Explosions echoed throughout the orchard. Black flames shot into the sky, burning the sacred trees that had grown for hundreds of years. The smell of smoke and ashes filled the air. Figures of rebels in black rushed through the palace walls like demons in the dark.
Princess Meilin waved her arms, sending out the power of the Divine Stream Fruit to try and put out the fire, but the water droplets that shot out evaporated as soon as they touched the black flames.
"It won't work!" Xian Lan cried out in frustration as she used the Pure Wind Fruit to send out a stream of wind, hoping to blow the flames away, but instead, it only made the fire burn even more intense.
"This… is no ordinary fire!" Princess Meilin gritted her teeth and looked around.
Prince Xiao Yang and Prince Li Cheng led their armies into battle. Swords and spears clashed, sparking as they howled from both sides. The enemies that had been powered by the Forbidden Fruit were unusually strong. They moved faster and had greater durability than ordinary humans.
"Kill them all! This palace must be ours!" the rebel leader roared.
Xiao Yang charged at the enemy with a sword coated with the power of Shadow Grape. His eyes saw the weakness of the enemy and struck with precision. The bodies of the rebel warriors fell one by one, but there were still too many to deal with easily.
Li Cheng tightened his sword and saw some people who had been pierced through their chests standing up again. Their skin was pale, but their eyes were bright red.
"Watch out! They are recovering from the Blood Life Fruit!" Li An shouted from the back.
Weng Qing used the power of the Thunder Mango to swing his sword, but no matter how hard he attacked, the enemy would still recover. Yang Sheng himself was facing the same situation.
"This is unkillable!" Yang Sheng cursed and jumped back.
Li An frowned and quickly calculated, "The black flames and their recovery power must have something to do with it. The power of these forbidden fruits may enhance each other!"
"If we still don't have a way to stop them…" Prince Li Cheng breathed heavily. "… The orchard will soon be destroyed, and the palace will fall into their hands."
In the midst of the chaos, Punya stood at the edge of the orchard. Seeing everything that was happening with panic eyes, the burning flames, the fallen trees, and the blood spilling all over the ground, her heart was beating fast.
'We might be the only ones who can stop this...'
She took a deep breath, using her special power to sense the power of the surrounding fruits. Images of colorful energy appeared in her mind like a curtain of light. She began to see some connections...
"There must be another fruit that can stop their power..." She muttered to herself.
Her hands were shaking slightly, but this was not the time to hesitate. If she could create new power... Maybe they would have a chance to survive this disaster!
-
Inside the laboratory in the middle of the orchard, the sound of clashing instruments was heard as everyone was working hard to find a way to stop the black flames and the rebels' healing power.
Punya swept her gaze across the large wooden table filled with many magical fruits. Some were glowing brightly, while others were emitting a chilling aura. She tried to calm herself down, took a deep breath, and turned to Li An and Li San.
"We have to find which fruit can stop the flames!" Punya said firmly.
Li An frowned. With one hand, she opened an ancient royal palace special fruit study book, while the other hand picked up a test bottle to analyze some of its extracts.
"The black flame is a forbidden power. It must have been caused by an unnatural reaction of some fruits… If we want to extinguish it, we need to use the power of the opposite fruit."
Meiling rushed in, her hands full of rare fruits from deep within the garden.
"Here! I've brought you some fruits from Princess Lingya's secret storage!" She placed various fruits on the table.
Punya saw a fruit that looked different from the others. It was the Holy Water Fruit. It looked similar to the one the princess had used to extinguish the fire before, but this time it was more powerful. Its skin was as translucent as water droplets and shone with a sparkling glow.
"This fruit has better cleansing power… If we use it, we should be able to extinguish the fire." Punya said as she picked up the fruit, but she was still thinking.
"Just putting out the fire isn't enough. They can recover from the Blood Life Fruit. If we don't stop the recovery process, they will come back to attack us again." Li Shan warned.
Punya nodded, thinking back to the power of the fruits she had encountered before she picked it up. The Pure Water Fruit was released. It was a fruit that could temporarily cut off the power of living beings.
"If we combine the Holy Water Fruit with the Pure Water Fruit, we might be able to create a liquid that can extinguish fire and block their regeneration power!"
Princess Mei Lin and Xian Lan rushed over to help extract the power of the fruit. The two used their special abilities to accelerate the reaction. Princess Mei Lin released the pure water power towards the fruit, causing its power to flow out into a bright blue liquid, while Xian Lan used the wind power to stimulate the fusion.
