Chapter 38: A Fight Over Persimmons Shouldn’t End Like This

At the heart of the secret realm, beneath the towering tree.

Luo Jiutian looked around at the scene, his face full of question marks.

The Xiao family and the Li family were sprawled neatly on the ground.
Some lay face down, some face up, while a few twitched weakly in their limbs.

“What happened here?” Luo Jiutian asked in confusion.

Su Wan’er answered matter-of-factly, “When I was looking for you earlier, I just happened to run into them. So I casually asked for directions.”

Luo Jiutian: “……”

He fell silent for a moment and more or less guessed the truth.
Most likely, Su Wan’er hadn’t bothered to restrain her Nascent Soul aura, and these people had been scared half to death on the spot.

Not far away, Xiao Yan struggled to lift his head.
When he saw the familiar face of Luo Jiutian, his eyes lit up.
He was just about to call out when, from the corner of his eye, he noticed Su Wan’er standing beside him.
Instantly, his head flopped to the side, and he slipped into a high-quality sleep.

On the other side, Li Daming didn’t so much as twitch.
Inwardly, he cursed, ‘Crazy woman,’ while working hard to steady his breathing, hoping to shrink his presence as much as possible.

Su Wan’er gave a little huff, tugging at Luo Jiutian’s sleeve.
“Jiutian-ge, ignore them. Let’s go get the persimmons.”

Luo Jiutian nodded and followed her toward the great tree.

The tree was colossal.
Its trunk was thick, its branches stretched wide, and its canopy blotted out the sky.

Clusters of fruit hung among the branches.
Each one was plump and rosy, round like an apple, but with a faint golden sheen across its skin.

Luo Jiutian leapt up, plucking them one by one.
Before long, he landed back on the ground with his arms full—a total of ten Essence-Refining Persimmons.

【Ding! The host has successfully snatched the fated opportunity from the Child of Destiny ‘Luo Chen.’ Luck value converting automatically…】

【Current countdown to Blue Star’s return: 282 years.】

【9 years deducted. Remaining time: 276 years.】

Su Wan’er’s eyes sparkled as she stared at the persimmons in his arms.
She said nothing.

Seeing this, Luo Jiutian casually took one out and handed it to her.

“Thank you, Jiutian-ge!”

Su Wan’er immediately accepted it, cupping it carefully in her hands as though it were some priceless treasure.
Her face bloomed into a bright smile.

Then she skipped away happily, bouncing as she went.
Every few steps, she even turned back to wave at him.

Watching her beam with pride, Luo Jiutian shook his head, chuckling helplessly as he followed.
“Such a child who never grows up.”

At that moment, a slightly hesitant voice echoed in his mind.

“Brat.”

Luo Jiutian paused, then quickly replied via transmission, “What is it, Senior?”

The next instant, the figure of the White Tiger Profound Lord emerged from his ring.

She lowered her gaze to the persimmons in his arms.
After a moment of silence, her tone softened as she spoke:

“Those persimmons… could you spare me one?”

The words sounded awkward even to herself.

She had once promised that if Luo Jiutian ever faced danger, she would lend a hand.
Yet, inside that hidden chamber of the ruins, she had not only failed to help, she had nearly dragged him down with her.
If not for Su Wan’er’s timely arrival, he might already have been dead.

She had always held herself in lofty regard, never bowing her head to anyone.
But this time, having broken her own promise, and now shamelessly asking him for something… it left her deeply ashamed.

“Of course.” Luo Jiutian didn’t hesitate, sending back a calm reply. “I already said I’d help Senior gather what you need to rebuild your body.”

The White Tiger Profound Lord’s heart jolted.
She lifted her gaze to meet his.

Staring at him with a complicated expression, she spoke softly, “This fruit… it isn’t necessary to reconstruct my body. It only improves the quality of the body I’ll form in the future.”

She paused, averting her eyes.
“If you’re unwilling, it doesn’t matter. I won’t force you.”

Luo Jiutian considered briefly, then nodded.
“Take it.”

The White Tiger Profound Lord blinked faintly in surprise.
Then, lowering her gaze, she murmured, “If you want any condition, just speak it.”

“No need,” Luo Jiutian replied without hesitation.
“Consider it a gift from me.”

Again, she froze slightly, as if she hadn’t expected such words.

“But…”

Luo Jiutian waved a hand, cutting her off.
“Enough. I said you can have it. Why all the fuss? It’s not like I only have one.”

Hearing this, the White Tiger Profound Lord stared blankly at him.

She had only asked tentatively, braced for refusal, hoping it wouldn’t be too humiliating.
Yet he had so easily agreed, as though handing her just an ordinary piece of fruit.

She had lived far too long, seen too much of people currying favor or scheming for advantage.
She was used to being calculated against.

That was why this kind of ‘casual kindness’—without expectation, without strings—was something she least knew how to handle.

And it came, of all people, from Luo Jiutian, someone she had barely just come to know.

At this moment, it felt as though something in her heart quietly shifted.

“…Thank you.”

Her head bowed, her expression hidden.
Her voice, however, carried less of its usual aloofness, tinged instead with a rare trace of gentleness.

“Senior… are you alright?”

Luo Jiutian studied her suspiciously.
Something about this felt off.

His reasoning was simple enough.
Giving her a persimmon meant she’d owe him more responsibility.
When the time came, she’d act quicker, sharper, harder.

But this… emotional reaction of hers?
Was it really worth getting that moved over?

Perhaps sensing his gaze, the White Tiger Profound Lord quickly turned her head away.
“Ahem. I… suddenly feel my aura is unstable. I must return to meditate.”

Without waiting for his reply, her figure flickered and vanished back into the ring.

Luo Jiutian: “……”

That excuse was paper-thin.

He muttered inwardly but didn’t dwell on it, continuing after Su Wan’er as they left the center of the secret realm.

Once the two of them had completely departed, the members of the Li and Xiao families, who had been sprawled on the ground, suddenly rose as one, as though they had rehearsed it.

“Phew… finally gone.” Xiao Yan was the first to sit up, stretching lazily.
“After fighting you Li lot for so long, what’s the result? The fruit went to someone else.”

Li Daming got to his feet too, patting the dust from his clothes.
“They weren’t peaches, they were persimmons.”

“Who cares what they were?” Xiao Yan rolled his eyes.
“They’re not ours, so it’s a loss no matter what.”

He sighed, shaking his head.
“If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve stuck with my plan. Li-brother, if you’d agreed to a nine-to-one split earlier, we’d have taken the fruit and left ages ago. None of this mess would’ve happened.”

Li Daming sneered, folding his arms.
“Serves you right. Your Xiao family was too greedy. If I had to choose again, I’d still make the same decision.”

“Well, aren’t you stubborn.” Xiao Yan clicked his tongue.
“Losing out and still acting tough.”

Li Daming didn’t bother replying.
He just shot him a glance, eyes already showing irritation.

After a brief silence, the two families looked at each other, then turned away in mutual disdain.

“Let’s go.” Xiao Yan waved a hand.

“Move out,” Li Daming echoed to his own people.

Soon, the two groups left the heart of the secret realm, heading their separate ways.

Only the stripped-bare giant tree remained, standing forlornly alone.

One could only wonder—when a certain someone arrived here later, how would he feel?

Heh heh.