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Chapter 675: Chapter 681: Poisoning Someone
"Alas! Nobody listens to good advice, so don’t blame me for being ruthless!"
The green-eyed cultivator sneered coldly, "If you don’t want to go, then stay behind!"
As soon as these words fell, a streak of black-green light shot out, pouncing towards a cultivator in the early Nascent Soul stage.
"Ah!"
The man didn’t expect him to act as soon as he said he would, and he was a beat too slow in reacting. Although he dodged fatal injury, his right arm was pierced through, emitting a rotten, foul stench.
Clearly, the attacker’s strike was laced with deadly poison!
In just a few breaths, his complexion turned deathly pale; if he continued to linger there, his life was definitely in danger.
"You are the poisoner Green Poison from Sky Ridge Mountain!"
Among the crowd, someone recognized the identity of the green-eyed cultivator, a Nascent Soul cultivator who was respected by thousands, fear apparent in his eyes.
Sky Ridge Mountain, a Divine Transformation Sect in the Southern Domain, may not have the strongest hard power, but it was the force that Southern Domain cultivators feared the most.
The reason for this was that the sect’s cultivators acted without distinction between right and wrong, arrogantly and tyrannically, openly cultivating the Immortal Tao Methods but behaving no differently from Demon Cultivators!
Aside from not slaughtering mortals, in other respects, they were even more extreme!
Now, among the cultivators surrounding the Luminous Green Fruit, there were a few from the Southern Domain. Apart from those who had great confidence in their own strength, the remaining Nascent Souls actually began to slowly retreat.
There were others among the cultivators who knew of Sky Ridge Mountain, but only from written records, and no one completely believed in them. As for the title of poisoner, it was even less known in the Central Domain.
At most, they would just be extra cautious and on guard.
As soon as the poisoner Green Poison made a move, the situation instantly plunged into chaos.
Cultivators against cultivators, cultivators against devil beasts, devil beasts against devil beasts—nearly every being had found an opponent, and the multitude of Spells and Divine Powers were overwhelming.
Upon seeing this, Li Zhirui didn’t take the initiative to fight but instead summoned several thick rank-four vines to protect himself, his mana primed and ready to unleash.
After dealing with another adversary, Green Poison looked back and caught sight of this scene. His eyes narrowed slightly, but in the end, he restrained the urge to attack.
Because from Li Zhirui, he sensed danger!
And now was far from the time to stake it all.
But there’s always some fools who’d fail to see the danger. Seeing Li Zhirui without an opponent and considering him just a mid-Nascent Soul cultivator, they thought he would be an easy target.
However, the moment they engaged in combat with him, they realized how utterly wrong they were!
Li Zhirui was not the easy target they imagined, but a ferocious beast choosing its prey. As one got close, dozens of rank-four vines erupted from the ground, climbing swiftly and without end towards him.
Like a green flood, they rapidly bound him within a narrow vine cage, both arms tied. Two vines, each with sharp wooden needles, aimed one above and one below at his brow and dantian.
Li Zhirui did not kill him. It wasn’t that he was soft-hearted but rather he used him as an example to deter others, saving himself from wasting mana and divine sense on the foolhardy.
After all, the day and night were soon to change, and he needed to ensure he was in perfect condition to contend for the precious Luminous Green Fruit in front of him.
And so, Li Zhirui effortlessly taking down a Nascent Soul cultivator of the same realm greatly deterred the others, and no one dared to provoke him, allowing him to peacefully get through the ensuing chaos.
In fact, aside from his own strength, a large part of the reason lay in the opponent’s underestimation, walking directly into a trap he had already set.
Li Zhirui wasn’t the only smart one. Other powerful cultivators used similar tactics to ensure that no one dared to bother them.
But this also meant that the final competition was bound to be extremely intense and dangerous!
Thus, quite a few cultivators of medium strength voluntarily withdrew from the competition, not intending to waste any more time here.
As for whether they really left or hid around the perimeter, waiting for an opportunity to strike, only they themselves knew.
Time slowly passed, and by the time the moonlight arrived, the first round of clearing the field was completed!
From the original dozens of creatures, now only eight remained!
Among them, there were five cultivators and three devil beasts.
However, they all knew that there must be many creatures still hiding in the dark, peeping at them.
"Non-kindred hearts must differ! These three devil beasts being here is too obstructive. Fellow Daoists, why not join forces to drive them away first? How about that?" It was still that Green Poison who stirred up the second round of slaughter.
"If Daoist friend strikes first, I will surely follow closely behind!" The only Nascent Soul female cultivator among them was the first one to speak in support.
Green Poison cast her gaze towards Li Zhirui and the other two, and seeing them nod, she hesitated no more and pounced on the green python devil beast.
’She’s truly mad!’
Li Zhirui thought to himself that, unless there was a surprise, this person would be the biggest competitor for everyone!
His every move was to gamble with life, to injure the enemy by a thousand while self-harming by eight hundred, yet, oddly enough, he always ended up the victor.
The reason was that his entire body, every strand of hair, and his mana, contained terrifyingly potent poison!
Li Zhirui had stealthily controlled some vines to touch a drop of poison blood that had fallen on the ground, and in just a few breaths of time, that vine completely withered away.
Under the temporary and short-lived concerted efforts of the five cultivators, all three devil beasts fled with injuries!
Next to the Luminous Green Fruit, only the five of them remained, each wary and watching the others, yet the situation bizarrely calmed down, with even Green Poison making no further provocations.
The Taiyin Moon Disc slowly rose into the sky, and when it was high above, a bright white and flawless moonlight shone down, illuminating the Spirit Tree with the fruits.
In an instant, a powerful suction force erupted, devouring all the spiritual energy within several miles, and then the Spirit Fruit emitted a soft moonlight and an overwhelming vitality that enticed people to their downfall!
They had only inhaled a few breaths of the mature Luminous Green Fruit’s aura and already felt rejuvenated, their bodies much lighter. If they could fully consume it, wouldn’t all the toxins, impurities, and various hidden injuries that had accumulated in their bodies over the years be completely healed?
Thinking of this, everyone’s eyes on the Luminous Green Fruit flashed with covetous light!
However, no one dared to be the first to act, the one who would be targeted by everyone else, and there was no movement for a while.
But what happened next enraged Li Zhirui and the others!
About ten feet away from the withering Spirit Tree, a shadow suddenly burst from the ground and reached for the fruit.
"Audacious scoundrel!"
All five acted at almost the same time, determined to prevent the cultivator who had used an escape technique from taking the Spirit Fruit.
Crack―
To their surprise, the cultivator hit by the Divine Ability Spells turned out to be an illusion!
And the Luminous Green Fruit had already been snatched by his real body, who then burrowed into the ground and disappeared without a trace.
Li Zhirui’s expression turned extremely grim; it was a cultivator proficient in earth escape techniques!
Burrowing into the earth, like birds returning to the woods or fish diving into the sea, and his understanding of the earth escape technique was limited only to the basics.
