Chapter 296: Age Wood Spiritual Root

【Three hundred and sixth year: Truly a heavenly treasure with spirit; communicating with you is far easier than with that stone before. The Age Wood, which has long devoured countless living beings and is steeped in blood and killing intent, still fears you deeply and quickly gives up resistance.】

Shen Yi sat cross-legged, letting the Golden Body guard this place.

He did not know whether the Age Wood counted as a spiritual root.

But refine it first, then decide.

Within the Qi Sea, the Heaven-Devouring Demon Infant greedily embraced the Age Wood; the scorching aura on its body burned the wood until it shrieked in pain.

So noisy...

Shen Yi frowned and controlled the Dao Infant to slap the Age Wood.

The entire process was more difficult than last time.

After all, when refining the True Yang Qilin Stone before, both the Dao Infant and the spiritual root were tainted by blood and killing intent, but now, aside from the killing intent, the Qilin Stone and the Age Wood clashed somewhat.

Yet Shen Yi always believed that as long as the demon's lifespan was sufficient, he would surely find a way.

This was a threshold that must be overcome.

Otherwise, where would he find so many killing-intent fire-attribute spiritual roots?

【One thousand seven hundredth year: You calmly refine the Age Wood; after all, it is not you who suffers, so your emotions remain very stable.】

"..."

Shen Yi continued listening to the Age Wood's agonized wails.

He was even somewhat impressed by the other's resilience, managing to endure for so many years without losing his voice.

Another two thousand-plus years of demon lifespan were spent.

The wailing finally vanished.

Within the Dao Infant, a jade-green spiritual branch with flowing black mist lay quietly inside.

At the same time, Shen Yi also felt an abrupt change.

It was as if a surge of vibrant life force had appeared within his body.

Making the whole person feel refreshed and clear-minded.

Compared to the pain of refining the True Yang Qilin Stone, this time felt more like an enjoyment.

Like bathing in the spring breeze, the entire body felt comfortable.

【Three thousand nine hundredth year: You successfully refined the polluted Age Wood into an extremely special spiritual root, assigned it to the Liver position, and obtained the Age Wood Lifespan-Extending Talent.】

【Soul Transformation · Age Wood Lifespan-Extending: Under the nurturing of the Age Wood, your lifespan has been extended by three thousand years.】

【Remaining Lifespan: Five thousand nine hundred and seventy-five years.】

Looking at this string of numbers, Shen Yi paused, then realized this was not demon lifespan, but his own.

Immediately, he fell silent with a wry smile.

Refining a spiritual root actually came with a reciprocal benefit.

He closed his eyes and carefully sensed; using the Age Wood as the Liver of the Dao Infant, connecting it to the True Yang Qilin Stone, wood generating fire.

Endless and ever-renewing.

It was as if every blade of grass and tree in the entire mountain range resonated with him.

According to the panel's prompt.

This Age Wood was not a supreme-grade spiritual root, yet it had been given a special name.

Shen Yi was not disappointed.

He was merely somewhat moved.

Even with his own uniquely privileged conditions, using killing-intent spiritual roots that others could not use, he still could not find a true supreme-grade one.

How much more difficult must it be for other cultivators?

Just then, a reminder from Lady Qinghua came into his mind.

"Reporting to my Lord, should we not leave? Lady Qinghua rushed here hastily before, attracting the attention of many cultivators, and the Sect Protection Formation has already been activated; the people from the Profound Light Cave should arrive very soon."

"Bring those two to the Bamboo Tower."

Shen Yi quickly rose and flew toward the Bamboo Tower from before.

Soon, A Qing and Xu Wanyun were grabbed one by one by the Golden Body Dharma Image and brought over.

At Shen Yi's silent gesture.

A Qing quickly steadied her panicked mind and opened the previous formation again.

Shen Yi returned to the cramped room and casually took the Profound Sword and the jade slip.

These things were actually of little use to him.

After all, the cultivation methods were already recorded on the panel.

But leaving them for the Profound Light Cave was impossible; he had offended them utterly, and whether he took them or not, they would pursue him relentlessly.

Taking them away would at least make them anxious and fearful, daring not to make too much noise.

Soon, several figures darted out of the Zheng Family compound.

Vanishing silently into the horizon.

Among the mountains.

Shen Yi quickly landed by the spring; the Golden Body Dharma Image flung the two down, then swept across the long sky and vanished.

After fully understanding the identities of the aunt and niece, there was no need to hide the matter of the Soul Transformation Golden Body from them anymore, mainly because it would be hard to hide anyway.

