Chapter 76: The Fruit of True Heart

“What?” Yan Chixia was taken aback, his face flushing red as he looked at She Meier’s radiant, flower-like smile. “This…”

“Is this too much?” She Meier asked, her tone tentative and uncertain, but when she saw Yan Chixia hesitating, she felt a secret delight. “There’s hope! If I strike while the iron is hot, I’ll surely succeed!” So she feigned indifference, saying, “What’s wrong? Regretting it, Yan Chixia? Don’t want to kiss me? If you don’t, that’s fine—there’s no sweetness in forced affection. Suit yourself. I’ve decided I’m not leaving!”

“Wait!” Yan Chixia immediately panicked. “She Meier, don’t go—I’ll… I’ll kiss you, all right?”

She Meier’s joy was uncontainable, and she giggled. “Yan Chixia, you’re really going to kiss me? Remember, you’re doing this of your own free will—I never forced you!”

Looking at her smug expression, Yan Chixia wanted nothing more than to send her flying with a kick, but dared not show his anger. Instead, he forced a grin and replied, “You’re right, you didn’t force me! But, She Meier, let’s make it clear—I’ll only kiss you once, and then…”

“Deal!” she agreed readily. “But Yan Chixia, it has to be a genuine kiss—if you just go through the motions, it doesn’t count, and I still won’t leave!”

“Fine, fine…” Yan Chixia said, almost in tears. “I’ll kiss you. I’ll kiss you sincerely!” With that, he sat across from She Meier, steeled himself, suddenly grabbed her right hand, and pressed his lips hard on the smooth, fair back of her hand. She Meier cried out in surprise, and Yan Chixia, startled, quickly let go and asked, “What’s wrong, She Meier? I didn’t bite you, just kissed you… Why are you crying out?”

Blushing deeply, She Meier replied in a soft, coquettish voice, “Yan Chixia, your lips are so charming—so soft and warm, they made me tingle all over… I feel weak, like I’m about to faint! Hee hee, is this what happiness feels like?”

Yan Chixia was left speechless, caught between laughter and tears, when She Meier suddenly exclaimed,

“Wait a minute! Yan Chixia, I meant for you to kiss my face—why did you kiss the back of my hand? That doesn’t count, you have to do it again—this time, leave a sweet mark on my cheek…”

“She Meier, don’t push your luck!” Yan Chixia interrupted sternly. “I said I’d kiss you once, but I never said where. So even if I kissed your hand, it still counts!”

Yan Chixia’s words were firm and just, and She Meier was left momentarily speechless. Blushing, she quickly changed the subject, saying, “Hee hee… Yan Chixia, you really have no sense of humor—can’t you tell I was kidding? Let’s drop it. Handsome, get ready—we’re about to ‘seize the treasure’!”

Yan Chixia perked up immediately. “Really? She Meier, does that mean we’ve reached our destination?”

“What, you thought I was joking?” She Meier replied sweetly. “Yan Chixia, if you don’t believe me, look over there…”

Following the direction of her pointing finger, Yan Chixia saw, about a hundred and eighty paces ahead, a golden beach. Upon it grew a thicket of verdant shrubs—strangely, these shrubs bore no leaves. Instead, heart-shaped fruits, bright red and glistening, hung from the emerald-green branches.

“It’s beautiful!” Yan Chixia couldn’t help exclaiming. “‘Scarlet Heart Fruit’—I’ve finally laid eyes on the Scarlet Heart Fruit! Ha ha, She Meier, there are so many—if we pick them all, will your storage ring hold them?”

“What?” She Meier shot him a glare. “Yan Chixia, are you planning a heist?”

He was taken aback. “What’s wrong, She Meier? Did I say something wrong?”

“What do you think?” she retorted, but before he could reply, she began to explain, “Yan Chixia, do you know how precious the Scarlet Heart Fruit is? Each one takes five hundred years to grow from blossom to fruit—and during that time, only one fruit will grow per branch. Moreover, its growing conditions are extremely demanding—the roots require the perfect balance of gold, wood, water, fire, and earth elements. If any are missing, the plant will bloom but never bear fruit… Now, don’t be fooled by the lush red cluster ahead—there are only two hundred and ninety-eight of them! Each time my master and I come here, we only pick five… And you, on your first visit, want to pick them all in one go? That’s pure greed, and utterly shameless!”

“Heh heh…” Yan Chixia laughed awkwardly. “She Meier, if you hadn’t told me, how could I know how rare they are? I thought they were like the wild sour dates on Great Solitary Mountain—growing every year, and if no one picks them, they simply rot away. Now I see Scarlet Heart Fruits are in a league of their own—”

“No, you’ve got it backwards!” She Meier corrected him. “It’s not that the Scarlet Heart Fruit can’t compare to sour dates, but the other way around—they’re worlds apart, not even on the same plane, utterly incomparable!”

“Right! She Meier, you are absolutely correct—it’s the sour dates that can’t compare to Scarlet Heart Fruit! In that case, let’s stick to tradition and pick just five.” Yan Chixia smiled.

To his surprise, She Meier rolled her eyes at him. “Honestly, you leave me speechless! I’ve noticed that ever since we entered ‘Death Valley,’ you’ve become hopelessly dense. Is it the environment getting to you, or have you let victory go to your head?”

“Oh?” Yan Chixia’s face flushed again. “She Meier, did I say something wrong again?”

“Of course.” She Meier’s sapphire-bright eyes lingered on his red face, and she felt a rush of desire to plant a kiss on him, but restrained herself with admirable self-control. Calmly, she said, “Yan Chixia, I made it very clear just now: each time my master and I come here, we pick five Scarlet Heart Fruits—if we do the same this time, when we return, will those five be for my master to refine the ‘Great Elixir,’ or for your master to make the ‘Golden Restoration Pill’?”