Chapter 237

Flying steadily, Gervas first reached the Eagle Mountains, then continued westward for about ten li.

Thanks to precise intelligence, Gervas easily located the mountain stream waterfall.

But today, the gray mist over the Death Mountains seemed slightly thicker—likely to be sealed again within a few days.

Thus, Gervas could not observe the Lightning Fruit from high altitude, and had to order Zhuiyue to descend.

When they dropped to just seventy or eighty meters above the waterfall, a flash of silvery-white light suddenly came into view.

"There it is! Zhuiyue, let's go!"

Gervas's heart leapt—he knew this was unmistakably the magical glow emitted by the Lightning Fruit.

And indeed, as he drew closer, within less than forty or fifty meters of the fruit, all its details became clear.

It was a fruit growing on a vine clinging to the cliff face.

The fruit was milky white, apple-sized, hidden deep within the dense green leaves of the vines.

Unless it ripened and emitted its white glow, no one could possibly spot it on this sheer, hundreds-of-meters-high cliff.

Just as Gervas and Zhuiyue neared to seize the Lightning Fruit, a sharp whistling shriek suddenly shot down from above!

Gervas's expression changed—he drew his longsword and swung it upward without hesitation, shouting, "Zhuiyue!"

Zhuiyue instantly veered sideways, gliding to evade.

CLANG! Gervas's blade struck something sharp high above—a giant gray sparrow with a six-meter wingspan!

Of course, this was no ordinary gray sparrow—it was a fifth-rank Swift Hawkbeak.

Gervas hadn't expected to encounter this creature; clearly, it too had come for the Lightning Fruit.

Fortunately, avian beasts are the weakest among all beasts.

Even first- and second-rank avian beasts differ little from the Swift Hawks.

Thus, this fifth-rank Swift Hawkbeak was hardly stronger than a third-rank beast.

Only when it broke through to sixth rank did it become truly terrifying.

At that stage, its speed reached a fearsome level, making it a true aerial lightning hunter.

Fortunately, after its failed ambush, the Swift Hawkbeak had no intention of relentlessly pursuing Gervas and Zhuiyue.

Instead, it seized the chance to dart straight for the Lightning Fruit.

And this gave Gervas exactly the opening he needed.

Had it continued chasing, Gervas would have turned and fled without hesitation.

After all, he wouldn't have had time to even counterattack.

But this Swift Hawkbeak turned its head toward the Lightning Fruit.

Giving him ample time to gather his battle qi.

"Zhuiyue, turn back!"

Gervas ordered as he began gathering his battle qi.

As his battle qi accumulated, the power surging along his longsword grew stronger—far exceeding what his current realm could normally produce.

Clearly, Gervas was using a battle qi secret technique.

At that moment, the Swift Hawkbeak, nearly reaching the cliff's edge, sensed the threat behind it.

No longer ignoring the rider and horse, it flapped its wings, made a sharp turn, and charged straight at them.

"Flame First Slash!"

Flame seemed to solidify, blazing fiercely along the blade.

As the sword slashed down, it clashed with the Swift Hawkbeak's dark-tipped talons.

BOOM! A wave of scorching red heat exploded outward.

KEEEEE!

As a bird beast with thick feathers, it feared fire and burning above all.

Amid the stench of burnt feathers, the Swift Hawkbeak retracted its talons and altered its flight path.

"Zhuiyue! Now!"

Gervas had no intention of foolishly chasing the Swift Hawkbeak.

With their current strength, they couldn't possibly kill it.

So, securing the Lightning Fruit and escaping was the best outcome.

Zhuiyue flapped its wings urgently, and the pair reached the white berry.

Gervas moved swiftly, snatching the Lightning Fruit in one hand.

ROAR!

Seeing the Lightning Fruit now in Gervas's grasp, the Swift Hawkbeak let out a furious roar and wheeled back.

"Go!"

Gervas urgently urged Zhuiyue to flee.

Though Zhuiyue was fast, it still couldn't match the Swift Hawkbeak's speed.

Moreover, the Lightning Fruit was utterly vital to the Swift Hawkbeak—it refused to give it up.

"Since you won't let go, then don't blame me!"

Seeing this, Gervas decided to go all in—he shoved the Lightning Fruit straight into his mouth.

Crunch. Crunch.

Gulp!

In just a few bites, the apple-sized Lightning Fruit was entirely swallowed.

KEEEEE! KEEEEE! KEEEEE!

Watching this unfold, the Swift Hawkbeak emitted a series of piercing screeches.

"Hmm, you're cursing pretty loudly—are you saying 'Newborn! Newborn!'?"

But regardless, the Lightning Fruit was already swallowed.

And the fifth-rank Swift Hawkbeak was not a beast fond of prolonged fights; after a few angry cries, it turned and vanished into the horizon.

Gervas naturally exhaled in relief, finally able to focus on the warm current surging through him from the Lightning Fruit.

He clearly felt his entire body's muscles subtly writhing, releasing astonishing heat—so intense it was almost scalding.

Fortunately, this condition lasted only a few minutes before everything returned to normal.

After waiting nearly half an hour, once beyond the Death Mountains' borders, Gervas immediately ordered Zhuiyue to land at the edge of his territory.

The instant he dismounted, his eyes widened.

Is it really this easy?

He realized that with just a slight push, he had landed with surprising agility.

He'd been able to do this before, but never with such lightness, as if he were a swallow in flight.

At that moment, Gervas stood beside Tianehu; glancing at the still lake surface, he saw his reflection—and froze.

Did I grow taller?

It wasn't just height—he'd become more proportionate too!

The legendary golden ratio.

After all, for any organism to achieve peak performance, its parts must be perfectly coordinated, like a machine.

Now, after the Lightning Fruit's transformation, Gervas's body had undergone fine-tuning.

Though not a drastic change, he was undeniably more balanced, and stood four or five centimeters taller than before.

If he could find more Lightning Fruits in the future, perhaps his proportions could improve even further.

Like the elves.

Why are all of them handsome men and beautiful women?

Beyond their faces, their body proportions were the most perfect.

This was a racial advantage honed over countless generations of elven evolution.

And the foundation of their swift, agile forms.

After observing for a while longer, Gervas simply sat cross-legged on the spot.

The scenery here was like a painted scroll, undisturbed—he couldn't wait to practice the Swift Body Technique.

As his battle qi flowed, Gervas's face quickly lit up with delight.

Before consuming the Lightning Fruit, his battle qi always stalled halfway through the meridians, blocked by a sense of obstruction.

Now, that sluggishness was gone entirely, replaced by flawless smoothness!

"Swift Body Technique!"

Gervas uttered a soft cry and leapt from his seated position.

This jump sent him soaring over two meters high—nearly level with Zhuiyue's head.

Remember, this was from a seated position.

If standing, he could likely leap five or six meters without effort!

"Zorro the Elf, you're amazing! YYDS!"