386: Chapter 386 True and False Bodhi

A massive brawl was about to erupt, and Zhou Yan, dressed in his sticky rice dumpling suit, was squatting to the side, as if waiting for something.

While the Yao Race was fighting here, humans and Yao were rushing towards this location from afar, some even fighting on the way.

But Zhou Yan was still waiting.

He had thought about it before: if he fought so many Yao, he would definitely have to run. But if he ran, the bodhi tree that was within reach would be gone. How could Zhou Yan be willing to accept that?

The best solution was to trick them, then trigger the Heaven-Defying ability, and then put on his sticky rice dumpling suit to wait.

As long as he stirred the waters, the memories in his mind would be of great use.

Seeing the sky suddenly change, Zhou Yan knew his Opportunity had arrived.

"Dragon Three opened the trial, a great help!"

The bodhi tree's originally small and ugly trunk was rapidly growing, and the surroundings transformed into a primeval forest, continuously expanding.

Those who heard the news no longer cared about personal grievances. They all rushed into this unfolding world at top speed, fighting fiercely to seize the increasingly tempting bodhi tree.

Zhou Yan was very close, and when this space unfolded, he was just encompassed within it.

Zhou Yan quietly moved his steps, slowly approaching the bodhi tree. Watching the clashing blades, the Divine Ability bombardments, and the collision of numerous Domains around him, a peculiar feeling arose in his heart.

"Am I considered to have suddenly started a war?"

He self-destructed, not killing many, but the subsequent impact of the explosion was significant.

In the time Zhou Yan had been moving, several more Nascent Souls had exited the field, even that three-headed firebird.

Such a formidable opponent, one that would normally take Zhou Yan several rounds to defeat outside, was instantly focused down and killed just now.

Thinking about what he had to do next, and the continuous influx of Cultivators, Zhou Yan sighed.

"Sigh, I really don't know if doing this will deplete my Karma. But they won't die; at most, their Dao Heart might be unstable after they leave. It should be fine, right?"

Zhou Yan, flapping his short legs, was already close to the bodhi tree.

At this moment, Cultivators were already fiercely fighting on the trunk and crown of the tree, in a desperate struggle.

"Fortunately, this tree grew larger and harder. Otherwise, with such fighting, wouldn't the tree be easily broken? Then my Opportunity would be ruined."

Zhou Yan seemed to be on a different layer than the other Cultivators. He didn't scramble for the treetop like them, wanting to strike the moment a bodhi fruit appeared.

He once again took out his small boat and began his great undertaking of clipping through the wall.

In a short while, Zhou Yan merged into the bodhi tree.

But no one noticed that a sticky rice dumpling was missing from the battlefield. Everyone was scrambling to stare at the tree crown, waiting for the bodhi fruit to be born.

"Look, the bodhi fruit is out!"

Someone shouted, and everyone's eyes were fixed on a man-tall green bodhi fruit that suddenly appeared on the tree crown.

The fruit's exterior was emerald green, and at a glance, it had a jelly-like texture. Strange patterns faintly emerged on it, seemingly breathing, shifting between light and dark.

This magnificent scene made everyone stop their hands, captivated by its unique beauty.

"Is the bodhi fruit really that big? It feels different from what's recorded in books."

A Cultivator's saber dropped to the ground, and he subconsciously swallowed.

"You Human Race country bumpkin, what do you know?" A Yao Race Cultivator stared intently at the bodhi fruit, but didn't forget to belittle the Human Race Cultivator beside him. "This is clearly a premium, large fruit, a specialty of the Secret Realm. Otherwise, why would this Secret Realm be so highly regarded?"

As they spoke, many more bodhi fruits grew out, each over a person's height, and some larger ones even three or four meters tall.

"My goodness, so many bodhi fruits, and all so big. Why are we still fighting? Let's just divide them. Even scooping two spoonfuls wouldn't be a loss."

The Cultivator picked up the saber that had fallen to the ground, his face full of excitement.

"Yes, yes, aren't we fighting tooth and nail for Opportunity? There's enough for everyone, so why are we still fighting? Let's just divide them." The Cultivators beside him also echoed.

The next moment.

"Damn it, I knew you bastards had ill intentions!" ×n

Not a single person stopped. Everyone immediately tried to deal with their opponents beside them, and the battle resumed.

And the Cultivators closest to the bodhi tree fought even more fiercely.

"Get lost!"

Dragon Three fought two opponents, fending off two Cultivators. He reached out, wanting to directly grab the fruit closest to him, his eyes full of joy.

Unfortunately, their three brothers had a clear division of labor. Dragon Three only knew the location of the bodhi tree and was completely ignorant of how to retrieve the fruit.

Just as Dragon Three placed his claw on the bodhi fruit, intending to collect it, the bodhi fruit suddenly burst open.

A monster with three bird heads, tiger claws, and a fish tail dropped out.

It looked like a splicing of the first few Yao Race members who died trying to snatch the bodhi fruit, its exterior covered with the same texture as the bodhi fruit.

Dragon Three also realized something was wrong; this thing was definitely not a bodhi fruit!

But it was too late. The three-headed bird opened its three beaks, and a familiar Divine Ability once again assailed Dragon Three.

As the first fruit burst, the other fruits also began to burst one by one, and increasingly quickly. More and more monsters dropped out, making the already chaotic battlefield even more chaotic.

"Finally reached the bottom."

In a dimly lit space, Zhou Yan, dressed in blue, slowly landed, looking at the withered tree emitting a faint white light before him.

That withered tree was not as massive as the giant tree outside; it looked just like the ugly tree before it was activated, only slightly larger than that ugly tree, and without leaves.

