"Sect Leader." Yu Changsheng saw Lu Ran return and immediately asked, "How was it?"

Lu Ran said, "Surprisingly, the guards' attitude was fine. Knowing I'm a disciple of the Immortal Sheep, they didn't trouble me."

"Any news of He Qifeng?"

"They said she went out on a mission and might return soon." As he spoke, a strange look appeared on Lu Ran's face, "He Qifeng even became an official, a Hall Master within Wuji Peak."

"Oh?" Yu Changsheng was quite surprised as well.

This indicates that this woman's abilities are quite outstanding, aren't they?

As a First-class God, the Martial Monk naturally recruits disciples who are all exceptionally gifted.

There must be experts as numerous as clouds on Wuji Peak!

To stand out in such a powerful force and become a Hall Master, battle strength alone is not enough!

Moreover, considering He Qifeng is still young and hasn't been at the mountain for long, her achievements are remarkable...

Wisdom and tactics are indispensable.

Thinking of this, Yu Changsheng looked forward to He Qifeng's joining even more.

"Let's come back in a few days to see." Lu Ran suggested.

"Alright." Yu Changsheng asked, "Shall we open a cave and cultivate quietly for a few days?"

Lu Ran turned and looked southward: "The captive said, several hundred kilometers south of Wuji Peak, there's a withered forest."

Yu Changsheng felt a slight movement in his heart and probed, "Sect Leader wants to infiltrate the Tree Face Demon's ranks?"

The Evil Demon·Tree Face Demon is a kind of Evil Demon resembling a withered tree, named for the terrifying human face on its trunk.

This clan is also the mortal enemy of the Bi Wu faction.

"Just want to see it for myself." Lu Ran neither affirmed nor denied.

Currently, he only had two statue activation slots left, and to increase those, he had to wait until the Sea Realm.

Now Lu Ran was only at the Jiang Realm·Third Rank, and he had to wait for some time to be promoted to the Sea Realm.

He still planned to activate some statues that could fill his own shortcomings first.

For example, Yan Qing faction, or its mortal enemy, the Evil Demon·Sea Merfolk Clan.

Both can let Lu Ran disregard water form skills and even hide in water, which sounds very tempting!

However, the Tree Face Demon clan could also be considered.

After all, this clan is a natural tower defense elite!

More accurately, the Tree Face Demon is the "tower" itself.

Similar to the Bi Wu faction, the Tree Face Demon is an auxiliary type, with decent output and impressive control and defensive abilities!

Its body is quite large, and once its dry branches spread out, the coverage area is vast.

If a Tree Face Demon were planted on the Cloud Sea Cliff, the defensive level of the Ran Sect base camp should be able to take another step up?

Hmm...there are advantages and disadvantages.

After all, the Evil Demon·Tree Face Demon's size is too large, its defensive power is indeed extraordinary, but it also attracts enemies easily.

"Let's go!" Lu Ran ordered.

Whether or not to activate, first capture some souls just in case.

Having been a Believer for so long, Lu Ran had always stayed in a small place like Rain Alley City for fifteen years, not having seen the full variety of Evil Demons, and never having confronted a Tree Face Demon directly.

First fight for a few days and nights, gather some resources, then rest for a few days before returning to visit Wuji Peak.

Wouldn't that be wonderful?

Thus, the three-person team of the Ran Sect headed south.

Only five or six hundred kilometers, the trio walked and stopped, occasionally activating the Transmission Mirror.

Soon, Lu Ran and the others saw the so-called withered forest.

It was really easy to find because the withered forest area was vast!

"Whoa~~~"

On a mountaintop, Lu Ran gazed southward and couldn't help but exclaim.

Prisoner Shi Yali once said: Within a five hundred mile withered forest, there is no vitality, nor sunlight.

These words ring true!

In the Holy Spirit Mountain realm, two things are abundant: mountains and trees.

The trees in the mountains are mostly lush and green, full of vigorous vitality.

Lu Ran had never seen such a lifeless, withered forest!

And its scale was so large, one couldn't see the end?

Lu Ran used Extreme Eye Power to observe. All he saw were giant withered trees emerging from the ground on the distant mountains, with dry branches spreading outward, intertwining with each other.

It's not hard to imagine, the forest within must be pitch black, unseen to sunlight.

"If someone first entering the Holy Spirit Mountain is directly transported into the withered forest, that would be too unfortunate." Lu Ran murmured.

Yu Changsheng nodded in agreement.

"Whew~" After observing for a while, Lu Ran summoned an Ancient Bronze Mirror.

Yu Changsheng immediately reminded, "Sect Leader, the Tree Face Demon's attack range is extensive; the dry branches can extend several hundred meters."

"Mm." Lu Ran responded casually. The oval-term-ancient bronze mirror in his hand transformed into a full-length mirror.

He stepped into the mirror with one foot and then his eyes narrowed!

At the edge of the withered forest several hundred meters away, a Tree Face Demon stood.

It was in a withered tree state, not very tall but quite bulky, and its dry branches were numerous.

On the bark at the middle of the trunk, a cracked human face appeared!

It was expressionless, with deep eye sockets holding a pair of dark yellow eyes, strange and shocking.

Just looking at it gave a person the chills!

Evil Demon Clan·Tree Face Demon!

Each Tree Face Demon has its own territory.

And within tens of meters around this Tree Face Demon, the ground was cracked in large swathes, without any sign of life.

Ordinary trees appeared half-dead, all tightly wrapped by the dry branches of the Tree Face Demon.

The root cause of this situation is that this clan possesses a cruel healing skill!

Evil Technique·Corrupt Wood Spring!

The Tree Face Demon can absorb the life force of other beings to replenish itself.

