Chapter 3: The Advancement of the Ghost Sophora

As a shepherd of trees, Guo Huai and the ghost tree are essentially one and the same. It can be said that the ghost tree is Guo Huai himself. He can perceive every change in the ghost tree just as he feels an itch in his own body. When the ghost tree's power reaches a state of fullness, Guo Huai's own being experiences a sense of "fullness". He understands that, at this stage, the ghost tree has reached its peak capacity for absorbing and containing souls, entering a state akin to the "saturation" achieved by other transcenders before their transcendence. This is no different from sensing an itch in his own body; when the ghost tree's power reaches fullness, Guo Huai's own being feels a sense of "fullness". He knows that, at this stage, the ghost tree has reached its peak capacity for absorbing and containing souls, entering a state similar to the "saturation" reached by other transcenders before their transcendence.

A group of over ten thugs charged at Li Dagang, preparing to subdue him with a flurry of hands and feet. Li Dagang smiled grimly and said, "You bunch of lackeys under Zhao Tiande, I may not be able to kill Zhao Tiande, but if I take you down, losing a dozen of you as a sacrifice won't be a loss at all." Li Dagang discarded the already fired bird gun and suddenly pulled open his cotton coat, revealing a circle of cylindrical objects wrapped around his body, while his other hand pressed down on something.

After touching the stone table, Guo Huai felt a stirring in his heart, and his body directly sank into the depths of the earth, truly sinking down, which was quite marvelous. However, while moving underground, he constantly experienced a sense of obstruction similar to that of touching the stone table, making his movement significantly slower, comparable to a light jog. Moreover, the deeper he went underground, the stronger the sense of obstruction became. Hidden beneath the ground, Guo Huai suddenly thought that if he were to transform himself into a physical entity underground, it would indeed be extremely disastrous. However, what if he transformed his enemies into illusions and then pulled them down to convert them into physical entities? Even without pulling them underground, pulling them into the walls and then transforming them would also be quite amusing.

When the Ghost Huai needs to change its position, it can transform into an ethereal form, allowing for free movement. However, once it transforms into this ethereal state, the Ghost Huai will be unable to draw the additional power required for growth from the earth. Although it can move freely, its growth will cease from that point onward. Only by transforming back into a physical form and being planted in the ground can it regain the ability to grow.

The "heart" beats faster and faster, and the changes within the tree become increasingly intense. With each beat, the internal changes of the tree are greatly exacerbated, and the speed continues to accelerate. Finally, the beating of the "heart" gradually comes to a halt, and the internal changes of the tree cease as well. On the surface, the appearance of this tree shows no signs of change, but Guo Huai knows that the essence of the ghostly locust tree has already entered a completely new realm

He operated his spiritual body, attempting to touch the actual world, reaching towards the stone table in the yard, but ended up touching only air. However, this interface is ultimately based on the material four-dimensional interface, and there remains some connection to it. When his hand passed over the stone table, although he did not touch anything, he could still feel a slight sense of resistance. The illusory form and reality have not completely severed their relationship. The four-dimensional existence of the material interface should also be able to map a small amount of power onto this illusory form, albeit only a small amount, and this requires the ability to ascertain his position.

Transformation between the real and the unreal is a marvelous ability. When the Ghost Sophora advances to the first stage, it begins to take shape, possessing both real and unreal forms. The real form is the one currently planted in the courtyard, which is an entire solid tree. The other form is the unreal form, resembling the shape that the Ghost Sophora exhibited when it previously absorbed souls, with its roots extending outward.

"It is explosives." The leader of the approaching thugs was horrified, instinctively throwing himself to the side. However, his subordinates were not as quick-witted. Li Dagang let out a hearty laugh, and instead of fleeing, he charged into the group of thugs, pressing down hard. "Bang!" Blood and flesh splattered in all directions around him, and among the dozen or so thugs nearby, apart from the leader, none were spared; all were within the blast radius.

