Chapter 182: with translation of chapter title

Everyone says demon beasts have long lifespans, several to dozens of times that of human cultivators of the same realm, but little do they know that the lifespan of plant-type demon beasts, i. e., tree demons, is even longer than that of animal-type demon beasts!

However, it is far harder for plants to give birth to spiritual intelligence than for demon beasts, and the speed at which that intelligence awakens is nowhere near comparable to that of demon beasts; without some opportunity or special arrangement, the probability of plant-type demon beasts appearing is absolutely much lower than that of animal-type demon beasts.

These few willow trees couldn't possibly have survived from the era of ancient cultivators to the present, could they?

"They're coming!"

Fan Sanjin let out a low shout, took a step forward, the red short robe he wore tore apart, revealing his distinctively knotted muscles, and without hesitation he swung the staff in his hand at the incoming vine.

Bang!!

A misty light burst from the staff, and at the moment it contacted the thick vine, it unleashed an unparalleled force; clearly this staff is a formidable magic treasure.

Thud, thud, thud.

Fan Sanjin retreated three steps under the tremendous impact, but that thick vine was also sent flying.

Before he could catch his breath, Fan Sanjin's expression suddenly changed.

"My magic treasure?!"

Just then, a clump of black, mud-like liquid stained the staff that appeared not insignificant, and where the liquid covered it, the flowing light on the staff dimmed and the circulating magical power became sluggish.

He felt a hint of disbelief, clearly not expecting that the liquid sprayed from the willow tree could actually contaminate a magic treasure.

But he also dared not touch that clump of liquid with his hand; he could only form a hand seal with one hand, cast a spell, and wipe away that black viscous liquid.

Even after removing it, the part of the staff that had been stained remained somewhat duller in luster compared to other areas.

This made Fan Sanjin's heart bleed.

For loose cultivators like them, gathering materials to forge a magic treasure is no easy feat, and this staff, which he had refined the longest and found most comfortable to use, made even a slight damage feel painful.

With the current damage, it would take at least several years of nourishing it with magical power and essence spirit to fully restore the treasure.

The others also had no mind to comfort Fan Sanjin.

Because as soon as that thick vine was swatted away, more vines burst from the ground, swinging to attack them.

Having witnessed the power of these vines and the special effect of their sap, the other cultivators present naturally did not stand idly by, each bringing forth their own magic treasures to meet the attack.

Qingling Xianzi flicked her jade finger, sending out a verdant, dewdrop-like bead resembling a bean, which quickly transformed into a large square seal that she smashed toward one of the vines.

Yu Ying drew a whip-shaped magic treasure from her waist, while Li Yuanfan formed a seal with his hands, and a wooden-hued flying sword behind him shot forth at his low shout.

As the only mid Golden Core cultivator present, Fei Ling, with his sword-like brows and starry eyes, wore a stern expression; his fan unfolded with a "puff" sound, emitting an earthen-yellow radiance as he swung it, stirring up a great deal of dust that condensed into a huge, sharp, and seemingly very hard earthen cone.

Watching the cultivators each produce their means, Yunhe secretly sighed.

Since everyone was taking action, he couldn't openly slack off; he quickly formed a hand seal, and as he summoned the Vermilion Bird Ring, a bright cry rang out, transforming it into a firebird that spread its wings.

Needless to say, as a fire-attribute magic treasure, the Vermilion Bird Ring appeared to be the greatest threat to these plant vines.

Following the example of Fan Sanjin's staff treasure, although everyone acted, they seemed somewhat hesitant, carefully dodging the sap that splattered when the vines broke or were shattered.

"Boom boom boom" sounds echoed continuously here.

For a moment.

Yunhe's side and the tree demon side seemed to have reached a stalemate right here.

However, Yunhe was not in a hurry.

In this operation, the most urgent is Qingling Xianzi, while the highest cultivation base belongs to mid Golden Core cultivator Fei Ling.

Why are they not anxious while I am?

He merely extended his divine sense a little at a time, while employing the Spirit Eye to observe carefully.

As for knowledge of cloud beasts, he certainly falls short of those present who are native Cloud Realm cultivators, but when it comes to demon beasts, especially the rare plant-type tree demons, he believes his understanding will not be inferior.

Although it appears that a few willow trees are opposing them, Yunhe does not believe willow trees possess the ability to contaminate magic treasures.

