Chapter 44: Xiao Qingge's Last Chance!
Li Ran entered deep into the dense forest.
All around, the lush greenery surrounded him, but he couldn't help feeling a sense of unease, as if something were lurking in the shadows, watching him.
However, upon closer investigation, he found nothing.
"This place is too quiet."
The trees in this place towered far above those in other areas, casting a dark shadow over everything.
There was not a single sound of insects or birds, and he couldn't hear the sounds of the others fighting.
The silence was as if it were a dead land, and he could almost hear the beating of his own heart.
The sunlight above was intense, but there was no warmth on his skin.
As he continued to walk forward, all he could see were trees, with no sign of any other living creatures.
"Strange, where have all the demonic beast gone?" Li Ran muttered.
Right behind him, an ancient tree split open, revealing a pitch-black maw, as if it were mockingly smiling.
He suddenly froze in his tracks, as if he were in a daze.
The ancient tree's "smile" widened, and its silent form extended, with branches as thick as arms lashing out at him!
Bang!
The earth flew asunder, but the figure had vanished.
"I've got you now!"
Li Ran's smile was fierce, and he hung in the air.
The Cloud Feather Spear appeared in his hand, and he threw it like a javelin, and the silver spear lightning-fast entered the tree demon's mouth.
Boom!
A deafening sound echoed through the air.
The enormous tree demon exploded from the inside, and with a piercing wail, it crashed to the ground!
The silver spear flew back into his hand, and Li Ran landed gracefully.
"Is that how you got your prey? By pretending to be a plant?"
As the smoke cleared, the trees withered, and a branch emitting a faint green light lay on the ground.
This was the spirit core of the tree demon, similar to the demon bones of demonic beast.
Li Ran casually threw it into his storage ring.
"No wonder there were no demonic beasts here. It turns out these trees themselves are the monsters."
"But then again, with so many trees here, how did just this one become a demon?"
Just as this thought crossed his mind, the sky suddenly darkened, and Li Ran's pupils contracted. He swiftly moved away from his original position.
Howl!
The ancient looking trees all around him suddenly split open one after another, and a horde of demons howled in a scene reminiscent of doomsday!
Boom! Boom! Boom!
The sky-darkening tree trunks thrashed wildly.
The ground cracked, and rocks and soil were sent flying!
Li Ran transformed into a shadow, weaving through the relentless onslaught.
These tree demons had formidable cultivation, each of them at least at the Foundation Building stage!
Their roots were deeply embedded in the ground, providing them with a constant source of vitality.
Coupled with their sheer numbers, it was indeed a significant problem.
Even if a Golden Core cultivator came, it would be quite a challenge for them to defeat these trees!
"Well, just like they always said, opportunities always come with danger..."
Li Ran hovered in the air, forming hand seals and pressed downward with great force.
Bang!
A muffled sound resounded in the void, and the branches of all the tree demons drooped, as if they were facing immense resistance.
The Hidden Gauze Sect's secret technique - Spirit Pressure Seal!
At the same time, behind Li Ran, black light blades began to condense one after another.
Within moments, nearly a hundred of them had formed.
The black blades hovered in the air, emitting a faint humming sound.
"Die!"
With a furious shout, he unleashed the light blades like a torrential rain!
Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom!
A hurricane roared, and wood chips scattered in the air.
The tree demons howled as they collapsed one by one, creating earth-shaking explosions!
When the last tree demon was shattered, the jungle finally returned to silence.
Amidst the swirling dust, the ground was covered in radiant green light, all from the demon bones of the tree demons.
"This should definitely be enough. If I still can't advance after this, then this trial is rigged," Li Ran muttered as he collected the demon bones and strolled leisurely.
...
On the other side.
Xiao Qingge cautiously navigated through the forest, and at the slightest rustle of the leaves, she immediately hid like a rabbit.
In this secret realm, she, a mortal, was incredibly vulnerable.
She knew that she wouldn't be able to enter the second level for sure.
So, before being eliminated, she had to find the Life Fruit.
The Life Fruit.
It was said to bring the dead back to life. As long as there was a breath of life left, it could fully revive you.
Besides its life-saving property, it had another special effect that few people knew about.
It could rebuild one's spiritual roots.
The Life Fruit could destroy one's spiritual roots and then reshape them.
For cultivators who consumed it, it would result in the loss of all cultivation and possibly their innate talent.
It was even more poisonous than the deadliest toxins!
But Xiao Qingge happened to be a mortal who had lost her cultivation.
As long as she obtained the Life Fruit, there was a chance to reverse her spiritual roots, regain her cultivation, and her innate talent!
She had stumbled upon this information in an ancient scroll.
However, the Life Fruit was an ancient divine material.
It's an exceedingly rare item even in a huge organization like the Divine Dao Sect, let alone the mortal world.
Rumor had it that the last sighting of the Life Fruit was in a secret realm in the Western Regions.
That's why she had pinned her hopes on this place.
"I must find it before the trial ends, or I'll truly run out of chance!" An anxious expression flickered across Xiao Qingge's face.
Suddenly, there was a rustling sound behind her.
Xiao Qingge's pupils contracted.
Someone had arrived!
"Oh, isn't this the mortal who entered the secret realm with Li Ran? Did Li Ran just leave you here all alone? Isn't he afraid that the demonic beast might eat you?" came the voice of Song Qingsong.
A shadow flickered in Xiao Qingge's eyes.
This was the last person she wanted to encounter!
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