The two immediately split up and began harvesting in perfect coordination.
Su Fu never expected such an extra surprise, getting another chance to grow her stash.
***
Meanwhile, inside the Divine Derivation Core examination monitoring room at Perseus High School.
Luo Qiu whispered, “Wait, so the Great Fairy just let Su Fu into her own area? She just swept through Districts Six and Seven’s peaches…”
Professor Casanova shook his head with a wry smile, “That’s basically like letting the wolf into the sheepfold. How could any ripe peaches survive that?”
On the screen, Su Fu’s left hand had just plucked a plump peach, and with a wave of her right hand, a nearly identical peach appeared at the original spot.
Most importantly, she was being extremely cautious, only using illusions on unripe peaches to avoid suspicion.
Xiao Lingxi analyzed, “By doing this, no one can tell the difference unless they eat the peaches themselves. Neither touch nor sight can reveal the fake.”
Department Two Minister Pei Zhengyuan couldn’t help but admire, “With the Great Fairy’s status, how could she possibly eat those Three-Thousand-Year peaches? Other fairies who can eat them aren’t even allowed into the Great Fairy’s area. In other words, this trick is almost impossible to detect.”
“Truly flawless.” Department Three Minister Xiao Zheng looked enviously at Minister Kong Ying, “Her mind moves so fast.”
On screen, Su Fu not only stole peaches without flinching but chatted casually with the Sixth Fairy Maiden while picking.
***
“Sixth Sister,” she feigned complaint, “I just can’t find any ripe peaches. Can I check your area?”
The Sixth Fairy Maiden had just plucked a rich, large peach but stiffened at Su Fu’s words, quickly hiding it behind her back.
“Keep looking.”
“No, no, no!” She almost reflexively refused, raising her voice eight tones higher, “There are none in my area either! You better check yours!”
With that, she hurried away, keeping a good distance from Su Fu.
Seeing this, Su Fu nodded in satisfaction—this was secure.
She then picked peaches even more boldly and skillfully.
***
Department One Minister Mo Xingyuan smiled, “She’s clearly playing on Sixth Sister’s mind to distract her. This way, the only person who might discover what she’s up to… Is being kept as far away as possible by this chain of moves.”
Song Yuqing and Qi Feng watched in a daze, “Wait, then what are we eating at the Peach Banquet? Everything’s been pocketed by her!”
***
Somewhere on a tributary of the Celestial River, ripples suddenly appeared on the water’s surface.
Then, a figure shot out abruptly, crawling ashore in a mess and collapsing into the grass.
He gasped for breath, his left arm bearing a gruesome wound with flesh flayed and mangled.
His chest was scorched black, clothes stuck to the flesh; even breathing caused piercing pain.
His right arm, left knee, and face—hardly an inch of uninjured skin.
His entire body was covered in mud and blood.
“…………”
Chen Jing coughed up some water, rolled over, and lay on the grass, staring blankly at the sky.
He was truly furious, “Who’s behind this? Don’t let me find out who schemed against me!”
He had thought himself cunning enough, but never imagined there was someone even more devious.
He looked so miserable, yet that person never showed their face and made him take the entire blame—it infuriated him.
He had been so excited looking at the peaches, thinking he was about to strike it rich.
But in contrast, he was like an innocent youth, sold out and helping count the money.
The angrier he got, the more he raged.
He only had a sip of the soup, yet took the entire blame.
Now that he thought carefully, there were almost no mature peaches marked with the Divine Derivation Core symbol on the trees in that area—only fruit that looked mature.
The only explanation was someone had picked all the ripe peaches before him!
“Cursed fate!”
Chen Jing nearly fainted from anger, gasping several times before calming down.
“THE…..”
“But there’s a loophole—why use illusions to cover it up? Wouldn’t it be simpler to just leave like I did?”
Unless…
That person couldn’t escape the Peach Orchard swiftly through the Celestial River.
Meaning……………
“That person is still inside the Peach Orchard!” Chen Jing sat up abruptly, then collapsed again from pain.
Thinking this through, Chen Jing’s face darkened.
With all this, he probably took the blame even more completely, clearing that person’s name.
But he nearly lost his life!
“Damn it!”
He had to find out who that person was.
Just then, hurried footsteps came from afar.
“Chen Jing! Chen Jing, where are you?”
It was his teammates.
When they saw Chen Jing’s miserable state, their faces changed immediately, rushing over.
“My god, what happened to you?”
“Brother Chen, I’ve never seen you this battered. What on earth did you run into?!”
Chen Jing:”…..”
“Cursed fate!” He felt even angrier.
Under their relentless questioning, Chen Jing had no choice but to recount everything in detail.
After listening, the teammates exchanged looks.
Qiu Bin was incredulous, “You’re saying… someone beat you to it and then pinned the blame on you?”
He looked like he didn’t believe Chen Jing was messing with him.
Royna doubted, “How could there be another candidate who entered the Peach Orchard before us? Aren’t we supposed to be the fastest? And if what Brother Chen says is true, then how did that person get in before you?”
Chen Jing’s face was dark as he accepted the painkillers Lin Mo handed him.
“Why would I lie? That’s what happened, and look at me like this……”
His undeniable condition convinced them.
Brother Chen took the fall this badly, so it must have been a candidate.
