Yuan Ming didn't rush to activate the runes atop the golden iron. Instead, he waited for Hua Zhi to finish devouring the Tree Demon before taking it back into the Spiritual Beast Bag.

The aura of Hua Zhi surged, and numerous vines grew out, wrapping around its body, quickly forming a giant vine ball.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming knew that Hua Zhi was beginning to break through. If successful, he would have another Nascent Soul level combatant by his side.

After withdrawing his Divine Sense from the Spiritual Beast Bag, he took out the Thunder God Hammer and held it in his hand before slowly feeding Spiritual Power into the iron tree.

The next instant, Yuan Ming's figure disappeared, and then he appeared in a large underground hall.

The walls and ceiling were made of dark grey stone bricks. Luminous Pearls embedded in the cracks provided a bit of light to this fairly spacious area.

But compared to this firefly-like light, another pale green Spirit Light Shield was even more eye-catching.

Like an eggshell, the shield occupied half of the hall. Within the shield, two figures stood face to face. One had a refined appearance and was holding a compass, seemingly making calculations, while the other was clad in a red robe, with a resolute face but a somewhat sullen look between his brows.

"Oh, lucky me. Someone else has arrived," the refined man said as he glanced at Yuan Ming with the corner of his eye, stopping his calculations and turning around to wave at Yuan Ming with a smile.

The man in the red robe also noticed Yuan Ming's arrival, frowning slightly.

Yuan Ming wasn't surprised by his reaction. After all, the man was Yan Xiang, a Nascent Soul cultivator from Karma Fire Island. Considering Yuan Ming had defeated Cui Yu, pushing Karma Fire Island out of the top sixteen, it would be strange for Yan Xiang to look pleased to see him.

As for the refined man, Yuan Ming had also seen him at the Immortal Fruit Conference on Red Rain Island, though he didn't know his name.

"Fellow Daoist Yuan, your timing is impeccable. I am Lei He of Red Rain Island, and this is Yan Xiang of Karma Fire Island, whom I believe you've already recognized. We're trapped in this Daoist Formation, worried about how to get out. Do you think you could help us break this formation?" asked the refined man in a friendly and unhurried manner.

"So it's Senior Lei He and Senior Yan Xiang. May I ask how the two of you got here?" Yuan Ming said as he bowed with his hands clasped.

Based on the information he currently had, the Nascent Soul cultivators from Fusang, Jin Ao, Kongling, and Di Hua might have already entered Three Immortals Island. Lei He and Yan Xiang, however, should not be here. Could it be that the Fusang Island Master was so magnanimous as to bring other First-class Island Nascent Soul cultivators from the Eastern Sea as well?

When he previously investigated the situation in Fusang City inside the Stealing Heaven Tripod, he indeed did not find any Nascent Soul cultivators from the Eastern Sea Islands within the city, no wonder the Wuyue Sect could capture Fusang City so easily.

"Oh, Fellow Daoist Yan Xiang and I were passing by and happened upon this place which had Array Maps inscribed. Captivated by curiosity, I studied them and found the Life Gate. Then, by activating the iron tree with Spiritual Power, we arrived here, accidentally triggering the mechanism and getting trapped," Lei He explained with a sigh.

"Senior, you misunderstand. I was asking how you came to be on Three Immortals Island. The Transmission Array leading here is within the Secret Realm, which you two cannot use. Is there some upheaval outside the Secret Realm?" Yuan Ming shook his head, continuing his inquiry.

Lei He nodded slightly, his expression still calm, "It is indeed a strange tale. We were all staying on Fusang Island, waiting for you to emerge from the Secret Realm. Unexpectedly, a Silver Light Gate appeared on the island, and an inscription on the rock wall beside it stated that the gate led to Three Immortals Island. Naturally, we wanted to explore."

Hearing this, Yuan Ming began to understand something.

Previously, Xi Ying had tampered with the Transmission Array in the Three Immortals Hall. Yuan Ming didn't know what Xi Ying had done, but the Silver Light Gate mentioned by Lei He was most likely Xi Ying's doing.

