Xiao Fei held the Purple Thunder Pearl, warily observing the Yi Mu Immortal Lord who had just emerged.
"You truly are this immortal tree!"
"Indeed, you have some insight. This immortal tree is my true form. As long as the immortal tree remains, you can never kill me."
"You must be thinking of destroying my true form right now? I have been rooted here for millions of years. What can your meager abilities do to me?"
Yi Mu Immortal Lord's true form was a towering ancient tree. Xiao Fei was currently inside him. Even if he caused some damage, the immortal wood's growth capabilities would quickly restore it.
"In these millions of years, the parasites born within me were no weaker than you."
Yi Mu Immortal Lord stared at Xiao Fei, speaking with extreme arrogance. Inwardly, however, he was extremely wary of the object in Xiao Fei's hand and was secretly gathering his strength. He was, after all, old. Otherwise, why would he have needed to resort to deception when dealing with eight True Immortals previously? The two previous purple lightning strikes had already instilled a trace of fear in him towards the Purple Thunder Pearl.
At the same time, Xiao Fei, holding the Purple Thunder Pearl, was equally wary of Yi Mu Immortal Lord. He knew clearly that he could only unleash attacks of that magnitude twice more. For now, he could only try his best to stall Yi Mu Immortal Lord, secretly recovering the immortal energy he had consumed.
The two, who had been on the verge of a fight, now found themselves inexplicably engaging in idle chatter. They exchanged harsh words, probing each other's weaknesses while secretly calculating and accumulating strength, waiting for the opportune moment to deliver a fatal blow. Their current state was akin to two weaklings fearing each other.
"Old thief Yi Mu, when I first arrived here, I sensed a decaying aura. Are you nearing the end of your lifespan?" Xiao Fei continued to probe Yi Mu Immortal Lord's weaknesses with his words as he recovered his immortal energy.
"Hahaha... I have long cultivated to the Immortal Lord realm. I am immortal and indestructible. What do you mean by nearing the end of my lifespan?" Yi Mu Immortal Lord roared with laughter, attempting to mask his inner timidity.
"After becoming an immortal, one indeed gains an endless lifespan. However, this does not apply to those who achieve immortality through a plant-based form." Xiao Fei pressed on when Yi Mu Immortal Lord did not refute him.
"Various flowers, grasses, and trees have different requirements for their growing environment. Especially after the concentration of immortal energy in the Immortal Realm continuously declined, many species could not adapt and died out. To my knowledge, you are the only Qian Yuan Immortal Fruit Tree left in the entire Immortal Realm. Based on this, the Qian Yuan Immortal Fruit Tree should also find it difficult to adapt to the changes in immortal energy. You must be dying soon too!"
As Xiao Fei spoke, he intently observed Yi Mu Immortal Lord for any subtle changes in his expression.
"Nonsense! I will not die even if you do!"
Seeing this, Xiao Fei smiled slightly, his inference confirmed.
"It seems you are indeed close to death! You are trying to stall for time, aren't you!"
Before Xiao Fei finished speaking, the Purple Thunder Pearl in his hand lit up again, and a bolt of purple lightning was generated.
"Boom!"
With a deafening roar, Yi Mu Immortal Lord was reduced to ashes. This time, in addition to killing Yi Mu Immortal Lord, a huge gap was blasted into the hall's wall. The immortal tree trembled violently and emitted smoke from this strike, with numerous fine cracks appearing on the wall.
Without hesitation, Xiao Fei once again unleashed the Purple Thunder Pearl, aiming at the gap, and fired another bolt of purple lightning.
"Boom!"
This strike caused even greater destruction, directly blasting a massive cavity within the tree trunk. The trunk shook violently again, and countless cracks spread outwards.
Simultaneously, many people in the Jade Void Palace noticed that the towering ancient tree at the center of the Wood Peak, within the Five Peaks of the rear mountain, trembled violently, and countless leaves fluttered down like snowflakes.
"Huh! The Wood Peak is emitting smoke!"
"Alas! It seems so. Is someone's ancestral grave over there?"
"This isn't just emitting smoke, it's outright on fire! I wonder who is so lucky?"
"..."
Some lower-ranking disciples of the Jade Void Palace, unaware of the truth, chattered amongst themselves, discussing the matter with apparent merriment. However, the high-ranking cultivators of the Jade Void Palace knew that this was the location of the Qian Yuan Immortal Fruit Tree's true form.
"I wonder what Senior Brother Yi Mu is up to again?"
"In recent years, Yi Mu Immortal Lord has been acting very mysteriously, as if he is plotting something significant!"
"I heard that in recent years, Senior Brother Yi Mu has brought hundreds, even thousands, of people to his Wood Peak under various pretexts. After entering the Wood Peak, these people have never emerged."
As a few knowledgeable individuals discussed, their expressions were grave.
On the Wood Peak, the Qian Yuan Immortal Fruit Tree trembled. The leaves on the tree withered and fell instantly. Even the few unripe fruits hanging on the tree quickly shriveled and dried up. After suffering two consecutive heavy blows, Yi Mu Immortal Lord's true form was severely injured, forcing him to abandon his branches, leaves, and fruits to recover himself.
After expending his full strength in two attacks, Xiao Fei had very little immortal energy left. Seeing the cracks blasted into the tree trunk slowly healing, he knew that he could not miss this opportunity. This was the best time to shatter the true form of the giant tree. Gritting his teeth, he poured all his remaining immortal energy into the Purple Thunder Pearl. If immortal energy was insufficient, he would consume his life essence!
"Boom!"
With this earth-shattering explosion, the immortal tree's trunk completely disintegrated. The towering ancient tree snapped into two sections from the middle. Xiao Fei stood on the severed stump. He could sense that the Qian Yuan Immortal Fruit Tree had not died yet; a trace of life still emanated from beneath his feet. He immediately attempted to use the Wood Evasion Technique again. Indeed, after the immortal wood's trunk was severed by him, he could now perform Wood Evasion. Following the faint life force emanating from the stump, he finally discovered a colossal green crystal at the very bottom. The almost imperceptible life force was emanating from this green crystal. The material of the crystal was similar to the green sphere in his hand. Xiao Fei held the green crystal in his hand and sensed an aura similar to Yi Mu Immortal Lord's from it.
"Could this be the Heart of Wood?" Then what was the green sphere in his hand? Was it a seed? In fact, Xiao Fei's guess was not wrong.