# Chapter 500: Tree Ancestor, Origin Qi
Five thousand miles away from Black Wood Plain, there was a vast, boundless wilderness with flat and open terrain.
On this wilderness, a small city had been built, constructed from giant stones, complete with watchtowers, martial training grounds, and mansions.
The patrol army dispatched by the Ministry of War to the Wood Essence Ruins Realm was stationed in this city. Although the number of soldiers was not large, every single one was an elite among elites.
At this moment, a soldier standing on the watchtower saw a blood pillar rising from the horizon, piercing through the clouds and shooting straight into the sky.
In that instant, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth throughout the entire Wood Essence Ruins Realm seemed to tremble.
Immediately, this soldier rushed into the city to report the information to the patrol army commander.
"Black Wood Plain is a heavily guarded area under strict supervision by the Ministry of War. Since a blood pillar has risen from the altar deep within Black Wood Plain, something extraordinary must have happened."
The patrol army commander immediately gave orders, dispatching the First Patrol Squad and the Second Patrol Squad to rush to Black Wood Plain, instructing them to investigate what had occurred.
Each squad consisted of only ten members.
However, both the First Patrol Squad and the Second Patrol Squad were composed of experts among experts. The weakest soldier among them had reached the Heavenly Extreme Realm Great Perfection level.
The captain of the First Patrol Squad and the captain of the Second Patrol Squad were even powerful figures at the Fish-Dragon Fourth Transformation level. They had already opened one sacred meridian within their bodies, allowing them to convert true qi into a small amount of sacred qi.
With their strength, even if they forcefully charged into the Treefolk Clan, no one could stop them.
"Black Wood Plain is a critical area among critical areas. If anything goes wrong, it might reach the ears of Her Majesty the Empress herself. Everyone must act cautiously and not be careless."
The captain of the First Patrol Squad, with a solemn expression, was the first to leap onto the head of the Purple Qilin Bi King Beast, soaring into the air.
Following him, the other soldiers also mounted their barbarian beasts and flew toward Black Wood Plain.
...
...
After entering the stone gate, the surroundings became extremely cold. There seemed to be ice crystals on the ground, and stepping on them produced a "crackling" sound.
Zhang Ruochen released his Space Domain and spiritual power, carefully descending along a stone staircase leading underground.
In his Qi Sea, the Cosmic Divine Wood Map became active.
A faint light radiated from the scroll.
Clearly, it had already sensed the origin qi of the Wood Essence Ruins Realm. As Zhang Ruochen walked deeper underground, the light of the Cosmic Divine Wood Map grew brighter and brighter.
He didn't know how long he walked before finally reaching the bottom of the altar.
The space at the bottom of the altar was quite vast, as large as four football fields. The surroundings were pitch black, with only a red glow illuminating the center.
When Zhang Ruochen approached, he discovered it was actually a massive blood pool.
The pool was filled entirely with blood—not only the blood of treefolk but also the blood of barbarian beasts and humans. All kinds of blood gathered together, emitting a strong, bloody odor.
At the edge of the blood pool, various patterns were carved.
One end of these patterns connected to the blood pool, while the other end connected to the ground. Looking from afar, these patterns resembled blood vessels, giving off an eerie feeling.
"Why are there so much barbarian beast and human blood here?"
Suddenly, Zhang Ruochen sensed a violent and raging energy rushing toward him from behind.
Startled, he immediately turned around.
"Whoosh!"
A shadow flashed before his eyes.
Before he could clearly see what the other party looked like, a powerful force struck his chest, sending him flying.
"Bang!"
Zhang Ruochen slammed heavily into the stone wall, fell to the ground, propped himself up with one hand, and spat out a mouthful of blood with a "wow" sound.
He lifted his head and looked forward, seeing an old man standing by the blood pool, only about one meter sixty tall, dressed in a gray robe.
It had a human form but was a treefolk.
Its body was composed of tree trunks as thick as fingers, and even its hair and beard were wooden tendrils. Every part of its body was made of wood.
"You are the Tree Ancestor of the Treefolk Clan?"
Zhang Ruochen suppressed his injuries, slowly stood up, and stared at the old man across from him.
From the other treefolk, Zhang Ruochen had naturally heard the name "Tree Ancestor."
In the entire Treefolk Clan, the only treefolk with such powerful cultivation was the Tree Ancestor. It wasn't difficult to guess.
The Tree Ancestor's voice was somewhat dry and cold. "Death God from beyond the realm, you dare to come here. What exactly do you want?"
Vaguely, a powerful pressure emanated from the Tree Ancestor's body, as if it intended to use its formidable strength to crush Zhang Ruochen's will.
Zhang Ruochen remained expressionless and smiled. "I want to ask you the same thing. Why is there so much barbarian beast and human blood beneath the altar? Where did this blood come from?"
Although Zhang Ruochen had been struck by the Tree Ancestor, he appeared to be severely injured.
In reality, protected by the Dragon Pearl, he wasn't seriously hurt. However, spitting out that mouthful of blood made his injuries seem much worse.
This could lull the Tree Ancestor into complacency. As long as he found the right opportunity, Zhang Ruochen could launch a thunderous strike and completely turn the tide.
The Tree Ancestor said, "Since you're about to become a dead man anyway, telling you won't hurt. The blood in the pool was delivered here by your human soldiers."
