Perfection: I have a Tree of Ten Thousand Paths

The news from last night quickly reached the ears of some powerful forces.

Although they dared not trespass into that forbidden area, it did not stop them from sending out spies.

Last night, the heads of those minor factions joined forces and led their people to the place where the "extraordinary treasure" was born, with two or three hundred Cave Heaven Realm experts all making an appearance.

If they return alive, then the willow tree couldn't intervene; if some people die, then the willow tree intervened.

Afterwards, many factions received news that all those who went to the forbidden area last night had been wiped out and no one had survived!

The leaders of many factions were also relieved that they hadn't gone last night.

Otherwise, this would already be news on someone else's desk.

In the days that followed, no one dared to approach, and Stone Village returned to its former tranquility.

Time flies, and a year has passed quickly. After the night of the massacre, no one disturbed Stone Village anymore, and they all lived in their own rhythm of life.

Qi Shi'an has been in Shicun for a full year now.

During that year, apart from occasionally going out hunting, he spent the rest of his time practicing spiritual cultivation.

Shi Hao, on the other hand, had a wonderful time. He even destroyed a bandit's den, killed a sacrificial spirit, and obtained a treasure, the Golden Dragon Scissors.

Thanks to Shi Hao, Qi Shi'an was able to eat the sacrificial spirit meat.

The essence contained within that sacrificial spirit was extremely powerful, a veritable treasure for the body; those who had eaten its flesh experienced a rapid increase in strength.

Qi Shi'an also used two drops of the Myriad Dao Tree Divine Liquid to borrow two months to comprehend the Original True Understanding.

It must be said that the original interpretation has unique insights into the operation and understanding of runes.

Two months of reflection accelerated the transformation of Wan Daoshu's runes, and his understanding of runes deepened.

Moreover, Qi Shi'an and Shi Hao exchanged their respective treasured techniques.

The Suanni Treasure Technique is a Thunder Dao Treasure Technique. With the help of the Myriad Dao Tree, he will be able to transform it into the origin of the Thunder Dao Law in the future.

His cultivation progress over the past year has been neither fast nor slow. By refining the remaining seven-colored liquid in his body and with the assistance of the sacrificial spirit flesh and blood, he was able to open his sixth cave heaven.

As for Shi Hao, he also opened up his fifth cave heaven, which is incredibly fast. Most people would never make any progress in their entire lives.

Qi Shi'an and Shi Hao, after breaking through to the Cave Heaven Realm, broke through again after a year, which is already considered to be extremely high talent.

The Cave Heaven Realm is the realm where it is easiest to distance yourself from others. Every additional Cave Heaven you open unlocks a portion of your potential.

If the potential base of one cave heaven is one, then two cave heavens will have two potential bases, and so on. When the potential base of eight cave heavens is eight, and ten cave heavens will have ten potential bases.

The gap between geniuses and prodigies at this level is simply too great. Those who can open up the seventh level of the Heavenly Cave are already considered rare geniuses, and those who can open up the eighth or ninth level are even rarer.

However, for Qi Shi'an, the Ten Cave Heavens were definitely not his goal. He wanted to unite the Ten Cave Heavens and forge his own path.

The next day, a gentle breeze was blowing as Qi Shi'an was studying the runes of the Myriad Paths Tree.

Suddenly, a commotion arose outside, and he vaguely heard the words "Willow Goddess".

"Liu Shen has recovered?!"

Qi Shi'an sat up and walked into the green lake.

Ripples dotted the surface of the lake, and the willows, silent for a year, suddenly glowed, their green blossoms reaching the heavens, enveloping the entire mountain range in a hazy halo.

The villagers, young and old, all came to perform the ritual and worship the willow tree.

"Snap!"

The old bark of the willow tree peeled away, and at this moment, the green clouds were blazing. Several new branches sprouted from the willow tree, swaying in the wind. In an instant, the light and mist were swirling, and auspicious colors appeared everywhere.

The emerald green willow branches, like chains of divine order, radiate a precious light, mysterious and unpredictable.

"The Chains of Order?!"

Qi Shi'an was greatly alarmed. The willow branch of the Willow Goddess stirred the Myriad Trees within his body, causing them to emit a shimmering, precious light.

"You two are both very good," Liu Shen said gently.

"Willow Goddess, I have already opened up five grotto-heavens." Shi Hao's eyes shone with hope.

After some conversation, the Willow God swayed a few willow branches, as if shaking his head: "Is the Eight Heavenly Caves the ultimate? This is just the standard for the human race. The Nine Heavenly Caves do not only exist in ancient books."

