Vines tore through the air, whipping past Zhang Xiu's cheek. He dodged, then grabbed one, ripped it out by the roots, and tossed it aside.
Among the dozen or so vines rising from underground, several formed fruits and shot them at Zhang Xiu.
He neither dodged nor ducked, letting the attacks strike his body and leave pale marks.
The next instant, he burst forward and reached the Ebon Deer again. But a vine swayed and trembled, and the deer's antlers glowed blue-green.
[Windbind]
It lowered its head, its antlers whipping up a blue-green gale that surged toward Zhang Xiu. The fierce wind blades actually sliced through his skin!
But before the Ebon Deer could unleash a second move, Zhang Xiu punched straight through its neck.
With a little force, he separated its head from its body, then held it in his hands and began gnawing on it.
Even without its head, its body kept moving, trampling toward Zhang Xiu, though its strength was clearly spent.
At its core, this creature was merely a life-form like grass, flowers, or trees, only shaped like a deer.
With a quick step, Zhang Xiu tore off one of the Ebon Deer's forelegs, while its head had already grown back.
And so it went: he ate it, it regenerated, he ate it again, and it regenerated again.
In the end, Zhang Xiu found this unsatisfying. He stopped bothering to tear it apart and simply hugged it tight, gnawing straight into it.
The Ebon Deer struggled frantically, destroying everything around it.
Only by using [Plantain Cover] to strengthen itself did it barely manage to escape Zhang Xiu.
In an instant, a golden vine summoned nearby by the Ebon Deer grew a second fruit, then had its vitality drained away!
[Spotted Dragon's Touch]
Blue-green and gold intertwined into light, gathering between its antlers before blasting outward!
The enormous beam all but crushed the air!
And Zhang Xiu? He remained right where he stood, taking the blow with a mocking smile on his face!
Scorching energy burned away his clothes and the surface of his skin. But in the blink of an eye, the power of abundance within Zhang Xiu restored everything, clothes included.
He lunged at the Ebon Deer again, accelerating his own nourishment.
At last, at the end of this frenzied feast, the Ambrosial Arbor stopped supplying the Ebon Deer.
Its ravaged body could no longer recover. It collapsed to the ground, left at the mercy of Zhang Xiu's gnawing.
By the time Stelle and the others reached the Furnace of Creation with Gongshu Liang, whom they had found along the way, only Zhang Xiu and Yaoshi remained, chatting away.
However, having just eaten the Ebon Deer, Zhang Xiu had black branches and shoots sprouting all over him from the excess power of abundance.
"Halt-! Abomination, cease! Release that~ little~ girl~!"
Seeing a tree man like Zhang Xiu standing before a little blond girl, Gongshu Liang immediately panicked. He charged over, ready to give Zhang Xiu a taste of the Artisanship Commission's might.
"Hey! It's a misunderstanding! A misunderstanding! I'm on your side!" Zhang Xiu backed away repeatedly, waving his hands.
But waving his hands set the branches on his body swaying, making him look even more dangerous. Fortunately, Gongshu Liang heard what he said.
March 7th hurriedly added, "Master Gongshu! It's a misunderstanding! He's our companion! That shadow that shot into the sky earlier was him!"
"A companion? Then why does he look~ like this~?"
Hearing his operatic delivery, Zhang Xiu's mouth twitched as he explained, "I'm one of the Denizens of Abundance. I grow leaves when I get excited."
"You grow leaves when you get excited...?" Gongshu Liang stopped what he was doing.
The vast universe held every imaginable wonder. Who knew how many kinds of Denizens of Abundance there were? Growing leaves when excited was hardly all that strange.
"Whoa, Zhang Xiu, what's with this look? Pretty distinctive, huh?" Stelle's eyes widened as she examined Zhang Xiu, who had now become a tree man.
"Enough wisecracks. There was an elite monster here just now. I didn't dare mess with the Creation Furnace, so you handle it." He shrugged, making his leaves rustle.
"My wife said I have to wait for the leaves on my body to slowly withdraw on their own. I can't go out in public like this."
At that, Zhang Xiu looked a little troubled. If he hadn't eaten so much, he wouldn't have ended up like this.
"In that case, little ones, let us work together to chop it apart. We mustn't let it pierce the furnace."
With that, Gongshu Liang rushed forward first and began cutting the Ambrosial Arbor's roots with the tools in his hands.
Phantylia withdrew to one side, focusing her attention on Zhang Xiu and Yaoshi, while the others joined Gongshu Liang in dismantling the Ambrosial Arbor's roots.
Once all the roots on the Furnace of Creation had been removed, Zhang Xiu said, "I have to wait for these leaves to go down. You go on ahead."
"But are we allowed to wander around the Artisanship Commission? Shouldn't this place be full of classified stuff?"
"Quite true, but these are exceptional circumstances. There is no harm in this young friend and his wife remaining here, provided they stay out of the artisans' rooms."
Gongshu Liang continued, "I know you intend to head to the Alchemy Commission. It borders the Ambrosial Arbor and is sure to be even more dangerous."
"Go, everyone, and take care along the way. This old man wishes you success."
"Are you planning to stay here, Master Gongshu?" Stelle looked at Gongshu Liang.
"Indeed. The Artisanship Commission cannot be left unattended for even a day. I must tend to the Furnace of Creation."
"In that case, shall we get going?" March 7th pointed behind herself with her thumb.
Welt nudged his glasses up. "Yes. Let's go."
After parting with Gongshu Liang, some of the branches on Zhang Xiu's body had already withdrawn. The two of them wandered through the deserted Artisanship Commission, clearing out creations affected by the Stellaron along the way.
"Didn't the Xianzhou curb machine production after going through the Emperor's War? Why are there still so many mechanical creations?"
Zhang Xiu smashed a lanternfish with a sweep of his hand, looking puzzled.
Besides, these creations had neither hands nor feet. Was all this really necessary if they were only being used as defensive weapons? Why not just use automated turrets, like the Divination Commission?
"Perhaps, if you wish to understand their purpose, you could ask that Master Gongshu from earlier." Yaoshi nodded gently, equally baffled.
"It's probably something like low production costs. Anyway, when will these leaves on me go away?"
"Do not be impatient, husband. A little more time will suffice. Look." With a small beckoning motion, Yaoshi drew Zhang Xiu's face before her:
"I can already kiss you, husband."
She slipped past the shoots and gently touched Zhang Xiu's lips with her own.
But just as he focused on savoring the moment, a cry for help broke through his thoughts.
"Waaa... Help..."
Yaoshi had clearly heard the plea as well, and promptly suppressed her reluctance to part.
"Husband."
"Leave it to me!"
Zhang Xiu sprang into motion, charging toward the source of the voice like a roaming dragon.
He barreled straight ahead. To prevent anything unexpected from happening, he even smashed through houses and everything else in his path.
In no time at all, Zhang Xiu reached the place where the cries were coming from.
The instant he arrived, he struck, smashing every mechanical creation surrounding the person calling for help.
Once the area was safe, Zhang Xiu hurriedly looked at the person, only to discover that she was a little girl.
"It's okay now, it's okay. Are you all right? Want some candy? I've got a Qiongshi Bird Skewer here."
"Waaa... Th-thank you, big brother..."
She raised her head to look at Zhang Xiu. No, "look" wasn't the right word. The girl's eyes held no glimmer at all. She was clearly blind.
Was it the attack just now? Or something else...?
Before he could say anything more, Yaoshi gently rested a hand on the little girl's trembling body from behind him.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid..." She brushed her right hand over the girl's eyes, and the power of abundance gathered.
Just like that, the congenital affliction was cured.
Before you continue