Chapter 36 The Fruit That Is Not Edible

The last of the vinebformed upper body dissolved back into reeds and root fibers. Whatever faint warmth had colored the swamp’s voice vanished with it, leaving only the usual damp pressure and the low, restless hum of disordered qi.

Lin Feng stayed crouched for several long breaths, listening. Only after making sure that nothing is lurking nearby that he let himself sit fully against a thick, moss dlick root.The earlier fight had left bruises that would flower into impressive colors by morning. He forced his breathing into a steady cycle and began pulling the local qi into his meridians.

It came in uneven surges but wild, like trying to drink from a bucket while someone kept kicking it. Still, the residual hostility left by the beast seemed to smooth the edges slightly.

Interesting.

Hunger arrived next once the adrenaline went down. Whatever rations he had got ruined during earlier fight against the Orchid sect disciples. The swamp offered no convenient spirit beast carcasses that looked safe to cook, and starting a fire felt like asking for trouble. He started scanning his surroundings and eventually his eyes settled on a low cluster of pale blue fruits hanging from a crooked vine.

"Looks edible," he muttered. "Kinda smell great as well."

He plucked one, turned it over, and bit in.

It was seet, cool and mildly numbing on the tongue. He waited ten second and made sure nothing exploded. He ate a second one out of stubborn optimism.

The reaction arrived a bit later. First his lips went numb, then his tongue thickened. A soft floral musk began seeping from his skin. For half a second Elder Mo’s face appeared in the mist, sneering at him. Lin Feng blinked hard and the face disappeared.

He tried to stand but his knees slipped on the mud and lost his footing. He ended up half sitting, half sprawled, staring at the fruit skins with profound betrayal.

The system, of course, chose that moment to update.

[ Minor toxin detected ]

[ Rage Points unaffected. ]

"Very helpful," Lin Feng croaked.

Voices drifted through the fog before he could decide whether to crawl away or simply just lay there and accept his fate.

"...token still shows movement. But barely."

"Probably a beast already dragged him under. You know males never last long in here."

"He wasn’t that bad when we fought earlier, i would even say he had some skills."

"Doesn’t matter. He doesn’t have our protections. Without it everything in here will treat him as a threat only."

Lin Feng froze. The floral musk chose that exact moment to intensify. Three Orchid Veil disciples emerged from the mist. One of them was the taller blonde chick he fought earlier and the second one held a spear similar to her. The third was broader and muscular, and had her sleeves rolled up despite the damp. She looked fully capable of beating the shit out of someone even without a weapon or even qi. They stopped dead when they saw him.

The silence lasted for some moments. Then the muscular one let out a disbelieving snort. And the other followed her, laughing at him.

"Hahahahaha!"

"And we thought a beast got him," the blonde chick said.

"No," the muscular one replied, eyeing the fruit skins. "He ate Azure Mist Fruit. Even the children in the outer valley know not to touch those until after the second frost."

Lin Feng’s face heated under the residual numbness.

"This is really sweet, you girls need some?" he managed. The swollen tongue turned the words into a mumble.

The muscular disciple cracked her knuckles once. "You know, i could solve your problem myself if the token allowed it. One good squeeze and it’ll be over."

Lin Feng looked her up and down as best he could while the world still tilted. "Please. I’d hate for you to pull a muscle on such a skinny target like me. At least wait until I can stand up straight. Fairness is important in crushing."

The muscular disciple snorted again, but he felt he saw something like amusement in her eyes for a moment.

The blonde chick stepped closer, checking the watch token from a respectful distance. "If you can’t handle the outer channels without poisoning yourself on the most obvious fruit in the swamp, you won’t survive long enough for the deeper zones. "

"What protections do you have that I don’t?" Lin Feng asked, genuine curiosity cutting through the embarrassment. "You mentioned them twice. I’m taking notes."

Her expression cooled further. "Not your concern. The token can be revoked the moment you cause any trouble. Remember that."

He opened his mouth to press. She cut him off.

"We’re not here to guide you, feed you, or explain the swamp’s layers. Stay in the permitted channels and stay alive if you can, cause i would hate to drag a corpse off here. That is the full extent of our interest."

Lin Feng glanced past them into the fog. "Where are you heading?"

"Nowhere you’re invited."

They turned as one and continued along their route, spears resting easily on shoulders. The muscular one looked back once and added, almost cheerfully, "Try not to eat the glowing ones next time. Oh or the ones that whisper. Or anything that looks sweet hahahaha!"

Then they were gone into the mist. Lin Feng sat in the mud for a long moment, floral and humiliated.

"Arrogant," he muttered. " Completely lacking in basic hospitality." He paused, then sighed. "Still better faces than Zhao Feng’s or Elder Mo’s. I’d rather get mocked by beautiful chicks than those old wrinkled guys."

Even when he was saying this, the curiosity persisted. "Where did they event enter from, i can’t even understand where the exist is anymore. Maybe they brought some food with them." He muttered.

He waited until their voices faded to a distant murmur, then pushed himself upright. Using the upgraded Fleet Footed Dash he started tailing them. He used short slips, low profile and using every root and fog bank for cover. He kept the distance careful as hetting spotted now would only add new trouble.

The disciples moved with easy familiarity. They reached a section of dense vine wall that looked identical to every other wall in this cursed place. One of them formed a quick seal with her free hand while another pressed a small jade slip against the air. A narrow corridor of firmer ground and thinner mist opened for the space of a few breaths. They stepped through. The vines closed behind them as if it had never parted. Lin Feng approached the same spot and the watch token on his wrist flared hot.

[Boundary restriction approaching]

[Further advance will register as unauthorized entry]

[Consequence: expulsion or punitive seal]

He stopped one step short of the invisible line with his hand hovered halfway raised. The temptation sat heavy in his chest. Curiosity, spite, and the simple desire to know what they had that he didn’t. In the end he lowered the hand.

"Not yet," he told to himself.

"Getting kicked out on the first day means I’ll never get another chance to enter, which means i can’t advance my qi in time and subsequently getting kicked out of flowing wind sect as well. I’ll wait for now. "

He turned away and chose a different direction, deliberately seeking higher ground. Open water and deep pools could wait until his dignity recovered. Eventually he found a raised platform of interwoven roots, relatively dry and stable. He climbed up, sat cross legged, and forced another careful cycle of qi.

His own foundation felt thin against the swamp’s dense, chaotic pressure. Pure meditation here was possible, but inefficient. The qi inside him resisted settling. It wanted movement, conflict, and pressure.

Lin Feng opened his eyes and stared into the endless green gloom.

"Sect Master Yue," he said quietly, "what exactly do you expect me to do in this place? Sit quietly and become a better person? Because that plan is already failing spectacularly."

The system offered one final observation.

[ Residual toxin levels declining ]

[ Cheapest cleansing option available in shop: 300 Rage Points ]

[ Note: Host may also choose traditional suffering. Both methods are educational. ]

Lin Feng considered the number, considered his remaining points, and decided the suffering could continue a little longer. He leaned back against a root, eyes half lidded, listening to the swamp breathe around him.

Out there the Orchid Veil disciples were walking with proper protections that he have no access to. And somewhere deeper in the swamp, stronger beasts and other inhabitants of the swamp waits. And there are zones he wasn’t allowed to cross, where secrets existed. He would get to them all but just not today.

Today he would rest and observe and will try to circulate his qi again as he studied. Something tells him that the more deeper he travels into the swamp less and less rest he will get. So Lin Feng closed his eyes and began another slow, stubborn cycle of qi.