Promise!

Chapter 209, Thunder Tiger

Two figures swiftly passed through the towering mountains and dense forests, causing birds to take flight and vegetation to sway in their wake.

These were Shen Xianhong and Zhuang Jin. They had set off yesterday and had been traveling for a day. Following the map, they headed straight for their destination. There were many places along the way where there were no roads, such as thickets of thorns, streams and valleys, cliffs, etc., making it difficult to travel by boat or carriage. Only because they were innate martial artists could they get through with their lightness skills.

"The Mangcang Mountains are located in the west of the Great Qian Dynasty, stretching for an unknown distance. The Funiu Mountains, a strange place in the state capital, are also part of the Mangcang Mountains... The area is rich in resources, but the deeper you go, the more dangerous it becomes. Some of the strange places are inhabited by powerful beasts, which pose a great threat to us innate martial artists."

Despite carrying shackles made of refined gold, meteorite iron, and primordial magnetite—materials used to restrain the Wind Valley Thunder Ape—as well as various other items like Azure Essence Liquid, Shen Xianhong still had the energy to speak calmly while traveling at high speed.

"Deep mountains and vast marshes are the breeding grounds for dragons and snakes!"

Zhuang Jin nodded upon hearing this, and looking at the towering mountain in front of him, which seemed to pierce the clouds, he asked, "Patriarch, is that 'Ascending to the Clouds'?"

"That's right, the ancestor of my Shen family discovered the Yunyin Tea Tree right here."

Shen Xianhong sighed as he climbed up with Zhuang Jin. As they ascended, clouds gathered around them, but it seemed there was no end in sight.

Even at their speed, it took them nearly half an hour to reach the summit, where they came to an abrupt halt. A valley, several meters wide and of unknown length, stretched as far as the eye could see.

"How deep is this valley?"

"About a hundred zhang."

The two people's voices echoed into the valley, and this tiny disturbance of airflow was amplified infinitely when it reached the ground below, turning into a howling gale that caused some wisteria vines on the cliff to dance wildly like snakes.

"The Wind Valley Thunder Ape and the Vermilion Fruit Tree I mentioned are at the bottom of the valley below." To show his sincerity, Shen Xianhong took the lead and jumped down.

Zhuang Jin moved swiftly and 'jumped off the cliff'.

With their skills, as long as the cliff face isn't perfectly smooth at a 90-degree angle, there's something to use for leverage, or they have weapons to slow down, jumping off a cliff is nothing unusual for them.

As Shen Xianhong descended, he would sometimes grab a swaying vine for leverage, and sometimes use the Shadow Sword in his hand to embed itself into the cliff face to slow down. He moved swiftly and agilely.

Zhuang Jin would occasionally tap her toes on the protruding parts of the cliff face, moving left and right as if taking a leisurely stroll, only occasionally raising her hand to swish away the flying vines.

The two of them each displayed their unique abilities.

"Zhuang Sheng, what superb lightness skill!"

"This is all thanks to the innate martial skill 'Free and Easy Wind Control' given to me by the patriarch. It's also because the patriarch was carrying heavy shackles, Qingyuan Liquid and other things, otherwise it would have been difficult to do it so easily."

As they spoke, the two had already descended more than ten feet. Shen Xianhong reminded them, "Zhuang Sheng, be careful. We're about to reach the strange area I mentioned."

The next moment, Zhuang Jin felt that, as they reached a certain depth, the gale formed by the airflow disturbance above had reached its extreme here. It was extremely violent, and the howling air almost pierced the eardrums. Wind blades suddenly shot out from the side, and lightning bolts like tree branches would occasionally explode.

At the same time, he noticed that the innate true energy in his body had become extremely active and was slightly out of control. He had to constantly circulate his cultivation technique to resist the suppression.

'It seems there's a magnetic ore vein here, creating a special magnetic field. Only under the disturbance of strong winds and air currents can lightning and other phenomena be generated, thus affecting innate true energy.'

'Even someone as innate as me is like this. If someone below the innate level, whose internal energy hasn't yet transformed into innate true qi, even a fetal breathing martial artist, would have their internal energy disrupted and disordered here, enough to be fatal!'

Zhuang Jin thought to himself, no longer holding back his true energy. Despite the turbulent airflow, he forcibly condensed a three-foot-long wall of energy with his innate true energy to block the wind blades and lightning, and passed through this area.

