Chapter 261: Glimmering Cloud Fruit

“It seems we need to reassess the threat level of this larger one,” Yun Huizhou said.

The monster’s nest was massive, considerably larger than a two-meter-wide bed from the modern world. Lian Li had already stepped inside the nest.

Just as Yun Huizhou was about to sheathe his blade, Lian Li’s voice rang out again: “Yun Huizhou, look! There’s something in its nest. They look like glowing apricots.”

“Apricots?” Yun Huizhou asked doubtfully.

“No!” Lian Li said. “The point is that they glow. Didn’t we see many glowing plants on the stone walls along the way? They all had leaves but no flowers or fruit. Do you think it’s possible that this big monster picked all the fruit?”

Lian Li began rummaging through the monster’s nest with his whip even more vigorously. Soon, he had turned the nest—which was roughly the size of a small room—completely upside down.

“Look, there are some pits over here; the monster must have eaten those.” He used his whip to sweep the pits together, then pointed at the glowing apricots that were still intact. “These are the ones it hasn’t eaten yet. They look quite fresh, probably picked just a few days ago, and it hasn’t had the chance to eat them yet.”

Yun Huizhou walked inward as he spoke, “This monster eats fruit? But looking at the teeth of the one in the water, it doesn’t look like a fruit-eater at all.”

Lian Li replied, “Maybe it’s an omnivore? There’s no rule saying meat-eaters can’t eat fruit. Besides, this monster picked the plants clean, not leaving a single one behind. Maybe they have some special effect?”

Yun Huizhou understood Lian Li’s implication now. Lian Li suspected there were benefits to eating these fruits, which was why the large monster had gathered them all back to its nest.

He thought for a moment before speaking cautiously, “After all, we don’t know what kind of creature this monster is. What it can eat, a human might not be able to. What benefits it, might not benefit a human.”

As he finished speaking, he happened to reach Lian Li’s side and saw the so-called “glowing apricots” Lian Li was pointing at.

“Glimmering Haze Fruit!?” Yun Huizhou cried out in shock.

It was rare to see him lose his composure like this. Lian Li immediately asked, “You recognize this fruit?”

Yun Huizhou’s expression was uncertain as he said, “Let me take a closer look.”

He then crouched down to carefully identify the glowing apricots.

Seeing his serious and solemn demeanor, Lian Li stood quietly to the side and waited.

After a long while, Yun Huizhou finally spoke: “It is indeed the Glimmering Haze Fruit.”

He turned his head to look at the passage they had come through and continued, “It seems those plants back there—the ones that can’t see the light but glow on their own—are Glimmering Haze Vines.”

Seeing that he had confirmed it, Lian Li asked, “So, what is this Glimmering Haze Fruit?”

Yun Huizhou looked at him and said, “For anyone below Super First-class, one fruit grants one year’s worth of internal power.”

Lian Li: “Holy crap! That’s incredible! Has my ‘Golden Finger’ finally arrived?”

Yun Huizhou knew what Lian Li meant by “Golden Finger,” as it was something Lian Li had written about in his storybooks.

At this moment, looking at these eight Glimmering Haze Fruits, he felt happy for Lian Li as well.

Furthermore, while it was said that one fruit granted one year of internal power, that “one year” was based on the consumer’s own natural talent.

A person with high talent would naturally gain more internal power in a year than someone with poor talent.

The Glimmering Haze Fruit granted exactly the amount of internal power you would normally grow in a year under standard conditions.

In other words, the better one’s talent, the better the effect of consuming it.

Yun Huizhou knew in his heart that while Lian Li’s talent might not be considered the best compared to others on Drunken Dream Island, it was top-tier within the wider martial world. One could even call him a martial arts prodigy.

Eight years of internal power might not result in a massive leap for some, but for Lian Li, the progress would be very obvious.

And this kid really did have some luck on his side; he had just picked up eight fruits for free that would be impossible to buy for ten thousand gold pieces on the outside.

Drunken Dream Island used to have one, but by the time they obtained it, the elders were already nearing the Transcendent realm, so it was of little use to them and had been kept in storage.

It wasn’t until Yun Huizhou reached Second-class that his Grandmaster gave the fruit directly to him.

The benefits that single Glimmering Haze Fruit brought him were immense. It was the reason why, despite being the same age as the young Zhao Honglan and Qu Tingquan, his internal power was deeper and he had entered the First-class rank a step earlier.

In martial arts, especially in the early stages when the foundation is solid, being one step ahead means being ahead at every subsequent step.

Yun Huizhou gathered all the fruits and said to Lian Li, “After you eat these eight and practice a bit, you might soon squeeze into the First-class rank.”

Once he squeezed into the First-class rank, this kid could be considered a martial arts master in the world.

Lian Li was also full of excitement. First-class!

As long as he used these eight fruits, he could reach the level Yun Huizhou was at when he first transmigrated into this world.

Although he knew in his heart that there were differences even between those in the First-class rank.

His version of First-class would certainly not be able to beat Yun Huizhou’s version.

After all, only his internal power would increase; his other attributes wouldn’t.

But that wasn’t a big problem. Once the internal power was up, he could practice techniques and accumulate experience.

Sooner or later, he would become stronger and stronger.

Lian Li cupped his face with both hands and hopped in place twice. After forcing his excitement down, he suddenly realized he couldn’t keep it all for himself.

With such good stuff, he definitely had to give half to Yun Huizhou.

Thus, he immediately said, “Let’s go halves. You gain four years, and I gain four years. That way, you’ll be four years closer to the Transcendent realm.”

Seeing that Lian Li was still thinking of him at a time like this, willing to share half of such a treasure, Yun Huizhou felt his heart soften.

However, he shook his head and said, “Did you forget what I said earlier? It only grants one year per fruit for those below Super First-class. This is of little use to me now; one fruit wouldn’t even increase my cultivation by a month.”

Lian Li didn’t accept this explanation: “It still increases it. Even a mosquito is still meat.”

Yun Huizhou felt somewhat helpless; having a lover who cared too much for him was also a kind of trouble.

Though that thought flashed through his mind, Yun Huizhou still didn’t intend to take the Glimmering Haze Fruits.

He tightened the opening of the bag and said, “What’s important now is for your martial arts to improve quickly. The effect is far too poor if I use them, and besides, this is your luck, isn’t it?”

Lian Li glared at him. “What do you mean ‘my luck’? We found this together.”

Yun Huizhou said, “I happened to break through to Super First-class just before we came out, which is exactly the stage where the Glimmering Haze Fruit becomes useless to me. And yet, it is precisely at this time that we discovered a treasure that can quickly bring you to the First-class rank. If that isn’t your luck, what is? If you ask me, these eight fruits were meant to be yours.”