Instead, it bore fruits identical to the fake bodhi fruits outside, but smaller in size.

In this pitch-black space, all the light was maintained by this withered tree.

After landing, Zhou Yan surveyed his surroundings.

"Bodhi originally has no tree, nor is there a mirror stand. Since all is void, where can dust alight?"

Zhou Yan recited a classic line from Xuanhuan novels of his previous life, moved by inspiration.

"It seems this is the true bodhi tree."

The Demon Venerable had been here in his memories.

Because he was afraid of getting too close and being outcompeted, and also afraid of going directly to the farthest grand hall and encountering more troublesome enemies, he first came to the bodhi tree, not to where Bai Ling and Zhou Yan went.

However, he also hadn't expected this to be the bodhi tree.

Just as he was enveloped by the space, he saw someone send a signal, doing the same thing Zhou Yan had just done.

It was just that at that time, the first two spaces were still present, holding back some Cultivators, so not as many people arrived as there were now.

But for the Demon Venerable, it was already a lot.

He immediately wanted to run, only to find he couldn't get out.

With the arrival of other Cultivators, a melee had begun, and he was also caught up in it.

Midway through the battle, fruits appeared on the tree, but they were not the coveted special spiritual plants, the bodhi fruits, but rather monsters that absorbed the Cultivators' desires for conflict.

The Demon Venerable, while dodging those monsters and fleeing with his Divine Ability activated, crashed into the bodhi tree and thus entered here.

And according to his memory, that thing should appear now.

"Fellow Daoist, you have good fortune. You know this tree very well. Was it told to you by someone, or is an old acquaintance returning?"

A glowing object, resembling a crash test dummy, walked out from the tree.

This was the Bodhi Tree Spirit from the Demon Venerable's memory? It really looked sloppily put together.

Zhou Yan examined the thing before him, pondering in his mind.

In the Demon Venerable's memory, this part was rather blurry.

This fellow in front of him should be considered something like an examiner for this stage.

The Demon Venerable, not contending or grabbing, had no interest in the bodhi tree from the start, which was why he accidentally crashed into the bodhi tree and came here, seeing this true bodhi tree.

After all, only those who do not yearn for the bodhi tree can directly walk into the tree and come here.

Because of this, this Mr. Dummy explained everything to him.

To get here, the most normal way was to defeat a monster created by the greed of greedy individuals, thus allowing one to enter the great tree and come here to pick the fruits.

However, this was actually a trap. When they still arrived with greed, the tree would become incredibly smooth and impossible to climb, just like the walls of the previous maze.

And out of consideration for the Demon Venerable's lack of greed and his destined fortune, the dummy gave the Demon Venerable a bodhi fruit.

But unfortunately, he wasn't without greed; he was just timid. Given this Opportunity to obtain a bodhi fruit, he naturally still wanted to pick it himself.

Even though the dummy said that this fruit could only be given after its approval, and that attempting to pick it would cause one to fall due to the growth of greed, he still wanted to try.

Then, under the dummy's gaze, which looked like it was watching an idiot, the Demon Venerable climbed up using his Divine Ability and picked another one.

As if it hadn't expected someone or some Yao to develop such a Heaven-Defying and boring Divine Ability, the dummy refused to let him pick any more, merely stuffing another fruit into his hand before kicking him out.

The Tree Spirit, seeing Zhou Yan's prolonged silence, was a little strange and called out again.

"Fellow Daoist, why aren't you speaking?"

Zhou Yan then came back to his senses, coughing twice.

"Nothing, Mr. Dummy—no, Senior, can I pick the fruits now?"

Looking at this strange fellow, the Tree Spirit was also confused.

Zhou Yan looked very familiar with this place, yet he asked a foolish question.

To this, it merely felt a little regretful, then stepped aside, signaling that he could start climbing.

What a pity. If he hadn't been so greedy, he would have at least gotten one. Now, even that one is saved.

It seems no bodhi fruits will flow out this time either.

While the Tree Spirit was feeling regretful, Zhou Yan's expression was serious, but in his heart, he was laughing maniacally.

If the Tree Spirit could see Zhou Yan's equipment bar, it would find that Zhou Yan's shoes had been replaced with the Giant Abyss set's shoes.

With a deep breath, Zhou Yan then burst out with all his strength and sprinted.

While the Tree Spirit was still lamenting that this person had good physical qualities but was a bit too greedy, Zhou Yan, under the Tree Spirit's shocked gaze, rapidly ran up to the treetop and arrived beside the bodhi fruits.

"Oh no, it's that worm's method!"

"You fellow! Stop quickly!"

The Tree Spirit then recalled its dusty memories, remembering that worm that almost ruined its reputation.

No wonder this fellow was so fearless; he's actually the descendant of that damned worm!

Zhou Yan's speed was very fast. For ordinary people, the bodhi tree was a giant tree, but for him, he rushed up in just a few steps.

At the same time, the Tree Spirit also arrived, which he had anticipated long ago.

This fellow wasn't as high-minded as it claimed; it was also a petty one.

If he had directly displayed his ability to climb the tree, he would most likely have left with two or even one fruit, but that wasn't what Zhou Yan wanted.

Watching the Tree Spirit rapidly flying towards him, Zhou Yan just waited quietly.

And the Tree Spirit, seeing Zhou Yan not moving, momentarily forgot that it could kick Zhou Yan out. It just quickly flew to Zhou Yan's side, wanting to grab him.

But at this moment, Zhou Yan smiled.

"Fellow Daoist, so impatient? Do you want to play a few rounds with me?"

Under the Tree Spirit's astonished and shocked gaze, a white jade chessboard appeared between it and Zhou Yan.