There was a two meter tall rare purple herb behind Ao Xinyan. It was completely silent when all of a sudden, a vein pattern appeared on the leaves.
The leaf began to crack, revealing a large black eye, like that of a human. It was also like that of a monster.
“Be careful,” Zhang Ruochen said.
Ao Xinyan was astonished. She also sensed an incoming danger and she was about to dodge.
HUAA!
One of the leaves from the purple plant quickly rolled over and wrapped around Ao Xinyan’s body.
Both of her hands were bound. She could not pull out her sword. She could only relocate her Genuine Qi to both of her arms to shake off the plant.
However, it was quite resilient. No matter how much energy she used, the leaves remained unscathed.
Ao Xinyan began to panic. She inadvertently inhaled a horrible odor.
The gas was toxic. She began to feel nauseous. Numbness generated through her whole body, making it more difficult to reallocate her Genuine Qi.
“What a strong human being. After absorbing your Spiritual Blood, my cultivation will advance the equivalent of 100 years cultivation.”
The rare herb suddenly let out a human voice.
It had a total of seven leaves. One of them was wrapped around Ao Xinyan. The other six shifted into sharp tube-like objects that stabbed towards her body.
PHEW!
The sound of sword resounded.
The Abyss Ancient Sword flew out from its sheath and made a distinctive arc in the air.
The ancient sword created a sword breath. It cut through the plant, chopping down all six leaves.
Blood poured out from the broken leaves.
The rare purple herb let out a human-like screech. It fled, leaving only its leaf twined around Ao Xinyan.
“It can still move?”
Zhang Ruochen smirked. He pointed out his index finger. A flaming red sword wave attacked the herb.
It was struck by the sword wave and shattered into pieces.
The leaf caught fire, letting out a buzzing sound. It burned into black ashes that drifted in the wind.
Ao Xinyan was lying on the ground, her eyes closely shut.
Zhang Ruochen retrieved his Abyss Ancient Sword. He walked towards her and put two fingers on her neck.
He released Genuine Qi into her body.
A few moments later, he removed his hands. “The poison was not too overpowering. She is just unconscious temporarily. With her cultivation, she could wake up in half a day.”
“Hey! Zhang Ruochen, why are you causing such havoc? Why don’t we just leave her here and go collect the Qi of Origin first?” Blackie asked.
Zhang Ruochen hesitated. “We should take her along! She’s unconscious. If we leave her behind, there is a fair chance she could be devoured by the Wood spirit or Grass spirit.”
“How is that possible? Who will carry her?” Blackie asked.
“You of course.”
Zhang Ruochen repositioned his hands. He cast his Shadow of Royal Wind Dragon bodily movement and disappeared into the woods. The only thing left behind was his illusory image.
Blackie glanced briefly at Ao Xinyan. “What a trouble maker.”
It picked up Ao Xinyan and put her on its back. It turned into a black light shuttle and chased after Zhang Ruochen.
Soon after they left, a group of people arrived.
It was Pei Ji, Xi Yunxi, Zuo Qiuling and 18 masters at the Completion of Heaven Realm. They had been sent by the three Great Saints of the powerful families.
BUZZ!
Above Zuo Qiuling’s head, there was a swarm of bees flying around. Each bee was as big as a fist.
They were Swift Bees, a type of second-level savage beast.
Zuo Qiuling was not merely a Genius of Martial Arts, he was also a highly regarded Beast Trainer. He had the ability to control the Swift Bees to track Zhang Ruochen’s aura.
“Zhang Ruochen left 15 minutes ago. He went northeast,” Zuo Qiuling said.
With a skeptical look, Xi Yunxi said, “What on earth brings Zhang Ruochen to the Primitive World of Wood Spirit?”
Zuo Qoiling replied, “Zhang Ruochen’s journey to the Primitive World of Wood Spirit not only attracted our attention, it also attracted the attention of the people from the Black Market and the heresy. This primitive world must have something spectacular. Zhang Ruochen would not take such a humongous risk otherwise.”
Xi Yunxi said, “The Buddhist Emperor and the Golden Dragon must have told him something before they died. The secret probably lies here.”
Zuo Qiuling said, “This is possible.”
“Nothing will be done if we keep on making wild guesses,” Pei Ji said somberly. “When we catch him, we will find out his motives for coming here.”
Zuo Qiuling and Xi Yunxi nodded.
The Swift Bees continued to track Zhang Ruochen’s movement.
Dawn in the Primitive World of Wood Spirit was fairly long. It occupied two thirds of the day.