He unlocked the tire lock and released the handlebar lock. Guo Huai inserted the key into the motorcycle and slowly started it. His thoughts were still lingering on the sudden turn of events from just a moment ago. The horrific scene and the instantaneous death of nine people, while somewhat surprising to him, who was accustomed to death, did not shock him. At this moment, the images replaying in his mind were two incredulous gazes: one from Li Dagang and the other from Wang Dehai.

Illusion. Guo Huai directly activated the divine powers of the Ghost Huai, and his originally tangible body instantaneously transformed into nothingness, completely vanishing from this world. In that moment, he felt as if his body had transcended the four-dimensional spatial interface of reality, entering a brand new interface that was temporarily unfolded based on the original interface. Everything in this new interface appeared indistinguishable from reality. Guo Huai attempted to move, only to find that there was no solid ground beneath his feet; his movements were entirely a matter of mental manipulation. This left him somewhat unaccustomed, but after a brief period of adjustment, he gradually became more proficient.

Guo Huai's state of mind has always been quite stable, but the scenes he witnessed today stirred some thoughts deep within him. As the motorcycle roared to life, these thoughts gradually settled into calmness, and his focus shifted entirely to the nine souls he was about to harvest. This was his primary concern at the moment. Once a soul departs from the human body, it loses its wisdom and enters a state of confusion, appearing merely as a mass of spiritual energy carrying memories, endlessly wandering. Upon careful observation, Guo Huai understood that due to the timely harvest, these souls were of the highest quality, truly exceptional.

The sound of "dong, dong!" resembled a heartbeat, accompanied by the flow of internal power within the ghostly locust tree. Guo Huai nervously observed this divine tree, scrutinizing the overall changes in the tree. However, that sound was not a true sound; the expansion and contraction were not genuine either, but rather manifested upon the illusory spiritual body. Its material form showed no signs of alteration whatsoever, thus the changes in this ghostly locust did not provoke the slightest anomaly in the material interface.

The power of the transcendent beings is divided into three sub-levels: upper, middle, and lower, within each major level. The differences in power among the same level are not significant; rather, it is the disparity in the total amount of power among the transcendent beings that matters. Each major level exhibits substantial differences, and as one ascends, the gaps between the levels become increasingly pronounced. A first-level transcendent, depending on their profession, can slightly interfere with reality in various aspects. However, the most powerful transcendent at the master level, according to the description from the Explorer's Guild, can rival the creations made by the Mo family’s celestial engineering on the central planet of the Pangu star domain. A single individual can command a vast fleet that combines transcendent power with celestial engineering technology, and the disparity is not merely a hundredfold.

The transcendent transformation is about to begin. Guo Huai fixed his gaze on this divine tree, which was closely intertwined with his fate and represented his true essence. At this moment, his heart was filled with excitement and anticipation. The moment he had longed for over the years was finally approaching; once completed, he would no longer be a mere mortal. The feeling of saturation grew increasingly intense, and Guo Huai sensed that the body of the ghostly Huai was slightly expanding. It swelled, then contracted again, the rhythm starting off extremely slow and not violent. However, soon after, it began to beat rhythmically, much like a heart. With each beat, the interior of the divine tree was brewing a tremendous change. The feeling of saturation grew increasingly intense, and Guo Huai sensed that the body of the ghostly Huai was slightly expanding. It swelled, then contracted again, the rhythm starting off extremely slow and not violent. However, soon after, it began to beat rhythmically, much like a heart. With each beat, the interior of the divine tree was brewing a tremendous change.

Having accomplished all this, he handed over the collected souls to the Ghost Huai tree. As soon as the nine souls came into contact with the Ghost Huai, they were absorbed into the trunk, directly sinking down into the roots of the tree. Soon, non-material roots extended from the roots of the Ghost Huai, wrapping around the souls. Waves of power emanated from the souls, and their existence grew increasingly frail. In no time, they were completely disintegrated and absorbed by the Ghost Huai. Non-material roots extended from the roots of the Ghost Huai, wrapping around the souls. Waves of power emanated from the souls, and their existence grew increasingly frail. In no time, they were completely disintegrated and absorbed by the Ghost Huai.

