Chapter 576: Refining the Soul Power of a Dou Emperor
"Boom!"
The semi-saint puppet, already riddled with cracks from the relentless attacks, had its head explode on the spot under the powerful combined strikes. Moments later, its body began to age rapidly, crumbling into dust that scattered in the wind.
"We've taken it down."
With a surge of lightning, Mo Yu's body shrank back to its normal size. Although the semi-saint puppet had impressive strength, it lacked intelligence. With the combined efforts of Mo Yu, Xiao Yan, Xun Er, and the other strong fighters, defeating it wasn't too difficult.
As they finished off their puppet, Qing Zhi also used brutal efficiency to kill the semi-saint puppet he was battling. While the puppets carried the title of "semi-saint," their actual combat ability was far below that of a true semi-saint expert.
"Master, do you need my help?" Qing Zhi asked softly, walking over to Mo Yu after his fight. His cold eyes scanned the other battlefields nearby.
The battles in those areas were not going as smoothly. In Hun Yu's group, one Soul Hall expert had already been killed, his heart shattered by the semi-saint puppet. However, the remaining fighters were still strong, managing to suppress the puppet with teamwork, and it was only a matter of time before they won.
Elsewhere, other teams were suffering casualties, with some fights turning quite brutal. However, they had still managed to keep the semi-saint puppets at bay.
"No need. Just look after our own," Mo Yu replied coldly, shaking his head. Now wasn't the time to show mercy—these were all rivals in the competition.
Hearing this, Qing Zhi nodded and said no more, standing quietly behind Mo Yu.
"Is that the legendary Bodhi Heart?" Xun Er asked, her gaze fixed on the Bodhi Ancient Tree. Around one hundred meters above the ground, the tree's trunk radiated circles of light, exuding an incredible life force.
"This Bodhi Ancient Tree is even stranger than I thought. These semi-saint puppets were once true semi-saints. For them to have become puppets means even they couldn't handle whatever lies within the Bodhi Tree," Xiao Yan mused thoughtfully.
"Indeed. Everyone should be extra careful from here on. Your safety comes first," Mo Yu nodded.
"Boom!"
As Mo Yu was offering his advice, a dull explosion suddenly echoed from nearby. When he turned his head, he saw Hun Yu, his expression emotionless, punch the head of his semi-saint puppet, reducing it to a bloody mist.
Around ten minutes later, the other teams began to wrap up their battles. When the head of the last semi-saint puppet exploded, many fighters collapsed on the ground, utterly exhausted and not wanting to move another inch.
As the last semi-saint puppet disintegrated into dust, Mo Yu turned his gaze toward the Bodhi Ancient Tree and said, "The next part will definitely be far more dangerous. I suggest that anyone whose strength hasn't reached the Six-Star Dou Zun level should stay behind."
The group hesitated briefly before nodding in agreement. Now that semi-saint puppets had appeared, no one could predict what dangers lay ahead. Anyone not strong enough would just be walking into their death.
"Master, we'll stay here with Yanran. You go with the young master," several elders of the Flower Sect said to Yun Yun.
"Alright, but be careful," Yun Yun replied after a moment of hesitation, nodding slightly.
"Let's go," Mo Yu said as he rose and led the way toward the Bodhi Ancient Tree. Xiao Yan, Xun Er, and the others followed closely behind, their faces serious and alert.
"We should move too."
Seeing Mo Yu's group take the lead, Hun Yu and the other teams quickly followed suit, unable to resist the allure of the Bodhi Heart.
Driven by the temptation of the Bodhi Heart, everyone quickened their pace.
The faint sound of footsteps echoed through the air as the group gradually reached the base of the Bodhi Ancient Tree.
Standing beneath the tree, they raised their heads to look up. Only from here could they truly grasp how massive this ancient tree was, towering like a giant pillar that had stood for countless years.
"Hiss!"
