Chapter 1065: Lei Yuanzhu

Logically, with the lightning becoming so dense, even Master Wu and the others, at their peak, wouldn't be able to leave. Their sudden disappearance into thin air can only mean one thing: Stoneleaf King has returned and attacked them!

"No, that's not right... Although the Golden Origin Cauldron might seem unreliable, its combat power should not be underestimated. It's almost impossible to defeat it unless one has reached the fifth realm of the Saint Domain, the Out-of-Body stage. With its protection, there shouldn't be much of a problem!"

He quickly dismissed this idea: "Besides, I wasn't gone for long. Even if they couldn't win, they should have been able to hold out for a while. Furthermore... with such violent lightning, even if Stoneleaf King is powerful, he certainly couldn't defend against it. His own survival would be an issue; how would he have the time to bother Master Wu and the others?"

As a mid-tier Saint artifact, the Golden Origin Cauldron, while only rampaging haphazardly and exerting limited combat power without anyone driving it, would still offer protection that might thwart even Stoneleaf King's attempts.

What's more, with the lightning being so violent, he could barely ensure his own survival, making it absolutely impossible to kill anyone here.

"Hmm?" Realizing that Stoneleaf King might not have returned, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief and looked towards the ruins before him.

Since they weren't under attack, they must be hiding.

Upon closer inspection, he indeed noticed something amiss and couldn't help but smile faintly.

The soil on the ground was new. Although the previous city walls had completely collapsed, they were piled on top of the new earth. If his guess was correct, Master Wu and the others must have dug a pit and hidden underground.

Above ground, humans, due to their unique physiques, would attract lightning. But by burrowing underground, they would be much safer. This was indeed an excellent method.

He released his physical body from his storage ring, and his witch soul entered it. With a surge of true qi, he pushed aside the earth and burrowed straight down.

Upon entering the earth, the lightning's attacks indeed diminished significantly. After descending seven or eight meters, he indeed saw a massive cauldron hidden there.

It was the Golden Origin Cauldron!

At this moment, the Golden Origin Cauldron was enormous, with a diameter of twenty to thirty meters. There was no one outside, seemingly all hidden inside it.

"Are you injured?" Just as he was about to lift the lid to check on everyone, Zhang Xuan noticed that the Golden Origin Cauldron before him had a weak aura, clearly having sustained significant injuries.

"Young Master, you're here..." Seeing him arrive, the Golden Origin Cauldron responded, its voice sounding weak: "They're all fine..."

"What happened to you?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

"The lightning became fierce," the cauldron replied. "I needed to save people, so I grew too large, and was attacked by the lightning... Now I just want to rest..."

The Golden Origin Cauldron swayed.

Zhang Xuan's fists clenched.

With the lightning so dense and the Golden Origin Cauldron expanding to twenty to thirty meters in diameter, it naturally took an extremely intense barrage of attacks.

As a mid-tier Saint artifact, the lightning attacks wouldn't cause much physical damage, but its spirit couldn't withstand them.

Lightning naturally possesses immense destructive power against souls.

Therefore, although the Golden Origin Cauldron protected everyone, its own spirit was greatly agitated, and it appeared as if it could fall unconscious at any moment.

"I'll teach you a cultivation technique; practice it first... Don't fall unconscious!"

Knowing that the Golden Origin Cauldron's spirit could very well die if it fell unconscious, Zhang Xuan was filled with urgency. With a thought, he transmitted a cultivation method to it.

It was a soul-tempering technique. Although he didn't know if it would be useful for a spirit, he had no other options at the moment.

This fellow was usually carefree, but its loyalty was beyond doubt. This time, it had done this to save others. He absolutely could not let anything happen to it.

"Alright... I'll cultivate when I have time..." the Golden Origin Cauldron replied. "Young Master, though I fear death, I am no coward..."

The Golden Origin Cauldron's voice grew fainter and fainter until it gradually fell silent.

"Cauldron..." He urgently called out, only to find that it had already fallen into a deep sleep.

It had long since reached its limit but had persisted solely to report to him.

"You are no coward, but a hero..." His eyes flashed, and Zhang Xuan clenched his teeth: "Don't worry, I will definitely awaken you..."

Although this fellow was just a weapon and had always been afraid of death, when faced with crucial matters of right and wrong, it had still resolutely chosen to protect everyone.

He had promised it that he would help it reach the Out-of-Body stage and had also promised to take it along on his journey. Now that it was unconscious because it had saved others, he had to awaken it no matter what and fulfill its wish to become stronger.

With his decision made, he lifted the cauldron lid and jumped inside.

"Master Zhang, you're back..." Seeing him appear, Master Wu and the others, who were hiding inside, simultaneously stood up.

Protected by the Golden Origin Cauldron, they had not suffered any harm. Instead, after half a day of adjustment, their injuries had improved, and their strength had recovered considerably.

"Hmm, what happened?" Zhang Xuan asked. "Wasn't the lightning quite stable before? Why did it suddenly become so violent?"

Zhang Xuan couldn't help but ask.

He had gone to find Luo Ruoxi and didn't know what had happened here. Since everyone was in the center of the lightning sea, they should know more clearly.

"It should be related to... that Stoneleaf King you mentioned!" Master Wu replied. "He went to find the so-called treasure and might have touched something, which caused the lightning to become so powerful!"