If one says these willow trees have existed long enough to develop spiritual intelligence and thus gain respectable cultivation, he accepts that; but to claim that the willow sap can contaminate magic treasures, Yunhe finds it hard to accept.

And just as he was thinking, as he had expected, someone indeed stepped forward.

After brief contact and combat, Qingling Xianzi and the others had a rough grasp of the willow trees' strength and abilities, and thus held nothing back.

One saw Qingling Xianzi untie the string of bells from her waist, cast it with a hand seal, and it flew into midair; the clear "ding-dang" ringing now seemed to possess some special power.

And as she formed another hand seal, releasing a hazy azure essence that fell upon the bells, the speed of the bells' sound instantly slowed, yet the sound grew ever heavier.

Conversely, those wantonly swinging massive vines also seemed affected, their movements becoming slow and stiff.

"An ancient treasure?" Li Yuanfan and Fan Sanjin looked at the bell Qingling Xianzi had summoned with some surprise.

Meanwhile, Yu Ying and Fei Ling, who were more familiar with Qingling Xianzi, showed little surprise.

At the same time.

Fei Ling snapped his folding fan shut with a "pa" sound, then promptly produced a small pitch-black box of unknown material; upon opening it, it contained nothing but a handful of black sand, and at his low shout the sand inside immediately screamed forth.

For a moment.

The fierce black sand instantly permeated the entire space, turning into gusts of ferocious sandwaves that howled without cease.

Moreover, under Fei Ling's repeated control, part of the black sand would at times transform into sharp blades, at times into spears; coordinated with the sound of Qingling Xianzi's bells, it swiftly cut down those vines at great speed.

"Fellow Daoists, it's time to give our all; let us join forces to eradicate this tree demon! Qingling only needs what she seeks; the rest of the spoils belong to all of you!" Qingling Xianzi cried out sweetly.

Hearing this, Li Yuanfan, Fan Sanjin, and the others exchanged glances.

"Please excuse our clumsiness, fellow Daoists."

Li Yuanfan stroked his long beard, pulled three talismans from his spacious Daoist robe; a light shake caused the talismans to ignite, then he pointed with a shaking hand at the wooden sword, and the three talismans flew and landed upon it.

Hum——

After the wooden sword trembled slightly, it actually split into three illusory images.

And after Li Yuanfan formed a hand seal, the four wooden swords actually formed a sword formation.

This old Daoist actually knows the way of formations as well.

"Hey!" Fan Sanjin also couldn't help but let out a low chuckle; his already knotted muscles bulged further, and he rapidly grew fine, long hairs covering his whole body, his aura surging instantly, while a faint bestial ferocity like that of a demon beast subtly emanated.

Yu Ying also had no intention of holding back; with a sweep of her purple robes, a large amount of light purple crystalline powder scattered, and upon contact the vines immediately emitted a "hissing" corrosive sound.

"They're all capable people."

Seeing this scene, Yunhe secretly sighed.

Which cultivator who has reached the Jie Dan Stage doesn't have a variety of tricks?

He reckoned that even now, none of the people present had revealed their true trump cards.

But they have all brought out new means, so it wouldn't be proper for him to remain idle.

Immediately, he pinched his fingers together, and five-colored light flashed in his eyes.

"The Five Elements aid wood to grow; Jia Wood flourishes, boosting Ding Fire!"

Bear!!

As he exhaled a mouthful of verdant qi toward the Vermilion Bird Ring, wood aided fire to grow, fire borrowed wood to flourish, and the flames on the Vermilion Bird Ring suddenly surged, the blazing flames nearly covering half the sky.

Cree——!!

Yet under Yunhe's control, the Vermilion Bird Ring did not fly toward the willow trees or vines, but instead flew toward the strange object in the sky above that emitted light and heat like the sun.

Huh?

Yunhe's movements naturally did not escape everyone's notice, and they showed a hint of doubt.

But the next moment.

With a 'crack' sound, the panicked 'little sun' overhead shattered and exploded, and everyone's vision wavered; the previous scene of a small bridge over flowing water, like a house, shattered like glass into countless pieces and completely dissipated.

"Illusion?!!"

What then appeared before everyone's eyes was completely unlike the previous tranquil and peaceful scene.

"Gurgle" filled the river bubbling with black mud, the rotting wooden bridge, the dilapidated thatched hut, and the former spiritual fields were now completely overgrown.

