He was thinking of me in his heart, when he discovered that Weixi, without knowing when, had appeared before him again.
His withered palm was raised once more, he didn't even bother to use his weapon.
This palm looked exceptionally ordinary, like some withered branches.
But I mobilized all the power of the Shepherd God within my body with all my might, only to find that I couldn't move at all.
"There are eight minutes left, and your life also has only eight minutes left..." Weixi said faintly.
His tone was exceptionally calm, as if he were merely stating a fact.
But at this moment, I felt immense torment.
Because I found that no matter how I tried, I couldn't break through his attack.
I exerted all my strength, raised my right hand, and slashed forward with my short sword.
"Clang!"
The sound of metal clashing echoed, and my short sword flew out, embedding itself in the distant rocks.
"You have lost your weapon now..." Weixi said, "And your other shoulder has also been crippled by me..."
As he spoke, he raised his palm again.
At this moment, I no longer hesitated and turned to run.
I pushed my speed to its limit, but for some reason, I felt my body was exceptionally heavy.
Just as the attack was about to land on me, my instincts saved me once again.
I shifted my body to the side, and the attack grazed my shoulder.
Although it didn't cripple my right arm, a ghastly wound appeared on my shoulder.
Intense pain surged through me. Rationally, I should have had some immunity to pain, but for some reason, this pain was exceptionally clear.
It felt as if the pain originated from the depths of my soul.
Moreover, even using my water element powers couldn't alleviate it.
"You can't escape..." Weixi said, "You might as well stand here obediently and enjoy your remaining eight minutes... no, seven minutes..."
I gritted my teeth, and I seemed to feel my life beginning to enter a countdown.
But I couldn't think of any other way at this moment.
Weixi must have completely fused with the power of the Tree of Life now.
At this moment, his defense and his attack represented not himself, but the Tree of Life.
This power filled me with dread.
The reason for the dread was the unknown.
Because I didn't know what method could end this post-crisis.
But there was one thing I was certain of: if I couldn't find a solution in a short period, everything I had done so far would be meaningless.
I gritted my teeth, my body's instincts pushed to their limit, and I was in a state of extreme tension.
I could clearly sense every minute change happening around me.
Even the slightest shift in the wind.
I had faced life-and-death crises before, when fighting with Zhou Ran and the others, I had felt that sense of crisis, the one that comes when facing death.
But it was different now.
This feeling of death was clearer, more distinct.
If nothing unexpected happened, it was because Zhou Ran didn't have killing intent towards me; he was just training me, honing me, and even killing me was just a part of his mission.
But now it was different; Weixi had absolute killing intent towards me, he genuinely wanted to kill me!
Cold sweat dripped down my face, and my mind went blank.
For some reason, during moments of extreme tension, one's thoughts often spiral out of control.
Countless scenes flashed through my mind in an instant, but none offered a way for me to survive.
At this moment, I even felt some regret, thinking, what if I had given him the Tree of Life...
No...
This thought appeared for a moment and was immediately cut off. My mind returned to normal.
I carefully analyzed Weixi's current state. He had assimilated with the Tree of Life, and the power he possessed was also the power of the Tree of Life.
With my current abilities, it was clearly impossible to defeat him.
But, how should one defeat the Tree of Life?
My back throbbed with intense pain. I knew my back was torn open.
My body was covered in countless wounds, and blood dripped incessantly, but I couldn't care about that anymore.
I focused all my energy on thinking of a way to deal with Weixi, to deal with the Tree of Life...
Tree of Life...
Tree of Life...
At a certain moment, my mind suddenly cleared. The Tree of Life... you have it, but don't I?
I looked down at my chest, where the tattoo of the Tree of Life had already grown six branches.
"It's do or die this time..." I reached for my chest.
Weixi's attack came again, and I still couldn't dodge it.
But this time, I didn't choose to run again; instead, I turned to face Weixi.
"It seems you have recognized your fate..." Weixi said slowly, "You are right. Rather than running, it's better to die honorably. At least, I won't underestimate you..."
I remained silent.
"To die under the power of the Tree of Life is not a shameful end..." Weixi said, "It's almost time to finish this..."
As he spoke, he raised his palm again. A faint green light emanated from the withered palm.
This light carried the threat of death.
But at this moment, I no longer dodged.
The withered palm instantly pierced my abdomen. I could feel my internal organs being affected at that moment.
Intense pain spread to every corner of my body, and I couldn't help but convulse.
But I also knew this was my chance.
My right hand, the only one still intact, grabbed the withered palm.
Weixi looked at me: "Still struggling? It's meaningless..."
His palm kept churning in my abdomen. The pain felt like I was being torn apart.
My internal organs were severely damaged at this moment, and blood gushed out.
But my hand still tightly held his withered palm, showing no signs of letting go.
"In that case, I won't leave your corpse intact..." Weixi said slowly.
"Tree of Life..." Blood began to seep from the corners of my mouth, my consciousness started to blur. I felt I was nearing my limit.
"Precisely, so your death is not shameful. The gap between us is too vast, in our understanding of the Tree of Life, in our control of power, in our interpretation of all past events..." Weixi looked at me, "Goodbye..."
I coughed up another mouthful of blood, my expression turning ferocious: "Tree of Life... you have it, but don't I?"