Walker Of The Worlds

Chapter 3277: The Ephemera Tree

With the rise of the Ephemera Tree, everyone was filled with dread and terror.

They couldn’t even breathe properly, much less move. The sheer aura of a Celestial weighing down upon them was unlike anything they had ever felt before. Most didn’t even know what the tree in front of them truly was.

Only a few among those present had ever come into contact with a Celestial and felt their power. Among them were Lin Mu and his companions, the Patriarch of the Xian Sword Sect, Grand Elder Huo, and the Abbot himself.

Even the other two remaining Transcendents; the Darkhan Emperor and the Elder Ice Drake had never seen a Celestial before, for they had never left their world. They had all heard the legends of Celestials and their mythic power.

And now that they were finally facing one, they realized all that they had heard in the legends had been underestimated. It was far greater than anyone could comprehend.

WOOM.

The Ephemera Tree continued to rise from the ground, its roots tearing free from the earth as it revealed its vast and terrible form. The Baleful Energy that eternally covered the Marshes of Silent Skies was disappearing at a rapid rate, consumed by the hungry Celestial tree.

Its aura grew stronger by the second, filling every living being with a dreadful certainty of their impending end.

WHOOSH. WHOOSH. WHOOSH.

But that wasn’t all the tree was doing. Several of its roots pointed toward the people below, shooting out like whips.

"DODGE IT!" the Patriarch shouted.

Unfortunately, not everyone was as fast as him. Hundreds of cultivators in the army were pierced by the roots. They didn’t even get to cry out before their bodies were drained dry within a second and turned to dust.

"We need to get away! We can’t face this!" the Grand Elder shouted.

"Protect the juniors and defend their retreat!" the Abbot ordered, as he controlled the True Icon of Acala.

With one hand, he swung the Wisdom Sword that burned away the roots, and with the other, the noose wrapped around an entire cluster nearly a hundred meters wide.

And yet, nothing seemed to stop the roots... only delay them briefly.

"So this is the power of a Celestial..." The Darkhan Emperor spoke in disbelief.

Little Shrubby, now standing beside Lin Mu, growled as he too felt suppressed. He had already reverted to his normal form and was gravely injured. Weakened after the explosive attack, it was a wonder he could even stand.

"Return to the Sleepscape, Shrubby," Lin Mu said, knowing the beast had no place here right now.

SHUA.

Little Shrubby disappeared in a wisp of light while Xiao Yin and Xiao Yang crawled up Lin Mu’s shoulders now that he had returned to his normal form. He didn’t maintain his Demonic Form for it was unsuitable for the moment. He would only be a bigger target.

"What do we do now, Lin Mu?" Daoist Chu asked.

For the first time in a long while, Lin Mu had no answer.

WHOOSH. WHOOSH. WHOOSH.

More roots rained down from the skies like deadly arrows, piercing another few hundred soldiers. The Transcendents and Lin Mu tried to protect as many as they could, but the power of a Celestial was otherworldly.

ZING.

Just as Lin Mu had struck down a cluster of roots, another attack came from behind him.

"LIN MU!" the Transcendents and Lin Mu’s companions shouted in fear.

The Patriarch moved first, but he was blocked by more roots. The Abbot tried the same, yet he too was stopped. The others were similarly hindered, and it seemed certain that the root would pierce through Lin Mu’s head.

Even his Burdenless Dominator Physique might not withstand the might of a Celestial.

Lin Mu’s eyes widened as he turned, the roots mere inches from his skull.

HISSSSSS!

At that moment, the twins acted.

The symbols on their heads glowed as the ward placed upon them long ago suddenly activated.

SHUA.

The sigils of two coiling serpents holding black and white jades appeared in the air before expanding into a shield.

BANGGGG!

The shield not only stopped the roots targeting Lin Mu but destroyed them entirely, turning them to dust upon contact.

HUALA.

At the same time, a new presence was felt.

Lin Mu and the Transcendents sensed it first... it was simply too powerful to ignore. Despite the overwhelming aura of the Ephemera Tree, it managed to stand apart.

"She’s here!" the twins hissed in joy.

Lin Mu looked up and saw a faint figure hovering in the sky. Her body was cloaked in pure white clouds, while her aura radiated outward like the waves of a great ocean.

"Saintess..." Lin Mu whispered.

The Patriarch, seeing her, was stunned. "Another Celestial?"

"Honored Celestial!" the Abbot immediately recognized her voice.

Cattaleya soon spotted her as well and exhaled in relief.

"If it’s her, then... we might just have a chance," she murmured.

The Saintess raised her finger and waved it lightly.

SHUA. SHUA. SHUA. SHUA. SHUA.

Millions of clouds formed around the cultivators, wrapping them in protective veils.

The clouds looked soft and ethereal, yet they halted the roots of the Ephemera Tree as if made of unbreakable divine steel. The Transcendents could scarcely believe their eyes.

"You know who that is?" the Patriarch asked, looking between Lin Mu and the Abbot.

"Yes," the Abbot replied with reverence. "She’s the Honored Celestial who came with Lin Mu. She has been at the Silent Lotus Temple all this time."

"She’s with Lin Mu?" the Patriarch asked, astonished.

While he had long suspected that Lin Mu had the backing of a Celestial, he had never imagined she would personally intervene on their behalf. He knew the rules binding Celestials were absolute... they could rarely act in lower realms.

To interfere meant incurring divine penalties, their own celestial essence weakened as retribution.

Yet here she was.

The Saintess’s presence was serene yet immeasurable, and her divine clouds rippled with transcendent power. Her serpentine eyes, glowing like emerald moons through mist, fell upon the Ephemera Tree.