Grandpa, times have changed.

Not long after.

The spies from various tribes who had observed the battlefield situation through the strange treasures retreated, preparing to inform their tribes of the news.

The battle between Xu Xing and Liu Youling Tree has reached a fever pitch.

tricky!

This is Xu Xing's only feeling right now.

The drop of wine that the tree produced was extremely unusual.

Although its attack methods are simple and have little lethality.

However, under its full power at this moment, its recovery ability and physical toughness far exceed the scope of the Yangwu Realm.

Therefore, aside from the effective damage caused by the initial sneak attack, the subsequent injuries healed even slower than his own.

Most importantly, this tree seems to have no regard for the future, accumulating a large amount of mixed essence within itself for its consumption, making its magical power almost inexhaustible...

It's going to be very difficult to outlast them!
But soon, a rich aroma of wine spread for miles around, causing all living things that smelled it to become uncontrollably intoxicated by it.

The energy of the Willow Ghost Tree also weakened at a visible speed, and its resilience and hardness dropped several levels!
Yes.

Even during battle, He cannot control the production of Willow Ghost Wine.

This is the drawback of transforming spiritual essence through external objects while lacking cultivation techniques.

Unless a high-level cultivator creates a cultivation method specifically tailored to His situation, His problem will never be solved.

opportunity!

A glint flashed in Xu Xing's eyes as he focused his sword strike on the initial wound he had made.

"mean!"

The Willow Ghost Tree was furious, but there was nothing it could do.

Xu Xing ignored His anger and launched an even fiercer attack, his sword flashing and stirring up the spiritual energy in all directions!
In a life-or-death struggle, who cares about being despicable? Any move that can kill the enemy is a good move!

We need to hurry!

After unleashing another sword strike, severing dozens of attacking willow branches, Xu Xing gazed at the Willow Ghost Tree, three hundred feet away, his eyes flashing with golden light.

He could sense that the tree had accelerated its refining process in order to replenish its vital energy as quickly as possible.

If this drags on any longer, everyone inside will die!
'Only…'

hum~
The sword flashed, and the intense magical power almost burst into flames!

The sword light, originally interwoven with gold and red, turned bright red, like a sun shining near the Willow Ghost Tree, with red light covering the sky!
"submerged!"

Every inch of the void was stained red, filled with endless annihilation power.

All the Willow Ghost Clan members were wiped out.

A scorching flow of magical power and a surge of sword intent were seen, making Xu Xing feel as if he were bathed in blazing flames.

A dazzling light flowed beneath his skin, but in the end, it couldn't withstand it and burst open with wounds.

The blood instantly stained his clothes, but was evaporated in an instant by the rising red light.

Although the "Refining God Technique" helped him adapt to the peak of the Nourishing Self Realm somewhat, he still couldn't withstand the "Annihilation Sword" at full power.

"no, do not want!!"

They sensed the threat posed by the sword.

The ethereal and distant voice was no longer as angry as before; instead, it was filled with undisguised terror.

will die!

I really am going to die!

This realization left Him with no emotions other than fear.

Driven by the instinct for survival, each of His willow leaves turned bright red and detached from the branches, like divine weapons piercing towards the very center of the red light!

boom!
Rumble!
A massive mushroom cloud rose up, its impact sweeping outwards like a tsunami.

Trees that take several people to encircle are bent, broken, or even uprooted and rolled into the sky like straw!

The mushroom cloud slowly dissipated half a minute later.

The two opposing forces were reduced to just one.

Amidst the billowing dust, a black-clad figure wielding a long sword was seen slowly lowering a tree trunk, as large as a small mountain, onto the ravaged ground with one hand.

"Although it was somewhat risky, we managed to save them..."

Xu Xing put down the piece of tree trunk he was holding and let out a heavy sigh.

He reached up and plucked the few bright red willow leaves, harder than metal, from his chest. A sweet taste rose in his throat, but he forced it down. Feeling his injuries, Xu Xing couldn't help but smile bitterly.

In the end, the tree even managed to outmaneuver him in its dying counterattack.

Honestly, he wasn't exactly a qualified time traveler.

Not long after arriving in this world, not only did she reveal her origins, but she was also particularly prone to acting impulsively.

It was in this world that I met my master...

Thinking it over, he raised his sword and slashed it down from top to bottom.

The solidified, dark green gel-like substance that had sealed the entrance was cut open, allowing light to penetrate and illuminate the interior space.

Nine children.

The oldest looked no more than seven or eight years old, and the youngest was only three or four.

They were all dressed in new clothes, but they were all emaciated, which looked like the result of long-term malnutrition. Some of them had just woken up from a coma.

"..."

Xu Xing's grip on the sword suddenly tightened.

Even after traveling for over two hundred years and witnessing many cruel scenes, he still couldn't help but tremble at the sight.

At this moment, he was even more grateful that he had just chosen to take the risk.

If I can't even protect these things, then I've wasted all those years of my master's teachings.

Taking a deep breath, Xu Xing reached out and tore off the remaining gelatinous substance, then went inside.

"Don't worry, it's all over now," he said softly to comfort her.

however……

"Whoa—!"

Covered in blood, he appeared like a ghost, immediately frightening one of the children into crying loudly.

Some children, who had been holding back their tears, finally broke down and cried when they heard the sound.

For a moment, the sound of crying filled the empty space inside the tree trunk.

After all, they are just children, and it's perfectly normal for them to be scared after experiencing so many things.

Xu Xing wiped the blood off his face to make himself look less terrifying.

Then he looked at the little girl who was the only one of the nine children who wasn't crying, but was staring straight at him.

He was dressed in red, which was clearly new clothes.

Her large, clear eyes were bright and clear.

Is he paralyzed with fear?

Xu Xing frowned and walked up to her.

Strangely enough, the children, who were originally wailing, all quieted down when they saw Xu Xing approaching.

She could only curl up in a corner and sob softly.

Xu Xing didn't care.

Soothing the child and such...

He wasn't good at it, so he simply ignored it and started checking on the little girl's condition.

This was a dangerous rescue; we can't let anything really go wrong.

However, upon examination, it was found that her soul was stable and bright, even purer than that of ordinary people.

Apart from malnutrition leading to anemia, there were no other symptoms.

emm...

Can you understand me?

"Yes, you can."

Yo!
Looks like everything's really alright.

"What's your name?"

“I don’t have a name.” After a pause, the little girl added, “I asked the elders, but they said that destined sacrifices don’t need names.”

Xu Xing fell silent. (End of Chapter)