Qi Shi'an nodded secretly, thinking to himself, "That's true. In the three thousand provinces of the Upper Realm, there are quite a few of those top-tier powers with ten grotto heavens."

Willow God continued, "In the ancient times, Taotie, Vermilion Bird, and others believed that in the Cave Heaven Realm, the Ninth Cave Heaven could be called a king, but the Tenth Cave Heaven was the ultimate, the true supreme being of this realm."

"Being in the Great Wilderness, where information is too scarce, you will have little chance to meet true geniuses, let alone engage in life-or-death battles with the cubs of the True Hou, which would serve as a warning to others. This place is not conducive to your cultivation."

Shi Hao glanced at Qi Shi'an behind him, and Liu Shen understood what he was thinking: "He is different. His opportunities are rare in the world. Even if he doesn't strive for progress, his cultivation path can still advance by leaps and bounds."

"Forehead......"

Qi Shi'an scratched his cheek, and Liu Shen indeed saw the Myriad Dao Tree within him.

However, he couldn't see through it completely because the Myriad Trees within his body hadn't fully matured.

"No need to worry, I can tell just because I've been in contact with it before. The Daoist aura on you is very similar to it," Willow God transmitted his voice.

When Shi Hao learned that Qi Shi'an could easily advance and break through while lying down, his eyes widened in extreme envy.

"I can send you to a mysterious world where you might meet your 'handsome guy.' Would you like to?"

"I do!" Shi Hao nodded firmly.

Upon hearing that the Willow Goddess was personally escorting him to the Realm of the Void Gods, Qi Shi'an stepped forward and bowed deeply at a ninety-degree angle, saying, "Thank you, Willow Goddess!"

He also secretly glanced at the willow tree, a scene that looked somewhat comical.

"..."

"Go and tell the tribespeople so they won't worry, then we'll set off."

Liu Shen was known for her decisive and efficient manner; she set off immediately after speaking.

Qi Shian said with relief, "Liu Shen's decisive and efficient style is quite to my liking."

He also had to give instructions to A Jin. The two of them turned around, and Shi Hao went to the clan chief's courtyard, while Qi Shi'an returned to his own residence.

Ah Jin was fast asleep in front of the door when Qi Shi'an walked over and slapped it awake: "Hey, Ah Jin, the Willow God is taking me to a mysterious place. Don't look for me these days."

"Okay, I've finished talking. You can go back to sleep now."

After saying that, he turned around and went back to the edge of the lake, leaving a sleepy-eyed Ah Jin standing there in a daze.

"..."

I woke it up thinking something serious had happened, and this is all? It's such a troublesome little thing.

Ah Jin yawned and drifted back to sleep.

"Let us embark on our journey to the heavens."

The Willow God transmitted his voice, which was gentle and calm, yet also carried a sense of majesty. Suddenly, the five willow branches grew rapidly, transforming into a dazzling chain of divine order that shot upwards toward the sky.

With a loud boom, the green glow intensified, turning the world into a vibrant green. Five willow branches pierced through the sky, as if opening a gate of laws!

The sky was shrouded in a hazy mist, creating a mysterious and profound atmosphere.

With a soft hum, Qi Shi'an and Shi Hao felt themselves leave their original spot, passing through the hazy portal and entering a strange world.

"Wow!"

Qi Shi'an looked around at the hazy mist, which was indistinct yet had a hidden, turbulent atmosphere, as if it could erupt at any moment.

"here!"

A soft green light emanated, guiding Qi Shi'an and Shi Hao forward.

Until the hazy mist dissipated, the sky and earth ahead gradually opened up.

Qi Shi'an gazed at this desolate world with a sense of curiosity: "Is this the Realm of the Void Gods?"

The scene before you is desolate, with rubble everywhere. The once magnificent palaces and halls have all been destroyed, and a sense of vicissitude and antiquity pervades the air.

"This is the Realm of the Illusory Gods. There was once a saying that this is the world one will enter after becoming a god," said Liu Shenrou.

"ah?!"

Shi Hao was taken aback. He had actually entered the God Realm? The feeling was unreal, even frightening.

"Of course, some people say that this is the supreme being worshipped by the ancient people—the gods, and that they joined forces to build a strange world with their spiritual thoughts."

The Willow Goddess then offered another explanation.

"A spiritual world jointly constructed by ancient gods? Just how powerful must they be to create worlds at will?"

Qi Shi'an was filled with emotion; it was the first time he had ever felt the power of the ancient gods so directly.

He could create a spiritual world with ease, something that would only exist in novels on Earth in his previous life. But now, his feet were firmly planted on the ground of this wondrous world.

