Chapter 1 Western Sacred Mountain's Divine Wood Inheritance?

This explanation, while mysterious and strange, wasn't difficult for the escort team to understand.

"Western Divine Wood… If it's not the site of the Esoteric Sect, could it be the former Kunlun in the West, the bronze divine tree on the sacred mountain?!"

"I also remember such records—a thousand years ago, demons rampaged on the sacred mountain. Several Xiantian martial saints and a Tiangang martial god fought all the way, slaying demons and eliminating evil, and ultimately used their bodies to seal the evil in the nine-story divine pagoda formed by the divine tree… I seem to have heard of this, but if it's really that inheritance, how did Benefactor Su cross tens of thousands of miles to get here…"

"Such a powerful physique, strange weapons and martial arts, and ridiculously strong inner force, definitely didn't appear out of thin air. To say that the Demon Emperor suddenly produced such an unfamiliar grandmaster…"

"Originally, I thought, if it wasn't the Divine Wood bloodline, how could he use the giant jaws and tail stinger of the Jing Shui Centipede as a weapon? But if it's that inheritance from the West…"

Aside from this kind of self-association that sounded completely misleading, there were also some unfounded associations: "Those bluish-purple dragon eyes, and the wood energy… Is he a Azure Dragon blood descendant?!"

"Divine Wood inheritance, Azure Dragon blood descendant… If that's the case, it's understandable that he's so strong at such a young age!"

…It seems that the content in the game DLC really happened in this world? But it was a past event from a thousand years ago… But it can be considered a strong proof.

As for lying, with a clear conscience, Su Zhou didn't say half a false word—the highest heaven where the Tree of Wisdom is located, the Garden of Eden, if you have to say it, isn't it in the west of Zheng country? And according to Yala's words, the 'Great Dao Tree' and the 'World Tree' are indeed opposed, which is also true.

Of course, if these people imagine him to be a descendant of the Kunlun Jianmu, that's none of his business… Lingqiu does have a saying that it is 'Kunlun', and Panrong should have something to do with Pan Tao Ruomu, and they happen to be located in the south… The entanglement and alienation between myths, on the contrary, provided considerable credibility for his statement.

"Alas, it's all Yala's fault. If it wasn't for it, how would I have learned this kind of rhetoric!"

After hearing those increasingly convinced discussions, Su Zhou, who originally rarely misled others, actually felt a little ashamed—as expected of the devil's skills, so easy to use!

"Enough nonsense, people have kindly explained, can you still refuse?" As the elder in the team, Mo Buxiu's answer was very straightforward: "Let's go! If we don't leave, the real demon soldiers might catch up!"

Although still a little doubtful, the crowd didn't completely believe this statement, but the fact was indeed so—Su Zhou didn't kill, showed goodwill, they couldn't beat him, and the mission was time-sensitive, requiring the transport of spiritual objects, and there were pursuers behind them.

"Let's go."

Thinking of this, no one talked nonsense. Since the other party was strong and gave an explanation, no one had any objections to Su Zhou going to the stronghold with them.

In silence, the crowd started off again, following the guidance of the black wooden stakes, and sped towards the summit of Mount Taibai.

And during the running process, Su Zhou also began to sort out some of his insights and gains from the previous battle.

"In essence, I'm just a high school student who has practiced unarmed combat and lives in modern society. Although I'm used to fighting and have mastered some of the fundamental elements of combat, 'observation', 'response', and 'subduing the enemy', my understanding of cold weapon combat mainly comes from fighting movies and the practice of the last two months. The Wisdom Fruit makes my skills proficient, but in reality, this proficiency is superficial."

"A powerful, perfect body is certainly my advantage, but it's best not to get hurt—Zhou Buyi's execution sword could barely break through my flesh, but it was only because it couldn't break my bones that it broke. If it were heavier, it might really hurt me. In that case, I might not be able to cope with the combined attack of the martial monk and the swordsman, and then be surrounded."

"Even when testing my strength, I must go all out. I underestimated their combined attack at first. Otherwise, if I had swung my spear with all my strength from the beginning, Liu Xizhao and Zhou Buyi would have been blown away within a few meters of me unless they used spiritual power to strengthen themselves. The combined attack would have been broken without attacking!"

