The old tree was full of the vicissitudes of age, as if it could completely wither away at any time.
The soil in the garden was somewhat dark red, and gave off a faint fragrance that invigorated people.
The roots of the old tree were sunk into the earth, and on its only remaining branch, three fruits had formed.
However, the three fruits did not seem to be completely ripe yet, but they were visibly growing at a rapid pace, giving off faint ripples of energy.
Perhaps because the old tree was not sturdy enough, the fruits were also not as plump, looking somewhat malnourished.
Although Wang Ye did not know what kind of fruit they were, the moment he laid eyes on them, he was drawn in.
A powerful desire welled up inside him, ceaselessly hypnotizing him.
Eat them!
Eat them!
The last time in the suburbs' cemetery, the fruit he had dug up gave Wang Ye the same kind of temptation.
Only this time, it was much stronger!
What a treasure!
After eating them, as long as he could withstand the energy and not die, his strength would definitely reach another level!
Wang Ye judged in an instant!
But there were only three fruits in total. To fight his way through the crowd would be difficult!
At the very least, he completely lacked the courage to confront that old woman head-on!
Even for Li Hongtian, Wang Ye was somewhat unsure whether he could grasp the upper hand. The few from the Buddhist Clan, as well as Mao Yong'an, were not good to contend against either!
This would be tricky.
Although a great battle was bound to erupt between them after a while, they were currently in a rare moment of quiet.
Everyone was waiting for the fruits to ripen.
Mao Yong’an shuffled over to Wang Ye’s side with tiny steps, lowered his head, and said in an extremely soft voice: Sir Wang, let’s team up.
Good benefits.
Wang Ye’s mouth opened slightly as if his soul had departed.
If we only get one fruit, it’s yours.
If two, we split evenly.
Mao Yong’an agreed without hesitation.
Deal. Wang Ye’s gaze subtly glanced over the two middle-aged Daoists behind him.
After facilitating the deal, Mao Yong’an shuffled back to his original spot with tiny steps.
Everyone present who had survived until now were cunning people. Their gazes vaguely looked over, lost in thought.
Even the old woman gave Wang Ye an affectionate smile.
Wang Ye instantly felt his body go soft.
I’m done for...
Just then, ripples of faint energy fluctuations drifted through the air—the three fruits had ripened.
The tense atmosphere solidified to its peak in an instant.
“My Buddhist clan wants one fruit!”
The somewhat obese Buddhist youth bellowed in a low voice, then charged towards the center of the garden.
Strangely, no one tried to stop him, silently watching the scene unfold.
The next second, the soil churned as if it were a swamp, and the youth’s feet sank right in. As he struggled, he sank faster and faster.
“Jie Chi, Jie Chen!”
The youth was not too frantic. He turned his head and called out to the other two Buddhist youths.
The two had uncertain expressions, seemingly hesitant.
“If I die, your chances of getting the fruits will be even smaller!”
The youth gritted his teeth and said coldly.
At this point, half of his body had already sunk into the mud.
Jie Chi and Jie Chen glanced at each other, and finally made their move.
But the next second—
Li Hongtian, who had been watching the commotion as if it were a show, stirred the black mist in his body. The next moment he appeared before the two, blocking their way.
“You still shouldn’t save him.”
The two’s expressions changed. The youth sinking into the mud looked even more ugly. “Aren’t you afraid of offending my Buddha Kingdom?”
“Hmph, we should have a fearless mind.”
“If we’re always concerned about the consequences, how can we subdue the ancients?”
“I, Li Hongtian of the Tian Group, should be invincible.”
His voice was full of confidence, but did not sound arrogant at all, as if he was merely stating a fact.
Jie Chi and Jie Chen gritted their teeth. One held a precept staff, the other held a vajra pestle, and they charged at Li Hongtian.
Li Hongtian still looked calm. He simply admonished, “Stand down!”
As the black mist churned, the two involuntarily retreated backward, their faces full of shock.
The youth sinking into the mud now had a panicked look. “If I die, the Buddha Kingdom will definitely destroy your Tian Group!”
