Chapter 617: Blood Tree Appears, Great Chaos Arrives

Hiss!

Xu Xiaoshou gasped sharply.

This fluid and seamless operation truly shocked him to the core.

"Aren't they all... Tai Xu?"

Xu Xiaoshou's face turned pale green.

He finally understood that even among Tai Xu, there were enormous differences.

It was just like how he could rely on his innate cultivation, combined with his array of passive skills, to hold off a Wang Zuo.

Even if he couldn't kill the enemy, self-preservation was certainly not an issue.

This also showed that on this continent, cultivation truly didn't decide everything.

Yet, conversely, most people were often constrained by the concept of cultivation.

For true powerhouses of the era, cultivation was merely one of their tools, not the entirety.

This was especially true among Tai Xu.

"Ah..."

Xu Xiaoshou's thoughts shifted, and suddenly, he felt a sense of relief.

Perhaps that level of realm was still very distant for him.

But for the upper echelons—those who truly wielded the heavenly dao as their pieces—Tai Xu were absolutely numerous.

Yet, despite the many Tai Xu, the Jian Xian lineage, passed down for tens of thousands of years, had at most only seven in each generation.

Wasn't that enough to explain something?

Pfft!

A fountain of blood shot skyward from Cen Qiao Fu's headless body.

Gou Wuyue pinned him in place with his sword, his eyes unblinking as he stared at Ba Zun An.

The scene was clearly provocative, no matter who saw it.

Anyone would be burning with rage!

"Are you trying to provoke me?" Ba Zun An didn't even glance sideways.

Even though Gou Wuyue had drawn his sword to shatter Hai Tang Er's domain, severely wounding her, then destroyed the storyteller's external avatar with another strike, and finally beheaded Cen Qiao Fu on the spot...

He acted as if nothing had happened, completely unfazed.

Disappointment flashed in Gou Wuyue's eyes.

"How much have you changed..." he sighed inwardly.

If it were the Ba Zun An of the past, with his righteous nature, he probably would have drawn his sword the moment Hai Tang Er was injured.

But now...

The changes in the eight-fingered man before him were so vast that he seemed like a completely different person from decades ago.

Gou Wuyue even doubted for a moment if this was still the same man—the untamed Eighth Jian Xian who couldn't tolerate even a speck of dust in his eyes?

"First Seat."

Hai Tang Er, her clothes stained red with blood, appeared at Ba Zun An's side and placed a hand on his shoulder.

"We should go," he said softly.

The situation in the field had shifted too quickly.

Cen Qiao Fu had barely suggested holding the rear so that he could take the First Seat and leave first.

But in the blink of an eye, Cen Qiao Fu had been captured by Gou Wuyue.

Even though a Tai Xu body couldn't die on the spot, Gou Wuyue's strength was far beyond everyone's expectations.

From the beginning until now, he had struck no more than three times!

Yet, most of the Sheng Nu members were already gravely wounded.

The tide had turned, and their momentum had collapsed.

If they continued fighting, even if their First Seat could match Gou Wuyue, what would the consequences be?

Gou Wuyue could strike freely.

But Hai Tang Er knew that if their First Seat truly went all out, he would be the first to suffer injury!

"Go?"

Ba Zun An's shoulder was nearly dislocated by Hai Tang Er's grip, but his body didn't budge an inch. He spoke coldly: "Does he look like he'd let us leave?"

Gou Wuyue remained silent, his gaze sharp as a hawk's, fixed on the remaining Sheng Nu members.

Everyone felt an immense pressure.

Clearly, the one in white hadn't moved...

Clearly, only Gou Wuyue had acted...

But all his words and actions seemed to state an undeniable fact: "You are all surrounded by me, Gou Wuyue!"

"Let go," Ba Zun An said in a low voice.

"But..."

Hai Tang Er didn't release him—he couldn't let the First Seat throw his life away.

"I said, let go!"

Ba Zun An's eyes narrowed, and the void seemed to tremble with it. Strands of white mist rose from the ground, filling the air with an ominous haze.

"Uh!"

Hai Tang Er's face wrinkled in pain as blood seeped from his hand.

He quickly let go and stood aside, not daring to approach again.

"Do I need to say it a third time?"

Ba Zun An's voice turned utterly cold, his gaze locked on Gou Wuyue. After a moment of intense silence, he thundered: "Let go!"

The void shattered with a boom.

The white mist from the ground seeped into the emptiness. In that instant, all the white-clad figures' expressions changed dramatically, and they began to panic.

Even though they were far away, everyone felt a searing pain across their bodies, as if thousands of needles were threading through their flesh, about to burst out.

Pfft, pfft, pfft...

Some in white couldn't hold on and spat out blood.

Hai Tang Er turned his gaze to Gou Wuyue and saw his sword-holding hand trembling violently, with white sword mist spreading over it.

Only then did he realize that Ba Zun An's three commands of "let go" weren't directed at him, but at Gou Wuyue.

"The Art of Observing Swords..."

Gou Wuyue's pupils contracted sharply, recognizing the white sword mist for what it was.