"My true form is clearly standing right here. If it's a world constructed from spirits, can I still stand here?" Shi Hao asked.

Willow God reminded me, "There is one thing I need to correct: you are not here in your true form, but only in spirit and will."

"The most mysterious thing about the Realm of the Gods is that the spirit is tempered here, and after returning to the real world, all the insights will be brought back to the physical body and transformed together, just like the real body cultivates here."

The Willow Goddess offered them guidance.

"But this place looks like an abandoned land. Are we supposed to hone our skills in this desolate spiritual world?"

Qi Shi'an was new to the area and didn't know much about it.

"No, this world is vast and boundless; what you see is only a small part of it."

Willow God corrected Qi Shi'an's statement and told them that this spiritual world had a vast area with many living beings.

"Since we were able to get in, there must be many people like us in this world, right?" Shi Hao asked curiously.

"Yes, it's like a real country," Liu Shen replied.

"The Realm of the Void Gods has many mysteries, and even treasures left behind by ancient gods, but you will need to rely on your own strength to achieve that."

"Go out from here, and you will soon enter the real training ground."

Liu Shen stopped moving forward, and the rest of the journey would depend on the two of them.

Qi Shi'an and Shi Hao stepped out of this vast ancient ruin together. The further they went, the less fog there was, and the light ahead drew closer.

Finally, the two arrived at the true training ground, where a large blue stone with shimmering runes stood beside them, inlaid with several pieces of animal bones.

"Is this the original precious bone? It looks very rare and valuable."

Shi Hao squatted down and tried to pull out the animal bone, while Qi Shi'an watched quietly as Shi Hao pulled out the animal bone.

"Don't just look! Come over here, let's split it fifty-fifty!"

Shi Hao tried to pull for a long time without success, but then saw Qi Shi'an standing by, seemingly unconcerned, which made him furious.

"Haha, isn't your physical body very strong? Smash it open!" Qi Shi'an joked.

This reminder struck a chord with Shi Hao, but before he could even react, a golden passage appeared and teleported him away.

"Huh, it actually got teleported away? Could it really be conscious?"

Qi Shi'an stepped forward and tapped the large blue stone with his hand: "I don't understand. Let's go find Little One to prevent him from being banned by the Void God Realm."

He speculated that Shi Hao was teleported to a place that was not far away, and that the place they were in now was the 'initial land' of the Void God Realm.

Everyone's cultivation level was suppressed to the Blood Moving Realm, and the area at this level should not be too large.

Sure enough, as soon as he found Shi Hao, he saw Shi Hao smashing a large blue stone with his fist from afar!

"Bang! Bang! Bang!"

Shi Hao swung his fists and smashed the large blue stone wildly until it shattered into pieces, with several crystal-clear fragments falling to the ground.

"It's a success."

Shi Hao was overjoyed and quickly picked up a piece of talisman bone. Suddenly, several other pieces of talisman bone glowed and flew away, making Shi Hao stomp his feet in anger.

"Mine, mine, all mine! How did they get away?"

Just then, Qi Shi'an appeared. He leaped up, intending to leave all the precious bones behind.

Unfortunately, he only managed to grab two of the rune bones; the remaining one disappeared into the clouds, creating ripples.

"Hey, Xiao An, you actually found me!"

Shi Hao was overjoyed. He thought he would only get one piece, but Qi Shi'an's sudden appearance helped him get two pieces.

Qi Shi'an felt a little regretful: "Oh, I didn't hold on tight, and it slipped away."

"That's right, that's right, it should have been ours all along."

It would have been better if he hadn't mentioned it, but once it came up, Shi Hao felt a pang of heartache.

Those around them, upon hearing what the two said, were unsure whether to be happy or worried.

One top-tier item would have been enough, but now another top-tier item has appeared. It seems that these two top-tier items know each other!

"Stop talking! One of you attacked the portal to the Void God Realm, and the other forcibly plundered the talisman bones from the portal. You're being lenient by not being punished yet," an old man said.

"Tch, why punish me? It was this little brat who smashed the passage. I was just passing by and happened to see a few precious bones flying in the sky, so I just picked them up."

Qi Shi'an played with the precious bone he had just casually "picked" without feeling any guilt.

"What does it have to do with me? That blue stone inlaid with precious stones was just lying on the road. I treated it as unclaimed property and just knocked a piece off. What's the problem?"

Shi Hao showed no remorse whatsoever.

At this moment, he was thinking that next time he would smash another piece and ask Qi Shi'an to help stop it, so that he could get more precious bones.

Everyone was speechless. These two were just too much...