They all began guessing, “Could there be another way into the Peach Orchard besides the Celestial River?”
“Ah? What else could it be?”
Lin Mo pondered for a moment, then shook her head slowly, “I don’t think it’s through any other path.”
She explained, “If that person could freely enter and exit the Peach Orchard like Chen Jing, there’d be no need for the illusions. Obviously, it’s because leaving isn’t easy for that person, so they had to hide their movements. To buy time before being discovered.”
Everyone thought it over and realized it made sense.
“Wait!” Qiu Bin suddenly clapped his hands, “The key is who got there first. No matter why they used illusions, we can confirm they arrived before Brother Chen.”
“So…………… could it be those Celestial River Navy guys?”
Someone caught on, “You mean… Yuelun Yuan?”
They all knew Yuelun Yuan chose the Celestial River Navy, so naturally, candidates reminded them of him.
“Not bad, it sounds reasonable. Though Brother Chen was the first candidate to enter through the Celestial River, he might not have been the first to arrive.”
“If those Celestial River Navy had some shortcut… He could easily have taken a shortcut.”
The key point was, the Navy patrols the Celestial River regularly, moving in and out at will.
It was very likely he discovered the Peach Orchard earlier than Chen Jing.
This guess seemed the only logical explanation.
The answer was becoming clear.
“So… was it Yuelun Yuan and his group?”
But Lin Mo and Chen Jing exchanged a look.
Chen Jing held his still aching ribs and asked, “Has the First Place of the Fourth Star Ring appeared yet?”
Lin Mo shook her head slowly, clearly thinking the same thing.
She also suspected Su Fu.
Chen Jing went into the Peach Orchard and took the blame for a major mess, and now everyone was naturally guessing it was Yuelun Yuan……
All of this was just too smooth.
“This feeling…… too familiar.” Chen Jing murmured, as if he himself had done something similar—carefully setting up coincidences to guide others to the conclusions he wanted them to reach.
The déjà vu was strong.
***
In the Peach Orchard, Su Fu and Sixth Fairy Maiden stood quietly side by side, each holding a bamboo basket filled with peaches.
The task was done, now just waiting for the Great Fairy to return.
“Should be soon…” Su Fu looked to the sky.
If those peaches could fool the General, chances were they could fool the Great Fairy too.
Just then, a golden light flashed on the horizon.
The Great Fairy’s figure approached swiftly.
She landed before them, her robes flowing, face still breathtakingly beautiful, but the shadow of worry between her brows seemed to have lifted somewhat.
Seeing this, Su Fu understood—the Great Fairy had clearly gone to check the safety of that Nine-Thousand-Year Peach, and the result must have pleased her.
She secretly breathed easier, ‘No problems found, that’s good.’
The Great Fairy glanced at their bamboo baskets, saw the plump peaches, and visibly relaxed.
“Not bad,” she said more gently, “Since the peaches are ready, the most important thing now is the Peach Banquet.”
“You two come with me to join the other sisters first.”
Su Fu and Sixth Fairy Maiden nodded quickly and followed closely behind the Great Fairy.
The Great Fairy first gathered several other sisters, then headed deep into Yaochi toward the Fairy Palace.
‘The Peach Banquet is about to begin,’ Su Fu thought to herself, ‘Looks like the big brawl is about to start.’
She wondered how the Great Fairy planned to find that thief, but it no longer concerned her.
A thrown pot is like spilled water.
The next focus would definitely be the Peach Banquet.
If she guessed right, that Nine-Thousand-Year Peach was the theme of this banquet.
The Great Fairy was sure to share it with the big shots there.
But once the banquet began, they’d surely notice the peach’s problem, and once exposed—
“Tsk, tsk, there will definitely be a huge chaotic fight.”
Those abnormalities would likely be bloodied and battered, after all, both the Great Fairy and Celestial River General wanted the peach for themselves.
How could others not covet that Nine-Thousand-Year Peach?
Maybe they wouldn’t even wait for the sharing moment and would fight openly and secretly beforehand.
No matter how they fought, it would be over a fake Nine-Thousand-Year Peach.
At that point, she might seize the opportunity to wipe them out while they were exhausted.
Then, the exam score would be hers for sure.
“It’s not just the abnormalities in the exam…… Candidates will also pull out all the stops during this banquet.”
She couldn’t help but sigh, “This is the real big brawl—competition between candidates, candidates and abnormalities trying to kill each other, and power struggles among abnormalities……”
Most likely, “It’ll be so intense some heads might literally roll.”
So, Su Fu felt she needed to prepare more, or else the boat might be overturned in the gutter.
She thought of the two divine beasts, Qingluan and Cai Feng.
They were perfect allies—first, they had nothing to do with the peach dispute and wouldn’t attract the big shots’ attention, so they wouldn’t get caught up in the danger.
This meant they could avoid the most perilous vortex.
Second, they held very high status in Yaochi, even the Great Fairy showed them some respect.
Especially since they represented auspiciousness and good luck, Su Fu could stick close to them and gain some buffs.
Most importantly—
They could fly, soaring swiftly across the entire Celestial Court, and could escape quickly at critical moments, no matter what went wrong.
Plus, they could appear at the Peach Banquet naturally, with no one suspicious of their presence.
She absolutely had to latch onto them.
The key question was how to do that?
Maybe…………they like eating peaches?
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