Reincarnated as a Ginkgo Tree: I Create an Eternal Divine Kingdom - Chapter 103

Inside Ligu Fortress.

“What’s happening?”

“This is insane! Why is a beast army attacking us?”

The cultivators inside Ligu Fortress were in a panic. Ligu Fortress had always been peaceful. The beasts feared the might of the human race, and even the boldest among them would only occasionally hunt a few people, but they never dared to attack a place like Ligu Fortress. Such an act would be seen as challenging humanity itself.

This meant that the cultivators had never really experienced any serious battles.

“Retreat!”

The commanding officer of Ligu Fortress didn’t hesitate. He chose to flee immediately. Outside, countless beasts were gathered, led by a terrifying brown bear radiating the aura of a third-tier great demon. There was no way he could hold them off. He even had the feeling that if he stayed just a moment longer, he would be torn to pieces.

The beasts outside could hardly believe it. The fortress, which they had imagined to be nearly impregnable, was so fragile. They hadn’t even begun their assault, but the fortress was already empty. Initially, they suspected it might be a trick—after all, humans were often cunning and deceitful. However, when some flying beasts scouted the fortress, they found it was indeed deserted.

Thus, the Ligu Fortress, which had stood for a thousand years, was taken without a fight.

But the story didn’t end there.

Beside Ligu Fortress stood Ligu Mountain, where a giant elephant had taken residence. This elephant was 100 feet long and 80 feet tall, a tier-three beast. Normally, it wouldn’t dare provoke the Ligu Fortress. But seeing the Misty Army take over the fortress, the elephant immediately emerged. Behind it followed dozens of other elephants.

These elephants had formidable defenses. As they charged, the Misty Army momentarily fell into disarray. The elephants grew even more confident.

Suddenly, a crow’s cry echoed. A massive black crow descended from the sky, and on its back sat a green-haired woman.

“Who gave you the courage to try and take what belongs to my Misty Forbidden Zone?” the green-haired woman’s voice was authoritative and domineering.

Whoosh!

In an instant, she charged at the strongest elephant. The elephant trumpeted loudly and thrust its tusks at the woman. The green-haired woman flicked her hair, which wrapped around the elephant’s tusks like strands of green algae. In a flash, she was on the elephant’s back. The elephant couldn’t shake her off.

Her hair, sharp as blades, pierced the elephant’s body. Moments later, the elephant let out a mournful cry before collapsing to the ground. Simultaneously, a giant python appeared, coiling around the elephant. The combined assault from the green-haired woman, the White Python, and the Earthquake Bear quickly drained the elephant of its strength until it finally died.

A tier-three beast, defeated by the combined forces of the green-haired woman, the white python, and the Earthquake Bear. The elephant herd collapsed, and the Misty Army pressed on, advancing deeper into the Ancient Wilderness Mountains.

The Misty Army split into two groups. One was led by Huang Shuling, the White Python, and the Earthquake Bear. The other was led by Lin Che, the strange spirit wolf, and the shadow beetle.

The army crushed everything in its path. Human fortresses were destroyed one after another. Any beast forces that resisted were mercilessly wiped out. This time, the Misty Army showed no mercy. It swept through the land with the force of a thunderstorm, obliterating everything in its way. Those who surrendered lived, those who resisted died. The message was clear: “Submit, or perish!”

Meanwhile, the army advancing along the Sui River was led by the Sea Monk, the mermaid, the purple-gold mosquito, and the Ironback Ape. The sea monk and the mermaid led the waterborne attack, while the purple-gold mosquito and the Ironback ape led the land assault. The massive army surged into the Wushui region.

In Wushui, twenty warships floated—this was the Green Hills Mansion’s navy. Ordinarily, the navy ruled Wushui unchallenged. No water monster dared provoke them. The sailors aboard were bored, lazily standing around. In the past year, with the increase in monster activity, things had become more tense, but just a year ago, these sailors would have been gambling or indulging in other distractions at this hour.

“What’s that?”

One sailor rubbed his eyes, doubting what he saw. But it was no illusion. More sailors noticed something unusual. The water ahead was rising strangely, with large shadows moving beneath the surface.

“It’s an attack! Water monsters!”

An experienced sailor shouted.

Splash!

Battle broke out instantly. A vast army of water monsters emerged. Some crashed into the warships from below, while others leapt onto the decks to attack the sailors. The most terrifying of all was a giant ape-like water creature, as tall as a mountain, exuding a terrifying aura.

There was also the stunningly beautiful mermaid and a swarm of flying fish. The Green Hills sailors had never faced such a battle before. In less than fifteen minutes, all twenty warships were overturned. The sailors either fled for their lives or perished.

On both riverbanks, the Ironback ape led hundreds of monkeys in an attack on the human docks of Green Hills Mansion. Behind them, a nearly invisible purple-gold mosquito lent its assistance. The cultivators of Green Hills Mansion were utterly defeated.

At the same time, wherever the Misty Army expanded, white mushrooms sprouted. Corpses were consumed by these mushrooms, transforming into streams of lifespan energy that flowed into Su Mu.

Su Mu’s retaliation against Green Hills Mansion wasn’t just about revenge. He used it as an excuse to harvest a wave of lifespan energy. He had previously considered reaping some from outside, but that would have meant declaring war on the Great Xia Empire. Su Mu was wary of the empire and didn’t want to break all ties. But now, someone from the Great Xia had handed him the perfect excuse. If he didn’t seize this opportunity, it would be foolish.