Lu Ran had once seen some online pictures, where unfortunate Human Clans died in particularly miserable states, mummified by the Tree Face Demon!

"Mr. Cong Long."

"Sect Leader?"

Lu Ran gestured toward the distant withered forest: "Why not knock over a small boat there and let me have a feast?"

Yu Changsheng: "..."

You call an eight hundred-meter Dragon Carp Heavenly Boat a small boat?

Lu Ran chuckled, "My Mo Li Submarine is a Defense Skill, too slow, and not enough momentum."

Yu Changsheng thought for a moment and said, "Sect Leader, since the withered forest has been here for so long, it means that this clan is extremely powerful overall!

There are probably many Sea Realm Great Demons in the forest, only then can they protect their base camp thoroughly."

Lu Ran nodded lightly, "What Mr. said makes sense."

Yu Changsheng continued to persuade, "If we merely skirmish, we might manage to kill for a while.

But if we escalate the fight too quickly, the enemy might deploy Great Demons."

"Makes sense!" Lu Ran acknowledged immediately.

The suffering he encountered at the Night Charm Base Camp a few days ago was still fresh in his memory.

"Then let me handle this." Lu Ran casually summoned a small paper figure.

Yu Changsheng raised his eyebrows slightly.

It's rare to see Lu Ran use the Evil Technique of the Yan Zhi Clan.

Lu Ran gazed towards the most distant, solitary Tree Face Demon and cast his spell.

In the mysterious unknown, the small paper man in his palm connected with the giant tree.

"Crack! Crack! Crack..."

As Lu Ran slowly clenched the small paper man, the distant withered wood seemed to be gripped by an invisible giant hand.

The thick trunk was being crushed little by little, and the cracked face on the tree kept twisting.

The terrifying human face on the tree indeed had a "mouth" organ, but that was just for show; the Tree Face Demon clan itself couldn't make any sounds.

"Crack..."

The River Realm·Tree Face Demon had no ability to resist, its intricate dry branches were immobile, ultimately crushed.

Yu Changsheng couldn't help but feel a chill in his heart.

Was the Tree Face Demon's Evil Technique sinister and cruel enough?

Enough!

But the Sect Leader's methods were far more ruthless than the Evil Demons!

"Killing them one by one, how long will it take to finish?" Lu Ran was displeased.

Since the Tree Face Demon is withered wood, naturally it's weak to fire.

Lu Ran really wanted to take out the Lie Tian Hammer and smash it in a grand style...

However, doing so would create quite a commotion, wouldn't it?

No choice, the situation here was too unique; the withered forest was the base camp of the Tree Face Demon Clan and must be handled with utmost caution.

It must be noted that the Tree Face Demon Clan are neither the kind to stand still!

On the contrary, they have flexible dry branches, all capable of uprooting themselves and "springing forward" directly...

"Got it!" Lu Ran's eyes lit up.

He extended his left hand, and from within his wide cloak, a Dawn Blade shot out.

Divine Weapon Domain·Blessed Cloud!

"Open!"

Lu Ran had grown fond of this word for some time.

His whole body was teeming with Divine Power, and the Dawn Blade vibrated, slowly releasing a halo of light.

But it was just one halo.

Yu Changsheng was slightly puzzled, "Sect Leader, this is the Divine Weapon Domain; isn't the combat intensity high?"

Lu Ran was fully confident, "Fast kills and small commotion! Just watch, sir!"

Yu Changsheng: "..."

The golden-red halo drifted forward like a gentle and light gauze along the ground.

"Swoosh!" At the edge of the withered forest, another withered tree sensed the anomaly and immediately extended numerous dry branches.

"Whoosh~"

The dry branches were incinerated instantly.

Lu Ran's aura swirled around him, his hair flowing, eyes shimmering with luster, displaying his full divinity!

The halo suddenly accelerated toward the Tree Face Demon's root.

The Tree Face Demon had no effective means of resistance!

Even if it manipulated dry branches to form a thick shield, it couldn't block the halo from penetrating and burning through the trunk.

Two big words – Nature's Nemesis!

"Let's go, we'll find the stragglers and circle around the forest edges~"

Lu Ran held the blade with both hands in front of his body, stepping forward steadily.

Let's feast on them first!

[Sect Leader, someone is approaching from the northwest direction!] Suddenly, Yan Shuangzi's voice came into Lu Ran's mind.

Lu Ran frowned slightly and looked back to the right: [You hide first.]

[Understood.]

"Halo! Dawn Blade?!" A voice called out from afar, approaching quickly.

From the sound, it was clear the person was moving very fast.

Lu Ran was baffled.

Who could accurately identify the Dawn Blade's name...oh my?

Lu Ran blinked and saw a few figures dashing from the lush northern mountains.

At the forefront was a young woman with a tall and straight posture, exuding heroic spirit.

She was dressed in a gold-brown martial monk attire, sleek and breezy, with her short black hair fluttering.

"Oh my?" Lu Ran was quite surprised, smiling, "Isn't this someone? Isn't this the famous Da Xia's second Heavenly Pride?"

He Qifeng was equally surprised and delighted!

The two of them indeed had little interaction before.

Only during the awards ceremony before the New Year did the two shake hands and exchange a few words backstage.

Lu Ran had dismissed her challenge very straightforwardly, which did not leave her very pleased.

And now, being able to meet Lu Ran within the Holy Spirit Mountain, He Qifeng felt nothing but an immense sense of familiarity!

"Ha ha!" He Qifeng laughed heartily, "You little rascal, you haven't changed a bit! Still as irritating as before!

Good!

Looks like even the Holy Spirit Mountain couldn't do anything about you, huh? Ha ha!"

...

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