Ge Yuan moved with blistering speed, as though terrified that Qin Sang would snatch it away from him.
By the time Qin Sang caught up, Ge Yuan was already standing at the edge of a pool.
Deep in the pool's hollow, a rare, wondrous flower was in full bloom.
This spirit flower grew at the edge of the water, enveloped in misty vapor. Its stem was straight and upright, and the blossom was enormous—a ring larger than an adult's palm—bearing a striking azure hue.
Azure petals overlapped one another, vibrant and pure in color. Star-like specks of luminescence drifted from the stamen, gathering together into a blue pillar of light that pierced through the dense fog.
A refreshing fragrance filled the air, invigorating the heart and mind.
"Blue Dew Epiphyllum!"
This Blue Dew Epiphyllum seemed to be precisely what Ge Yuan sought; his gaze was entranced, his face flush with wild ecstasy.
Seeing Ge Yuan's expression, Qin Sang pulled up in time and remained on the perimeter to avoid causing any misunderstanding.
He had followed not to compete for the spirit herb, but to see what kind of environment nurtured these herbs and whether any dangers lurked nearby.
As it turned out, there truly seemed to be no safeguards.
The Blue Dew Epiphyllum simply grew alone in the depths of the pool, with neither guardian spirit beasts nor restrictions around it.
The pool's water was pure and crystal clear, its bottom fully visible.
The spirit herb was ripe for the taking.
Seeing the flower with his own eyes, Qin Sang could tell immediately that it was undeniably a mature thousand-year spirit herb.
Qin Sang remembered this blue beam of light. Ge Yuan was right; among the twenty-one spirit herbs, it ranked near the top, yet there were still several of even higher quality!
This mountain was undoubtedly a colossal treasure trove!
Qin Sang's heart could not help but surge with heat. He was just about to set off toward the mysterious yellow qi when, right as he began to shift his gaze away from the Blue Dew Epiphyllum, he suddenly paused.
For some reason, he suddenly sensed an indescribable strangeness emanating from the Blue Dew Epiphyllum.
His mind stirred. Halting his movements, Qin Sang swept his gaze across the area, finally settling on the spirit herb's aura emitted by the flower.
The blue pillar of light soared straight into the clouds.
Within the beam of light, the herb's aura intertwined with the mist, resembling countless blue mayflies swimming within—a scene of sublime beauty.
Yet as Qin Sang followed the light with his eyes toward the depths of the clouds and mist, that strange sensation lingered incessantly, though he was entirely unable to discern its cause.
Just then, Ge Yuan finished his careful examination. Confirming that there was no danger around the Blue Dew Epiphyllum, he could no longer hold back. With a flash of his silhouette, he swept across the pool in an instant, intent on plucking the flower.
"Wait!"
The moment Ge Yuan drew near the Blue Dew Epiphyllum, the ominous sensation surged violently. Though Qin Sang did not know the reason, he dared not be careless and hastily called out to stop him.
Unexpectedly, Ge Yuan shot a sinister glance back at Qin Sang. Not only did he not stop, but he accelerated instead, reaching out without hesitation toward the stem of the Blue Dew Epiphyllum.
At the same time, a glow lit up behind him as a short sword appeared, pointing toward Qin Sang from afar.
From Ge Yuan's gaze, Qin Sang clearly felt deep vigilance, warning, and even killing intent!
This man actually thought Qin Sang was stopping him to contest him for the Blue Dew Epiphyllum.
Qin Sang cursed the fool inwardly, but it was already too late to stop him.
Right then, alarming warnings flared in Qin Sang's heart. He snapped his head up, his expression changing drastically.
*Crack!*
Just as Ge Yuan's palm was about to touch the Blue Dew Epiphyllum—
Several bolts of lightning materialized without warning, descending from the sky.
The blue pillar of light shuddered violently, and a silvery electric net snapped open, hurtling straight toward Ge Yuan.
