Chapter 708: Turn of the Seasons (2/2)

This was not the ruthless war of the jungle, but the endless war all beings fought against themselves. One represented change, the other was stillness. There was no need to finish the war, as death had all the time in the world. He only needed to keep up the pressure, to douse any hope of resurgence. Zac felt as though he was becoming one with his path once more, but nothing lasted forever.

The treeman was ultimately just too powerful. Had this been a weaker target they would have been locked down and ground down until only a rotten pile remained, but this was a Vitality-based cultivator with access Dao Branch. It was impossible for Zac to whittle him down. Just delaying him for just below a minute without using his Remnants was already a miracle.

But things were coming to an end. The giant was running out of patience, and Zac started to sense some burgeoning killing intent for the first time during the battle. This was something he had realized from the start; this giant was actually quite gentle. He hadn’t really launched any true killing blows at Zac, at least not until now. The treeman was taking off the kiddie gloves.

Even worse, it looked like the companions of the treant were catching up since Zac could sense two strong beacons of life force rapidly closing in.

A green 50-meter-tall rune appeared in the air as the treeman roared with frustration, and Zac suddenly felt like he had been hit by a train as he was flung away and slammed into the wall of [Profane Seal] on the other side of the cage. Cracks spread across the whole cage from the immense aura of the rune, and its intensity just kept growing.

Zac tried to rush back, but a sea of roots threatened to swallow him. It was like nature’s rage had been unleashed on the area, in an even more palpable way compared to his [Nature’s Punishment]. Life was running amok, and Zac did all he could to delay the inevitable. But his cage was like a water balloon filled with a small ocean; it simply couldn’t contain this kind of an attack and it soon broke apart.

“I can’t hold him, and more are coming!” Zac roared.

The slithering roots looked like a sea of snakes with the treant in the middle, and Zac was forced up on the icy ramparts for protection. A second crystal had regrown while Zac delayed, but it had already been broken apart from the pressure. Suddenly, Zac felt a pang of danger, and a burning orb shot toward the fortifications.

In its heart was the wooden wheel of the treant, but it was like he had turned it into a sun as it blazed with terrifying heat. Zac had already understood that the treeman was cultivating some sort of class and Dao related to the four seasons, and he guessed that each season had its own strength. Spring and Summer were most likely the most efficient season against the undead, while the other two were related to death and decay, making them unsuitable to fight the unliving.

In either case, a raging inferno like the one that was coming their way was definitely enough to smash the fortifications in one go. One coffin barrier after another appeared to block the sun's approach, but they were simply crushed one by one. This time it wasn’t just a simple Dao-empowered Spirit Tool. There was an E-grade skill empowering the attack as well.

Zac was soon out of options, and the black shroud of the third pygmy shot forward and enclosed the incoming attack. But it felt like Zac was trying to push a mountain with his bare hands, and he knew that there was simply no way to transport it far away like he did during the last fight. He only managed to adjust the attack’s angle, making the wheel slam into the ground just in front of the icy wall.

It was like a bomb had gone off, and both roots and wall were disintegrated as Zac was flung into the trunk of the mothertree, landing just a few meters away from Catheya and her array. The spike was almost completely inserted by now, with less than a foot remaining.

“Seize the moment,” Catheya shouted. “Just one more attack and we’re done.”

She pointed her hand toward the treant next, and a shocking burst of cold blasted out from a blue gem on her bracelet. The smoldering fire that was spreading was quickly quenched, and thousands of incoming roots were chilled and drastically slowed.

Darkness spread across thousands of meters in each direction as a tunnel of destruction shot straight toward the treeman. It was Varo who unleashed a stab that contained tremendous might. It was like he pierced space itself for hundreds of meters, and innumerable roots were ripped apart in an instant.

Even the treant himself was suddenly afflicted with a deep scar as he stumbled backward.

Zac saw the opportunity and he rushed forward with all speed he could muster. Energy surged into his body as two thick streams of Mental energy entwined before they moved to the huge jagged edge that was fast forming. Dao from the hanging coffin in his mind seeped into one of the spirit streams, and his Dao Avatar representing his Fragment of the Axe infused the second.

The black jagged edge of [Gorehew] suddenly transformed a bit, with sharp barbs appearing across the jagged edge. It radiated a terrifying aura as well, a mix of destruction and desolation.

“Watch out!” a scream echoed out from the distance, but it was too late.

The treeman barely had time to slightly tilt his body and erect a few layers of bark before the Dao-braided edge cut into his body, leaving a terrifying wound behind. The scar ran for over two meters from his shoulders down to his midriff, and the wound already reeked of rot. The treant wailed and fell over, but Zac barely had time to register the strike before he was forced away by a blood-colored root.

It was one of the two followers who had almost caught up, and she radiated a shocking killing intent that far eclipsed her companion's. If the original treant was mildly upset about Zac and Catheya messing with the mothertree, then this new arrival was ready to enter a deathmatch. Her whiplike root reeked of blood, and she even eclipsed Zac's own killing intent.

Zac barely managed to avoid the strike with the help of [Love's Bond], the treant had already reached her leader by that time. Luckily for Zac, she seemed more occupied with treating the gristly wound of her companion than dealing with him, and he immediately rushed toward the mothertree. He had a pretty good understanding of the situation.

The powerful treant was probably a talented but sheltered scion, and the two followers were enforcers sent into the trial by his family to help him out. They were clearly ready to kill from the get-go, and they had definitely tasted blood before.

“Time to go,” Zac wheezed the moment he reached Catheya who was still forming a series of seals with her hands.

“Not yet,” she said as she tried to complete the process. “I just nee-“

She didn’t get any further as a coffin-shaped shield slammed into the head of the spike with enough force to cause the whole mothertree to shudder. It was Zac who had turned [Love’s Bond] into its defensive form and decisively used it as a hammer to push the spike the rest of the way.

“There, done,” Zac grunted. ”Time to go.”