CHAPTER 166: 126 A TWIN FRUIT

Du Yu and Lin Shiwei returned to Master Qing’s house to rest for the night. After a good sleep, the two of them drove to the Ancient Pine Tower North Suburbs·Twin Tree Realm, bathed in the morning light and rosy dawn.

Although both of them had their sights set on the deer, Lin Shiwei still had some preparations to make.

Walking through the lush, verdant mountains and forests, Du Yu couldn’t help but softly praise, "You’re much more talented than I am."

"Mmm..." Lin Shiwei drew out a long nasal sound, not quite sure how to respond to Du Yu.

Indeed, her talent was absolutely explosive.

Not just as an All-Elemental Demon Tamer and All-Elemental Spirit Master, but even in the process of awakening itself.

Back then, Du Yu had kept his share of Spiritual Qi safe, and later came to the Twin Trees, asking the Divine Tree for help to activate his Spirit Master vocation.

Obviously, Du Yu was just like the great majority of Spirit Masters in ancient times—they all needed to offer devout prayers under the Twin Trees day and night, begging the Divine Tree to help awaken their spirit-controlling bloodline.

But Lin Shiwei...

She was in that tiny group standing at the pinnacle of the pyramid. She didn’t need the Twin Trees’ guidance at all—once she received enough Spiritual Qi from Shadow Gu Tower, she awakened her spirit-controlling bloodline all by herself.

And as All-Elemental, at that!

"Ying~" From the girl’s collar, Xiaoyan poked out a fluffy little head, raised her face, and gave a spoiled little whimper.

Consort Lin had already been captured, and now knew how to serve Prince Yan properly.

For once, there was a rare hint of doting between Lin Shiwei’s heroic brows. She lowered her head slightly and nuzzled Xiaoyan’s nose with her cheek, "Sleep."

"Ying~" Xiaoyan closed her fox eyes in contentment, even with a bit of a smile on her face—

Through the spirit contract, Du Yu read Xiaoyan’s thoughts:

Heh, woman~

Not wanting to disturb Prince Yan’s precious nap, Du Yu didn’t translate for Lin Shiwei.

"We’re here." Exiting the forest, Lin Shiwei looked up at the crashing Twin Flower Waterfall, her gaze turning slightly distant.

"The fruits are already here." Du Yu spotted a few scattered fruits, hidden amidst the floral cascade.

They were round, tiny, and crystal-clear, like peeled lychees?

The Twin Trees released attributeless Demon Breath, and their fruits were attributeless as well—a huge tonic for all Demon Tamers and Demon Beasts!

If I could get a few Twin Tree Fruits, Little Fen Yang would be delighted, right?

"Gulp." As he thought about it, Du Yu’s Adam’s apple bobbed.

Lin Shiwei noticed the strange noise and turned to see Du Yu looking rather greedy.

Seeing Du Yu like this, Lin Shiwei actually felt he was more down-to-earth, more approachable to her.

The carefree Li Mengnan was always shouting something about "my second brother is invincible."

But for the proud Lin Shiwei, Du Yu’s amazing accomplishments in just a few months, and his terrifying strength that far surpassed his peers, truly left her breathless.

Seeing this scene, Lin Shiwei couldn’t help but curve her lips slightly and gently coax, "Hold on, Du Yu. Once we leave, we can go to a bookhouse and order something good to eat."

"Huh?" Du Yu glanced over, seeing the teasing look in Lin Shiwei’s eyes, and said, mock-annoyed, "Little junior sister, I’ve got to criticize you for this one.

A person needs to have dreams!"

Lin Shiwei walked on with Du Yu, laughing softly, "If you covet the fruit, the Twin Trees won’t let it slide; we’ll be chased off and leave with nothing."

"Yo? You’re a fruit-rua breaker then?"

Lin Shiwei: "..."

The two bypassed the Demon Tamers’ camp, heading straight toward the Twin Trees, leaving behind two mysterious silhouettes for those in the camp to wonder about.

Both wore oversized Black Rock Tree Coats, and with those long, dark battle robes, they really did look like members of some secretive organization.

As expected, when the two arrived under the trees, there was no welcome from the Divine Tree.

Both were Spirit Masters, so the Divine Tree had no reason to awaken for them.

"Let’s cultivate here for a few days. Fill up your acupoints with Wind Spiritual Qi first." Du Yu placed a hand on the withered Divine Spirit Tree trunk, tracing the spiral patterns, and peered toward the bottom.

"Mm." Lin Shiwei also reached out a fair palm and gently pressed it to the bark.

She almost wished her talent wasn’t so strong, that she hadn’t awakened on her own.

That way, she could’ve been part of that thousand-year-old Divine Spirit Tree ritual, too.

Du Yu kept his gaze fixed on the roots, and spoke softly, "I once naively thought this was the safest place in the world.

Now I know, just dozens of meters below these roots, endless Cold Qi is being suppressed, along with one Celestial Treasure Race creature after another from the Otherworld."

"Pa~pa~"

As he spoke, Du Yu patted the withered Divine Tree, full of emotion. "If it weren’t for all this long-term suppression, I can’t imagine what the world would become."

Suddenly, two tree branches twisted around each other, slowly lowering down.

Lin Shiwei’s eyes widened slightly as a vigorous branch from the Demon Breath Tree and a withered, dying branch from the Divine Tree coiled together, like a fried dough twist, and reached toward Du Yu’s face?

Du Yu could really communicate with the Twin Trees!

Even more crucially, this wasn’t just one-sided—the Twin Trees were willing to respond to him?

The longer she stayed by Du Yu’s side, the more Lin Shiwei glimpsed a different Demon Taming World.

A world regular people could never see!

Compared to the Evil Fire Tree, the Mother of the Demon Spirit Realm·Twin Trees was so much gentler.

