"Yes, they are the extinct royal wood spirits," Yun Wuji said, staring at He Ling's family and answering.
Nan Qianqiu had massacred the Wood Spirit Race five years after Jasmine fell into the Blue Pole Star, which would be three years from now.
"Are you going to kill them and take their orbs?" Qianye Ying'er didn't take her eyes off the family. The Royal Wood Spirit Orb was a miraculous item, useful in many precious pills, and more importantly, it could extend the user's lifespan by a large degree.
Her eyes gleamed with greed. Even the strongest King Realm in the Eastern Divine Region, the Brahma Monarch, didn't have any Royal Wood Spirit Orbs. As far as they knew, they were all extinct.
Her first instinct upon seeing them was to kill them quickly and seize their orbs before any of them could react and detonate their orbs. Qianye Ying'er was called the "Goddess," but her ruthlessness and lack of conscience didn't match the title at all.
"No," Yun Wuji flatly replied, then he slowly descended from the sky. Hua Jin followed closely by his side, like his guard, while Qianye Ying'er followed from behind.
"Intruders!"
"Humans!"
"How did they discover us?!"
Their sudden appearance caused the previously harmonious place to descend into a state of panic and chaos.
To the Wood Spirit Race, all other races, especially humans, were their enemies. Humans hunted them wantonly, driving them to hide in the corners like rats, always fearing the day evil humans would find them, slaughter their families, and take their precious orbs.
It was a situation much like when the Titans suddenly broke through the walls and began devouring humans in that one anime.
Yun Wuji had already expected this reaction; it was the most natural response. Slowly, a warm, soft white light began to shine from his entire body. As he descended, the light bathed the area in a calming glow. When his feet touched the ground, he smiled, and his voice reached the ears of every Wood Spirit, "Everyone, please calm down. I bear no ill will."
The Wood Spirit Patriarch, the father of He Lin and He Ling, had been rushing urgently to the scene, but as soon as he arrived, he suddenly froze in place. His eyes widened, and disbelief filled his expression as he muttered, "Light... Profound... Energy."
"It's Light Profound Energy..."
"Light Profound Energy!!!"
It was as if he had witnessed a divine miracle. The patriarch kept mumbling, repeating the same words over and over. As he spoke, his voice grew louder and louder, filled with awe and disbelief.
His body was stiff as he flew, and when he reached them, he landed before Yun Wuji, staring at him in a daze. The other Wood Spirits were no different. All their panic and fear suddenly ceased, and they stared at him with wide eyes, unable to tear their gazes away from the light emanating from his body.
To the Wood Spirits, the Light Profound Energy held more significance than it did for other species. The legend said that the Creation Goddess, Li Suo, had used the Divine Miracle of Life to create them as her first creation, and the Divine Miracle of Life was a profound art for Light Profound Energy.
Thud!
The patriarch suddenly knelt on the ground before Yun Wuji, staring at him with tearful eyes. In his vision, the light emitted from Yun Wuji made him appear sacred and pure, like an inviolable being, a saint sent by the Goddess to free all living beings from pain and suffering. The patriarch's tears fell as he muttered, "Heaven pitied my Wood Spirit race! Heaven pitied my Wood Spirit race!"
Thud! Thud! Thud!
One by one, the other Wood Spirits followed their patriarch. Be it children, women, men, or the elderly, they all knelt on the ground, staring at Yun Wuji with deep reverence. Tears streamed down their faces as they chanted together, echoing the patriarch's words, "Heaven pitied the Wood Spirit Race!"
Yun Wuji remained silent, a warm and gentle smile on his face. Their reaction was exactly what he had expected. Light Profound Energy could make most people lower their guard and accept him because it was common knowledge that anyone who cultivated it had a sacred heart, the heart of a saint, free from any evil or filth. For the Wood Spirits, born from light, this effect was multiplied many times over.
"Everyone, please get up," Yun Wuji said as he walked over to the patriarch, bending down slightly to help him rise.
The man stood, his hand gripping Yun Wuji's tightly, his gaze never leaving his face. "You are... You are..."
Yun Wuji shivered slightly from the intensity of the man's stare, it felt as if he were being looked at by an obsessive fan. He maintained his smile, gently pulling his hand back, "I am the inheritor of Li Suo, the Creation Goddess of Life."
His eyes swept around at all the Wood Spirits, who stared at him with deep reverence and shock. He spoke in a soft, sorrowful voice, "I have always felt deep sadness and anguish for all the terrible things that have happened to your race over all this time."
