Chapter 1074: Lo Ruoxi's Suggestion

"Can't?"

Everyone looked over.

"Yes, this Black Annihilation Dust covers the entire path ahead. It should be a trial, just like the previous lava. If we don't pass it, we won't be able to enter deeper areas and will be forever stuck on the periphery," said President Han.

"Hmm!" Zhang Xuan nodded upon hearing his words.

It was indeed true.

This kind of enclosed trial only activates the next formation once this one is passed. If they couldn't get through, they would simply remain stuck. Trying to use tricks or sneak past was clearly impossible. The designer of this ruin was most likely Ancient Sage Qiuwu, a super-expert. How could he leave any loopholes for them to exploit? Even if there were loopholes, their strength wasn't enough to exploit them. They might even fall into more dangerous trials, where their lives would no longer be in their control.

"Based on the traces, Zhang Yinqiu and the others must have entered this place, but... how do we get in?" Teacher Wu frowned, walking a circle around the spot. They had found the old principal's sword and some traces of battle, clearly indicating they had come this way. However, the dust before them could instantly corrode even peak-grade spirit artifacts. Cultivators couldn't enter at all. Even if they could, they probably couldn't go deep, let alone get out of its range.

Ignoring the others' anxiety, Zhang Xuan furrowed his brows and observed carefully. The Black Annihilation Dust before them, like the Sea of Lightning from earlier, was also part of a large formation. Its scope was too vast; even if they knew its flaws, their strength was insufficient to break it. After studying it for a while, he also shook his head helplessly. Just like their conclusion, there was no other way but to force their way through.

"All this time, we've either encountered the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe or been ambushed by them... Now, apart from this Black Annihilation Dust, there's no sign of anyone else. Could it be... if I'm not mistaken, that the direction we're searching in is wrong?" Just as everyone was at a loss, Luo Ruoxi suddenly spoke.

"The direction we're pursuing?" Everyone was puzzled.

"That's right, we've been following the traces left by Principal Zhang Yinqiu, but... what if the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe truly passed through before us? These traces might not be real... Could we instead look for traces left by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe and follow them? That might be safer!" Luo Ruoxi explained her analysis.

"This..." Everyone was stunned.

"Indeed, Teacher Luo is absolutely right!" Zhang Xuan's eyes lit up.

After entering the ruin, they had been searching for the traces left by the old principal. While this approach wasn't wrong, it would be disastrous if these traces were traps set by the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe. Of the ten kings from the Qingtian lineage of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe, he had already killed seven and subdued one. The most powerful among them, King Tianye, though he hadn't met him in the Poison Hall, was known to be terrifying... Under normal circumstances, having obtained the map, they would surely have come here too... Yet, at this moment, no traces of them had been found, and it would be strange to say that it wasn't peculiar! King Yuye and King Shiye, ranked third and fourth, had arrived and were already so difficult to deal with. The first and second ranked ones would surely be even more formidable. The fact that they hadn't made a move indicated that... relying on the map, they must have entered earlier, moving faster than Zhang Xuan and the others! Since that was the case, the path they took must be the safest and easiest to pass through.

"Let's investigate..." His body flickered, and he flew up, his Eye of Insight rotating as he scanned the surroundings. Previously, he had focused on the traces left by the old principal and hadn't paid much attention to other areas. Now, observing carefully, he quickly discovered something amiss. There were indeed traces of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe having passed through here, and only a few hours ago.

"Feng Xun, please lend me your Untainted Mirror!" Landing on the ground, Zhang Xuan extended his hand. These members of the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe had intentionally erased their traces. His current strength was too low for his Eye of Insight to function at its peak. He could only vaguely tell that someone had passed through but couldn't pinpoint the exact path. If it was within a few hours, the Battle Master Hall's Untainted Mirror should still be effective.

"Okay!" Feng Xun nodded and handed over the item. After asking for instructions on its use, Zhang Xuan followed suit, biting his finger and pressing it onto the mirror. The Untainted Mirror flickered twice, pointing out a direction. Following the direction, Zhang Xuan carefully distinguished the path for a while before looking at the others. "The Otherworldly Demonic Tribe truly passed through ahead. They seem to have entered the Black Annihilation Dust from here..."

"Entered from here? Aren't they afraid of this?" A battle master asked, puzzled.

"I don't know either..." Zhang Xuan shook his head. According to the direction indicated by the Untainted Mirror, the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe members who passed through a few hours ago had indeed entered from this spot. However, he had just carefully studied it, and this place was also not a flaw. The dust storm was still terrifying. How the other party managed to enter unscathed was something even he couldn't figure out.

"I'll try. Perhaps the dust storm here looks terrifying, but there might be an invisible passage..." Taking a deep breath, Teacher Wu stepped forward.

"Be careful..." President Han paused for a moment before cautioning him. Such things often occurred in formations. What appeared to be a terrifying, undetectable entrance—a "life gate"—could only be found by experiencing it firsthand.

