"Thank you, fellow Daoist. If there is ever anything I can do for you, I will not hesitate," Li Yi said joyfully after receiving the branch of the Ginseng Fruit Tree.
Hong Yun, seeing that Li Yi's wish was fulfilled, smiled and said, "Fellow Daoist, you gifted me elixirs in the past. Today, I shall accompany you to search for other heavenly spiritual roots!"
Upon hearing this, Zhen Yuanzi, unaware of the past connection between Li Yi and Hong Yun, said to Li Yi, "A Daoist's favor is too precious. This branch of my Ginseng Fruit Tree is not worth such a price! To exchange it for a favor, I am truly ashamed! Since Fellow Daoist once gifted Hong Yun an elixir, let this branch be Hong Yun's token of gratitude! What do you say?"
Li Yi shook his head repeatedly after hearing Zhen Yuanzi's words, "How can that be?"
Zhen Yuanzi laughed heartily, "Fellow Daoist, you may not know this, but I have resided on Longevity Mountain since my transformation. Hong Yun is my first and only friend. If we were not blood brothers, we would be closer than brothers."
After speaking, he instructed Qingfeng and Mingyue to fetch six Ginseng Fruits and present them to Li Yi, saying, "Hong Yun is too greedy, and I don't have many Ginseng Fruits left. These six fruits are for you, as an apology for my earlier impoliteness!"
Li Yi quickly waved his hands in refusal, "I am already deeply grateful for your willingness to bestow upon me this branch of the Ginseng Fruit Tree. How dare I accept such a generous gift!"
Seeing that Li Yi would not accept, Zhen Yuanzi said leisurely, "It seems Fellow Daoist looks down upon me, Zhen Yuanzi, by refusing even this token of apology!"
Li Yi, with no other recourse, accepted the Ginseng Fruits.
After accepting the Ginseng Fruits, Li Yi said to Zhen Yuanzi, "Thank you, fellow Daoist. However, my brother is in grave danger, and I truly dare not linger. Farewell!"
He then turned to Hong Yun and said, "Fellow Daoist, you are knowledgeable. I will trouble you!"
Hong Yun smiled, "You are too kind. Primordial and Tongtian are quite to my liking. Since Fellow Daoist Primordial is injured, it is only right that I lend a hand!"
Li Yi worried about Yuan Shi's injuries. Although Tongtian was looking after him, Li Yi still wanted to quickly gather all the heavenly spiritual roots so that Yuan Shi could recover!
Thus, Li Yi said, "Although I have obtained this branch of the Ginseng Fruit Tree, I still lack seven more heavenly spiritual roots. I will not disturb you any further. When my brother has recovered, I will surely bring him to pay my respects. Farewell!"
Zhen Yuanzi understood Li Yi's urgency and did not press him to stay. He bowed and said, "Then I shall not detain you any longer. I wish your brother a speedy recovery!"
Li Yi returned the bow, "Thank you, fellow Daoist. I appreciate your kind words! Farewell!"
With that, Li Yi and Hong Yun took their leave of Zhen Yuanzi.
After leaving Longevity Mountain, Li Yi said to Hong Yun, "Fellow Daoist, I know there is a heavenly spiritual root on both the Sun Star and the Moon Star. Let us head to the Sun Star first!"
Hong Yun listened, surprised, "I never imagined there would be heavenly spiritual roots in such a place. I am eager to witness it!"
With that, the two set off towards the Sun Star!
Upon arriving at the Sun Star, Li Yi summoned his Panlong Crutch, intending to break through the innate formation on the Sun Star's surface.
Li Yi's cultivation was no longer the same as when he had visited the Sun Star with Tongtian for the first time.
Furthermore, Tongtian had explained this formation to Li Yi after their previous visit. Therefore, Li Yi broke through the formation with little effort.
After breaking the formation, Li Yi and Hong Yun proceeded deeper into the Sun Star.
