Yuan Ming, carrying the doubts in his heart, briskly walked toward the basin.

Soon, he arrived at the center of the basin. His soul splitting Divine Sense swept the surroundings and did not detect any Formations or other traps. The Stone Pillars around were no different from elsewhere, the red fog filled with Fire Poison was still dense, and even the Spiritual Energy here felt almost the same as in other places.

Besides the lush growth of Spirit Grass, this place seemed indistinguishable from any other.

"This is indeed strange."

Unable to decipher the mystery, Yuan Ming could only sigh, pushing his doubts to the back of his mind, resolved to dig out the Blossoming Golden Sunflowers growing in this place.

However, as he began to dig, he suddenly discovered that the soil here was richer in Spiritual Energy compared to other places, not only containing Fire Element Spirit Qi but all Five Elements Spiritual Energy.

It meant that only Fire Element Spirit Grass could grow in the Stone Forest; otherwise, even if Water Element Spirit Grass were planted here, they might not thrive poorly given the unchanged exterior environment.

Yuan Ming, realizing this, immediately controlled his first soul to probe into the ground with his Divine Sense.

After a moment, his eyes lit up. He quickly walked to the center of the basin and began to dig.

Soon, within the brown soil, a fist-sized clump of differently-colored soil appeared, shrouded in five different colors of light. Once the ordinary soil covering it was swept away, Five Element Spiritual Energy emitted from it, seemingly affecting the surrounding Spirit Grass. Even the closed buds of the golden sunflower began to slowly reveal a sliver of petals.

"Five Elements in five colors, vitalizing the growth of grass, could this be the legendary Five-Colored Breath Soil?"

Yuan Ming was overjoyed. In legends, the Five-Colored Breath Soil could alter the terrain within a certain range, accelerating the growth of Spirit Grass. If there was enough of it, it could even make a hundred-year Spirit Grass grow to maturity within a year. Unfortunately, with the small amount Yuan Ming had in hand, such miracles were unlikely.

Even so, Yuan Ming was quite content. After carefully collecting the small clump of Five-Colored Breath Soil, he used his soul splitting Divine Sense to search the basin inside and out one more time, making sure nothing was missed before he departed.

In the time that followed, Yuan Ming attempted to find other Spirit Grass or treasures. However, it seemed that having found the Five-Colored Breath Soil, he had used up all his luck; he couldn't even find a single Blossoming Golden Sunflower, let alone other Spirit Grasses.

Leaving the Stone Forest with some regret, Yuan Ming started his return journey, but he did not encounter Yan Xiang and Lei He on the way.

Because of the time limit of one quarter-hour, he naturally could not afford to delay longer. After waiting to no avail, he made his way back to the village on his own.

In the wooden building, Zhao Gui was still sitting peacefully, sipping tea. Seeing Yuan Ming return safely, a trace of a smile appeared on his aged face.

"Oh, you've returned? You are much quicker than I anticipated. I just wonder if you found the Golden Sunflowers I wanted?"

"Fortunately, I have not failed," Yuan Ming said as he placed the harvested Golden Sunflowers on the table.

"One, two… Eh, you managed to bring back a full ten blossoms, not bad, truly not bad!" Zhao Gui counted the number of Golden Sunflowers, his face showing delight.

"As long as the senior is satisfied," Yuan Ming bowed with his hands folded.

Upon hearing this, Zhao Gui laughed twice, "Haha, It's admirable that you could find so many Blossoming Golden Sunflowers. But as we agreed before, if you brought back three blossoming Golden Sunflowers, I would share with you the method to leave the Peach Forest. Since I have spoken, I will naturally not go back on my word."

As he spoke, Zhao Gui's right hand swept across the wooden table, collecting three Golden Sunflowers into his pouch. He then stood up, formed a magic seal with his hands, and cast a Daoist Technique on Yuan Ming.

Yuan Ming immediately felt an unfamiliar power entering his body, the sensation much clearer than the previous time.

"The Daoist Technique I just cast will last for a day and a night. With it, you will have more than enough capacity to traverse the Peach Forest," Zhao Gui said with a smile as he sat back down.

A slight smile appeared on Yuan Ming's face, and he looked again at the remaining Golden Sunflowers, offering, "Then these remaining Golden Sunflowers, consider them a token of thanks for the senior's tea earlier. Please accept them."

While Lei He had subtly suggested earlier that the extra Golden Sunflowers should be given to Yan Xiang, not only had Yuan Ming not agreed, he also had no obligation to worry about Yan Xiang, especially since Yan Xiang had always been rather hostile toward him.

Instead, it seemed more reasonable to reciprocate the kindness shown by Zhao Gui, who had been fairly decent to him from the start. He was naturally more willing to repay the favor.

However, Zhao Gui fell silent for a moment before speaking,"The value of these seven Golden Sunflowers is much higher than the tea I offered you. I won't just take advantage of you. This Qing Gui Grass Hat is crafted from Qing Gui Tree Branches, made by my own hands. Wearing it on the head can resist the scorching sun, a fair exchange for your seven Golden Sunflowers."

With that, his right hand swept across the table again, and the Golden Sunflowers vanished, replaced by a hat woven from dark green tree branches.

As Yuan Ming picked up the hat, he immediately felt a cool sensation coursing through his hands, and the surrounding air seemed much cooler.

Overjoyed, he quickly thanked Zhao Gui with a bow, "Thank you, senior, for this treasure."

"What treasure, not treasure, you traded Golden Sunflowers for the hat, it's a fair exchange," Zhao Gui spoke.

As he talked, the smile on his face slowly faded, and his expression gradually stiffened.