In Wushui alone, countless fish monsters perished as the Misty Army took over the area. The lifespan of these dead creatures was absorbed by the immortal mushrooms—half going to the mushrooms and the other half to Su Mu. The same occurred in the Ancient Wilderness Mountains.

This wave of retaliation soon shocked the entire world! The Misty Forbidden Zone, once a hidden dragon, now bared its fangs, and the world finally understood just how terrifying it was. Green Hills Mansion was powerless to stop it.

Green Hills Mansion.

“Damn it!”

The high-ranking officials of Green Hills Mansion were furious. The sheer audacity of the Misty Forbidden Zone had far exceeded their expectations. They had thought the Misty Forbidden Zone would be like other forbidden zones, retreating in fear of the Great Xia Empire’s might.

Some even believed that the Misty Forbidden Zone would return the Qingzhou Sword. But now, the Misty Forbidden Zone had declared war on the Great Xia Empire!

Six months ago, the black-bellied sand lizard had led its army against the Roman Empire, and the nations of the world had watched in amusement. The high-ranking officials of Green Hills Mansion had also believed it had nothing to do with them. But now, just six months later, the Great Xia Empire was facing the same situation.

“Quick, report this to Taikang as soon as possible!”

Li Tianming urged. The lord of Green Hills Mansion was truly frightened at this moment.

The Great Xia Empire.

Taikang City, the Imperial Capital.

The court was in session among the high-ranking officials.

“What? The Misty Forbidden Zone demands that we hand over Fang Zhaodong?”

The imperial family was enraged.

“Although Lord Fang made a mistake, he was still the closest to the Grand Seer, a high-ranking official of our empire.”

“If we hand Lord Fang over to a bunch of beasts, we’ll be the laughingstock of the world.”

“Hah! The Misty Forbidden Zone is really overestimating itself. I refuse to believe that if we don’t hand over Lord Fang, they’ll dare do anything drastic.”

The imperial family’s attitude left the other high-ranking officials with complicated feelings. Fang Zhaodong was known to be associated with Dongfang Xuan. After Dongfang Xuan’s death, Fang Zhaodong had become the highest-ranking official of the Great Xia’s Imperial Observatory.

Yet the imperial family seemed more agitated about this than even the Imperial Observatory itself. Could it be that Fang Zhaodong had been working for the imperial family all along? And since the imperial family represented the emperor, the high-ranking officials couldn’t help but speculate.

“Handing over Lord Fang is indeed inappropriate. Even if he made a mistake, it’s still a matter for the Great Xia Empire to handle…”

The Grand Chancellor began to speak but was interrupted when a flood of urgent messages arrived, shocking everyone, including the Grand Chancellor.

“What?”

“The Misty Forbidden Zone has unleashed a beast tide, with countless beasts swarming towards Wushui and the Ancient Wilderness Mountains.”

“In the Ancient Wilderness Mountains, all nine of our fortresses have fallen, and the Misty Forbidden Zone has completely taken control.”

“And in Wushui, the Green Hills Mansion Navy has been wiped out, and the docks on both sides have been destroyed. Our cultivators can no longer approach Wushui.”

These reports left the officials of the Great Xia Empire in a state of shock.

“Unforgivable!”

The imperial family was livid. “The Misty Forbidden Zone’s actions are a blatant provocation against the Great Xia Empire, a declaration of war. I propose we immediately respond by mobilizing our army to conquer the Misty Forbidden Zone.”

“Conquer the Misty Forbidden Zone?”

The Grand Chancellor responded coldly. “There are 576 forbidden zones within the Great Xia Empire. Do you think they aren’t watching us closely? If we mobilize our army, the other forbidden zones will seize the opportunity to cause trouble.”

The officials felt even more stifled.

“In the past, we’ve dealt with forbidden zones that dared to attack our cities. Didn’t we send troops to destroy them?”

“That forbidden zone was only a disaster-level zone,” the Grand Chancellor replied. “But the Misty Forbidden Zone is a calamity-level zone, and it recently resisted the Qingzhou Sword. Can you really compare the two? If we can eliminate the Misty Forbidden Zone quickly, then of course there would be no problem. But, can you guarantee that?”

The imperial family fell silent. No one could make that promise.

“So, are we just going to let the Misty Forbidden Zone threaten us and hand over Fang Zhaodong?”

The imperial family scoffed.

“We can’t make this decision. We must wait for the emperor to come out of seclusion and make the final decision.”

The Grand Chancellor concluded.

The Misty Forbidden Zone.

“190,000 years of lifespan.”

Su Mu was very satisfied as he looked at his lifespan reserves. He silently thanked the one who had used the Qingzhou Sword. Without such a convenient excuse, he wouldn’t have been able to openly attack the Great Xia Empire and gain such a massive amount of lifespan.

This harvest was comparable to the one he had reaped when all the beasts of the world had gathered in the Misty Forbidden Zone. Moreover, the Ancient Wilderness Mountains and Wushui now belonged to him, allowing him to harvest even more lifespan every day.

“Lord Divine Tree,”

Huang Shuling communicated with Su Mu through her thoughts, “We’ve fought our way through 400 miles and finally reached the western edge of the Ancient Wilderness Mountains. Ahead is the Kunlun Plateau.”