And those few willow trees that had looked lush and green now turned into a thick, black giant tree at least twenty zhang tall, while the former vines were all its roots.

This sight caused everyone's expressions to change.

But Fairy Qingling showed great joy.

Their gaze was fixed on a bowl-sized hollow in the thick tree trunk.

One could faintly see that something seemed to be placed inside the hollow.

Boom!!

The revealed giant tree demon seemed a bit flustered, as two vines bound itself, covering the hollow while the vines on the ground grew even more frenzied.

But with the eyesight and spiritual sense of those present, they still managed to see what was inside the tree hollow.

"Wood-Longevity Elixir?!!"

As an alchemist, Yu Ying couldn't help but widen her eyes and exclaim.

Upon hearing this, everyone's movements stalled.

"Could it really be the legendary 'Wood-Longevity Elixir' said to extend lifespan?!!" Even the elderly Daoist Li Yuanfan couldn't help but express his astonishment.

As is well known.

No matter what cultivator, lifespan is always a very important and crucial factor on the path of the Dao, and countless cultivators cannot advance in their cultivation due to insufficient lifespan.

But lifespan is innately determined; even cultivators who practice longevity techniques can only increase it slightly to a limited extent, yet even that is precious.

And the 'Wood-Longevity Elixir' is one of the very few elixirs that can increase lifespan.

It is said that one 'Wood-Longevity Elixir' can increase a cultivator's lifespan by at least twenty years!

That's twenty years!

How many cultivators stall at a bottleneck, just a step away from breaking through, only to fall unwillingly when their lifespan runs out, turning into a handful of yellow earth?

If one possesses this 'Wood-Longevity Elixir', breaking through the cultivation bottleneck and reaching a higher realm within those twenty years is not impossible.

Even if one doesn't need the 'Wood-Longevity Elixir' to assist in breaking through, who wouldn't want to live twenty years longer?

For a moment, everyone present except Yunhe showed an eager expression.

At the same time.

The atmosphere among several cultivators became somewhat subtle.

Noticing this, Fairy Qingling's expression turned slightly solemn as she said seriously: 'Fellow Daoists, this is what I need. Please fellow Daoists, keep to our prior agreement and the oath you swore, and do not make things difficult for me.'

Those who entered this place had naturally sworn an oath to their inner demons to Fairy Qingling; otherwise she would not dare guarantee that no one would harbor ill intentions upon seeing the 'Wood-Longevity Elixir'.

"That's natural." Fei Ling was actually the first to voice his support, and he continued to drive the black sand.

"But a cultivator can consume at most two 'Wood-Longevity Elixirs', and there are clearly more than two in that tree hollow. Junior Sister Qingling, you won't take them all, will you?" Yu Ying's eyes flickered.

Li Yuanfan and Fan Sanjin both remained silent, but the faint glow in their eyes already revealed their inner unrest.

To them, aside from elixirs that enable breakthrough and cultivation growth, nothing could compare to elixirs that extend lifespan.

Yet among the cultivators present, Fei Ling, the highest in cultivation, had clearly expressed his support for Fairy Qingling, so even if they harbored any ulterior motives, they would not dare show them.

However, their gazes, intentional or not, swept over Yunhe.

After all, in their view, Yunhe should not be merely a simple early Jie Dan Stage cultivator; if he too were moved, then perhaps...

But they were unaware.

For the remaining five Jie Dan Stage cultivators present, the 'Wood-Longevity Elixir' was a considerable temptation, but for Yunhe, well, its appeal was average.

His spiritual sense, on the contrary, would occasionally sweep over the ruined thatched hut across the river.

"Be careful!"

Without waiting for the Light-Bell Fairy to answer Yu Ying's question, Yunhe's face suddenly changed, and he let out a low shout.

The river bubbling with bubbles suddenly boiled.

Treachery from within!

Suddenly, cracks split open beneath everyone's feet, and globs of viscous black slurry shot out violently.

Although Yunhe gave a timely warning, not everyone managed to react.

Old Daoist Li Yuanfan's ankle was stuck by black viscous fluid, and immediately he felt as if a huge force had acted upon him.

Plop!

His entire body was actually dragged forcefully into the cracked ground beneath.

He couldn't even utter a cry for help!

————

PS: Today's 1.2w, ask for monthly tickets!

(End of chapter)