"Hah, shameless!"
Li Xiaotian sneered, stamping his foot on the ground. A surge of potent energy erupted outwards. His speed increased dramatically, and he vanished from his original position.
The next moment, Li Xiaotian reappeared directly before Sheng Lin, his eyes icy, his blood and qi surging like a torrential tide that swept across the heavens and earth. He raised his arms, his skin gleaming and radiating a dazzling brilliance.
"Die!"
Li Xiaotian's hands moved in a flurry, launching a series of attacks as dense as raindrops. Streaks of golden meteors tore through the sky, descending upon Sheng Lin with world-destroying power.
"Boom!"
Sheng Lin showed no fear. He straightened his body, his arms spread wide, and an incomparably pure world energy permeated outwards, forming layers of verdant green petals that enveloped him.
Immediately after, Li Xiaotian's attacks landed. However, those verdant petals were incredibly resilient, stoutly blocking all of Li Xiaotian's onslaught.
"World Destruction!"
Li Xiaotian roared, his feet treading on lightning, his fists clenched, releasing a ferocious, overbearing aura filled with destruction.
"Boom!"
A violent explosion resounded in all directions. Sheng Lin's body was sent flying back again. Not only that, but Li Xiaotian was also forced back three meters.
Simultaneously, terrifying power spread, annihilating everything in its path, the sky collapsing and the earth splitting.
Sheng Lin's body stabilized in mid-air. He looked somewhat dishevelled, blood trickling from the corner of his mouth. Yet, a faint smile remained on his face, as if he were not angered by this at all.
"You are indeed powerful, but unfortunately, I am invincible." Sheng Lin said, his body swaying as infinite world energy emanated from him. In an instant, he transformed into a colossal, sky-reaching giant tree that stretched across the space before him, blocking out the sun.
"Hmph, so what? I'll still kill you!"
Li Xiaotian snorted coldly. His form turned into a stream of light and charged into the colossal tree. Subsequently, his figure became ethereal. He threw punches, swung his sword, and devoured. All his attacks were unleashed simultaneously, unleashing an incomparably terrifying might.
"Crack~ Crack~ Crack~"
Crisp cracking sounds echoed. Countless fissures appeared on the World Tree, and numerous branches and limbs fell.
"Pfft!"
Finally, Sheng Lin spat out a mouthful of blood mist, his body flying back a hundred li before crashing onto the void. His chest caved in, his bones almost shattered, and his eyes were filled with shock and disbelief.
The projection of his main body had been destroyed!
"This is impossible!"
Sheng Lin subconsciously roared, unable to accept this outcome. The World Tree's power was constantly being channeled into the projection. Logically, as long as the World Tree remained intact, the projection should not be annihilated.
But who would have thought that Li Xiaotian's attacks would reach an unimaginable level in an instant, breaking through limits and leaving no chance for the World Tree's projection to recover, causing its instantaneous destruction?
"Nothing is impossible! In the final analysis, you are too weak. Whether it's your main body or this puppet, you are both too weak!"
Li Xiaotian spoke.
Ultimately, Sheng Lin was one of the World Tree's branches. However, before being controlled by the World Tree, Sheng Lin's own strength was only average. Therefore, even with the World Tree's augmentation, his disadvantage grew increasingly significant as the battle dragged on, and his connection with the World Tree's projection became less intimate.
Furthermore, the World Tree was a plant. Although there had never been a phenomenon of the World Tree giving birth to consciousness, plants were still plants. Remaining in this fourth trial for years on end without experiencing life-or-death battles, all its combat techniques were derived from its branches. In such a situation, the longer the actual combat lasted, the more flaws would appear.
"Bastard! Li Xiaotian, what's wrong with joining us? Do you know how harsh the conditions are for the World Tree to give birth to consciousness? Therefore, the main body is destined to be a heaven-defying talent that will astonish the entire Void Universe!"
"Once the main body ascends to a higher rank, it will be a truly invincible being, an immortal. At that time, the entire Void Universe will have a place for the main body, and it's not impossible to even share the Void Universe equally with the Divine Realm."
Sheng Lin roared, his face filled with unwillingness. Although he was one of the World Tree's branches, he possessed his own consciousness, the consciousness of Sheng Lin. However, after being controlled by the World Tree, some of his thoughts changed. He referred to himself as Sheng Lin, but he prioritized the World Tree!
"Heh, what kind of ridiculous logic is that? If you were strong enough and confident in your future, then what you should do is carve out a territory and forge your own reputation through your own strength, not secretly seize others to empower yourself like you are doing now."
Li Xiaotian sneered, his tone mocking.
"What do you understand?"
Sheng Lin shouted, "I am the World Tree, the most noble and special existence since ancient times. Once I fuse all my branches, my strength will skyrocket, and I might even directly become a high-tier expert. What immense glory is this?"
"I don't need to forge my own path, because there is no need!"
"Because I am the World Tree, the most special World Tree in existence that has given birth to its own consciousness. From the first day I gained consciousness, I knew I would become the king of the entire Void Universe, the sole entity in existence. I will tower above all beings and rule everything."
A hint of madness permeated Sheng Lin's words. He had clearly gone berserk and lost his senses. Just moments ago, he was differentiating between his main body and us, but after being berated by Li Xiaotian, he became reckless.