Edison's corpse was still dripping blood.
The blood fell beside the well, gradually forming a small puddle. Reflected in it, the Tree of Life radiated an eerie red glow.
At a thought from Owl, the Form-Slaying Sword moved with his will, instantly leaving his hand and slashing straight at the Life Tree's trunk.
He had noticed no unusual movement or abnormalities in the Life Tree. He simply felt that if any danger remained, it had to be connected to the Life Tree. Slashing it was the right move.
Suddenly, a pair of hands reached out from the Life Tree and caught the Form-Slaying Sword between their palms, stopping the naked blade bare-handed.
An old man whose eyes resembled the growth rings of a tree slowly emerged from the Life Tree. Looking at the Form-Slaying Sword, he praised it. "A fine sword!"
Had it been a true cultivator's flying sword, he certainly would not have dared catch it with his bare hands like this. But Owl was not a cultivator, so the Form-Slaying Sword's attack was purely physical, containing no Sword Qi. Otherwise, a single sweep of Sword Qi would have taken both his hands off.
In fact, he did not dare test the Form-Slaying Sword's sharpness with his body either. But all he had to do was clamp down on the flat of the blade. What use was its sharp edge then?
Owl tried to make the Form-Slaying Sword break free from the old man's hands. Yet no matter how he drove it with his will, it could not escape those hands and their tremendous strength.
"Don't waste your effort. These hands of mine possess the strength of ten dragons. How could that paltry will of yours break free?"
The old man's body emerged farther from the tree. His lower