But what was Xi Ying's intention? Allowing numerous Nascent Soul cultivators to enter Three Immortals Island would only exacerbate the chaos and struggle there. How could that benefit her?

"With so many Nascent Soul cultivators entering Three Immortals Island, it greatly benefits the actions of the Wuyue Sect. Could it be that Xi Ying is collaborating with them this time?" Yuan Ming mused to himself, feeling increasingly unable to see through Xi Ying.

"So, Fellow Daoist, do you have any more questions, or can you help us with this Formation now?" Lei He asked, seeing Yuan Ming lost in thought.

Yuan Ming snapped out of his reverie, examined the pale green Spirit Light Shield for a moment, and then bowed to them, "I fear I must disappoint Seniors. My abilities are limited. If both of you cannot break the formation, how could I possibly resolve it? But according to Senior Lei He, there should still be many seniors on the island. I will go and find one to help free you two."

With that, Yuan Ming quickly stepped back.

He had just probed the underground hall with the Divine Sense of his first soul and discovered a Transmission Array hidden at the entrance—possibly the way out of this place.

Seeing this, Lei He sighed and was about to explain when Yan Xiang stopped him.

"Fellow Daoist Lei He, it's clear he doesn't want to let us out. Why demean ourselves by begging? But his point is not wrong. If I weren't trapped by this formation, I would indeed like to test the abilities of this dark horse who has unexpectedly entered the top sixteen," Yan Xiang chuckled, his tone laced with chill.

"Fellow Daoist Yan Xiang, we both witnessed Fellow Daoist Yuan's arena battle against Cui Yu; Yuan Ming won fair and square without resorting to any underhanded trickery. Why harbor anger over this matter? Besides, with even greater opportunities now before us, what significance does the ranking of the Immortal Fruit Conference hold?" Lei He advised.

Yan Xiang's face remained cold, and it was unclear whether he took Lei He's words to heart.

Yuan Ming paid no attention to them and reached the hall entrance. He took out the Thunder God Hammer and fired a silver thunderbolt as thick as a bowl at the nearby wall.

"Boom"

The wall was blown open, leaving a hole about a foot in diameter.

Lei He and Yan Xiang showed surprised expressions at this scene.

The pale-green protective shield did not restrict Divine Sense. They had been trapped here for a while and had already used their Divine Sense to thoroughly explore the entire stone chamber, finding nothing unusual behind this wall. Yet this Core Formation Stage cultivator had detected it in one glance!

Yuan Ming continuously operated the Thunder God Hammer, quickly enlarging the hole to about three feet high and stepped inside.

Inside was a secret room with an Array laid out on the ground. The Spirit Stones embedded within had turned grayish-white and transparent, clearly indicating the Spiritual Power within had long been depleted, with dust covering the Array.

Yuan Ming replaced all the Spirit Stones in the Array and cast a spell.

Bright white light illuminated the Array as it began to hum and rotate.

A gleam of joy appeared in his eyes as he was about to maximize the activation of the Array when suddenly the white light died down, and the Array stopped moving.

Yuan Ming's brows furrowed, and he knelt down to examine the Array closely.

"It seems the Array has not been used for many years and has malfunctioned. There's no need to worry, Yuan. Fellow Daoist Yan Xiang is proficient in Arrays. Once we get out, he'll surely be able to fix it," said Lei He, having seen this, spoke again.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming's expression shifted, and he took out the Silver Token and opened the silver barrier.

Lei He was taken aback, not understanding the significance of Yuan Ming's actions.

He activated his Divine Sense to probe, but the silver barrier was as solid as a rock; even with his strength in Divine Sense, he could not penetrate it.

"What is that Silver Token? How can it open such a barrier? This young man's background is unfathomable," Lei He thought to himself.

Yan Xiang's gaze also flickered slightly, his thoughts unknown.

