Chapter 1075: Trap

Anyone who spends some time in Hongyuan City knows the importance of the Sage Bodhi Tree to the imperial Jade Clan. It's said to be the foundation of their nation; lending it out is out of the question, and even getting a glimpse is difficult.

Now Zhang Xuan casually produced an entire one, no wonder everyone's minds were racing with wild conjectures.

"Of course not, I grew this myself..." Zhang Xuan couldn't help but smile wryly, not expecting their thoughts to wander so far. This tree was naturally not the imperial one, but rather one cultivated from a Bodhi fruit and grown in the beehive. At this moment, he had simply used great power to take it out.

Hearing that it wasn't stolen, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. This way, it wouldn't cause conflict between the Master Teacher Pavilion and local powers.

"Let me try it to see if it works..." After the initial surprise, everyone was filled with excitement, and Wu Shi stepped forward. The idea that a soul-power artifact could block the Fierce Sand before them was just a guess; whether it would actually succeed was unknown.

After speaking, he took the Bodhi Tree from Zhang Xuan's hand. With qi surging, he held it aloft, its large trunk hovering above his head. Soul power from his glabella flowed into the tree roots, causing the tree body to emit a crystal-clear, gentle glow. He then walked towards the Fierce Sand.

The black sandstorm howled. Wu Shi, enveloped by the Bodhi Tree's light, stepped into it. The warm glow immediately pushed the sand away. Just as Luo Ruoxi had said, this soul-power artifact indeed had a miraculous effect on the formation before them.

"Excellent!"

"The Ghost Tribes probably knew about this checkpoint long ago and prepared soul-type artifacts in advance, which is how they ignored the sand and went straight in."

"With this, we can pass through easily as well..." Seeing its success, everyone's eyes lit up.

Zhang Xuan also nodded, only now understanding. No wonder Yu Xu, who was following the Ghost Tribes' orders, had gone to such great lengths and risked discovery to poison the imperial Sage Bodhi Tree. He had never understood why it was necessary before, but now he realized... it was to prevent future problems. If the Bodhi Tree had died, even many Master Teachers, knowing about the Fierce Sand, would have been helpless, left to sigh in despair.

However, despite all their calculations, they probably never dreamed that Zhang Xuan would not only successfully revive the Bodhi Tree but also obtain its Bodhi fruits and cultivate them successfully. Unintentionally helping the imperial family, it played a crucial role here.

As he was sighing with emotion, Wu Shi, who had entered the sand, walked out again. He was not as excited as the others; his face was still somewhat pale. He placed the Bodhi Tree on the ground, looked at them, and gave a bitter smile: "Indeed, injecting soul power into the Bodhi Tree can block the sandstorm, and the covered area is large enough for all of us to enter simultaneously... but it consumes too much soul power. With my current strength, I can only go a little over a hundred meters before my soul power is depleted..."

"A little over a hundred meters?" Everyone frowned. The Fierce Sand before them covered several kilometers. If they could only enter a hundred meters or so, they still couldn't reach the end. Wu Shi was a Saint 4-realm expert, and among them, his soul was considered the most powerful. If he could only go this far, there was no need to mention anyone else... Could it be that after finally finding a soul artifact and a method to resolve the Fierce Sand, they would be stopped again due to insufficient soul power?

"Let me try..." Zhang Xuan grabbed the Bodhi Tree, placing it above everyone's heads. A surge of powerful soul energy emerged from his glabella. He sensed the consumption, then smiled faintly, "Everyone, stay close under the tree, don't leave the covered area..." After speaking, he led the way into the sandstorm. The others exchanged glances. Seeing his confidence, they didn't hesitate and followed closely.

As soon as they entered, they immediately felt the black sandstorm sweeping towards them, seemingly trying to devour life, striking the light radiating from the Bodhi Tree with crackling sounds. Feeling that the sand indeed couldn't penetrate, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, his eyes shining. Soul power is intangible and formless; normally, its defense would be far weaker than qi. Yet, it could block the sandstorm before them. It was truly a case of one thing overcoming another; many things cannot be explained by common sense.

"Teacher Luo knows a bit too much... Is she really just a six-star Master Teacher?" As he advanced, Zhang Xuan secretly glanced at the girl not far away. Wu Shi, President Han, and others were unaware of both the spatial formation and the fact that a soul-power artifact could block the sand. Yet, this person could state it immediately, her vast knowledge was astonishing.

"Is this the strength of a descendant from a Saint Clan? If they truly possess such profound heritage, Yuan Tao returning to his family was indeed the best choice..." he pondered. When Yuan Tao returned to the Yuan Clan, Zhang Xuan had felt a little reluctant. Now it seemed it was the best decision, allowing him to quickly activate his bloodline and vastly increase his strength.

