Xiao Fei let his primordial spirit hide within the Enlightenment Fruit, quietly comprehending the great Dao within. As time passed, he began to grasp some of its principles.
The old man of creation, seemingly possessing a collector's obsession, was always gathering various treasures from the outside world and throwing them into the Creation Jade Disk.
Recently, he had collected more corpses and tossed them near the crystal tree.
Xiao Fei examined them closely. These corpses belonged to humans, demons, and even some species that Xiao Fei couldn't identify.
However, one thing was common: these corpses were undoubtedly of powerful beings in life. Each one could cause an Enlightenment Fruit to grow on the crystal tree.
The Enlightenment Fruits on the crystal tree increased in number, yet the old man of creation never came to pluck them.
He remained busy fighting and collecting corpses, like a diligent little bee.
Xiao Fei even wondered if the old man was saving them to eat during the New Year.
One day, the old man of creation experienced another great battle, dragging Xiao Fei and a million-strong army with him.
This time, they encountered two enemies, both quite strong and difficult to deal with.
The old man of creation personally dealt with one of them.
Simultaneously, he commanded Xiao Fei to lead a million Immortal Monarchs, forming a grand formation, to entangle the other opponent, a nine-headed serpent.
A few Immortal Monarchs would naturally be like ants before such a master, serving no purpose.
But when the number of Immortal Monarchs reached a million, coupled with the coordinated attacks of the formation, quantity led to a qualitative change. They were actually able to hold on.
Xiao Fei watched the nine-headed serpent charge and thrust within the formation's encirclement, his subordinate Immortal Monarchs suffering countless casualties, only to be immediately replaced by those behind them.
At this moment, the old man of creation found an opportunity, slew the formidable enemy with a single saber strike, and casually tossed the corpse into the Creation Jade Disk.
However, the old man of creation's effort in slaying this formidable foe seemed to have taken a considerable toll. He popped a pill into his mouth and then stood there, hunched over and panting.
Xiao Fei watched his own cultivators die one by one while trying to trap the nine-headed serpent, while this old, decrepit man was resting and catching his breath.
A thought sparked in his mind.
The siege by the million-strong army continued, with soldiers charging forward one after another, unconcerned with their own lives.
But as some soldiers fell, the subsequent reinforcements were delayed by just a fraction of a second.
This momentary delay seemed insignificant at first, but as the formation continued to operate, these minuscule flaws accumulated, growing larger and larger.
Finally, the old man of creation had rested enough.
"You hold him off, don't let him escape, and wait for me to slay this beast with a single saber strike."
The old man of creation wielded his great saber and swung it towards the nine-headed serpent trapped within the formation.
This saber strike was naturally immensely powerful, capable of cleaving mountains and rivers, and bringing down the sun, moon, and stars.
However, for the nine-headed serpent to be a formidable enemy of the old man of creation, it must have had some capabilities. The earth-shattering saber strike failed to injure it in the slightest.
Instead, it accidentally killed a large number of Xiao Fei's soldiers.
This was perhaps what was meant by "when gods fight, mortals suffer."
It wasn't easy to participate in the battles of the strong.
"No retreat! Squad sixty-five, reinforce! The battle continues!"
But Xiao Fei and his group could not retreat. They could only persist, using their lives to do some insignificant work for the old man of creation.
In the eyes of the old man of creation, all of them were consumables anyway.
"Boom, boom, boom..."
After a series of bombardments from the two, the trapped nine-headed serpent finally sustained some injuries, with two of its nine heads severed.
The nine-headed serpent was now at a disadvantage. Its remaining seven heads, with their fourteen eyes, were searching for an escape route.
Coincidentally, at this very moment, the old man of creation swung his saber. The serpent skillfully dodged it, but the strike landed squarely on the edge of the formation formed by the million-strong army.
Instantly, hundreds more Immortal Monarch soldiers died, and a slight flaw appeared in the formation surrounding it.
"Old man of creation, you relentlessly pursued and killed our brothers. This matter is not over; await our revenge!"
As the nine-headed serpent's voice faded, its massive body transformed into an illusory shadow and dissipated.
It turned out that upon discovering that slight flaw, its true body had already escaped the trapping formation, leaving only an illusory projection to lure the enemy.
"This is bad!"
The old man of creation roared, but he couldn't keep the nine-headed serpent.
He had offended someone this time, and left a living witness to spread the word. His troubles would be immense from now on.
"Boom!"
"Boom!"
In his rage, the old man of creation struck the million-strong army with his saber, causing flesh and blood to fly, killing and wounding tens of thousands.
"Useless! Why couldn't you stop him!"
"What use are you useless fools to Old Fu?"
Then, he kicked Xiao Fei, shattering the clone that Xiao Fei had sent out, causing its soul to disperse.
Xiao Fei, who had secretly let the nine-headed serpent escape, was inwardly pleased. However, having angered the old man of creation this time, he had to appear respectful and obedient on the surface.
Although a clone of his had just been shattered by the old man of creation, he had many clones!
Xiao Fei immediately dispatched another clone, respectfully and diligently carrying out his original duty, commanding the remaining army to return to the Creation Jade Disk.
Standing like a sleeping eagle, walking like a sick tiger.
Since he was secretly preparing to betray the old man of creation in the future, he had to display absolute loyalty before the outbreak, lest the old man of creation discover any clues.
Xiao Fei diligently worked, and another of his clones was smashed by the old man of creation to vent his frustration.
It seemed that the escape of one enemy this time had a significant impact on the old man of creation.
This made Xiao Fei feel even more that he had not made a mistake.
Indeed, after this incident, the old man of creation stopped hunting other powerful beings.
Instead, he found a hidden place and went into secluded cultivation.
First, he plucked a crystal-clear Enlightenment Fruit from the crystal tree within the Creation Jade Disk.
Looking at the Enlightenment Fruit in his hand, the old man of creation felt that his hard work had not been in vain, and that it was all worthwhile.
Once he refined all these Enlightenment Fruits, would he need to care about a few formidable enemies?
Thinking of this, a hint of joy appeared on the old man of creation's wrinkled face, and he swallowed the Enlightenment Fruit in one gulp.
Unfortunately, things did not go as he wished. Before he could even fully refine this Enlightenment Fruit, a formidable enemy found him.
"Old man of creation, come out here!"
It was the nine-headed serpent that had escaped last time. He had brought several powerful experts to seek revenge.
"Old man of creation, you slaughter your peers; everyone knows. Come out quickly and surrender."
Upon hearing this, the old man of creation was so enraged that he spat out a mouthful of blood.
If only he were given a little more time, he could refine all the Enlightenment Fruits, and then he wouldn't need to fear these people.
However, he had no intention of surrendering. With a casual wave, the portal within the Creation Jade Disk opened.
An army of hundreds of thousands of soldiers arrayed themselves and flew out from the portal, blocking the old man of creation.