"Senior, is there a problem with these Golden Sunflowers?" Yuan Ming asked upon seeing this.

"No, since you've already got what you wanted, leave quickly!" Zhao Gui suddenly spoke in a cold tone.

Yuan Ming, puzzled, thought they were having a good conversation just moments before, wondering why Zhao Gui's attitude had changed so abruptly.

At this moment, hurried footsteps came from outside the wooden building, Lei He and Yan Xiang rushed into the building looking somewhat disheveled, but without any signs of injuries on them.

They looked up and saw Yuan Ming sitting inside, Yan Xiang immediately snorted coldly, with a glint of displeasure flashing across his face, while Lei He tried to squeeze out a smile but soon his expression turned somber as if he was in a bad mood as well.

Seeing the two returning, Zhao Gui stopped and asked indifferently, "Have you two gathered the Golden Sunflower Spiritual Grass?"

"We've gathered them." Yan Xiang, suppressing his anger, stepped forward and handed over the sunflowers—however, there were only ten.

"If I remember correctly, you're supposed to give me twelve." Zhao Gui glanced at Yan Xiang.

Just then, Lei He stepped forward, "The rest are with me."

After saying that, he took out eight blossoming golden sunflowers and placed them on the table.

Seeing him complete the number on his behalf, a fleeting look of gratitude passed through Yan Xiang's eyes, but it was quickly gone, revealing no more than that flash of emotion.

Yuan Ming suddenly realized that they might have exchanged information on the way back and had reached some sort of agreement.

Zhao Gui didn't care who provided the sunflowers; after a brief count, he took them and then extended his hand to cast a secret technique on Lei He and Yan Xiang.

"That's it, the deal is complete, you can leave now. Don't linger in the Peach Forest any longer, farewell." Zhao Gui issued an eviction order and got up to walk towards the inner room.

"Please wait, Fellow Daoist Zhao, since you've been living here for a long time, do you know where on the island the Immortal's residence is located, and how should we proceed to get there? Besides this Peach Forest, are there any other taboos or restrictions in other places?" Lei He saw this and hurriedly asked with cupped hands.

"You have quite a lot of questions. Well then, I assume you came here for opportunities, so I'll show you a clear path." Zhao Gui stopped in his tracks, stood up, and walked out of the wooden building.

Yuan Ming and the others immediately followed, only to see Zhao Gui stop at the doorway, raise his arm, and point at the golden peak outside the Peach Forest, speaking slowly:

"The greatest opportunity on the island is none other than the Fire Essence Palace on that mountain summit, which used to be the Golden Sunflower Immortal's palace. Inside, not only are there the hubs controlling all the island's restrictions, but because the Immortal left in a hurry, there are still a great number of Immortal Pills and treasures stored inside. Even the Immortal's personal Spiritual Treasure is hidden somewhere in the palace, waiting for the destined one to appear."

Upon hearing the words "Spiritual Treasure," the eyes of Lei He and Yan Xiang lit up, and Yan Xiang, even more excited, shed his previous gloom and irritation, asking eagerly, "How then should we proceed to the Fire Essence Palace? Please clarify, Fellow Daoist."

"Haha, reaching the Fire Essence Palace is quite simple. Just head north from here, and you can cross this Peach Forest to reach the foot of the giant golden peak. However, there are many traps and dangers there as well, and my Daoist Technique can't deal with so many of them. You will have to find your own way to enter."

Having said this, Zhao Gui stopped talking, turned back to the wooden building, and with a "snap," shut the wooden door.

At this moment, Lei He and Yan Xiang were too excited to care about Zhao Gui's actions, they looked at the golden peak for a moment, and then immediately set off, flying toward the north.

Yuan Ming, about to follow, suddenly turned around and looked back at the wooden door.

Zhao Gui's presence inside the wooden door suddenly vanished without a trace, not leaving behind a single sign.

He furrowed his eyebrows, his first soul's Divine Sense descended, inspecting the inside of the house, but could not detect any trace of Zhao Gui either. Moreover, the Fire Horned Tribe in the village also suddenly disappeared without a trace.

"It was the same when I first arrived at this village; I didn't sense any living creatures inside. Zhao Gui and the Fire Horned Tribe suddenly appeared, and now they have disappeared just as suddenly, quite mysterious…" Yuan Ming thought to himself.

He looked at the empty village, the green tree leaves rustling "whoosh whoosh," giving off a sensation of deathly stillness.

A chill passed through Yuan Ming's heart, and he turned to leave.

As the trio's figures vanished into the Peach Forest, the previously closed wooden door slowly opened, and Zhao Gui stood by the door, seemingly unmoved.

He looked out expressionlessly in the direction Yuan Ming and the others had left, his skin gradually taking on a shade of green.

...

Yuan Ming and the others proceeded onward, protected by Zhao Gui's Daoist Technique, they were no longer affected by the illusions of the Peach Forest, moving ahead quickly. However, the Peach Forest was still expansive, and after several hours, they were still unable to fly out of it.

At this time, more and more suns began to appear in the sky, the temperature rising higher and higher, to the point of burning the skin. Lei He and Yan Xiang had to use some of their Mana to cast spells to protect themselves, slowing their pace as a result.

At that moment, Yuan Ming took out the Qing Gui Grass Hat and put it on his head.

In an instant, Yuan Ming felt a cooling sensation from head to toe, as if enveloped in cool water, and without having to utilize Protective Spiritual Light, he was already exceedingly comfortable.

Yan Xiang turned his head and saw this, a look of surprise crossing his face, "Kid, where did you get that grass hat from?"

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.