Su Zhou's advantage is that he admits his mistakes very quickly. Although he strikes hard on the internet and argues with everyone, in reality, he is humble, poor, eager to learn, and good at asking questions. After reviewing his battle in his mind, Su Zhou quickly found many of his shortcomings, whether it was the mistake in exerting force, or the impure use of spiritual power, all of which were firmly remembered in his heart, and he will strengthen his training in the future.

In addition, he also realized the usefulness of the 'Universal Three Styles'!

Compared to not being optimistic at the beginning, when it came to actual combat, Su Zhou realized that these seemingly simple skills were the easiest to use. They didn't require thinking or spiritual energy operation at all in battle, and they moved as freely as hands and feet. They were truly back to basics, and they were really powerful!

Think about it, you can condense a half-foot-long blade of Qi on your weapons and limbs at will. Doesn't this expand the range of attack out of thin air, and also create a visual error, making it difficult to defend against? And there is no need to talk about defense, Zhou Buyi's broken sword with the broken tip is still dangling around his waist.

"Alas, putting aside everything else, I must learn this qinggong!"

Of course, for Su Zhou, the most important gain was not these, but the fact that qinggong exists in this world!

He watched enviously as the escort team members used their feet to skate rapidly through the snow, just like human-powered snowmobiles. He could only jump around like a monkey on the black wooden stakes, and his heart was full of envy—he could naturally see the other party's unique method of spiritual energy operation, which could greatly enhance movement efficiency, and even reduce the impact of their own weight on the agility of movement.

If it wasn't unnecessary, they would definitely be able to achieve Tread Snow Without a Trace!

Su Zhou's weight was originally close to one hundred kilograms. After the awakening ceremony, after absorbing a large amount of spiritual materials, it even broke through the one hundred and twenty kilogram mark. Although his strength also increased, his movements were not as light and convenient as before.

Even with the help of the Wind-Assisted Force, it only made the time he spent falling when he jumped up longer, and he glided further, but it had nothing to do with being agile and swift.

The speed of the crowd was very fast, even in the mountains they were as swift as flying. Zhou Buyi, who was in the lead, seemed to be very familiar with the local situation, and had walked this road several times. Even if there were some sections where the black wooden stakes were submerged because of the heavy snow, he could accurately lead the crowd onto the right path.

Su Zhou's brain was originally thinking about the previous questions about combat and spiritual energy usage skills, opening his spirit vision, and trying to learn the qinggong operation routes of the crowd, while his body was automatically operating, following the crowd forward.

But a special smell made his spirit break away from thinking.

"The smell of human blood?"

His brow furrowed, he immediately stopped his feet and landed on the snow from mid-air, smashing out a huge snow pit.

In the next instant, Su Zhou had already thrown down his package, and his whole person, carrying his spear, leaped up like a cannonball, carrying with it a sky of snowflakes, and rushed towards the place where the bloody smell came from.

The escort team's reaction was a step slower. Zhou Buyi, the strongest of them, looked at his companions with suspicion and uncertainty, and then nodded slightly, indicating that he did indeed smell blood.

"That place should have been inhabited by seven or eight households of hunters and ginseng collectors… There shouldn't be anyone there in winter."

"Could it be that the heavy snow this year sealed the mountain too early and they were trapped on the mountain? Or lost civilians who came out of customs…"

"Could it be that they were attacked by demon soldiers…"

After hesitating for a while, they followed Su Zhou together—the Taibai Mountains were not only home to the Righteous Army, although the main battlefield between An Dynasty and the rebel army was in the Jiangnan area, the Southern Heavenly Capital still had enough transportation capacity to transport people to the northeastern region by sea.

The several attacks they had suffered before were all like this. After all, demon soldiers hardly needed supplies as long as they were not injured, and they didn't care about the environment. When it came to mobility, even martial artists couldn't compare.

If there were a certain number of demon soldiers attacking, then their group of incomplete team with five impairments and seven injuries would likely suffer casualties after leaving Su Zhou. Since that was the case, it would be better to follow and see what was going on.

