Chapter 266: The Divine Phoenix Tree

“The Little Heaven’s Peak, the stage of ultimate perfection.”

Lin Fan never expected that Ji Zai’s cultivation would surge to such an extent after his first Nirvana. Although Ji Zai’s appearance hadn’t changed much, the additional tail emerging from behind must have been a result of his Nirvana transformation.

This tail was feathered, displaying a deep purple hue, with swirling red patterns coiling around it. However, compared to the otherwise bald and featherless body, it looked somewhat bizarre.

“Ji Zai, although you’re getting stranger by the day, don’t worry—Dad won’t abandon you,” Lin Fan said, patting Ji Zai’s head. Ji Zai, as if understanding, nudged Lin Fan’s neck with his tiny head in protest.

Lin Fan chuckled, his attention drawn to a tiny sapling in front of him, no taller than a thumb.

“What exactly is this thing?”

He examined it closely, but there was no mention of anything similar in the sect’s ancient texts.

However, the sapling, which had manifested from the Life Seed, radiated a powerful vitality as boundless as the Milky Way.

On the surface, the sapling appeared lifeless—devoid of leaves, its bark withering like a piece of common rotten wood.

*Ping! Congratulations! You have discovered the Divine Wutong Tree.*

*Wutong Divine Tree: Seedling Form.*

*Contains infinite life force, with countless wondrous applications…*

Lin Fan felt a bit speechless. Countless wondrous applications? What exactly were they? At the very least, they could have been more specific.

As Lin Fan reached out and touched the Wutong Divine Tree, countless tendrils suddenly extended from its base, attaching themselves to Lin Fan’s arm. Then, before Lin Fan’s astonished eyes, the Wutong Divine Tree vanished in an instant.

“Huh? Where did it go?”

Lin Fan looked around frantically, but the Wutong Divine Tree had simply disappeared, as if it had evaporated into thin air.

At that moment, Lin Fan smiled faintly. “You mischievous little one.”

In the inner world of a martial artist, it was like a miniature universe—vast, chaotic, and empty. Only those who had reached the Grand Heaven’s Peak could shape wondrous creations within their inner realm using the power of laws.

Yet now, Lin Fan was amazed to find a sapling rooted right at the center of his chaotic inner cosmos. Its roots emitted a brilliant green light, standing out vividly in the formless void.

As Lin Fan sensed the sapling, his heart trembled. Such immense life force!

At that moment, the sapling trembled violently, unleashing a powerful suction force that tore through the heavens and earth. Instantly, Lin Fan felt the surrounding spiritual energy surge toward him like raging ocean waves.

Although most of the spiritual energy was absorbed by the sapling, even the tiniest fraction that seeped through was instantly converted into experience.

With each breath through every pore of his body, Lin Fan normally gained ten thousand experience points. But with the sapling’s aid, that number had skyrocketed to twenty thousand.

“Hu…”

At that moment, Lin Fan inhaled sharply. What a powerful sapling! If it continued growing, how terrifying would it become?

Could it be that in the future, its power would increase tenfold, hundredfold, thousandfold, even ten thousandfold?

Then, even if he did absolutely nothing, his experience would skyrocket.

This Wutong Divine Tree might be a divine treasure for Lin Fan, but for others, it would likely be a harbinger of death.

The human body had its limits. The rate at which one could refine spiritual energy would likely pale in comparison to the Wutong Divine Tree’s absorption speed.

Before the tree even fully matured, the person might be torn apart by the overwhelming influx of spiritual energy.

However, Lin Fan possessed the System, which transformed the spiritual energy into experience, preventing such a catastrophe.

“Oooooo…” Ji Zai suddenly crowed, clearly unhappy with the environment.

“Alright, don’t worry. We’re leaving now.” Lin Fan stroked Ji Zai’s head. To him, the Sea of Death was the most dangerous place imaginable.

Originally, he had come searching for the Seven Sages’ treasure, but he hadn’t expected such a turn of events—not even the Seven Sages’ avatars could withstand the onslaught of that dark demonic body.

“Sigh…”

Thinking about it, Lin Fan couldn’t help but sigh. Experience was indeed the greatest teacher. Although the Seven Sages were ancient beings, they still met their match against something even older—the pitch-black colossal hand.

At that moment, Lin Fan tossed out the black dog, watching it with an amused expression. “How does it feel? Sad, isn’t it?”

The moment the black dog appeared, Lin Fan could clearly sense its deep sorrow and rage.

As the black dog emerged, it gazed at the decayed white bones, its eyes flashing with boundless fury.

“This must have been one of your avatars. But don’t worry, I’ll find every hidden chamber you’ve got,” Lin Fan said with a smile.

“Woof woof!” The black dog roared furiously, its sharp claws scraping against the ground, creating a grating sound.

“Oooooo!” Ji Zai, resting on Lin Fan’s shoulder, flapped its wings and crowed angrily at the dog’s audacity.

The black dog glanced at Lin Fan, then at Ji Zai, finally lowering its head. Yet its eyes still burned with a fury no ordinary dog should possess.

With a wave of his hand, Lin Fan sent the black dog back into his inventory.

Things were getting more and more interesting.

How powerful was this ancient arm? Who was the legendary figure capable of sealing it here?

And judging from the current situation, this ancient arm might not even be the only one.

Lin Fan thought of Chi You, the fragmented being whose body parts had each been sealed away in different locations.

Based on previous observations, this ancient arm was attempting to break free from its seal and leave this place. Without the presence of the Celestial Cauldron, not only would Lin Fan have perished, but perhaps no one in the entire Dong Ling Continent could have stood against it.

If a single arm already possessed power surpassing the Grand Heaven’s Peak at its peak, how terrifying would it be if all its parts were freed, reunited, and restored?

Of course, all of this was just Lin Fan’s speculation. The true situation remained unknown.

At this moment, Lin Fan gazed upward. The sharp, towering cliffs blocked all escape routes. He slowly raised his hand, fingers splayed.

“Break!”

The ancient arm erupted with infinite power, as if shattering through space and time. The void cracked, and the sharp cliffs began to collapse, eventually falling into the torrent of the void.

…

The Six Great Sects, including the Yao family, had suffered heavy losses—losing both people and resources.

Each sect had sent in dozens of disciples, yet barely one in ten returned safely.

No one knew what had happened to the rest, though it was likely they had perished within.

The elders of the Six Sects exchanged glances, their eyes gleaming. The events that had unfolded in the Sea of Death had far exceeded their expectations.

Initially, they had been blinded by the allure of unknown treasures. But upon reflection, they realized with horror that things had never been simple from the start.

When had the entrance to the Sea of Death ever imposed cultivation restrictions?

Only those below the Grand Heaven’s Peak were allowed to enter, effectively selecting the participants.

But what use was regret now? It was already too late.

Just then, the ground of the Sea of Death began to tremble violently, and the previously sealed seawater surged forth in torrents.

Everyone was alarmed, unsure of what was happening.

“Boom!”

A deafening roar erupted from the ground of the Sea of Death…

“Haha! Finally, I’m out!”