An Immortal's Loss of Face

"After so many years, finally someone can inherit my legacy."
Zhu Yao was wondering if this was the owner's burial place. Perhaps the "Wood Spirit" was in his hands. But he had no physical form. It seemed this was just a wisp of divine sense left behind by its owner.
"Master? What should we do now?"
"Observe the changes in silence."
Hearing this, Zhu Yao lay back down, continuing to play dead.
The white-haired, white-bearded old man stroked his mustache. He lightly floated over to where the three people lay. He looked down at the ground, and suddenly froze.
"Why are there three people?"
The old man frowned, a little awkward:
"Then I'll choose the one with the best spiritual root!"
He turned to look at Lu Sha, who was lying closest to his left, and muttered to himself:
"Fire-Earth Dual Spiritual Root. Although it's top-grade talent, my cultivation method doesn't suit it."
He then shifted his gaze to Xiao Yi, who was in front of him. As soon as he saw his eyes, they lit up. A joyful expression appeared on his face. He checked his spiritual root, and the joyful look deepened:
"Gold-Wood Dual Spiritual Root. Good! Good! Good!"
He said "good" three times in a row. His eyes narrowed into slits. Finally, he turned to look at Zhu Yao.
Zhu Yao felt that this old man would probably choose the disciple with the best spiritual root and then pass on his cultivation method and the "Wood Spirit" to them. Of course, all the stories on TV played out like this.
She was very confident in her own talent. She had obtained the top-tier Spiritual Root, which was the Lightning Spiritual Root.
Indeed, the old man also began to examine her talent. As she expected, a surprised expression appeared on his face. He almost blurted out:
"It's Lightning....."
The old man looked at her, then turned to look at Xiao Yi, who was lying in the middle. Then he decisively turned and walked towards Xiao Yi:
"Or perhaps I'll choose this little child."
I'm stunned!
Don't be so biased!
Zhu Yao couldn't help but stand up and say:
"You clearly said you'd choose the best spiritual root?"
"You... How did you wake up?"
The old man was startled and couldn't believe it when he saw Zhu Yao suddenly stand up.
"Impossible. How can a Core Formation cultivator withstand my pressure??"
"Are you asking me??"
Zhu Yao glared at him. She was naturally hot-tempered and hated people who didn't act properly. Besides, the other party was just a wisp of divine sense, so he couldn't kill her anyway.
"Didn't you want to choose the best talent? Who has better talent, him or I?"
"Uh... Cough cough!"
The old man was a little awkward and embarrassed, coughing twice.
"Little child, don't get agitated. Although your talent is good. But I and this young man are quite compatible. So I've decided to pass it on to him."
"You're already dead, what good is 'affinity' as you say?"
Zhu Yao didn't believe a word the old man said from the start. She had sensed the situation during the spiritual root examination earlier. He clearly disliked her and Lu Sha. But towards that Xiao Yi, the old man was completely different, almost immediately showing joy on his face when he saw him. Unless.....
She looked the old man up and down:
"Could it be that you're a cut sleeve?"
"Cut sleeve? What's a cut sleeve?"
The old man was dumbfounded.
The more Zhu Yao thought about it, the higher the possibility.
"That's right. You must be a perverted homosexual."
As soon as she finished speaking, the old man immediately became flustered and embarrassed.
"You... you... you... you're talking nonsense!"
"Then why are you blushing?"
Blushing so much that even his white beard couldn't cover it?
"The... the day... the weather is hot!"
The old man, flustered and embarrassed, fanned himself with his hand and explained:
"This old man... this old man, how... how could I like... like this brat?"
She hadn't even said he liked Xiao Yi. Wasn't he confessing without being prompted?
At this moment, Zhu Yao was 100% certain that this old man was impotent. No wonder he disliked her and Lu Sha.
"Little... cough cough... little child."
The old man feigned a few coughs. His face was embarrassed, as if he had been exposed.
"This old man sees that your comprehension is not bad. Meeting you here can be considered a karmic opportunity. Although I cannot pass on my cultivation method to you. I do have some treasures. I'll give you a good one, how about it?"
Was this a bribe? That works. It just so happened that she didn't know what excuse to use to get the "Wood Spirit."
"Really?"
"Of course it's real!"
"Then I want the 'Wood Spirit'."
"......"
Instantly, the old man choked, then looked at her in surprise:
"How did you know I had this item in my hand?!"
"Don't ask me why I know. Just tell me if you'll give it or not?"
"This..."
The old man's expression grew even uglier. He turned his head to look at Xiao Yi, who was lying on the ground.
"It's not that I don't want to give it to you. It's just that this item is a Wood-elemental Spirit. It doesn't easily recognize a master. Moreover, this 'Wood Spirit' also helps my disciple in his cultivation."
"If you don't give it to me, I'll tell everyone in the Cultivation World that you're a cut sleeve."
In an instant, the old man went limp.
"......Don't get angry. Don't get angry. Everything needs to be resolved slowly."
The old man gritted his teeth, then turned and waved his sleeve. A puff of white smoke emerged. As the white smoke gradually dispersed, six wooden boxes appeared before them.
"Little child. This 'Wood Spirit' has been with me for many years. However, I still haven't been able to use it. It can be seen that one must have an affinity with it to use such a spiritual item. There are six boxes here, you can choose one. If... hey, hey, hey!"
He hadn't finished speaking when Zhu Yao walked over and picked up a box on the right.
The old man was utterly astonished to see Zhu Yao calmly pick up the box:
"You, you, you... How did you know which box the Wood Spirit was in?"
