Just as Xu Ming was about to touch the main fruit of the Blood Bodhi, he realized that two other individuals were reaching for it at the same time.
All three of them halted momentarily, exchanging glances.
None of them had expected that someone else could be just as fast as they were! Without hesitation, they each struck out with a palm. The resulting impact sent all three flying backward in different directions.
Steadying himself, Xu Ming took a closer look at his two opponents.
One of them was clad in attire resembling that of the barbarian tribes, with a few streaks of paint smeared across his face.
The other wore exotic garments, exuding a demonic aura. Judging by his presence, he was likely a prodigy from the Southern Demon Kingdom.
“I never thought I’d meet someone in the same realm who could withstand my palm strike.”
The same thought flashed through all three of their minds, each of them showing a hint of shock.
It wasn’t arrogance—this situation had simply never occurred before. In their understanding, a strike of that magnitude should have left the opponent either dead or crippled. Yet, their adversaries’ techniques were just as fierce, completely shattering their expectations.
Xu Ming was the first to react. Without hesitation, he charged toward the Blood Bodhi’s main fruit once again.
If he could get his hands on it first, he would have Shi Xin’s defensive spells from the Buddhist sect, and with the movement technique taught by the “Thief,” even though he couldn’t fly, he could still escape from Blood Bodhi Mountain.
More importantly, in Xu Ming’s mind, there was no room for failure—the main fruit of the Blood Bodhi was crucial.
If he failed to obtain it, Qingwan’s path to the Dao would be nearly impossible to mend.
However, the other two weren’t about to let Xu Ming take the Blood Bodhi’s main fruit so easily.
They, too, lunged for it.
The three of them engaged in a fierce battle around the coveted fruit.
The cultivators gathered beneath the tree watched the clash, momentarily dazed.
Most of the cultivators who had entered the Rootless Secret Realm were of similar cultivation realms. At most, one might be slightly stronger than the others by a single stage.
But the power displayed by these three completely shattered their understanding of the Dragon Gate Realm.
In fact, it felt as though these three had completely rewritten the conventional cultivation realms.
“Is this even still the Dragon Gate Realm? Why do they seem more terrifying than Nascent Soul cultivators?”
Amidst the chaos, some cultivators attempted to take advantage of the situation, hoping to sneak in and snatch the Blood Bodhi’s main fruit while the three were preoccupied.
However, they were gravely mistaken.
The moment any outsider dared approach with ill intent, all three combatants would simultaneously turn on them without hesitation.
Among all the cultivators in the Rootless Secret Realm, there were likely very few who could withstand a combined strike from these three.
Those who attempted to steal the fruit were instantly annihilated, their souls scattered into oblivion.
After witnessing such a fate, no one else dared to step forward. They could only watch the Blood Bodhi’s main fruit from a distance, salivating in frustration.
Still, some among them hoped the three combatants would fight to the death, allowing an outsider to claim the prize once the dust settled.
“A barbarian from the Northern Wastelands, a bookworm from the Central Plains… Hah, this is getting interesting.”
The man from the Southern Demon Kingdom sneered.
He reached into his storage pouch and pulled out an array diagram.
With a wave of his hand, a formation appeared in the air above the Blood Bodhi tree.
From within the array, a majestic blue qilin emerged.
“Boom!”
The qilin spat out a stream of blue flames toward Xu Ming.
Xu Ming responded with a slash of sword energy, testing the power of the summoned beast.
The moment his sword energy clashed with the blue flames, an explosion erupted.
Xu Ming was sent plummeting from the hundred-meter-high tree.
Crashing into the ground, he spat out a mouthful of blood. His chest was scorched, his clothes burned away in places, revealing charred flesh.
“Top Scholar, are you alright?”
Finally, an opportunity presented itself. Zeng Rong and his three companions crept forward.
Just as Xu Ming was about to stand up, Zeng Rong drew a poisoned dagger and plunged it straight toward Xu Ming’s back!
Zeng Rong was certain that this strike would succeed!
Unfortunately, just as the dagger was mere millimeters away from piercing Xu Ming’s heart, it abruptly halted, unable to move an inch further.
Zeng Rong looked down in shock.
Xu Ming’s hand had clamped onto his wrist.
Even though his chest had already been pierced through, Xu Ming still maintained his vigilance.
Zeng Rong couldn’t believe it.
Had Xu Ming not been constantly on guard, there was no way he could have detected the assassination in time.
This meant that Xu Ming had never trusted him from the start!
“If he never trusted me, then why did he let me live in the first place?”
Seeing that their plan had failed, Wang Mingshan and the others immediately lunged forward, their weapons thrusting toward Xu Ming.
But Xu Ming merely threw out a single punch.
A surge of powerful martial energy exploded outward, sending all four men crashing to the ground.
Their internal organs were completely shattered.
Clutching their chests, they lay on the ground, writhing in agony.
Xu Ming glanced at them indifferently.
With a flick of his sword, a cage of sword energy formed around them, trapping them completely.
Already severely injured, they now found even breaking through a mere sword-energy prison to be a distant luxury.
Xu Ming cast another cold glance at them—his eyes filled with the same disregard one might show stray dogs by the roadside.
Without wasting any more time, he turned his attention back to the battle for the Blood Bodhi’s main fruit.
Xu Ming knew that these two opponents were on par with him in terms of cultivation quality.
Not to mention, he was facing a two-on-one situation—or even worse.
With that in mind, Xu Ming no longer held anything back.
He unleashed his Blood Qi Frenzy Mode to its absolute limit.
Empowered by the Dao-Pattern Eyes, Xu Ming leaped onto the tree.
Executing the Grass Script Sword Technique, he slashed down with a single stroke.
A crimson wave of sword energy roared toward his two opponents.
Both of them were startled, but they quickly regained their composure.
Chanting incantations, they struck out with their palms, dispersing Xu Ming’s sword energy.
Without hesitation, Xu Ming picked one of them at random.
Sword in hand, he unleashed a relentless flurry of strikes—each swing as wild as it was precise!
The demon-clan man took hit after hit, feeling as though he was facing a madman!
And yet, every one of Xu Ming’s strikes was meticulously aimed at his weakest defensive points.
“Those eyes...!”
A chill ran down the demon man’s spine as he stared into Xu Ming’s gaze, where the Dao-Patterns flickered ominously.
“What the hell...?”
His mind cursed in disbelief.
What kind of monster was this man?
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His sword energy was terrifyingly sharp—fine.
He could even enter a Blood Qi Frenzy Mode, just like the demon race—fine.
But those eyes...!
They seemed to pierce straight through reality itself!
“How the hell does he have so many strange techniques?!”