Moreover, Immortal Ascendants faced a heavenly tribulation once every thousand years. Each time they survived it, their bodies’ capacity to contain immortal energy increased tenfold. Upon reaching the ninth tribulation, they could ascend to the Immortal Realm and become Golden Immortals immediately upon arrival.
Golden Immortals were still several levels below the Immortal King whom Fu Young had destroyed. Compared with an Immortal King, the combat strength of a Four Tribulation Immortal Ascendant was even less significant.
But those matters were still far beyond the present situation.
Immortal Ascendant Ying Xuanyan had no idea that Fu Young had casually annihilated an Immortal King before. He assumed that the osmanthus tree was only effective against spiritual energy, so he confidently roared and converted his spiritual energy into immortal power, intending to snap the seemingly soft branches.
Unexpectedly, his supposedly unstoppable immortal power was just as ineffective as his spiritual energy!
The situation had become extremely awkward. Ying Xuanyan, who had experienced countless trials throughout his long life, was utterly stunned. For a moment, he had no idea what to do.
Seeing the reaction of a Four Tribulation Immortal Ascendant like Ying Xuanyan, Tushan Shanhe, who might not have been particularly clever but was certainly more intelligent than Xiao Shou, immediately guessed what fate had befallen Immortal King Chenhan, the one who had previously left both him and Xiao Shou in such a miserable state.
He had already been unable to regard Fu Young as an ordinary junior. Now, his wariness toward him deepened further. He realized that he needed to treat Fu Young as a powerful expert whose cultivation surpassed his own and conduct himself accordingly.
Having been made to take the blame twice for no good reason, Tushan Shanhe still could not show the slightest displeasure.
But...
No matter how hard he tried, he simply could not suppress his anger!
Especially when he saw that brat enjoying the company of his own junior while casually dumping the blame onto him, all the while wearing a bright, sunny smile of utter satisfaction. It infuriated him beyond words.
Yet he could not afford to offend that unfathomable brat.
As a result, Ying Xuanyan became the unfortunate target of Tushan Shanhe’s pent up frustration. Unable to resist, the Immortal Ascendant could only endure the humiliation while Tushan Shanhe sneered at him.
"So I’m asking for death, am I? Then come and kill me!"
"You... You..."
Ying Xuanyan’s face flushed red with rage, but he was powerless to do anything.
Seeing this, Shen Wenrui felt extremely awkward. Nevertheless, he could only swallow his pride, take out all the water veins he had just collected, and present them respectfully to Tushan Shanhe.
"Uh! Fellow Daoist Tushan, these are the water veins I collected on your behalf. Please take them back."
"Fellow Daoist Shen, how considerate of you."
Tushan Shanhe spoke with a faint, knowing smile. He casually accepted the dozen or so water veins and tossed them back down below, allowing each to return to its original location.
Only then did he look up at Ying Xuanyan and sneer.
"Heh... What was that you said about me?"
"Hmph!"
Ying Xuanyan had already tried every kind of technique and secret art, yet none had worked. The moment the osmanthus tree’s branches bound him, he had felt as though he had become an ordinary mortal.
All he could do was snort angrily.
Nevertheless, he had struggled his way through countless hardships in the cultivation world to reach the Four Tribulation Immortal Ascendant stage. He had endured more than his fair share of humiliation, even after becoming an Immortal Ascendant, at the hands of more powerful experts.
At least he still knew when it was best to recognize the situation and yield.
Seeing that he had actually swallowed his anger and endured the humiliation, Tushan Shanhe regarded him with a little more respect. He mentally added him to his list of people who needed to be watched carefully, but showed no sign of it on his face. In front of the two men, he simply reached out and drew Xiao Shou and Fu Young up onto the clouds. Looking at Xiao Shou, he asked, "Ah Shou, Fellow Daoist Shen has agreed to allow the Heaven Origin Realm to remain here for at most one more month. After that, it must leave the territory of their Falling Star Gate. What do you intend to do?"
"Uh! Fellow Daoist Tushan, we can still discuss this matter. Once I report back to the gate master, there may be other ways to arrange things." Hearing Tushan Shanhe say this, Shen Wenrui’s rough face flushed completely red. He hurriedly waved his hands, indicating that the matter was still negotiable. Inwardly, he wished he could slap himself for insisting on the one month limit when those people had arrived to divide up the resources of the Heaven Origin Realm.
Tushan Shanhe, however, paid him no attention. Ignoring him completely, he continued asking Xiao Shou, "Ah Shou, what do you intend to do?"
"I..." Xiao Shou gazed down from the sky at the ruined Heaven Origin Realm below. After its ocean water veins and several enormous mountain ranges had been taken away one after another, the realm had been left looking as though it had been gnawed apart by a dog. Yet even in this shattered state, it still provided him with a place to settle after arriving in this unfamiliar world. It was also where he had obtained the many resources that had made him as powerful as he was today.
Even though he had endured oppression, neglect, coercion, scheming, betrayal, and countless other hardships, and even though this land had become a broken ruin and a heavy burden, its significance to him had not changed in the slightest.
Thinking of this, Xiao Shou took a deep breath and looked at Tushan Shanhe with a resolute gaze.
"I want to bring the mortals who are still living on the remaining land under the protection of the Eternal Prosperity Sect."