Chapter 1324: Competing for the Anchor Point

Outside the Stone Dragon Secret Domain, a colossal light screen hung in the air, countless specks of light constantly flickering within it. Verdant green and crimson red, like two great dragons, ceaselessly eroded each other, imbued with a fierce and tragic aura.

Numerous Saints watched the light screen, their expressions solemn.

From the current situation, the Saint Race clearly held an advantage in the struggle for the Ancestral Soul Anchor Points. This weighed heavily on the Saints' hearts. The number of Ancestral Soul Anchor Points captured would determine which side could mobilize the Stone Dragon. However, they were currently powerless and could only await the final outcome.

"Oh?" A subtle gasp of surprise suddenly broke the tense atmosphere.

A Saint gazed at a section of the light screen that had previously been entirely crimson. Now, however, verdant green specks of light were suddenly being illuminated there.

Grand Elder Jinluo also fixed his gaze on that spot. "Is that Battle Zone Seventy-Seven?" A Saint immediately nodded in affirmation.

"That battle zone is under Zhou Yuan's command, isn't it?" Grand Elder Jinluo looked at Cang Yuan.

Cang Yuan smiled and nodded. With a flick of his sleeve, light and shadows converged before them, revealing a shocking battle. It was the scene of Zhou Yuan slaying Chilong and two other Saint Race powerhouses.

Some Saints around them murmured in admiration, clearly a little surprised by this. After all, their senses had previously swept over this area. However, upon seeing the Saint Race team led by Yuan Quan, they had lost hope for Zhou Yuan and his companions, even believing at the time that Battle Zone Seventy-Seven would be completely lost. But now, upon a sudden re-evaluation, no one had expected that the Saint Race team had actually been halved by Zhou Yuan and his group...

The loss of three experts at the second stage of the Law Domain undoubtedly dealt a significant blow to Yuan Quan's team.

"Cang Yuan, your disciple truly brings continuous surprises," Grand Elder Jinluo chuckled. Although the Ancestral Soul Anchor Points Zhou Yuan's team initially captured amounted to less than a tenth of Battle Zone Seventy-Seven's total, it was still a good start. Given the size of their team, achieving this much was already quite commendable.

Cang Yuan smiled, just about to speak, when a faint chuckle came from the side. "Zhou Yuan's performance is indeed not bad. However, the Saint Race team led by Yuan Quan has now occupied most of the Ancestral Soul Anchor Points in this battle zone. Judging by their direction of advance, they are likely heading directly for the zone's core. Although Zhou Yuan and his team are trying hard, they probably won't be able to change much. Moreover, once Yuan Quan is free, a single third-stage Law Domain expert would likely be enough to bring them utter devastation."

Cang Yuan glanced at Grand Elder Green Willow, who seemed to wear an expression of regret. Although Green Willow's words were subtle, the underlying meaning was clearly that Zhou Yuan and his team were merely making futile efforts, and this battle zone would eventually be lost.

Other Saints sighed upon hearing this. What Green Willow said was indeed the truth. Although Zhou Yuan's team had now slain nearly half of the enemy's strong combatants, the strongest among them, Yuan Quan, had not yet participated in the fighting. With his power as a third-stage Law Domain expert, he truly had the ability to turn the tide.

At that point, this battle zone would still ultimately belong to the Saint Race.

Grand Elder Jinluo's profound gaze pierced into the Stone Dragon Secret Domain, as if he could see everything unfolding in that battle zone. He remained silent for a moment, then slowly said, "The outcome will only be clear in the end. As observers, we may not be able to perceive everything."

Green Willow also smiled and nodded, seemingly in agreement. Then he looked at the massive light screen before them and chuckled, "The team led by Xu Beiyan, on the other hand, has reaped considerable rewards. Their battle zone shows signs of being completely secured."

Grand Elder Jinluo's gaze shifted to the battle zone where Xu Beiyan was located. He also nodded slightly and praised, "Xu Beiyan's talent is outstanding; he is indeed a promising young individual."

This was no exaggeration. Among all the Law Domain experts in the Heavens, apart from Zhuan Zhu, who had already ascended to Saint, probably no one could truly compare to Xu Beiyan.

A smile appeared on Green Willow's face. "With Xu Beiyan's talent, if he could obtain a portion of Ancestral Dragon Marrow, ascending to Saint would be virtually guaranteed."

Cang Yuan stated indifferently, "The overall situation here is still undecided, Green Willow, and you're already eyeing the Ancestral Dragon Marrow? That's quite unseemly, wouldn't you say?"