As the group arrived at the base of the Bodhi Ancient Tree, a dazzling light burst from the tree's trunk, about one hundred meters above the ground. The light transformed into a pillar that engulfed everyone, including Mo Yu.
"Whoosh!"
In an instant, the pillar of light shrank rapidly and shot back into the tree, disappearing within. Along with it, the group that had reached the base, including Mo Yu and the others, vanished.
The moment the pillar of light appeared, Mo Yu, sensing something, acted quickly. His mind stirred, and the Black Lotus Soul Lightning encircled his consciousness, guarding against the light's invasion.
The next second, white light filled his vision. Mo Yu found himself standing in a world of pure white, with no one else in sight.
Suddenly, Mo Yu looked up. Not far from him, there was a glowing ring. He thought for a moment before walking toward it and stepping inside.
As soon as he entered the ring, Mo Yu's body trembled. The white world vanished, replaced by a vast, green grassland.
"So, this is the Ancient Wilderness inside the Bodhi Tree's illusion, huh?" Mo Yu murmured, looking at the endless grassland before him.
After witnessing the Bodhi Tree control five semi-saint experts, Mo Yu had anticipated that it might also possess the ability to create illusions. So, the moment the light pillar shone on him, he activated the Black Lotus Soul Lightning to guard against the illusion's effects.
Despite the realistic setting, Mo Yu couldn't help but admire the Bodhi Tree's power. "No wonder it's the Bodhi Ancient Tree. It can create such a vivid illusion that those inside can't tell the difference."
With that, Mo Yu closed his eyes and calmed his mind. An illusion was still just an illusion. As long as he kept his mind clear, it could do nothing to him.
Sure enough, as Mo Yu stood still with his eyes closed, the scene around him began to shift. Ferocious high-level magical beasts appeared, or old enemies filled with rage came to seek revenge.
But no matter what appeared, Mo Yu remained calm and unmoved, holding firm to his true self.
After an hour, the illusion seemed to realize that it was ineffective against Mo Yu, and everything finally faded away, leaving behind a silent void.
At that moment, a streak of green light appeared like a shooting star and silently entered Mo Yu's palm.
Sensing something, Mo Yu slowly opened his eyes, lifted his hand, and saw a small green bead lying quietly in his palm.
"Oh, a Bodhi Seed. So this is the reward for passing the illusion..." Mo Yu murmured softly.
As he held up the Bodhi Seed, the surrounding world began to distort violently. Like a shattered mirror, the illusion crumbled with a loud crash.
As the world broke apart, Mo Yu felt his mind blur for a moment. When his vision cleared, he found himself standing in a new space filled with vibrant green light.
In this space, a tree about ten meters tall stood, as if it had existed there for eternity. This tree was entirely emerald green, as if made from the finest jade, and it radiated an astonishing life force.
This small tree was identical to the towering thousand-meter Bodhi Ancient Tree outside, except it had been shrunk down many times!
As Mo Yu watched, the emerald green Bodhi Tree trembled slightly, and clusters of light floated out from within it, eventually hovering in front of him.
The lights flickered, and within them appeared images of Xiao Yan, Xun Er, Hun Yu, and the others who had entered the Bodhi Tree alongside Mo Yu. It was clear that they were all trapped within their own illusions.
Compared to Mo Yu, who had escaped his illusion early, the others were still struggling with their own challenges.
As Mo Yu pondered this, the Bodhi Tree trembled again, and another cluster of light appeared.
Within this light was an image of a towering Bodhi Ancient Tree. But Xiao Yan's focus wasn't on the tree. Instead, his gaze was fixed on a figure dressed in black, hovering in the air before the tree. This figure radiated an aura of supreme dominance, as though he was the ruler of heaven and earth.
Under the pressure of this figure's aura, even the colossal Bodhi Tree seemed small and insignificant.
"A Dou Emperor…"
Mo Yu's expression immediately grew serious. The only person who could exude such a presence was a Dou Emperor.