After falling another several dozen feet, and only twenty or thirty feet from the bottom of the valley, it seemed to break through a certain limit. The wind blades, lightning, and rapid howling all disappeared at once, the airflow became stable, and the spiritual energy of heaven and earth became extremely abundant.

'Nature's creations are truly wondrous. The magnetic field above acts as a separator, centrifuging the primordial energy of heaven and earth to the valley below, and also serving as an isolation zone, shielding this area where the concentration of primordial energy far exceeds that of the outside world…'

Zhuang Jin vaguely understood why this valley, outside of the nine wonders, could provide a group of strange beasts for survival and even give birth to rare plants.

He looked down.

The area below was more open than I had imagined, with a sliver of sunlight shining down in the center, allowing me to see the outside world. The sides were dark, yet illuminated by a magnetic glow, and many fluorescent plants grew there.

Here, the earth and sky are rich in spiritual energy, the vegetation is lush, many fruit trees grow, and a stream flows gently, converging into a pool not far away.

About a mile directly below, there was a forest where Zhuang Jin saw the Wind Valley Thunder Apes that Shen Xianhong had mentioned. They looked somewhat like large macaques, but had a purple vertical stripe between their eyebrows, like an eye. They were busy at the moment, some picking fruit, others using stone containers to hold water...

After Zhuang Jin and Shen Xianhong landed, the Wind Valley Thunder Apes stopped what they were doing and howled as they came over.

Their cries, somewhere between "oh" and "howl," were followed by the throwing of stones, seemingly an attempt to drive the two away.

Upon seeing that Shen Xianhong and Zhuang Jin had not left but instead approached, the largest of them, who was also the leader of the group of Wind Valley Thunder Apes, roared, and a purple light shot out from the vertical stripe between his eyebrows. The other Wind Valley Thunder Apes followed suit.

hum!
Countless purple lightning bolts, under the strange magnetic field of this place, actually converged to form an electric net, which enveloped the two of them.

Faced with this move, even ten or eight Nascent Soul martial artists would be knocked to the ground by lightning. However, while the move had sufficient breadth, its strength was somewhat lacking. It was completely blocked by the three-foot-high qi wall formed by the two people's innate true qi.

As the two attacked, their immense, overwhelming presence pressed down on the group of Wind Valley Thunder Apes. They knew they had met their match, and after their leader let out another howl, they scattered and fled, each clinging to the vines as if on a swing.

Shen Xianhong moved swiftly, capturing the leader of the group of Wind Valley Thunder Apes first, and said at the same time, "Zhuang Sheng, please have mercy, just knock them out."

This place can be considered a part of the Shen family's heritage, but it can be harvested once every sixty years. If they were to completely wipe them out, it would be like using a net to kill off fishermen, leaving no fun for future generations.

"it is good!"

Zhuang Jin agreed and flashed away, knocking them unconscious with a single slap. Of these Wind Valley Thunder Apes, only one was at the Bone Forging Realm, a few at the Tendon Changing Realm, and the rest were mostly at the Flesh Refining and Skin Polishing Realms, so they were of little use to him and he wouldn't kill them.

Two innate martial artists faced off against a group of Wind Valley Thunder Apes who were not at the Five Viscera Realm. Naturally, it went very smoothly, with none of them escaping.

Afterwards, Shen Xianhong, carrying the leader of the Wind Valley Thunder Ape, led Zhuang Jin to a nearby grove of trees. In the center of the grove stood a vermilion fruit tree, laden with twenty or thirty fruits, each the size of a fist, radiating a brilliant light, and appearing quite extraordinary.

Next to it were smaller offshoots, which also bore fruit, but they lacked the luster of the longan; they were just quite bright in color and only the size of a longan.

"This one is the rare Zhuguo tree. The others are all divisions, and the small Zhuguo fruits they produce are much less effective, only slightly better than the fruits cultivated with Qingyuan liquid."

"Hasn't the head of the family considered improving the cultivation method, or transplanting it?"

"To be honest, my ancestors once thought of transplanting and cultivating the Vermilion Fruit Tree like the Cloud Hidden Tea Tree. However, it seems that the Vermilion Fruit Tree can only grow because of the special environment of this place... We tried to transplant and divide the trees first, but without exception, all of them failed. We dared not touch the main tree."

