The Sacred Leaves Family's Wishes for Peace

As Fang Hao was still dozens of miles away from the towering tree, he suddenly noticed the presence of others nearby—none other than Yun Chenglai and Fairy Qingyu, who had pursued him into this place.

They, too, spotted Fang Hao and immediately flared with fury, pointing at him in anger.

"You damn bastard! If it weren't for you, we wouldn't have come to this godforsaken place! I swear I'll kill you!!!"

Back in Zhentian City, Yun Chenglai had always played the part of the refined gentleman, his manner graceful and dignified, admired by many.

Who would've thought he had such a side to him?

Fang Hao sneered coldly and retorted,

"You're blaming me for putting you in danger? If you hadn't chased me down for the treasure, you wouldn't have ended up here."

"Enough talk—attack him!" Fairy Qingyu shouted sharply.

Just as Yun Chenglai and Fairy Qingyu were about to strike, a sudden change erupted.

"Swish, swish, swish!!"

From the ground behind them, thick vines and branches, each roughly three feet in diameter, burst forth and surged upward.

These branches rose in formation like a woven cage, interlocking to form impenetrable walls on all sides.

The woven walls quickly connected, forming a sealed cage that trapped them within.

"This is bad! There's danger here—run!!"

Faced with imminent peril, Yun Chenglai and Fairy Qingyu forgot all about Fang Hao and turned to charge at the wall of branches, swinging their weapons and unleashing brilliant attacks in an attempt to break through.

"Boom!!"

"Boom!!"

The dazzling strikes landed, but the vine-walls remained unscathed.

"What?!"

The pair turned pale, horrified.

Despite both being at the fourth level of the True Saint Realm, they were completely powerless against the vines.

The vines composing the wall had already grown to a height of over 3,000 feet. If they continued to rise, they would soon merge with the branches of the towering tree and form a complete cage.

Fang Hao tried several methods to break free as well, but none were effective.

"Whoosh!"

Just then, a tall cultivator in green robes flew in from a distance—also a True Saint Realm expert.

"You all got driven here by those spirit-possessed plants too?"

The three nodded.

The green-robed cultivator said,

"Let's break through the wall together!"

"Good!" Yun Chenglai quickly agreed.

For the sake of survival, he was willing to set aside even a deep grudge.

The four launched a joint assault on one point.

"Boom!"

"Bang!!"

The thick branch was only gouged a mere inch and a half deep—four fingers wide—and swiftly healed.

Seeing this, all four turned ashen-faced.

Clearly, their combined strength wasn't enough to break free.

"Damn it! We can't wait any longer!"

Yun Chenglai took out an unremarkable-looking talisman.

The green-robed cultivator's eyes widened in shock.

"A Void Escape Talisman!!"

Fang Hao had heard of it too—it was a precious escape treasure crafted by immortals, immensely valuable.

Given Yun Chenglai's powerful backers, it wasn't too surprising for him to possess such a thing.

In the Immortal Realm, the laws of heaven and earth were more refined. Even Emperor-level cultivators couldn't traverse space or create such items—only immortals could.

"Snap!!"

Just as Yun Chenglai was about to activate the talisman, a slender tree branch silently whipped toward him and sent him flying.

Before he could recover, another branch descended from the towering tree and wrapped around him like a dumpling, binding him completely. Even his mouth couldn't open—only his eyes could still move.

It was then that Fang Hao noticed something horrifying.

The massive "fruits" hanging from the tree weren't fruits at all—they were cultivators bound like Yun Chenglai. Some of them were still alive, likely captured earlier.

"This..."

Everything had happened too quickly. The others had no time to react before Yun Chenglai was captured.

When they realized that all those "fruits" hanging on the tree were actually captured top-tier cultivators, their faces turned pale, and their hearts sank into an abyss of despair.

The branch began hoisting the trussed-up Yun Chenglai toward the tree, ready to hang him as another "fruit." His eyes widened, staring at Fairy Qingyu, as if screaming:

"Save me!!"

Fairy Qingyu lunged forward, trying to cut through the branch, but within moments, she too was bound.

The green-robed cultivator fared no better. He had no chance to resist and was quickly turned into another fruit.

It was clear now—this was far beyond their strength. Even a True Saint powerhouse would likely perish here.

The tree seemed to operate on a pattern—going after the strongest first. With Fang Hao next in line, he suddenly changed direction and flew downward toward the base of the tree.

At the same time, he activated a secret technique to boost his cultivation, maximizing his escape speed.

Even so, the branches closed in visibly, and capture seemed inevitable.

As he neared the base of the tree, Fang Hao's spiritual sense clearly saw the state of the cultivators hanging from its branches.

Each one wore an expression of agonizing despair—the kind of pain worse than death.

A branch as thick as a thumb pierced through their bodies and into their dantians, drawing out their rich spiritual essence and funneling it into the tree.

They were like living fertilizer, being drained of all energy, blood, and flesh—slowly, painfully.

Worst of all, they remained conscious the entire time, forced to feel themselves being consumed.

Fang Hao even saw a genius at the ninth level of the True Saint Realm among them—now nothing more than another "fruit," silently enduring unimaginable torment.

From the moment one entered this ancient ruin, there were only two outcomes—death or being turned into a living fruit on the tree.

Had those who came before known their fate, they would've fled at all costs—or fought those sentient plants to the bitter end.

At this moment, the branches were less than 40 feet from Fang Hao. He was moments away from becoming another "fruit."

"Sigh... no choice. Time to leave."

Fang Hao closed his eyes, summoned the Twin Gate, and stepped through it.

"Snap!!"

His figure vanished instantly. In the next moment, he returned to his residence in the Fang Family courtyard back in the Cangzhou region of the Tianyuan Realm.

The branches that had lunged toward him lashed at empty air—left to seek another target.