Master Ping led the way, with Luo Ying following close behind, carrying the flightless Luo Xiu.

As time went on and they ventured further, more and more lava skeletons crawled out from the ruins. It seemed the Primordial Divine Vine, its main body still hidden somewhere unknown, knew someone was looking for it and was trying to stop them.

Luo Xiu gazed down at the lava skeletons rampaging through the ruins below and asked, "Why are the roots of the Primordial Divine Vine shaped like skeletons? And lava ones at that?"

"These skeletons are the remains of the creatures it has devoured over the long eons," Master Ping explained. "Turning its roots into the forms of the creatures it devours is its only means of attack. Though their individual strength is low, it makes up for it with sheer numbers."

As the man and the vase conversed, a lava skeleton with wings burst out of a building, soared into the sky, and opened its gaping maw to bite Luo Xiu.

Seeing this, Luo Ying quickly tossed Luo Xiu toward Master Ping. Then, with a sharp stop and turn in mid-air, she transformed the Dragon Drill in her hand into a greatsword and drove the lava skeleton back.

"Master Ping, take the Young Master and go on ahead! I'll hold off these monsters."

But no sooner had she spoken than she heard Luo Xiu let out a pained "OWW!"

It turned out that when she had tossed him, Luo Xiu had gone into a freefall, landing astride Master Ping.

For a moment, it was as if he could hear the sound of eggs cracking. The pain was so intense that his face twisted and his body convulsed. At that moment, he felt the world go blank, with nothing left but this endless agony.

Luo Ying immediately realized what had happened. Her pretty face flushed red as she hurriedly apologized, "I'm sorry, Young Master! Ying'er didn't do it on purpose!"

Luo Xiu sucked in a sharp breath, his voice racked with pain. "Ying'er, do you... want to be a widow for the rest of your life?"

Luo Ying felt deeply wronged. "Young Master, Ying'er really..."

Just then, Master Ping burst into thoroughly heartless laughter. "Ha! So it's your turn, kid! When you smashed me to pieces, did you ever think you'd get your comeuppance?! Did you ever think you'd also endure the pain of being shattered?!"

Luo Xiu gritted his teeth. "You're just a damn vase! You can't possibly understand this kind of pain!"

"Alright, enough nonsense. Master Ping has pinpointed the Divine Vine's main body. Hold on tight, kid. I'm speeding up!"

Then, with a cold snort, Master Ping began to complain again. "To think that I, Master Ping, am such a heroic figure! Not only have you used me to smash people, but now I've become your mount. What a disgrace!"

Luo Xiu retorted through clenched teeth, "Next time, I might just use you as a chamber pot."

"Would you please just scram?" Master Ping shot back.

"Think about me!" Luo Xiu declared. "I am the Azure Emperor, who fought alone through the Three Thousand Worlds of the Upper Realm! I was an unmatched, breathtaking figure! And now I have to ride a broken vase through the sky? What an utter disgrace!"

Listening to the two of them squabble, neither willing to back down, Luo Ying was left speechless.

***

Amidst their bickering, they drew ever closer to the main body of the Divine Vine. Luo Ying followed closely, swinging her sword tirelessly to annihilate the swarming lava skeletons one after another.

At that moment, Luo Xiu looked down and saw that the ruins had given way to a barren wasteland. The wasteland seemed endless, its rolling hills dotted with the occasional skeletons of ancient giant beasts, some larger than the mountains themselves.

Suddenly, Luo Xiu spotted a pinprick of red light in the distance. As Master Ping flew him closer, he saw that it was a clump of vines growing on a circular stone platform. The vines were leafless, each tendril having the texture of solidified but not-yet-cooled lava. The circular stone platform was vast, set like a lonely inlay in the barren land. Ruined walls and fragmented stone steles were scattered across its surface, painting a picture of desolation.

"Just as I suspected," Master Ping said. "This is the training ground of the Primordial Emperor."

"Kid, that clump of vines is the main body of the Primordial Divine Vine! Find a way to destroy it and take its Life Vine."

Luo Xiu glanced around. "I'm afraid it won't be that simple."

At that very moment, the earth and stones around the training ground began to churn as lava skeletons crawled out, completely surrounding the platform. In the sky, the flying lava skeletons formed a dense, innumerable mass. Clearly, the Primordial Divine Vine was putting on such a grand display for its own protection.

"Huh? What's that?" Master Ping's voice was tinged with surprise, as if he had made a new discovery. "Kid, do you see something inside that clump of vines?"

Luo Xiu squinted and saw two fist-sized fruits nestled among the vines.

"My God, they're Divine Vine Dao Lemons!" Master Ping suddenly shrieked.

Startled, Luo Xiu asked, "What are you making such a fuss for? Can't you have a little more perspective?"

