Chaos Spiritual Root

Shameless!

With his retreat blocked, Ye Fei could only curse inwardly.

He turned to look and saw that the two Demon Beasts were already close.

Both stood taller than a man, with bodies seven or eight feet long, wolf heads, and tiger bodies.

Ye Fei recognized them at a glance. They were Azurewave Kun Wolves, first-tier Demon Beasts described in the survival handbook.

Behind the two Azurewave Kun Wolves came another five or six Demon Beasts of varying shapes.

Their target was Ye Fei as well.

The sudden arrival of so many Demon Beasts immediately excited Liu Yishan, who hovered in the air.

He reached out with his right hand, snatched up the unburned remnant of the short incense stick from a distance, and swiftly put it into his Storage Pouch.

"Awooo!"

After the incense disappeared, the Azurewave Kun Wolf at the front threw back its head and howled. Its eyes glowed an eerie blue as it stared hungrily at Ye Fei straight ahead.

In their minds, Ye Fei must have been responsible for the incense's disappearance.

This is bad!

The sight left Ye Fei trembling with fear.

He had no time to worry about anything else. He darted left, trying to get around the shield wall and enter Azure Dragon Valley.

Had Ye Fei stayed still, things might have been fine, but the moment he ran, he triggered the Azurewave Kun Wolves' savage instincts.

Ferocity gleamed in the two Azurewave Kun Wolves' eyes as they bared their sharp fangs. Almost simultaneously, they pushed off with their hind legs and lunged at Ye Fei.

"Trash, stop running! Stand still and fight them!"

His face flushed with excitement, Liu Yishan stood in the air and watched Ye Fei flee, unable to resist shouting.

With the two Azurewave Kun Wolves about to reach him, Ye Fei had no time to pay Liu Yishan any attention.

He pushed his speed to the limit.

The end of the shield wall was just ahead.

But before he could rejoice, Liu Yishan lightly swept a finger through the air, shifting the shield wall several yards farther into Ye Fei's path.

Once again, it blocked Ye Fei.

Despicable!

Left with no choice, Ye Fei raised his sword and turned, preparing to face the two Azurewave Kun Wolves hurtling toward him.

Just then, two azure rainbows flashed out from the depths of Azure Dragon Valley.

The two azure rainbows resembled threads. One swept around the shield wall toward Ye Fei.

The other targeted Liu Yishan in the air.

The azure rainbows landed on them, coiled sharply, and swept both men into Azure Dragon Valley.

The Azure Rainbow moved so fast that even Liu Yishan, with his Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivation, could offer no resistance.

He could only watch helplessly as he was swept into the depths of Azure Dragon Valley.

Without his divine sense controlling it, the shield wall instantly reverted to a shield half a man's height and fell to the ground.

At the valley entrance, a flicker of confusion crossed the Azurewave Kun Wolves' eyes when their targets vanished.

But the sight of the barren valley made them shudder. Terror filled their eyes, and without a moment's hesitation, they turned and fled.

Meanwhile, Ye Fei and Liu Yishan, who had been swept away by the azure rainbows, now stood beneath a small, withered yellow tree.

Above them circled a three-clawed Azure Dragon with an illusory body.

The Azure Dragon was roughly thirty-five yards long, with four legs, three claws on each foot, and two horns on his head. His scales radiated a cold azure glow.

Though its body was illusory, its overwhelming presence left Ye Fei and the other man feeling suffocated.

They stared up at the Azure Dragon, too shocked to speak.

After all, the Azure Dragon was the foremost of the four divine beasts, a creature of legend.

"Brat, I don't care if you harm others, but you had the nerve to target this child. You certainly are bold."

To their astonishment, the Azure Dragon spoke in a human voice and turned his gaze toward Liu Yishan.

"Lord Azure Dragon, spare me! This is all a misunderstanding! This trash... no, Martial Uncle Ye is my elder. How could I harm him?"

Facing the Azure Dragon's lantern-sized eyes, Liu Yishan immediately dropped to his knees and kowtowed like a pestle pounding garlic.

"Spare you?"

"This child still needs eighty-one spiritual root cleansings to forge his chaos spiritual root. You barely qualify as the first. Why would I let you go to waste?"

The Azure Dragon's phantom glanced at the withered little tree and spoke as though it were only natural.

"Aaargh!"

Then Liu Yishan screamed, clutched his head with both hands, and fell to the ground, rolling about.

Blood poured from his seven orifices. His body shook uncontrollably as he wailed without pause.