But the fact that the Golden Body was something he cultivated alongside his main path could not be revealed easily.

After all, the greatest disadvantage of the Golden Body Dharma Image was that it could not conceal its aura.

With his true body present here, this disadvantage was effectively neutralized.

A Soul Transformation expert who had appeared silently could clearly be put to far greater use.

This information gap cannot be easily handed over to others.

"He... he's gone again?"

A Qing stared blankly at the sky.

Xu Wanyun blinked frantically, which finally made her niece react; she hurriedly took out the formation disk and dissolved the Hundred Ghosts Spirit-Stabilizing Great Array.

"Hah..."

Xu Wanyun sat up from the ground, clutching her full chest, breathing heavily.

Immediately, she looked at Shen Yi with a face full of terror, hesitating, not knowing whether to speak.

Just now, she suddenly sensed the sinister trick the Zheng family had played: a seed wrapped in black mist.

The ability to sense this object was mainly because Shen Yi had approached.

That tight spiritual connection had actually landed on the other party!

"Senior Shen... you are a man of integrity... you surely wouldn't want to use that thing to... against me..."

A Slain Hunyuan Shen Zongshi of the highest realm, inexplicably becoming a prisoner.

Thinking of the sudden loss of consciousness earlier, Xu Wanyun felt fear for the first time.

"..."

Shen Yi glanced at her: "You certainly have high hopes."

He casually raised a hand and swept it before her face; a wisp of green light floated out from between her eyebrows, then scattered into the air.

Then he performed the same action on A Qing.

These two were lucky.

All members of the Zheng family had been completely consumed by the Year Wood; though they appeared to retain consciousness, they had long since become puppets.

The moment the Year Wood was successfully refined by me, it also meant their total extinction.

These two aunt and niece were left behind by my deliberate choice.

Such filthy, nonsensical trash doesn't deserve to be called the Path to Yuan Tongtian.

The best outcome would merely be that after the Year Wood fully grows, it turns into a fruit on the other party's branch.

As for using the power of the Year Wood to continue controlling these two women...

A pair of rebellious aunt and niece who ran away from home, with no personal freedom; what value do they have? It would be more fitting to exchange for the head of the Xu family.

After seeing so many arrays, Shen Yi suddenly had an idea.

He cannot guard Great Qian for a lifetime.

Moreover, with such a vast territory, wanting to guard it all completely is having the will but lacking the strength.

If he could invite the Xu family to come out of seclusion to build enough magical arrays for the Nine Provinces of Great Qian, that would relieve immense pressure.

"Uh."

Xu Wanyun stood up somewhat awkwardly, having never expected the young man to so easily release the control over her.

Leaving other things aside, she was a Shen Zongshi with extremely strong cultivation.

But in an instant, she reacted again: "Does Senior truly have the Year Wood under control?"

Shen Yi withdrew his gaze without confirming or denying.

He did not reveal that he had already refined the Year Wood.

"The polluted Year Wood is useless to others; if Senior can refine it into a spiritual root, it would count as a tremendous opportunity."

Xu Wanyun recalled the vast demonic qi aura the young man had unleashed earlier.

She didn't know why anyone would think to use demonic power to forge a Dao Infant... not fearing the evil qi would affect their soul and spirit.

However, only such a person who takes a crooked path could enjoy such a unique "treasure."

"Even if it cannot compare to a supreme-grade spiritual root, it is still no ordinary thing; relying solely on this segment of Year Wood, Senior's cultivation path will certainly not stop at the early stage of Soul Transformation..."

Shen Yi originally did not want to deal with this woman's nonsense spoken to relieve the awkwardness.

But upon hearing this, he turned back in curiosity: "Stop?"

"Ah..."

A Qing stood up: "Like Aunt, with three mid-grade spiritual roots plus two high-grade spiritual roots forming the five organs of the Dao Infant, even if breaking through to Soul Transformation, at most one would reach the mid-stage of Soul Transformation, after which the path ahead would be cut off."

"Senior Shen knows a Golden Body elder of the Soul Transformation realm; you should know that even for a top power like Great Qian, which mainly cultivates Yin Spirits, most Golden Body techniques can only achieve a three-zhang body size, equivalent to the early stage of Soul Transformation..."

She spread her hands: "To touch higher realms, one must be like Elder Nie Jun; Mount Wutong once sought three supreme-grade Thunder spiritual roots for him, which led to the current True Person Xuan Sword."

(End of this chapter)