"Pah! You're one to talk about perspective when you were just fighting me over some Moonlight Divine Water?"

Luo Xiu quickly changed the subject. "What are those Divine Vine Dao Lemons good for?"

"They're priceless treasures! Kid, it looks like we absolutely have to destroy the Divine Vine's main body and take those two Dao Lemons!"

Just then, Luo Ying flew over and stopped beside Luo Xiu. "Young Master, Ying'er will help you get them!"

Luo Xiu turned to glance at her. Seeing her pale face, her body drenched in sweat, and the utter exhaustion in her expression, he couldn't help but feel a pang of heartache.

"Ying'er, your Divine Sense hasn't fully recovered, and you've just been fighting off all those lava skeletons. I'll take it from here."

As he spoke, Luo Xiu's left eye flickered, opening a spatial portal to the Land of Lawlessness. He then rode Master Ping straight through it.

「The Land of Lawlessness」

At the entrance of the Palace of the Dharma King, Luo Xiu pinned a captured Holy Boi Religion Cultist to the ground. He then invoked the Elysian Nether Earth to form a Body of the Dark Land and resurrect Fei Xiao.

"Fei Xiao, go out and use Infinite Self-Detonation."

Without a word, Fei Xiao leaped through the portal, appearing on the training ground of the Primordial Emperor. Seconds later, Luo Xiu heard a thunderous explosion. Fearing he'd be caught in the blast, he hastily closed the portal.

Master Ping couldn't help but marvel, "So that's how you do it. You're a real freak, kid, but I like it!"

Luo Xiu smiled nonchalantly, then helped Luo Ying walk into the Palace of the Dharma King. "By the way, Master Ping, do you think all those explosions will destroy the two Dao Lemons?"

"Don't you worry about that. The Divine Vine isn't as fragile as you think."

"That's good."

Soon after, Luo Xiu walked into a room and helped Luo Ying sit on the edge of the bed.

"Ying'er, rest here for now. Take this half-bottle of Moonlight Divine Water. Just drink one drop at a time; it will help your Divine Sense recover."

Luo Ying pursed her lovely, moist lips and nodded gently.

She felt a warm glow in her heart from Luo Xiu's concern. The Azure Emperor of the past had never been so gentle with her.

Suddenly, Master Ping flew over, shouting angrily, "Kid, that half-bottle of divine water is mine, and you're just using it to woo a girl?"

Luo Xiu rolled his eyes at him. "If you don't have anything nice to say, then shut up."

"I... I'm really at my wit's end with you, Lao Liu! A typical case of putting romance before bromance!"

"..."

After bickering with Master Ping for over ten minutes, Luo Xiu opened the spatial portal and flew out on the vase.

The training ground of the Primordial Emperor was now in shambles after Fei Xiao's "Infinite Self-Detonation," though the damage was far less severe than Luo Xiu had imagined. He had thought Fei Xiao would completely obliterate the place, but in the end, the training ground was merely fractured into several large pieces, as if some power were protecting it. However, the lava skeletons that had swarmed the area, which were formed from the roots of the Primordial Divine Vine, had all vanished, thoroughly wiped out by Fei Xiao.

The main body of the Divine Vine itself had also been blasted to bits, leaving only a gleaming, jade-like segment of its Life Vine and two Dao Lemons covered in mystical runes.

Luo Xiu swiftly collected his spoils, retracted Fei Xiao's soul, and entered the Land of Lawlessness once more.

Inside the Palace of the Dharma King, Master Ping said, "Kid, the strength of the Primordial Divine Vine is its ability to survive in any environment. It then produces Dao Lemons based on the characteristics of that environment, but the chances of it bearing fruit are incredibly small. We really hit the jackpot finding them!"

"Look, right now it's in a state similar to lava. That means it originally took root and grew in a place with magma. That makes sense, though. During the Primordial Epoch, this world had just formed, and magma was everywhere."

"If this Life Vine were planted in your Land of Lawlessness and fed on the Aura of the Dead... tsk tsk tsk, I'm really looking forward to seeing what form it would take, and what kind of Dao Lemons it would produce."

Hearing Master Ping's words, Luo Xiu was also filled with anticipation.

"Ahem... well, kid, it's time we split these two Dao Lemons."

Luo Xiu asked curiously, "What are these Divine Vine Dao Lemons for?"

"What are they for? Heh, let me tell you, this thing contains Primordial Divine Power! If you eat one and survive, you'll definitely comprehend a Primordial Divine Power!"

"Of course, absorbing it won't let me comprehend a divine power, but it will strengthen my Taoist Body!"

"Quick, quick, quick! There are two, so you pick one first. I'm not picky."

"..."

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