Under the watchful gaze of the little Vermilion Bird, Ma Hongjun opened his mouth.
He took a big sip, and crimson juice overflowed from his lips. The Vermilion Fruit tasted wonderfully sweet and delicious.
Unlike the fiery heat of the Fire Spirit Fruit, the Vermilion Fruit was much better. To be honest, Ma Hongjun had never tasted such a delicious fruit before.
In just a few bites, a fist-sized Vermilion Fruit was completely gone.
This Vermilion Fruit had no pit, making it incredibly satisfying to eat.
However, because it was so delicious, he finished it in an instant, not having had a chance to fully savor its sweetness.
He licked his lips, savoring the aftertaste.
Ma Hongjun thought of Pigsy eating the Ginseng Fruit; indeed, good things shouldn't be swallowed whole, but savored slowly.
Still wanting more, Ma Hongjun looked at the little Vermilion Bird again and pointed to the Vermilion Fruit on the tree.
The little Vermilion Bird immediately understood his meaning, but shook its head.
"If you don't give it to me, aren't you afraid I'll eat you?"
Ma Hongjun threatened, but the little Vermilion Bird seemed not to understand.
"Awooo..."
Ma Hongjun feigned ferocity, baring his teeth at the little Vermilion Bird.
The little Vermilion Bird seemed intimidated, chirping softly, turning its head away in grievance, and flying back to its nest to retrieve another Vermilion Fruit.
The little Vermilion Bird gave the fruit to Ma Hongjun, then pointed its small wings at the Vermilion Fruit on the tree, gently shaking its head.
Ma Hongjun understood its meaning: the Vermilion Fruit on the tree wasn't ripe yet and couldn't be eaten.
Only then did Ma Hongjun notice that compared to the Vermilion Fruit the little Vermilion Bird had retrieved from its nest, the Vermilion Fruit on the tree was still somewhat green, lacking sufficient crimson color.
Ma Hongjun then recalled that in the description of the Fire Domain, unripe Vermilion Fruit was far less effective; only when the Vermilion Fruit had completely turned from green to crimson was it at its most ripe.
Ripe and unripe were two dividing lines; fully ripe Vermilion Fruit could increase the affinity for flames,
while unripe Vermilion Fruit only temporarily enhanced flame abilities.
The ripening period for Vermilion Fruit was generally ten thousand years, but in an environment like the Fire Domain, it would ripen in a maximum of one thousand years.
The Vermilion Fruit has many uses, comprehensively enhancing strength, most notably its boost to fire-based abilities
and fire affinity .
In other words, it improves one's understanding of the Way of Fire.
Consuming the Vermilion Fruit is equivalent to increasing one's ability to comprehend the Way of Fire.
The Ultimate Fire is merely the first step into the Way of Fire,
a basic requirement for the Fire God's inheritance assessment.
The Vermilion Fruit is the treasure for comprehending the Way of Fire,
a very profound realm
involving rules.
The world is composed of the Five Elements,
and fire is one of them.
If we consider the Way of Fire as a journey, then Ma Hongjun has just stepped into it.
The Ultimate Fire is equivalent to taking his first step.
This journey is analogous to Fire God affinity.
The Fire God has already mastered the fire-based rules of a world.
When Fire God affinity reaches 100%, one can inherit the Fire God's divine status.
Using a percentage system,
the Ultimate Fire is equivalent to taking the first step, with Fire God affinity at 1%.
The mature Vermilion Fruit's function is to allow him to take another step forward on this journey.
Ma Hongjun hadn't expected to encounter the little Vermilion Bird offering Vermilion Fruit as a friendship so soon after entering Vermilion Ridge.
This was also the reason why the Vermilion Bird became the overlord of the Fire Domain.
Such a treasure as the Vermilion Fruit placed them on the path of fire from birth.
The Vermilion Bird was the clan that received the most inheritance from the Fire God.
Many worlds had rumors that the Fire God's true form was the Vermilion Bird.
After Ma Hongjun ate two Vermilion Fruits, their energy entered his body, activating his Fire Phoenix Martial Soul.
Red! Red! Red!
Three red soul rings unfolded, and a phantom of a fire phoenix appeared behind Ma Hongjun.
The powerful aura of the soul rings forced the little Vermilion Bird back, which quickly flew back to its nest, trembling as it looked at Ma Hongjun.