Zhuang Jin nodded in understanding: 'The Earth's veins, magnetic field, light, water source—this Vermilion Fruit Tree is the product of multiple factors combined, like a mountain of excrement piled up in code. The slightest alteration will cause it to collapse and die.'

The two then split up. Shen Xianhong put shackles on the leader of the Wind Valley Thunder Ape, then took out the Azure Essence Liquid mother liquor, added water to it, and prepared to ripen the Vermilion Fruit.

Zhuang Jin then went to the nearby cave to investigate.

In the innermost part of the main cave where the Wind Valley Thunder Ape lived, he discovered a carved stone pool containing golden-red wine that emitted a rich aroma. The pool was filled to the brim with three different pools.

"Could this be... the legendary monkey wine?!"

Zhuang Jin dipped her finger in the mixture and tasted it.

It wasn't that he was careless, but there were remnants of the small vermilion fruit and footprints of the Wind Valley Thunder Ape nearby. Given the straightforward nature of these strange beasts, they wouldn't poison him.

Even if it were poisonous or intoxicating, discussing effects without considering dosage is meaningless. Given his innate martial artist's resistance, this small amount wouldn't have any effect.

"Um?!"

After tasting it, Zhuang Jin's expression changed slightly: "It is indeed a good wine. For wine lovers, it is priceless. The effects are also quite good. It can be helpful to martial artists who have reached the Meridian Opening stage or even the Fetal Breathing stage... I can take some back for Yunniang and the others to try!"

……

When Zhuang Jin came out, he saw that Shen Xianhong had already put shackles on the leader of the Wind Valley Thunder Ape and had prepared the Azure Essence Liquid, which was being used to irrigate and ripen the Vermilion Fruit.

"This Vermilion Fruit will probably take another month to mature. I'm currently cultivating it with Azure Essence Liquid, so it will only take half an hour."

"Didn't they say that the cultivation of Black Jade Grass and its variants with Qingyuan Liquid takes one day to one month? Shouldn't one month normally take one day?"

"Different."

Shen Xianhong explained, "One day and one month is to increase the age of the tree. This Vermilion Fruit Tree is already over a hundred years old, so it is difficult to increase its age. Therefore, after absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth from the Azure Essence Liquid, it will be used to ripen the fruit."

This method does cause some damage to the Zhuguo tree, but since it only happens once every sixty years, this damage is enough for it to recover on its own during the long intervals in between.

"I see." Zhuang Jin nodded slightly and told him about the monkey wine they found in the cave.

"Our ancestors had encountered monkey wine before, but the most they ever had was only about half a pool. This time there are three pools?"

Shen Xianhong went over to look in surprise. After confirming the situation, his expression was not joyful, but rather somewhat solemn: "Zhuang Sheng doesn't know that the Wind Valley Thunder Apes are somewhat lazy. When I first came here, I saw them working so diligently and busily, and I thought it was because they didn't have enough food. But I didn't expect them to have accumulated so much monkey wine... This is a bit of a problem."

"Does the patriarch mean that powerful beasts might be forcing them to defy their nature and become diligent in brewing monkey wine?"

“That’s right, but Zhuang Sheng doesn’t need to worry too much. Shallow waters can’t raise dragons. The spiritual energy here is much richer than outside, but it’s still not as good as the inner perimeter of the Nine Wonders. It can’t raise beasts that are above the Innate True Qi Realm for us martial artists. Even beasts that are above the second or third level of the Innate True Qi Realm will be difficult to raise.”

Even so, after discussing it, the two decided to speed things up. Of course, they didn't miss out on the monkey wine either, filling all the gourds and water bags they carried with them.

Then, Shen Xianhong stared at Zhu Guo and the leader of the Wind Valley Thunder Ape.

Zhuang Jin then went to a high place about a mile away to observe and keep watch, guarding against any powerful beasts that might appear. This was also to show his sincerity and demonstrate that he had no interest in the Vermilion Fruit.

……

As time passed, half an hour quickly went by, and the vermilion fruit was about to ripen.

The primordial energy of heaven and earth surged and converged, pouring out like water from a funnel. On the truly wondrous Vermilion Fruit Tree, each fruit shone brightly, emitting a strange fragrance. However, it seemed that the environment was insufficient to support the ripening of all the fruits, so the limited energy could only be concentrated on the top one, and the other fruits withered one after another.

