Li Xiaofei charged into the dense forest and immediately felt the pressure lighten.
They didn’t chase after me? thought Li Xiaofei as he turned his head to look.
He saw the group of crimson giant Ruo and the second-tier evolved Ruo halting neatly outside the forest, just like a tide abruptly blocked by a dam.
Huh? They don’t dare to come in?
Li Xiaofei instantly reacted. Then, a wave of chilling fear swept through him.
What kind of terrifying existence is hiding in a place where even the crimson giant Ruo doesn’t dare to step into?
He turned his head again to glance deeper into the dense woods, and the previously vibrant, lush scenery suddenly felt eerie and menacing. The swaying branches and leaves seemed like the outstretched, wavering claws of a demon.
The coiled roots twisting through the soil resembled demonic tentacles rising from the depths of hell.
"It's peach trees," Luo Ge suddenly said.
Li Xiaofei carefully observed the surrounding trees.
Indeed. They were all peach trees. Some were only one or two meters tall, others soared over ten meters, and some even stretched hundreds of meters into the sky... The forest was densely packed with peach trees, one after another. Li Xiaofei’s mind raced, and then a single word surfaced in his thoughts—
Heaven, peach trees, peach gardens. There was only one possibility that matched these traits: The Peach Garden.
Could it be that in my desperate flight for survival, I had stumbled into the Queen Mother of the West’s legendary Peach Garden?
Images of the The Peach Garden immediately surfaced in his mind—
There are three thousand six hundred trees, the first one thousand two hundred bloom with small flowers and fruits, ripening once every three thousand years. Eating them allows one to achieve immortality and strengthen the body. The middle one thousand two hundred bear sweet fruits, ripening once every six thousand years. Eating them enables one to ascend into the clouds and attain eternal youth. The final one thousand two hundred have purple-streaked pits, ripening once every nine thousand years. Eating them grants a lifespan equal to heaven and earth, enduring alongside the sun and moon.
It was the treasure coveted by all gods and immortals in myth and legend. Li Xiaofei, almost instinctively, began searching the peach trees. However, he soon felt a twinge of disappointment. There wasn’t a single ripe peach hanging from any branch.
In fact, there were no peaches at all. There were only leaves and branches. There wasn’t even a single peach blossom, not even a budding flower. It seemed he had arrived outside both the blooming and fruit-bearing seasons.
Still, to his recollection, there had never been any mention of terrifying monsters lurking within The Peach Garden.
If there was anything at all... Well, perhaps the Great Sage, Sun Wukong? Surely not.
Li Xiaofei startled himself with the sudden, ridiculous thought.
Could Sun Wukong really be here?
Turning the idea over and over in his mind, Li Xiaofei eventually decided to venture deeper into The Peach Garden. Outside the grove, the Ruo flock had grown even larger, stretching endlessly in every direction. Retreating from the peach garden was no longer an option. ɴᴇᴡ ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀs ᴀʀᴇ ᴘᴜʙʟɪsʜᴇᴅ ᴏɴ 𝖓𝖔𝖛𝖊𝖑~𝖋𝖎𝖗𝖾~𝖓𝖊𝖙
"Let's move." Li Xiaofei took the lead and said, "Be careful. Don’t let your guard down."
Luo Ge and the Black Emperor followed closely behind.
In the distance, the crimson giant Ruo's massive vertical pupils flickered with a mix of shock, rage, and hesitation as it watched Li Xiaofei and his companions disappear into the depths of the peach garden.
In the end, it seemed to make a decision. It unleashed a thunderous roar, and the Ruo flock erupted in a deafening wave of screeches before surging toward the peach forest like a breached flood.
From above, a black tide of malevolence surged madly toward the tranquil green sea. The visual impact of the scene was overwhelming.
As the vanguard of several hundred Ruos entered within a hundred meters of the dense woods, a terrifying change suddenly unfolded.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
The leaves hanging from the branches suddenly detached on their own, drifting slowly in the wind. Halfway through their descent, they abruptly transformed into indestructible blades, accelerating viciously as they shot toward the Ruo swarm.
