Ai Hui plopped down on the ground, the monster's corpse lying motionlessly by his legs . Exhaustion washed over him, and his eyelids grew heavy . This was the first time since entering this world that he felt tired .
He glanced at the wisps of smoke that were emanating from the monster's legs and was oddly reminded of freshly served pork trotters .
A strong feeling of hunger overwhelmed him as he swallowed his saliva . It was only now that he realized just how long it had been since his last meal . Regaining his senses, Ai Hui reminded himself that there was no need to eat in this mental world .
He felt as though he was losing control over his thoughts .
Ai Hui confirmed that it was not an illusion when he noticed that his body had become slightly translucent . The previous battle appeared to have caused considerable damage to himself, so much so that even his spirit swords had lost their sheen .
He was afraid of falling asleep, lest he remained that way forever .
A single spirit sword flew before him with a single mental command . Its gleaming blade acted as a mirror, allowing Ai Hui to look at his current form . His entire body was translucent, rather like a jellyfish . A small black dot could be seen deep within his forehead .
Ai Hui was shocked .
Upon closer inspection, he saw that it was actually a pitch-black drop of blood .
More horrifying were the strands of black mist that reached out from the droplet like tentacles, corroding all within their thankfully limited reach .
Death Seeds of Demonic Consciousness!
Ai Hui's eyes grew wide as his mind buzzed intensely with activity .
He tried a variety of methods, but the droplet of blood refused to even budge . Focusing his consciousness on one of the wisps was like staring into the abyss—all Ai Hui could sense was an aura of death and despair .
Ai Hui's heart sank .
In addition to tampering with his body, Chi Tong had tampered with his consciousness as well . A demonic god from an ancient time was truly a force to be reckoned with . Ai Hui felt that he was still far away from Chi Tong's level .
Then again, there was nothing embarrassing about losing to an ancient demonic god was there?
Ai Hui could only try to console himself .
The monster's corpse had begun to melt away . Like an ice sculpture exposed to direct sunlight, it was disintegrating into a puddle of multi-colored fluid .
The fluid was quickly absorbed into the ground, completely vanishing before Ai Hui could figure out what was happening .
A smudge of green appeared on the ground, and a small sprout grew out of it at an unbelievable rate .
This…
The sprout released a faint rainbow mist that made Ai Hui feel extremely at ease . The feeling of his soul dissipating had lessened significantly .
This!
Ai Hui knew then that he had lucked out . His spirit swords flew in a circle around the sprout, absorbing the rainbow mist that it created .
Ai Hui's spirit swords quickly regained their luster and energy .
Acknowledging its beneficial properties, Ai Hui sat down beside the sapling .
The sprout was still growing at an alarming rate and it was not long before it grew into a sapling . The rainbow mist that it was periodically releasing from its leaves had become much denser .
After absorbing a large amount of the rainbow mist, Ai Hui's form became more opaque . Ai Hui confirmed that the rainbow mist was highly beneficial to souls and seemed to be able to strengthen them .
The sapling had grown into a lofty tree of more than sixty meters in a matter of hours . The tree's majestic crown was like a mountain suspended in midair . Its densely packed leaves and branches seemed to pulse with life as it continued to release its beautiful rainbow-colored mist .
Ai Hui thought that the tree looked pretty familiar .
Where have I… seen this tree before?
He could not help but furrow his brows . The tree felt even more familiar each time he looked at it .
Wait a minute!
Isn't this… Isn't this my message tree?
Ai Hui stared widely at the tree that towered before him . Unable to believe his own eyes, Ai Hui walked a few laps around it before he came to the conclusion that it was indeed the message tree .
This lofty tree was a scaled-up, exact copy of his message tree .
First generation message tree…
Ai Hui was still bewildered after recovering from his initial shock . He dived deep into his rapidly firing thoughts .
He had initially discovered the first generation message tree during his time in Central Pine City . He had apparently been working and staying at a place that once accomodated someone named He Bingfeng . It was also there that Ai Hui met Lou Lan .
Ai Hui's expression softened as he wondered how Lou Lan was doing .
Ai Hui had initially thought that it was an ordinary message tree, but later found out that it was a first generation message tree .
Even more interesting was its ability to receive messages from someone who called himself the Old Prisoner . Ai Hui recalled that he might not have been able to escape the Blood Calamity if not for the Old Prisoner's warnings .
The Old Prisoner was a mysterious figure . Even up until now, Ai Hui had no idea what his name was or where he was locked up . His communications with the Old Prisoner were intermittent, but Ai Hui had specially made arrangements to bring the first generation message tree with him when he left Central Pine City .
