Chapter 64: The Sophora Tree Spirit

  Yongping County, night falls.

  In Yongping County, there was a deserted small village. Ten years ago, it was still bustling with people, but later, the village's livestock mysteriously died one after another, and even people began to die strangely. The strange events caused panic. Later, the county magistrate at that time came to investigate upon hearing the news, but after more than ten days, nothing was found. In the end, he had no choice but to order the relocation of the entire village to another place.

  The small village of the past is now desolate and overgrown with weeds. Not far from the village entrance, there is a thousand-year-old locust tree. The trunk of this ancient locust tree is thick and sturdy, requiring seven people to encircle it with their arms. The bark is dark and coarse, dense and heavy. In this cold winter, the leaves are still lush and vibrant, full of vitality.

  Suddenly, a lone, one-eyed old wolf with a limp in its gait walked over. It had once been the leader of the pack, but after being defeated by younger and stronger wolves within its own tribe, it was left with only one eye and a crippled leg. At this moment, its stomach was growling with hunger, its eyes gleaming with a green light as it searched for food.

  Just as the wild wolf was passing by the old locust tree, suddenly a black long whip emerged from the ground and pierced through the wolf's body.

  "Wooo! Wooo!" The wolf howled in agony, struggling to get up.

  Gulu, the originally thin and weak wild wolf suddenly became withered, its fur's luster quickly faded, and the pupils in its eyes enlarged.

  "Bang!" Finally turned into a pile of dry bones, fell to the ground.

  The dark and coarse long whip was once again withdrawn into the ground. The surroundings seemed as if nothing had happened, with the same silence and desolation as before.

  "Zhang Lao Tou, tonight I'll make you regret the decision you made today!" A hoarse and low voice suddenly echoed in the wilderness.

  "Boom!" If someone could see under the ground, they would discover that over a dozen dark, python-like tree roots were rapidly slithering underground, at an alarming speed.

  ……

  Zhang Cheng's eyes suddenly opened while he was meditating in the Zhang family ancestral hall, and a faint red light flashed across his eyes.

  "Has it arrived?" Zhang Cheng felt the divine position and smiled slightly in his heart.

  Boom, the tree roots drilled out from underground. Tens of black tree roots stood like long snakes, staring at Zhang Cheng inside the temple.

  "Zhang Cheng, this is your last chance. Are you going to hand it over or not?" Along with the sound of roots drilling out, that hoarse voice rang out again.

  "Locust tree spirit, you dare to move my descendants, I will uproot you!" Zhang Cheng suddenly stood up, his eyes emitting a chill.

  "Is that so? With your abilities! Go further away, I don't even need to collect you, a gust of wind can blow you into a scattered soul." The Locust Tree Spirit sneered.

  "It seems you won't rest until you reach the Yellow River!" The voice of the Sophora tree spirit also turned cold. A root of the tree swooshed and once again burrowed into the ground, heading towards a residential house closer to the ancestral temple.

  "Boom." The roots of the tree pierced through the underground of the residential area, bursting out of the ground and appearing in front of a bed.

  Suddenly, the tree roots burst into the sky, and in a flash of lightning, they were about to pierce through the skull of a person sleeping on the bed. They absorbed his blood and energy, making Zhang Cheng regret it too late.

  Bang, a pale red canopy suddenly appeared in the void, tightly protecting the sleeping person inside. The tree roots heavily collided with the canopy and bounced back with a bang.

  Just as the tree root flew back, a pale red glow shot out a sword energy, and with a "pu" sound, the tree root was cut off in mid-air. Fresh green sap sprayed out from the broken root, and with a series of slapping sounds, the severed tree root seemed to struggle and jump about on the ground like a living thing, but after a few breaths, it stiffened up.

  "Ah!" The locust tree spirit let out a painful grunt, startled in his heart. Had Old Zhang found someone to help him?

  "Who? Come out!" The voice of the Sophora tree spirit shouted gloomily.

  "How's that? Have you tasted the bitter fruit?" Zhang Cheng, who was in the ancestral hall, looked at the locust tree spirit with a start, and suddenly felt a sense of pleasure in his heart.

  "Where's your helper, call out! Let's have a fair fight!" The willow tree spirit transformed into a wave of fluctuation, sweeping across the entire village, but didn't even detect any unusual aura, and felt uneasy in his heart, it seems that the incoming person's cultivation is not low!

  "You don't have to look anymore, that was my hand just now!" Zhang Cheng slowly stepped out with his hands behind his back, saying in a clear and cold voice.

