Getting More

The Elfkind's formation used the entire Elf Tree as its formation core.

All of Elfkind began to pray. Then, a strange six-pointed star array suddenly lit up across the earth, and the Elf Tree's crystal-clear leaves burst forth with an even more dazzling, resplendent radiance.

After their identities had been exposed, Chu Zeming and Yue Lian removed the secret arts concealing them and returned to their original appearances. Standing beneath the Elven Divine Tree, Chu Zeming felt as though his entire body were immersed in a peaceful, tranquil atmosphere.

Beside the two of them was Fu Hongchen, imprisoned within a tree cage.

Yue Lian did not want him and even told the elves to sink him in a pond and drown him, frightening Fu Hongchen badly. But Chu Zeming's conscience had not yet been extinguished, so he pinched his nose and accepted Fu Hongchen—naturally, with no intention of letting him out.

The three arrived at the tenth floor of the Divine Wood Realm.

Standing at the entrance to the tenth floor, Chu Zeming looked ahead and could not help feeling somewhat surprised.

This place was very different from what he had imagined. The earlier levels of the Divine Wood Realm had each seemed like vast, independent planes, but the tenth floor was different—it was a forbidden pavilion.

It was not small, but it was lonely and empty. Compared to the previous levels, however, it was far too small.

Chu Zeming could not sense any danger. The surroundings were deathly quiet.

Twelve ancient, enormous stone pillars supported the palace-like Forbidden Pavilion. There was no sunlight. Everlasting lamps hung from the walls and ceiling, which were covered in bizarre murals. Since the air did not circulate, even standing outside the doors, one could smell the strong scent of burning candles.

These paintings seemed familiar to Chu Zeming. They closely resembled the murals on that strange enormous wall he had seen in the Extreme Sea Secret Realm—the ceiling of the Forbidden Pavilion was filled with immortals of elegant bearing and divine grace. Some sat, some stood, but all had lowered eyes, as though gazing down at the murals below. Auspicious clouds drifted around them, while stringed music rang in harmony.

Following their gazes, Chu Zeming looked toward the Forbidden Pavilion's surrounding walls—these depicted ordinary people and beasts... but this time, those humans and beasts did not carry such immense resentment. Still, the overall palette remained dark and oppressive.

Looking at these paintings, Chu Zeming felt something strange in his heart.

Chu Zeming stared at the murals in silence.

Fu Hongchen in the cage could not help sneering. "What a country bumpkin, knowing nothing... These depict the suffering of mortal flesh and blood, contrasting it with ascension afterward. Their purpose is to encourage later generations to diligently seek the Dao, ascend as soon as possible, and escape the human world's purgatory."

Chu Zeming withdrew his gaze and looked at Fu Hongchen in the cage in surprise. "You painted them?"

Fu Hongchen did not understand how Chu Zeming could ask such an idiotic question and could not help rolling his eyes. "Of course not. These paintings were left behind by ancient great powers."

Chu Zeming gave an oh and said meaningfully, "You understand what the paintings express so well that I thought you had painted them."

The sarcastic tone made Fu Hongchen tremble with rage. "These sorts of paintings exist in many ancient secret realms! Everyone in the cultivation world knows that!"

Chu Zeming glanced lightly at Fu Hongchen without committing himself.

Such a contemptuous attitude was something Fu Hongchen, always regarded as heaven's favored son, could not accept.

Fu Hongchen dearly wanted to rush out and fight Chu Zeming. His face twisted fiercely for a long while, but in the end, he still suppressed the fury in his heart.

After all, the elf race's prison was not something he could easily break out of. A strange restriction had been laid around the tree cage; even the Soul-Piercing Awl could not penetrate it. On top of that, the woman-faced fellow beside him, who was in league with Chu Zeming, was silently threatening him.

Yue Lian, dragging the cage, turned around and stared viciously at Fu Hongchen. "Pretty boy, if you keep running your mouth, I'll throw you into the tenth floor..."

Chu Zeming ignored the open and hidden struggle between the two behind him. Once he shifted his attention away from the murals, his gaze began searching the forbidden pavilion for the immortal residence treasure that the Guiyuan Sect had placed on the tenth floor of the Divine Wood Realm.

Yet the Forbidden Pavilion was empty on all sides. Apart from the twelve massive stone pillars carved with ancient cultivators and a stone stele at the far end, there was nothing else.

