Emperor’s Domination

Ye Xiaoxiao answered with derision: "Please, Ego King, stop thinking so highly of yourself all the time. I would rather marry a random dog or cat before you." [1]

He laughed and said: "Fine, go marry a dog then."

"You have a problem!" She angrily gritted her teeth before stomping on his foot once more while fiercely glaring at him.

Li Qiye held her back with one hand and said: "Okay, little girl, play nice now. We'll go to the Divine Tree Ridge."

"Let's go then, you think I'm afraid?" She hummed before escaping from his clutch.

"Alright, let's go." He continued forward.

"What are we going to do there?" She hurriedly followed him like an inquisitive child.

He smiled and replied: "A little observing."

Her eyes lit up right away: "Is a treasure coming out? Ego King, there's no way you would go to the ridge for no reason."

"Who says so? I can't go there to enjoy the sceneries?" He smiled mysteriously.

"Bah, I will never trust your lies." She snorted and seemed to glue herself to him. Wherever he went, she would be right behind him since she wished to see his goal for going to the ridge.

He smiled and continued towards his destination with Xiaoxiao right behind him.

The Divine Tree Ridge was one of the twelve burial grounds, one on the same level as the Bonesea in Heaven Spirit. However, it wasn't as dangerous as its counterpart.

Some even said that outside of the Buddhist Funeral Plateau, the ridge was the least dangerous location. In fact, all of these burial grounds were dangerous. The ridge might appear to be safe, but that was only a veil. It was dangerous just like any of the others.

The duo quickly arrived and felt the air blowing into their faces change. Newcomers would come to find that the vast aura of Godhalt came from the Divine Tree Ridge. This aura was as boundless as an ocean. More importantly, an abundance of lifeforce could be found here. People would feel as if they were bathing in its energy at any corner of the ridge, resulting in an indescribably pleasant sensation.

Regardless of how tired, weak, or old one might be, everything would be different while standing on this land. Fatigue would be swept away, the weak would become stronger, and the old would feel younger…

"If people didn't know that this was a burial ground, who would actually think so after coming here?" Xiaoxiao stood on a peak and took a deep, relaxing breath. Her body was immersed in this life force as if she was bathing in an ocean. It was comfortable and full of vitality…

Li Qiye simply smiled and looked over at the village below the peak. His eyes turned quite profound. If anyone could see the place these two were standing on, they would certainly be astonished. This was a huge mountain range with rolling peaks full of lush vegetation and life.

Of course, a huge mountain range with many peaks would look ordinary even when it was on a great scale.

Alas, it was different here at the Divine Tree Ridge because this large mountain range was not situated on the ground but rather pinned itself to the ground.

Just imagine, a mountain range that stretched for thousands or even tens of thousands of miles was lying upside down. The peaks were inserted into the ground while the base aimed straight for the sky in an unimaginable fashion.

Moreover, there was more than just one mountain range like this that spanned across the Divine Tree Ridge.

With this perspective in mind, the mountain ranges here looked like branches from a great tree taking root in the earth! Such a spectacular scene was out of this world and could only be found at the Divine Tree Ridge. Any cultivator who comes here would be astounded by this sight.

For millions of years, people have explored the reason for this geographical layout, but no one could come up with a concrete answer. Of course, there were numerous speculations. One stated that the ridge itself was created by the fusion of a gigantic tree and the earth which resulted in this magical scene.

Some didn't agree with this belief. Their version was that in an untraceable era, there was a war between immortals. In the great firmament, an immortal uprooted one mountain range after another and used them as spears against his enemies! From then on, these peaks were pinned into this place. Either way, it was impossible to draw an exact conclusion since no one could give a definitive answer.

In Heaven Spirit, people said that there were three great races — the charming spirits, treants, and sea demons. However, some believed that there were four, the last one being the withered!

Of course, not everyone agreed with this statement. They considered the withered to not be living existences, so they couldn't be a race.

The withered was a race only found in the Divine Tree Ridge and also the only one that could inhabit this land.

It was unthinkable that people were living in one of the burial grounds. Of course, that was why people also considered them to be corpses.

The duo went to the village beneath the previous peak. It was a fair-sized village with only around one hundred people. Smoke from cooking pots was flying with chickens and dogs making their noises — a life of simplicity. Such an ordinary village could be found everywhere in Heaven Spirit.

If it wasn't inhabited by the withered, then the only distinguishing factor between this particular village and the other villages would be their architecture.

All the buildings here had a rough feeling. They were all made with pragmatism in mind and lacked any sort of decoration.

It harkened back to the prehistoric days. All kinds of creatures back in the distant era also did the same. It was as if the withered shared the same lifestyle. They didn't understand or appreciate art and beauty; everything had to be practical in nature!

"What kind of race is the withered?" Xiaoxiao became curious.

He glanced at her and asked: "You have been here for so long but you haven't seen their transformation yet?"

She asked with confusion: "What do you mean by transformation?"

He smiled and replied: "That's a shame. Their transformation is a very interesting process. If we have a chance, we'll definitely go so you can see it."

"What is this process? Just tell me already." She was unsatisfied and glared at him.

Even though she has been here for a while, the majority of her time was spent on satiating her robbing addiction so how could she care about other things?

"I'll take you there when a chance presents itself." He smiled and continued to go down. Xiaoxiao wasn't happy, but there was nothing she could do other than to continue following him.

They didn't get too far before they were stopped. It was a young cultivator and obviously a charming spirit. However, he emitted a faint radiance that differentiated him from ordinary charming spirits. It made him look somewhat saintly.

"The two of you, stop!" He immediately shouted at them with an aggressive and arrogant tone.

This darkened Xiaoxiao's expression. She was the golden daughter of the isle. Normally, no one would dare to talk to her like this.

Meanwhile, Li Qiye grinned; the prey has come to his doorstep.

Those who understood him would start quivering after seeing this smile since it meant that someone was about to be really unlucky.

Unfortunately, this charming spirit didn't have a clue and maintained his overbearing attitude: "Have the two of you seen a treant that looks like a monster? He is about this tall with a pair of ox-eyes." He gestured to express the monster's appearance.

[1] Random dog or cat is the phrase. It also means random people or nobodies and carries contempt. The reason why I kept it in this form is so that the next sentence will make sense.