Zhu Yao was so angry that smoke almost came out of her head. Did he think she couldn't tell which box had the Wood Spirit? Damn it. Didn't this box have the two characters "Wood Spirit" written on it in Chinese? Moreover, the handwriting was large and bold, no different from the character "Error" on Xiao Yi's face. She saw it so clearly, did he really think she wouldn't know which box it was in?
"Is there really someone in this world with such fate?!"
The old man muttered to himself. He looked at her with eyes full of admiration, envy, and hatred.
Zhu Yao didn't pay attention to what emotions the old man was feeling at this moment. She opened the box.
But as soon as she opened the box, a funny sight appeared before her. Inside the box was a small sapling. This small tree only had two leaves. Its two branches, like two delicate white arms, held those two leaves and spun around, dancing.
Happily dancing, it was suddenly disturbed by someone. The small tree stopped, then looked up. Then it let out a startled cry.
"Ooh Ooh Ooh Ooh?"
"........."
Are you a chicken?
Zhu Yao was speechless. The small tree, as if extremely embarrassed, quickly used its two leaves to cover its body. It looked shy, as if someone had seen its naked body.
"Are you the Wood Spirit?"
Zhu Yao asked.
The small tree, hearing Zhu Yao's question, slowly parted its two leaves, then bowed. It was as if it was nodding, answering her question. Then it let out two "Ooh Ooh..." sounds.
This small tree was truly very spiritual. Zhu Yao found it so cute that she couldn't help but poke its two leaves and praise it:
"So adorable!"
As soon as she finished speaking, the small tree fainted. A small flower bloomed from its two leaves.
"........."
Zhu Yao had a subtle feeling.
The small tree used its two leaves to lift the small flower. Then it forcefully plucked the flower and presented it to Zhu Yao.
"Ah... thank you... thank you!"
"Ooh Ooh~!"
Why did she feel this "Wood Spirit" was a bit strange? Was it always so friendly to everyone it met for the first time?
Zhu Yao walked around, holding the flower in her hand, feeling bewildered. Suddenly, the old man ran over to her and said seriously:
"Little child. You must be careful, this 'Wood Spirit' is not what it seems..."
He hadn't finished speaking when the small tree suddenly extended its left leaf. In an instant, it transformed into a giant hand, and then it forcefully delivered a "Smack!" to the old man's face.
The old man didn't even have time to scream before he was slapped and sent flying ten meters away.
"........."
After slapping him, the small tree returned to its adorable appearance. It spun its two delicate white branches and winked at her:
"Ooh Ooh........."
As if it wasn't the one who had just slapped the old man away.
Zhu Yao:
"........."
Seeing that she wasn't paying attention to it, the small tree became a little anxious. It remembered the box and jumped onto it. Then it used its two leaves to embrace her finger, slowly rubbing along its body.
"Ooh Ooh..."
This tree is good. Alright. She had surrendered.
"Do you want to come with me?"
The small tree bowed upon hearing this:
"Ooh Ooh!"
Zhu Yao was momentarily a little awkward. She had obtained the Wood Spirit. But where to put it was a big problem? As a spiritual item, it naturally couldn't be put inside a storage bracelet. And most importantly... it couldn't be discovered by that Xiao Yi.
"Little child, you can't take this 'Wood Spirit' with you."
While she was still hesitating, the old man suddenly ran over to her from somewhere. His initial loving expression had vanished without a trace. Instead, anxiety appeared on his face.
What did Wood Spirit mean? It was the Wood Spiritual Energy of all creation. It held power over all plants. So no one would easily give such an item to another. Moreover, although he had cultivated for tens of thousands of years and had been dead for a long time, he was still unwilling.
The old man waved his hand. The box in Zhu Yao's hand instantly closed and flew back into his hand.
She knew there was no way she would get it so easily. Zhu Yao was too lazy to argue with him, so she summoned her flying sword.
"Talking to someone like you is a waste of effort. Let's fight!"
This old man was probably a prominent figure when he was alive. At the very least, he must have been a Nascent Soul cultivator or above. Or perhaps he was an ancient cultivator. But no matter how powerful he was, he was currently just a wisp of divine sense. So she didn't believe she couldn't defeat him.
"Hahaha. So young, yet so arrogant."
The old man laughed disdainfully at her. His face began to contort, and even his voice became gloomy:
"You don't know the immensity of Heaven and Earth."
Suddenly, he raised a hand, forming a seal and summoning a Fire Dragon. As Zhu Yao moved to block it, the old man suddenly turned and attacked the strange door in the sky through which they had entered.
Zhu Yao was startled to see him do this. Why was he trying to smash his own door?
Very quickly, Zhu Yao understood what he intended to do. The door, despite his attack, remained perfectly intact, undamaged. But it was no longer as quiet as before. The Exotic Beast on the door was struggling from within to get out.
He intended to let that Exotic Beast escape!
Zhu Yao was terrified. First, a head poked out from the door. Immediately after, more than half of its body escaped. It struggled and roared. Each inch it escaped, its body grew twice as large.
Zhu Yao's heart pounded. Although she stood far away from it, she could still feel the strong smell of fresh blood emanating from the Exotic Beast. This indicated that it was extremely ferocious.
Finally, the Exotic Beast broke free from the seal and escaped. It threw its head back and let out a long, echoing roar. This roar was even more ear-piercing than before. Although she tried her best to resist, she was still shaken by the scream, causing her ears to bleed.
Zhu Yao spat out a mouthful of blood, unable to stand steadily, and fell to the ground again. Pain spread throughout her entire body. She felt even breathing was difficult. This pressure was exactly like when she first entered here. At first, she thought the pressure was released by the old man. It turned out it was emanating from this Exotic Beast.
The Exotic Beast seemed to have noticed her. It ran towards her on all fours.
Damn it! Why do all animals like to chase her and play? She hated animals!