Standing at the entrance, Chu Zeming's expression turned grave.

Could it be that the Guiyuan Sect people believed no one could reach the tenth floor, so they had not placed any treasure here?

Impossible.

As the cultivation world's dignified number one sect, they would not stoop to such tricks.

Perhaps there was some hidden mechanism within the Forbidden Pavilion, and the Immortal Residence treasure was concealed somewhere. Thinking this, Chu Zeming stopped hesitating and stepped into the Forbidden Pavilion's main hall.

The next instant, an utterly terrifying pressure came from every direction within the hall. Distant voices seemed to ring in his ears, dozens of deep voices endlessly repeating two words—

"Leave."

"Leave."

"Leave!"

The ancient great powers carved upon the twelve stone pillars all came alive at that moment. Their tall, illusory figures emerged from the stone carvings and bent down to look at the tiny cultivator in black robes who had intruded upon the Forbidden Pavilion, their gazes seeming to pierce through the distance of hundreds of millions of light-years—

The suffocating pressure of their power made Chu Zeming's internal organs ache, and his legs began to tremble uncontrollably.

So the tenth floor of the Divine Wood Realm was not without danger. These twelve stone pillars, holding the lingering intentions of ancient great powers, were the most terrifying existence here.

Yue Lian was still standing at the entrance, holding Fu Hongchen's cage. Seeing Chu Zeming suddenly drop to one knee with the Luminous Glaze Sword braced against the ground shortly after entering the Forbidden Pavilion, he could not help finding it strange.

"Senior Brother, what are you doing?" Yue Lian set down the cage and curiously walked to Chu Zeming's side. Before he could even finish a complete sentence, a terrifyingly powerful pressure descended from above.

With a thud, Yue Lian fell directly to his knees.

Looking up at the illusory figures around them, Yue Lian wore a blank expression, yet a thread of blood slowly seeped from the corner of his mouth.

Even Chu Zeming, at the peak of the Jindan Stage, could not withstand this pressure. For a weakling like Yue Lian, entering this place was simply courting death.

Seeing Yue Lian's consciousness gradually grow hazy, his clear eyes becoming darker and darker, and more blood seeping from the corner of his lips, Chu Zeming made a swift decision. One hand braced against his sword, while the other grabbed Yue Lian and laboriously dragged him outside.

The moment he stepped out of the Forbidden Pavilion, Yue Lian closed his eyes and fainted.

Seeing the two return in such a sorry state, with the woman-faced one even unable to endure it and fainting, Fu Hongchen in the cage folded his arms and gloated. "The secret treasure is not so easy to obtain. Perhaps if you release me, I can take you inside." Of course, the treasure would then belong to him.

Chu Zeming ignored him. He sat down where he was and began meditating to regulate his breathing. Only once the chaotic spiritual energy within his body had finally calmed did he rise with resolute eyes and charge into the Forbidden Pavilion again.

Watching the black-robed young man rush inside, Fu Hongchen snorted through his nose and muttered, "Overestimating yourself."

Before he had come to participate in this Joint Grand Tournament, his master had already informed him that the rewards for this tournament would not be easy to claim. All the secret treasures had been hidden within the Divine Wood Realm.

And on the tenth floor of the Divine Wood Realm, only cultivators of the Nascent Soul Realm or above could endure the pressure of the lingering intentions on the stone pillars.

In other words, from the very beginning, the highest reward—the Immortal Residence treasure—had been prepared for the Nascent Soul Realm tournament disciples.

So what if Chu Zeming and this woman-faced fellow had taken a shortcut and arrived here early?

What did not belong to him would never belong to him. In the end, everything would be in vain.

Withdrawing his gaze, Fu Hongchen closed his eyes and continued trying to save himself.

He did not notice that before he closed his eyes, Yue Lian, who had originally been unconscious, suddenly opened his eyes. He slowly rose, half-propping himself up as he looked toward the Forbidden Pavilion ahead. His eyes were pitch-black and unfathomably deep, and a faint black lotus, nearly too pale to see, appeared upon his forehead.

After observing for a while what existed within the Forbidden Pavilion, the furrow between Yue Lian's delicate, beautiful brows gradually smoothed out. Supporting his chin with his fair, jade-like hand, he thought for a moment, then decided not to go inside after all.

