Postnatal Wood Man Stele

"A Wood Spirit aura?" Qin Sang's face darkened. Having known Lu Zhang for several decades, he had some measure of the man's strength. Even against a great cultivator, Lu Zhang should have at least been able to hold his ground for a while; there was no way he should have been utterly helpless. Never had he imagined the enemy's poison would be so vicious that Lu Zhang could not withstand a single exchange—let alone that the enemy would set his sights on Qin Sang himself. Qin Sang was filled with doubt. The man kept speaking of a Wood Spirit aura, but what kind of aura did he mean? Bai had stated plainly that although the Dao Manifestation Tree was a spiritual tree, it possessed an unblemished body of consummate purity. Even after refining the Dao Manifestation Tree into his external incarnation, Qin Sang himself had never felt any unusual aura radiating from it. Before this, no one had ever seen through the origins of the Dao Manifestation Tree. This was especially true after his illusory nascent soul transformed into a corporeal nascent soul, allowing him to conceal the very fact that it was an external incarnation. His true self and incarnation played two separate roles, and Lu Zhang remained completely in the dark to this day. Of course, this also stemmed from Qin Sang's caution. He did his utmost to keep his incarnation from directly facing great cultivators. When he paid a visit to Mount Bunian, he had deliberately picked a time to avoid Mount Bunian's sect master. Yet against all expectations, an accident had truly occurred. The grotesque-faced cultivator looked Qin Sang up and down without hiding his greed in the slightest. His gaze felt as though it would strip Qin Sang bare. He drew a deep breath and wore an enraptured expression, his features contorting until he appeared even more terrifying. "So pure... In all my life, I have never seen anything like it. Could it be one of the legendary Ten Great Divine Woods? The heavens have indeed been kind to me! Just as I am about to cultivate the Postnatal Wood Man Stele, providence delivers you right before me..." Whoosh! The jade beetle flew back into the grotesque-faced cultivator's hand. Toying with the jade beetle, he said indifferently, "Hand it over, and I can grant you the chance for a fair trade: one treasure in exchange for both your lives!" His tone was brimming with confidence. In truth, he had good reason to be confident. Although he had not poisoned Lu Zhang to death outright as he had intended, the result was still astonishing enough. A dignified Law Enforcement Elder of Mount Bunian had been grievously wounded in a single exchange and forced to hide inside the azure bell, his survival unknown. From his brief probe earlier, the grotesque-faced cultivator could tell the azure bell was extraordinary—likely Lu Zhang's greatest life-preserving measure—and would not be broken in a short time. Lu Zhang hailed from an illustrious sect; it would be strange if he lacked such a life-saving trump card. However, the grotesque-faced cultivator was certain that Lu Zhang was afflicted with the venom of the Gu King. Regaining his fighting strength would be no easy feat. ... So the man had not actually seen through the Dao Manifestation Tree. Qin Sang came to an understanding. Staring at the vine-like arm and branch-like hand of the grotesque-faced cultivator, he guessed a few things, suspecting this was linked to the man's cultivation method and divine abilities, granting him a peculiar spiritual sense. The enemy was coveting Qin Sang's true body—how could he possibly surrender it? Earlier, Lu Zhang had used the last remnants of his strength to break free from the grotesque-faced cultivator's claw, landing not far from Qin Sang. In that final moment, Lu Zhang had sent a voice transmission, his voice faint as a delirious murmur: "I have a way to suppress the virulent poison in my body. The Sitting Contemplation Bell can help us escape. I ask the Daoist to buy as much time as possible..." Without showing any outward reaction, Qin Sang glanced at the Sitting Contemplation Bell. His thoughts turned, and he said coldly, "First ambushing us to seize our treasure, then using poison to harm us—yet you dare speak of a fair trade? Don't you find that laughable?" Even as he spoke, the Snow-Treading Divine Saber shot backward, and Qin Sang swept up the Sitting Contemplation Bell to make his retreat. "Obstinate fool!" The grotesque-faced cultivator gave a cold snort. "Kill him!" Without needing to be told, the gray-robed cultivator had already struck. He cared far more about Lu Zhang inside the Sitting Contemplation Bell. After all, whatever treasure was obtained from Qin Sang would belong to his master, whereas the stone toad would be his. The five-colored