Immortality and cultivation: Heaven rewards diligence, and success is inevitable.

The green python lay on the ground, its body still convulsing.

But its eyes were still open, and the light in its vertical pupils had not been completely extinguished.

The snake's tongue was still flicking in and out, though the movement was very slow.

"It's not dead yet," Jiang Shi said, still maintaining the water curtain and not daring to let go.

But at that moment, the Green Wood Python's body began to swell.

The gaps between the scales widened, revealing the bluish-black skin underneath.

A surge of violent wood-elemental true essence erupted from its body, causing the spiritual energy inside the tree hole to surge violently.

The tree walls on all four sides were impacted by spiritual energy, causing more cracks to appear.

"It's self-destructing!" Shui Lingxi's expression changed drastically. "If a late-stage Golden Core demon beast self-destructs, we'll all die. Retreat!"

All four of them stepped back at the same time.

However, the exit of the tree hole is behind the Green Wood Python, so you have to go around it to get out.

It is now expanding, and its body is blocking most of the exit.

If you walk past it and it explodes prematurely, no one will be able to escape.

All three of them retreated, but Feng Yiran did not.

He gripped the sword hilt tightly, unleashing his sword intent.

A sharp sword aura shot out from the tip of the sword and pierced the head of the Green Wood Python.

The sword energy exploded on the python's head, and the Green Wood Python let out a hiss, its body suddenly stiffening.

The expansion has stopped.

The Green Python closed its eyes.

Its body began to soften, and the runes on its body extinguished one by one.

The green light on its body dissipated, leaving only its charred remains.

Feng Yiran sheathed his golden flying sword and took a few steps back.

His face was a little pale; that sword strike had consumed a lot of his true energy.

The corpse of the Green Wood Python began to dissipate.

The scales first transformed into blue light spots, which then drifted in the air.

Then comes flesh and blood, which transforms into spiritual energy piece by piece.

Finally, the bones, with a few cracking sounds, shattered into powder, which also turned into spiritual energy.

All the spiritual energy was absorbed by the tree walls surrounding the tree hole.

The tree wall began to glow, the cracks widened, revealing the space behind it.

It turns out that there was a hidden room behind the tree wall.

In less than the time it takes to drink a cup of tea, the Green Wood Python completely disappeared.

Only a pool of bluish liquid remained on the ground; it was its blood.

The entrance to the secret chamber was at the very back of the tree hole, originally blocked by the body of the Green Wood Python.

The entrance was small, only allowing one person to pass at a time. It was pitch black inside, and you couldn't see how deep it was.

Feng Yiran was the first to go in.

The secret chamber was small, only a few feet square. The walls were made of intertwined tree roots, covered with glowing moss that emitted a faint green light.

The ground is made of flat wood, which feels springy when you step on it.

There is a stone tablet in the center of the secret room.

The stone tablet is blue-green, taller than a person, and has a smooth surface.

There is a sword mark engraved on the monument. The mark is deep and the edges are neat, as if it was cleaved by a sword.

There were cracks on the stone surface around the sword mark, as if it had been shattered by the sword intent.

Feng Yiran stood in front of the stone tablet, his eyes fixed on the sword mark.

His body stiffened.

"What's wrong?" Huo Lie asked.

"Don't speak," Jiang Shi stopped him.

Feng Yiran's body began to glow.

It wasn't the light of true essence, but the intent of the sword.

Sword energy surged from his body, resonating with the sword marks on the stone tablet.

The sword marks on the stone tablet also lit up, emitting a blue light, just like the sword intent emanating from Feng Yiran.

Feng Yiran sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

"He's meditating," Jiang Shi said. "Don't disturb him. This sword mark is the wood element sword intent left by the Five Elements Master; it will be useful to him."

The three left the secret room, leaving Feng Yiran alone.

Jiang Shi didn't tell anyone that when he entered the secret room, he only glanced at it and learned this Wood Element Sword Intent by relying on his destiny!

