop him!"

The two who were besieging the old man were also slightly surprised to see this, not expecting that this old man would be so uncooperative and actually want to destroy this precious spiritual item on the spot.

One of them hurriedly took out a green spiritual talisman and cast a spell directly at the light blade spell released by the white-haired old man in the air, wanting to stop the other party's action.

Just when both sides were fighting for the spiritual item, a figure suddenly appeared beside the golden spiritual fruit released by that white-haired old man, grabbed the spiritual item before the spells of both sides arrived, and then quickly raised a shield, easily blocking the two spells that were already close at hand.

Seeing this figure that appeared out of thin air, the white-haired old man and the two Foundation Establishment cultivators who were chasing him all changed their expressions instantly, revealing a look of great surprise.

"Fellow Daoists, is there anything that cannot be discussed properly? There is no need to fight to the death like this!"

A green-robed man standing between the two sides scanned the spiritual item he had just obtained slightly, then looked up at the two Foundation Establishment cultivators not far away and said.

Seeing the powerful pressure that only a Jin Dan cultivator could have emanating from the green-robed man, the two Foundation Establishment cultivators who were just besieging the white-haired old man with pride now immediately became cautious and submissive.

It took a good while for them to react, and they bowed to Song Qingming not far away:

"Senior! We are cultivators of the Heavenly Star Sect. This person betrayed the sect and stole a treasure of our sect. We two are also ordered by the sect Elder to come and capture him. We have no intention of disturbing you, senior. I hope you will not misunderstand, senior!."

Hearing the other party say he was a traitor, the white-haired old man was immediately angry:

"The two dog things are really good at calling black white. Senior, please do not listen to their nonsense. The two of them were originally from bandit backgrounds and only joined our Heavenly Star Sect halfway. These two beasts are greedy for this treasure today, which is why they attacked me, their fellow sect member."

"Haha! It is God's will that this item falls into your hands, senior. If you want it, senior, just take it directly, as long as it doesn't cheaply go to these two ungrateful dog things!"

"Hmm! You are quite generous. I just don't know if the two of you also agree with this!" After the green-robed man nodded slightly to the white-haired old man, he looked at the two Foundation Establishment cultivators not far away with a calm face again.

"This... senior, this item is very important to our sect. If it is given to you, senior, for no reason, we fear it will not be easy to explain this matter to the sect Elder when we go back!"

Upon hearing this, the green-robed man pondered for a moment before slowly saying: "What you said is also right. Killing and seizing treasures and attacking fellow sect members is indeed not easy to explain when you go back. Why don't I help you think of a way?"

"Senior, please do not misunderstand. We were indeed ordered to come and pursue the traitor. If you want this item, senior, then take it. Rest assured, we will find a way to explain this matter when we go back, and we will definitely not reveal your identity, senior!"

Hearing the somewhat cold tone in the green-robed man's mouth, the two Foundation Establishment cultivators felt a burst of pressure, and a drop of cold sweat broke out on their foreheads. Their footsteps had already involuntarily started to retreat backward.

Just when the two Foundation Establishment cultivators had given up on asking for the spiritual item and were preparing to escape from here, the green-robed man suddenly gathered a group of green spiritual light in his hand, and immediately turned into several green sword lights, rushing directly toward the location of the two.

Seeing this, the two also hurriedly dodged this strike, then desperately stepped on the magic tool, wanting to leave here quickly.

However, just when they flew out for only a few dozen zhang, a figure suddenly flashed in front, directly blocking their way in mid-air. Before the two could turn direction and escape, two more fierce sword lights attacked quickly, forcing them to stop and use magic tools to deal with them.

The one with the highest cultivation among the two was only at the seventh layer of Foundation Establishment. At this moment, facing the fierce attack of a Jin Dan cultivator, even if the other party had not even used a magic treasure, they were still completely unable to parry.

Not long after, two screams rang out in the sky one after another, and the green-robed man returned to the spot with the storage bags on the two of them.

