Fang Yu gently tugged at Fang Qiong's arm. "Come on, just this once. There won't be a next time!"
"Hmph!"
Though displeased, Fang Qiong saw her brother's insistence and let out a small huff, essentially agreeing.
She moved forward together with Fang Yu.
The two quickly caught up to Lin Yi.
"We're both heading to Qingfeng City. Why not go together? We can watch out for each other on the way," Fang Yu suggested.
"Sure," Lin Yi nodded.
They had no ill intentions; traveling together posed no problem.
The three continued onward toward the Southern Wilderness.
Along the way, Fang Qiong warned Fang Yu, "With our strength, we can barely handle second-tier beasts. If we encounter a third-tier beast, you mustn't hesitate—you have to get me out immediately. Do you understand?"
Fang Qiong and Fang Yu both possessed Bone Forging Realm cultivation at the ninth layer.
Against a third-tier beast, they stood no chance.
Lin Yi nodded repeatedly.
"Understood. Don't worry!"
They traveled for roughly half an hour.
"Look over there!"
Fang Yu's eyes suddenly focused as he pointed to a mountain stream not far off to the left.
On the rocky cliff beside the stream grew a small tree, about half a zhang tall.
Five thumb-sized fruits hung from its branches, glowing faintly red.
Lin Yi followed his finger and asked, "What's that?"
Fang Yu's eyes gleamed with excitement as he explained, "These are called Scarlet Jade Fruits."
"They're miraculous healing fruits—effective for both internal and external injuries, and they even greatly aid cultivation!"
"I didn't expect our luck to be this good. To find something like this here…"
He was visibly thrilled.
Fang Qiong's eyes also lit up with surprise.
"This is incredible luck."
The Fang family itself possessed only two Scarlet Jade Fruits, yet here were five.
They were about to get rich!
Lin Yi's heart stirred slightly at the sight.
"Let's go check them out," he said.
Fang Yu quickly cautioned, "Wait, young brother. Such spiritual fruits are surely guarded by a powerful beast. We should be careful."
Fang Qiong glanced at Lin Yi.
"You stay here. The two of us will go get the Scarlet Jade Fruits. If danger arises, we can't divide our attention to protect you."
She paused, her expression unreadable. "Don't worry. Though your cultivation is lower, we won't cheat you. You can take two of the five fruits, and we'll take the other three."
Her concern for Lin Yi was genuine, but her words were blunt.
Lin Yi naturally didn't argue.
At that moment, a voice suddenly rang out near them.
"These five Scarlet Jade Fruits are mine!"
The three turned in unison.
A young man in a blue robe, holding a long sword, stood not far behind them.
"Tang Xiao!"
Seeing him, Fang Yu frowned. "What are you doing here?"
The newcomer was Tang Xiao, the eldest son of the Tang family in Qingfeng City.
The Fang and Tang families were both second-tier families in Qingfeng City, both in the textile business and long-time rivals.
Tang Xiao's face carried an amused smile.
"I came to the Southern Wilderness today to train, never expecting my luck to be so good as to stumble upon these Scarlet Jade Fruits."
Fang Qiong's delicate face hardened, her voice sharp and cold:
"This Scarlet Jade Fruit was discovered by us first. Do you really think you can snatch it away?"
"You're no match for the two of us!"
Tang Xiao let out a derisive laugh.
"Is that so?"
In the next instant—
"Boom!"
A fierce, overwhelming aura erupted violently from his body!
Meridian Clearing Realm!
The smirk on Tang Xiao's face widened with smug satisfaction.
With a teasing lilt, he said, "I hope you don't mind, but I happened to break through to the Tongmai Realm yesterday. I came to South Wasteland Ridge today to stabilize my cultivation."
Feeling Tang Xiao's oppressive presence, Fang Yu and Fang Qiong's faces fell.
They hadn't expected this.
Tang Xiao had actually broken through to the Meridian Clearing Realm!
With their current cultivation at only the ninth level of Bone Forging, even together, they were no match for him.
Fang Yu's heart sank. The Scarlet Jade Fruit was right in front of him, yet he was powerless to claim it.
He turned to Lin Yi, guilt etched across his face:
"My apologies, young brother. I never imagined we'd run into this guy here."
"It seems this Scarlet Jade Fruit is…"
Before he could finish, Lin Yi's figure vanished into thin air.
When he reappeared, he was already in front of Tang Xiao.
A fist shot forward, smashing squarely into Tang Xiao's lower abdomen, right at his dantian!
"Bang!"
The smug smile froze on Tang Xiao's face.
A terrifying force surged into his dantian, instantly shattering his Qi Sea!
He flew backward like an arrow, crashing dozens of meters away, spewing blood from his mouth.
Tang Xiao was finished.
…
Silence fell over the battlefield.
A gentle wind rustled Lin Yi's clothes as he stood unmoving.
Fang Yu froze, staring blankly at the white-clad youth, his mind completely blank.
He had thought Lin Yi was only fourteen or fifteen; his cultivation couldn't possibly be strong.
Someone with the fourth or fifth level of Bone Forging was already a genius.
He had even worried that Lin Yi, alone, might die in the perilous South Wasteland Ridge filled with feral beasts.
But he never expected…
This seemingly harmless young brother possessed strength on an utterly terrifying level!
Tang Xiao, a Meridian Clearing Realm cultivator…
Had been crippled with a single punch!
Fang Qiong was completely dumbstruck.
She had earlier complained that Fang Yu was pathetic, desperate for attention that wasn't even returned.
Now, she finally understood why Lin Yi didn't care about their petty efforts.
He had the strength to back it up.
The most shocked of all was Tang Xiao himself, his dantian shattered.
Feeling the devastation in his core, his eyes turned blood-red, burning with fury.
Struggling to rise, he roared through gritted teeth:
"Y—you… who are you to dare…"
"Bang!"
Lin Yi's fist smashed brutally into his face.
Tang Xiao's roar cut off abruptly. His nose broke, blood gushing in torrents.
Lin Yi's face remained expressionless.
"You're from the Tang family of Qingfeng City?"
This punch finally brought Tang Xiao to his senses.
He stared at the youth before him, his face draining of color, eyes wide with terror.
"My… I'm the son of the Tang family head… and you dare… You dare cripple me, me, the Tang family…"