A Lan Makes a Staff

Before Giant Crocodile could touch Xu Yu, a Sky-Piercing Great Tree erupted from the ground and sent him soaring into the sky.

The massive tree blotted out the sun, its crown spreading over a hundred meters wide and casting the entire residential area below into its shade.

"You audacious demon, you know not the immensity of heaven and earth, yet you dare trespass into this Buddhist Sacred Ground!"

After Giant Crocodile was sent flying and crashed heavily to the ground, Xu Yu righteously delivered that classic line. It was as though Buddha's light shone behind him. Holding the Brilliant Gold Scepter, with flashing soul rings empowering him, he continuously applied "buffs" to himself and Giant Crocodile beneath the tree.

Damn it, after holding back for so long, he could finally show off.

Unfortunately, no one on Douluo Continent appreciated it. Otherwise, that had been a truly imposing display.

If this were Earth, countless lackeys would have prostrated themselves before him, shouting, "Boss, teach me how to show off!" Alas, the cultures of Douluo Continent were incompatible. Xu Yu leaped onto a branch, feeling regretful.

Giant Crocodile lay on the ground, clutching his chest in confusion. What was a Buddhist Sacred Ground? Was that one of his soul skills?

Wasn't his soul skill Divine Tree Descent?

Meeting Giant Crocodile's puzzled gaze, Xu Yu's mood soured. Not only had he failed to look impressive just now, but he had embarrassed himself too. He had looked like a clown.

Hmph, I'll take it out on this thorn in my side.

"Giant Crocodile, I'll sit cross-legged here. All of you can come at me together. If I move, you win."

"Arrogant!" Giant Crocodile flew into a rage, feeling deeply humiliated.

Everyone else thought Xu Yu was being far too arrogant, much less him.

"Third Soul Skill, Golden Crocodile Body. Fourth Soul Skill, Golden Crocodile Head. Fifth Soul Skill, Giant Crocodile Roar!" The remaining three soul skills activated in succession. This was going too far. If he did not recover his dignity today, he would not be able to remain in Spirit Hall any longer.

The fully enhanced crocodile man charged toward Xu Yu, who stood high atop a branch, letting out a crocodilian roar. At that moment, the ancient tree bloomed. Brilliant, dazzling petals filled the air. Before the horrified eyes of the onlookers, the fierce, unstoppable crocodile man ran forward—only for a flurry of petals to brush past him. The crowd stared in shock. Why did Giant Crocodile look as if he had been sliced a thousand times? Blood covered his entire body as he dropped to one knee. Were those vivid petals actually blades?

How could they be so terrifying?

Yet what truly frightened Giant Crocodile was not the damage to his body. Though he appeared to have been sliced a thousand times, he had only suffered superficial wounds. What truly terrified him was the pollen. It was invading his emotions, bewitching him into converting to the Tree Sect.

No, he had to retreat for now.

Otherwise, if he inhaled too much pollen and the state became irreversible, he would be in serious trouble.

He retreated at the same speed, leaving the area beneath the canopy where petals danced through the air. Giant Crocodile clearly felt that urge to convert to the other side gradually fading away. Though he was safe now, the thought of what had just happened still sent chills down his spine. It was too horrifying.

What kind of soul skill was that?

"What happened?"

Twin Staff Girls supported Giant Crocodile from behind. They were both confused. Logically, injuries of this degree should have been mere flesh wounds for Giant Crocodile, whose entire body had been enhanced. There should have been no need for him to flee in panic.

"Be careful. When you approach the shade beneath the canopy, watch out. Don't let him bewitch you."

Right, bewitchment.

Could it be a bewitchment-type soul skill? They had indeed heard that Hu Liena possessed bewitchment abilities, and that they were twice as effective against men. Seeing it today, the rumors truly lived up to their name.

"His bewitchment soul skill is powerful, but it may not work as well on women. If you want to attack, be careful. Also, his weakness is obvious—he can't move. We overlooked that weakness before. The three of us can attack together, which would be fair enough. Otherwise, if we leave, there's nothing he can do to us."