With the Bodhi Tree illuminating the way, everyone no longer worried. However, after walking for a while, they noticed something was off. They looked at the young man controlling the Bodhi Tree ahead, their faces filled with shock. So far, they had walked no less than three hundred meters, yet this guy showed no signs of fatigue whatsoever, even seeming a little distracted... his mental focus wasn't entirely there... Wasn't his soul power a bit too immense?

Wu Shi, in particular, was dumbfounded. He had personally experienced the terror of the sandstorm, depleting his soul power quickly without going far... Yet Dean Zhang, covering everyone and thus consuming even more, had walked three hundred meters without feeling tired... For someone at the Half-Saint level to have stronger soul power than a Saint 4-realm expert was simply unbelievable to him.

"This guy is a freak..." He smiled bitterly. Such a formidable person, yet he had initially thought of him as just a Half-Saint and didn't want to bring him along... Thinking back now, it was truly embarrassing. Fortunately, he came. Otherwise, they probably wouldn't even have entered the first checkpoint, let alone reached this point.

"I could only last a little over a hundred meters. Even if his soul power is naturally strong, lasting 500 meters would surely be his limit..." After walking a bit further, Wu Shi planned to take over when the young man couldn't continue. However, after 500 meters, the other party's expression hadn't changed, and his eyes still seemed somewhat unfocused, as if the consumption from walking this far was still nothing to him.

600 meters!800 meters!1000 meters!

Before long, they had walked a full 5,000 meters. Over this vast distance, Zhang Xuan, who was in front, maintained the same expression, seemingly unconcerned by the soul power consumption. In fact, he seemed to be walking more easily the further they went.

"He... he couldn't be cultivating while walking, could he?" Wu Shi felt his jaw about to drop. The consumption he couldn't sustain was not only insignificant in the other party's eyes, but he could even continue cultivating... What kind of monster was this? "Forget it, comparing myself to him will only crush my spirit..." Realizing he couldn't compare himself to this guy, Wu Shi finally felt a little better.

With Zhang Xuan's seemingly endless soul power support, everyone soon saw the end of the Fierce Sand. It was a magnificent, golden pavilion, like a celestial palace, suspended before a gigantic waterfall, giving a sense of being in a fairy realm.

"How is this possible?" Feng Xun's eyes widened, filled with disbelief. Cultivators could only defy gravity and soar through the sky after reaching the Saint realm. Yet, an entire palace was suspended here, giving a dreamlike, illusory feeling... How much power would it take to achieve this? It was simply too exaggerated!

"It should be some kind of spatial manipulation. Although it appears to be suspended in the sky, it's actually in a different state..." After observing for a moment, President Han said. Everyone nodded. Involving a higher level of formations, it was completely beyond their comprehension, given their knowledge and perception.

"This should be the deepest part of the relic. Let's quickly go and see..." Wu Tianqiong smiled. Having come to this relic and gone through one checkpoint after another, it seemed they were now about to reach the end.

"Alright!" Everyone's spirits soared, and they flew straight towards the celestial palace.

Before long, a colossal heavenly gate appeared before them, shrouded in ethereal mist, giving a dreamlike sensation. Stepping inside, they immediately felt an overwhelming spiritual energy.

"Why do I feel like this place is a bit strange?" Zhang Xuan frowned as his feet touched the ground. Although the place looked ethereal and divine, for some reason, it gave him a very strange feeling.

"Strange? Teacher Zhang, you must be mistaken this time..." Wu Shi laughed and was about to continue speaking when he felt the ground shake violently. The celestial palace, previously shrouded in ethereal mist, instantly seemed to transform into an Asura's hell, and a desolate, murderous aura assailed them.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh! Dense murderous aura, like a fierce storm, was immediately followed by streaks of sword light, like a heavenly net, sealing off and crushing everything around them.

"Oh no, it's a formation trap set by the Ghost Tribes!" Wu Shi's pupils contracted, and he shouted loudly. Only the Ghost Tribes possessed such dense murderous aura, capable of unleashing killer moves designed to lead them to their deaths!

Bang, bang, bang, bang! As soon as he finished speaking, three combat masters, whose strength was only at the Half-Saint level, were struck by the sword light and instantly exploded into minced flesh. Even Feng Xun's arm was cut by a sword light, gushing with blood.

"Defend!" The formation changed too quickly for anyone to react. Seeing deaths and injuries, President Han's veins bulged on his forehead as he roared.

"Alright!" At this moment, everyone also understood they had fallen into a trap. Their qi surged, and they took out their weapons. Clang, clang, clang, clang! Regardless, the group was composed of Master Teachers and combat masters. Although initially somewhat disoriented, once they reacted, they immediately displayed astonishing combat power. Their qi surged, and the sword lights shooting from all directions were blocked in the blink of an eye, dispersing around them.

"To catch up so quickly, you're indeed not bad. However, this is where you will be buried..." Just then, a sinister voice sounded.

"It's King Hongye..." Immediately afterward, King Ziye's terrified voice rang out in Zhang Xuan's ear.