Green Willow's expression remained unchanged. "I'm merely speaking some truths. If our Heavens ultimately gain a slight advantage, Xu Beiyan's contributions will be beyond doubt. If even he cannot obtain a portion of Ancestral Dragon Marrow, then who would be qualified?"

Cang Yuan shook his head. "Contribution isn't determined by your words alone; there will be a judgment at the proper time. Besides, it's not the end yet, so how can you be so sure that Xu Beiyan's contribution is beyond doubt?"

Green Willow smiled without humor. "If Xu Beiyan isn't beyond doubt, then perhaps it's Zhou Yuan, who is about to lose all the Ancestral Soul Anchor Points in Battle Zone Seventy-Seven?"

"Enough!" Grand Elder Jinluo frowned and said in a deep voice. "It's not over yet; there's no need for any more pointless talk. With a great enemy before us, do you really have the inclination to undermine each other here?"

Only then did Cang Yuan and Green Willow fall silent, their gazes clashing coldly before finally turning away.

A long, mottled black nail, several yards in length, was slammed into the earth. Immediately, the ground began to tremble, and a faint, almost imperceptible dragon's roar seemed to echo. Following this, lines of light spread out from the earth. If viewed from above, these lines would appear like a spiderweb, covering this hundred-mile area.

"Success." Zhou Yuan watched the Dragon-Moving Nail pierce the earth, occupying this Ancestral Soul Anchor Point, and a smile appeared on his face.

After they had dealt with the pursuing Saint Race team, they had begun to capture Ancestral Soul Anchor Points. In less than half a day, they had already secured about six anchor points in the nearby area.

"All the Ancestral Soul Anchor Points in this vicinity have been claimed," Su Youwei said, approaching Zhou Yuan, her delicate face serious. "If we want to secure more, we'll have to push deeper into the battle zone. But if we do that, we might encounter the other half of that team."

The others also looked on. Although defeating the Saint Race team earlier had greatly boosted their morale, they had not lost their rationality. They understood that the strongest member of that team had not yet made a move. If they were to advance deeper into the battle zone, they would inevitably confront Yuan Quan.

He was a top-tier expert at the third stage of the Law Domain, far surpassing anyone among them in strength.

Zhou Yuan's expression, however, remained largely calm. The Ancestral Soul Anchor Points at the core of the battle zone would be extremely significant. In terms of quality, one anchor point there would be worth more than a dozen outside. Therefore, he was determined to secure those core anchor points and would absolutely not yield them.

"We've halved that Saint Race team, so in terms of numerical advantage, it's now on our side," Zhou Yuan said, his gaze sweeping over the group. The composure conveyed by his calm words soothed the uneasy feelings within the team, for after the previous battles, no one dared to underestimate him anymore.

"As for Yuan Quan, the third-stage Law Domain expert, I'll handle him with Tun Tun when the time comes."

Upon hearing this, everyone was surprised, then silently nodded. If anyone among them could pose a threat to a third-stage Law Domain expert like Yuan Quan, it could only be Zhou Yuan and Tun Tun.

"However, we cannot allow other Saint Race powerhouses to interfere with our duel," Zhou Yuan said with a solemn expression.

Within the team, everyone exchanged glances, seeing the grim determination in each other's eyes.

"Don't worry, Captain. We will risk our lives to hold back the others for you!"

Deep within Battle Zone Seventy-Seven.

On a mountaintop, Yuan Quan gazed indifferently at the occupied nodes on the ground not far away.

At that moment, the void behind him rippled, and a figure emerged. It was the only remaining second-stage Law Domain expert in the team, aside from Yuan Quan himself.

"Captain, Chilong and the others are likely in trouble. I sent out a sensory signal earlier, but received no response," the second-stage Law Domain Saint Race expert said with a grim expression.

Yuan Quan's eyes narrowed slightly. After a few seconds of silence, he said, "It seems we've been tricked."

Their earlier division of forces might have played right into the enemy's hands. What puzzled Yuan Quan, however, was how the enemy's lineup could possibly defeat three second-stage Law Domain experts like Chilong.

"Interesting," he chuckled faintly, though the Saint Race expert beside him could sense the deep killing intent hidden within his words.

"What now? Do we need to change our original objective and clear out these rats first?" the Saint Race expert asked.

Yuan Quan waved his hand dismissively. "No need to bother. Continue heading to the core area. The captain of that team seems to be an ambitious individual; he will definitely come to us."

"He has piqued my interest."

Yuan Quan smiled, yet within his pupils, a cruel killing intent was rapidly coalescing, causing the surrounding temperature to plummet.

"To show my appreciation, I will carve a stone statue for him, then flay him and drape his skin over it, as one of my prized collections."