'There are twenty-eight fruits on that Vermilion Fruit tree. One fruit withers approximately every twenty breaths. It's estimated that the true Vermilion Fruit will ripen in about the time it takes to drink a cup of tea. Hopefully, nothing unexpected will happen during this period.'

Just as this thought flashed through Zhuang Jin's mind, she seemed to realize something and suddenly looked up.

In mid-air, a tiger-shaped beast swooped down. It was over ten feet long, its body was golden with purple lightning patterns, and there were faint arcs of electricity around it. It also had a pair of blue wings on its back, surrounded by swirling winds.

"This is... a Windwing Thunder Tiger?!"

Shen Xianhong's expression changed instantly upon sensing this aura.

Wind-Winged Thunder Tiger: A mythical tiger-type beast with wind and thunder attributes. As the saying goes, "Clouds follow the dragon, wind follows the tiger." This beast is accompanied by wind and thunder when it goes out. It ranks 198th on the list of strange beasts of heaven and earth.

Furthermore, this Windwing Thunder Tiger has clearly entered the Five Organs Realm. Judging from its aura, it has probably already completed the tempering of one organ and begun to temper the second organ, which is equivalent to the second level of the Innate True Qi Realm of a martial artist - Qi-driven Thunder Sound!
At this moment, Shen Xianhong and Zhuang Jin both understood why the Wind Valley Thunder Apes, who were naturally lazy, were diligently brewing monkey wine. It was probably because during this sixty-year period, a Wind Winged Thunder Tiger arrived, subdued the Wind Valley Thunder Apes, and acted as their accomplice, thus coercing them with its power.

Swish!
At this moment, Shen Xianhong used his innate movement technique "Wind and Thunder Flash" without hesitation, and combined it with the Wind and Thunder Double Kill of his innate sword technique "Wind and Thunder Quick Sword". With the two combined, he instantly created three light and shadow clones.

However, instead of attacking, they retreated to avoid it.

"Roar!"

The Windwing Thunder Tiger had long considered the Vermilion Fruit Tree and its fruits as its own. Today, two two-legged beasts broke in and tried to steal them. Fortunately, it sensed the presence and came. Now, it roared angrily, and wind and thunder gathered above its head, spinning like a nebula, and a string of ball lightning flew out.

The ball of lightning could track the airflow and flash away, shattering Shen Xianhong's deceptively realistic light and shadow clones, finding his true form and striking him, causing him to be paralyzed and stiffened for a moment.

—In the universe, everything has its counterpart, both generating and restraining. The Shen family's "Wind and Thunder Shock Technique" is of the wind and thunder attributes, which will be restrained by the wood attribute. However, there is another situation: it can be restrained by a superior entity of the same attribute. Both being of the wind and thunder attributes, the Wind-Winged Thunder Tiger is even stronger than Shen Xianhong, making it a complete counter!
In the instant Shen Xianhong was paralyzed, the Windwing Thunder Tiger roared again, its entire body burning with purplish-blue strange power, and it transformed into a tiger shadow as it pounced down.

The moment Shen Xianhong came to his senses, the tiger shadow formed by the strange power was already in front of him. He only had time to channel his true energy into the Zhaoying Sword in his hand and raise the sword to block.

The sword instantly twisted, then the tiger shadow exploded, tearing his clothes and revealing the Heavenly-grade beast hide armor he was wearing underneath. Even after being reduced, the remaining power still made his face turn pale, and he spat out a mouthful of blood.

—The ancestors of the Shen family killed the Wind Valley Thunder Ape at the Five Viscera Realm and obtained beast cores, beast hides and so on. Naturally, the Shen family has Heaven-level exotic beast hide armor.

"Roar!"

Immediately following behind, the Windwing Thunder Tiger flapped its wings and leaped forward, its claws flashing with strange power. The sharp aura emanating from them caused a faint stinging sensation on the skin even from several feet away.

'I'm doomed!' Shen Xianhong felt numb all over after the explosion, and for a moment he couldn't even gather his true energy. A sense of despair rose in his heart.

"Master, do not panic!"

But at that very moment, a sword flashed coldly, its sword energy crisscrossing like thunder, rushing towards them.

……

(End of this chapter)