Li Younan's face went deathly pale, and he nearly collapsed to the ground. He was certain the Red Candle Fruit was doomed — it would inevitably fall victim to the chaos.
At that very moment, a bolt of lightning struck down. As sparks flickered, the energy pillar's power weakened significantly, yet it still wasn't completely neutralized. Under the horrified gazes of everyone present, the energy pillar crashed into the Red Candle Fruit, and in that instant, every soul among them nearly departed their bodies.
Swoosh...
The Red Candle Fruit, which had been untouched by the battle thus far, was sent hurtling straight out of the valley by the force of the impact.
To everyone's surprise, this seemingly fragile, thin-skinned, tender heaven-defying spiritual fruit emerged from the strike completely unscathed.
Everyone was overjoyed and immediately burst into motion, activating their movement techniques and lunging toward the valley's exit. A far more dangerous battle had begun.
Earlier, when the Red Candle Fruit had been at the bottom of the valley with its red energy radiating outward, the combatants had simply stood on the hilltops, each using their own methods to try to claim the fruit — they hadn't really engaged in direct confrontation yet. But now, with the Red Candle Fruit having left the valley, the situation had grown far more chaotic. With so many sect elites crashing into one another, a fierce clash was inevitable.
Over at Shadow Moon Hall, Wei Guchang cast an uncertain glance at Yang Kai, who still showed no signs of opening his eyes, much to his frustration.
Just as he was wondering whether to have Dong Xuan'er stay behind to stand guard, Yang Kai suddenly spoke: "The three of you, go ahead! Don't worry about me!"
Hearing this, Wei Guchang's expression brightened. With a slight nod, he shot off alongside Dong Xuan'er and Dai Yuan. As long as Yang Kai wasn't lost in that deep state of comprehension, there was no need to fear him being ambushed.
Only after the three had departed did Yang Kai finally snap his eyes open. His pupils gleamed brilliantly, radiating keen light, with the occasional flash of joy flickering through them.
He had finally clarified that vague notion of his in the final moments before the Red Candle Fruit ripened. Although he felt his control over his Saint Origin had improved considerably, now was not the time to verify it.
He turned his head and looked at the scene dozens of zhang away. Even someone like Yang Kai, who had weathered countless storms, couldn't help but furrow his brow at what he saw.
Several dozen elite warriors at the Saint King Stage Three were going all out — unleashing martial techniques and activating artifacts, clashing in scattered groups of three to five. Every one of them fought with ruthless precision, showing not a shred of mercy. Though the battle was spectacularly intense, each faction still had one or two people who kept part of their attention focused on the Red Candle Fruit.
It was truly strange. Ever since the Star Emperor Gate warrior had blasted the Red Candle Fruit out of the valley, it still hadn't dropped. Whenever it was about to descend toward a particular warrior, some subtle energy fluctuation would sweep it aside at precisely the right moment, keeping it floating back and forth through the air.
The cold and detached warrior from Star Emperor Gate was particularly impressive. Fang Tianzhong, Wei Guchang, and Qu Changfeng had formed a triangular formation, hemming him in completely and leaving him no room to interfere with the Red Candle Fruit. Yet this fellow displayed extraordinary prowess — fighting one against three without falling to any disadvantage. While this wasn't a battle to the death, being able to hold his own against three rising stars of that caliber single-handedly was nothing short of astonishing.
Yang Kai watched with secretly growing alarm, immediately understanding that this fellow from the Star Emperor Gate was absolutely not someone to be trifled with.
After watching for a short while, Yang Kai realized that barring any accidents, the ownership of this Red Candle Fruit would not be decided anytime soon. At least some people would have to die first, and only after everyone had unleashed their full strength would the dust begin to settle.
But who would ultimately claim it — that was truly impossible to say.
Yang Kai wasn't indifferent to the Red Candle Fruit. After all, this heaven-defying spiritual fruit was of superior Void King grade, something even he had never seen before. Using it for alchemy would be enormously beneficial for improving his refining skills, and once refined into a pill, it could help Return to Void Stage Three warriors break through their bottleneck and advance to the Void King Realm. In the right hands, a single spiritual fruit like this could produce at least four or five Void King Realm powerhouses.
But the battlefield was simply too chaotic.
Yang Kai estimated that even if he charged in, his chances of snatching the Red Candle Fruit were less than ten percent. It would be foolish to rush into the fray only to come away empty-handed — not worth the trouble at all.
Moreover, this thing was a hot potato. Apart from the dozens of elites who could actually hold onto it after seizing it, if the Red Candle Fruit ended up in the hands of someone without a powerful backer, all it would bring was disaster!
So he had long since made up his mind not to involve himself in the scramble for the Red Candle Fruit. It was precisely because of this decision to stay on the sidelines that he had remained behind to meditate and comprehend, showing not the slightest urge to join the fight.
However... just because he wasn't joining the scramble for the Red Candle Fruit didn't mean Yang Kai had no other plans.
He glanced at the valley, shrouded in swirling red energy, and a grin spread across his face — silent and enigmatic. While everyone's attention was fixated on the Red Candle Fruit, his figure swayed imperceptibly and slipped directly into the valley, vanishing into the crimson energy without a trace.
The Red Candle Fruit was indeed rare and precious, but the root that had nurtured it into existence was equally a rare treasure.
The root of the Red Candle Fruit was called the Red Candle Stand. If placed in a location rich with spiritual energy, it would absorb the ambient qi and eventually bear spiritual fruits similar to the Red Candle Fruit at its tip.