Chapter 600 - 600: Withered Wood Monster

After Chu Qingyun vanished, two level-nine Martial Spirits from the Saint Extreme Sect soon appeared one after another where he had used the Hidden Qi Technique.

At that moment, both of them looked anxious and grim.

"Where did he go? How did his aura vanish in an instant?"

"He must have used a Secret Technique for concealing his aura. Damn it, he's treating us like enemies. Didn't Zhao explain things clearly to him?"

"This is terrible. The Elder assigned us to protect Chu Qingyun, but he shook us off the moment he came in..."

The two conferred for a moment, then chased after him into the Withered Wood Forest.

As it turned out, the two weren't after Chu Qingyun's Saint Extreme Points. They had been sent by a Saint Extreme Sect Elder to follow and protect him.

In fact, when the two Inner Sect Disciples from the Saint Extreme Sect were organizing the dismount from the Demon Beast, they had deliberately placed the three of them very close together, separated only by a single disciple from another sect.

After all, placing them right next to each other would have been too conspicuous.

But no one could have expected them to lose him right from the start.

However, even if Chu Qingyun knew their purpose, he probably would have shaken them off without hesitation.

Having two people tailing him would absolutely restrict his movements.

'Besides, when the time comes, it's hard to say who would be protecting whom...'

After completely shaking off the two men, Chu Qingyun deactivated the Hidden Qi Technique, allowing the mark on his body to once again emit the distinct aura of the Saint Extreme Sect.

He had decided to get through this trial in a straightforward manner.

Doing so would surely bring a lot of trouble; the people from the Tianya Sect and Purple Cloud Sect, at the very least, already had their eyes on him.

But Chu Qingyun didn't care. His strength was no longer what it was in the Blood Sect ruins, where he had been forced to constantly hide and flee.

If anyone tried to make a move on him, Chu Qingyun wouldn't mind giving them a taste of his Devouring Power.

In any case, he could never have too much Primordial Power or too many Blood Pills.

After Chu Qingyun advanced into the depths of the Withered Wood Forest for a while, the sky began to slowly darken.

At this moment, however, he felt a flicker of doubt.

'This forest doesn't look any different from any other. It's almost entirely full of lush, leafy trees. Why is it called the Withered Wood Forest?'

'I thought this would be a forest of decaying, withered trees, but I didn't expect... Huh?'

As Chu Qingyun ran, his brow suddenly furrowed.

He glanced down and saw that one of his ankles had been snagged by a dark, old tree root still caked with damp soil.

Before he could react, an arm-thick branch—so dry its bark had peeled off—wrapped around his waist like an arm and "hugged" him, pulling him to the right.

"What is this!"

Alarmed, Chu Qingyun casually fired a blast of Primordial Power toward the source of the branch.

The Primordial Power quickly struck something and exploded. BOOM!

In the fleeting flash of Primordial Power, Chu Qingyun saw clearly what had grabbed him: a withered old tree.

The tree's trunk was about two meters in diameter and over ten meters tall. The entire thing was bare, with no bark, and had a desiccated, blackish-yellow hue.

Such dry, dead trees were not uncommon in other forests.

But now, the tree was lurching into motion. The few branches on its trunk swayed relentlessly. Beneath it, a dense mass of roots writhed and churned with a wet, heaving sound.

While Chu Qingyun was momentarily stunned, a dozen more roots coiled around his body, dragging him down toward the tree's base.

The roots burst from the earth, and the space beneath the tree opened up like a gaping, shadowy maw.

The old tree swaying in the twilight, the gaping maw at its base—the entire scene was utterly bizarre. A weaker or more timid person would have been scared weak in the knees.

However, once Chu Qingyun snapped out of it, he just snorted. He dropped his stance, dug in his heels, and brought his body to a dead stop. The dozen-odd roots instantly snapped taut.

'No wonder it's called the Withered Wood Forest. So it has this kind of monster...'

Chu Qingyun thought. Then, with a flex of his arms, he snapped the roots binding them. SNAP! SNAP! SNAP!

"Break!"

Chu Qingyun let out a sharp cry as Primordial Power surged through him. He grabbed the branch wrapped around him, and with a powerful tug—CRACK!—he ripped it clean off.

These Withered Wood Monsters were a unique type of creature in the forest. Not only were their bodies incredibly tough and their defenses strong, but they also possessed immense strength.

If caught by one of these Withered Wood Monsters, even a powerful level-nine Martial Spirit would have to struggle to get free.

Even a weaker level-nine Martial Spirit might not be a match for this Withered Wood Monster!

The Outer Disciples of the Celestial Sword Sect typically formed groups and proceeded with caution when dealing with these monsters. A disciple caught alone would avoid them at all costs.

However, Chu Qingyun had already mastered the First Layer of the Ten Thousand Spirits Saint Body Inner Chapter, allowing him to unleash the attack power of a Human King Realm expert.

No matter how strong the Withered Wood Monster was, it was no match for the power of the Martial King Realm.

When the branch was ripped off, a large amount of dark green liquid sprayed out from the two severed ends.

Wherever the dark green liquid splattered on the ground, it instantly corroded the normal trees and plants, which let out a SIZZLE and emitted a foul, scorched stench.

Chu Qingyun, however, reacted instantly, swatting the liquid away with a wave of Primordial Power.

Its roots and branches were no match for Chu Qingyun and were easily torn apart. As if sensing it was outmatched, the Withered Wood Monster stopped attacking and chose to flee instead.

Its speed, however, was less than impressive.

The dense mass of roots beneath it churned furiously, giving the appearance of great effort, but its speed was slower than Chu Qingyun's normal walking pace.

In just a few steps, Chu Qingyun closed the distance.

Just then, the Withered Wood Monster suddenly shot out another dozen roots from its base, while two even thicker branches swung down at him from above.

"Thunder Light Sword Qi!"

This time, Chu Qingyun didn't bother wasting any more time with it.

The Thunder Shock Sword left its sheath in an instant. A flash of faint purple Sword Light later, and all the attacking roots and branches were severed in a single strike.

The severed limbs recoiled as if electrocuted. Seizing the opportunity, Chu Qingyun leaped onto one of the Withered Wood Monster's branches.

"Devouring Power!"

Before the Withered Wood Monster could attack, Chu Qingyun struck first. His palm slammed down, splitting the monster's trunk, and a massive surge of Devouring Power instantly poured into its body.