I reign supreme in the Western fantasy world for eternity.

Elena deployed a magical shield to protect everyone from the localized downpour, and stared in astonishment at the enormous curtain of water created by the holy mountain.

Ophelia, however, remained calm, seemingly already accustomed to the sect leader's occasional "unreasonableness."

Lilith had just learned from her master's words that she had been tricked and was trying to figure out where she had been fooled.

The sacred mountain was already connected with Ji Tian's mind and could be used without spiritual power. With a wave of his hand, the sacred sword broke through the water from the bottom of the lake and hung on the surface of the lake, with not a drop of water on the sacred mountain hanging on the sword.

Ji Tian tensed his leg muscles to gather strength, then leaped into the air and headed straight for the sacred mountain in the center of the lake. He landed steadily on the mountaintop and raised his hand to grip the longsword back in his palm.

"You can't even conjure the Golden Holy Sword and the Silver Holy Sword. You really aren't the river god from the prophetic tale. I know you're not injured. Come out."

The ripples on the lake gradually subsided, and the figure in the center of the lake reappeared, but her appearance was no longer as ethereal as before:

The long dress woven from water plants was torn in several places, the moonlight threads were broken in several places, and her wet, gray-blue hair clung to her face, with a few pieces of water plants hanging from the ends of her hair.

Elves are known for their longevity, and demigods possess the ability to integrate with nature and coexist with mountains and rivers.

This demigod temporarily merged himself with this area, thus creating mist in the forest and silently leading travelers to the lakeside.

When Ji Tian first met Him, the long dress He wore was formed from the water plants in the lake and the moonlight of the night.

It was precisely because of the special nature of the elven demigod that He immediately merged into the lake when the holy mountain crashed down, reducing most of the damage. However, being hit in the face by a mountain was still an unpleasant experience.

His voice was no longer ethereal; it was filled with a hint of exasperation as he shouted:

"How can you be so unreasonable?! I kindly gave you a gift, and you actually throw this sacred mountain at me?!"

Ji Tian hoisted the holy sword onto his shoulder, and the holy mountain on the tip of the sword cast a shadow in the morning light.

"First you created a thick fog to lure us to the lakeside, then you used your singing to almost make Lilith fall into the water. Is that what you call 'good intentions'?"

The elven demigod was speechless.

He did indeed have a habit of teasing people before rewarding them, a little pleasure he had enjoyed for thousands of years. After all, he was a demigod, and the heroes were all kind-hearted people who had never held it against him.

"I... I was testing her resolve! Every hero's team has done it this way!"

Ji Tian raised an eyebrow. "Past dynasties? That's their business. What exactly is your purpose?"

He composed himself, striving to maintain the dignity and elegance befitting a demigod, and his voice regained its composure:

"Fine, I won't hold it against you. Since you were able to draw the Holy Sword and carry the Holy Mountain here, it proves that you are indeed the chosen hero. I was ordered to wait here to give you something."

"What is it?"

"A token, a key that allows you to approach the [Tree]. I just gave it to you; it's on that golden rod."

Seeing that Ji Tian's expression remained unchanged, He, emboldened by his own malice, added, "However, if you want me to tell you the exact location of the [Tree], you'll have to pass a small test first."

Ji Tian frowned upon hearing this.

What he hates most are these riddle-makers who only say half of what they mean.

"What trial?"

Seeing that he didn't refuse outright, the demigod was secretly pleased, already planning how to get back at him. He cleared his throat: "It's simple, let's play a game—"

"I'm not playing."

Before Ji Tian finished speaking, he had already stepped out of the water, and his holy sword slashed horizontally, the blade carrying the power of the holy mountain as it cleaved down!

The demigod's pupils suddenly contracted, and his body transformed into mist, drifting backward to narrowly avoid the mountain.

"You—why aren't you following the script?!"

This isn't how a hero's trial works! You should agree to play games with me, try your best to find my weaknesses, then be impressed by my intelligence, unable to defeat me no matter what I set up, and getting frustrated. Then you remember your friendships and bonds, have a flash of inspiration, and barely defeat me by cooperating with your teammates. Why did you just attack me right away?! This isn't how a hero's trial works! I won't accept this!!

"I don't have time to play games with you." Ji Tian sheathed his sword and stood where she had just been, his robes already damp. "Either explain yourself clearly, or I'll keep smashing you."

The demigod felt his demigod dignity being trampled and rubbed repeatedly on the ground.

"A demigod cannot be insulted, you bastard!"

He gritted his teeth, preparing to teach the other party a lesson. The water mist around him condensed into thousands of water arrows, which shot towards Ji Tian with a shriek.

Ji Tian neither dodged nor evaded. He spun the holy sword in front of him, and the golden runes on the surface of the holy mountain lit up. The water arrows were attracted and crashed into the mountain, turning into countless water droplets that scattered everywhere.

He stomped his foot and shot out like a cannonball. At the same time, the Heaven-Turning Seal in his hand shrank rapidly until only the Holy Sword remained, and his speed increased again as he slashed straight at his opponent's shoulder.

Although He is a demigod of the Elven race, His abilities lie more in integrating with nature and manipulating water and wood; direct combat is not His forte.

Ji Tian's sword strike was swift and ruthless. He couldn't dodge it in time, and a large patch of water mist was torn off his shoulder. He groaned and his body retreated dozens of feet, landing on the canopy of an ancient pine tree on the lake shore, his face deathly pale.

"You...you brute!"

Ji Tian stood by the lake, looking up at the other person. "You're following the path of becoming one with the mountains and rivers, right? You bind yourself to the life force of this area, so as long as the forest isn't destroyed, you won't perish."

The demigod's expression changed slightly, as if he understood what the other party intended, and the other party's next words confirmed his thoughts.

Ji Tian glanced down at the holy sword in his hand, then made the holy mountain on the tip of the sword grow larger again. "Tell me," he said, "if I use this holy mountain to plow through this entire area for miles around, how much space would you have left to melt?"

"Wait, why are this year's heroes like this? The ones before them were all so easy to talk to!"

He raised his hands in surrender, his voice tinged with fear, "No—! I surrender! I surrender, okay?!"

Despite saying that, he had already cursed the high-ranking officials of the human kingdom's church in his heart, how could they dare to let the Holy Mountain fall into human hands.

He knew that although the Holy Mountain was said to be particularly effective against demons and dragons, if the other side were to turn over all the vegetation, soil, and rocks in the area and taint these places with holy light and faith power different from his own, he would be severely injured even if he did not die.

Ji Tian then stopped what he was doing, slung his sword over his shoulder, and quietly watched the elven demigod who was not good at fighting.

The demigod floated down from the treetop and landed on the lake shore. He wiped the water droplets off his face with his wet sleeve and tidied his messy long hair.

He decisively abandoned the arrogance of a demigod and spoke dejectedly:

"The magic attached to that golden staff is the proof of getting close to the [Tree]. The [Tree] is a relic left by the goddess near the Tree of Life, where some of the goddess's authority and memories are hidden."

Only the bravest warriors of each era who obtained the key could enter and receive the goddess's blessing.