  "How dare you come out of the temple, aren't you afraid of being reduced to ashes?" The locust tree spirit was shocked and lost color when he saw Zhang Cheng walk out of the temple gate. According to his observation, Zhang Cheng's soul could only rely on incense in the temple to survive, and his magic could only be displayed within a hundred feet. How could it be that now, his soul dared to come out too? Didn't that mean that Zhang Cheng's cultivation had increased significantly again?

  "You, it's impossible that you're the one who made this move, your aura is completely different from yours!"

  "Is that so?" Zhang Cheng also didn't bother to explain, his large hand slapped downwards, the surrounding wind and clouds surged, a heavenly power condensed, divine energy infused, transforming into a gigantic pale red palm.

  "What? How is this possible!" The tree spirit was shocked and amazed, seeing such a large aura, the roots of the tree immediately retracted, wanting to escape.

  "Too late!" Zhang Cheng shouted, the ground solidified, binding the tree roots. A pale red giant palm slammed down, shaking the earth. The tree roots snapped, and fresh green sap filled the entire palm print.

  "Ah!" A shrill cry rang out, and with a few swift movements, the remaining fractured parts hastily retreated in escape.

  "Did you escape?" Zhang Cheng smiled coldly, his feet shrinking into inches, and with one step, he disappeared in a flash of red light within the Zhang family village.

  "What's going on?"

  "Earthquake? Everyone get out quickly!"

  "What's the noise?"

  The people inside Zhangjiacun village who were originally asleep were suddenly awakened and ran out in disarray.

  ……

  "How terrifying, it's only been half a day since we last saw him, how did he do it? Is it because of that thing?" The Locust Tree Spirit retracted its fractured roots, this time suffering heavy losses as well. These roots were the main means of exploring the surroundings over the years, after all, being a tree spirit, mobility was inherently flawed.

  "Ah, so the main body is here!" A gentle voice rang out. A man wearing a green robe and a square flat hat suddenly appeared in the wilderness. The Locust Tree Spirit was extremely shocked in his heart. He had actually caught up so quickly.

  "I didn't expect you to chase me all the way here, now that you're here, stay for good!" The Huai tree spirit suppressed the shock in his heart, his true body was here, only then could he exert his true strength, and this Zhang Cheng might not be his opponent.

  "Is that so?" Zhang Cheng didn't waste any words, and with a stomp of his foot, a deafening roar erupted. A hill transformed into a ferocious stone dragon, which rolled towards the old locust tree. This was Zhang Cheng's use of power within his domain.

  Boom! Suddenly, towering trees rose from the ground, lush and dense.

  Boom! The giant tree and the stone dragon collided, causing a loud explosion. Trees flew horizontally, branches snapped. And the stones on the stone dragon's body cracked and fell off, becoming incomplete.

  Boom! The towering trees struck the stone dragon one by one, and the stone dragon was outnumbered. In the end, it was hit to pieces, shattered all over the ground.

  Boom! Zhang Cheng's large hand opened up, and the power of heaven and earth condensed into a giant palm, which then slapped down through the air.

  Boom! Boom! Suddenly, countless huge green woods fell from the sky and smashed towards Zhang Cheng. Rumble! Rumble! The power of heaven and earth converged with the green wood, colliding and exploding with divine power and true energy, shaking the sky, a strong airflow transformed into air waves, spreading in all directions.

  "Hmm!" In Qingyu County, Pan Hao's divine soul stirred, his eyes sank for a moment, and suddenly the divine position in his divine soul shook, a red light shot up into the sky and disappeared.

  Boom, in the sky, a magnificent and noble aura suddenly descended, pouring into Zhang Cheng's soul. Zhang Cheng's eyes shone brightly, boom, a huge palm, about five or six zhangs in size, appeared in the sky, this palm was incredibly solid, with clear veins visible on its surface, as if it were the palm of a giant.

  Boom, a giant palm with the power of a thousand tons, slapped down in mid-air. A fierce gust of wind howled, and thunderous sounds erupted. Boom boom, countless green woods, towering trees snapped, even turning into powder. It was impossible to stop the power of the giant palm, which slammed heavily onto the trunk of the old locust tree.

  "Huh, a green light rose from the old locust tree's body and transformed into a true energy shield to protect itself."

  Boom! The true energy shield shattered with a loud crash, and a crater about 80-90 feet deep appeared where the Locust Tree was. Countless bright green juices filled the entire pit, and the Locust Tree's body had been pulverized, scattered throughout the crater.