Scanning the surroundings, what made the green-robed man somewhat surprised was that the white-haired old man who was seriously injured and somewhat unable to support just now had disappeared without a trace in just a moment.

"Hmph! You really run fast." After the green-robed man muttered to himself, the escape light under his feet flashed, and he disappeared from the spot again.

On a small hill not far from here, the white-haired old man, who was hiding here using a magic robe that concealed his aura, saw the green-robed man not far away leave, and after a long while, he carefully got up and chose a direction to walk forward quickly.

However, after walking only a few dozen steps, the white-haired old man stopped immediately, looking at the green-robed man standing not far in front with shock.

He thought he had just avoided this person's spiritual sense exploration, but he did not expect that this person had not really left. He was still a bit careless. The white-haired old man could not help but reveal a trace of helplessness on his face at this moment.

"You really have some courage, daring to hide and seek in front of me!"

"Senior, please do not blame me. Junior was also afraid for a moment, so I wanted to escape from here."

The green-robed man looked at the other party with a calm face, then took out the golden spiritual fruit he had just snatched from their hands and asked directly: "Where did you get this item? Tell me first!"

"I advise you to think clearly before answering. It is best not to talk nonsense. Even if you are from the Heavenly Star Sect, it doesn't count for anything to me. It's just killing one more person!"

Hearing the unquestionable cold words in the green-robed man's mouth, the white-haired old man, who had already witnessed the other party decisively killing his two fellow sect members just now, naturally did not dare to doubt the other party's words.

Although the "Heavenly Star Sect" dominates one side in the State of Zheng, it is only a Jin Dan sect. However, this person is also a Jin Dan powerhouse with profound cultivation. It is not strange that he does not put their "Heavenly Star Sect" in his eyes.

The white-haired old man's eyeballs turned slightly before he answered helplessly:

"This item was found by us not long ago in a valley deep in Yunwu Mountain. At that time, we found two spiritual fruits in total, and there is another one on them. If you don't believe me, senior, you can open their storage bags and check."

"Originally, I had already agreed that we would distribute the spiritual items together after returning to the sect. I didn't expect that they two would become greedy halfway and want to snatch the spiritual fruit in my hand, which led to what happened later."

"Haha! It is God's will that this item falls into your hands, senior. If you want it, senior, just take it directly, as long as it doesn't cheaply go to these two ungrateful dog things!"

After the white-haired old man finished speaking, his gaze could not help but glance at Song Qingming from time to time, fearing that the other party would turn his face on the spot and want to kill him to silence him.

Song Qingming did not have too many doubts about the white-haired old man's explanation. Because of the civil strife in the State of Zheng for so many years, in order to enhance the sect's strength, the "Heavenly Star Sect" has indeed actively recruited a large number of loose cultivators in recent years, among whom there must be many cultivators who were originally from bandit backgrounds.

Before taking action just now, Song Qingming actually heard some of their conversations from the side and also knew that the two were people who saw wealth and harmed their fellow sect members, which is why he was so decisive in killing them.

After cultivating for so many years, although he has long been accustomed to various killings and conspiracies in the cultivation world, when he bumped into this behavior of killing companions for a little spiritual item, Song Qingming still felt somewhat displeased.

"So that's how it is!"

"This spiritual item is indeed useful to me, so I will take it first. However, I don't like taking other people's things for nothing. You take these spirit stones, consider it you selling this item to me."

After taking the large bag of spirit stones thrown by Song Qingming, the white-haired old man also revealed a trace of surprise on his face, somewhat unable to believe what was happening in front of him.

Under the current situation, the other party, a Jin Dan cultivator, could easily handle him at will. Letting him go was already a luxury, but he was actually willing to give him a few thousand spirit stones to exchange for the spiritual fruit just now, which was truly too unexpected for him.

"Thank you, senior, for saving my life. Please accept a bow from junior!" Seeing this, the white-haired old man hurriedly stepped forward to kowtow with a happy face, and was full of gratitude to the green-robed man.

"Don't be in a hurry to thank me. Before letting you go, I still need you to do me a favor. Rest assured, as long as you are willing to cooperate, I will definitely let you leave safely."

