Early Scheming

"The true form of the Immortal of Time is the same as that of the Shepherd Grass, both being Spirit Plant that have developed sentience?" Lu Yang was surprised. It is extremely rare for Spirit Plant to develop sentience, and even rarer for them to achieve it.

As far as he knew, there were two situations in which Spirit Plant developed sentience. One was that they lived long enough and gradually developed sentience, such as the little medicinal plants in the herb garden.

The little herb kings have all lived for at least 100,000 years. Imagine how lucky a spirit medicine must be to live for 100,000 years without being harvested.

Another possibility is that the Spirit Plant has accumulated various coincidences, such as living in a vein of top-grade Spirit Stone for a long time, absorbing Spiritual Qi day and night, or coming into contact with some kind of ultimate principle of heaven and earth and receiving the favor of the "Dao", or being enlightened by a powerful being, etc.

The number of Spirit Plant that have developed sentience is extremely rare, and the world knows very little about them. Even in the medicinal garden of the Ask Dao Sect, which has a few small medicinal kings, it is difficult to study them thoroughly.

The characteristics of different Spirit Plant vary greatly, and without a reference standard, comparative studies are impossible.

However, one thing is certain: spiritual Spirit Plant that develop sentience will have a hundred times greater abilities than Spirit Plant without sentience.

For example, the Mu Tiancao in front of us controls at least fifty or sixty Golden Core cultivators, and we don't even know if there are any hidden Golden Core cultivators.

"Immortal Time will definitely be unhappy to hear you say that. How could the Sky-Shepherd Grass be compared to it?"

"The true form of the Immortal of Time is the Jianmu tree, which reaches the heavens and the earth. Even without developing sentience, it is still an unparalleled immortal tree, a rare sight throughout the ages. Before it developed sentience, its branches and leaves grew from one planet to another, becoming enormous."

"After he developed sentience, he was still very weak and worried about being targeted by evil people, so he split off a branch, which transformed into human form, and walked and cultivated in the world. The results of his cultivation would be reflected back to his original body."

"When he ascended to immortality, the scale of his ascension was so grand that it could not be concealed, nor was it necessary to conceal it any longer. Only then did the world realize that the supreme genius who was proficient in time was not human, but a tree."

"Perhaps because Jianmu lived long enough, the Time Immortal was particularly gifted in the realm of time, and attained immortality by using [Time] as its Dao fruit."

If the Immortal Fairy hadn't said that, Lu Yang would have really thought that the Time Immortal had been eating the Immortal Fairy's cooking so much that he had a whirlwind of memories before he could comprehend the power of time.

Lu Yang did not listen to the Immortal Fairy recount the High Antiquity secrets any further. The matters at hand were extremely urgent. As the leader, he needed to make a decision as soon as possible: whether to fight or return to the Demon Suppression Pass.

Lu Yang transmitted his voice to Meng Jingzhou and the other two. "Prepare teleportation talismans, take the Song family members, and return to Zhenyao Pass!"

Lu Yang quickly made a decision; in this situation, running away was the only option.

Not to mention the burden of the Song family, the sixty Golden Core cultivators in the swamp alone were beyond Lu Yang and his group's capabilities.

Four Foundation Establishment Late Stage defeated sixty Golden Core cultivators?

That's impossible; we could wear them down to death.

Lu Yang and Meng Jingzhou had twelve teleportation talismans, more than enough to teleport everyone.

Excluding Song Wuguo, the Song family has three members remaining, plus two bodyguards, making a total of five people in the Song family camp who need to be rescued.

Lu Yang, carrying the Qingfeng Sword, stood at the forefront, warily watching the Golden Core cultivators emerging from the swamp. Before Mu Tiancao could launch an attack, he signaled Meng Jingzhou to quickly distribute directional teleportation talismans.

Two mud-covered Golden Core cultivators made their move. Both were human, their faces covered in mud, obscuring their original features.

Lu Yang met the attack with his sword, severing the arms of the two men. Unaware of the pain, they continued to attack Lu Yang relentlessly.

These two were only at the mid-stage of the Golden Core, but thanks to their fighting style that disregarded physical damage, they managed to hold their own against Lu Yang for the time being.

