Planting the Chaos Ancient Tree on a Sea Island

A Spirit Douluo really wasn't someone he could contend with.

Hiding in the sea, Xu Yu treated his injuries as he sighed. It had taken thirty percent of his Soul Power to recover from them, which showed just how much those Soul Masters hated him.

It seemed that aside from Soul Power, he also needed some defensive buffs.

As for his lack of offensive soul skills, he could make up for it with soul bones. At least for now, he didn't need them... and even if he did, he had no way of finding Soul Power.

Once he got his buffing soul skills sorted out, the attributes of his summoned beasts would shoot up. What would he have to fear then? Before enemies could even get close, he could kite them to death with human-wave tactics.

Still, it was necessary to find a soul beast that could protect him. Where on the Douluo Continent could he find soul beasts skilled in protection and concealment?

Having grown up in the countryside, swimming naturally posed no challenge to Xu Yu. He had no idea where the current had carried him, so he could only drift with it. Once he found a small island, he could rest and recover his strength, determine the direction of the continent, and fly back. After all, he had a flying soul skill.

But the waves suddenly raged, and a whirlpool appeared, dragging him in. Before Xu Yu could cry out, his shadow vanished, leaving only a pair of hands struggling at the center of the vortex before they, too, were pulled under the next second.

"Glug, glug." After swallowing several mouthfuls of seawater, Xu Yu cursed inwardly and hurriedly covered his mouth. He used a breaststroke to try to escape the center of the whirlpool. Fortunately, the pull underwater wasn't as strong as it was above. As long as he held his breath and swam a few hundred more meters, he should be able to get out.

But... a few hundred meters, my ass. He was just a Soul Master, not a god. Who could swim hundreds of meters in one breath, especially while diving?

He'd screwed up!

He should never have saved Zhu Zhuyun.

Saving her because he coveted her body was secondary. More importantly, Zhu Zhuyun was the former Crown Princess of the Star Luo Empire. Although she had been declared a traitor, she still had resources behind her. Xu Yu intended to persuade Bibi Dong to support Zhu Zhuyun in stirring up trouble within the Star Luo Empire—cough, cough... fighting for freedom—thus plunging the Star Luo Empire into civil unrest and leaving it unable to concern itself with anything else.

As one of the Two Great Empires of the continent, the Star Luo Empire had a deep foundation. At the very least, it was not comparable to an empire like the Heaven Dou Empire, which needed the Seven Great Clans to prop up its image.

Its crown prince had been replaced and it still hadn't noticed. If that wasn't a trash empire, what was?

Unfortunately, none of that had anything to do with him now. How long had it been since he came to the Douluo Continent? Yet he was already facing another life-threatening danger. Sure enough, a flower raised in a greenhouse was not suited to surviving in the wild.

Back when he watched the anime, every beauty in Douluo had her own charm. It had been hard enough to come here, yet before he could even flirt with one and make her his wife, he was about to die. How depressing.

Xu Yu took a deep breath and continued feeling depressed.

Then he breathed in again, and continued feeling depressed...

Breathe... wasn't this the bottom of the sea? How could he breathe?

Curiously opening his eyes, Xu Yu was astonished to find that he had fallen into a huge bubble. At the center of the bubble... seemed to be a person. Flying closer, Xu Yu was startled. Wasn't that Zhu Zhuyun?

No wonder she had dared to jump into the sea to escape. She had come prepared.

But was this a Water Repelling Pearl? Xu Yu circled Zhu Zhuyun's curvaceous body twice before returning to her head and staring in surprise at the pearl she held in her mouth.

After thinking about it, he tried to pry the pearl out of Zhu Zhuyun's mouth. Awkwardly, he failed to pull it out, while his finger instead teased her tongue several times.

Zhu Zhuyun's mouth was small, even a cherry mouth, while the pearl was rather large in comparison. Xu Yu was also curious how Zhu Zhuyun had managed to stuff the Water Repelling Pearl into her mouth.

Should he force it out? What if he broke her teeth?

Helpless, Xu Yu could only sit on Zhu Zhuyun's body and drift with the current. The bubble was filled with air, and other than sitting on her body, he had no other choice.

When he was tired, they leaned back to back. When he was bored, he opened his eyes to admire the underwater scenery.

One day, we'll sit back to back—your face toward the sea, mine toward the sky...