"This... senior, if you have any instructions, please speak freely. Junior will definitely cooperate with all my might and will not let you down." Hearing that Song Qingming still had things for him to help with, the white-haired old man hesitated slightly before agreeing respectfully.

Now that his own life was controlled by others at any time, the white-haired old man also understood that his situation did not have any room to bargain with the other party.

"You wait for me here first, and take me to the valley where you found these two spiritual fruits in a while. As long as we reach the place, I will naturally let you leave."

"Ah! Senior, rest assured, junior understands what to do!"

Hearing that the other party just wanted to go to the valley where they found the spiritual fruits, the white-haired old man, although not very sure what the other party wanted to do, still agreed immediately.

After the green-robed man turned into an escape light and disappeared, the white-haired old man looked at the surroundings. The green-robed man just now appeared in his mind, but he still quickly suppressed the idea of wanting to escape in his heart and stood patiently in place, not daring to move his figure again.

Song Qingyu and the two on the mountain peak waited for a long while, but did not see Song Qingming return. Just when they were discussing whether to go over and take a look, an escape light flew from the sky and landed in front of them.

"Who is it!"

Song Qingyu and the two who wanted to greet them, after seeing the appearance of the person coming, immediately changed their expressions and immediately summoned the magic tools on their bodies, looking at the other party with hostility.

The green-robed man standing in place, seeing the two women react like this, also understood the reason instantly. After a light laugh, his figure suddenly started to change, and he instantly restored to Song Qingming's original appearance.

After obtaining that "Transformation Technique" from Hearing Huo Feng a few years ago, Song Qingming has also cultivated it to a small success over these years. Although it is still difficult to deceive cultivators above the Jin Dan stage, it is completely enough to deal with cultivators below the Foundation Establishment stage.

When he appeared in front of the white-haired old man and the others just now, Song Qingming had cast the Transformation Technique in advance to slightly change his appearance. He had not yet had time to lift the secret technique when he returned, which made Song Qingyu and the two almost misunderstand.

"Seventh Brother! When did you learn such a fun spell? You almost tricked even me."

"Husband, what happened over there? Why did it take so long to come back!"

After seeing this scene, Song Qingyu felt at ease and put away the magic tools beside her, and walked quickly toward Song Qingming with Huang Siyuan.

Song Qingming smiled and said: "Nothing big, just a few Foundation Establishment cultivators fighting for spiritual items. I just went over to persuade them, and unexpectedly obtained two third-grade spiritual fruits."

Seeing the two golden spiritual fruits in Song Qingming's hand, Song Qingyu and Huang Siyuan were also surprised and hurriedly surrounded him. Song Qingming also immediately explained the things he had just encountered to the two of them.

After listening, Song Qingyu's big eyes turned slightly, and she immediately asked: "Seventh Brother! According to what you said, they found the spiritual fruits in Yunwu Mountain. There should be a mature third-grade fruit tree there, right?"

"It is indeed possible. There is still quite a lot of spiritual energy remaining on these spiritual fruits, and they were indeed picked not long ago." After Huang Siyuan took one of the spiritual fruits in Song Qingming's hand and looked at it carefully, she also followed and said.

Song Qingming nodded slightly: "Hmm! I also have this guess. Qingyu! You two return to the family tomorrow first, and then bring Yuanxue over. I will go find the location of the valley with that guy, and we will meet there."

"Hmm! Then let's do it!" After hearing Song Qingming's plan, Song Qingyu and the two hurriedly responded.

After carefully instructing the two for a few words, Song Qingming immediately turned back. Seeing that the white-haired old man was still standing honestly in place, Song Qingming, who had restored his original appearance, also revealed a few traces of satisfaction on his face, then took him with him and left here.

Two days later, in a mountain valley deep in Yunwu Mountain, Song Qingming looked carefully at the depths of the mountain valley, then turned to ask the white-

"That's right! Those two spirit fruits were found by us in a cave inside the valley. At the time, the few of us had only come here because we were chasing a second-tier demonic beast."

