Chapter 79: Fear

After the previous onslaught of jade light, almost half of the people standing on the lake surface had vanished. However, those who remained were clearly skilled; like Zhou Yuan, each had a shimmering transparent light shield in front of them, completely concealing their bodies behind it.

Hidden behind their soul shields, Zhou Yuan and the others continued their careful approach toward the small island without stopping.

As they drew closer, the Jade Poppy Tree on the island unleashed two more waves of jade light, shattering the light shields of several individuals and simultaneously flinging them into the lake, where they dissolved into pools of blood.

By this point, Zhou Yuan and a few others had approached within twenty zhang of the island, seemingly on the verge of landing.

On the shore, everyone watched the scene with bated breath.

Zhou Yuan's gaze was fixed on the small island. As he drew closer, instead of relaxing, his body tensed up even more. He had a feeling that the obstacles to landing on the island might be more than what they had encountered so far.

Zhou Yuan and the others stepped across the waves, approaching the small island step by step, and quickly entered the ten-zhang range.

At that very moment, the Jade Poppy Tree in the lake once again burst forth with dazzling jade light, forming a ring that swept outwards.

As the jade light swept across, Zhou Yuan and the others bore the brunt and were directly enveloped.

As the jade light enveloped them, Zhou Yuan and the others instantly felt a roar erupt in their minds, and their vision darkened. Before them appeared a primeval, desolate land, where only a colossal, seemingly endless, jade-colored tree stood between heaven and earth.

Before the colossal tree, they were as tiny and insignificant as ants. An inexpressible sense of oppression enveloped them, filling them with intense fear. Under this fear, their souls trembled, showing signs of gradually dissipating.

On the shore, Su Youwei looked at the lake. Seeing Zhou Yuan, Zhao Qingfeng, and the others completely motionless, she immediately sensed something was wrong. A flash of tension and anxiety crossed her beautiful eyes as she turned to Yaoyao and asked, "Sister Yaoyao, what's happening?"

Yaoyao's delicate eyebrows furrowed slightly as she replied, "It's a soul power assault. They've fallen into some kind of soul attack. If they can't withstand it, even their souls will be crushed and shattered."

Wei Canglan, Wei Qingqing, Lu Tieshan, and the others nearby all changed expressions. If their souls shattered, they would be left imbecilic—the consequences would be extremely severe.

"We must act to save His Highness," Wei Canglan said gravely.

Yaoyao shook her head and said softly, "Don't worry, he won't be defeated so easily."

Yaoyao couldn't say for sure if it were anything else, but if it was merely a soul attack, harming Zhou Yuan, who had cultivated the "Chaos God Mill Visualization Method," would not be easy.

As they spoke, the few remaining figures on the lake surface suddenly fell backward one by one, their eyes empty, as if their consciousness had dissipated.

*Plop.*

Their bodies fell into the lake and sank to the bottom, where they were ultimately shredded into a crimson pool by the source pattern barriers covering the lakebed.

In just a few breaths, only two figures remained on the lake surface: Zhou Yuan and Zhao Qingfeng.

The heaven-reaching jade tree stood before them, an oppressive aura enveloping them.

"A soul power assault, huh..."

Zhou Yuan gazed at the enormous jade tree. Although his soul was trembling incessantly from the immense pressure it exerted, he did not allow his soul to dissipate due to fear. The fear he had experienced far surpassed anything this heaven-reaching jade tree could inflict.

"Let me show you what true fear is."

With a thought from Zhou Yuan, a chaotic void suddenly descended beyond this primeval land. In that void, a colossal, mottled divine millstone, seemingly without end, slowly emerged, casting boundless shadows.

As the divine millstone turned, everything in its path was annihilated.

The heaven-reaching jade tree was already incredibly awe-inspiring, but when the mottled divine millstone appeared, the jade tree seemed insignificant before it. The divine millstone slowly ground over them, and both the jade tree and this primeval land turned into nothingness...

On the lake surface, Zhou Yuan's tightly closed eyes suddenly opened. Divine light still surged in his eyes, clearly indicating that his soul had not been shattered by the soul power assault.

He turned his head and waved to the anxious Su Youwei and the others on the shore, signaling that he was fine.

Seeing this, Wei Canglan, Su Youwei, and the others finally let out a sigh of relief.

After Zhou Yuan broke free from the soul power assault of the Jade Poppy Tree, he took large strides, stepping on the water, and walked onto the small island. This time, he encountered no further obstruction.

As Zhou Yuan stepped onto the small island, Zhao Qingfeng's body trembled, and his tightly closed eyes slowly opened. A hint of lingering fear flashed in his gaze.

He, too, had been intimidated by the heaven-reaching jade tree earlier, and fear had surged in his heart. Fortunately, he had managed to endure it with great difficulty.

"How can this Jade Poppy Tree possess such a powerful soul aura? It's a good thing my soul is strong; I must be the first one to break free," Zhao Qingfeng muttered to himself, wiping away a cold sweat. He then looked up and saw Zhou Yuan's figure already stepping onto the small island before him, and his expression instantly twisted with shock.

