Chapter 403: Bloodseal Lotus


    Long Chen looked at the zone after he teased Ling Xi. The spiritual energy in the air was denser here than in the Intermediate Zone. The mist in the sky was thicker too. There was even white mist on the ground. It was very simr to thend of the immortals as depicted in legends.


    But what marked the ce to be different from the lower two zones was that there were fewer herbs. Most of them were advanced Earth-tier herbs.


    Long Chen also felt the trembling increase in intensity. He had a feeling that something was calling out to him, but he didn’t know what it was.


    <em>I need to find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit no matter what. The rest can be done after I get it. </em>He wasted no time and used Soul Swallowing Gaze to find his way around the ce. There were a lot of intermediate Earth-tier spiritual herbs that no one was watching. Only the advanced Earth-tier ones were being guarded. Long Chen avoided several groups of guards and decided it was not worth it to pluck the advanced Earth-tier spiritual herbs. They were not that important to him in the first ce.


    But it would be different if he found a Heaven-tier spiritual herb, as those were very valuable.


    “Xiao Xi, what tier is the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?” Long Chen suddenly asked.


    “Elementary Heaven-tier.”


    “If that’s the case, there should be a lot of people guarding it.” Long Chen nodded. It was as he had expected. Only a Heaven-tier spiritual herb could recover her body.


    Long Chen approached the ces with a lot of guards carefully after knowing what to look for. He was now deep inside the Advanced Zone. Thanks to the Soul Swallowing Gaze, he was able to see everything. He zipped around before seeing a group of people towards the south.


    <em>There are two Eighth River Stage cultivators and several Seven River Stage cultivators there.</em><em>Looks like the imperial pce is stronger than I thought. The three noble families were antspared to the imperial family.</em>


    Most of the strongest Immortal Beasts inside the Counter Essence Realm, the Category Nine Heavens-tier beasts, had been killed by the Sword Devil and Lin Zichen, so it was highly unlikely one would appear again. Two Eighth River Stage guards were considered one of the strongest groups, and it was likely that they were guarding the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    Long Chen had seen that one of the advanced Earth-tier spiritual herbs with strong medicinal properties was only guarded by a few Seventh River Stage cultivators.


    He slowly approached them.


    “I’ve smelled it. It’s not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, but it’s definitely an Elementary Heaven-tier spiritual herb,” Ling Xi suddenly said when they were two hundred meters away.


    “What is it, then?” Long Chen frowned. Still, a Heaven-tier spiritual herb was a good thing even if it was not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit.


    “It’s a Bloodseal Lotus. It’s a spiritual herb that, after ingestion, can greatly enhance one''s vitality and physique. While it doesn’t increase one’s strength directly, it nurtures one’s organs and greatly boosts all aspects of their physical fitness. Consuming it basically gives one the powerful vitality of a demonic beast," Ling Xi exined in detail.


    "So it’s really good?" Long Chen asked softly.


    "Indeed, the Bloodseal Lotus can enhance your physique and even greatly increase your explosive power. Of course, it must at least be paired with a Heaven-tier Body Tempering technique, though I don’t know if there are any Heaven-tier martial techniques in the Cangyang Kingdom!”


    "Xiao Xi, how long until the Bloodseal Lotus matures?" Long Chen was more concerned about this.


    "It matured long ago. However, Heaven-tier spiritual herbs have the greatest effect if ingested directly after harvesting. The efficacy will decrease if it''s plucked. If consumed several years after, the effect will be reduced by at least half. The imperial family treats the Counter Essence Realm as their backyard, so they left the Bloodseal Lotus here. It’s also possible that other Heaven-tier spiritual herbs are already mature, including the Nine Heavens Immortal Spirit Fruit," Ling Xi said.


    "So you mean I can harvest it?" Long Chen''s eyes lit up.


    "Brother Chen, do you want to harvest it? Aren''t you afraid of causing amotion?" Ling Xi asked.


    Long Chen thought for a moment and said, "Well, let''s wait until I find the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit first. Then we cane back. Let''s go."


