"Devour Zero Level Fierce Beast, gain five Evolution Points!"
"Devour First Level Low-Grade Fierce Beast, gain a hundred Evolution Points!"
"Devour First Level Low-Grade Fierce Beast, gain a hundred Evolution Points!"
"Devour Zero Level Fierce Beast, gain five Evolution Points!"
"Devour Zero Level Fierce Beast, gain five Evolution Points!"
A barrage of information emerged, and Gu Qingyang only felt a surge of power flooding into his trunk, making his branches and leaves more lush and the roots embedded in the earth grow more unyielding.
...
Name: Gu Qingyang
Essence: Ancient Tree
Lifespan: 10/1000
Rank: First Level Low-Grade (405/500)
Innate Divine Techniques: Death Root (First Level), Vigorous Growth (First Level), Spiritual Energy Affinity (First Level), Ancient Tree Talent (First Level)
...
"Almost there, just need to devour one more First Level Low-Grade Fierce Beast, and I can break through truly into First Level Mid-Grade!"
The accumulation over this period, along with devouring several Fierce Beasts, had pushed Gu Qingyang's Evolution Value past four hundred points.
Just shy of the five hundred mark by less than a hundred,
At the current pace, even if no other Fierce Beasts come knocking, Gu Qingyang is confident he can break through within three months.
The breakthrough is imminent.
Gu Qingyang's heart grew increasingly calm.
The shadow cast by the Golden Feathered Divine Eagle on his heart has mostly dissipated.
Such a level of Fierce Beast is not something he can contend with at his current stage, so Gu Qingyang didn't dwell much on it. If the other party really targeted him, resistance would be futile no matter what.
Since that's the case,
It's better to strengthen his power as much as possible.
...
With the departure of the Golden Feathered Divine Eagle, the Fierce Beasts in the entire mountain range seemed to become lively again. In the following days, Gu Qingyang devoured several more Fierce Beasts.
The regrettable thing is,
All these Fierce Beasts were not strong; none could step into the First Level, all remaining at Zero Level.
But even a mosquito's leg is meat; devouring several Zero Level Fierce Beasts brought Gu Qingyang closer to his breakthrough, almost at the threshold.
At that moment,
A powerful aura appeared within Gu Qingyang's perception range, and the newcomer was a Fierce Beast resembling a Giant Ape. Although its aura couldn't compare to the Golden Feathered Divine Eagle, it was stronger than any of the Fierce Beasts he had devoured until now.
"At least a First Level Mid-Grade Fierce Beast!"
Gu Qingyang felt grave.
A First Level Mid-Grade Fierce Beast was a rank higher than him, and unless necessary, he didn't want to clash with a Fierce Beast of this level.
But—
Gu Qingyang had no intention to engage the Fierce Beast, but the Giant Ape Fierce Beast apparently had its sights set on him, staring at the Ancient Tree with a glimmer of desire in its fierce eyes.
This was the Fierce Beast's desire to devour living beings.
Gu Qingyang understood.
The energy within him had attracted the Giant Ape Fierce Beast's attention.
Although just an Ancient Tree now, from the moment he awakened his Innate Divine Techniques, he was no longer an ordinary tree.
After breaking through First Level, the sap flowing within the Ancient Tree's trunk contained abundant Spiritual Qi energy.
However.
Gu Qingyang discovered that Fierce Beasts of the same rank could not sense this energy within him. Only Fierce Beasts higher ranked than him could perceive it.
Indeed.
The Giant Ape Fierce Beast strode toward the Ancient Tree, with danger approaching, leaving Gu Qingyang with no choice but to act.
"Whoosh!"
Several roots burst from the ground, winding toward the Giant Ape Fierce Beast, but the latter seemed to anticipate this, grabbing the approaching roots with its big hand and violently yanking it.
In an instant,
The extremely resilient roots cracked, with verdant sap seeping from the wound, the pain triggering Gu Qingyang's anger and causing his branches and leaves to tremble wildly.
Numerous roots burst from the ground, swiftly attacking the Giant Ape Fierce Beast.
Seeing that its initial pull didn't sever the roots as expected, a human-like confusion flashed in the Giant Ape Fierce Beast's brutal eyes.
But before it could think any further, the remaining roots launched their assault.
The First Level Innate Divine Technique, Death Root, allowed Gu Qingyang to manipulate ten roots directly. Now, with all ten roots dispatched, they sealed off all escape routes for the Giant Ape Fierce Beast.
The latter clearly sensed the danger, letting out an angry roar, its burly arms swinging, generating sonic booms through the air with its tremendous power.
The Giant Ape Fierce Beast grabbed two roots and gave a forceful yank; the already severely cracked roots were directly broken by the immense strength.
But just as the roots were torn off, the remaining roots forcibly broke through the Giant Ape Fierce Beast's defenses, inflicting deep wounds in its flesh.
Feeling its Qi and blood ebb away, the Giant Ape Fierce Beast immediately panicked, desperately struggling to escape the roots' attack range.
However.
The massive loss of Qi and blood gradually weakened the Giant Ape Fierce Beast's strength as the roots frenziedly wrapped around it, continuously siphoning its energy.
Gradually,
The Giant Ape Fierce Beast struggled less and less, and before long, it was entirely silent.
Its once-mighty body now shriveled and withered.
The vast power flowed through the roots into Gu Qingyang's body, the broken roots recovering at a visible pace, while his own foundation slowly strengthened.
"Devour First Level High-Grade Fierce Beast, gain two hundred Evolution Points!"
Gu Qingyang dragged the now-shriveled corpse of the Giant Ape into the ground, then glanced at his own status panel.
...
Name: Gu Qingyang
Essence: Ancient Tree
Lifespan: 10/1000
Rank: First Level Low-Grade (580/500, Breakthrough possible)
Innate Divine Techniques: Death Root (First Level), Vigorous Growth (First Level), Spiritual Energy Affinity (First Level), Ancient Tree Talent (First Level)
...
"Five hundred and eighty Evolution Points?"
Gu Qingyang was taken aback.
During this period, he had accumulated four hundred thirty Evolution Points. With an additional two hundred Evolution Points, it should total six hundred thirty.
With only five hundred eighty points now, it signified that fifty Evolution Points were missing.
After pondering briefly, Gu Qingyang vaguely understood what had happened.
"The fifty Evolution Points consumed were probably used to heal injuries!"
Slaying the Giant Ape Fierce Beast,
Gu Qingyang hadn't emerged unscathed; two roots were broken, and several others were damaged. After devouring the Giant Ape Fierce Beast, all his injuries had healed.
But healing the injuries couldn't happen without cause; combined with the fifty missing Evolution Points, it was evident these missing points were spent on healing.
Regarding this,
Gu Qingyang wasn't overly concerned.
Even losing fifty Evolution Points, he still met the conditions for a breakthrough now.
Without hesitation,
Gu Qingyang immediately chose to break through.