Chapter 480: Forbidden Fruit

“Let’s place the Garden of Eden right here.”

Qin Ziwen had Mogu, who was behind him, put down the Heart of the World. He took out a Card. The Card touched the surface of the blue orb, and in an instant, the massive orb was sucked directly into the Card.

The colorful Card in his hand began to glow.

[This building will occupy a 30×30 meter area. Please confirm the space is sufficient.]

Qin Ziwen’s fingers trembled, but his movements didn’t stop as he flicked the Card from his hand.

A brilliant light enveloped the area before him, illuminating his face.

Qin Ziwen’s eyelids drooped slightly. ‘Considering its footprint, the Garden of Eden isn’t actually that large. It wasn’t just the Garden of Eden, either. It seemed that neither the Abyssal Ruins nor the Eternal Hunting Tomb—both Miracle Buildings—had a very large footprint.’

When the light faded, a gigantic apple tree came into view.

Its trunk was so thick it would take five people to encircle it, and it was nearly a hundred meters tall.

Its dense canopy blotted out the sky, and its coverage extended far beyond the area the Garden of Eden occupied.

Below the apple tree was a lush green lawn, surrounded by a low, white picket fence.

The fence was only as high as an average person’s calf; one could step over it with a single stride.

[Wonder: Garden of Eden]

[Miracle: Forbidden Fruit]

[Current Growth Progress: 0/100,000]

Qin Ziwen withdrew his Insight.

‘This Forbidden Fruit is interesting. I’ve heard the name Garden of Eden before. In myths and legends, the term is intrinsically linked to the Forbidden Fruit.’

Stepping into the Garden of Eden, Qin Ziwen placed his hand on the trunk of the central apple tree. The trunk was warm like jade and felt like skin to the touch. He could even feel a slow, rhythmic breathing from within the tree, just a palm’s width away.

‘This tree is alive!?’

Qin Ziwen was a little surprised. He focused his senses for a moment and gained a deeper understanding of the Garden of Eden’s abilities.

Every so often, the Tree of Life in the Garden of Eden would produce a Forbidden Fruit. Consuming it would allow one to break through their current limits and ascend to a higher level of existence.

There were two ways to accelerate the creation of the Forbidden Fruit: 1) Burying a life form within the Garden of Eden, or 2) Nurturing a new life to be born within the Home.

The description of the Forbidden Fruit was very cryptic.

It only said that it would allow one to break through their current limits, but the specific effects weren’t explained in detail.

But from the details, Qin Ziwen still deduced that this fruit could likely help an Extraordinary Life break through the barrier and achieve godhood.

Qin Ziwen looked up at the canopy, trying to see through it to what lay within.

Of course, his main goal was to see if there were any Forbidden Fruits.

‘I wonder what the Forbidden Fruit that Adam and Eve once stole even looked like.’

However, the distance was too great, the leaves were too dense, and the Home’s environment was dim. His eyes started to ache, but he still couldn’t make out anything of note.

Suddenly, the soil beneath his feet loosened. A thick root, like an upturned palm, broke through the earth and began carrying him upward.

Qin Ziwen was startled for a moment, but he quickly composed himself.

‘It’s just that the Garden of Eden’s Tree of Life is alive, that’s all. It’s not the only living building in the Home. There are two others lying around next door.’

The root carried him steadily upward, farther and farther from the ground, bringing him closer to the canopy above.

Each leaf was as broad and thick as a roof tile, dark and densely overlapping.

Just as he was about to collide with one, Qin Ziwen instinctively raised his arm.

But his vision blurred, and it felt as if he had passed through something. When he lowered his arm and looked back, his surroundings were gone. He had arrived in a mysterious space.

Light and shadow flowed around him. Against a white background, colorful bubbles floated about. The amazing thing was that the bubbles’ colors weren’t fixed; they changed along with the scenes transforming within them.

The nearest bubble drifted over. Inside was a miniature scene, and it felt like he was watching glasses-free 3D.

A Fishman stood on the bow of the Lost Home, the deck behind it packed densely with other Fishmen.

It held a Long Spear in its hand.

The spear looked familiar to Qin Ziwen. He took a closer look, then froze.

‘Isn’t that my goddamn Golden Snake Elephant Dance?!’

The Fishman waved the Golden Snake Elephant Dance, and the Lost Home surged forward, shattering a giant whale in its path.

Then the scene shifted, and the bubble’s color changed from azure blue to pale gold. The setting also switched to within the Home, where Qin Ziwen saw himself.

He saw himself holding a crown and placing it on the Fishman’s head, even patting its shoulder. Below them, Lorne and Luo Sea were looking up at the Fishman with jealousy and envy.

The corner of Qin Ziwen’s mouth twitched as he watched.

‘What the hell…’

‘Still, having ambition is a good thing.’

‘At least in its dream, the crown was still bestowed by me.’

Qin Ziwen looked at the other bubbles and made an interesting discovery: the bubbles were the dreams of all the inhabitants of the Home.

During the day, their physical shells protected them and concealed their actions.

But in their dreams, their true natures were unleashed, and Qin Ziwen saw many interesting visions.

Suddenly, a faint speck of light materialized from nothing in the air not far away.

Inside was a hazy will.

Qin Ziwen looked closer and saw that it was a small Aphid Spider.

This Aphid Spider was barely a hatchling, its eight legs still unable to run fast. But in its dream, mountains of meat were piled high.

It dove headfirst into a mountain of meat, utterly delighted.

In the distance, at the core of this space, a translucent speck of light materialized from nothing.

The speck of light twisted and stretched, taking the form of a snake.

The moment he saw it, Qin Ziwen was overcome with an impulse—an impulse to swallow it in a single gulp.

The snake seemed to notice the human nearby. Its translucent body began to reflect brilliant, variegated colors.

It was breathtakingly beautiful, and just as dangerous.

Qin Ziwen understood. ‘This must be the Forbidden Fruit!’

He extended his hand, and the Forbidden Fruit slowly descended into his palm. It coiled into a ball, and when it finally settled, it had the shape of a snake fruit.

[Miracle Creation] Forbidden Fruit (A miracle fruit born from the Tree of Life. It can help you pierce that membrane. Do you also want to… take a bite of the forbidden fruit?)

Qin Ziwen resisted the urge to swallow it.

This thing was strange. The moment he saw it, an impulse had risen from the depths of his heart, as if a voice were whispering in his ear, tempting him to swallow this Forbidden Fruit.

“A Miracle Creation… not an Extraordinary Fruit, nor a Marvel.”

This Forbidden Fruit could help one pierce the membrane and ascend from Extraordinary to godhood, but the prerequisite was reaching Five-Star Extraordinary. Currently, the only one in the Home who met this condition was Mogu.

“I want to leave.”

As soon as Qin Ziwen spoke, the space around him shifted. When he came to his senses, he was back on the lawn of the Garden of Eden.

“How did I get out?” Qin Ziwen asked Mogu, who was behind him.

Mogu paused, startled, then said cautiously, “My Lord, you’ve been standing in the same spot the whole time. You just suddenly closed your eyes.”

Qin Ziwen fell silent.

He looked down, raised his right hand, and opened his palm.

In the center of his palm lay a translucent, raspberry-sized snake fruit.

The moment the snake fruit was exposed, he felt several fervent gazes uncontrollably drawn to his palm.

Qin Ziwen gave it a light toss, throwing it to Mogu.

Mogu caught it instinctively.

Qin Ziwen’s voice followed. “Eat it. Breaking through to godhood sooner will give us another trump card.”