Chapter 260: The Bodhi Ancient Tree
The Wild Ancient Region lies beyond the northeastern part of the Central Plains. It is known for its harsh weather, toxic miasma, and ancient fierce beasts. However, for someone like Xiao Tian, nothing here could hinder him.
He traversed the endless, towering mountain ranges, encountering many Dou Zun level cultivators along the way. Ignoring them, Xiao Tian concealed himself in the void, continuously moving forward. After passing through a beast tide, he finally reached his destination.
Before him stood an enormous ancient tree, standing alone on a vast plain. A pure aura rippled from the tree, occasionally forming various shapes, appearing mystical and elusive.
"Is this the Bodhi Ancient Tree?"
Xiao Tian gazed at the tree, feeling a power that even made him uneasy. As he approached, he saw the tree's trunk, which was thousands of feet tall, resembling a pillar connecting heaven and earth. The trunk was covered with thick branches, and the canopy spread wide enough to cover an entire city, exuding a powerful life force.
However, Xiao Tian sensed a cold gray aura hidden within the seemingly vibrant pure energy. This gray aura felt familiar yet strange—it was similar to the aura of the alien demons but wasn't from them.
"This aura must be from other extraterrestrial evil clans!"
Xiao Tian thought. There were many types of these evil clans, different from those that invaded the Tianxuan Continent.
Sunlight bathed the ancient tree, making it appear crystalline. Xiao Tian noticed a bright glow about a hundred feet up the trunk. Within this glow was a heart-like object, pulsating with strong beats. Clearly, this glowing energy mass was the Bodhi Heart.
"Buzz!"
Suddenly, the Bodhi Ancient Tree emitted a dazzling beam of light, enveloping Xiao Tian. In a flash, he disappeared and found himself in a white world with no people around, and his memory became somewhat muddled.
"Buzz!"
A light circle appeared ahead, guiding Xiao Tian. Just then, a weak glow appeared on the ancestral stone, and Yan's voice sounded in Xiao Tian's mind.
"Wake up!"
The next moment, Xiao Tian regained his senses, and the world around him shattered like a broken mirror. He found himself in a space filled with vibrant green. In front of him stood a smaller version of the Bodhi Ancient Tree, about ten feet tall, glowing like jade and radiating immense life force. This tree looked identical to the Bodhi Ancient Tree outside, just much smaller.
Quickly, Xiao Tian noticed that the tree was permeated with gray energy, continuously corroding it.
"It seems you want me to help cleanse this negative energy,"
Xiao Tian's eyes flashed. He immediately summoned the three ancestral symbols, the Heaven and Earth Ancient Array, the Ancestral Stone, and the Great Desolate Monument. As these six divine artifacts appeared, purifying light shone upon the ancient tree, causing the gray energy to dissipate.
However, the gray energy was so abundant that it couldn't be purified all at once. As the gray energy reduced, clusters of light emerged from the Bodhi Ancient Tree, landing in front of Xiao Tian. These light clusters contained various images.
Xiao Tian's attention was drawn to one image showing a ten-thousand-foot-tall Bodhi Ancient Tree. Before it stood a black-robed figure shrouded in gray aura, hovering in mid-air. Xiao Tian felt an overwhelming power from this figure, a power that made him tremble.
This figure was clearly a Dou Emperor-level expert. The black-robed figure fought a great battle with the Bodhi Ancient Tree. Eventually, with the help of another Dou Emperor, the black-robed Dou Emperor was killed. However, after his death, a large amount of gray energy flowed into the Bodhi Ancient Tree. The battle severely damaged the tree, reducing its height from ten thousand feet to several thousand feet, and it remained afflicted by the gray energy.
"Hiss!"
After a long time, when the last wisp of gray energy disappeared, the Bodhi Ancient Tree, as bright as jade, radiated a dazzling light. The green light filled the space, making it more vibrant. Xiao Tian saw that the cold and evil aura on the Bodhi Ancient Tree had completely vanished, replaced by peace, holiness, and wisdom.
The ancient tree swayed its branches and leaves joyfully.
"Buzz!"
Then, countless leaves intertwined to form a cushion, placed in front of Xiao Tian.
"Are you asking me to sit on it?"
Xiao Tian sat on the cushion, and a burst of green light enveloped him, merging him with the tree. At that moment, Xiao Tian's mind became exceptionally clear, and his understanding of the world reached an unprecedented level. He closed his eyes and began to meditate.
The Bodhi Ancient Tree possesses three treasures: the Bodhi Heart, the Bodhi Seed, and the enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree. The Bodhi Heart and Bodhi Seed are heavenly treasures, while the enlightenment is an intangible benefit. The tree, known as the Wisdom Reincarnation Tree, is said to allow one to experience a hundred lifetimes, granting the potential to become a Dou Emperor. Although this was just a legend, no one had ever achieved enlightenment under the Bodhi Tree since ancient times.
While Xiao Tian meditated, some forces broke through the beast tide and reached the Bodhi Ancient Tree. These included the Soul Clan, the Gu Clan, and other ancient clans, as well as the Heavenly Demon Phoenix Clan, the Heavenly Underworld Sect, and other factions from the Central Plains. However, they were blocked by five semi-saint-level puppets guarding the tree. None of them were semi-saints, so defeating the puppets required cooperation. If these were real people, the cost to defeat even one would have been enormous.
(End of the chapter)