Xu Mu listened to the Wine Immortal Daoist's words and nodded seriously.
He turned his head, glancing at the moving giant trees, sensing their imposing aura, and asked with a grave expression:
"Senior, can you impart some of your experience? These heavenly trees seem like they won't be easy to deal with."
Xu Mu asked again, as the matter was of great importance, he had to be fully prepared.
The Wine Immortal Daoist took a sip of wine and then spoke:
"To obtain a legacy, you must first gain the recognition of the Heavenly Tree's spirit."
"First, you must stand before a Heavenly Tree, and using your innate abilities and divine soul, communicate with its spirit, attempting to establish a connection. Once the spirit perceives your presence, and no other strangers are receiving a legacy, your consciousness will be drawn into an illusionary realm."
"This illusionary realm severely tests one's Dao heart. Each person chooses a different Heavenly Tree, and sees different illusions, so the difficulty naturally varies."
"Before you arrived, many people, by choosing Heavenly Trees whose power they could not match, failed to pass the illusionary realm and were driven to idiocy or madness."
"Of course, I believe this illusionary realm will not be a problem for you."
The Wine Immortal Daoist paused slightly at this point.
This illusionary realm tested one's Dao heart, character, and talent the most.
As for Xu Mu's monstrous talent, it was unparalleled in the world.
Regarding character, the Wine Immortal Daoist chuckled; he believed his senior brother would not accept a disciple with poor character.
Furthermore, in the dire straits of the first layer, Xu Mu had not given up, demonstrating a tenacious Dao heart.
"He will pass the illusionary realm with ease!"
As the Wine Immortal Daoist thought of these things, he suddenly remembered something and leaned closer to Xu Mu, speaking with a solemn expression:
"After passing the illusionary realm, you will have the qualification to receive the legacy, but having the qualification is merely the beginning of the hardship."
"Because that legacy is extremely dangerous."
"Based on my observations during this period, even the weakest legacy hidden within these Heavenly Trees is difficult for ordinary Domain Lords to control. The consequences of failing to control it range from injury at best, to qi deviation at worst!"
The Daoist paused, then continued:
"Therefore, before you choose a legacy, you must be extremely cautious. Do not simply choose it because it appears powerful or suitable for you; you must act according to your capabilities."
"For example, the Boundless Rankings expert from your Demon Extermination Division, Yao Huo, previously chose the stoutest Heavenly Tree."
"That Heavenly Tree's flames were scorching and matched many people, but Yao Huo, defying all opinions, contended for the tree with absolute strength, attracting considerable animosity. Yet, immediately after passing the illusionary realm, he was scorched by its intense flames. Because the legacy was too overbearing, he was injured and had to forcibly withdraw from the Heavenly Tree."
The Wine Immortal Daoist whispered this to Xu Mu, having witnessed these events himself, and thus knew them clearly.
"Regarding this incident, I can only say, thankfully he withdrew quickly," the Daoist shook his head slightly. "Otherwise, even a few more seconds of burning and he would have lost half his life."
"After that, Yao Huo took a full ten days to recuperate."
"Then, cautiously, he chose a new legacy."
Listening to the Wine Immortal Daoist, Xu Mu couldn't help but turn to look at Yao Huo, who was meditating beneath a Heavenly Tree, and was greatly shocked.
A powerful expert at the Half-step Human King realm could not even withstand the legacy within that Heavenly Tree?
Then, what level of existence must the cultivator who left these legacies have been when they were alive!
Following this, he inexplicably thought of Yun Miaomiao, who had been afflicted by the charm poison.
Besides Yao Huo, perhaps she was another example of someone unable to control a legacy?
Xu Mu lowered his head, glanced at his right hand, and suddenly blushed.
The Wine Immortal Daoist, unaware of Xu Mu's thoughts, added:
"Oh, right. Once the tree spirit recognizes you, you will also receive the protection of the Heavenly Tree. Any external attack will be blocked by the tree."
"The defensive strength of these Heavenly Trees is so formidable that even a Human King realm expert might not be able to shake them. It's absolutely safe."
Xu Mu nodded, that was a relief; he had been worried about someone sneak attacking him.
"Alright, I've said enough. It's time for you to try," the Wine Immortal Daoist pointed to a Heavenly Tree not far away and said, "I've already scouted for you. The legacy of that tree is related to lightning attribute Dao techniques, and its difficulty doesn't seem very high, suitable for your current stage."
"If you don't have a specific target, you can go and try it out. If it's truly unsuitable, just withdraw. Safety is the most important thing."
Hearing this, Xu Mu was surprised that the Wine Immortal Daoist had even arranged this. His heart warmed, and he cupped his hands gratefully:
"Thank you, senior. You've gone to great lengths!"
"No need for formalities. I shall depart!"
Saying that, Xu Mu rubbed his hands together, eager to fly towards the Heavenly Tree. He soon landed.
Xu Mu looked up at the tree canopy, where lightning flickered faintly, and his eyes burned with fervor. He circulated his innate abilities within his body and, coordinating with his divine soul, began to search for the Heavenly Tree's spirit.
