Two figures moved through the Ruins of a deserted landscape, one a young girl with long hair flowing in the wind, cascading down her back in waves.

Her eyes were a mesmerizing shade of black with purple hue at the edges. She wore a long, flowing white sect robe identifying her as a diciple of the Soul Shattering Sect.

The other figure was a young man in his 20s, his features sharp and angular with a clear mark on his forehead, his expression was unreadable and he led the way through the ruins with a confident stride, his movements fluid and precise.

They were Meng Lin and Liang Chen. The duo that partnered up because of their current situation.

Meng Lin’s eyes scanned their surroundings with caution as she moved through the ruins and Liang Chen’s eyes were filled with confident, occasionally glancing back at Meng Lin, his expression unreadable.

They moved through the Dead Zone and saw more desolation in the a desolate place, it was filled with crumbling structures and a heavy silence that seemed to hang in the air.

As they continued their exploration, their footsteps led them to a grove of a giant withered tree with hundreds of rotten fruits.

“Hmm” Meng Lin's eyes were suddenly drawn to the faint glimmer of three spiritual fruit hanging from the branches, their vibrant colors providing a stark contrast to the rest of the fruits.

With a careful touch, Meng Lin plucked one of the fruits from the tree. Its surface was smooth and glowing, emitting a sweet aroma that tickled her senses.

She recognized it and knew that consuming these three spiritual fruits would boost her qi and enhance her cultivation, it might just be what she needed to breakthrough.

"These are Celestial Spirit Fruits, i didn’t think I’d see one here” Meng Lin said as she opened her mouth, about to chew through the fruit.

“You decide to steal a child from the mother and want to eat it before the mother’s eyes, you’re cruel” Liang Chen spoke from the side as he swiftly reached for his waist, unsheathing a gleaming silver sword.

‘Mother’ Hearing his words Meng Lin suddenly realized something as she jumped backwards, away from the tree while storing the fruit away.

Rumble!!

The motionless giant Tree suddenly shook before a massive amount of aura burst from within its body.

Meng Lin’s eyes raised as she witnessed the sudden surge of energy emanating from the giant tree.

However, before she could do anything She saw the figure of Liang Chen brandishing his sword ready for battle.

The ground trembled beneath their feet as the tree's branches creaked and cracked, revealing a pair of glowing red eyes amidst the darkness.

Roar!!!

With a thunderous roar, the tree transformed into a towering, 10 meters long grotesque creature. Its bark-like skin was infused with an ominous aura, and its twisted branches reached out like gnarled claws while it’s hundreds of rotten fruits became it’s hairs all around.

The air grew heavy with its malevolent presence as it released aura of a Rank 2 Half Step beast.

As it released its aura, Meng Lin and Liang Chen could feel the oppressive pressure weighing down on them, a bit small but pressure nonetheless.

“Heh” Liang Chen's grip tightened on his sword as he chuckled at the sight before him.

He suddenly released his aura and power of the peak realm of the Foundation Establishment Realm erupted and in it was a powerful surge of sharp qi that enveloped his body.

The air around him seemed to vibrate with his presence as the aura of a sword emanated from him.

Meng Lin's eyes widened in surprise as she felt the sharp overwhelming power radiating from Liang Chen.

Sword Intent

She had never seen it before but if she was correct then that was Sword Intent.

Sword intent is a stage in power when a sword cultivator’s experience in swords emerges to become power, a force that can cut and pierce through anything.

It is a manifestation of the sword cultivator's mastery and understanding in his art of sword techniques.

Meng Lin was surprised, she didn’t know that Liang Chen was a sword cultivator and one at such a level, no wonder he acted confident.

Step

Liang Chen took a step forward, his eyes locked onto the grotesque creature before him. His sword glowed with a brilliant silver light, as if it had come alive with its own consciousness.

With a swift movement, Liang Chen swung his sword, releasing a wave of sword energy that sliced through the air.

The energy surged towards the creature, cutting through its twisted branches and causing it to let out a deafening roar of pain.

Liang Chen jumped towards the tree, his movements swift and precise as he clashed with the monstrous tree creature.

The creature retaliated with its branch-like limbs, but Liang Chen dodged and parried each attack with ease, his every move calculated and efficient.

Meng Lin watched as Liang Chen's swordsmanship skillfully countered the attacks of the monstrous tree creature.

She could see the fierce sword aura around him intensifying as he dodged a branch to strike out with a sword technique.

“Heavenly Ray Art and Sword Essence”

Meng Lin murmured to herself as she recognized the technique Liang Chen was using.

The Heavenly Ray Art was a High tier mid grade sword technique that combined power and precision of two different high Tier low grade arts.

While the Sword Essence was a secret technique that enhanced the cutting power of the sword.

Although she doesn’t know much about The Sword Essence Secret Art, she recognized the Heavenly Ray Art because she had come across it in the system market.

As Liang Chen continued his fierce battle, Meng Lin came to her senses as she realized that she couldn't just stand by and watch.

She concentrated her qi, circulating her power and took out her middle grade sword, the Jade Dust Sword.

Step!

With a burst of speed, Meng Lin dashed towards the creature, her movements graceful and agile.

With her Celestial Moonlit Sword technique Ming Lin unleashed a flurry of swift and precise sword strikes, each one aimed at a branch on the creature's body.

Roar!

The creature seemed to feel threatened and released an even more terrifying roar as its aura surged forward to push both Meng Lin and Liang Chen.

The oppressive force of the creature's aura pressed against Meng Lin and Liang Chen, threatening to push them back. But they stood their ground, their auras unwavering.

Meng Lin's sword glowed with a radiant blue light as she continued her assault on the creature's branches.

With each strike, she aimed for weak points, trying to sever its connection to the tree and weaken its defenses.

The Celestial Moonlit Sword technique flowed through her, guiding her movements with grace and precision.

She could feel the power of her sword technique resonating with her own energy, creating a harmonious balance between her and the blade.

Liang Chen, on the other hand, continued his relentless assault on the creature's main body.

His sword sliced through the air with incredible speed and accuracy, leaving behind trails of silver light.

The Heavenly Ray Art and Sword Essence combined to enhance his cutting power, allowing him to inflict deep wounds on the creature's bark-like skin.

The battle raged on, the clash of swords and the creature's roars echoing through the desolate ruins.

Meng Lin and Liang Chen moved with no synchronization at all as they both preferred their own style, their attacks were not complementing each other.

However, teamwork didn’t matter in the face of pure might as with each strike, the creature's resistance weakened. Its branches withered and crumbled under the relentless assault, while its red eyes flickered with a mixture of anger and fear.

Slash

Slash

Thrush!!

Finally, Meng Lin and Liang Chen delivered their final blows with Meng Lin's sword slashing through the creature's last limbs and Liang Chen's sword thrusting through its head, the sword intent destroying its insides.

It collapsed onto the ground, its body disintegrating into ashes, leaving behind two pieces of shimmering fruits that seemed unaffected by the battle.

‘We did it’ Meng Lin thought, a smile tugging at the corners of her lips.

She and Liang Chen stood there, panting heavily, their bodies covered in sweat and dirt.

Both of them could have taken care of the tree monster better if they went all out but both held certain apprehensions about the other, thus limiting the amount of power they could use.

However both were satisfied and they glanced at each other, their eyes reflecting a mixture of exhaustion and achievement.

Liang Chen looked down at the corpse before turning to Meng Lin, a sense of satisfaction evident on his face. "You, can have the fruits, I can see that you’re about to breakthrough, these three should do the job."