Chapter 164: Spirit Fruit Ripens, Demon Beasts First

As more beasts arrived, Qin Xiao began to regret coming.

“Are you sure these Demon Beasts won’t attack us?”

Although inside the Formation, Qin Xiao still felt a bit apprehensive. There were so many Demon Beasts, and more than half were at or above the Soul Formation stage.

“What, are you scared? Relax. The beasts have never attacked cultivators here. We’re already at the formation’s outer edge. Two beasts once fought here, perhaps because they were enemies, and the formation killed them both. Ever since, neither beasts nor cultivators have dared to fight here.”

Ling Ruoxue gave him an exasperated look, but explained.

Where was all his arrogance now? She had thought he feared nothing, the way he went around causing trouble.

“Scared? Me? Don’t be ridiculous. I’m worried there are too many for me to protect all of you at once.”

Qin Xiao stubbornly refused to admit his fear.

More beasts arrived from the Middle Zone. Qin Xiao recognized quite a few old acquaintances—old beast acquaintances, rather.

Those Demon Beasts also saw Qin Xiao, glaring at him with bared teeth.

The other three powers finally knew who had taken their treasures. So it was that bastard Qin Xiao.

With Lin Shimeng gone, Tianyuan Sect had not tried the difficult sites. They were the one group to remain unhurt and knew nothing of what had happened there.

“Why do these Demon Beasts seem to hold such hostility toward Qin Xiao?”

Liu Xueyue of Tianyuan Sect said curiously.

“Who knows? Perhaps even those Demon Beasts can’t stand the sight of him.”

Chu Sheng also glared viciously at Qin Xiao.

It’s all because of you, Qin Xiao. You took away our strongest Holy Maiden, causing us to be unable to search for treasures.

“Brother Qin, have you been visiting all our secret sites?”

Gong Yuankui naturally guessed the reason and asked Qin Xiao.

“It must be you. You offended those Demon Beasts, causing this Holy Son to get injured.”

Lu Feng also reacted. It must be Qin Xiao.

Ling Wujun made no accusation aloud, but his gaze turned cold. So it was Qin Xiao who had ruined his plans.

“Everyone, it’s a misunderstanding! I’ve never seen these beasts before. I don’t know them. Maybe they’re jealous of my good looks.”

Qin Xiao dared not admit that he had already plundered their treasure locations in advance, because he had already seen the unfriendly looks in those disciples’ eyes.

“Have you no shame, Qin Xiao? I’m the most handsome man here. You don’t come close! Why don’t the beasts hate me?” Read the latest chapters at novelping.com.

Chu Sheng did not know how Qin Xiao had offended the other three powers, but that did not stop him piling on. That was for luring away their Holy Maiden.

Two clowns. Who could compare to this Holy Son’s good looks?

Lu Feng thought it, but said nothing. He was not as shameless as those two. What was impressive about praising yourself?

A bunch of fools. Neither in strength nor looks could they match Ling Wujun. Such childish boasting!

Ling Wujun was sure no one here was more handsome than he was. He kept it to himself; this behavior was childish.

“Chu Sheng, I knew you were shameless. How can you say something so dishonest?”

Qin Xiao was exasperated. Why was this rascal picking on him? And since when was Chu Sheng handsome?

Just as Chu Sheng was about to retort, suddenly a fragrance spread in all directions.

“Stop arguing. The Saint Origin Spirit Fruit has ripened.”

Gong Yuankui was exasperated. Those two should stop clowning around. The fruit was ripe.

Indeed, as the fragrance filled the air, those Demon Beasts resting on the ground also stood up, their eyes filled with fervor.

After the fragrance dispersed, the entire Formation lit up.

“The Formation is activated. Let’s go.”

Seeing the Formation had activated, Qin Xiao intended to take the lead.

“Wait. According to the rules, we have to wait for all the Demon Beasts to come out before we can enter.”

Ling Ruoxue pulled him back. If they offended the beasts by going first, the beasts might block the exit when they tried to leave.

Unlike the Abyss Secret Realm, Spirit Medicine Valley did not expel its visitors automatically. They had to leave through the entrance.

So they still had to return to the entrance. If they offended these Soul Formation stage Demon Beasts, they probably wouldn’t be able to leave.

The major powers had tried using this to leave disciples inside to cultivate. But once the realm closed, those disciples’ Soul Tablets shattered one after another. No one knew whether beasts had killed them or the realm had. Since then, no one dared stay.

“There’s such a rule? Fine. If these Demon Beasts could take away the Fated Chance, they wouldn’t have left it until now.”

Although Qin Xiao didn’t understand, he still stopped. These Demon Beasts were mainly Soul Formation stage; better not provoke them.

The beasts at Soul Formation and above entered first. Only once they were all inside could the Nascent Soul beasts go in. No beast below Nascent Soul had come; they had no right to seek the fruit.

This Formation was quite mysterious. After those Demon Beasts entered, they could only advance slowly. Some even got injured and retreated not long after entering. This story is hosted at NovelPing.

Those retreating Demon Beasts didn’t linger, directly returning to their own territories, probably worried that after being injured they would be attacked by other Demon Beasts.

The cultivators watched, baffled. What was unusual about this formation? Some beasts advanced far; others retreated almost at once. Cultivation seemed to make no difference—quite a few Soul Formation beasts had given up immediately.

The Nascent Soul stage Demon Beasts still persisting weren’t many, but there were some.

“Now can we go in? They’re all too busy with themselves and can’t bother with us anymore.”

Qin Xiao was curious. What kind of Pressure could be so mysterious?

From outside, they could see only the beasts’ bodies. Without entering, they could not sense what was happening inside the formation.

“Not yet. We have to wait until they all fail. Going in now is a challenge. An angry beast might attack us inside, and the formation won’t kill anyone just for fighting there.”

Ling Ruoxue tried again to dissuade him. He knew nothing about this; why couldn’t he follow the rules instead of rushing?

“Fine, then we’ll wait a bit more.”

Upon hearing they could take action inside the Formation, Qin Xiao also calmed down.

One blow from any of them might be more than he could take.

An hour later, most of the Demon Beasts had retreated. Pressure grew stronger as they approached the tree. Many came back injured from trying to push on.

Some beasts were clever. They followed weaker ones that seemed lucky. If those could bear the Pressure, the followers should fare much the same.

They did not always walk straight. Sometimes they went in another direction for a while, then changed course again to continue forward.

The reckless beasts had already failed. Those still going were intelligent. Rather than charging ahead, they stopped and started, adjusting their route.

It worked. Many were more than halfway to the tree and still holding on.

“What exactly is this Formation? How come there are still Nascent Soul stage Demon Beasts persisting? And looking at their travel routes, there seems to be a way to break it.”

Qin Xiao could see there must be a way through. Nascent Soul beasts had gone that far. This formation could not be impossible to solve.

“I don’t know. The records suggest that each entrance subjects you to different Pressure, so there’s no single solution. Our association collected the experiences of every disciple who tried, but none got far enough to give a detailed account. The information is incomplete.”

Ling Ruoxue could not explain it either. This was her first visit. The tree ripened every hundred years, so disciples did not get the chance at every opening. They had gathered information, but it was incomplete and could not provide a way through.

“Indeed. If it were so easy to break, it wouldn’t be our turn.”

Qin Xiao knew the formation must have its subtleties. How could they solve it without seeing the whole thing?