1960 Evergreen Pillar Bamboo Fruits

With a month having passed, Lin Mu knew he couldn't just continue as it is.

Lin Mu did not know if there was something wrong with the environment, or if he was making a mistake. But he did know, he would have to figure it out before wasting any more time or effort.

~Sigh~

"I should attempt again later. But before that, I need to eat something." Lin Mu muttered to himself.

He could feel the hunger rising within his belly. 

"Little Shrubby." Lin Mu called out.

He could sense that Little Shrubby was within the forest with his link, and as such, wasn't worried.

~WHOOSH~

And a minute later, the beast appeared like a red blur.

This time though, Little Shrubby seemed to be carrying something in his mouth.

"Huh? What's that?" Lin Mu asked.

"A fruit." Little Shrubby replied. "I found a few of them." He added.

"What kind of fruit is this?" Lin Mu asked and took it from Little Shrubby.

"They are nice. They have wood elemental immortal Qi in them." Little Shrubby spoke. "I ate a few already and was searching for more." He added.

"You ate them?" Lin Mu raised a brow. "I suppose these are the Evergreen Pillar Bamboo Fruits then." He guessed.

"Yeah, they were growing on the bamboos." Little Shrubby nodded.

"How did you find them?" Lin Mu asked. "Didn't the Natural Befuddling array affect you?" he wondered.

"It did. But when I was practicing my control over the wood element, like how the Saintess taught me, I sensed something.

I simply focused on the Wood Elemental Immortal Qi and the flow inside the Evergreen Pillar Bamboos and found that there were faint differences in the flow from time to time. 

The flow would spike in some places for a moment, and then return to normal. I went to the areas where I sensed the energy spikes were going and found them." Little Shrubby explained, impressing Lin Mu.

'I didn't think he would figure out this much on his own.' Lin Mu thought to himself.

It was clear that the beast's analytical skills and capabilities had been steadily growing too. 

'Is it the influence of the Saintess that has caused it?' Lin Mu couldn't help but wonder.

Whatever it might be though, Lin Mu was pleased with it and didn't mind it going the way it was.

"Can you find them again?" Lin Mu inquired.

"Yeah, give me a minute." Little Shrubby replied and closed his eyes.

~SHUA~

Green strings of energy rose from his body and floated in the air. This was none other than the Wood Elemental Immortal Qi that had been cultivated by Little Shrubby. These wood elemental immortal Qi threads then entered the ground, where they felt the flow of the energy between the Evergreen Pillar Bamboos.

Little Shrubby stayed like this for a couple of minutes before turning in a specific direction.

"I found more," Little Shrubby informed.

"That was quick, let's go check them out." Lin Mu said and the two quickly went there.

Lin Mu simply focused on following Little Shrubby, as he knew focusing on anything else would only make him get influenced by the Natural Befuddling Array. He would then lose his direction and end up in an area he did not intend to be.

Or he might just end up right where he had started off.

Thankfully, Little Shrubby's senses were good and he brought Lin Mu to the suspected location in just ten minutes.

Upon reaching there, Lin Mu finally got a proper look at the Evergreen Pillar Bamboo fruits.

The fruit that Little Shrubby had picked was actually small and not of a good enough quality. The fruits that Lin Mu was now seeing were much bigger and clearly held a lot more energy within them.

The Evergreen Pillar Bamboos from which the fruits grew looked no different than the others, except for the fact that one of their branches would have fruits growing on them.

This would cause the branches to be weighed down, and make them bend down.

"About nine fruits…" Lin Mu looked at the fist sized fruits that had segmenting rings similar to the bamboo.

The fruits were slightly oblong, with a triangular point and had a firm texture on the surface. 

"Let's see how these are," Lin Mu said and plucked all the fruits from the Evergreen Pillar Bamboo.

~shua~

And once he did, Lin Mu acutely felt the flow of the Wood Elemental Immortal Qi within the bamboo change.

'So the energy spikes were due to the fruits… They are probably absorbing more energy than usual to grow, and causing distances in the smooth flow of the bamboos.' Lin Mu reckoned.

Thankfully, it was this very thing that helped them find the unbelievable fruits.

With the rare fruits in hand, Lin Mu couldn't help but want to try them.

Lin Mu brought one of the fruits close to his lips and took a bite.

~Crunch~

The skin of the Evergreen Pillar Bamboo fruit was firm and almost bordered on a bit tough. If Lin Mu were to compare it, the texture would be oddly similar to that of a bottle gourd.

The fruit was a bit dry and had little juice in it.

Similarly, it was lacking in flavor and mostly felt bland to Lin Mu, along with a waxy aftertaste.

"Definitely not something I'd eat as a snack just for taste." Lin Mu said to himself.

"Yeah, they don't taste that good." Little Shrubby agreed. "But they do provide energy." He added.

"That's true." Lin Mu replied, feeling the Wood Elemental Immortal Qi rising in his belly.

His stomach responded accordingly and quickly absorbed it all, before it was transferred to his meridians. The meridians then brought the wood elemental immortal Qi to his Dantian, where it formed its own independent pool.

'Its energy capacity is pretty much the same as an alchemical pill, but I think it can be improved further.' Lin Mu thought to himself, as an idea appeared in his mind. "Little Shrubby, have you tried to cook these?"