“You’re overestimating your own value.
“You’re also overestimating the Buddha Kingdom.”
“Since you can compete to become a Buddha Child, the Buddha Kingdom isn’t as exaggerated as imagined.”
Li Hongtian clasped his hands behind his back. With a wave of his hand, he repelled the two Buddha Child candidates, his expression unchanged.
“A peerless genius of an era should be like this.”
Wang Ye watched the commotion with an impassive face. He seemed to recall something and curiously glanced at Mao Yong’an.
After all, this guy was the Young Dao Lord of Dao City. He wondered who would be stronger if Mao really fought Li Hongtian with his life on the line.
But recalling how he had easily slapped Mao twice with his palm in Lin’an City, Wang Ye slightly shook his head.
It seems the younger generation of Dao City is somewhat lacking.
Yet someone like this could become a Young Dao Lord?
“Sir, you go too far.”
A faint voice sounded gently, and an illusory Buddha shadow appeared in the void. Faint sutra chanting propagated through the air, subconsciously eliciting a devout feeling in people’s hearts.
A youth draped in Buddhist robes with red lips and white teeth slowly walked over from the distance, taking one step at a time.
In just a few steps, he had arrived before Li Hongtian. Pressing his palms together with a serene expression on his aged face.
“Greetings, Sir Li. This poor monk is Jia Nan.”
As the Buddha’s name was chanted, his illusory shadow gradually dissipated into nothingness.
But Li Hongtian had gradually become more solemn, sensing an extremely uncomfortable aura from Jia Nan.
“Are you here to save him?”
Li Hongtian emanated killing intent, looking at Jia Nan with great interest as he spoke.
At this point, the Buddhist youth’s head was already half sunk in. Only his eyes remained, filled with hopeful anticipation as he looked at Jia Nan.
“Life and death have their allotted time, it cannot be forced.”
Unexpectedly, Jia Nan slightly shook his head and said.
Everyone was taken aback for a moment, looking at Jia Nan with puzzlement.
The Buddhist clan is so resigned to circumstances?
“Then what do you intend?”
Li Hongtian frowned, speaking coldly.
Jia Nan looked straight into Li Hongtian's eyes. "I just can't stand to see someone insult my Buddhist clan."
As his voice fell, a tyrannical aura of bloodlust emanated from Jia Nan's body. He threw a punch at Li Hongtian.
This scene was too sudden. One second he was speaking gently, the next he was swinging his fist. Even Li Hongtian was somewhat caught off guard. The black mist flickered and his figure appeared one meter away.
"Humph, the Buddhist clan really are a bunch of treacherous rats!"
Li Hongtian's expression turned icy cold. "Kneel!"
As his voice fell, Jia Nan's knees bent slightly, but barely half a second later, he recovered.
young master of the Shen family—a figure of immense power and wealth beyond measure—and awakened the "Destined Ultimate Villain System"! His starting scenario? Running into his icy fiancée who shows up with a mountain-descending divine doctor to break off their engagement. The divine doctor arrogantly taunts: "What does your Shen family have besides a bit of stinking money? You're not even worthy of tying Qingxue's shoelaces!" Shen Fei just smiled. He completely defied the usual script: "Fine, I agree to break off the engagement. Also, notify the finance department to withdraw all investments from the Su family." Minutes later, with its capital chain severed, the Su Group teetered on the brink of bankruptcy! The once aloof and proud ice queen CEO was thrown into utter panic. That very night, she went to Shen Fei's villa, casting aside all dignity to beg and plead desperately... From then on, in this world teeming with Sons of Destiny, Shen Fei embarked on a path of extreme dimensional suppression! A mountain-descending divine doctor? Peerless medical skills? Shen Fei: "Reporting you for practicing medicine without a license! I'll gladly take your ancient medicinal cauldron and twin sister assassins." The Crooked-Smiling Dragon King? Commanding a hundred thousand soldiers with a single order? Shen Fei: "Illegal assembly and suspected treason! Let a fleet of attack helicopters sanitize the area and teach you what the state apparatus really means!" A reborn tycoon? Knows all the golden opportunities of the next decade? Shen Fei: "A trillion in capital to reverse and pump the stock market, making you blow your margin and jump on the very first day of your rebirth!" What Chosen Ones? What bearers of Heavenly Fortune? In Shen Fei's eyes, they're all just chives (i.e., suckers/marks) waiting to be harvested! Shen Fei: "Sorry, but as the Destined Ultimate Villain, I don't play by the rules of honor. I only play the game of dimensional suppression."
