"Move it! Hurry up!"
"What are you rushing me for? You think I don't want to hurry?"
"You think I want to rush you? There are already quite a few cultivators within ten miles of the Dao Fruit Tree. None of them have reached the Sea Opening Realm yet, but it's only a matter of time. We have to pick all the Dao Fruits from the tree as quickly as we can, or we'll have to fight it out with all the other factions!"
The men in black stopped bickering and began picking Dao Fruits from the tree more efficiently and at greater speed.
Meanwhile, Xiao Yao and the others had reached a point ten miles from the Dao Fruit Tree.
But Xiao Yao abruptly stopped and called out, "Nobody go any farther."
"Young Clan Leader, why?" Xiao Yang asked, full of confusion.
Xiao Xueyu, Xiao Juan, and a dozen other Xiao Clan members were just as perplexed.
Xiao Yao calmly explained, "I can already see the Dao Fruit Tree, and I can see those men in black, too. They're busy gathering the Dao Fruits."
"Wouldn't that make it even more important for us to head over right away?" Xiao Juan challenged him, her voice rising.
Suddenly, Xiao Xueyu seemed to realize something and hurriedly spoke up. "Young Clan Leader, are you planning to strike after the men in black finish gathering the fruits?"
"Not exactly. I want to attack when they're almost done." Xiao Yao revealed his plan.
That did nothing to clear up the Xiao Clan members' confusion. If anything, they were even more baffled.
Xiao Xueyu's beautiful eyes shifted from side to side. Clever as she was, she soon understood. Her alluring red lips parted slightly. "When they're nearly finished, they'll probably be at their happiest and most relieved. That's when their guard will be lowest."
"Striking then will catch them completely off guard. Brilliant!" Xiao Yang's eyes shone with a light they had never held before. He was completely won over by Xiao Yao.
Once the other Xiao Clan members understood, they, too, gazed at Xiao Yao with even greater admiration.
In truth, that wasn't what Xiao Yao had in mind.
He simply didn't want his clansmen to spend too long picking the Dao Fruits. Otherwise, he would have to waste a great deal of time and effort protecting them.
And that would become his most fatal weakness.
Any cultivator with even a little sense would choose that moment to launch a fierce attack.
Besides, through his extended Spiritual Sense, he could tell that more than two hundred cultivators had already gathered around the Dao Fruit Tree, and their numbers were still growing.
If they charged over now, they would immediately upset the balance and become the target of everyone's attention.
Five minutes later.
Xiao Xueyu's expression grew heavy, like a clear blue sky increasingly shrouded in gloom.
At last, she walked over to Xiao Yao and said quietly, "Young Clan Leader, let's give up on the Dao Fruit Tree. There are too many cultivators and factions after it this time. If we go, we might..."
"I know. That's why you can take the clansmen and leave this place."
Xiao Yao remained as calm as before, as if the ever-growing number of cultivators, with their increasingly high cultivation, posed no threat to him.
Xiao Xueyu felt relieved. She had feared that the Young Clan Leader would be stubborn and refuse to let the clansmen leave.
But then she thought again. It seemed his words hadn't included himself.
"Aren't you leaving?"
Xiao Yao smiled faintly. "The Dao Fruit Tree isn't that precious to me. But this battle, involving so many factions and cultivators, is exactly why I came to the Giant Spirit Secret Realm."
"I see," Xiao Xueyu murmured.
Just as she was about to tell the clansmen to leave, the men in black had only three Dao Fruits left to pick.
Xiao Yao decided the perfect moment to attack had arrived. "Xiao Xueyu, the plan has changed. Quickly lead the clansmen and follow behind me."
In the next instant, Xiao Yao vanished from where he stood, turning into a streak of white light.
Xiao Xueyu knew there was no way she could lead the clansmen away now!
"Clansmen, hurry after him! Don't fall behind!"
Tap, tap, tap!
Tap, tap, tap!
Tap, tap, tap!
Deafening footsteps echoed all around.
The many cultivators and factions who had been watching the show were dumbfounded!
"Heh! Charging in now? Is he stupid?"
"Perfect. Let them test those men in black for us."
"Hahaha! I can't believe there are still fools like that around."
"Youngsters are always too impulsive! Nothing like this old man, steady as a mountain."
Most of the factions and cultivators present wore mocking, smug expressions.
By now, Xiao Yao had appeared a hundred meters in front of the thirteen men in black.
"A little brat has come running over! Which of you wants to deal with him?" asked the leader of the men in black, Di Hezheng.
The men in black all eagerly volunteered. "I will! Let me!"
But in the next instant, Xiao Yao unleashed the Phenomenon: Chaos Seed Green Lotus. Terrifying pressure swept across ten miles in every direction.
The cultivators who had been watching realized that this not-yet-grown boy was no pushover.
Di Hezheng's expression darkened slightly. He immediately ordered, "Attack together. Show no mercy."
Apart from the three men in black still picking fruit, the remaining ten circulated their mana and unleashed their spells.
Palm strikes, sword beams, fist strikes, blade arcs, and more burst forth, hurtling toward Xiao Yao.
