Chapter 121: Tree Man

Compared to the ancient tyrannosaurs and eight-armed evil dragons that could contend with gods at the slightest provocation, the snake-elephant dragons were relatively much more gentle and calm.

At the very least, in Zhang Xuan's perception, their blood and Qi were a significant cut below those of the ancient tyrannosaurs, and they lived in groups rather than existing as solitary individuals.

Those that live in groups are rarely creatures of overlord caliber.

Even the dragon eggs they laid were numerous; they practiced excellent division of labor and cooperation, with some dragons specifically guarding near the Dragon Pool to prevent fierce beasts from coming to steal their dragon eggs, while others went out to hunt, rotating with one another in a very well-organized manner.

In terms of defensive rigor, they were much more stable than the eight-armed evil dragons and ancient tyrannosaurs.

However, Zhang Xuan was not afraid of these creatures that only possessed bestial nature and lacked excessive divinity.

The Outer Scene level of the Eight-Nine Profound Art allowed him to merge with the heavens and earth without revealing his form in the slightest; Zhang Xuan pondered for a moment, and with the aid of the essence blood of an insect caught in the mountains, he activated the Eight-Nine Profound Art.

His human form vanished abruptly, transforming into a tiny insect.

Then, he flew along with a flapping of wings, swaggering openly, and selected a snake-elephant dragon egg with the best appearance from among the clutch; that snake-elephant dragon egg was shimmering with light all over its body.

Vigorous Life Essence flowed wantonly through this world; Zhang Xuan did not pick too many, as the Indestructible Heavenly Art was sufficient once it had selected a creature with a complete Origin.

Mimicking that insect with its shiny, shell-like back dotted with seven spots, Zhang Xuan dug a small hole beneath that dragon egg.

Then, he activated his Wheel Sea and swallowed that dragon egg into his Wheel Sea in one go.

The snake-elephant dragons patrolling nearby seemed to sense something, but upon looking carefully, they discovered no intruders in the vicinity; thus, they paused slightly, hesitated for a moment, and continued to observe their surroundings as before, extremely vigilant.

The insect that Zhang Xuan had transformed into continued to fly high, distancing itself from this area, and only stopped several miles away.

Then, he re-selected a previously chosen mountain cave and sealed himself up once again.

Snake-elephant dragons were also very powerful and possessed surging, massive blood and Qi, but they were a notch below existences at the Dragon King level; therefore, it was normal for some small insect creatures to be active nearby, but if Zhang Xuan had transformed into an insect-type animal to approach the location of an ancient tyrannosaur or an eight-armed evil dragon, he would definitely have been blasted to pieces on the spot.

"Hmm, I've actually become quite a decent dragon egg thief; I truly hope these days can last forever."

Zhang Xuan sighed from the bottom of his heart, his whole being feeling quite comfortable.

The survival of the fittest continued in the forest; from time to time, powerful fierce beasts would fall, only to be quickly carved up for flesh and bone by various poisonous insects and fierce beasts, soon becoming nothing but a pile of energy-less broken bones.

Inside the cave where Zhang Xuan was located, that snake-elephant dragon egg, once shimmering with divine light, also quickly lost its luster.

The energy within his body surged, constantly rearranging and combining within Zhang Xuan, then rushing toward a new peak.

Crimson light shone continuously within his Bitter Sea, and the entire cave was dyed crimson by the Bitter Sea.

The Bitter Sea surged continuously, becoming even more vast, while at the same time, his Dao Palace also cycled repeatedly through this round of strengthening, charging toward the fifth layer, which was the Liver Divine Treasury.

Zhang Xuan felt a sense of clarity in both body and mind, with a feeling of comfort from the top of his head to the soles of his feet.

He focused on the cultivation requirements of the Eight-Nine Profound Art, various realizations, and sensing the external laws of heaven and earth.

The Indestructible Heavenly Art, or rather the cultivation methods within the Zhetian World, required very little comprehension in the early stages, especially before the second layer of the Immortal Embryo Realm; one could cultivate haphazardly, swallow corresponding treasures with brute force, and stride forward.

It could be said that, overall, it was the most brainless and top-tier method.

Of course, lessons missed in the early stages would all have to be made up later; the Immortal Three Slash Dao had terrifyingly high requirements for corresponding aptitude and insight, capable of trapping a vast number of people.

After reaching the Immortal Embryo Realm, every layer one traversed required immense effort and work; it could be said that every step was a qualitative change.

Immortal Three Slash Dao was considered the King realm, the Immortal Four Realm was already a Saint, the Immortal Platform Fifth Layer was a Saint King, the Immortal Six Realm was a Great Saint, the Immortal Seven Realm was a Quasi-Emperor, the Immortal Eight Realm was Alternative Enlightenment, and the Immortal Nine Realm was a Great Emperor.

