Heaven-Seeing Palace

Boom—

A bolt of lightning in the shape of a twisting dragon descended from the heavens, tearing across half the black sky and striking a towering mountain. Its force looked earth-shaking, yet only a shallow pit appeared on the mountaintop. Countless similar shallow pits surrounded it.

Such divine lightning, if it struck an ordinary mountain, would be enough to blast the entire peak into dust. It seemed so inconspicuous here because this mountain was no ordinary stone—it was a demonic mountain brimming with spirit. Its cliffs were covered in traces of white bones, and no one knew how many corpses it had devoured over the ages.

There was no other life on the mountain, only a colossal tree that held up the sky. That ancient tree, its canopy blotting out heaven and earth, seemed to be sucking spiritual power from the demonic mountain. Knotted, pulsing blood vessels covered its crown. The demonic mountain appeared helpless against it, able only to let the giant tree parasitize it.

It was an apocalyptic sight, yet only an ordinary corner of the Divine Ruins. This forbidden land was filled with deadly dangers, remaining a challenge even for eighth-realm powerhouses.

That giant tree was covered in black thorny balls, every single one of them looking exceptionally eerie.

As Chu Liang looked at them, they seemed somewhat familiar.

Was this not the ghost tree near Shushan? It appeared to be the same species, only this one was vastly larger. Ghost trees absorbed wandering souls and produced tiny black furballs with spirituality. Those could bloom into berry seeds within the White Tower, and they had contributed no small amount to his early fortune.

Thinking of those verdant youthful days when he had begged for seeds every day, Chu Liang could not help feeling rather wistful.

So the