Sword intent!

The unique creation of Ba Zun An's "Guan Jian Dian," which not only allowed one to observe all spiritual swords in the world to strengthen oneself, but also to see through a Jian Xian's body and wound enemies with the naked eye!

"Can't hold back already?"

Gou Wuyue felt a sense of relief in his heart and chuckled softly: "I thought you'd wait until I'd slain all your people before choosing to fight me, but now..."

With a sharp hiss, the sound of Nu Lan's sword was pulled from Cen Qiao Fu's body.

Gou Wuyue spun his sword, creating afterimages, and with surging spiritual energy, he flung Cen Qiao Fu away.

Pfft!

Without the sword's damage and the Tai Xu power suppressing him, Cen Qiao Fu's head regenerated in an instant, but he still couldn't help spitting out a mouthful of blood.

His face was full of determination, but his eyes burned with utter resolve.

"Hai Tang Er!"

He shouted abruptly, saying no more.

But everyone knew—he was unwilling.

Earlier, without preparation, he had been taken down in a single round. Now, he still intended to honor that promise.

Let Hai Tang Er take Ba Zun An and go first, while he held the rear!

Crack.

Cen Qiao Fu pulled a leafless, withered branch from his pocket, snapped it in half, and swallowed one piece.

"The Yin Branch of the Blood Tree?"

Hai Tang Er cried out in shock: "Qiao Fu, no!"

But Cen Qiao Fu gestured for silence.

His mind was made up.

This battle had to be his.

The First Seat could fight, but not now!

Crack, crack...

The sound of cracking bones echoed lightly as Cen Qiao Fu's body twisted slightly, as if undergoing intense changes inside.

Then, he hunched over, and his back shirt tore open as a dark, blood-red branch burst forth.

Cen Qiao Fu's already aged face instantly lost all color.

What little flesh remained on his body seemed to be drained away in an instant, along with the swelling and contracting of the blood branch on his back, leaving him as a mere bag of bones.

Whoosh!

The blood branch, now nourished, grew wildly. In the blink of an eye, its canopy expanded into a massive blood tree, rooting itself into Cen Qiao Fu's back.

Cen Qiao Fu's mind was clearly fogging over. His voice was low and hoarse, but he still managed to force out a word:

"Go..."

Ba Zun An's eyes flickered, his gaze narrowing as his four fingers clenched tightly.

"First Seat!"

Hai Tang Er's voice was filled with urgency.

"One of the nine ancestral trees... the Blood Tree branch?"

Gou Wuyue watched Cen Qiao Fu's transformation in surprise, then looked at Ba Zun An with a mocking smile.

"When did the Eighth Jian Xian, who once dominated the world, fall to the point of needing his subordinates to fight to the death while he chooses to cling to survival?"

"Gou Wuyue..." Ba Zun An's eyes flashed with cold light as he stepped forward.

"I apologize."

Hai Tang Er ignored everything and struck the back of Ba Zun An's head with a fierce palm, implanting the "Mi Jin Flower Seed" directly into his skull.

"Me?"

Ba Zun An's vision blurred, and his body slumped downward.

"Flower blooms in half the realm, nine seas lost in illusion!"

Hai Tang Er caught Ba Zun An's unguarded, unconscious form with his left hand.

With a flick of his sleeve, the ground trembled with a hum, and vibrant flower buds bloomed, instantly draining the earth and making it barren and cracked.

A wind blew, and hazy flower mist obscured everyone's vision.

Hai Tang Er, holding the unconscious Ba Zun An, vanished from sight.

"Damn it!"

"Attack! Don't let these bastards escape—activate the Fu Guo Tian Zhao array!"

"Get into position! With Senior Gou Wuyue here, the Flower Fragrance Homeland is no threat. We just need to hold our ground..."

Boom!

An explosion drowned out the white-clad group's frantic discussions.

Amid the swirling flower mist, a faint blue figure streaked with blood shot past them.

"This..."

Everyone was stunned.

Faint blue...

In the entire field, aside from that cluster in the flower sea, only Senior Gou Wuyue had that color!

Had Senior Gou Wuyue been sent flying?

Whoosh!

Another streak of blood light shot out.

As everyone's pupils dilated, they saw Cen Qiao Fu, empowered by the Blood Tree, moving at an inhuman speed that no one could react to. He soared into the air, raising the Pan Xian Axe high.

"Holy God, Severance!"

With one axe strike, the Fu Guo Tian Zhao array, which could rapidly regenerate even after Ba Zun An's attacks, was split in two on the spot!

Then...

Rumble, rumble, rumble...

Countless light points burst forth.

The Fu Guo Tian Zhao array had been shattered!

"Holy shit!"

"What kind of attack power is that?"

"That Blood Tree... are you kidding? It's just a branch of the Blood Tree. Even if it boosts a spirit refiner's offense, defense, speed, and combat awareness, how could it make someone this terrifying?"

"This, this, this... could it be because the one empowered is an enraged Tai Xu?"

"Holy shit! Look up there!!"

