Chapter Thirty-Four: The Essence-Refining Fruit Tree

Gu Weiyu slowly turned her head in midair, utterly stupefied.

On the cliff above, the great white tiger lazily withdrew its long tail, lowered its head, and seized the roasted chicken in its jaws, swallowing it whole. With its four paws, it ascended through the air as if climbing stairs, its clear tiger eyes filled with nothing but indifference.

“Despicable human, how dare you covet the Soul Tempering Fruit of my kind? Die!” A deep, resonant voice echoed in Gu Weiyu’s mind.

Soul Tempering Fruit? A white tiger soaring through the sky?

Gu Weiyu’s head thundered as if struck by lightning. So all this time, she’d been played for a fool by this seemingly ordinary tiger, which was, at the very least, at the Foundation Establishment stage?

How could she have forgotten that her Spirit Detection Technique not only failed to sense spiritual energy in common beasts, but also couldn’t detect it in demon beasts three levels above her? This white tiger was clearly above Foundation Establishment; if she could sense its power, she’d be seeing ghosts!

Her mind raced back over every encounter with the white tiger, making her feel more and more like a clown.

Thinking of the three roasted chickens that had become tiger food, she cursed inwardly—it really was like feeding them to a dog!

The mountain wind sliced at her face like a sharp slap. While mentally berating herself for her stupidity, Gu Weiyu scanned her surroundings for anything she could use to save herself.

Her gaze fell upon a crooked-necked tree jutting from the rock wall below, and her spirits lifted—Vine Manipulation!

A vine sprang from the rock, wrapped itself around the crooked tree, and shot toward her. Gu Weiyu grabbed the vine, her hand scraping violently against it, sending a searing pain through her palm. Below lay a bottomless abyss; she dared not let go.

With the vine’s help, her descent finally halted, but her situation was still precarious. Now she hung, swaying back and forth, suspended between vine and tree, either of which might fail her.

Her grip had grown numb with pain, a slickness suggesting she was bleeding.

Biting her lip hard, she hauled herself up, feet straining as she inched toward the tree above.

Who knew how long it took, but at last, she managed to scramble onto the crooked tree, straddling its trunk, trembling as she reached into her storage ring for a paper crane.

The pink paper crane was stained with flecks of blood, resembling peach blossoms.

Floating beside the crooked tree, Gu Weiyu leapt onto the crane’s back and settled herself. With her kick, the unlucky tree snapped with a loud crack and plunged into the abyss below.

Gu Weiyu watched, her face pale. She hadn’t expected the tree to be so fragile—without the paper crane, she’d never have survived by relying on it.

After all her exertion, she now felt aches all over, especially her hands and the spot on her back struck by the tiger’s tail—both nearly numb with pain.

She guided the paper crane gently down the cliff, descending for half an hour before landing at the bottom. Had she fallen, she’d have been nothing but a mangled corpse.

She slid off the crane, put it away, and began to survey the cliff base.

The ground was overgrown with wild grass, and here and there, demon beast skeletons lay scattered among the weeds. Dusk was approaching, and the shadows deepened. Gu Weiyu felt groggy, shivering whenever the wind touched her.

She trudged through dead branches and leaves, occasionally stepping over the bones of unknown creatures. She found a wind-sheltered spot, painstakingly set up her tent and a concealment array, and crawled inside.

Seated cross-legged, she first took a healing pill, then applied jade salve to her hands, before carefully lying down to sleep.

Her body was utterly exhausted. The moment she closed her eyes, she fell into deep slumber.

Night blanketed the world, and outside the tent, insects chirped in chorus, interrupted by the distant, haunting cries of demon beasts. Luckily, those cries were far away and not too distinct. In her sleep, Gu Weiyu frowned unconsciously, restless and uneasy, caught between waking and dreaming.

When she finally awoke, daylight streamed outside the tent, and the calls of birds and beasts rang out from time to time.

“Hiss—” Rising, she accidentally tugged at her wounds, unable to suppress a groan. Now trapped in the heart of Qilin Mountain, her greatest challenge was how to escape safely.

Unlike the outskirts of Mount Wen, which held no formidable demon beasts, this was the core of Qilin Mountain. Any random second-tier demon beast could easily tear her to shreds.

Gu Weiyu was frustrated; if only the cultivation world had talismans for real-time communication, she could contact her ancestor and wait for him to rescue her!

Gurgle—

Her stomach protested. She hadn’t eaten last night and was now starving.

She took out an egg and meat pie and devoured it in a few bites. Remembering how she’d been robbed of three roasted chickens yesterday, she angrily pulled out another, imagining it was the hateful white tiger, and bit fiercely into it.

After finishing the chicken, she belched—oops, she’d eaten too much.

She stepped outside, packed up her tent and the concealment array. Waiting passively was not an option; she’d better head toward the mountain’s outskirts.

Perhaps her bad luck had been exhausted by the white tiger, for on her journey outward, her fortune turned. She encountered only a few first-tier demon beasts.

Had she not been injured, these beasts would have posed no threat. In her current state, she simply avoided them.

Unable to deal with demon beasts, she instead collected a dozen or so spirit herbs with decent ages.

Thus, walking and resting, it took her two hours to traverse the inner circle and reach the edge of Qilin Mountain.

Once again, she summoned her paper crane, mounted it, and soared toward the county city.

South Mountain Residence.

Gu Qingzhou had been idly lounging about, but upon seeing Gu Weiyu appear before him, he could no longer remain lying down. “Ah Yu, what happened to you?”

“Ancestor—” The tension that had held Gu Weiyu taut snapped at the sight of Gu Qingzhou, and tears streamed down her face.

“There, there, your ancestor is here,” Gu Qingzhou patted her back to comfort her.

Gu Weiyu sobbed, and after a long while, her emotions gradually calmed.

“Come, sit here and tell me what happened. I want to know which blind demon beast dared bully my great-granddaughter!” Gu Qingzhou pointed to the cushion beside his couch, fiercely protective.

Gu Weiyu managed a tearful smile, sat beside him, and recounted her ordeal in detail, especially the wretched white tiger, which made her gnash her teeth in anger.

“Ah Yu, did that white tiger truly mention the Soul Tempering Fruit?” Gu Qingzhou interrupted, unable to contain himself. If so, then perhaps Ah Yu had been blessed by misfortune!