whip cracked rhythmically as phantom toxic lashes burst through the void like blooming poisonous flowers—omnipresent, vibrant, and lethal. The grotesque-faced cultivator's right hand remained in the form of a vine. Opening his coarse palm wide, he turned his hand and grasped the wooden bead, unleashing an intense green light from his palm. Wherever the light reached, vitality was sown across the mirror-smooth stones and rock walls, sprouting a layer of tender green grass shoots bursting with life. The sprouts grew at an astonishing pace, forming patches of turf. Wild grass surged wildly, mutating into countless vines. Bristling with sharp thorns, the vines proved more nimble than venomous serpents as they shot forward in unison. In an instant, the entire space transformed into a boundary interwoven with vines. Qin Sang's vision was consumed by dense greenery, surrounded by clusters of blossoming poisonous flowers. His situation had turned exceedingly perilous. Yet there was no sign of panic on his face as one hand gripped the Sitting Contemplation Bell. The Sitting Contemplation Bell was featherlight, bearing almost no weight in his grasp. The moment he seized the bell, Qin Sang sensed its power draining away at a startling, harrowing rate. Lu Zhang had narrowly escaped death. Though he had preserved his life for the moment, the cost would be immense, and the Sitting Contemplation Bell would likely be ruined as a result. After sending that transmission and fleeing into the Sitting Contemplation Bell, Lu Zhang had made no further sound. Qin Sang now had to face both foes alone, one of whom was a great cultivator. What a pity my true self is not here. Otherwise, how could they dare act so arrogant! Qin Sang sighed inwardly. Putting aside all stray thoughts, a giant hand of profound qi surged from the crown of his head. The giant hand clenched in the void, freezing the surrounding vines in place. Seizing the opening, Qin Sang commanded the Snow-Treading Divine Saber to slash behind him, forcibly carving a path through the countless vines. He retreated frantically outward, unable to retrieve the Baose Bell and forced to abandon it. Saber qi surged like a tide. One rock wall after another collapsed. The underground was reduced to utter ruin. Even the low-level cultivators treasure-hunting in the basin felt the ground shaking repeatedly, assuming an earthquake had struck the heart of the basin. Fast as Qin Sang fled, the vines gave chase just as swiftly. Holding the wooden bead aloft, the grotesque-faced cultivator stood without moving his feet as countless vines surged like ocean waves, propelling him forward and flattening everything in his path. The green light shifted with his figure. Whenever the green light left an area, the wild grass and vines withered at a rate visible to the naked eye until they vanished completely, while fresh vines sprouted ahead. As for the poisonous flowers, Qin Sang crashed straight through them without hesitation. Venom seeped through his protective true essence and entered his body. Qin Sang noticed that this venom functioned similarly to the miasma, primarily threatening the physical body. It had limited effect on him, so he paid it no heed. Had it been the grotesque-faced cultivator's Gu King venom, he certainly would not dare to be so careless. But the grotesque-faced cultivator showed no signs of using the Gu King. Seeing that his painstakingly cultivated venom art was ineffective, the gray-robed cultivator was both shocked and enraged. He quickly reeled in his five-colored whip and let out a sharp whistle, summoning his five-colored poisonous spider to pursue in haste. Behind him, waves of vines rolled, and the grotesque-faced cultivator flickered in and out of view. Qin Sang kept the Fourfold Tengshe Seal concealed in his sleeve, yet he was in no hurry to unleash it. Deploying the spirit treasure would certainly improve his circumstances. However, a spirit treasure consumed an enormous amount of true essence, and the grotesque-faced cultivator would hardly stand there taking hits. Qin Sang had to consider how to escape if the spirit treasure failed to repel his foe. Although Lu Zhang claimed to possess a means of escape, Qin Sang would never entrust his own life entirely to someone else. After a moment's contemplation, Qin Sang abruptly changed direction. Rather than heading upward, he defied common sense and plunged deep underground. The deeper he went, the denser the miasma became, capable of obstructing vision and blurring his enemy's perception. He could completely allow the toxic miasma to envelop his body without offering any resistance, suppressing his fluctuations to the bare minimum to conceal his tracks. The prerequisite, of course, was temporarily shaking off his pursuers.