The process was very simple. Xu Mu soon sensed an ancient spiritual entity, but just as he was about to connect with it and enter the illusionary trial, the Heavenly Tree before him suddenly trembled violently.
Then, the Heavenly Tree meticulously chosen for him by the Wine Immortal Daoist, under his expectant gaze... took a step and ran away.
Yes, the Heavenly Tree ran.
It pulled out its thick roots buried underground and used them as legs, charging across the ground, stirring up waves of thunderous noise. Its speed was incredibly fast.
Xu Mu stared at all this, utterly dumbfounded.
What was going on?
Senior Wine Immortal hadn't told him about this!
"Senior, what is happening?"
Xu Mu turned his head and asked in surprise.
The Wine Immortal Daoist nearby was also stunned, then stammered:
"Uh... this... I'm actually not too sure."
"These Heavenly Trees are sentient and can indeed move on their own and attack. Perhaps it has been here too long and wants to change location. You just happened to be there at that moment."
As the Wine Immortal Daoist spoke, he didn't even believe himself. These Heavenly Trees had been rooted in the ground for countless years; how could they suddenly change their location just because they had been there for too long...
"Why don't you try another one? The tree about five hundred meters to your left. Its legacy seems to be related to the Great Dao of Wind, and it should be quite suitable for you."
Xu Mu heard this and scratched his head, not understanding.
Then, he turned and walked towards another Heavenly Tree, his innate abilities surging, coordinating with his divine soul, and again attempting to establish a connection with that tree.
But soon, the Heavenly Tree, which had been quietly rooted in its place, sensing Xu Mu's approach, also uprooted itself and fled as if driven mad.
Two Heavenly Trees fleeing simultaneously caused the ground to tremble.
Nearby, two Domain Lords who were meditating on the Great Dao opened their eyes in confusion.
"What happened?"
"I don't know! Why did that tree run away?"
Those Domain Lords looked at the two fleeing Heavenly Trees before them with surprise.
Then, they noticed that the trees were not attacking enemies, nor were they evading attacks. They seemed to be running away out of fear.
This left everyone bewildered, as they had never witnessed such a situation before. What was happening to these Heavenly Trees now?
"I don't believe it!"
Seeing the Heavenly Tree run away again, Xu Mu realized the problem lay with himself.
So, he gritted his teeth, took a deep breath, and looked at a Heavenly Tree close at hand.
This Heavenly Tree had been dismissed by the Wine Immortal Daoist from the start, as its body was too towering and colossal. Many Domain Lords had attempted to obtain its sword legacy, but all had failed.
Xu Mu, at this moment, wanted to try, so he activated his innate abilities and divine soul, wanting to establish a connection with it.
Then, as expected, the colossal Heavenly Tree also uprooted itself.
Rumble!
With a roar, the Heavenly Tree's numerous thick roots pulled out of the ground, causing the earth for hundreds of meters around to crack. Some Domain Lords almost stumbled and fell.
Immediately after, the Heavenly Tree, like the others, fled.
"Why!"
Xu Mu was dumbfounded. What was going on? Was his talent so poor that so many Heavenly Trees rejected him?
"If you have the guts, all of you run away from me!"
Anger surged in Xu Mu's heart. He ignored everything else, expanded his innate abilities, and floated in the air. Wherever he went, he established connections with all the Heavenly Trees within his sight. The Heavenly Trees that his abilities swept over also began to flee.
Rumble...
The entire Heavenly Tree Tomb seemed to tremble due to his arrival.
Countless Heavenly Trees were communicated with by Xu Mu, then they all uprooted themselves and fled wildly. Some Heavenly Trees that Xu Mu hadn't touched also inexplicably began to flee, as if extremely fearful. Thus, the ground began to tremble incessantly, and even large rocks were ejected from underground, showing the magnitude of the disturbance.
As a result, in the vast Heavenly Tree Tomb, only a handful of Heavenly Trees that were undergoing the legacy remained in place.
Rumbles echoed, like the earth splitting. The Domain Lords who were not accepting legacies were all startled awake.
They withdrew from their state of digestion and enlightenment, opened their eyes in a daze, and just as they were about to inquire about the situation, they saw a large group of fleeing Heavenly Trees.
Yes, the word "fleeing" was used.
The trees ran ahead, and people chased behind.
Everyone was confused, and then incredibly shocked, thinking to themselves: how poor must this person's talent be to be despised by so many Heavenly Trees, not even given a chance to enter the illusionary realm trial, and directly made to flee?
"This... isn't this Xu Mu!"
Immediately after, those Domain Lords discovered that the person chasing the Heavenly Trees, or rather, the person despised by countless Heavenly Trees, was none other than the peerless prodigy of the Demon Extermination Division, Xu Mu!
The young man who had been awe-inspiring in the first layer and had forcefully passed the true test, was now rejected by all the Heavenly Trees!
But how was this possible?
The Wine Immortal Daoist drank a mouthful of wine in astonishment, trying to figure this out, but he couldn't. He then drank several more mouthfuls... Until finally, his face was slightly flushed, and he still couldn't comprehend it.
Xu Mu, a person whose name even contained the character 'wood', how could he fail to gain the recognition of the Heavenly Trees?
Could it be... this brat was an axe spirit reincarnated!