Casting a lazy glance at Fu Hongchen in the cage, who had his eyes closed and was wholeheartedly trying to break through the restriction, Yue Lian raised a hand and added another layer of restriction. Only then did he close his eyes again, lie down peacefully on the ground with great satisfaction, and wear a serene expression.

Inside the tree cage, Fu Hongchen had been on the verge of success. Before he could even secretly rejoice, he suddenly ran into another barrier of restriction. His entire mood turned awful.

Fu Hongchen abruptly opened his eyes and stared grimly at the tree cage.

Did the restrictions grow stronger the more he attacked the cage...

Fu Hongchen shifted his butt and changed positions in the cramped tree cage. After adjusting himself, he pressed his hands together.

—Keep charging, charging, charging.

Inside the Forbidden Pavilion.

Chu Zeming did not know that only those of the Nascent Soul Realm could withstand this pressure. Holding the Luminous Glaze Sword, he walked forward step by step with unwavering resolve.

With every step he took, the pressure upon him doubled. After walking only several dozen meters, Chu Zeming was already drenched in sweat. Every inch of his skin was being crushed, as though it would shatter the next second.

Yet Chu Zeming still slowly forced himself onward. He clenched his teeth, staring fixedly ahead, unwilling to give up.

Just as he passed the sixth stone pillar, the stone stele at the end of the Forbidden Pavilion suddenly trembled. Then, a square object roughly the size of a fist slowly appeared in front of the stele. It was entirely black and emanated an ancient, profound aura—this was the highest reward of this tournament, the Immortal Residence treasure of an ancient great power.

Chu Zeming was pressed flat against the ground. He raised his head with difficulty. Blood was already flowing from his eyes and nose, but his gaze remained fixed on the Immortal Residence hovering before the stone stele.

Chu Zeming's limbs trembled as he forced himself to crawl forward. With every step, more blood flowed from his eyes... His will was still holding on, but his body had begun protesting. Clearly, he was nearing his limit.

Chu Zeming was in great pain, but he refused to give up.

His jade talisman was still with him.

He only needed to obtain the immortal residence... then he could crush the jade pendant and leave the Divine Wood Realm immediately.

He was just a little closer. He could not give up.

Amid the twelve enormous stone pillars, the tiny young man in black robes crawled slowly forward. Blood flowed from all seven of his orifices, his face long blurred crimson. Bright red blood dripped onto the ground, trailing a mottled path of blood behind him...

At some unknown point, all the ancient, solemn voices saying "leave" vanished from the Forbidden Pavilion.

The lingering intentions of the great powers upon the stone pillars watched the blood-covered youth who refused to give up and fell into a long silence.

Low-level cultivators had come to the tenth floor to train before, but every one of them had been accompanied by stronger cultivators.

Yet this little Jindan Stage cultivator had ventured in alone...

"Is his Dao heart steadfast? Can he receive our inheritance?" A gentle woman's voice sounded.

The other lingering shadows did not speak.

They were all considering this question...

The twelve lingering intentions quietly watched the youth, as weak as an ant, and in the end, slowly withdrew their pressure.

Chu Zeming was immersed in extreme pain and could not sense the changes around him. It was not until a long sigh rang in his ears that his consciousness returned somewhat.

"Are you unwilling to leave?" A complex voice sounded.

Chu Zeming raised his head. Through the hazy veil of blood, he saw that a figure had suddenly appeared before him—one lingering intention from the stone pillars stood before him.

Only then did Chu Zeming realize that the pressure upon him had already vanished.

He lifted his head, barely opened his eyes, and said with difficulty, "Thank you, Senior... I... will leave once I obtain the Immortal Residence."

The figure flickered faintly. Standing with his hands behind his back, he quietly looked at Chu Zeming and asked, "What were you thinking about while you crawled just now?"

Chu Zeming gave the illusory elderly figure a smile and said slowly yet firmly, "I was only thinking that it must be mine."

The elderly figure did not speak.

But Chu Zeming felt that he seemed to be smiling at him.

Then Chu Zeming heard him say, "Perhaps you can obtain even more."

The next instant, the other eleven lingering intentions from the stone pillars appeared before Chu Zeming at the same time.

Some male, some female; some old, some young.

But every one of them had once been a pinnacle powerhouse.