"Are those two bounty hunters from the Void's Dark Side?"
Ye Ling's eyes flickered with surprise as he looked at the corpses of the two bounty hunters impaled by branches.
According to the Scythe Beast, one of the bounty hunters possessed an innate skill. Ye Ling had prepared himself for a tough fight.
Yet, before he could even see them, the bounty hunter with the innate skill was already dead.
However, the death of the bounty hunters was not necessarily a good thing for Ye Ling at this moment.
"You two be careful. Whoever killed these bounty hunters is no ordinary being. It might be lurking in the shadows, watching us."
After cautioning the Scythe Beast and Xiao Yu, Ye Ling removed the two corpses hanging from the branches and examined them carefully.
"These two corpses are still warm, but their souls and consciousness have completely dissipated. Even their reincarnation information has been wiped clean... the killer is truly ruthless, leaving no chance for resurrection."
Ye Ling muttered as he searched the bodies, but found nothing.
"The stone tablet isn't on these two. It must have been taken by the killer."
The Scythe Beast had calmed down and asked Ye Ling, "What should we do now? Should we go find the killer?"
Ye Ling stood up and glanced at the ancient tree laden with countless corpses. "You two stay in my Karma Mirror Domain. I'll go check out that ancient tree."
Xiao Yu suddenly said, "Lord, please take me with you!"
"You want to go too?"
Ye Ling looked back at Xiao Yu, pondered for a moment, and then nodded. "Alright, you come with me. Scythe Beast, stay here and guard the bodies of the two bounty hunters. They might still be useful."
"Yes!"
The Scythe Beast didn't understand why Xiao Yu insisted on going to such a dangerous place, nor why Ye Ling would bring her along. However, it knew that it couldn't approach the ancient tree and that staying put was the best option.
Ye Ling separated a portion of his Karma Mirror Domain to encompass the Scythe Beast and the two bounty hunter corpses. Then, he nodded to Xiao Yu and led her towards the ancient tree.
As Ye Ling drew closer to the colossal ancient tree, he gradually saw its full form.
The tree's roots were like arms, and its bark was made of human skin. The entire tree looked bizarre and terrifying, causing extreme discomfort.
Standing beneath the ancient tree, Ye Ling frowned as he looked at the giant tree wrapped in human skin. "I didn't expect such an evil tree to exist at the bottom of the Star Devouring Abyss..."
Xiao Yu also felt uncomfortable. Suppressing her fear and nausea, she said to Ye Ling, "Lord, I can faintly hear crying sounds from within this evil tree. Something inside is calling to me."
"Crying sounds..."
Hearing Xiao Yu, Ye Ling closed his eyes and concentrated. However, in the darkness, he couldn't hear any crying.
Ye Ling guessed that Xiao Yu's ancestor might be inside the ancient tree. However, he didn't immediately take Xiao Yu inside. Instead, he asked her, "Xiao Yu, are you mentally prepared?"
Xiao Yu knew what Ye Ling was asking. Her gaze turned resolute, and she nodded. "I'm prepared! Don't worry, Lord. I just want to know my origins. If this evil tree was cultivated by my ancestors, then Lord, please proceed."
The ancient tree at the bottom of the Star Devouring Abyss was too sinister and bizarre. If this tree were to leave the abyss and appear in the void, it would undoubtedly bring a great disaster.
Anyone with a shred of conscience, upon seeing this strange, evil tree, would not stand idly by.
Seeing Xiao Yu's determined eyes, Ye Ling nodded slightly. He then enveloped Xiao Yu with his origin energy. "Let's go, we'll investigate... Careful!"
Before Ye Ling could finish speaking, his eyes instantly turned sharp, and he pulled Xiao Yu to his side.
*Chiii!!!*
At the spot where Xiao Yu had been standing, several sharp branches silently shot out from the ground. If Ye Ling hadn't reacted in time, Xiao Yu would have been impaled on the spot!
"What is this!"
Xiao Yu looked at the sharp branches emerging from the ground, filled with lingering fear!
"It seems the one hiding behind doesn't want us to enter."
Ye Ling summoned his Void Sword and, with a casual swing, severed the sharp branches, using distorted space to grind them into dust.
"Stay close to me, don't leave my side."
Ye Ling reactivated his Karma Mirror Domain, brought Xiao Yu to the ancient tree, and used his Void Sword to slice open the human skin on the outside.
As the human skin was cut open, a large amount of blood gushed out. There were no woody fibers inside the ancient tree, only flesh and blood!
"Lord, the crying sounds are getting louder, and it's crying in pain. You must have hurt it!" Xiao Yu, hearing the sounds from within the ancient tree again, immediately told Ye Ling.
"It seems this evil tree, like the Gate of Rebirth, is a complete organism."
Ye Ling looked at the exposed flesh and blood on the ancient tree without any mercy. He directly thrust his Void Sword into it, distorting the space within the tree!
"Ahhhhhh!"
Piercing screams erupted from within the ancient tree, and the entire tree began to tremble violently. A large number of corpses rained down from its branches.
Countless sharp branches attacked Ye Ling and Xiao Yu from all directions.
However, under the defense of the Karma Mirror Domain, those branches posed no threat to Ye Ling and Xiao Yu!
Ye Ling plunged the entire Void Sword into the ancient tree's body and then injected his origin energy into it.
"Shatter!"
*Boom!*
The Void Sword directly detonated the space within the ancient tree. Flesh and blood flew everywhere. The massive ancient tree was blown open with a huge hole by Ye Ling, revealing its white bones!
And in the very center of the ancient tree, a humanoid skeleton was entangled by numerous bloody hands. Not far from the skeleton, a stone tablet was also entangled by a large number of bloody hands.
Seeing the scene inside the ancient tree, Ye Ling's eyes narrowed slightly, and he instantly understood the situation within.
"Xiao Yu, step back!"
Ye Ling exclaimed softly, slashing out a void sword energy with his Void Sword, shattering all the bloody hands entwining the skeleton and the stone tablet. He then pulled the skeleton and the stone tablet into his hand.
"Ahhhhh! Thief! Die!!!"
As Ye Ling retrieved the skeleton and the stone tablet from within the ancient tree, the entire ancient tree let out another piercing scream, and more corpses fell from it.
At the same time, the corpses that had fallen to the ground now, like zombies, all crawled up.
In the outer area, the Scythe Beast, guarding the bodies of the two bounty hunters within the Karma Mirror Domain, watched in horror as... the two bounty hunters who should have been dead were slowly, leisurely, climbing up from the ground!
"Wh-what is this...?"
The Scythe Beast stared at the two bounty hunters in terror, retreating, only to be blocked by the Karma Mirror Domain!
The Karma Mirror Domain, which was supposed to protect the Scythe Beast, had, at this moment... become a cage trapping the Scythe Beast!