Wherever they passed, the Ruos, whether low-tier or second-tier evolved forms with hardened exoskeletons, seemed as fragile as paper. In an instant, heads and bodies were severed.
The soft, swaying branches that had seemed harmless moments before suddenly writhed like enraged green pythons. They lashed out, entwining the fallen Ruo corpses and dragging them rapidly into the earth.
In the blink of an eye, thousands of Ruos were slaughtered at the outskirts of the peach garden. The wind blew gently. The leaves rustled softly. But there was not even the slightest trace of blood left on the ground. Even the heavy stench of blood in the air vanished without a trace. It was as if nothing had ever happened.
In the distance, the crimson giant Ruo wore a look of shocked fury and complex emotion in its eyes. It hesitated once more, unwilling to step into the peach garden.
"It doesn't seem particularly dangerous," Li Xiaofei murmured.
He and the others continued moving through the peach garden, but they encountered no sudden changes or hidden threats. There were no ferocious beasts lurking among the trees, nor any carnivorous plants or hidden traps.
The peach trees gave off a faint, refreshing fragrance of wood and leaves. After breathing it in for some time, it even created a calming, ethereal sensation, as if one's spirit could drift away into bliss.
Still, Li Xiaofei did not dare to lower his guard. The most terrifying dangers often hid within the most serene and comfortable settings. They continued deeper into the grove for another half hour. The peach trees they passed grew taller and older with every step. By the end, Li Xiaofei and the others were walking atop the exposed roots and thick branches of the trees like they were wide highways.
After a while, Li Xiaofei suddenly halted. He made a cautious hand gesture, then pointed slightly to the right. Luo Ge and the others followed his finger.
They spotted an open clearing about a hundred meters away through the layers of leaves and branches. The ground was lush with tender green grass, like a soft carpet laid over the earth, vibrant and beautiful.
At the center of the clearing stood a peach tree, about three or four meters tall. The tree was in full bloom, with countless delicate peach blossoms. Petals floated gently in the wind, gathering into a soft pink blanket beneath and behind the tree, forming a natural, artistic pattern against the fresh green grass. It was wild and breathtakingly beautiful.
Yet none of this was the most critical detail. The key point was that one of the peach tree's outward-reaching branches had a simple, solitary swing. A swing. It was undeniable evidence of someone's presence.
Just as Li Xiaofei and the others stood frozen in cautious bewilderment, a solitary figure appeared in the distance. It was a young girl dressed in a white gauze palace gown. She walked barefoot across the petal-strewn ground, her snowy white feet treading lightly over the soft pink blanket of fallen blossoms as she approached from the far side of the clearing.
Her long black hair cascaded down almost to her ankles. She seemed to be humming a song, hopping lightly like a cheerful little rabbit as she made her way to the peach tree and sat down on the swing, starting to sway back and forth. The gentle breeze teased her flowing hair, as though playful sprites were dancing with her.
Li Xiaofei and his companions held their breath, suppressing every trace of their presence, not daring to make even the slightest sound. Peach trees, falling leaves, lush grass, drifting petals, a swing, and a beautiful barefoot girl in a white dress...
The scene before them was gentle and dreamlike, as if it were a carefully chosen live wallpaper. Li Xiaofei continuously probed with his senses, yet he could not detect even the faintest hint of danger. The girl truly seemed no different from an ordinary person.
Just then, a mischievous gust of wind swept through, lifting the girl's long hair into the air. Slowly, she turned her head, revealing a face as flawless and radiant as carved jade.
The moment Li Xiaofei laid eyes on that face, it felt as though a bolt of lightning had struck him. He stood frozen where he was, the very act of breathing slipping from his mind.
He recalled the old verse, A thousand times I searched for her in the crowd. Suddenly, I turned, and there she was, standing quietly where the lights were dim.