New Wood Myriad Splendors Qi!
This Daoist charm...
There's a problem, a big problem!
Shi Jian let out a low gurgling sound, his beastly eyes narrowing, reflecting the impenetrable white mist deep in the valley.
It's too harmonious, so harmonious it's almost eerie.
Everything is bursting with life, yet all is silent, like a beautiful painting that has been paused.
Life and death have reached a strange balance here!
"Ancestor, this mist can block Divine Sense."
Sun Yao's voice carried a hint of solemnity. She tried to activate her spiritual power, but found that her Divine Sense was blocked by a gentle yet resilient force before it could extend to within three zhang.
"Girl, stay close to me, don't run around."
Without a word, Shi Jian landed on all fours, and the dark purple patterns on his Thunder-Shrouding Mystic Armor slowly flowed, enveloping him and Sun Yao in a layer of electric arcs.
A man and a bear, constantly exploring inwards.
The deeper you go, the more unreal the plants and trees seem!
The Spirit Plant grew wildly, their shapes so perfect they were almost unreal. Some of the first-tier "Jade Heart Grass" even grew to be taller than a person.
The leaves, however, showed no signs of shrinkage, as if they were works of art carved from jade, so perfect they seemed unreal.
After passing through a "chalcedony forest" laden with glistening fruits, the view ahead opened up.
Here again, a waterfall thousands of feet high cascades down from the center of the cliff, but the water is not silvery-white; instead, it is a pure emerald green, like a whole jade ribbon.
In the center of the deep pool below the waterfall, a colossal creature stands out prominently.
It was a gigantic Ganoderma lucidum, so large that it blotted out the sky. It looked to be at least a hundred feet tall, a sight to behold!
The cap is over a hundred feet in diameter, with layers upon layers, resembling a magnificent canopy.
Its surface radiates a warm, woody glow...
Beneath the cap, countless thick mycelial roots penetrate the deep pool, extending to every inch of land in the entire valley!
At the very center of the Ganoderma lucidum cap, a wisp of emerald green air, thinner than a strand of hair, is slowly swirling.
The airflow, though seemingly weak, seemed to contain the life force and profound truths of the entire universe. Each flow caused ripples to spread through the surrounding space.
The Heaven and Earth Qi!
It truly is the Heaven and Earth Qi!
Moreover, it is the wood element of Heaven and Earth Qi. Observing its vigorous vitality, if I am not mistaken, it is one of the Dao of Wood Heaven and Earth Qi: the New Wood Myriad Splendors Qi!
Shi Jian's breath hitched. His Demon Core throbbed wildly, emitting a primal yearning, yet also a hint of regret...
The bear demon is not suited to the wood element, and he has already cultivated the Dao of Lightning.
In the future, one can only absorb the Heaven and Earth Qi. The higher one's cultivation level, the less likely one is to be able to rebuild one's cultivation. One can only follow a single path to the end.
Especially in the Foundation Establishment Late Stage, the breakthrough to the Golden Core stage...
Once a path is chosen, there is absolutely no turning back. This is the reason why the saying "cultivating the Tao is as difficult as ascending to heaven" applies.
Many cultivators find it difficult to break through.
Sometimes it's not a lack of talent, but a missed opportunity...
In the end, I lived with regret!
However, right now, no matter what, this is a wisp of pure Heaven and Earth Qi(heaven and earth energy), and even if it's not suitable, it's still of immeasurable value.
Shi Jian's gaze quickly shifted from the wisp of wood-attribute Heaven and Earth Qi to the Ganoderma lucidum itself.
Beneath the translucent cap, a blurry human figure was faintly visible.
It was sitting cross-legged with its arms raised high, seemingly trying its best to absorb and refine that Heaven and Earth Qi Dynamic, attempting to break through that constraint!
With each breath it takes, the vitality of the entire valley, along with the life essence of those "dead" spirit carp and Spirit Plant, transforms into invisible trickles of water that flow into its body.
"It's taking form... no, it's Core Formation!"
Sun Yao gasped in shock, her pretty face instantly draining of color.
This Ganoderma lucidum is actually a Wood Demon spirit that has already developed sentience!
It is using this Heaven and Earth Qi to forcibly break through the shackles of Spirit Plant. If the shackles of Demon Beast are bloodlines, then the shackles of plants and stone tools are the complete awakening of intelligence.
The prerequisite for this is to break through to the Golden Core realm!
"False Core Realm..."
Shi Jian uttered three words, his voice hoarse.
This Wood Demon's aura lacked both the barrier of the Foundation Establishment Realm cultivator and the perfect harmony of Golden Core cultivator.
It is stuck at an extremely delicate critical point, its power far exceeding the Foundation Establishment Perfection, yet it has not truly stepped into the Golden Core path!
Even so, this is by no means an existence that ordinary Foundation Establishment cultivators can contend with.
Buzz--
As if sensing the spying, the giant Ganoderma lucidum suddenly trembled.
The blurry figure beneath the mushroom cap slowly "opened" its eyes; there were no pupils, only two vortexes of emerald green light...
Indifferent, ancient, devoid of any emotion!
The next instant, a boundless, ocean-like pressure of divine soul power swept out with a deafening roar!
Sun Yao groaned, feeling as if her head had been struck by an invisible giant hammer, her vision blurred with stars, and she swayed precariously.
Shi Jian reacted even faster. He let out a furious roar, and his powerful divine demon soul energy also erupted, forming an invisible shield in front of Sun Yao.
The two forces of divine souls collided in mid-air, producing an invisible muffled sound.
Shi Jian swayed, feeling a sharp pain in his soul, but he ultimately endured it.
"Want to Core Formation? Have you even asked me first?"
He knew he absolutely could not allow this Wood Demon to peacefully refine the Heaven and Earth Qi.
If it succeeds, forget about seizing the treasure; the two of them will become fertilizer in this valley, whipped to death by this Wood Demon!
"Roar!"
Shi Jian no longer hid, his body swelled wildly to more than two zhang in length, and his limbs exerted force, causing the ground to explode.
His massive body transformed into a bolt of lightning, his Xuanjia crackling with electricity, as he hurtled straight towards the giant Ganoderma lucidum in the center of the deep pool.
When in doubt, strike first!