They had just speculated about this while inside, and everyone agreed that this was likely the reason.

Otherwise, such a vast sea of lightning couldn't possibly change so suddenly and drop so much lightning all at once.

"Very likely..." Zhang Xuan nodded.

That's right!

They had mentioned earlier that Stoneleaf King, a Saint Domain Fourth Realm expert, had gone to find some treasure. Soon after, this situation occurred... There must be a connection between the two.

"Which direction did Stoneleaf King go earlier?" Zhang Xuan's eyes narrowed.

If it weren't for this fellow, the Golden Origin Cauldron might not have fallen unconscious. He had to get revenge no matter what!

Moreover, no matter what treasure it was, if he truly obtained it, humanity would definitely face great danger. They had to stop him, even at the cost of their lives.

"He went deeper into this ancient city..." Master Wu pointed in a direction.

Their current location was a dilapidated ancient city in the very center of the lightning sea. Stoneleaf King had gone to the very heart of this ancient city.

"I'll go check it out. You all continue to cultivate and recover here..." Zhang Xuan waved his hand.

Actually, the safest method would be to take everyone into the Myriad Ants Nest.

Doing so, while protecting everyone, would also expose the secret of the Beehive. Besides, everyone was here for trials, and they certainly wouldn't want to keep hiding.

It would also be disrespectful to the many master teachers.

"Master Zhang, that Stoneleaf King is extremely powerful. I'll go with you," Feng Xun said, standing up. "Moreover, I have a special technique that can track Otherworldly Demonic Tribesmen..."

He had been affected by the demonic sound, but only his strength was depleted. When fighting the Otherworldly Demonic Tribesmen, he was protected by Master Wu and the others and did not suffer severe injuries. After a period of adjustment, he had fully recovered, his aura like a dragon, exuding strong battle intent.

"Alright!" Seeing that his body was fine, Zhang Xuan didn't say anything more and nodded.

A combat master's philosophy is to advance fearlessly, facing death without regret. If he were to keep hiding, it would be a destruction of his confidence.

Moreover, although Feng Xun had always been beaten when sparring with him, that was because he had suppressed his cultivation. If he unleashed his full cultivation, at the peak of Saint Domain Third Realm, he could even fight Stoneleaf King!

Combat masters fighting against higher realms was definitely not fake.

Furthermore, he also had a method to track Otherworldly Demonic Tribesmen.

Although the Eye of Insight could also work, many traces had disappeared under the lightning bombardment. Rather than bothering to search, it was better to bring him along and also witness a combat master's methods.

Others also wanted to join, but Zhang Xuan rejected them one by one.

Firstly, their strength had not fully recovered. Secondly, Master Wu and the others needed care and couldn't leave easily. Otherwise, if they failed to find Stoneleaf King and others, and were instead found by them first, it would still be very dangerous without the Golden Origin Cauldron's protection.

Knowing his concerns, the others said no more and focused on cultivating to recover as quickly as possible.

Zhang Xuan, with Feng Xun, burst out of the earth and returned to the surface.

The lightning seemed to have lessened compared to before. Even without relying on his witch soul, he could evade it. The two breathed a sigh of relief and flew straight into the city.

The further they went inside, the less lightning there was. It was as if this ancient city possessed a special power that shielded it from the lightning.

Although the lightning had diminished, Stoneleaf King had used some unknown method to conceal his tracks. After walking for a while, even Zhang Xuan found himself somewhat disoriented.

"Let me investigate..."

Feng Xun stopped. With a flick of his wrist, a special artifact appeared in his palm. It resembled a compass and could indicate direction. He bit his finger and touched a drop of blood onto it.

The artifact let out a crisp sound, and its pointer indicated a direction.

"He went in that direction..." Feng Xun nodded.

"What is this? It can identify the path taken by Otherworldly Demonic Tribesmen?" Zhang Xuan found it strange and couldn't help but ask.

This was the first time he had seen such a thing.

"This is the Impeccable Mirror," Feng Xun explained. "It's extremely sensitive to blood and slaughter. Otherworldly Demonic Tribesmen cultivate Slaughter True Qi, so wherever they pass, they inevitably leave behind their aura, which this mirror can detect! Of course, the time cannot be too long; its effectiveness diminishes after two hours..."

"Impeccable Mirror?" Zhang Xuan nodded.

The very purpose of combat masters is to fight the Otherworldly Demonic Tribesmen. It seems this artifact was precisely researched and forged by them specifically to track down those who escape.

Following the direction, the two hurried forward.

Every so often, Feng Xun would take out the Impeccable Mirror to confirm their direction. After several such checks, they arrived at a dilapidated mansion in the very center of the ancient city.

"Be careful!"

Knowing that Stoneleaf King was very likely inside, the two exchanged glances, gave a brief mutual caution, and silently flew inside.

The mansion's courtyard was completely destroyed. A tall Otherworldly Demonic Tribesman was standing in the very center. With both hands raised, power surged out frantically, seemingly battling something.

In front of him was a small pond. Above it, a fist-sized, deep blue orb spun continuously.

The power surging from this Otherworldly Demonic Tribesman was falling directly onto the orb, seemingly trying its best to suppress something.