All the lightning converged on a single target: Ge Yuan!
Amidst deafening thunder, an aura of utterly terrifying destruction bore down.
Being on the perimeter, Qin Sang was slightly better off, but Ge Yuan was the sole target of the lightning, and in that instant, mortal dread engulfed Ge Yuan's soul.
Only now did Ge Yuan realize that Qin Sang had not stopped him to contest the spirit herb—he had truly noticed something amiss.
If anything was to blame, it was that the restriction guarding the herb was too well hidden; even after careful inspection, they had failed to spot a single clue. And having suddenly found the herb he had yearned for so long, his mind had been entirely captivated, leading to this catastrophic mistake.
Regret came too late. The might of this lightning was far too terrifying. Ge Yuan urged his short sword forward in an attempt to block it, but a top-grade magic tool failed to hold out for even a single breath before it was shattered into powder by the lightning, turning his face ashen in shock.
If struck by the lightning, only one fate awaited him: death!
At this moment, extending his hand just one more inch would let him pluck the spirit herb, yet doing so was utterly impossible.
A look of profound reluctance crossed Ge Yuan's face, but in the end, he dared not reach out any further. No matter how precious a spirit herb was, it was meaningless if one did not have the life to enjoy it.
*Bang!*
Ge Yuan stomped hard against the water's surface, his figure rocketing backward.
At the same time, uncaring of whether Ge Yuan lived or died, Qin Sang turned without hesitation and bolted down the mountain.
Ge Yuan had triggered the protective restriction, and the commotion of the erupting lightning could not possibly escape the notice of Luo Xingnan and the others. Ge Yuan was already exposed, but Qin Sang might still have a chance.
Sure enough, the instant Ge Yuan triggered the restriction, the battle atop the summit abruptly paused, followed immediately by the beasts' roars turning furiously frenzied.
*Whoosh! Whoosh!*
A gale suddenly kicked up, and amidst the churning clouds and mist, several colossal silhouettes could be vaguely seen hurtling downward.
At the same time, Luo Xingnan's furious roar rang out: "Where did these petty thieves come from?!"
Before his words faded, a piercing shriek ripped through the mist. A jade fork magic tool arrived in an instant, moving even faster than the beasts.
Ge Yuan, already fleeing for his life under the lightning's pursuit, was terrified to see the jade fork stabbing toward his head. He barely managed to dodge being impaled, but he was struck by the spiritual power carried by the fork, tumbling far away like a rolling gourd.
*Boom!*
The jade fork struck true, plunging straight into the pool.
Water splashed everywhere, and ripples of spiritual power spread far and wide.
The beasts followed closely behind the jade fork: a flock of enormous birds, their bodies beneath black wings measuring several tens of feet long.
Their heads were shockingly not those of birds, but resembled human heads with complete facial features. However, their mouths remained beaks, letting out avian shrieks as they opened and closed, appearing exceptionally eerie.
Human-faced owls!
At the same time, several streaks of light arrived one after another.
Qin Sang's body froze. Bitterly smiling inside, he abandoned all thoughts of continuing to hide.
There were no obstacles barring the way on the mountain. From the moment the restriction was triggered until now, barely an instant had passed, yet Luo Xingnan and his group had already arrived. There had been no chance of escape at all.
The protective restriction on the Blue Dew Epiphyllum seemed to exist solely to guard the spirit herb; once Ge Yuan was driven away, the lightning slowly faded.
Luo Xingnan's sinister gaze swept over the two of them, and he sneered, "So you two petty thieves banded together and managed to stumble in on dog-shit luck! What gall, trying to steal herbs right under my nose!"
Ge Yuan had been under Sheng Yuanzi, and Qin Sang had followed Yu Kong; Luo Xingnan still remembered them.
Qin Sang glanced at the utterly disheveled Ge Yuan, then met Yunyouzi's gaze. Both felt quite helpless.
Chapter 298