Although he was genuinely trying to help with absolutely no ulterior motive, his acting talent couldn't help but kick in on its own, and he started to play the role again.
Qianye Ying'er, who was watching him speak, struggled to hold back the urge to throw up. How could this bastard act like he was some pure-hearted savior?!
Hua Jin, on the other hand, admired his acting skills. Seeing his actions, the emotions visible in his eyes, his voice, and even his body movements, she felt that her own acting skills were far inferior. 'I still need to learn! I'm still a long way from reaching the apex.'
"Today, I finally have the power to make a change," Yun Wuji said, his voice calm but firm. "So I started looking for Wood Spirits to offer my protection."
He waved his hand, and Light Profound energy swept across the entire settlement before exploding into tiny sparks that scattered in the air like fireflies.
This was perhaps the first time in his life that he truly meant the word "protection" when speaking to other forces.
"Everyone would like to follow me to a safer place, a place where you won't have to worry about being hunted down again?" Yun Wuji looked around, meeting the eyes of nearly everyone present, his voice serious yet gentle.
"Really?"
"I am not dreaming, right?"
"A messenger, he is the messenger of the great Creation God of Life!"
"We're saved, we're saved!"
The Wood Spirits, including their patriarch, froze in place as they processed his words. It wasn't until a long while later that they reacted. One by one, they knelt on the ground again, shouting in unison, their voices filled with a mix of disbelief, hope, and relief...
Yun Wuji watched this silently. For a short moment, his eyes glanced at the other Royal Wood Spirits at the back.
A mature woman, looking to be in her twenties, knelt with two children in her arms. A boy around five or six years old, and a young girl about 15 or 16 years old.
His gaze lingered on them for a brief moment before he looked away. He had no interest in these two children. If Hei Xiaolian hadn't been with him, perhaps he could've tricked He Ling into becoming the Sky Poison's spirit, but for now, that wasn't necessary.
After a while, the patriarch calmed his people, and then he invited Yun Wuji inside. Yun Wuji properly introduced himself and once again expressed his wish to help the Wood Spirits find a place they can hide without being afraid of getting hunted by greedy humans.
The two talked for a while, and they agreed that half a year from now, the Wood Spirit Race would be ready to relocate, and Yun Wuji would return to take everyone to their new home.
Before leaving, Yun Wuji spent about half an hour optimizing the formation hiding them, making it much stronger. He also added a teleportation formation and left some profound jades to power the formation. In case of emergencies, they could use it to escape.
Formations are very powerful and convenient things, but their weak point is that they aren't flexible enough and consume an astronomical amount of resources to set them up and power them.
Under the revered gaze of the Wood Spirits, Yun Wuji and the two other women flew away.
The process of convincing them was extremely smooth. This was mainly because of the Light Profound Energy and the good nature of the Wood Spirits. Despite being hunted down for so long, many of them still held onto a belief in the goodness of humanity. They believed that there were still kind humans out there, even after everything they had endured.
Of course, their trust also came from the difference in strength; if he wanted to kill them, he could've done it easily. That alone convinced the Wood Spirits that he truly meant to help them.
Reaching the border of the Gaze Eternity Realm, Yun Wuji spoke to Hua Jin, "I have a task for you, and only you can do it."
Rainwood color flashed on Hua Jin, and her Yan Yao appearance returned to her normal one. She bowed slightly toward him and spoke, "Please say, young master."
"I want you to keep an eye on the Moon God Realm. I want to know every move they make during this period, especially the Moon God Emperor." Yun Wuji looked in the direction of the Moon God Realm and spoke slowly, "Can you do it?"
"Rest assured, Hua Jin will do her best to gather all the information possible," Hua Jin said seriously. This was the first serious task Yun Wuji had given her, and she was eager to show her abilities to him.
"Hua Jin, I know you've probably been feeling bad for deceiving me lately," Yun Wuji said, habitually reaching out to pat her head. He had gotten used to patting women. He spoke softly, "You can rest assured that I hold no grudge against you. On the contrary, I'm very grateful to you for saving my life in the Thousand Desolation Divine Sect. How could I be angry at you?"
"Young Master..." Hua Jin raised her hands to her chest and looked up at Yun Wuji, her eyes shining with adoration.
...
If you'd like to support me and read chapters in advance, feel free to check out my Patreon:
https://patreon.com/ImmortalCockroach