Zhang Ruochen's eyes showed a hint of surprise. "The Ministry of War sent the blood here?"
"Probably. This was a secret agreement between the high-level members of the Black Wood Treefolk Clan and the human soldiers. We guard the altar for them, and in return, they spare our Black Wood Treefolk Clan, allowing us to continue living and multiplying in Black Wood Plain," the Tree Ancestor said.
Zhang Ruochen quickly asked, "What is the purpose of storing this blood in the altar?"
"The old man doesn't know either," the Tree Ancestor shook its head.
Suddenly, the Tree Ancestor's eyes turned cold. "You've asked too many questions. Now, the old man will send you to hell."
"Whoosh!"
The Tree Ancestor struck out with a palm, and seven wooden vines flew from its palm.
The vines were extremely sharp, like seven long spears thrusting forward, radiating a chilling power. They manifested forty-nine vine shadows, sealing off all escape routes in every direction.
What seemed like a casual palm strike unleashed terrifying power, enough to pierce a Fish-Dragon Third Transformation cultivator into a sieve.
But Zhang Ruochen had been waiting for this opportunity. Just as the Tree Ancestor struck, he performed a Great Space Teleportation, disappearing from his original position and reappearing behind the Tree Ancestor.
"Not good."
The Tree Ancestor was startled, already sensing the spatial fluctuations behind it, knowing Zhang Ruochen was there.
Without even time to turn around, the Tree Ancestor immediately gathered power and struck backward.
"Space Rift."
Zhang Ruochen swung his arm, slashing toward the Tree Ancestor's back.
As his hand swept through, space was torn open, creating a two-meter-long massive crack.
The underground space was too small, and Zhang Ruochen didn't dare recklessly use "Space Collapse," fearing he might be caught in the chaotic space himself. After all, his control over space wasn't that strong yet.
"Chi!"
The Tree Ancestor's arm was severed by the Space Rift, turning into particles of wood powder.
However, its cultivation was profound, and its reaction speed was fast, allowing it to escape with its life.
The Tree Ancestor lunged forward, retreating to a corner, turning around, and staring nervously at Zhang Ruochen. "You weren't injured?"
"Of course I was injured, just not that severely."
Zhang Ruochen continued, "As expected of the Tree Ancestor. Your speed is truly remarkable. That attack just now failed to kill you."
"Since you failed to kill me, then it's your turn to die next."
The Tree Ancestor's severed arm quickly sprouted emerald green tender shoots, and in moments, a wooden arm grew back.
"I may not be your match, but killing me won't be easy for you either."
Having said this, Zhang Ruochen didn't hesitate. He leaped directly, and with a "plop," jumped into the blood pool.
Then, his body completely submerged.
"This Death God from beyond the realm is too foolish. This is no ordinary blood pool. The blood pool contains powerful sacrificial force, enough to refine his body into pus and blood, making it part of the pool."
The Tree Ancestor's eyes stared intently at the blood pool.
A full half hour passed, yet Zhang Ruochen still hadn't emerged from the blood pool.
So, it breathed a sigh of relief, a stiff smile appearing on its face as it gently stroked its beard. "Unexpected, truly unexpected. The Death God from beyond the realm actually jumped into the blood pool and died. Good, saves the old man the trouble."
After jumping into the blood pool, Zhang Ruochen immediately activated his Space Domain, forming a three-meter-diameter air shield as he dove toward the bottom.
According to the guidance of the Cosmic Divine Wood Map, the origin qi of the Wood Essence Ruins Realm was at the bottom of the blood pool.
"I've already descended nearly fifty meters and still haven't reached the bottom. How much human and barbarian beast blood is stored here? Why did the Ministry of War send blood here? Was this altar built by them as well?"
Zhang Ruochen was utterly perplexed.
"Whoosh!"
At that moment, the Cosmic Divine Wood Map violently trembled, transforming into a speck of light that flew out from between Zhang Ruochen's eyebrows, actively flying toward the bottom of the blood pool.
At the bottom of the blood pool, there was actually a small altar, only nine meters tall, also cylindrical in shape and covered with carved patterns.
The origin qi of the Wood Essence Ruins Realm was suppressed beneath this altar.
"Whoosh——"
The Cosmic Divine Wood Map flew over, the scroll unfurling, emitting rays of multicolored light. These rays converged to form a Space Gate, directly absorbing that mass of origin qi into the gate.
Then, the Cosmic Divine Wood Map automatically rolled up, suspended in the blood.
Zhang Ruochen rushed over, grabbed the Cosmic Divine Wood Map, and showed a delighted expression. "Finally succeeded! The Cosmic Divine Wood Map has absorbed the origin qi of the Wood Essence Ruins Realm. Now I should be able to enter that mysterious cultivation state again. Using this opportunity, I can definitely elevate my spiritual power by another level, reaching the forty-second level."
When the Cosmic Divine Wood Map absorbed a mass of origin qi from the Five Elements Ruins Realm, it allowed Zhang Ruochen to enter a wondrous cultivation state, directly elevating his spiritual power to the forty-first level.
The origin qi of the Wood Essence Ruins Realm was ten times more powerful than that mass from the Five Elements Ruins Realm, enough to elevate Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power to the forty-second level.
Once his spiritual power reached the forty-second level, even if Zhang Ruochen only used spiritual power, he could unleash the strength of a Fish-Dragon Fourth Transformation cultivator, greatly increasing his combat power.