Effective on men, but not very impactful on women?

Could the rumors that Hu Liena was a man-killer actually be true?

Twin Staff Girls were suspicious and shocked. They truly could not understand how a man could become a man-killer. Did he have that kind of preference? Looking at the still-shaken Giant Crocodile, the two women wondered whether, beneath the tree canopy, Giant Crocodile's spiritual body had been dragged into an illusion by "Hu Liena" and forcibly taken.

Terrifying. Horrifying.

They had never expected Hu Liena to be that kind of person.

Unfortunately, he had met his match today. The two women exchanged looks, their gazes firm. Their Coiled Dragon Staffs crossed and merged together. Stern sparks flashed at their intersection as two different streams of Soul Power began to blend and fuse, producing power far greater than one plus one.

Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

They had not expected there to be people in Spirit Hall who could use a Martial Soul Fusion Skill.

Though the two girls possessed less Soul Power than Giant Crocodile and were only four-ring Soul Ancestors, after using their Martial Soul Fusion Skill, their strength surged to the peak of Soul King level, faintly carrying the pressure of a level-sixty Soul Emperor.

On a branch of the trunk, Xu Yu raised a brow. The Martial Soul Fusion Skill was impressive, but where had the people gone? Only a staff remained. Wasn't that too bizarre? And it could fly.

However, Xu Yu did not dare underestimate this staff. A Martial Soul Fusion Skill that transformed them into a single staff could be considered high-level, especially for weapon martial souls.

It seemed that Martial Soul Avatars of weapon martial souls were more useful than those of beast martial souls. At the very least, their instant explosive power was greater, though their endurance was inferior to beast martial souls.

The flying staff charged forward aggressively, stirring up havoc.

It punched a huge hole through the dense rain of flowers. Two intertwined giant dragons coiled around its thick, sturdy body. Though it only had one more dragon than an ordinary Coiled Dragon Staff, its power had increased by far more than double. Xu Yu immediately sensed danger.

He cursed inwardly. If the Chaos Ancient Tree were not a management-type summoned beast, how could he allow a mere staff to run wild? He could only rely on Blue Silver Grass—though with the Chaos Ancient Tree concealing it, he no longer feared others discovering the appearance of Blue Silver Grass.

At this moment, Bibi Dong, Qian Daoliu, and other powerful figures were certainly watching him. As for how to explain it, he had already prepared an answer. He had even found an excuse for capturing soul beasts as summoned beasts in the future.

Xu Yu felt that excuse was perfect. Fooling Bibi Dong would definitely not be a problem. That was Xu Yu's confidence, and the confidence of a transmigrator who had read the original work.

"God said that grass should exist in this world, and so grass came to be."

He made up a line of nonsense. While the staff was left bewildered, a stalk of Blue Silver Grass spiraled up around the Chaos Ancient Tree. Countless blue leaves bloomed along its stem, fluttering down one after another, while innumerable tender Blue Silver Grass plants sprouted around the tree roots.

The delicate Blue Silver Grass cheered in the wind. When the staff entered their attack range, the seemingly tiny blades of grass uprooted themselves one after another and tried to bind the staff.

The staff struggled, but it could not escape being dragged toward the ground.

"One Staff Settles the Universe!" The staff refused to await its fate.

It was, after all, a Martial Soul Fusion Skill with the combat strength of a peak Soul King. How could a few Blue Silver Grass clones subdue it so easily?

One Staff Settles the Universe caused violent Soul Power fluctuations to erupt from the staff. The Blue Silver Grass wrapped around it burst apart and snapped one after another, scattering blue sap all over the ground. A Lan cried out in pain. She shared the pain felt by her clones.

However, even though the clones had burst apart, the five "BUFFs" Xu Yu had granted ensured that A Lan's main body suffered no impact to its combat strength. Completely unharmed and enraged, A Lan used her main stalk to directly bind the staff as it darted about wildly. Only then did she stop the staff from running rampant beneath Xu Yu's tree canopy.

After settling it, A Lan was exceedingly pleased with herself. A leaf circled around Xu Yu's face as she smugly claimed credit.