Spirit of Strangeness

This world seems to exist in a virtual space-time.

But it's all so real now.

Petals fall in profusion, fragrant herbs cascade down, and a colossal fire tree stretches across the heavens, filling the sky with blazing flames.

This tree, with its trunk made of molten gold and its leaves of flames, seems to burn forever.

The girl, dressed in a fiery red dress, was like an elf of heaven and earth, seemingly a supreme God of Fire.

Her waist was so slender it could be encircled by a single hand; her figure was long and graceful; her fiery red dress trailed like a waterfall on the grass; and her features were exquisitely beautiful.

Her eyes were red, a fiery red, a pure gold.

She looked up and her gaze fell on Dugu Yuqing.

She looked at Dugu Yuqing's hand.

Dugu Yuqing held no sword.

Where is your sword?

She suddenly murmured softly.

At that moment, tears seemed to slide down her burning eyes.

"You have no sword, but as long as the sword is there, you are there; if the sword breaks... you are gone too..."

She gracefully landed in front of Dugu Yuqing.

She reached out her slender hand, seemingly wanting to stroke Dugu Yuqing's face.

Dugu Yuqing looked at the woman in the red dress before him, his eyes welling up with tears, but no matter how hard he tried, his mind remained blank.

"Who are you..."

"And who am I...?"

He murmured to himself, then suddenly reached out, wanting to grab the woman in the red dress's hand.

But the instant he reached out, there was nothing there.

His hand brushed past the woman in the red dress.

The other party... was like air!

A hint of sadness flickered in the bright, beautiful eyes of the woman in the red dress.

Then, her figure faded away.

"I'm waiting for you..."

"Wait for you..."

"You..."

Her voice rang out faintly, and then, this world vanished with a roar.

Dugu Yuqing's figure reappeared in the Vermilion Bird Ruins, before the pale giant tree.

He stared blankly at the pale giant tree, his eyes filled with a strange sense of desolation.

"You saw her?"

The big black dog suddenly spoke.

"Who is she?"

Dugu Yuqing stared at the big black dog.

The big black dog remained silent for a long time before saying, "Your former sword spirit."

Dugu Yuqing also fell silent, "And who am I...?"

The big black dog said:

"I don't know if you are the person he was in the past, or the person you are now... The master pulled you out of the Yin Realm cycle in the underworld... All the answers are for you to find yourself."

Dugu Yuqing seemed to understand, yet not quite.

He walked toward the lonely grave.

Once, the ever-burning fire tree illuminated the sky; she was a spirit of the world.

Now, the giant trees are pale, the flames have died down, a solitary grave stands alone, and the fragrant grass is gone.

Is she... perhaps in her grave?

"May the Deity descend upon the world!"

But at that very moment, Mu Jinglong shouted loudly from the side!

In his hand, a clay sculpture appeared!

That's a statue of Deity.

At this moment, his hands were covered in blood, which was being poured onto the statue.

The reason why their Wood Spirit Imperial Dynasty dared to enter the Great Wilderness this time was because of this statue of Deity.

In the Great Ruin Realm, almost all forces worship Deity.

Deity are the most transcendent beings, synonymous with invincibility, and the Ruler of a world!

When one's faith in the Deity is sincere enough, or when the amount of incense offered reaches a certain level, one can receive blessings from the Deity.

Some statues of Deity that receive incense offerings and worship can even become the embodiment of a Deity, possessing some of the Deity's power.

Although this is far from being a true Deity, it is still an unparalleled power in the entire Great Ruin Realm!

He sacrificed his blood to the statue.

Above the vast wilderness, beneath the heavens, was suddenly enveloped in a green light.

The sunlight dimmed, leaving only this green glow between heaven and earth.

At this moment, everyone felt an inexplicable and terrifying pressure!

This... comes from the Deity!

"The Deity are coming... The Deity are manifesting!"

"The supreme Deity... has actually arrived!"

"Welcome, Deity!"

The people of the Crow Food Tribe and the Wood Spirit Imperial Dynasty all knelt down and shouted.

Rolling green clouds, opening and closing in perfect unison, and suddenly a being shrouded in green light appeared in the sky.

Its aura was overwhelming.

Within the green light was a man, clad in a green divine robe, exuding an otherworldly and supreme aura.

This is... a Deity!

His gaze fell upon the giant tree ahead and the solitary grave.

"This tree... could it be the legendary Unquenchable Tree...?"

The Deity murmured, a burning light flashing in his eyes, and said:

"Ancient legends, unparalleled fortuitous opportunity... this belongs to me!"

He reached out and grabbed at the pale, giant tree!