The power of the Vermilion Fruit was finally revealed.
The flames within Ma Hongjun's body were incredibly varied:
purple phoenix flames,
golden crow flames,
crimson fire dragon flames, and
dark fire-eyed eagle flames.
Each time he absorbed a soul ring from a soul beast, he absorbed the corresponding flame characteristics of that beast.
This has its pros and cons. Although the abilities are diverse, they don't blend well together, resulting in a weaker combined flame.
The power of the Vermilion Fruit lies in integrating these flames; it can purify excess impurities, making the flames pure.
He twisted the power of the various flames into a single rope.
Ma Hongjun felt the change in his own flames; the four flames were no longer so distinct, beginning to intertwine and merge.
However, the power of the Vermilion Fruit was quickly exhausted.
The purification and fusion had only taken a small step.
Ma Hongjun put away his Fire Phoenix Martial Soul and flew to the little Vermilion Bird's nest.
The little Vermilion Bird blinked its big eyes, looking pitiful.
The little Vermilion Bird's nest was large; besides its small body, there was still plenty of space to stand inside.
He saw that there was only one Vermilion Fruit left in the nest.
It turned out that the little Vermilion Bird had three Vermilion Fruits, and had given him two.
Ma Hongjun placed his hand on the little Vermilion Bird's crimson-orange feathers and gently stroked them.
"Little sparrow, where are your parents?"
Ma Hongjun spoke in human language, but the little Vermilion Bird seemed not to understand, looking at him blankly.
Ma Hongjun then changed his approach, using sign language to communicate, pointing to the nests on the left and right sides with his right hand.
Those two nests were empty.
The little Vermilion Bird chirped softly, its wings pointing into the distance.
Its eyes were bright and lively.
Although Ma Hongjun wasn't a woman, the little Vermilion Bird's adorable appearance deeply touched the heart of this tough man.
However, the thought of his purpose in coming here—to kill a Vermilion Bird and obtain its spirit ring—and then facing the fawning little Vermilion Bird, Ma Hongjun felt a sense of helplessness.
He needed a 100,000-year-level Vermilion Bird spirit ring.
But at this moment, Ma Hongjun wished the little Vermilion Bird's parents were just ordinary 10,000-year-old Vermilion Birds, so he wouldn't have to take their spirit rings.
This lonely and adorable little Vermilion Bird had given him two of the three Vermilion Fruits just to befriend him.
It could be said that the little Vermilion Bird was very generous.
"Little sparrow, your parents abandoned you. They are so heartless, they don't deserve to be parents. Why don't I take care of these irresponsible parents for you?"
Ma Hongjun changed his perspective.
The little Vermilion Bird didn't understand what he was saying, and the two of them chatted amongst themselves in their little nest.
Ma Hongjun gave up on the remaining Vermilion Fruit from the little Vermilion Bird. Since the little Vermilion Bird considered him a friend, he couldn't be too disloyal.
"I'll wait here for the old Vermilion Bird to return and see if it's suitable as my soul ring,"
Ma Hongjun decided, and then played with the little Vermilion Bird in the tree.
The little Vermilion Bird seemed to have been lonely for a long time, without companionship, and played happily with Ma Hongjun.
Little did it know that this human harbored malicious intentions and was plotting to take its parents' back.
But seven days passed in this play, and the Vermilion Bird still hadn't returned.
Not even any other creatures passed by.
It seemed the little Vermilion Bird's parents wouldn't be returning.
Of course, Ma Hongjun wouldn't just wait like this.
In such a vast Vermilion Bird Ridge, there must be other suitable targets.
"Little Vermilion Bird, I'm leaving!"
Ma Hongjun summoned the Wind Dragon Wing Bone and flew out of the giant tree.
The little Vermilion Bird also flew out, chirping softly.
Ma Hongjun stroked its feathers, looking into its bright, watery eyes, as if it were about to cry.
This was the lonely, left-behind child.
Ma Hongjun flew deeper into the nest.
The little Vermilion Bird watched his departing figure, a struggle flashing in its eyes.
The direction Ma Hongjun went was the place its parents had once gone.
Finally, the little Vermilion Bird seemed to have made up its mind, picking up the last Vermilion Fruit from the nest and
chasing after Ma Hongjun .
"Awoo~"
(End of Chapter)