Chapter 42: Violent Girl

No sooner had the words fallen than Xu Xiaoshou saw the little girl fling out her tightly clenched hands, and dark particles instantly spread out in a dense wave.

What is this?

Xu Xiaoshou's spiritual energy erupted within him, instantly repelling the black particles. Only then did he realize.

Seeds?

How bizarre—to fight with seeds?

He was momentarily puzzled, looking down to see the seeds scattered all over the ground...

No, that's not right!

Xian Tian... wood attribute?

He glanced at Mu Zixi, and in his mind, the image resurfaced of that towering ancient tree that had launched the giant watermelon into the waiting area.

Seeds, ancient trees...

Xu Xiaoshou's pupils contracted. Could it be...

"Yes!"

Mu Zixi seemed to know what he was thinking. She narrowed her eyes and smiled faintly, clapping her hands.

"Little tree, rise!"

Charge!

In the blink of an eye, dozens of ancient trees shot up from the ground, smashing through the arena barrier and sending Xu Xiaoshou flying.

Swoosh!

Blood sprayed through the air.

Xu Xiaoshou felt a chilling sensation in his lower body. The terrifying impact of the ancient trees had nearly shattered his spine, almost killing him on the spot.

I knew it...

Xu Xiaoshou groaned in pain as he tumbled through the air. Who could have guessed this at the start?

Everyone else fights with flashing blades and swords, but this little girl uses seeds!

"An Xian Tian-level ancient tree, with impact force... this powerful?!"

Forcibly regaining control of his body in mid-air, Xu Xiaoshou hurriedly summoned his black sword to carry him away.

But to his surprise, a thick vine whipped up and wrapped around his body, yanking him down violently.

Damn it?!

Xu Xiaoshou was going crazy. This was the fatal flaw of close combat—getting hit with a combo right from the start!

Before he could react, everything went dark, and he couldn't see a thing.

What happened?

Xu Xiaoshou was completely baffled.

...

The one in the midst of it was confused, but the spectators saw it clearly.

The audience's attention was entirely on the ancient trees, unlike his.

The moment Xu Xiaoshou was sent flying, the array formed by the ancient trees below shifted instantly, leaving the center completely open.

Then, a thick vine from one of the ancient trees shot out and dragged him straight into the array.

Everything proceeded according to plan.

Mu Zixi clenched her small hand and swung it fiercely.

With a thunderous boom, all the ancient trees' trunks collided together, merging into one, leaving only their crowns swaying gracefully.

The air fell silent...

Everyone's eyelids twitched, as if they could distinctly hear the sound of Xu Xiaoshou's bones being crushed.

"This little girl is way too ruthless!"

"My goodness, she looks like an angel when she smiles, but she's merciless in a fight..."

"Tsk tsk, who would have thought you'd be like this, Mu Shimei... No, you're Mu Mogui!"

After the ancient trees were forcibly merged, they formed a massive super ancient tree as thick as a dozen people embracing. Xu Xiaoshou was nowhere to be seen, as if he'd become its nourishment.

"Hee hee."

Mu Zixi seemed to smile even more joyfully. Such a thick tree just looked adorable.

She suddenly turned and dashed to the edge of the barrier.

What was she up to?

The question popped into everyone's minds, and even Xiao Qixiu's pupils shrank, sensing something amiss.

"Oh ho!"

The little girl smiled like an angel and clapped her small hands, shouting sweetly:

"Explode!"

The air went silent for another second.

Boom!

A massive mushroom cloud erupted into the sky.

The ancient trees exploded, blasting a huge crater in the arena. Even Xiao Qixiu, caught off guard, was flung out of the barrier by the shockwave.

He quickly enveloped himself in spiritual energy to stabilize his form, hovering in the air.

Hiss~

Looking back at the arena, this middle-aged man, along with the audience, drew in sharp breaths.

The ancient tree that had engulfed Xu Xiaoshou turned to dust in the explosion, scattering outward.

As soon as it hit the ground, it took root again, sprouting into a massive quantity of seeds that began to germinate.

"This, this, this... This doesn't give anyone a chance to live!"

"My heavens, is it this violent? Even if Xu Xiaoshou survives, can he handle the next attack?"

On the arena, Mu Zixi, having completed her explosive art, furrowed her brow slightly.

She knew her strike might not be enough to defeat an Xian Tian-level physical body, so she'd amped up the power.

Even the final explosion made her afraid of getting caught in it.

To her surprise, through the tree seed she'd secretly planted on Xu Xiaoshou, she could still detect his life force.

He's not dead yet!

"Is this Xu Xiaoshou some kind of cockroach..."

Mu Zixi grumbled to herself. Through that parasitic tree seed, she could clearly sense the surging, endless vitality within Xu Xiaoshou.

"Hmm, maybe I can try that move?"

As the mushroom cloud finally dissipated—and thankfully, Mu Zixi hadn't dared to get too close—Xu Xiaoshou relied on his "unceasing vitality" to recover somewhat in a short time.

Even so, he was covered in blood, with many bones shattered.

This explosion was definitely more intense than Liu Zhen's strike back then. Luckily, it wasn't from the inside out, or Xu Xiaoshou probably wouldn't have been able to get up.

"Too strong, Xian Tian..."

First, there was Chao Qingteng's ice sword, and now Mu Zixi's ancient trees. Xu Xiaoshou truly envied this innate attribute power—it was incredibly strong!

If he had that kind of power himself, how could he be limited to close combat?

Though he didn't have many long-range moves, Xu Xiaoshou didn't rush forward immediately. Instead, he stood his ground.

The two seemed locked in a standoff, and the audience was getting anxious.

"Is Xu Xiaoshou crazy? Why isn't he attacking? Waiting for the ancient trees to sprout?"

Indeed, on the surface, both were still, but the seeds from the explosion had already hit the ground and were blanketing the entire arena in an instant.

It could be said that Mu Zixi now held all the territorial advantage.

Wood barrier!

"Xu Xiaoshou, take this!"

Mu Zixi didn't want to wait any longer. She clapped her hands again, and the tree seeds burst open as ancient trees surged up.

Charge!

Ancient trees erupted from all directions—not just a dozen this time. A rough count showed at least a hundred, and they were still multiplying!

The audience couldn't bear to watch. This wave would leave Xu Xiaoshou, even with his Xian Tian-level body, maimed or worse.

One wrong move, and he'd lose his head.

"Hmm..."

"What's that?"

"Is that a sword sheath Xu Xiaoshou pulled out?"

Everyone curiously watched.

As the ancient trees rose, Xu Xiaoshou seemed to have grown extra eyes, darting and weaving through them with the agility of a monkey.

In a narrow gap, ensuring there were no ancient tree seeds on the ground, he actually drew out a sword sheath.

"Be careful."

Since his opponent warned him every time, Xu Xia Xiaoshou returned the favor.

As his words fell, the seeds on the ground and the formed ancient trees all began to tremble, as if out of control.

Xu Xiaoshou closed his eyes. In that moment, he seemed to return to last night.

How deep the courtyard, how far the sword intent?

Mu Zixi's eyes widened. She couldn't tell where the sword intent filling the air was coming from.

Was it Xu Xiaoshou's sword?

The seeds on the ground?

Or...

Myself?

Mu Zixi felt her idea was ridiculous, but she could clearly sense sword intent rising from her own head.

Could it be that I'm actually Xu Xiaoshou's sword?

The little girl shook her head, using her twin ponytails to shake the absurd thought out of her mind.