Now he has another way to deal with his enemies!

Jiang Shi searched around inside the tree hole.

The thing guarded by the Green Wood Python was a pile of spiritual materials in the corner of the tree hole, which was pressed down by the Green Wood Python's body, but was revealed after the corpse dissipated.

There are several pieces of blue ore, which are the essence of green wood, a second-grade spiritual material, which can be used to refine wood-type magical artifacts.

There are also a few medicinal herbs, not very old, but in good condition.

Inside the innermost part is a jade box, with sealing runes engraved on it.

Jiang Shi opened the jade box, inside lay a green fruit, about the size of a fist, with runes flowing on its surface.

The fruit has a very faint aroma, but just one whiff of it makes you feel refreshed.

Wood-element Fruit, a superior second-grade spiritual item, can be used to refine wood-elemental true essence after consumption.

Huo Lie leaned over for a look, then pouted, "Wood element? I don't need it."

Shui Lingxi glanced at it and shook her head. She was a water-type, and wood-type spirits wouldn't be of much use to her.

Jiang Shi put the wood fruit into his storage bracelet.

They then divided the Green Wood Essence and Spirit Herbs, giving each person a portion.

Although Fire Blaze and Water Spirit Stream are not useful, they can be exchanged for contribution points when brought back to the sect.

After waiting for an hour, the sword intent in the secret room finally dissipated.

Feng Yiran came out as well.

His eyes were brighter than before, and his sword intent was more solid.

His walking posture has changed, and every step he takes carries a sharp feeling.

Feng Yiran didn't say much, but Jiang Shi could sense that Feng Yiran's strength had increased by at least 20%.

For every level a sword cultivator's sword intent increases, their combat power doubles.

The four left the tree hole and returned to the ground.

The sky above the second level was still hazy, with the tree canopies blocking out the sun.

But their location had changed; the path outside the tree hollow was not the one they had come from.

The surrounding trees were taller than before, and there were more runes on their trunks.

"The teleportation array is to the east." Shui Lingxi took out a map and looked at it. "Go in this direction, it will take about an hour."

The four set off.

After walking for half an hour, the trees ahead began to thin out.

There were footprints on the ground, left by monks. There were more than one person's footprints; at least five or six people's footprints.

"Someone has been here," Feng Yiran said. "More than one. And not long ago, the footprints haven't been covered by fallen leaves yet."

After another half hour of walking, we arrived at the teleportation array.

The teleportation array on the second floor is the same as that on the first floor: a five-colored stone platform, ten feet high, covered with runes.

The runes flowed slowly across the surface of the stone platform, emitting a soft, five-colored light.

Several people stood beside the stone platform, dressed in red Taoist robes with bright red tokens hanging from their waists.

People from the Burning Heaven Sect.

The leader was a young man in a red robe, at the mid-stage of the Golden Core realm, with a stern face.

His aura was stronger than fire, and there was a burning sensation on his body.

He frowned slightly when he saw Huo Lie.

"Fire Blaze, you're here too?"

"Senior brother." Huo Lie clasped his hands in a respectful greeting. He was usually carefree and irresponsible, but he became much more well-behaved when he saw this senior brother.

The young man in red robes glanced at Jiang Shi and Feng Yiran. His gaze lingered on Feng Yiran for a moment, recognizing him as the eldest outer disciple of the Taihua Sword Sect.

"Feng Yiran of the Taihua Sword Sect?"

Feng Yiran nodded without saying a word.

The young man in the red robe looked at Jiang Shi again, sized him up, but didn't recognize him.

But the storage bracelet on Jiang Shi's wrist and his imposing aura prevented him from asking any further questions.

"See you on the third floor." The red-robed youth said nothing more. He led his men into the teleportation array, the light shone, and they disappeared.

"Let's go," Jiang Shi said.

The four stepped into the teleportation array. Light engulfed them, and the world seemed to turn upside down.

When I opened my eyes again, all I saw was a burning earth.

The third level is the Realm of Fire.

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