As the group followed Su Zhou's footsteps, they quickly arrived at a small flat area on the side of the mountain road.

Then they saw Su Zhou squatting in front of several corpses that had been completely turned into mummies, their clothes stained with blood, with a serious expression on his face.

This place was considered a windless zone in a mountain nest, with wooden stakes blocking wild animals from the outside, which could be regarded as a reinforced version of a fence. Inside, there were solid wooden houses surrounding a circle, and it could be seen that people had lived there recently.

Around the wooden houses, there were scattered twisted corpses. Most of these corpses were complete. Before they died, they seemed to be struggling and screaming, especially the body surface, which was covered with solidified blood. The blood and flesh inside the body were basically emptied, leaving only the skin and bones.

After Su Zhou finished his inspection, he stood up with an unbearable and angry expression on his face. He had just found seven holes in the back of the corpse. The flesh and internal organs of the corpse were extracted from those seven holes. Judging from the last twisted posture of the corpse, it was conceivable how painful this person was before he died—I'm afraid he was emptied of blood and flesh alive before he died.

"It's demon soldiers!"

After seeing the mummy-like corpse, someone in the escort team who had rushed over immediately exclaimed: "Demon soldiers have invaded so deeply into the Taibai Mountains? Is the front line okay?"

…Demon soldiers. The flames in his heart were gradually igniting. Su Zhou didn't speak. He was thinking about this word in his heart.

Demon soldiers, according to the previous explanation, were elite soldiers in the An Dynasty who had been implanted with the Divine Wood Undying Root. They could strengthen their power and restore their injuries by absorbing flesh and blood.

So, the so-called absorbing flesh and blood, is this how it's absorbed?

"Huff—"

As if something was burning vigorously in his heart, Su Zhou closed his eyes and exhaled a breath—a moment later, he opened his eyes, and the spirit vision, infused with half of his spiritual power, made his eyes like two spotlights. His gaze materialized and swept across the surrounding peaks like a sword.

"Spiritual light trajectory… There!"

The escort team, who were just about to say something, could only see Su Zhou leaping up again, and his whole person, as if flying, crossed a hundred meters with the help of the Wind-Assisted Force, and quickly rushed towards a snow forest not far away.

At this moment, in the snow forest, the three white-clothed men who were originally hibernating in the ice and snow, listening to the movements on the ground with one ear pressed to the ground, suddenly woke up from hibernation after feeling a 'fear'. The blood and internal power all over their bodies began to burn fiercely, operating in a violent way that ordinary martial artists could not and would not do, similar to going into a qi deviation, and they instantly raised their power from weak to extreme!

Boom!

And in the next moment, Su Zhou, who was holding a spear with his arms and burning bluish-purple spiritual fire, descended on the ground like a meteor with the intention of killing, and amidst the violent shaking and splashing snowflakes, a spear broke through the ice dust and directly aimed at the white-clothed man in front, whistling as it stabbed!

…Completely different from the previous battle with the escort team, his attack was only for exorcising demons!

The big man also drew out two fine steel scimitars from his waist at the critical moment. The blades were shining like water, and they were obviously not ordinary. He shouted loudly and crossed the two knives in front of his body, trying to block Su Zhou's violent spear, and the other two white-clothed men also hurriedly took out armor-piercing cones and crossbows, preparing to assist from the side.

Clang—Pfft!

But in the next moment, the other two white-clothed men who had just prepared for battle saw a scene that made their hair stand on end.

—That was the broken pair of swords, the chest with ribs and spine shattered and pierced, the leader who didn't have time to show a look of astonishment, and a seven-foot-long cross spear stained with blood, piercing through the entire body of the big man!

The sacred runes engraved on the centipede's jaws began to flicker because they touched spiritual blood, and a translucent 'evil-breaking blade' appeared, releasing a pale light.

And Su Zhou, standing in place, raised the spear with a blank expression, with the big man's remaining ribs and flesh stuck on the spearhead, and the whole person was strung up and lifted up.

Dragon eyes stared at the two stunned white-clothed men, and hot blue blood with wood energy dripped on the frozen soil. The 'demon hunter' showed a sinister smile to the 'demon soldiers'.