"How is that possible?!" Zhao Qingfeng exclaimed.

His face alternated between pale and green. He had originally believed that with his soul cultivation at the Void Realm mid-stage, he could proudly look down on everyone present. Yet, he hadn't expected this youth, who appeared many years younger than him, to break free from the soul power assault even earlier.

Zhao Qingfeng's eyes shifted, and eventually, a hint of malice flashed within them.

He was currently relying on the patronage of Prince Qi's Mansion. If he performed poorly here, his standing in Qi Hao's eyes would inevitably diminish, which would undoubtedly be extremely detrimental to his future development. Therefore, he had to obtain this Jade Infant Fruit.

As this thought flashed through his mind, the source pattern pen in Zhao Qingfeng's hand suddenly drew across the void before him. The soul between his brows shimmered with light, and in the next instant, a source pattern formed.

"Second-grade source pattern, Ghost-Face Soul Devourer!"

As the source pattern pen in Zhao Qingfeng's hand dropped, the source pattern immediately burst forth with light, transforming directly into a grayish-black beam that shot out, launching a sneak attack towards Zhou Yuan's back.

"Your Highness, be careful!" Su Youwei and the others on the shore saw this and immediately changed expressions, urgently calling out.

The grayish-black light shot forth with a piercing sound, carrying a soul attack. If hit, the body would remain unharmed, but the soul would be severely damaged—a consequence far more severe than losing a limb. This clearly demonstrated the maliciousness of Zhao Qingfeng's attack.

Just as the grayish-black light launched its sneak attack, Zhou Yuan sensed it. He suddenly turned around, his eyes flashing with killing intent as he looked at the whistling attack and Zhao Qingfeng behind it.

"I didn't intend to bother with you, but since you're seeking death, I'll grant your wish!"

At Zhou Yuan's glabella, light flickered, and lines of light slowly emerged, revealing a source pattern he had already inscribed.

"Second-grade source pattern, Soul-Severing Mark!"

Zhou Yuan's soul at his glabella trembled. With a whoosh, the source pattern transformed into an invisible beam of light that shot out, like a soul blade, heavily striking down towards the whistling grayish-black light.

During the journey to the Black Abyss, Zhou Yuan had seized the opportunity to learn several second-grade source patterns from Yaoyao. This Soul-Severing Mark, in particular, was a source pattern that relied on soul power for its attack. He had originally intended to use it against Qi Hao, but he hadn't expected to use it here.

As the soul blade struck down, a tearing sound seemed to echo in that instant. The grayish-black light was directly split in two, severed into halves.

"What?!" Zhao Qingfeng's pupils constricted, and he cried out in shock. His second-grade source pattern had actually been directly severed in two by Zhou Yuan.

"Void Realm mid-stage, so you're also Void Realm mid-stage!" Zhao Qingfeng finally sensed Zhou Yuan's soul fluctuations, which were indeed at the Void Realm mid-stage, just like his own.

Zhou Yuan's eyes were cold. With a flash of his soul at his glabella, a phantom-like fluctuation shot out. A breath later, it appeared before Zhao Qingfeng and plunged into the space between his eyebrows.

"Since the jade tree earlier didn't let you taste enough fear, I'll give you another dose!"

As Zhou Yuan's voice, filled with killing intent, fell, Zhao Qingfeng once again felt the world around him change. This time, however, his surroundings transformed into a chaotic, void space.

*Rumble!*

Suddenly, a thunderous sound echoed. Zhao Qingfeng looked up, then saw a boundless, colossal shadow of a divine millstone slowly grinding towards him. Before this divine millstone, the previous heaven-reaching jade tree seemed utterly insignificant.

An inexpressible fear surged into his heart, causing Zhao Qingfeng's soul to tremble wildly. Faintly, a cracking sound could be heard as cracks appeared on his soul.

On the lake surface, Zhao Qingfeng let out a shriek. His eyes quickly became empty as his soul, unable to withstand the fear brought by the Chaos God Mill, shattered on the spot.

*Plop!*

His body fell, sinking into the lake, and finally turned the water a crimson hue.

On the shore, silence reigned as everyone watched the scene in shock. The two had been battling with soul power—an invisible clash whose extreme danger was clear to all. However, what they hadn't expected was that Zhao Qingfeng, who had initiated the sneak attack, would suffer a devastating defeat just a few breaths later...

This demonstrated just how powerful His Highness Zhou Yuan's soul truly was!

On the small island, Zhou Yuan glanced indifferently at Zhao Qingfeng, who had fallen into the lake, then dismissed him. He turned around and walked to the Jade Poppy Tree in the center of the lake.

He looked up at the two crystal-clear, infant-shaped fruits hanging on the tree, a fervent glow emerging in his eyes.

"Huh?"

However, just as he was about to pluck the Jade Infant Fruit, his gaze suddenly shifted to a branch. He saw what appeared to be a pale silver ring hanging there. Faintly, a peculiar fluctuation emanated from the ring.