transmigrates into the world as the sect master of the Heavenly Yan Sect, which is on the verge of being wiped out. He binds a system that grants him cultivation power based on the number of disciples he has: for each disciple, he automatically gains a year's worth of cultivation every single day! Take one disciple: every day he gains 1 year of cultivation power. While others struggle through a year of bitter training, he gets the same just by sleeping through a single night. Take ten disciples: every day he gains 10 years of cultivation power. Foundation Establishment, Core Formation, Nascent Soul—he breezes through all bottlenecks without lifting a finger. Take one hundred disciples: every day he gains 100 years of cultivation power. Even a Soul Transformation Venerable before him can’t survive a single blow. Take ten thousand disciples: every day he gains 10,000 years of cultivation power! With a wave of his hand, he topples empires. With a single step, he crushes the sacred grounds of the universe. ... While others fight tooth and nail for secret techniques, Lin Yan casually hands out Nascent Soul-level cultivation manuals as beginner textbooks. While others strain to find talented recruits, Lin Yan opens his doors to anyone—so long as they’re human. In just three short years, the Heavenly Yan Sect went from a backwater sect made up of three crumbling huts to a sacred land that every cultivator under heaven would kill to enter. ... One day, otherworldly demon gods invade, with a million demon soldiers pressing down upon the realm. Lin Yan, yawning, rises from his lounge chair and glances at the system panel: [Current Disciples: 1.28 million] [Daily Cultivation Increase: 1.28 million years] He waves his hand casually, and the countless demon soldiers are reduced to ashes in an instant. “So noisy… interrupting my fishing.”
nto another world, I bought a slave for the first time, never expecting the silver wolf girl to be so cute... Lin Feng: I know it's cold, but you don't have to sneak into my bed! Yuna: Just sharing body warmth, if you dare do anything naughty, I'll definitely...
e bizarre and supernatural had descended. The previous emperor was a thoroughgoing tyrant; no longer satisfied with human women, he had set his sights on a stunningly beautiful supernatural entity. He met his end in his bedchamber, drained of all his vital essence. As the legitimate eldest son and crown prince, Wang Hao was thus hastily enthroned, becoming the young emperor of the Great Zhou Dynasty. No sooner had he awakened the "Imperial Sign-In Intelligence System" than he was assassinated by a Son of Destiny—a classic villain's opening. The Great Zhou, ravaged by the former emperor's excesses, was in national decline. The great families within its borders harbored their own treacherous schemes, martial sects began to defy the imperial court's decrees, and border armies, their pay and provisions in arrears, grumbled incessantly against the central government. Fortunately, the central capital was still held secure by the half-million Imperial Guards and fifty thousand Imperial Forest Army who obeyed the court's orders, along with the royal family's hidden reserves of power, barely managing to suppress the realm. As the Great Zhou's finances worsened and supernatural activities grew ever more frequent, the court sat atop a volcano. Ambitious plotters everywhere dreamed of overthrowing the dynasty, and even some reclusive ancient powers emerged, attempting to sway the tides of the world. At the first grand court assembly, the civil and military officials nearly came to blows, fighting tooth and nail over the allocation of fifty million taels of silver from the summer tax revenues. The spectacle opened Wang Hao's eyes—the Great Zhou's bureaucracy was not only corrupt but also martially proficient, a cabinet of all-rounders. Some officials even had the audacity to suggest the emperor release funds from the imperial privy purse to address the emergency. Wang Hao suddenly felt weary. Let it all burn.