At the same time, a powerful spiritual force emanated from his hand; he intended to crack open the lonely grave and search for treasure!

"You dare!"

Dugu Yuqing, however, was filled with rage and his entire being transformed into a soaring sword intent that directly threatened the Deity!

"Even ants dare to act arrogantly!"

The green Deity flicked his finger!

Like a thunderclap, this finger strike could annihilate everything!

Faced with this finger, Dugu Yuqing was like a withered leaf in the wind!

He was merely Saint Dao Perfection, yet the one making the move now was the Dharma body of a Deity.

Dugu Yuqing was instantly sent flying backward!

"Woof!"

With a loud roar, the big black dog blocked the spiritual power of countless Deity with its paws and caught Dugu Yuqing.

The Deity looked indifferently at the big black dog, a hint of surprise flashing in its eyes.

"A former god?"

But then he shook his head and said:

"Now you have fallen from your pedestal, your Dao fruit is ruined, and you are as insignificant as an ant."

They were high and mighty, completely indifferent to the big black dog.

The big black dog's eyes darkened, and it said:

"A mere wandering deity dares to defy this this Emperor... He deserves to die!"

The green Deity smiled and said:

"How dare you call yourself emperor? How laughable... So what if I despise you?"

Upon hearing this, Wu Dade couldn't hold back any longer and said resentfully:

"Damn it, I can't take it anymore! I've never seen such an arrogant bastard, daring to look down on my dog! Come here, I'll give you a big bow!"

He immediately stepped forward to bow.

However, the big black dog raised its paw and blocked his way.

The big black dog looked at the green Deity and said:

"You want what's in the grave?"

The green Deity coldly said:

"They are all mine!"

As soon as he finished speaking, he reached out and grabbed at the grave!

However, just as his hand fell...

Suddenly, a wisp of gray mist drifted out from the low, solitary grave.

The gray mist, like a maggot clinging to a bone, instantly pierced through the green Deity's spiritual power and drifted to his front.

"Huh? What is this?"

The green Deity was astonished.

Just as he hesitated for a moment, the gray mist entered his body.

"Ah... no!"

In an instant, the green Deity suddenly screamed in agony.

His body suddenly split open.

Everyone was shocked by what they saw.

"What happened?"

"What is that... capable of tearing apart a god's body?"

It should be known that Deity look down upon all living beings, and their divine bodies are flawless. A single hair can destroy a world's inhabitants, and a single drop of blood can shatter the strongest bonds in the world.

Under the watchful eyes of the crowd, blood gushed from the Deity's body and poured down.

Within that solitary grave, eerie gray mist emerged one after another, like a hidden ghost finally crawling out.

The gray mist seeped into the divine blood.

The Deity... have fallen!

Faced with this gray fog, even the Deity had no ability to resist, like clay chickens and earthen dogs!

"No!"

"What is this?!"

"This is terrifying... this... can actually kill Deity?"

At this moment, Old Crow, Mu Jinglong, and the others were all horrified and extremely frightened.

That's Deity!

But he actually died like that!

An eerie gray fog...

"Strange... Is this the strange thing mentioned in the ancestral teachings? It can easily kill gods... No!"

Mu Jinglong trembled all over; at that moment, he remembered his ancestral teachings.

You are forbidden to explore the Great Wilderness again, forbidden to leave the Great Wilderness, and absolutely forbidden for anything from this place to appear outside the Great Wilderness...

Besides that, there are only two words.

Weird.

Weird!

The gray mist seeped into the divine blood, and the divine blood seemed to gain another kind of life...

A creature appeared that looked exactly like the green Deity from before, but it had no divine aura, only the smell of death; no vitality, only a wooden coldness.

The moment this being appeared, everyone in the room suddenly prostrated themselves on the ground.

Panic, utter panic.

Old Crow, Mu Jinglong, Mu Wanqing, and the others were all inconsolable at this moment, like sheep facing a tiger, completely losing their composure!

This terrifying aura swept across the entire Great Wilderness!

Countless ferocious beasts knelt and howled in agony, while birds that had been spreading their wings plummeted to the ground, their mournful cries shaking the heavens...

A vast wilderness stretching for millions of miles, where all living beings tremble!

This is the most primal fear!

And in the Vermilion Bird Ruins.

Wu Dade was stunned and asked, "What... what the hell is this?"

The big black dog's eyes were filled with an unprecedented solemnity as it said:

"Spirit of Strangeness..."

The Spirit of Strangeness was already moving step by step toward Dugu Yuqing.

It looks exactly like the previous green Deity.

However, its aura was so cold and decaying, and its gray skin resembled that of an Otherworldly being.

It reached out and grabbed Dugu Yuqing by the throat!