It could be said that only after reaching the Immortal Embryo Realm did the true beginning of quantitative change occur; the Immortal Embryo Realm was the most important realm of the Covering the Sky Method, while the methods before the Immortal Embryo Realm were basically all laying the groundwork.

To walk steadily and quickly in the later stages, one had to lay the most solid foundation in the early stages.

Relatively speaking, the Eight-Nine Profound Art was much more particular in this regard; it emphasized cultivation from the early stages, comprehending the laws of heaven and earth, and ensuring that the Inner Heaven and Earth and Outer Heaven and Earth were balanced at every step.

Cultivation in the early stages was very difficult, and it was even harder for practitioners in the later stages; it could be said to be a different kind of standard.

"I don't lack too much in this aspect of cultivation."

Zhang Xuan also had an awareness of this.

The Eight-Nine Profound Art was, of course, the most top-tier method under heaven, and it did not fall behind at all in later-stage cultivation, but if one were to talk about the speed of cultivation in the early stages, the Covering the Sky Method was naturally the first choice, and the Covering the Sky Method was also quite unique in terms of combat.

"In the early stages, I will naturally focus on the Covering the Sky Method; in the later stages, the two methods can be practiced in parallel. After all, I have a unique talent, and practicing both in parallel is actually more beneficial for me."

The Eight-Nine Profound Art and the Covering the Sky Method had some commonalities in certain parts, and their comprehension of the Dao was true and real.

Cultivating the Eight-Nine Profound Art in the early stages was slower, but the comprehension of the Dao would not be lost, and it would be of great help to the cultivation of the Immortal Embryo Realm in the later stages.

In the days that followed, Zhang Xuan lived a simple and fulfilling life.

Dragon Kings were not easy to find, so he basically transformed into insects, birds, or other animals, traveling through this world to find relevant species with special Origins—either fierce dragons slightly inferior to Dragon Kings or some ancient exotic beasts—swallowing them, and then continuing his cultivation.

His movements were not very fast; after all, although Long Dao was a single island, its area was surprisingly large, already equivalent to a vast continent. If not for the introduction by people from Chang Sheng Jie, no one would be willing to believe this was an island, as the ancient exotic beasts on it were terrifyingly numerous, and even tigers larger than elephants died in droves.

Dragon Kings, standing dozens of meters tall, hunted in this world at every turn, and the food they consumed daily alone was a terrifying and astonishing figure.

Zhang Xuan's exploration of this area proceeded quickly, and he even made a special trip to the snow-capped mountains in this region, wanting to check on Chiyou within the snow-capped mountains of this area.

With his Dao Palace Realm about to reach its peak, Zhang Xuan already felt that his own strength was about to reach the limit beneath the Heavenly Stele.

He went to walk in the snow-capped mountains because he wanted to find the remains left behind by that Demon Sect Leader who kept reincarnating.

That person was, after all, the Demon Sect Leader, and also the reincarnation of Chiyou.

The remains left behind by generation after generation of reincarnation were already the most supreme items under heaven.

Zhang Xuan did not want to give up this gift from the Demon Sect Leader.

Unfortunately, after searching multiple times, he gained nothing and could only return empty-handed.

The snow-capped mountains were simply too vast; relying solely on a little bit of luck, it was very difficult to find the traces of the Demon Sect Leader within them.

On the other hand, he had quite a harvest on the other side; in a death swamp, Zhang Xuan discovered an Undying King that had been resurrected after death.

Even under the suppression of the Heavenly Stele, the opponent's strength reached the ceiling of this stage; its strength and realm were terrifyingly extreme, and that corpse, which had died who knows how many years ago, was extremely powerful—even in death, its pitch-black blood and Qi could cover the firmament.

Zhang Xuan observed from afar for a period of time, feeling somewhat tempted; the Origin of that Undying King was extremely profound, and Zhang Xuan was confident that after swallowing it, he could directly enter the peak realm of the Dao Palace, and perhaps even reach the next realm.

However, Zhang Xuan did not have much confidence for the time being; the strength of that Undying King was indeed somewhat unsettling.

After all, if Zhang Xuan remembered correctly, that Undying King with wings growing from its ribs was able to be friends with the reincarnated body of the Demon Sect Leader in the original work.

Moreover, the two were not just ordinarily familiar, which meant that the Demon Sect Leader had been friends with this Undying King throughout the long years.

Under such circumstances, the opponent's strength and realm would definitely not be simple; it was terrifyingly extraordinary.

"Sigh, life is truly not easy."

Perched atop a towering ancient tree, Zhang Xuan transformed into a bird with vibrant colors and beautiful wings, unable to help but let out a sigh.

