123: Climbing trees

"Aside from when the wutong tree was first discovered, a thousand years have passed, and this is the first time a wutong fruit has ripened," Lin Xi remarked, gazing at the enormous wutong fruit.

Upon hearing his words, Xue Yu, standing nearby, spoke with pride as if recounting a cherished tale: "Legend has it that when demonic beasts first appeared in this world, the Xia Kingdom, which had yet to produce powerful Beast Tamers, was on the brink of collapse under their attacks."

"At that time, someone stumbled upon this Wutong Space and had their tamed beast consume the wutong fruit, which had been nurtured for who knows how many years. After that, the first Level 100 War God of the Xia Kingdom, and indeed of humanity, was born, preserving the flame of human civilization."

"Although he has long since passed away, our Xue Family is the lineage left behind by this hero."

Thus, the Xue Family is the most deeply rooted among the Four Great Families.

In his view, the wutong tree was discovered by the ancestor of the Xue Family, and the first wutong fruit was consumed by his tamed beast.

Therefore, this wutong fruit rightfully belongs to their Xue Family.

But in the end, because of this Beast Taming Grand Competition, not only was the venue set in the Wutong Space, but the wutong fruit was also designated as the final prize.

This was undoubtedly an attempt to snatch the wutong fruit from the hands of their Xue Family!

"Trying to take what belongs to our Xue Family won't be so easy!"

He looked toward his granddaughter Xue Yuhe in the crowd, confident that she would not let him down!

The group had now reached the base of the tree, and the closer they got to this giant tree, the more they felt their own insignificance.

Standing before this tree and looking left and right, they couldn't see the edges of the main trunk at all.

Looking upward was even more terrifying—the entire sky was a green canopy formed by lush, dense leaves.

Xue Yu no longer acted as arrogantly as before. Instead, he first greeted Lin Xi, and after Lin Xi waved impatiently, he stepped forward and said, "Alright, everyone snap out of it! I'm about to announce the rules for the Elimination Rounds!"

Everyone quickly focused, afraid they might miss important information under the oppressive presence of the giant tree.

"The rules for the Elimination Rounds are simple: climb the tree!"

"As you can see, the prize for the top spot in this Beast Taming Grand Competition, the wutong fruit, is placed at the top of the tree!"

"Actually, it's not just the prize for the top spot. We've hidden many other items on this tree, and the higher you go, the better the quality."

"So, we're not planning to hold any award ceremony. Everyone, start climbing from the base. Whoever reaches the wutong fruit first will be the winner, and any prizes you find along the way will belong to you!"

As soon as he said this, an uproar instantly erupted.

Although they had heard beforehand that this Elimination Round would be conducted as a free-for-all,

they hadn't expected it to be such a rule-less method, feeling almost like a lion dance competition for a high-hanging silk ball.

Seeing the crowd below begin to murmur, Xue Yu shouted, "Quiet, everyone! I'm not finished yet!"

"There are still rules: anyone who falls from the tree will be considered eliminated. If you can return to the tree before hitting the ground, you may continue."

"Of course, we won't just watch you fall to your deaths. We'll catch you if necessary, but you'll still be eliminated."

"One last point: no intentional lethal attacks are allowed. We'll be watching your every move from below, so don't think you can hide anything from us!"

Finally, Xue Yu bellowed, "Does everyone understand?!"

"Understood!"

"Good. If you understand, then spread out. Once I announce the start, you can begin climbing upward."

Upon hearing this, everyone moved closer to the trunk and then dispersed to the left and right.

But even with fifteen people, each spaced nearly a kilometer apart, they couldn't completely surround the tree.

Su Ze was flanked by Liu Yiyi and Jiang Jianbin, and they all had a clear understanding of their own strength levels.

Compete for that most conspicuous wutong fruit? Clearly impossible.

Better to stick together, cover each other, and climb as high as possible—the higher they go, the more valuable the prizes they might find.

Once everyone was in position, at Xue Yu's command, they all sprang into action.

"Begin!"

Right at the start of the competition, someone summoned their tamed beast—a flying-type beast that transformed into a pair of wings and carried them upward.

This move caught everyone's attention, but no one acted, instead observing them.

These fifteen individuals could be said to represent the most outstanding among the younger generation of Beast Tamers in the Xia Kingdom.

It was impossible that only one of them had contracted a flying-type demonic beast.

The Principals couldn't possibly be unaware of such a loophole in the rules, so why weren't they worried about someone simply flying up instead of obediently climbing the tree?

Soon, theConfuse in everyone's minds was answered.

A ball of flame suddenly appeared in the air around the wutong tree, directly scorching the person and causing them to fall.

The high temperature seemed to knock them unconscious.

Even when they were just half a meter from the ground, they failed to regain consciousness, and in the end, a teacher from the Imperial Capital Beast Taming University caught them.

Since they were the number four seed of the Imperial Capital Beast Taming University, they became the first to be eliminated.

And their actions served as a warning to everyone else.

This wutong tree, which had grown for who knows how many years, though not a plant-type demonic beast, possessed its own mystical properties.

TheFlames appearing out of thin air made everyone, even from a distance, feel an intense heat, breaking out in a cold sweat on their foreheads.

It was easy to imagine the consequences for the one who bore the brunt of that flame.

"Better to climb obediently..."

Although his tamed beast was the fire-attribute Diamond-rank Demonic Beast Golden Feather Phoenix Bird, and Feng Qingyi, sensed through the beast taming contract, wasn't afraid of the flame that had just appeared but rather felt desire and excitement,

Su Ze understood the principle of 'the nail that sticks out gets hammered.' Even if he wasn't afraid of the fire, he'd face attacks from others.

Being attacked in mid-air with no place to land would mean falling and being eliminated.

They were still far from the treetop, surrounded by bare trunk, with even the first branch a long way off—no need to take such risks now.

"Only when there are branches above to rest on will be the time to fight."

And the higher they went, the slimmer the trunk would become, increasing the chances of encounters.

The branches of this giant tree would become a natural arena for their battles—only the victors would qualify to continue climbing upward!