"Don't get entangled with them, once you've finished distributing the goods, run!" Meng Jingzhou transmitted his Divine Sense.

"Good!"

Lu Yang swung his sword with all his might, repelling the two men, and together with the others, he took out a teleportation talisman.

The teleportation talismans burned automatically, and figures were teleported to the Demon Suppression Pass.

Suddenly, a soft laugh rang out, "Anyone of you can run, but you Lu Yang, cannot."

Lu Yang's expression changed, realizing something was wrong.

The sound was coming from the center of the swamp; it was Shepherd's Grass speaking!

The Heavenly Grass swayed gently, and the Spirit Stone buried in the ground instantly lost their Spiritual Qi, turning back into transparent crystals.

The hidden array in the surrounding area was activated, forming a spot of light that converged on Lu Yang, interrupting his teleportation.

"Lu Yang!"

"Senior Brother Lu!"

"Brother Lu!"

Meng Jingzhou and his two companions saw this scene just before they were about to be teleported and couldn't help but shout.

No one expected that Mu Tiancao would deliberately target Lu Yang and had prepared an array to interrupt the teleportation talisman well in advance.

The change happened in an instant; by the time everyone realized what had happened, they had already returned to the Demon-Suppressing Pass.

"What should we do?" Song Hua and the others were at a loss. Although they had been rescued, Lu Yang was still there and needed to be rescued.

Without hesitation, Meng Jingzhou headed straight for Zhenyao Pass, intending to reveal his identity to the guards there and rescue Lu Yang.

"I never expected to be targeted like this." Lu Yang stared at Mu Tiancao, a no-smile on his lips.

Mu Tiancao spoke again, his voice young, like that of a refined gentleman.

"Lu Yang, I've been watching you for two months now. You've finally fallen into my trap. How could I let you go?"

Lu Yang's heart skipped a beat. Could it be that he had been targeted by Mu Tiancao ever since he arrived deep in the dense forest?

He recalled the Golden Core cultivators he had encountered in the past two months. Could they have been controlled by the Shepherd's Grass?

"Judging from the power you've displayed, you should have Sword Spirit Root, right?"

"We Spirit Plant have many ways to protect ourselves, but not many ways to attack. What I hope for most is to absorb cultivators with Spirit Root or Sword Spirit Root, so that I can improve my attack methods. I thought I wouldn't have a chance to encounter these two Spirit Root before I matured, but look, you've come knocking on my door."

"Of course, that's not the most important thing. The most important thing is your clone Law Technique!"

"Hand over your clone Law Technique, and I might spare your life!"

The Heavenly Grass, controlling Golden Core cultivator, had been observing Lu Yang from a distance, its desire for Lu Yang's wooden clone itch intensely.

Before a certain number of years have passed, the Spirit Plant cannot move. What the Shepherd Grass desires most is the Law Technique to create clones, so that it can control its clones to do what it wants.

The clone Lu Yang used was a wood-attribute Law Technique, which was most compatible with Spirit Plant.

It absolutely had to get this clone Law Technique!

Therefore, it meticulously designed a trap to lure Lu Yang into it step by step. Although Song Wuguo was exposed, it did not affect the overall situation.

Once Lu Yang reaches the swamp, he will surely die!

"Even if you hand it over, you still won't be able to learn it." Lu Yang shook his head. He could mess up the Tree Planting Technique, so he didn't believe that Mu Tiancao could mess it up either.

"Why don't we sit down and have a good talk? You can come back to the sect with me. The sect has plenty of resources to nurture you, and you won't need to waste your energy here collecting nutrients. It'll be better for everyone."

Mu Tiancao sneered, "I know what you're thinking. You just want to stall for time until your companions go to Zhenyao Pass to call for help. Do you think I'll be unprepared?"

"Mountain-Moving Formation, activate!"

The leaves of the Shepherd's Grass swayed rhythmically, and the Golden Core cultivators simultaneously raised their hands, activating another hidden array.

Lu Yang felt a slight sway beneath his feet, then the ground stabilized.

"We've been teleported to another place; the important figures from Zhenyao Pass won't find us here."

"Now, are you ready to become my nourishment?"

Lu Yang's expression turned serious. "Are you trying to force me to summon my senior sister, you worthless weed?"