Chapter 1316: Outbreak

In the quiet courtyard, Zhou Yuan lay on a recliner, holding a jade slip and studying the information about the Saint Race's Law Domain experts.

"It seems it will be a fierce battle," he murmured.

After a long while, he opened his slightly narrowed eyes and sighed, his expression a little grim. The jade slip contained a significant amount of information, which was likely not all of it, but even so, the lineup of the Saint Race revealed was already quite formidable and daunting.

Although the All-Heavens City didn't gather all of the Law Domain forces from the All-Heavens, similarly, this place didn't represent all of the Saint Race's power either.

"Tai Xuan..."

Zhou Yuan murmured a name. According to the information on the jade slip, this person named Tai Xuan was likely the most outstanding figure among the Saint Race's Law Domain experts. However, there were only a few brief details about him, and the sentence that shocked Zhou Yuan the most was:

"With the power of the Law Domain, he once shook a Saint."

Zhou Yuan couldn't tell if "shook" meant defeating or merely contending, but either way, it was enough to be utterly terrifying.

This Tai Xuan might be the greatest adversary for the All-Heavens' Law Domain forces this time.

Besides Tai Xuan, the Saint Race's army also contained several other top-tier experts who, according to the intelligence, were not to be underestimated.

After reviewing the information, Zhou Yuan felt a weight in his heart. The upcoming struggle for the Stone Dragon would undoubtedly be a fierce and arduous battle.

Zhou Yuan turned his head to look at Tun Tun, who was lying beside him with its belly exposed, leisurely basking in the sun. He asked, "What's your current strength?"

Tun Tun opened its eyelids and let out a lazy grunt.

"Can you handle a second-stage Law Domain expert...?" Zhou Yuan's eyes flickered slightly. Tun Tun had previously advanced to the eighth rank, which would normally be equivalent to the first stage of the Law Domain. However, as an innate Sacred Beast, it was extraordinary and clearly capable of fighting above its rank.

"Not a third stage? Your innate Sacred Beast power seems more watered down than I expected," Zhou Yuan said with a pout, a hint of dissatisfaction in his tone.

Tun Tun glared indignantly at the presumptuous guy, too lazy to even bother responding. Did he really think fighting above one's rank was easy? But then, it recalled that the freak beside him actually did such things frequently.

This made it a little depressed. Who was the Sacred Beast anyway?

"If Tun Tun were to exert its full power now, it could put up a slight resistance against a third-stage Law Domain expert, but defeating one would still be difficult unless it makes further improvements in the Stone Dragon Secret Realm," came Yaoyao's voice from nearby. She was also lying on another recliner, her slender arms crossed behind her head as a pillow, her beautiful eyes closed. Tiny slivers of sunlight filtered through her thick, long eyelashes.

Her posture inadvertently revealed her ample and powerful physique.

Zhou Yuan glanced at her from the side and couldn't help but swallow. Yaoyao, who usually kept a low profile, was actually quite a dominant presence.

"Does it look good?"

Yaoyao's leisurely voice drifted over, seemingly tinged with a cool chill.

Zhou Yuan quickly looked away guiltily, laughing awkwardly as he looked up at the sky.

Yaoyao opened her eyes, her gaze, as clear and cool as a mountain spring, swept across Zhou Yuan. A faint, almost imperceptible blush colored her porcelain-white cheeks. Then she said, "The battles within the Stone Dragon Secret Realm will undoubtedly be extremely brutal. However, you're no longer a greenhorn; you've probably grown accustomed to such things over the years, so I don't need to give you extra warnings."

"But there's one thing you must pay attention to: that so-called fusion technique with Tun Tun must not be used again from now on."

Zhou Yuan was stunned and asked in surprise, "Why?"

He had truly regarded this technique as a trump card.

Yaoyao glanced at Tun Tun with a hint of helplessness. "That previous fusion was simply this fellow being reckless. You two, one human and one beast, have different bloodlines and different souls. Even if the divine substance I left in your body forcibly merges you, using it too many times will leave some side effects."

"What kind of side effects?" Zhou Yuan quickly asked.

Yaoyao blinked and said, "Your behavior and mannerisms might gradually become like its."

Zhou Yuan looked as if he'd been struck by lightning, his face turning pale. After a long moment, he silently grabbed Tun Tun, which was lying next to him, pinched its neck, and gritted his teeth, saying, "You scoundrel, you almost got me killed!"

Tun Tun roared and, with a flick of its tail, wrapped itself around Zhou Yuan's neck, squeezing him tightly.

"Your Highness, all the team slots have finally been confirmed."

Just as the human and beast were bickering, a voice suddenly came from the courtyard gate. Su Youwei stood gracefully there, her beautiful eyes looking at them with a hint of surprise.

Zhou Yuan sheepishly dropped Tun Tun, then stepped forward to take the parchment from Su Youwei, smiling, "Thank you for your hard work."

Three days had passed since his position as a battle zone leader was confirmed. During these three days, Zhou Yuan's team had never reached its full quota, but now, finally, it was complete.

Zhou Yuan understood that since today was the final deadline, most of the new recruits had likely been rejected elsewhere and had to settle for a less ideal option.

Although Zhou Yuan was a bit displeased, there was nothing he could do. After all, even with Tun Tun by his side, his appeal couldn't compare to battle zone leaders who were at the third stage of the Law Domain.

He unfolded the paper and examined it closely. He found that his team, including Ai Tuanzi, only had nine Law Domain experts. In contrast, he knew that the battle zone leaders at the third stage of the Law Domain commanded more than twenty Law Domain experts, some even including powerful generals at the second stage of the Law Domain.

Compared to them, his assembled team seemed rather shabby.

But it couldn't be helped; his status as a battle zone leader at the Nascent Source stage truly deterred many, so he couldn't blame others for not joining him.

Fortunately, the battle zone he was responsible for wasn't particularly popular, so it likely wouldn't attract overly powerful opponents from the Saint Race. Of course, Zhou Yuan wasn't afraid; he simply planned to gain some advantages there first. If he could improve his team's strength or help Tun Tun advance further, they would then be qualified to contend with those top-tier teams.

Just as Zhou Yuan was contemplating this, a loud bell resonance suddenly echoed throughout All-Heavens City.

The bells chimed one after another, slightly urgent, causing both Zhou Yuan and Su Youwei's expressions to turn solemn.

They knew it was time to move out.

He looked at Su Youwei and said, "Gather the team; it's time to depart."

Su Youwei nodded and immediately turned to leave.

Zhou Yuan looked up at the void, stood for a moment, then turned and walked over to Yaoyao, his gaze fixed on her.

Yaoyao tidied Zhou Yuan's clothes, somewhat like a young wife seeing her husband off to battle. She said, "Be careful."

Zhou Yuan gazed at her fair, jade-like face so close to his, his heart stirred. He then suddenly lowered his head, pressed a firm kiss on her red lips, and decisively turned to leave.

Tun Tun leaped onto his head and waved a paw at the slightly dazed Yaoyao.

Yaoyao watched the retreating figures of the human and beast. After a good while, her eyes regained their focus. She lightly touched her lips, and then a subtle curve appeared at the corner of her mouth, turning upward slightly.