"Hmm! Then lead the way."

Following the white-haired old man as he flew into the valley, the two arrived before a relatively secluded cave after only a moment. After Song Qingming stood at the cave entrance, closed his eyes, and released his spiritual sense, he quickly sensed a relatively dense spiritual energy faintly emanating from within.

Seeing this, Song Qingming felt a surge of joy and walked directly into the cave.

After walking forward for about several hundred zhang, Song Qingming finally sensed a glimmer of golden light in the pitch-black cave. Before long, a three-foot-tall golden fruit tree appeared before his eyes.

On the golden fruit tree were four or five unripe spirit fruits, as well as two short branches that had been cut off not long ago. Song Qingming only glanced at them briefly before immediately confirming that this was the third-tier spirit fruit tree he had been looking for.

"As expected, there is still a mature third-tier Gilded Fruit tree. It seems this trip was truly not a waste of effort!" After sweeping his spiritual sense through the cave, Song Qingming turned back to the cave entrance.

Afterward, in front of the white-haired old man, Song Qingming casually tossed out a few formation flags. Before long, he had set up a second-tier formation to isolate a cultivator's spiritual sense not far before him.

"I need to handle some matters here. To prevent any mishaps, I must trouble you to stay here and endure it for a few days. Once I have finished my business, I will naturally let you leave."

Seeing this, the white-haired old man immediately understood Song Qingming's meaning and hurriedly apologized with a smile, cupping his hands: "Senior, please rest assured. This junior knows what to do!"

After greeting Song Qingming, the white-haired old man immediately took the initiative to walk into the formation and sat down.

After patiently waiting in the valley for another day, Song Qingming finally saw a streak of light flying in from the horizon. A moment later, several familiar figures appeared before his eyes.

"Seventh Brother! How is it? Did you find the fruit tree?"

In addition to the spirit planter Song Yuanxue, Song Qingyu had also brought Huang Siyuan, Song Yuanli, and Song Changze this time.

Upon seeing the family members, Song Qingming did not delay too much. After leaving Song Yuanli to guard the cave entrance, he led the group into the cave together.

Seeing the mature third-tier spirit fruit tree, the Song family members all revealed a trace of joy on their faces. Especially Song Yuanxue, who had studied spirit planting techniques; at this moment, a glimmer of light had already appeared in her eyes.

Carefully observing the third-tier spirit fruit tree before her, Song Yuanxue turned to Song Qingming and nodded slightly: "Seventh Grand-Uncle, the current condition of this fruit tree is fine, and it can be transplanted at any time.

However, my spirit planting level is only at the second-tier mid-grade. After bringing this fruit tree back to the family, I'm afraid we will need to find a third-tier spirit planter to ensure it is properly cultivated again."

"Hmm! Don't worry about that for now. Let's just get the spirit fruit tree back to the family first. As for the matter of a third-tier spirit planter, I will find a way when the time comes."

Under Song Yuanxue's direction, the Song family members worked together for half a day and finally dug the third-tier spirit fruit tree out from the ground.

Afterward, Song Yuanxue immediately cast a spell to use a second-tier spirit talisman to seal the roots of the fruit tree, preventing any leakage of spiritual energy that might damage the tree's spirit roots during transport.

Because the spirit fruit tree could not be directly placed into a storage magic treasure, Song Changze could only carry it on his back. After checking that there was nothing amiss, the Song family members left the cave together.

Watching Song Qingyu lead them far away from the valley, Song Qingming cast a spell to retract the formation not far away, releasing the white-haired old man who had been trapped inside for several days.

"My business is finished, and you may leave now. However, to save some trouble in the future, you must swear an oath not to reveal anything about me to others, and you are not allowed to come to this valley again."

Upon hearing this, the white-haired old man felt a surge of joy and immediately swore an oath that satisfied Song Qingming. With the other's nod of approval, he left the valley with some trepidation.

Watching the white-haired old man's departing figure, Song Qingming, who had already restored his original appearance, sighed helplessly. (End of chapter)