    Ling Xi knew that Long Chen wanted the Bloodseal Lotus, but his priority was the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, which made Ling Xi feel even more appreciated.


    But what would happen after they obtained the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?


    Ling Xi was confused.


    They would never meet again.


    She was afraid of that.


    While she was lost in thought, Long Chen continued scouting the area. He noted the location of the Bloodseal Lotus and then decided which direction to go next.


    <em>It''s that direction … Something is attracting me. I hope it''s the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit,</em> Long Chen thought in his heart as he subconsciously headed in that direction.


    The direction he was heading in was actually the center of the Advanced Zone.


    Thanks to the Soul Swallowing Gaze, Long Chen didn''t have to worry about being discovered. He ran past many advanced Earth-tier spiritual herbs along the way, but he didn''t see any Heaven-tier spiritual herbs again. It seemed there were not more than five of them in the Counter Essence Realm.


    The closer he got to the center of the zone, the stronger Long Chen''s trembling became. He felt something strange about his body, but he couldn''t figure out exactly what it was.


    "Xiao Xi, do you feel anything wrong?" Long Chen was really confused.


    "I really don''t, Brother Chen. Do you feel something? Tell me about it."


    "I’m not sure. It''s just ahead. Let''s keep going!"


    Long Chen continued on his way. After about half an hour, he once again used the Soul Swallowing Gaze to see that there were many Immortal Guards ahead guarding another spiritual herb. This time, there were no Seventh River Stage guards, but three Eighth River Stage guards!


    <em>Three Eighth River Stage guards … It’s very likely to be the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit! </em>Long Chen was excited and hurried ahead. The temptation of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit made him forget about that strange feeling.


    About two hundred meters away, Long Chen nervously asked, "Xiao Xi, do you feel it? Is it the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit?"


    Ling Xi frowned for a while before answering, "It’s not the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, but another Heaven-tier spiritual herb called the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit! The Eight Deste Dragon Fruit is said to grow at the ce where the ancient dragon, the Eight Deste Fire Dragon, died. It grows by absorbing the essence of the Eight Deste Fire Dragon. Not only does it contain the essence of the ancient dragon, which can enhance one''s physique andprehension, but the fire attribute energy within it can enhance the fire power of whoever consumes it. If Xiang ate it, he could reach the Category Nine Earth-tier!”


    "Another amazing herb! And it also has great benefits for Xiang. Unfortunately, I can''t steal it before getting the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit." Long Chen sighed.


    Upon discovering that it was the Eight Deste Dragon Fruit instead of the Nine Heavens Immortal Fruit, Long Chen felt somewhat disappointed. Just at this moment, he suddenly felt a powerful force pressing down on his head. He quickly looked up and saw the dense, white clouds in the sky dispersing. In just a few breaths, the vast sky was revealed just above him!


    "What''s going on?"


    Long Chen was confused. He then saw arge, translucent rune appear in the empty sky!


    The rune was strange. He looked closely and saw that it was shimmering with white light.


    Following that, a dragon roar shook the heavens and the earth. Then the rune rotated rapidly and transformed into a huge, translucent ancient dragon!


    It didn''t look very different from the Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon, but Long Chen could tell that they were twopletely different dragons! The Ancient Bloodsoul Dragon was ferocious and bloodthirsty, while this dragon gave people a strange illusory feeling!


    Long Chen''s mind shook when he saw the dragon.


    "Xiao Xi! Did you notice that the dragon shadow in the sky is exactly the same as the dragon-shaped rune I found before?!" Long Chen was horrified. He finally realized why he felt like something was trembling. It wasn''t him, but the mysterious stone talisman in his Universe Pouch!


    "It seems so..." Ling Xi was also stunned at this moment.


    While Long Chen was shocked, the dragon in the sky suddenly looked towards Long Chen. Two illusory rays of light burst out of its eyes and entered Long Chen''s eyes!


    Long Chen suddenly felt a tremor in his mind! At this moment, the mysterious Dragon Jade Pendant in his sea of consciousness trembled!<blockquote>


    Doge & Chacha''s Thoughts


    Hmmm... Interesting development</blockquote>