The East Mountain Sea of Dongling Kingdom is extremely far from the Qi Prefecture, where Xu Yang resides. It took Xu Yang an entire day and night to reach the Dongshan Sea aboard his spiritual vessel.
Flying over the vast expanse of the Dongshan Sea, Xu Yang circled above it multiple times but did not see any trace of the Deep Sea Blue Heart.
After inquiring, Xu Yang learned that the Deep Sea Blue Heart would appear next month on the night of the full moon, which was still more than ten days away.
So, Xu Yang finally decided to rest on a small island in the Dongshan Sea while he waited for the upcoming full moon.
Although it was an island, its size was immense, stretching as far as the eye could see. The island was lush and green, filled with dense trees.
At the center of the island stood a solitary peak, resembling a sword drawn from its scabbard, piercing the sky.
"That's a good spot," Xu Yang murmured to himself, steering his vessel toward it.
However, upon reaching the peak, Xu Yang was surprised to find a sect standing there.
Judging by the scale of the sect, it was no small operation.
"I thought this place was uninhabited. I didn't expect there to be a sect here," Xu Yang muttered in amazement.
Since there was a sect, Xu Yang figured it would be worth checking out. Perhaps they knew something about the Deep Sea Blue Heart.
He gently landed his spiritual vessel on an open patch of land and walked toward the sect.
As he approached the entrance, Xu Yang saw a towering ancient tree adorned with pale blue flowers, glowing faintly.
"That's the Minghan Ancient Tree!" Xu Yang exclaimed, almost stumbling in his excitement.
The essence of the Minghan Ancient Tree's roots could be used to refine the Mingyin Pills.
Mingyin Pills could help Golden Core cultivators advance to Nascent Soul.
"I can't believe I've found this tree here. What a fortunate discovery!" Xu Yang's eyes gleamed with excitement as he walked up to the tree, thinking about how he might go about acquiring it.
To obtain the essence from the tree's roots, he would need to uproot it and chop off its roots, effectively destroying the tree. The tree's growth cycle took thousands, even tens of thousands of years. Xu Yang wondered if the tree had an owner.
As he contemplated, a voice suddenly called out from behind him.
"Hey, who are you? What are you staring at?"
Xu Yang turned to see a Foundation Establishment cultivator from the sect, judging by his robes.
"I'm not doing anything," Xu Yang replied casually, glancing at the cultivator before turning back to inspect the Minghan Ancient Tree, ignoring the man.
"Hey! I'm talking to you! Why are you staring at our protective sect tree?" the cultivator said, his tone now much sharper. He eyed Xu Yang suspiciously.
"Are you here looking for the Deep Sea Blue Heart too?" Xu Yang asked, turning to face him.
"Yeah, lately there have been a lot of people coming here looking for it," the cultivator said, nodding. "And don't just stare at our tree like that. It's our sect's spiritual guardian tree. It's been awakened, so be careful. If you offend it, you're as good as dead. This tree has the strength of a Nascent Soul cultivator."
Xu Yang was taken aback. The Minghan Ancient Tree had awakened?
While the tree was thousands of years old, for it to awaken, it would require rare circumstances.
Suddenly, Xu Yang turned to the cultivator and asked, "Why are you so calm when you see me? Does your sect frequently have outsiders visiting?"
Xu Yang had assumed that a sect on a remote island would not get many visitors, but the cultivator's response was unexpected.
"Ha, even though our Sea Soul Sect is located on a lonely island, we don't get many visitors, but lately, because of the Deep Sea Blue Heart, a lot of people have come, so we're used to it," the cultivator said with a shrug.
"Alright," Xu Yang nodded. "In that case, please inform your sect leader. I've decided to take your protective tree."
The cultivator was momentarily stunned. "What did you just say?"
Without waiting for a response, Xu Yang suddenly kicked the Minghan Ancient Tree.
Boom…
The tree shook, and its leaves fell like snowflakes.
But the leaves didn't land on the ground. Instead, they transformed into flying daggers, shooting toward Xu Yang.
Swish, swish, swish…
Over a thousand leaves darted toward him like sharp blades, each surrounded by swirling black energy, raining down on Xu Yang.
These weren't mere decorations; if a regular Nascent Soul cultivator were hit, they would be reduced to a mass of holes in seconds.
Xu Yang was momentarily surprised but quickly realized the tree had awakened and sensed his malicious intent. It wasn't surprising that it would retaliate.
However, did Xu Yang fear the tree's attack?
With a casual sidestep, Xu Yang easily dodged the leaves.
But to his surprise, the leaves curved and shot back toward him, this time with even more intensity.
"Can it really do that?" Xu Yang thought, his eyes narrowing.
The leaves slammed into the ground, exploding on impact, sending debris flying. The Sea Soul Sect's towering gates were shattered into pieces.
"What do you think you're doing?" The cultivator stared at Xu Yang in shock.
"I've decided to take the Minghan Ancient Tree. It's mine now," Xu Yang grinned, excitement in his eyes.
The stronger the tree, the more essence it would contain, which meant more power for him.
"How dare you!" a furious voice rang out from behind Xu Yang, followed by the sharp whistle of a sword cutting through the air.
A blue spiritual sword shot toward Xu Yang, with a wave of blue sword Qi crashing down behind it like a massive ocean wave.
In the wake of the sword, a massive blue wing could be seen, exuding an intimidating aura that made it seem as though it could steal one's soul with a single glance.
"Da Yan Blue Wing Sword Technique?" Xu Yang froze in place.
This was the sword technique he had once taught to his disciple!
How did this person know it?
Above, Xu Yang's gaze met the stunned eyes of Xu Mengyao, who had also been caught off guard. The Da Yan Blue Wing Sword Technique was a closely guarded secret of the Sea Soul Sect, reserved only for the sect's Holy Maiden, and only she knew its name.
Yet this unknown young man, who had appeared out of nowhere, not only recognized the technique but also knew its name.
Xu Mengyao's blue spiritual sword flicked, causing the previous attack to dissipate.
"Who are you? How do you know the name of my sword technique?" she demanded, her voice cold and sharp, as her sword hovered dangerously close to Xu Yang's neck.