Night emerged. Two massive moons could be seen in the sky like two shiny jade plates clinging to a dark cloth. A few bursts of shiny light poured down.
Zhang Ruochen and Blackie stopped. They had found higher ground and paused for a brief break.
Ao Xinyan was awake. Although her cultivation had not fully recovered after taking the detoxification pill, she was okay.
However, she remained silent. She stood motionlessly under the moon.
She had always been a conceited and self-willed person. It was acceptable for her to lose to Zhang Ruochen, but after leaving the Saint Academy, she had gotten into trouble twice. If Zhang Ruochen had not bailed her out, she would have been dead.
How could this be?
Ao Xinyan was beginning to doubt her abilities.
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged on a white boulder to practice. He replenished his Genuine Qi, which had been consumed during the day. It was now completely recovered and he was once more in his Peak state.
The Final State of the Heaven Realm was within grasp. In just a few days he would likely achieve the breakthrough.
Zhang Ruochen took a deep breath and retrieved the Genuine Qi that was spreading throughout his body. He opened his eyes and realized that Ao Xinyan was still standing unmoved in the same spot.
She looked at him. “Zhang Ruochen, are you laughing at me?”
Zhang Ruochen replied, “Why would I do that?”
“I’m pretty sure you’re laughing at me. You are laughing at my incapability, my arrogance and my overstatement. Perhaps you are right. I should just find a shelter to hide or I should leave and go back to the Saint Academy.”
Her eyes were red and she looked like she was about to burst into tears at any moment.
Zhang Ruochen asked, “Would you prefer the truth or a lie?”
“The truth.”
Nervous, she held her breath.
It was pretty obvious that she was quite concerned about what Zhang Ruochen thought about her.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Your talent is undeniably high. I suppose it’s incomparable. You are a Genius indeed. If you practice further, there is no doubt you will achieve a Saint status.”
“You’re lying to me.” Ao Xinyan was doubtful.
“There is no reason to lie to you,” he replied. “If you didn’t have the talent, I would not waste my time telling you this much and ultimately, I would not have saved you twice.”
“But…” Ao Xinyan replied.
Zhang Ruochen stood up and continued, “You are feeling lost now because you have never suffered such setbacks. Only through failure can people bounce back.”
He went on, “You did not fall into the trap of Wei Eldest Son and the grass spirit because you have feeble strength. It is because you lack of experience, since you were little and you have never met any evil people. And, you overestimate your ability.”
“The Battlefield of Primitive World is not a tournament arena. It is not easy to survive.”
“Be optimistic. Try to train more, and experience and endure setbacks. In the future, you won’t be as vulnerable as you are now.”
Ao Xinyan listened quietly to Zhang Ruochen’s preaching, like a little girl listening to her parents’ advice.
Zhang Ruochhen told her a lot and she listened quietly. Her pretty eyes grew brighter. She looked at Zhang Ruochen with a new light in her eyes.
Four hours later.
Zhang Ruochen said, “I’ve told you everything I should tell you. Your happiness is up to you now.”
Ao Xinyan’s looked much more relieved. She smiled and said, “Group Leader, you said that one must suffer setbacks before he can actually bounce back. Do you mean that you actually fell into a similar vicious cycle?”
She addressed Zhang Ruochen as “Group Leader” now. It meant her Heart State had changed.
Zhang Ruochhen glanced at her. It seemed he was recalling something. Then he nodded. “Yes, of course. There was a very horrible one, which almost stopped me from standing up again.”
“Impossible! With your super power and invincible reputation, how is it even possible that somebody was able to take you down?” Ao Xinyan was curious.
Zhang Ruochen answered, “No more questions! Even if you ask, I will not answer. In addition, I would like to advise you again to stop following me in the Primitive World of Wood Spirit. It will not bring you anything good.”
“Why? You want to refuse such a beautiful woman from accompanying you. You must know that many disciples of powerful Saint’s families tried to ask me out and I refused them.”
Ao Xinyan was much happier. Her mood was fine. She started to smile and made fun of Zhang Ruochen.
Under the moonlight, her skin was as pristine as jade. Her facial features were almost flawless, and she had very nice curves.
Zhang Ruochen said, “Because I want to be the arch rival of the whole Primitive World of Wood Spirit.”
“What?” Ao Xinyan asked.
“You won’t understand.”
Just as Ao Xinyan was pondering what Zhang Ruochen said…
Zhang Ruochen heard a sound. His eyes concentrated. He quickly turned backwards and looked towards the southwest. “Such a strong murderous feeling, they are catching up!”