Reincarnated as a Ginkgo Tree: I Create an Eternal Divine Kingdom - Chapter 118

“Whether you can see through me is irrelevant,” Su Mu replied. “Since you’ve already harbored the intent to kill, why hide it?”

“You misunderstand…” The old man seemed to want to explain, but the next moment, the sea of white hair suddenly surged upward. In an instant, a fourth-tier aura exploded out. The white hair pierced through a hundred feet of rock, heading directly toward Su Yao. It intended to kill her instantly.

Although Su Yao was powerful, she was only at the mid-Golden Core stage. If struck by the white hair, she would stand no chance of surviving. But Su Mu would not allow the white hair to succeed. A rich aura of life suddenly emanated from Su Yao’s body. In the blink of an eye, this aura transformed into a single leaf. Although this leaf was merely a manifestation of wood elemental energy and couldn’t compare to Su Mu’s real leaves, it still possessed formidable power.

Moments later, the leaf split into thousands of fragments, creating a dense curtain that completely shielded Su Yao. As the white hair attacked, it collided with these leaves. The impact was tremendous, yet it made little noise. The white-haired old man clearly did not want others to know of his presence, and Su Mu similarly wished to avoid revealing that he had been here.

As they exchanged blows, both parties moved deeper into the underground cavern. Su Mu, controlling Su Yao’s body, fought the old man while descending further into the cavern. During the battle, one of Su Mu’s abilities, the Bloodsucking Power, played a crucial role. This ability didn’t just absorb blood; it could also absorb energy. This allowed Su Mu to enhance Su Yao’s energy absorption rate significantly.

Su Mu had initially been concerned that channeling too much energy would overwhelm Su Yao’s body. However, the energy consumption from the battle with the white-haired old man mitigated this risk, allowing Su Mu to unleash his power at a fourth-tier upper-grade level.

The effect was immediate. The white-haired old man quickly found himself unable to resist. His strength was at most at the fourth-tier middle-grade level, making him no match for Su Mu’s fourth-tier upper-grade level power.

With a thunderous crash, thousands of ginkgo leaves shot forth, driving the old man into the depths of the underground cavern. At this point, Su Mu, through Su Yao’s body, finally saw what lay at the bottom of the cavern. The scene was terrifying. It appeared to be a volcanic crater filled with molten lava. But besides the lava, there were also roaring thunder, howling winds, and swirling sandstorms.

It was clear that the source of the cavern’s extraordinary nature lay here. Su Mu’s consciousness penetrated through these natural disasters and focused on the depths of the lava. There, he found a small, unassuming gray stone, about the size of a baby’s fist. Despite its appearance, the energy it radiated was so immense that even Su Mu felt a sense of awe.

The energy within this stone was undoubtedly beyond the fourth tier. Su Mu immediately realized that this stone was the most valuable object in the entire spiritual land. However, there was still the problem of the white-haired old man. While Su Mu could suppress him, killing or subduing him in a short time was impossible. Since Su Mu was only temporarily borrowing Su Yao’s body, his time was limited.

As he pondered, Su Mu recalled his earlier doubts. With such strength, why would the white-haired old man hide in this place? Clearly, there were few beings in the world capable of suppressing the old man besides Su Mu. So, the force keeping the old man hidden was not an external one, but rather something within himself.

“Enough, enough, I give up!” To Su Mu’s surprise, the old man retreated, yelling as he did so.

“Why?” Su Mu asked with a light laugh, his voice, through Su Yao, carrying an enchanting allure.

“This isn’t your true body,” the old man replied. “This little girl had only a mid-Golden Core aura when she first entered, but suddenly she advanced to the fourth tier. Are you a god or an immortal? Is she your believer or an emissary? Never mind, it doesn’t matter. What matters is that I can’t even match a fraction of your power. If your true body were here, I would be killed instantly.”

“Hmph, consider yourself fortunate,” Su Yao spoke, her voice this time her own. “If the Divine Tree’s true body were here, a single leaf would be enough to obliterate you.”

Both the old man and Su Yao were correct. The old man was unaware that Su Mu’s true body could not manifest here. Su Yao, who might have understood this before, was now unsure after experiencing Su Mu’s power within her.

The old man let out a bitter laugh. He then looked at Su Mu earnestly. “With your strength, I believe you are not as ignorant as other beings. You must know that fortune and disaster are intertwined, and calamity always lingers. In the days of the Great Dao, countless powerful beings shone like the sun and moon, yet when great calamities struck, they all turned to dust. The greater the fortune, the greater the disaster. That’s why I dare not leave this place. So, why do you still dare to enter the world?”

This explanation clarified why someone as powerful as the old man would hide in the dark depths of the earth, only glimpsing the outside world through a crack.

“Why do you believe that entering the world brings disaster, while hiding allows you to avoid it?” Su Mu replied with a smile through Su Yao’s lips.

The old man’s voice trembled. “Once you enter the world, you become entangled in endless karma. Those ensnared by karma often lose themselves, and thus disaster follows.”

“Have you found yourself?” Su Mu asked.

“I…” The old man’s words faltered.

At that moment, Su Mu conjured a drop of life essence. The old man’s eyes narrowed as he stared intently at the drop. To him, the energy within the life essence was insignificant. What truly amazed him was the life force it contained, capable of healing all wounds.

“If you wish to find the answer, you might consider following her,” Su Mu suggested. “She can bring you to the Misty Forbidden Zone. If, after arriving, you still feel lost, you can always return to hiding.”

The old man’s eyes flickered with contemplation. “Very well!”

With that, Su Mu withdrew from Su Yao’s body. Although he had only stayed for a short quarter-hour, his gains were remarkable. Su Mu, with his immense power and the bloodsucking ability, had absorbed all the wood-element spiritual liquid in the cavern. Su Yao absorbed thirty percent, while the remaining seventy percent was taken by Su Mu.

For Su Yao, who had expected to absorb only a fraction of the liquid, gaining thirty percent was an extraordinary opportunity. Of course, she wouldn’t leave hastily. Since everyone else would stay for three days, she would do the same to avoid suspicion.

“Now that I’m following you, you better take good care of me,” the old man said.

Su Yao looked puzzled. “I don’t mind taking you along, but you’re so big. How can I carry you out?”

“That’s not an issue,” the old man replied.

With that, he suddenly transformed into a shadow, merging with the gray stone at the bottom of the lava. Instantly, the stone’s aura diminished drastically until it emitted no energy at all, appearing as nothing more than an ordinary stone.