The gruesome sight made Ye Fei's skin crawl, covering him in goosebumps as he stood nearby.

As time passed, Liu Yishan's body slowly shriveled. His flesh and blood turned into wisps of red mist, which the withered little tree absorbed.

After absorbing the red mist, the withered tree gradually regained its vitality and sprouted five red flower buds.

The five buds slowly bloomed, then withered, giving way to five green fruits.

The fruits grew little by little. When Liu Yishan's body disappeared completely, the five fruits shone with a lurid, almost dripping purple radiance, fully ripe.

Ye Fei stood rooted to the spot, staring at the scene in utter disbelief.

"What are you standing there for? Hurry up and pick those five fruits and eat them."

As Ye Fei stood dazed, the Azure Dragon's phantom looked at him and urged him on.

"This..."

"I..."

Having witnessed how those five fruits came into being, Ye Fei stammered, unable to get the words out.

Those five fruits had ripened by absorbing Liu Yishan's flesh and blood.

If he ate them, how would that be any different from eating a person?

The very thought turned his stomach.

"What a bother!"

"These fruits are nothing but condensed spiritual energy. They have nothing whatsoever to do with that brat. What the hell are you worrying about?"

"If I hadn't intervened, those Demon Beasts would probably have torn you apart and eaten you by now."

"How can you show mercy to someone so ruthless?"

"Even eating him alive would be perfectly justified."

The phantom that had been circling overhead transformed into an old man in azure robes and stood before Ye Fei.

Although the old man had a human form, he had two horns on his head and yellow hair. His body remained illusory.

He looked at Ye Fei with the exasperation of someone frustrated that iron refused to become steel.

"Why are you helping me?"

Rather than picking the five fruits, Ye Fei looked at the old man in confusion.

"If I didn't owe someone a favor, do you think I would help a mere mortal like you?"

The azure-robed old man curled his lip.

"You owe someone a favor?"

"My father?"

Something stirred in Ye Fei's heart, and he asked tentatively.

"No."

"A woman. You don't need to know who she is yet."

"All you need to do is eat those five fruits."

The azure-robed old man gazed up above the valley, his eyes growing distant, as though recalling the past.

"A woman?"

Ye Fei murmured the words, then suddenly shuddered, as though he had realized something.

"My mother?"

He asked tentatively again.

"As you are now, you aren't qualified to know. Once you advance beyond Nascent Soul and successfully reach Spirit Transformation, I will tell you the truth."

The azure-robed old man shook his head and said no more.

"What are these fruits, then?"

Since the old man would not explain, Ye Fei could only point at the five fruits on the tree and ask.

"This is a Spirit-Washing Tree, and its fruits are called Spirit-Washing Fruits."

"The Spirit-Washing Tree grows without roots and was born at the dawn of chaos. Each realm has only one."

"This tree bears five fruits upon its birth, which can form a mortal's spiritual root. Afterward, it can flower and bear fruit another eighty-one times."

"Each time, it bears five fruits, which can cleanse the spiritual root it formed once. After eighty-one Spiritual Root Cleansings, the chaos spiritual root can be completed."

"When the chaos spiritual root reaches full maturity, this tree will turn into a wisp of chaos energy and help you attain a chaos body."

The azure-robed old man explained patiently.

Although his explanation was clear, Ye Fei still felt lost in clouds and fog.

"Does this tree have to consume human flesh and blood every time it flowers and bears fruit?"

Ye Fei asked with a frown.

"Anything containing spiritual energy will do."

"Spirit stones, spiritual veins, even heavenly treasures and Demon Beast corpses will all work."

"However, each time it flowers and bears fruit, the Spirit Power needed for the next time increases by twenty percent."

"By the final flowering and fruiting, it will need more than two million times the Spirit Power required for the first."

"Added together, the total Spirit Power will be a hundred and thirty million times the first amount, equivalent to a hundred and thirty million Foundation Establishment Middle Stage cultivators. In spirit stones, that would probably be over a trillion."

"That is a truly terrifying figure, so one chaos body is the limit for each realm."

The azure-robed old man calculated all these figures for Ye Fei.

Hearing them, Ye Fei was left tongue-tied.

What a joke. With his current abilities, even remaining in the Free and Easy Gate was difficult, let alone obtaining so many spirit stones.

No matter how much more the Azure Dragon told him, it would all be wasted breath.

"Hurry up and eat those fruits so I can take you somewhere."

Seeing that Ye Fei still made no move, the azure-robed old man urged him again.