Ai Hui rarely contacted the Old Prisoner after the disruption of the five elemental energy cycle following the fall of Fire Prairie and Yellow Sand Corner .
By that point, Ai Hui had also sensed that the Old Prisoner's thoughts were becoming muddled . The messages he had received reflected the Old Prisoner's increasingly confused state of mind . Ai Hui guessed that the Old Prisoner was soon approaching the end of his life .
Ai Hui had once sent a message trying to find out where exactly the Old Prisoner was trapped .
There had been no reply to his message, however, and Ai Hui's communications with the Old Prisoner had stopped from then on .
Seeing this gigantic "message tree" made Ai Hui think back about the mysterious Old Prisoner, reminisce about his time back in Central Pine City, and miss his Master and Mistress . Ai Hui slowly became lost in nostalgia .
A sudden rustling sound roused him from his thoughts .
Something was approaching .
This incorporeal soul form had more acute senses than his corporeal form . Ai Hui could detect a hostile presence even in the absence of sight and sound .
He stood up, and the spirit swords returned to their positions around him . Ai Hui was ready to fight .
Ai Hui took a deep breath when he saw his enemy .
Numerous strange creatures were approaching his position from all directions .
A gigantic forest green python with three horns was slithering toward him . Its body was several times thicker than a tree trunk, and it destroyed any obstacle that stood in its way . A human head was present where Ai Hui had expected to see a snake's head . Its eyes alone were much larger than Ai Hui's full body . The creature smiled widely at Ai Hui, its teeth glinting with menace .
A group of glowing jellyfish hung in the air like blue light bulbs . Their bramble-like tentacles moved lightly in the air, shrouded by a blue glow that seemed to resemble lightning . A childlike whimpering could be heard coming from these jellyfish .
A single deer was prancing about, its hooves making light clip-clop noises with each move . Instead of antlers, the deer had live tree branches on its head . Tender green leaves that were filled with life clung onto these branches, surrounding an alluring cluster of flowers . Beneath the branches lay two vacant eyes . Not a single ounce of flesh hung from the skeletal structure that made up the deer's body .
Ai Hui braced himself for battle .
He could sense these creatures' insatiable hunger for the lofty tree beside him .
The lofty tree's rainbow mist was truly extraordinary . Ai Hui's soul had fully reconstituted and was now even stronger than before . His spirit swords had also strengthened greatly .
This gave him some confidence in taking on the fast approaching creatures .
Despite being surrounded, Ai Hui had no intention of surrendering . Besides the danger of giving these creatures access to the tree, he wanted to find out the connection between this tree and the first generation message tree as well .
Besides, running away was useless in this strange world .
All of a sudden, the creatures all stopped dead in their tracks .
Ai Hui was taken aback . He could sense the creatures' fear and apprehension . His mind stirred . Were they afraid of him? Or… were they afraid of the tree?
Ai Hui raised his guard . Was there more to this tree than meets the eye?
He tried stepping away from the tree, but the creatures did not budge . Ai Hui understood that it was the tree they feared!
There must be danger!
These creatures were natives of this world and most certainly knew it better .
There was a small explosion behind Ai Hui . His body stiffened, and when he turned around, he noticed that the tree was bearing fruit .
Ai Hui clenched his teeth .
The "fruits" hanging from the tree's branches were actually human heads . The sight of it all made even the battle-hardened Ai Hui's scalp tingle .
Each of the heads had different features . Some had pale white hair while others had a head full of shiny black hair . The one commonality that they all possessed, however, was a lack of facial features . Despite that, Ai Hui could somehow manage to distinguish them and could even tell if they were male or female .
A shiver ran down his spine as an unexpected fear creeped up within him .
At the same time, he saw the creatures unanimously take several steps back in fear .
Ai Hui moved away from the tree without hesitation .
Whoosh .
The human heads turned toward him .
Their smooth, featureless fronts made it look as if the heads' faces had been sliced cleanly off . A breeze blew through the tree's crown and sent hairs of different colors flying in the wind .
The heads shuddered .
Ai Hui had a sense that the heads were either laughing uncontrollably or experiencing an unbearable pain . Ripples appeared on the featureless faces .
Ai Hui felt his body turn rigid . A powerful force hit him from all sides, confining him in place . Countless voices screamed, wailed, and laughed into his ears . He felt as though someone was swinging a hammer at his brain .
Ai Hui wrapped his hands over his head and screamed .
The heads that hung freely from the lofty tree exploded simultaneously .
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