Their momentum was unstoppable and their power terrifying. Even the cultivators ten miles away could feel the tremendous force contained within them.
"Is there really any need to go so hard on a kid?"
"If he can unleash the Top-tier Phenomenon: Chaos Seed Green Lotus, then he's not as simple as he looks."
"True! I can't tell if he's scared stiff or if he really has the strength, but he hasn't shown a single expression this whole time."
At the same time, Xiao Yao swiftly drew the Saint Artifact, the Taiyan Sword, and unleashed the Dao Integration Tier Cloud-Riding Sword Art, a technique he had never used before.
Sword Qi poured out like a flood, then split apart into countless fine white threads that didn't look particularly powerful.
But as they met the ten spells coming toward him, they were like spring rain falling without a sound. In the blink of an eye, they wiped out every attack.
The cultivators who could see the battle stared wide-eyed, unable to believe what had happened.
Fortunately, the Cloud-Riding Sword Qi had no strength left to press the attack and vanished without a trace.
"Whoa, boss! He's holding a Saint Artifact!"
"What kind of background does that kid have to carry a Saint Artifact around?"
"No idea, but he's definitely no ordinary person. Everyone, give it everything you've got!"
Di Hezheng gave the right order, but how could mayflies possibly shake a great tree?
Under Xiao Yao's Heavenly Spirit Eyes, Di Hezheng, the man they called their boss, had reached the peak of the ninth level of the Sea Opening Realm.
The weakest of the other men in black had reached the seventh level of the Sea Opening Realm.
No wonder Cha Yong, the young sect master of the Spirit Crane Sect, had obediently followed their orders!
Xiao Yao thought quickly. Without using the Quasi-Immortal tier spell, No-Self, he would most likely lose the next exchange.
Seeing the ten spells that Di Hezheng and the others had gathered all their strength to unleash, he immediately activated No-Self. A faint silvery-white glow appeared around him.
His aura surged, instantly radiating ten miles in every direction. The mockers from earlier all looked stunned.
Because Xiao Yao's aura now completely overwhelmed the aura they had at full strength.
Di Hezheng realized what was going on and shouted, "Are you Xiao Yao, the one who brought about the Dark Palace's destruction?"
"So you really are remnants of the Dark Palace!"
Xiao Yao had only suspected as much before. Now he was certain!
And hearing them mention the Dark Palace only made him more excited. His blood began to boil all over.
It wasn't that he hated the Dark Palace all that much. Rather, the pressure Duan Qi of the Dark Palace had once put him under had been too overwhelming.
Now he could finally deal with the Dark Palace cultivators himself. Xiao Yao could barely contain his excitement.
To avoid any mishaps, Xiao Yao released the second Top-tier Phenomenon he had obtained: Moon Rising Over the Sea.
In an instant, a vast ocean appeared behind Xiao Yao. A bright full moon slowly rose, at once sacred and brimming with immense power.
"Holy crap! Moon Rising Over the Sea? Another Top-tier Phenomenon?"
"Who exactly is this Xiao Yao? How can he be so ridiculously powerful?"
"His actions brought about the Dark Palace's destruction. Everyone knows the Ghost Fiend Demon Emperor destroyed the Dark Palace, so Xiao Yao must have some deep connection to him."
Watching the scene, Xiao Xueyu and the other Xiao Clan members were utterly shaken.
Xiao Xueyu, especially, finally understood why the Young Clan Leader's earlier words hadn't included her.
It was because the Young Clan Leader possessed terrifying strength that towered over everyone present.
Boom!
Boom, boom, boom!
After a series of ear-splitting explosions, streaks of white light containing Sword Qi and Sword Intent shot out through the spreading smoke.
Di Hezheng and the other men in black cried out inwardly, realizing something was wrong. They tried to flee, only to find themselves pinned in place by the pressure of the two Top-tier Phenomena.
Unable to move, they could only watch as clouds of white Sword Qi swept over their bodies, bringing destruction and death.
[Congratulations, host! Quest complete: Eliminate the men in black. Reward: Saint tier spell, Heaven and Earth One Sword.]
"Heaven and Earth One Sword. This technique is insanely powerful!" Xiao Yao thought, overjoyed.
The thirteen Dark Palace remnants, all in the Sea Opening Realm, died right there on the spot.
The cultivators nearby shivered with fear. None dared to rush forward and make themselves the first to attack the Dao Fruit Tree.
Xiao Yao slowly exhaled. With his mana, he drew the men in black's Storage Rings into his system space.
Looking up, he saw that three Dao Fruits still hung from the towering Dao Fruit Tree. Clearly, the three men in black hadn't managed to pick them.
To prevent any of his clansmen from getting hurt, Xiao Yao turned to Xiao Xueyu and the others and ordered, "Xiao Xueyu, Xiao Yang, Xiao Juan, go pick them."
Just then, through his extended Spiritual Sense, he noticed the surging crowd of cultivators suddenly part to form a broad path.
A girl in a pale red dress walked toward them with the graceful steps of a cat. Her eyes were like clear autumn waters, touched with a hint of coldness and a trace of allure, and her skin was fairer than frost or snow.
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