Three days passed like that. The whirlpool's pull finally weakened considerably, while Zhu Zhuyun had not awakened the entire time. Xu Yu could only ride her as they drifted through the sea.

Perhaps because of the whirlpool, they hadn't encountered any attacks from Sea Spirit Beasts these past few days. They had gotten tangled in seaweed several times, but he was no ordinary person. Seaweed that would cause ordinary people immense trouble was naturally nothing to him.

He tied Zhu Zhuyun up with a rope and hung her from his waist like a balloon so she would not drift away. Without the bubble supplying air, he couldn't breathe beneath the sea.

Stepping on the soft sand of the seabed, Xu Yu summoned Blue Silver Grass and wrapped it around his finger. Perhaps because of Ah Yin, this Blue Silver Grass was quite intelligent. If not for its memories being sealed due to the limit of its cultivation age, Xu Yu thought he might have been able to chat with the legendary "Ah Yin."

That would keep his days of searching for the Extreme Devourer Immortal beneath the sea from becoming too lonely!

Still, this was fine too. Simpler was better. At least he was happy to have simple exchanges with Blue Silver Grass. For example, whenever it wanted the fruit of certain underwater plants, it would notify him through their spiritual link to pick them.

"I found a sea island!"

As he walked along the seabed, the slope gradually rose until it emerged from the water. Xu Yu stared at the land before him in delight, overwhelmed with excitement. Humans were land creatures, after all. Wandering aimlessly in the sea these past few days had nearly killed him.

Fortunately, he had Blue Silver Grass for company. Xu Yu affectionately stroked its stalk and leaves, wondering whether it would remember the days it had spent with him once its memories returned and it became Ah Yin. What expression would it have then?

He happily stepped onto the sea island. It was bare and barren, so Xu Yu summoned the Life Guardian Beast and planted it in the middle of the island. At that instant, the Chaos Ancient Tree's growth rate soared, tirelessly absorbing energy from the Great Sea.

Unlike Blue Silver Grass, his first summoned beast, the Chaos Ancient Tree was closer to Xu Yu. A "small consciousness" was already beginning to develop within it.

Judging by this rate of absorption, it should grow into a ten-thousand-year summoned beast within ten days.

After that, if it wanted to continue growing, it would have to wait for Xu Yu to level up. Of course, if the Chaos Ancient Tree encountered an opportunity suited to it, it would feed back to Xu Yu and promote the growth of his Soul Power. They would strengthen each other for mutual benefit.

After planting Blue Silver Grass beside the small tree, Xu Yu remembered that he had yet to haul Zhu Zhuyun up. This woman of the Zhu Family had not awakened even after he healed her upon entering the sea. Was she seasick?

Cats were afraid of water, but members of the Zhu Family weren't catgirls. Their martial soul was merely the Hell Spirit Cat. Could she really faint just from entering the sea...?

No wonder those Zhu Family powerhouses had not pursued them. So that was the reason.

Xu Yu carried Zhu Zhuyun ashore and, while he was at it, took her Storage Ring. There should be quite a few treasures inside, so he would take them as her repayment. After all, he was her lifesaver.

Xu Yu accepted the money with a clear conscience. It was also fortunate that Zhu Zhuyun had encountered him. If she had met another man, with that tall, full, shapely body of hers, unconscious and lying motionless, looking ready for anyone to take whatever they pleased, along with her noble status as the Crown Princess of the Star Luo Empire—who could resist?

Fortunately, Zhu Zhuyun would be highly useful in the early stages of Xu Yu's plan. He would take her back to Spirit City to meet Bibi Dong and refine the plan. This would also earn Bibi Dong's trust and make the next stage easier to carry out.

Of course, that did not mean he was some paragon of virtue.

Men were fascinated by women's bodies because of their mystery. Xu Yu had no idea how long he had ridden Zhu Zhuyun beneath the sea, and he had long lost that curiosity to explore further.

Besides, with the lights off, they were all the same. Given his former self's identity, he had no idea how many graceful socialites he had slept with. Having inherited those memories, Xu Yu could empathize with them, and he wasn't about to lose his ability to walk at the sight of a woman's legs.

If he had known there were two soul bones in Zhu Zhuyun's legs, he wasn't sure whether he would have killed her and taken the bones. After all, ever since that female teacher had tied him up and forced him to refine medicine last time, Xu Yu's state of mind had changed slightly—from domesticated to wild.