After the sound of the explosion and the shockwave faded, within a radius of ten meters, blood and flesh were scattered everywhere, and the once ordinary street had now transformed into hell. "Everything is over," Guo Huai remarked as he counted the harvested souls, totaling nine, including Li Dagang and Wang Dehai, along with seven henchmen. As for the others, they barely survived the explosion, but it was likely they would be left with lifelong disabilities, unable to live normally. The divine guides humanity, indicating that to reap what one desires, one must first sow seeds, and the type of seeds sown determines the fruits harvested. These individuals undoubtedly sowed seeds of evil.

Having completed the advancement, he raised his hand and pointed towards the courtyard. His mental power transformed from the ethereal into the tangible, gently lifting a stone table in the courtyard. Guo Huai felt that this action required no effort at all; it was merely the most fundamental power possessed by an individual who had transcended the ordinary and embarked on a spiritual path. This was simply a rough application of transcendent power. With just a slight attempt, Guo Huai no longer wasted his mental energy and began to examine the new supernatural abilities brought about by this ghostly advancement. This information could all be derived from the hawthorn tree itself. This was merely the most fundamental power possessed by an individual who had transcended the ordinary and embarked on a spiritual path. This was simply a rough application of transcendent power. With just a slight attempt, Guo Huai no longer wasted his mental energy and began to examine the new supernatural abilities brought about by this ghostly advancement. This information could all be derived from the hawthorn tree itself.

Li Dagang had never imagined that Wang Dehai would betray him, his eyes filled with disbelief. What was even more unbelievable to Wang Dehai was that Li Dagang had another ace up his sleeve, using the very means he intended to deal with General Zhao against him. "Is this what friends are for? They are nothing more than ordinary friends." Guo Huai sneered inwardly, recalling that before his parents perished in the expedition, many friends would visit their home every year. Where are those friends now?

With these nine high-quality spirits, Guihuai will achieve a transcendent evolution. One wonders what kind of power Guihuai will possess at that time. Once Guihuai completes this transcendent evolution, the transcendent powers commonly possessed by transcenders need not be elaborated upon. It will be akin to how he, as an ordinary person, currently possesses some extraordinary abilities, endowing him with entirely new transcendent spells and techniques. Unfortunately, the ancient scroll he obtained only provides a general introduction to Guihuai's powers and does not elaborate in detail. The specifics of what he will gain can only be known after Guihuai truly advances.

This is truly wonderful; with such an ability, the Ghost Huai is no longer an inanimate object. If others know that this Ghost Huai is my lifeline, they will want to destroy it. However, the Ghost Huai can also transform into an ethereal state and escape freely, and its movement in this ethereal state is much faster than in its physical form. Knowing the existence of this divine ability, Guo Huai realizes that the greatest weakness of the Shepherd is no longer a weakness at this moment. Most importantly, the power that the Ghost Huai can wield is also something he possesses.

Upon reaching this point, Guo Huai slightly increased his cycling speed. Five minutes later, he had returned home, parked his bicycle, locked the front gate, and then stood before Gui Huai. He first concentrated all his mental energy, enveloping the entire courtyard with this force, adding an additional layer of obscuration. With this power in place, ordinary people would naturally overlook anything happening in the courtyard as long as they did not focus their attention on it. Previously, he had directed this force solely at Gui Huai, as Gui Huai was growing too rapidly. With the obscuration technique in effect, it was difficult for outsiders to notice.

This should already possess the transcendent power of the initial lower tier According to information obtained from the Explorer's Guild, the power hierarchy of transcenders consists of five levels. Once one steps into the transcendent realm, they can attain the fifth rank of knight. Each different tier corresponds to a different rank of knight: initial tier, intermediate tier, advanced tier, master tier, and grandmaster tier, which precisely align with the five ranks of knighthood.