The Sun Star was filled with solar divine fire. Hong Yun's cultivation was lower.
Initially, Hong Yun felt nothing, but as they went further, he began to feel an unbearable burning sensation all over his body!
Hong Yun spoke, "Fellow Daoist, I fear I cannot accompany you further. My cultivation is no match for yours. The power of the solar divine fire increases as we go deeper. If I continue, I might be consumed by flames!"
Li Yi saw Hong Yun's flushed face and knew he was nearing his limit.
Therefore, Li Yi said, "Fellow Daoist, there is no need to force yourself. There are many spiritual treasures on the Sun Star. You may look around at your leisure. Once I obtain the spiritual root, I will come out to find you!"
Hong Yun nodded, "Thank you for your understanding!"
After speaking, Hong Yun turned back the way they came and stopped only when the discomfort lessened.
After parting ways with Hong Yun, Li Yi continued towards the core of the Sun Star.
Li Yi walked for an unknown distance before finally seeing a tree of pure golden hue. Beneath it, two men were cultivating.
Li Yi's arrival also awakened the two men.
Upon seeing Li Yi, one of them shouted, "Who dares to intrude upon my brothers' dojo!"
Li Yi observed that the two men wore golden armor, exuding an imposing aura. One of them had a small bell floating above his head.
Li Yi knew these two must be Di Jun and Taiyi. The small bell was likely the innate supreme treasure, the Chaos Bell.
The one who had just spoken was Di Jun, and the one with the Chaos Bell hovering above his head was likely Taiyi.
Thus, Li Yi bowed and said, "This humble Daoist is Taishang. I mean no offense. It is merely that my brother is severely injured and requires a branch of the Fusang Tree to sustain his life. I beg for your accommodation!"
Taiyi heard that Li Yi had come for the Fusang Tree and was furious, "Presumptuous! The Fusang Tree is the foundation of our Golden Crow tribe. How can you damage it! Leave quickly, or do not blame my brother and me for being impolite."
Li Yi knew he could not obtain the Fusang Tree without a fight, so he said, "Then I shall trespass!"
With that, Li Yi summoned the Xuanhuang Tower to protect himself and then wielded his Panlong Crutch to strike at the two men.
Di Jun and Taiyi, seeing Li Yi attack them, were enraged. They could not believe that this person had come to their domain and now intended to fight them.
Therefore, Taiyi summoned the Chaos Bell, and Di Jun conjured the River Diagram and Luo Shu, attacking Li Yi together.
Just as they charged forward, Li Yi suddenly unleashed the Taiji Diagram to suppress the void, while he himself flashed to the side of the Fusang Tree and broke off a branch.
Di Jun and Taiyi had expected Li Yi to engage them in combat, so they had focused all their efforts on him.
Suddenly, a diagram of Yin and Yang flew out from Li Yi's body, and the two felt their movements slow.
Li Yi vanished from their sight in an instant. Taiyi, regaining his senses, frantically struck the surroundings with the Chaos Bell.
The void shattered, and the two seized the moment of its fragmentation to escape the Taiji Diagram's confinement.
Seeing that he had obtained the Fusang Tree branch, Li Yi immediately recalled the Taiji Diagram and fled into the distance.
Li Yi had no intention of fighting Di Jun and Taiyi; he had only devised a ruse to briefly trap them.
In that moment, the two realized they were no match for Li Yi and did not dare to pursue him.
Taiyi exclaimed in alarm, "Big brother, who is this Daoist? He is so powerful!"
Di Jun sighed and said, "Even if my brother and I combine our strength, it would be difficult to capture him. Fortunately, he only took a single branch. Let him go!"
After Li Yi left, he found Hong Yun. Hong Yun, seeing Li Yi return, exclaimed happily, "Fellow Daoist, have you obtained the spiritual root?"
Li Yi nodded, "I have it. Let's go, to the Moon Star!"
With that, the two departed the Sun Star and headed towards the Moon Star!