The entwined branches swept down, the leaves like gentle little hands softly caressing Du Yu’s cheek.

Du Yu’s heart stirred, and he said, "Last time you mentioned burning off the chains—are those the shackles on your bodies?"

Yet, the Twin Tree branches only repeated their motion with no further reaction.

Du Yu smiled helplessly, "Still not telling me? No matter what, I’ll keep exploring your mysteries.

I’m a Spirit Tamer·Minor Success now, and I’ve also gained an ancient Spiritual Artifact. But it’s too weak and is resting in my Spirit Ruins Acupoint.

Actually, my Divine Spiritual Qi was a gift from that ancient artifact.

It had been buried deep underground for 600 or 700 years, and just to speak its heart, it paid any price, finally reemerging half a year ago.

Anyone who listens to its story gains a share of Spiritual Qi. You must have noticed, the girl beside me is also a Spirit Master. We’re both ones who heard the artifact’s tale."

Du Yu lifted his head, gazing up at the spiral Twin Trees, "Now, the story’s been told, and the artifact has chosen to make a contract with me.

I’m telling you this because I want you to know I’m working hard to grow stronger, and my team keeps growing. Maybe I’ve earned the right to hear your story. If you could just share a little about ’Breaking the Chains’..."

Du Yu’s words fell short.

The leaves before him flipped layer by layer, the blossoms unfurled, and a crystal-clear Twin Tree Fruit appeared before his eyes.

Du Yu stood there, mouth agape, feeling as if he were dreaming.

Lin Shiwei was just as stupefied, matching Du Yu’s expression perfectly!

Just minutes before, Du Yu’s words still echoed in her ears: A person needs to have dreams!

And a few minutes later, his dream just... came true—

"Mmm." Du Yu instinctively leaned back, but the crystal-clear little fruit was nonetheless pushed into his mouth by the Twin Tree branch.

Lin Shiwei’s eyes narrowed as she sensed something wrong!

Because that Twin Tree Fruit didn’t come from the Demon Breath Tree with its lush foliage!

It came from the withered Divine Tree!

The shriveled Divine Tree branch didn’t have a single leaf left, yet in a short span of time it had blossomed, borne fruit, and produced a single fruit?

Du Yu stared blankly at the branch before his face, while the sweet juice from the fruit spread in his mouth.

He’d given Little Fen Yang all kinds of Demon Plant Fruits to eat before—sour, astringent, bitter, and all sorts of tastes people were born to dislike, he’d tasted them all.

For the first time, he savored something truly sweet and delicious.

It was like a gift from the heavens, stunning his taste buds.

The little fruit looked like a peeled lychee, but tasted more like a pear.

So, are Twin Trees pear trees?

The tree covered in white blossoms and the cascading waterfall of flowers—were they all pear blossoms?

"Tap." As Du Yu slowly chewed and reluctantly swallowed, the withered branch gently pointed at the left side of his chest—his Spirit Ruins Acupoint.

Waves of Spiritual Qi came from the fruit in his belly, and, guided by the branch, surged endlessly into his Spirit Ruins Acupoint.

"Buzz!"

The Shadow Gu Tower trembled wildly, soaking up the nourishing, precious Spiritual Qi.

Lin Shiwei’s open mouth had yet to close. She stepped back several paces, and in her sight, Du Yu had become someone else entirely.

A woman cloaked in woolen coat and black mist.

Swathed in layers of black mist, Du Yu’s figure was lost, as if he were "nested," completely enveloped by the outline of the black-mist woman.

Only the Demon Soldier Linked Beads slung across his back cut through the swirling mist, the blades glinting naked outside.

"Ying?" Xiaoyan tilted her little head, blinking her golden-brown fox eyes in curiosity. Why has my Prince Du turned into a woman?

Let me have a look...

Xiaoyan whimpered and made to pounce, but Lin Shiwei quickly pressed a hand down on her head, afraid she’d disrupt Du Yu.

Slowly, the black-mist woman lifted her head, silently gazing at the towering trees.

Perhaps they’d never met before, or perhaps they’d always known each other.

Either way, this encounter spanned six or seven centuries.

In a daze, Du Yu understood the meaning from Shadow Gu Tower.

He raised his hand, and the black-misted hand that enveloped his own lifted as well, gently brushing the Twin Tree branch before his eyes with the back of his hand.

In an instant, the sound of rustling leaves surged!

Petals from the Twin Tree blossoms fluttered down in a rain, swirling lightly in the wind.

Petals like little raindrops poured down beneath the tree, and drifted lightly throughout the Twin Tree area.

The Demon Beasts playing and frolicking all around fell silent, gazing at the Mother of the Demon Spirit Realm, feeling her happiness.

On the hills, behind trees, underground—figures of Demon Spirit Soldiers in camouflage quietly appeared. They stared in shock, gazing at the petals raining from above.

In the Demon Tamers’ camp, everyone was dumbfounded, letting the white petals brush their faces—even forgetting to record the scene.

"Ying~ying!" Xiaoyan struggled slightly, peeking out through Lin Shiwei’s slender fingers with her amber fox eyes, looking at the world outside—she opened her mouth and finally caught a single falling petal in her teeth.

Du Yu: "You...have seen each other before?"

The black-mist woman could not speak, but through the Spirit Contract, Du Yu understood her: we have met.

Du Yu marveled inwardly: "Now that’s what I call a coincidence, running into your old friend in such a low-level Earth-level Demon Spirit Realm."

The black-mist woman (Du Yu) gently caressed the withered branch: Does Master believe there are countless Twin Trees in this world?

Du Yu was puzzled: "Aren’t there? Twin Trees are all over Great Xia, and even on other continents."

The black-mist woman gazed at the sea of falling white petals: No, there is only one Twin Tree in this world.