In the light, the Dou Emperor in black appeared only briefly before being suppressed and killed by the Bodhi Ancient Tree and another Dou Emperor working together.
Even after the black-clad Dou Emperor died, the scene didn't end. In the void left behind, wisps of black energy suddenly appeared, quickly rushing into the Bodhi Ancient Tree. As the black energy merged with the tree, the clear aura surrounding it took on a faint, chilling darkness.
"Poof!"
The light gradually dimmed before condensing into an intangible form that shot into Mo Yu's mind. It transformed into a stream of strange information that quickly spread through his consciousness.
With his eyes closed, Mo Yu digested the strange flow of information. After a long time, he slowly opened his eyes.
The information revealed that in the distant past, a gravely wounded Dou Emperor had tried to forcefully extract the Bodhi Tree's spirit to heal himself. However, this Dou Emperor was ultimately killed by his opponent and the Bodhi Tree working together. But even though the black-clad Dou Emperor was killed, the Bodhi Tree suffered severe damage as a result.
Though the Bodhi Tree had paid a heavy price to kill the Dou Emperor, it hadn't fully destroyed him. At the moment of his death, some of the Dou Emperor's negative emotions merged with the tree.
Over countless years, these negative emotions had gradually eroded the Bodhi Tree, causing its simple consciousness to lean toward darkness and evil.
Now, the Bodhi Tree contained two forms of consciousness: one that was its original, pure consciousness, which could be considered good, and another that was influenced by the Dou Emperor's negative emotions, making it lean toward evil.
"You want me to help you expel the evil consciousness?" Mo Yu asked, looking at the emerald Bodhi Tree in front of him.
"Swish!"
The tree swayed gently in response, as if nodding.
Mo Yu thought for a moment and said, "That Dou Emperor's negative emotions are remnants of a powerful soul. With my current strength, I can't deal with that."
Even the mighty Bodhi Tree had struggled to withstand the Dou Emperor's negative emotions. Since Mo Yu hadn't yet reached the saint level, his strength was insufficient to handle the task. If he wasn't careful, he could end up attracting those negative emotions to himself, which would certainly lead to his death.
"Swish, swish."
As Mo Yu finished speaking, another light appeared from the Bodhi Tree. Within it, flames surrounded a Bodhi Seed, refining it. A clear aura emerged and was absorbed by the tree, slightly reducing the tree's dark aura.
"You want to use Bodhi Seeds to purify the negative emotions?" Mo Yu muttered, rubbing his chin. "Can one impure Bodhi Seed really help you?"
"Swish!"
The Bodhi Tree shook again, and dozens of small green lights floated out from within it, hovering in front of Mo Yu.
The lights slowly dimmed, revealing dozens of Bodhi Seeds. Their crystal-clear appearance showed that they were far purer than the one Mo Yu was holding.
"One, two, three… twenty-four Bodhi Seeds."
Mo Yu's eyes lit up as he counted the glowing seeds.
Bodhi Seeds, while not as terrifying as the Bodhi Heart, were known for greatly increasing one's chances of breaking through to the Dou Saint level. In the outside world, even a single low-quality Bodhi Seed like the one he held would drive strong fighters to madness.
Yet now, in front of Mo Yu, there were over twenty high-quality Bodhi Seeds—a massive treasure trove.
Looking at the twenty-four Bodhi Seeds, Mo Yu's mind began to race with ideas. Since these seeds could expel negative emotions, why not use the opportunity to see if his Black Lotus Soul Lightning could refine those negative emotions as well?
After all, negative emotions were a form of soul power, and the Black Lotus Soul Lightning consumed soul power.
The soul power of a Dou Emperor had long since vanished from the Dou Qi Continent. Now that he had the chance to encounter it, Mo Yu wasn't going to let it slip away.
"Swish, swish."
As Mo Yu pondered, the Bodhi Tree shook again, as if urging him to act.
Mo Yu smiled slightly and picked up one of the Bodhi Seeds, nodding in agreement.
(End of the chapter)
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