Li An kept an eye on the power and stability of the substance. "Its power level is increasing... But we have to control it well. If the ingredients are not balanced, it might become an unusable substance."
Punya raised her hand. She gathered her power, felt the essence of the two fruits, and slowly fused their power together.
"I want salt."
"Salt? What are you going to do with it?" Li An asked curiously.
"Salt helps to intensify the taste. This time it should be the same. Because salt...it helps to intensify the power!"
Before Li An could argue, Li Shan handed her a cloudy white powder. "Here!"
Although it was a little, it should be enough.
When Punya sprinkled the salt, a bright blue light shone throughout the laboratory. The solution slowly turned into a transparent liquid that shimmered. Its power spread out for everyone to feel.
"It's done!" Punya said with a smile of relief.
This special liquid not only could extinguish the black flames, but it also had the power to cut off the power of the forbidden fruit, preventing the enemy from recovering from their wounds.
"Now...we must use it in battle!" Princess Meilin said resolutely.
Everyone nodded, preparing to return to the battlefield to turn the bad situation around for them once again!
--
The sound of war drums continued to echo throughout the palace courtyard, as the black flames continued to rage madly. Although the royal guards and soldiers tried to resist the rebels, with the power of the forbidden fruit, the enemies continued to recover and attack without stopping.
Punya stepped out of the stone path with a resolute gaze. A glass bottle containing a special blue glowing liquid was in her hand. This was what they had created by combining everyone's strength.
"We must use it properly!"
"Everyone! Take this liquid and use it to deal with the bad guys!" Punya shouted as she distributed the liquid to the palace warriors.
Weng Qing received the bottle of liquid first. She uncorked it and dipped her sword into the liquid before rushing into the middle of the battlefield. Her speed was as fast as lightning. Her sword was glistening with blue light.
Slap!
Weng Qing's blade slashed at a rebel warrior who had previously recovered from his wounds in an instant. But this time... there was no recovery!
"Success!" She shouted. "This liquid can cut off their recovery power!"
Hearing this, Yang Sheng and Li San quickly dipped their weapons into the liquid as well.
"Let's try it!" Yang Sheng grinned before using his spear to strike at the enemy.
Li Shan didn't hesitate, using his sword to cut through another rebel warrior's body, and immediately, black blood flowed out from the enemy's body. They screamed in pain, the power of the forbidden fruit within them was destroyed.
"The enemy is about to be defeated!"
Prince Li Cheng, Prince Xiao Yang, saw the crucial moment. They rushed forward to take down the rebel leader standing in the middle of the battlefield. He wore a shiny black armor, his eyes were cold and filled with hatred.
"Finally, I will be able to test the power of the Shadow Grape!" Xiao Yang said, before using the power of the Shadow Grape to find the enemy's weakness.
Suddenly, Xiao Yang's eyes shone with a purple light. He saw through the rebel leader's mind and saw that his weakness was "fear".
"Are you… afraid of fire?" Xiao Yang grinned.
"No way!" The rebel leader roared, but his body started to tremble.
Prince Li Cheng didn't let this opportunity slip away. He charged forward with his water power sword, and at the same moment, Weng Qing rushed over from behind. Attacked again with the sword coated with special liquid.
Slap!
The body of the rebel leader twitched. It tried to use its power to recover, but it couldn't do it anymore. Its body began to dissipate into ashes.
"We won!"
On the other side, Princess Mei Lin and Xian Lan quickly spread the special liquid throughout the garden. They used their own powers to help the solution spread faster.
Mei Lin used her water power to spray the liquid all over the battlefield, while Xian Lan used her wind power to help blow the liquid to spread to every corner.
"Phew!"
The intense black flames began to die down little by little. The howling sound of the black flames faded away, along with the disappearance of the forbidden fruit.
The palace was freed from the clutches of the rebels!
When the battle ended, everyone turned to look at Punya. Their eyes were filled with mixed feelings, surprise, admiration, and gratitude.
Prince Li Cheng walked up to her. "You saved the palace."
Xiao Yang nodded. "Your power helped us subdue the forbidden fruit."
Weng Qing placed his hand on his sword. Before bowing her head slightly to show respect, "I admit that you are the one who deserves this orchard." Punya felt a warm feeling in her heart. She was no longer an outsider. She had truly become a part of this world.