Within the silver barrier, fearing it might not block a Nascent Soul cultivator's probing, Yuan Ming set up several layers of restrictions around himself to block detection before entering the space of the Stealing Heaven Tripod.

A moment later, the silver barrier collapsed with a bang, and Yuan Ming stepped out, bowing and saying, "It's not that I'm unwilling, but if the two Nascent Soul seniors are helpless against this green protective shield, how could I, a mere Core Formation Stage cultivator, have the power or ability to rescue you both?"

"Yuan, we've seen your strength. Don't underestimate yourself. Besides, this green protective shield is actually a trapping Array; it prevents escape from within but not from without. We are helpless inside, but you on the outside, just need to attack the Array at its weak spots with a Magic Treasure, and you can break it," Lei He, not bothering to ask what Yuan Ming had done inside the silver barrier, said with a smile.

"A trapping Array? I see," Yuan Ming nodded, his gaze turning to Yan Xiang.

"You can rest assured, Yuan. What Fellow Daoist Yan Xiang said just now was merely jesting. Isn't that right, Fellow Daoist Yan Xiang?" Lei He quickly said, while giving Yan Xiang a meaningful look.

"What I said earlier was ill-considered, please forgive me, Yuan," Yan Xiang's eyebrows twitched and, after a few breaths, he managed to force out.

"If Yuan is still unsure, I, Lei, am willing to swear by my Heart Demon. After we break the Array, if Fellow Daoist Yan Xiang makes a move against you, I, Lei, would rather perish on this Three Immortals Island than fail to protect you fully," Lei He solemnly swore.

With Senior Lei having put it this way, how could Yuan Ming continue to decline? He chuckled and took out the Thunder God Hammer.

He just entered the Stealing Heaven Tripod and contacted Yan Siyun to inquire about Lei He's information. Learning that Lei He was the Island Master of Red Rain Island and the respected master Qiong Yun, known for being amiable and upright without a bad reputation, he decided to help.

"May I ask the seniors, should I just attack the Array, or is there something more?" Yuan Ming asked.

"Exactly, exactly, you just need to attack the Kan and Li nodes," Lei He said joyfully, pointing to two positions on the green protective shield.

Yuan Ming then channeled Mana into the Thunder God Hammer, and in an instant, two bolts of thunder appeared out of thin air, striking the two spots Lei He had pointed out.

A burnt smell instantly spread, and the Spirit Light Shield flickered but returned to stability.

Yuan Ming's brow furrowed as he infused his full Mana into the Thunder God Hammer, firing off two even larger bolts of Silver Thunder at the green protective shield. The shield shook violently but still didn't break.

"The Power of Thunder and Lightning contained in your treasure is extraordinary, but it seems you are not adept at using it. The power is dispersed rather than condensed, which is why it's not very effective. I happen to have a Gathering Thunder Skill that could enhance the hammer's power, which you might want to review—it could increase its potency," Lei He's voice sounded in Yuan Ming's ears, soon after a secret technique appeared in his Sea of Consciousness.

Seeing no results from the Thunder God Hammer, and just as he was about to try the Purple Star Nine Dragon Spear, Lei He unexpectedly imparted to him a Secret Technique. Yuan Ming immediately began to study it.

The Gathering Thunder Skill wasn't complicated; it was a Secret Technique to condense the Power of Thunder and Lightning.

As Yuan Ming practiced the technique, the Silver Thunder inside the Thunder God Hammer began to gather toward the center. Soon it had condensed by almost half, the silver electrical arcs on the hammer's body mostly disappearing, but the air of thunderous destruction it emitted grew much stronger.

It was his first practice of the technique, and condensing the Power of Thunder and Lightning to this degree was already his limit. He pointed into the air.

Two much finer bolts of Silver Thunder shot out again, striking the two nodes on the green protective shield.

A sound of cracking rang out, holes were blasted through the green protective shield.

The massive shield collapsed with a bang, turning into countless green streamers that scattered and soon disappeared without a trace.

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