For days, he had only managed to find five Dragon Eggs of fierce dragons to nourish himself with, and since then, he had not been able to steal any more Dragon Eggs of the Dragon King level.

During these days, Xiao Chen had not been idle either, spending every day fighting against those figures who had come from outside the island.

His strength and realm were improving very rapidly, mainly because the situation on Long Dao had exceeded the expectations of many prestigious sects in Chang Sheng Jie.

The Forbidden Sea had become increasingly dangerous, and massive ships were essentially falling apart upon the ocean; this group of people seemed to have no way to return to Chang Sheng Jie, so in their madness, the wildness and insanity in everyone's hearts were ignited.

On this island, only the most primitive rules remained; other concepts like etiquette, righteousness, integrity, shame, morality, sects, and social classes were all gone, leaving only the most primitive, savage rules where the strong were kings.

Amidst this chaos, Zhang Xuan remained unmoved, but any figure who rushed toward the direction of the bamboo forest where he resided would be killed by him directly.

After several consecutive incidents, others naturally dared not make any further moves, because whether there were many or few people, those who went to the bamboo forest where Zhang Xuan and Xiao Chen lived never returned, and after a while, that area became something like a Forbidden Land.

As for these figures from the prestigious sects of Chang Sheng Jie, Zhang Xuan was not very interested in them.

Compared to prestigious sects like that of Zhang Sanfeng, the prestigious sects in Chang Sheng Jie had stronger strength and realms, but their conduct was often not to Zhang Xuan's liking.

One after another, these figures did not have much of a chivalrous heart, completely indulging their own desires in this place in a crazed manner.

It could be said that any related chivalrous heart had been discarded completely, and the only one who was somewhat normal was the monk Yizhen.

Perhaps there were other figures in such a state, but they basically did not come near Zhang Xuan, and Zhang Xuan had no way to understand them further.

Chaos was the theme of Long Dao.

Zhang Xuan was not very interested in the disciples of these prestigious sects; after all, the Origin of these figures was far inferior to that of Dragon Kings and fierce beasts.

If they really came knocking at his door, Zhang Xuan would not mind having a taste, for since they had become his enemies, he would naturally kill them at any cost and by any means.

"My strength and realm have basically reached their peak in the current environment."

Zhang Xuan, transformed into a colorful bird, sat on the massive tree, overlooking this world, watching as a fierce beast with wings growing from its ribs charged into the dense forest on the horizon, snatching up a mammoth, while a giant snake over a hundred feet long surged into the sky from the ground, swallowing both the winged beast and the mammoth in one gulp.

The world was completely savage.

"Indeed, on this island, strength and realm are suppressed by others, making it difficult to reach a higher level."

As Zhang Xuan whispered, the ancient tree beneath him also responded, its Divine Sense vibrating in Zhang Xuan's mind.

And as it vibrated, the branches seemed to possess life, combining with the vines above to try and bind the colorful bird that Zhang Xuan had transformed into.

Zhang Xuan's expression remained unchanged; the bird turned flexibly, suddenly rushing out of the tree, and then in mid-air, he restored his original form, looking at this towering ancient tree that was over a hundred feet tall, his expression filled with both anticipation and doubt.

Before him was indeed a towering ancient tree over a hundred feet tall, but on the trunk of this ancient tree, a tall human figure with dark green hair had completely emerged.

Its height exceeded two meters, its physique was robust and powerful, and it was completely naked, without a stitch of clothing, emerging from the ancient tree, trying to break free from it bit by bit.

"I have always heard that there is someone on the island who is extremely formidable, with unique techniques; today I have finally witnessed it. Is this technique of transforming into a strange beast a heritage of the savage tribes?"

The Divine Sense in his mind shook violently, and that ancient tree erupted crazily.

That tree-man, about to break free from the ancient tree, controlled the massive tree and prepared to act.

Zhang Xuan stood calmly in confrontation with it: "I originally did not intend to fight with you, but since you were the one to strike first, there is no need to be polite."

Zhang Xuan had basically searched the entire island for strange species; the Undying King and the tree-men in Shuren Gu were the two targets he had chosen, but he had been somewhat hesitant and had not acted directly.

The Undying King was because its strength was too powerful, and Zhang Xuan could not quite gauge its bottom line, so he felt it was unnecessary to take the risk. As for the tree-men in Shuren Gu, it was because these tree-men possessed complete intelligence, and Zhang Xuan did not want to take action directly.

Of course, this was also because the opponent's strength was equally formidable, but since the opponent had now taken the initiative to act, he did not need to think too much.

As his thoughts turned, petal after petal began to dance between heaven and earth.

One Thought Flower Blooms, King Over the World!

PS: I finished my work yesterday and accidentally overslept, sorry, sorry!

(End of this chapter)