The white-clad group's words grew increasingly tinged with terror as time passed.

Because they noticed that Cen Qiao Fu, who had just shattered the Fu Guo Tian Zhao array with his axe, had lowered his head.

His eyes were blood-red and utterly inhuman, like those of a ghostly beast.

After a brief stare, Cen Qiao Fu raised his axe.

Swish, swish, swish, swish, swish...

His hands blurred into shadows.

Everyone's vision blurred for a moment, and by the time they reacted, the tens of thousands of axe lights he had unleashed were already upon them!

"Damn it..."

In that instant, everyone's hearts turned cold.

An enraged Tai Xu, enhanced by the Blood Tree and wielding the Pan Xian Axe...

Who in the field could withstand this attack?

"How dare you!"

In the crisis, Gou Wuyue's figure reappeared.

Those with sharp eyes could see that his back was already soaked in blood.

Clearly, in the moment the flower mist rose, even Gou Wuyue, one of the Seven Jian Xian, had been caught off guard.

Though Cen Qiao Fu had seemed to fall in a single round earlier...

A Tai Xu was still a Tai Xu.

Even without the Blood Tree's boost, in that brief daze, Cen Qiao Fu had nearly taken Gou Wuyue's life.

"Sword Net!"

With the situation critical, Gou Wuyue didn't hesitate.

He swiftly drew the suspended famed sword into the air. As its Qing Mo shadow merged with Nu Lan's sound, thousands of intersecting sword lights erupted from the ground in an instant.

In the blink of an eye, the sword lights intercepted the tens of thousands of axe shadows.

But in that delay, Gou Wuyue's unguarded front was exposed to Cen Qiao Fu's axe blade.

Swoosh!

Cen Qiao Fu let out a non-human shout.

Before anyone could react, his figure dissipated on the spot and reformed behind Gou Wuyue.

Boom!

A massive cross-shaped axe light spanned several li of void.

A black hole replaced everything!

Pop!

The expected spray of blood didn't appear.

Gou Wuyue's body, struck from below, shattered into glittering fragments and scattered.

"Illusion Sword Technique!"

The crowd below watched in heart-pounding terror, unable to hold back their exclamations. Their hearts raced.

He's not dead!

Senior Gou Wuyue isn't dead!

Thank goodness...

Wait, what thank goodness? Of course Senior Gou Wuyue isn't dead!

He's a Jian Xian!

The battlefield was intense.

Gou Wuyue's body didn't pause for a second. As his illusion shattered and reformed, he was already holding his famed sword in reverse, thrusting it fiercely toward Cen Qiao Fu's crown.

"Nail Soul Sword!"

Buzz...

A wave of green ripples spread through the void. Cen Qiao Fu, as if entranced, didn't react in time, and his head was pierced straight through from crown to chin.

Yet, no blood gushed out.

His flesh had already been entirely sacrificed to the Blood Tree.

Roar!!!

With a hoarse and rasping cry, the famed sword Nu Lan's light dimmed.

Then, the Blood Tree on Cen Qiao Fu's back grew wildly again.

The branches that shot out not only absorbed the sword's power but also wrapped around its blade, trying to coil onto Gou Wuyue's body.

Gou Wuyue hurriedly shook his sword free, shattering the branches and withdrawing it.

The devouring power of the Blood Tree, one of the nine ancestral trees, was terrifyingly evident.

This was clear from how even a Tai Xu like Cen Qiao Fu couldn't withstand it.

"Number Thirty-Three!"

After drawing his sword, Gou Wuyue didn't linger in battle but shouted loudly.

He narrowed his eyes, as if sensing something, and his figure vanished into the distance.

"Stay... here..."

Cen Qiao Fu murmured unconsciously. As his foot touched the ground to lunge forward, he was met with a powerful mid-air whip kick, sending him crashing into a deep pit.

"Your opponent is me."

Number Thirty-Three's figure appeared out of nowhere.

He glanced down at his right leg, riddled with holes from the Blood Tree branches during the attack, and marveled at it.

If he were human, if he had blood...

He would have died after that kick!

Roar!!!

After Cen Qiao Fu's beast-like roar, he pressed both hands to the ground.

Crack, crack, crack, crack, crack...

The earth shattered and split.

The Blood Tree took root and grew explosively in an instant, turning the surrounding area into a dense forest of blood trees.

The scene in the forest suddenly became gruesome...

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh!

Bang, bang, bang!

Ahhh—

The blood trees whipped about madly.

Any white-clad figure who reacted too slowly was pierced by the branches and instantly drained into a corpse amid screams.

"Damn it..."

Number Thirty-Three watched the horrifying scene below and fell silent for a long while before uttering a phrase he'd learned from the human world.

This sight was nothing short of spectacular—and chilling!

Even as a Tian Ji puppet, the thought of entering that area to fight the Tai Xu monster with the Blood Tree on its back made his scalp tingle.

"Huh, do I even have a scalp?"

With a crouch, Number Thirty-Three kicked off the void and dove downward.

To rescue the white-clad from peril—that was the mission of us Tian Ji puppets!