Today, beneath Yun City, the roots of the Star Absorbing Tree pierced into the core of the Star Blue Continent, spreading throughout the entire underground of Yun City.
At the same time, as that Star Absorbing Tree absorbed the power of the core using Mutated Monsters as nourishment, more and more Star Trees grew throughout Yun City with a series of rumbles.
Like parasites, the city was gradually transforming into a forest.
But these Star Absorbing Trees did not bear fruit.
Instead, they grew...
Gray-green monsters covered the trees. They crawled on four limbs, their bodies completely hairless and their heads round. Sharp claws, a row of bony spines along their backs, and enormous bloody mouths completed the picture. Each had a single eye and was about the size of a van.
From the moment these Star Absorbing Trees began to grow to the moment they produced monsters, it took only eight to fifteen seconds.
Once fully formed, the monsters fell to the ground, while more visibly grew in their place.
Batch after batch, they scattered with roars, as if guided by a target, heading straight for the Yun City shelter.
Gu Qijue, who was picking fruit, knew nothing about this.
At that moment, he already had 580,000 fruits in the space between his brows.
He had picked half the fruit on the entire tree.
Thud, thud, thud—
Buzz, buzz, buzz—
And then, right at that moment,
the entire Star Absorbing Tree began to shake.
The remaining unpicked fruits burst with dazzling, blinding starlight.
Then they steadily swelled, visibly transforming into monsters.
"Not good! Fall back!"
Seeing this, Gu Qijue felt a faint chill in his heart. By devouring Star Fruits, he had now advanced to the peak of the sixth tier.
"Oh my god, they've turned into monsters!"
"Run!!"
At Gu Qijue's shout, everyone was terrified. The monsters taking shape made them feel as if they were facing an overwhelming terror.
They frantically fled down the tree.
Roar! Roar—
The monsters grew far faster than they could have imagined. Of the remaining four or five hundred thousand fruits, tens of thousands of monsters had already fallen from the tree in an instant. Excitement gleamed in their single eyes as they lunged, claws bared, at the people and monsters fleeing along the branches.
"Ah!!"
One of the Super Martial Artists near the back was knocked down with a thump by a Star Monster, which bit off his head.
"You all go first! I'll hold them off!"
With a roar, Gu Qijue unleashed his full power. Thunder Dragon Sword in his left hand, Thunder Dragon Spear in his right, he turned and charged at the tens of thousands of Star Monsters rushing toward him at an unstoppable speed.
Roar, roar—
Three Star Monsters lunged at him, their mouths gaping wide, each as big as a water vat.
Their mouths were lined with fangs like blades.
They raised their sharp claws high.
"Die!!"
Gu Qijue roared and swept his spear across.
Boom! Bang—
Gu Qijue had thought he could kill them in one blow.
But he hadn't expected—
his terrifying strike
to leave only a long gash across the heads of the three Star Monsters.
"This..."
Gu Qijue stared in horror. There were hundreds of thousands of monsters like these...
Fortunately, the lightning that had entered the three monsters' bodies seemed to damage them badly.
After convulsing for a moment, the three Star Monsters fell from the thousand-meter-tall tree.
Roar! Roar!!
Before Gu Qijue could even think, six more Star Monsters ferociously lunged at him.
"Kill!"
Gu Qijue went completely berserk, lightning flashing all over his body. He charged into the six Star Monsters and fought with all his might, cutting one away with his sword and sweeping two aside with his spear.
He had just taken down three when more than ten roared and surged toward him.
Awooo! Roar—
The Twin Dragons behind Gu Qijue roared, spewing violent lightning as they shot forward to hold them back.
At the same time, Gu Qijue took a Star Monster's claw across his chest and forcefully cut them down one by one.
He called back the Twin Dragons, now covered in bloody wounds from blocking the ten or so Star Monsters, and charged forward to fight the creatures himself.
After killing those thirteen Star Monsters, several more bleeding claw marks had appeared on Gu Qijue's body.
Even the hard Dragon Scales covering him had been broken.
Without a word, he swallowed several Star Fruits to heal his wounds. This time, four or five dozen Star Monsters rushed down from the tree.
Gu Qijue took a deep breath, glanced at the people, who were still five hundred meters above the ground, then raised his Dragon Sword and Dragon Spear and charged back into the fight.
These people were humanity's hope.
They were weak now, but only because their levels were too low.
Besides, if they hadn't come this time, he could have picked only a little over a hundred thousand fruits on his own.
They weren't a burden.
Without a word or a trace of fear, Gu Qijue unleashed his full power. Black lightning, like hundreds of roaring thunder dragons, surged toward the four or five dozen Star Monsters.
"Boss!!!!"
The people fleeing looked at him as he risked his life to hold back those powerful Star Monsters. Tears glimmered in their eyes as they cursed their own weakness and could only flee down the tree faster.
Without Gu Qijue holding them back, the Star Monsters were several times faster than they were. Not one person there would have made it out alive.
Roar!!
With a furious roar, Gu Qijue let four Star Monsters bite into his shoulder, then forced them back and cut down two more.
Alone, he held the line with the courage of a man who could keep ten thousand at bay.
White Fox, Ji Shang, Meng Bao, Scarlet Emperor, Wu Jiao, Bai Jingyi, Zhu Hongyu, and the others watched, their hearts trembling.
Even Guilai and the other Aberrant Creatures felt their eyes sting.
The tens of millions of viewers watching the livestream were deeply shaken by the scene before them.
That towering figure, standing alone against an army, was etched deeply into their hearts. They might never forget it for the rest of their lives.
Pfft!!
After taking care of those four or five dozen Star Monsters, Gu Qijue could no longer suppress the blood surging inside him. He spat out a mouthful of blood and swallowed ten Star Fruits in succession before he managed to contain it.
"Boss, run!!"
Just then, Zhu Hongyu and the others called out from the ground.
They had landed and escaped the branches' grasp.
Seeing this, Gu Qijue felt slightly relieved. It would be easy for him to leave.
With a boom, he stepped onto the lightning and soared into the air, fleeing as fast as he could beyond the Star Absorbing Tree's reach.
Awooo! Roar, roar, roar—
But the hundred thousand or so Star Monsters in the tree had all set their sights on him. They disregarded their own lives, leaping straight from the tree to pounce on him.
The sight was clear.
One enormous Star Monster after another blotted out the entire sky, all rushing toward Gu Qijue. Even if they died from the fall, they seemed determined to kill him.
At this sight, Gu Qijue's heart tightened. He kept dodging one Star Monster after another as they pounced down from the tree.
But there were simply too many.
Several times, he nearly had his head bitten off.
His Dragon Scales were shattered in many places, and blood streamed from one ragged wound after another.
But his fighting spirit did not diminish in the slightest.
There was not the faintest trace of panic in his eyes or on his face. He remained terrifyingly calm.
The tens of millions of viewers in the livestream felt their scalps go numb as they watched.
--
That's all four chapters for today! Please vote with your monthly and recommendation tickets! I hope you won't save up chapters to binge later—following the updates is really important. The more readers follow along, the faster the updates!
Before you continue