Little did he know that someone else was watching him from behind.
"Daoist Zhunti, isn't it a little unfair to enjoy such a fine treasure all by yourself?"
A sudden voice rang out behind Zhunti. His expression changed. He had spent a long time searching for traces of this place.
He had hurried over today, so why was someone else here?
Before he had time to turn around, a fist came flying at him. Zhunti leaped forward at once, crossing his arms to take the punch head-on.
Ye Jun pulled back his fist and looked at Daoist Zhunti, a faint smile playing at the corners of his mouth.
Zhunti had reacted very quickly. After all, Ye Jun had seized the initiative; an ordinary person would have been injured by that punch.
But Zhunti had fared much better. Of course, that was because his cultivation was already nearing the Quasi-Saint realm!
"Ye Jun, you again! Were you following me?" Zhunti looked up at Ye Jun, the last person he wanted to see.
With his arms folded, Ye Jun said with interest, "Following you? Come now, Daoist Zhunti. No need to put it so bluntly. I just happened to be heading the same way as you!"
The same way?
Zhunti wasn't a fool. How could he believe that? What a remarkable coincidence.
"Ye Jun, I've been searching for this place for a long time. I'm determined to claim this Bitter Bamboo."
"I can promise you that once I've taken the Bitter Bamboo, I'll leave. After that, whatever spiritual treasures are on this island won't concern me. How about it?" Zhunti drew a deep breath and spoke slowly.
This was the furthest he could bring himself to compromise. If Ye Jun weren't a Quasi-Saint, he wouldn't be negotiating with him here.
Ye Jun looked thoughtful, then said, "There should be plenty of good things on this island. But I'm very interested in this Bitter Bamboo too."
Zhunti's heart sank. He'd known this fellow wouldn't give up so easily!
Ye Jun stood there with the air of a man who ruled the world, waiting as if to say, If you're not satisfied, just attack!
Zhunti glared at Ye Jun, his teeth clenched.
When Ye Jun saw that Zhunti wasn't answering, he said no more. He simply swept his sleeve, and the dense bamboo forest that had been there a moment ago became completely empty.
"Ye Jun! Give me back my Bitter Bamboo!" Zhunti shouted furiously. How could this fellow be so shameless?
Taking the Bitter Bamboo would have been one thing, but he'd even cleared out the entire bamboo forest!
"Oh? Wasn't this Bitter Bamboo unclaimed, just sitting here on the island? When did it become yours? How come I didn't know?" Ye Jun's three questions left Zhunti speechless.
"Th-this... I don't care! Hand over the Bitter Bamboo!" Zhunti stamped his foot.
Ye Jun could see that the man had been pushed to the brink. Otherwise, he wouldn't have acted like this.
It was no wonder. Ye Jun had barged in and snatched away a great opportunity Zhunti had struggled so hard to find. If Ye Jun were in his place, he'd have drawn his sword long ago.
"It's not going back. Why don't you hurry off and look somewhere else? This island is so vast, there must be plenty of opportunities to be found!" Ye Jun raised an eyebrow.
"Fine! Fine! Fine!" Zhunti ground out the word three times.
As soon as the words left his mouth, golden light blazed around Zhunti. Above his head, the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree swayed and chimed.
Ye Jun raised an eyebrow. Could this old bald donkey really have the nerve to attack first?
"Today, I'm taking this Bitter Bamboo!" Zhunti gave a cold snort. Golden light rose in his hand, and the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree suddenly grew thousands of feet tall!
"Stir up wind and clouds!" Zhunti barked. The thick fog all around him surged toward the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree, gathering in front of him into a gigantic tornado.
Zhunti took a deep breath and thrust both hands forward. The tornado hurtled toward Ye Jun!
"Bring it on!" Ye Jun shouted. He was still simmering with anger after being bullied so badly by that female demon.
With a sweep of his sleeve, 108 black-and-white Go stones appeared in midair, creating a spectacular sight, like pearls large and small falling onto a jade plate!
The 108 stones appeared to be scattered at random, yet they formed a self-contained formation. A Taiji Diagram spun behind Ye Jun as he sent it crashing down to suppress the tornado!
Zhunti stirred up wind and clouds by borrowing the formation's power; Ye Jun threw Yin and Yang into chaos with his bare hands!
The instant the tornado collided with the vast Yin-Yang diagram, the entire island shook with a thunderous rumble. The plants and hills across hundreds of miles were flattened in an instant!
Luckily, Ye Jun had just taken the bamboo forest away. Otherwise, the damage would have been disastrous.
If this Bitter Bamboo, one of the Innate Spiritual Roots, were damaged in Ye Jun's hands, it would break his heart.
Once the wind and clouds dispersed and Yin and Yang returned to their proper places, everything settled back into calm. The clash had ended in a draw!
Ye Jun couldn't help exclaiming in surprise. It seemed the old bald donkey had made considerable progress in his cultivation lately. By drawing on the power of the Three Talents Great Array, he had managed to bridge the gap between the Quasi-Saint and Grand Unity Golden Immortal realms.
Still, that only proved Zhunti was truly just one step away from becoming a Quasi-Saint!
But how many times could he rely on this kind of borrowed power?
Ye Jun gave a cold laugh. The 108 stones in the sky began spinning rapidly once more.
Yin-Yang Two Energies streamed from Ye Jun's hands, transforming into 108 hair-thin Yin-Yang ropes that bound the stones firmly in place.
"Suppress!"
Ye Jun gave a cold snort. The 108 stones darted and wove around one another, and a Yin Yang Great Cauldron appeared before Zhunti.
Yin-Yang Two Energies curled around the cauldron. Yang occupied the left, Yin the right, and it dropped straight down over Zhunti's head.
Cold sweat broke out across Zhunti's forehead. When had this monkey learned the Yin Yang Dao Method?
Wasn't this the signature technique of the Yin-Yang Ancestor? Could this monkey actually be the Yin-Yang Ancestor's last disciple?
But the Yin-Yang Ancestor had been dead for some time. Zhunti had never heard anything like that!
He was puzzled, but he didn't let up. Spiritual Energy surged from the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree in his hand, sweeping again and again at the Yin Yang Great Cauldron.
Watching the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree, Ye Jun couldn't help thinking that it truly was a fine treasure!
Even with Ye Jun channeling the Yin Yang Dao Method at full power, the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree still managed to brush away a considerable number of black-and-white Go stones formed from Yin-Yang Two Energies.
Ye Jun was suppressing Zhunti through the strength of his spiritual energy. Otherwise, Zhunti might really have brushed the Yin Yang Great Cauldron away completely.
Wouldn't it be wonderful if he had a spiritual treasure like that too?
If Zhunti knew someone was coveting his spiritual treasure while they were fighting, the old bald donkey would probably have fallen apart on the spot.
But Zhunti wasn't doing much better himself. No matter how effectively the Seven Treasures Wonderful Tree brushed things away, it couldn't keep up with the endless stream of Yin-Yang Two Energies!
Before you continue