Close Combat Mage
chapter-316

“Xiangshui rice?” Suo Jia was completely puzzled by the name. He hadn’t ever heard of this kind of special product from other adventurers, nor did he know where he could purchase it from.

Suo Jia tentatively asked the elder, “Um…helping you get Xiangshui rice is fine, but, where exactly is this rice being produced?”

The elder looked at Suo Jia in confusion and said, “Your question is really strange. You’re a merchant, so you obviously should know where it’s produced. We only got some from occasional travelers, and have eaten it only once, so we don’t know where it’s produced.”

Suo Jia bitterly smiled and shook his head. He knew that these hunters had pretty much spent their entire lives without ever leaving the area around the village. They couldn’t possibly know where the Xiangshui rice was produced. After all…if the hundreds of adventurers didn’t even know, how would some hunters locked up in a village know?

Suo Jia firmly nodded and said, “Alright. Although I don’t know where to buy the Xiangshui rice either, it’s not a big deal. I’ll work hard and gather information. I just hope that you guys will hunt some more Golden Raccoon Dogs so that I won’t busy myself for no reason.”

The elder’s face turned more solemn as he seriously said, “Don’t worry. Food comes first; we hunters value food the most. As long as we get our hands on food, we definitely won’t be lacking in any materials on the magical beasts’ bodies.”

Suo Jia nodded, and prepared to bid farewell. However, he suddenly remembered something, and after a while, hesitantly asked, “That’s right, Mister Elder, I heard that there’s a type of magic fruit here called Toughening Fruit. Do…you have any in your village?”

“Toughening Fruits?” The elder looked at Suo Jia in bewilderment and asked, “Do you want to eat them?”

“Mmm…” Suo Jia firmly nodded and chuckled, “You must also know that this type of fruit can boost a person’s defensive ability, so…”

Without waiting for Suo Jia to finish speaking, the elder laughed out loud and said, “Each family has its own type of Toughening Fruit. Look…isn’t that right next to you one?”

“Hm?” Suo Jia looked in the direction the elder’s hand was pointed towards. There was a row of short, green shrubs neatly aligned next to the tent. A small, delicate, and unique tree stood there in the center of these shrubs, facing the winds. When one looked into the distance, the perimeter of their furthest line of vision would be able to see at least hundreds of these small trees.

These little trees were only about 1 meter tall. They were light blue in color, and their branches were slender. Its figure was extremely elegant. There was a light blue fruit at the top of every tree. If one didn’t look very closely, it was impossible to discover it.

The elder laughed heartily at Suo Jia’s astonished expression. “These things have already been growing in our village for hundreds of years. Both adults and children eat them at a young age. If you want to eat them, go ahead and pick it. However, be careful, only the blue fruits are ripe!”

“That’s…” Suo Jia excitedly said, “Mister Elder, how much is each fruit? If…”

“Tch…” The elder casually waved his hand before Suo Jia finished speaking and generously said, “Don’t keep asking about money this and money that. Although you’re a merchant, you’re also a friend of Enchanting Village. How could we accept money for some mere fruits? Just eat them however much you want. However, take careful note that you can only eat one a week, or else complications will arise.”

Suo Jia didn’t rush to pick the fruit, and instead shifted his eyes as he said to the elder in a low voice, “Then thank you very much. However…what ranks of Toughening Fruits do you guys have here?”

The elder’s expression suddenly turned serious. He looked around carefully, and after confirming that there wasn’t anyone around, he whispered back, “The reason our village is established here is because this is where Toughening Fruits gather. The village mostly has ranks 1, 2, 3 fruits, but there are Toughening Fruits rank 4 and above in the forests around our village!”

Suo Jia excitedly nodded and impatiently asked, “Mister Elder, could you help point me towards the direction of some rank 4 and above Toughening Fruits?”

“Hehe…” The elder smiled proudly and nodded. “That’s fine. As long as you get us some Xiangshui rice, I’ll help point them out for you. Moreover…the more rice you get us, the higher the level of the Toughening Fruits I show you will be! If you can get us enough Xiangshui rice to last our whole village a year, I’ll even give you the sole rank 10 Toughening Fruit!”

Suo Jia nodded and impatiently said, “Mister Elder, then let’s come to an agreement now. You’d better not go back on your word, keep the fruit for me. In half a year at most, I’ll definitely bring you a year’s worth of Xiangshui rice!”

“Ah!” The elder’s jaw dropped open at Suo Jia’s words and he said incredulously, “Are you serious? I was only joking with you just now. Although that fruit is precious, it’s not worth…”

“Stop!” Suo Jia abruptly lifted his hand and interrupted the elder’s words. “Mister Elder, whether it’s worth it or not is my business. You only need to properly watch over that tree. I’ll definitely get that Xiangshui rice over!”

Suo Jia shifted his gaze and said expectantly, “That’s right, Mister Elder, does your village have any other magic fruits aside from Toughening Fruits?”

The elder bitterly shook his head and helplessly said, “Your words really are strange. Don’t tell me you didn’t know? Different magic fruits can’t grow together. Each area only has one type of magic fruit!”

Suo Jia nodded in understanding, and didn’t continue asking any further. Instead, he ran straight to the adjacent trees and picked two cyan colored Toughening Fruits. Just as he was prepared to place them into his mouth, the elder abruptly shouted at him to stop.

The elder shot a panicked look at Suo Jia and nervously exclaimed, “Hey, hey, hey! What do you plan on doing? You can only eat one fruit at a time. If you eat two, you’ll have problems. If you don’t die, you’ll at least become a cripple!”

“Hehe…” Suo Jia smiled mysteriously and nodded. “I know that I can only eat one per sitting. The reason I picked two was because I still have a companion that wants to eat one.”

Suo Jia waved a hand. In that instant…the space rippled as the Diamond Dragon’s milky-white figure appeared in mid-air. The next moment…the Diamond Dragon shouted out happily and dived into Suo Jia’s arms, intimately rubbing its head against Suo Jia.

Suo Jia picked up a Toughening Fruit and put it up against the Diamond Dragon while coaxing it, “Come on…this is very delicious. Hurry up and eat one.”

The Diamond Dragon obediently opened its mouth. At the same time, Suo Jia began to move the grape-sized Toughening Fruit into the Diamond Dragon’s mouth.

“Wait a moment!” The instant the elder saw that the Diamond Dragon was about to eat it, he interrupted once more, “Let me confirm something, you guys have never eaten Toughening Fruits before? If this is your first time, then you must eat rank 1 Toughening Fruits. If you eat a something past that rank, you’ll definitely feel the shock from an unbearable rush of energy. Although it isn’t fatal, you’ll definitely still suffer great harm!”

Hearing the elder’s words, Suo Jia’s hand shook, and the Toughening Fruit in his hand fell to the ground. He stared in the elder in shock and asked in astonishment, “What? Wasn’t the fruit I took just now a rank one Toughening Fruit?”

“Mnn…” The elder nodded, and said with certainty, “What you were holding just now was a rank 3 Toughening Fruit. If you’ve never eaten these before, you’ll barely survive if you eat that, if not die!”

“That’s….” Suo Jia wiped the sweat off his forehead and said with fear, “Heavens, it’s really so dangerous. These fruits all look identical. Who knows whether it’s rank 2 or rank 3. How do you guys differentiate them?”

The elder shook his head and smiled, “It looks like there’s a lot of things you don’t understand about our world. That’s fine, I guess, I’ll just tell you. In reality, regardless of whether they’re magic fruits or different types of energy, they can all be gauged with a rank-less communal magic. This magic is called—Spirit’s Eye!”