"Okay!" Teacher Wu nodded without further words. He took a deep breath, and his *zhenqi* surged out, forming a pale silver armor on his body. Saint-tier martial art, True Dragon Silver Armor! This was his strongest defensive martial art, capable of enveloping his entire body, making it perfectly suited for dealing with the Black Annihilation Dust. He lifted his foot and stepped inside. *Crack! Crack! Crack!* Upon entering the dust, sounds of impact continuously rang out, like heavy rain striking banana leaves. After taking seven or eight steps, Teacher Wu retreated, his face pale. The *zhenqi* armor had already shattered, and he was ashen-faced, walking unsteadily. "No, the dust here is not only not weak but even more terrifying. It's impossible to pass through..." After adjusting his breathing for a while and fully recovering, Teacher Wu shook his head. The dust consumed an immense amount of *zhenqi*. While they could enter forty meters into the lava, here, seven or eight steps were already the limit.

"If it's impossible to pass, then how did the Otherworldly Demonic Tribe get in completely unharmed?" Zhang Xuan couldn't help but ask. Even if King Tianye and King Hongye were the top two of the Ten Kings, they surely weren't so strong that they could walk straight in without taking any damage, right? But why could they enter, while Zhang Xuan and the others had no way?

"Unless... they used some kind of artifact!" President Han said.

"Artifact?"

"Yes, some powerful artifacts can completely block this dust storm. If we had a top-tier Saint artifact right now, we could just disregard everything and charge straight through without taking damage..." President Han nodded. Although the Black Annihilation Dust was potent and could harm peak-grade spirit artifacts and some lower-tier Saint artifacts, it would be useless against artifacts of the top-tier Saint artifact level. If they had such a treasure, they wouldn't even need to look for a "life gate" and could simply force their way through.

"A top-tier Saint artifact... Where would we find one?" What he said sounded simple, but Zhang Xuan knew it was almost impossible. Even an artifact as powerful as the Golden Origin Cauldron, after being perfectly refined by him, had only barely advanced to a mid-tier Saint artifact, and one at the bottom of that tier. The difficulty of refining a top-tier one was unimaginable... Unless one was an eighth-rank artifact forger, it was practically impossible!

"Actually, it doesn't have to be a top-tier Saint artifact; some special treasures can also work! The Black Annihilation Dust has a corrosive effect. Normal material artifacts, unless they reach a certain level, cannot withstand it! However, soul-type treasures are different. They are impervious to harm and can completely use the stray soul power within to keep the dust out..." Luo Ruoxi observed for a moment before slowly speaking. As a descendant of a Sage Clan, she was knowledgeable and aware of many secrets and countermeasures for formations.

"Soul-type treasures? Shouldn't those be even harder to find than top-tier Saint artifacts?" A battle master couldn't help but ask. Top-tier Saint artifacts, as long as the artifact forger's rank was high enough and materials sufficient, could be forged. But treasures involving souls were much more precious. They usually formed naturally and were difficult to forge. Artifact forgers capable of crafting soul artifacts held extremely high status, no less than master teachers of the same rank, and were even rarer.

"Indeed! Soul-type treasures are too difficult to find. Even our Master Teacher Pavilion in Qinyuan Conferred Empire can't find one!"

"Our Cloudmist Academy can't find one either..." Everyone shook their heads. Even if soul-type treasures could resist the Black Annihilation Dust, they couldn't find any, making the suggestion moot.

"What a pity. I heard that the royal family of Hongyuan Empire has a Saint Domain Bodhi Tree, which is a soul-type innate plant. If only we had known about this place, we could have borrowed it and saved ourselves a lot of trouble..." Teacher Mu, standing to the side, sighed.

"The key is, who could have imagined so much? That there would be such a strange formation in the ruin..." Teacher Wu shook his head.

"Actually, even knowing wouldn't help. I heard that the royal family's Bodhi Tree is almost dead. Even if we borrowed it, it probably wouldn't survive and wouldn't be able to repel the dust. Besides, it's the lifeblood of their royal family; they definitely wouldn't lend it..." Wu Tianqiong said.

"Exactly... It concerns the survival of an entire royal family; how could they lend it out? Unless we directly fought and snatched it, or, in the name of the Master Teacher Pavilion, agreed to certain conditions, it would be impossible!" Before their lamentations finished, they saw Zhang Xuan, not far away, staring blankly. "What did you say? The Saint Domain Bodhi Tree... would also work?"

"Of course. Although it's not a soul-type artifact, it's an innate soul-type plant. It would certainly be effective against this Black Annihilation Dust..." President Han nodded, just about to continue speaking, when he saw Principal Zhang, not far away, flip his wrist. A large tree appeared in his palm, held aloft. "This thing... will it really work?"

"Is that an entire... Saint Domain Bodhi Tree?"

"Principal Zhang, did you... wipe out the Hongyuan Royal Family?"

Everyone was dumbfounded.