Zhou Yuan had sent out a thought, but he did not receive any response.

This outcome made Zhou Yuan feel a little awkward, but he did not mind it too much. Of course, it would be best if he could receive more benefits, but even if he did not, the Spirit breakthrough was already more than enough to satisfy him.

“Hehe, please forgive me, tree king, I’m coming to save you now!”

With a thought, Spirit power began to extend towards the end of the numerous chains. Sure enough, he met the remnant Saint Fire aura once again. A feeling of terror flooded towards him as flames appeared around his Spirit in an attempt to burn it.

The flames were still as fear-inducing as before, but Zhou Yuan gritted his teeth and endured the pain.

Cackle!

Vigorous Spirit Fire gushed out from his Spirit, forming Spirit Fire armor around it. Zhou Yuan had not been able to do this at the initial Transformative stage because his Spirit Fire was not concentrated enough. After his previous breakthrough, his Spirit power had rapidly strengthened, giving him the ability to create this Spirit Fire armor.

The armor greatly increased his Spirit’s defense.

The armor’s appearance greatly alleviated the pressure Zhou Yuan felt. Hence, he ultimately endured the Saint Fire aura.

Only a few dozen breaths had passed, but it felt infinitely long to Zhou Yuan. His entire body trembled as Genesis Qi undulated uncontrollably around him. If not for the five-foot Law Domain, his presence would have already been discovered.

By the time the final second passed, Zhou Yuan was already drenched in sweat. His complexion was pale, and the stabbing pain between his brows made his face twist in agony.

His recently revitalized Spirit had dimmed once more, a sign that he had used up the majority of his Spirit power reserves.

Fortunately, he had managed to withstand the Saint Fire aura...

“What a terrifying Saint Fire…” Zhou Yuan’s heart was still filled with terror. What he had faced wasn’t even true Saint Fire but some of its remnant aura. Even so, it had still forced him into such a miserable state. It was likely that a single glance would instantly evaporate his intermediate Transformative stage Spirit to nothingness if he encountered the real deal.

The might of a Saint was akin to an immeasurable bottomless abyss.

The fear in his heart slowly receded after some time. However, it would be difficult for his Spirit to recover in a short span of time.

Hence, he could only send out a thought, Elder, I’m lacking Spirit power.

After a brief delay, a surge of pure energy flowed towards him, fully replenishing Zhou Yuan’s Spirit.

However, the power this time was clearly not as same as before, and it only possessed a recovery effect. It did not strengthen his Spirit.

Zhou Yuan was not disappointed. Instead, amazement filled his heart. The Heavenly Fire Tree King did live up to its legend. The power it had cultivated over the years was indescribably pure. Most importantly, the tree seemed to possess an endless supply. It showed no signs of tiring despite supporting so many experts from the Great Five Alliance.

After one final sigh of amazement, Zhou Yuan began to concentrate. His Spirit power slowly drew several Genesis Runes in the air.

These runes merged into the giant boundary suppressing the Heavenly Fire Tree King, but they did not cause any disturbance. After all, Zhou Yuan was able to accurately target weaknesses in the boundary with the Decoder Saint Rune’s help.

The runes began their work, quietly eating away at a tiny area like a virus.

The scale and level of this boundary was something unreachable for Zhou Yuan at the moment. Fortunately, his goal was to create a tiny, almost-negligible hole.

As rune after rune fused into the surrounding space, a certain spot in the boundary suddenly rippled.

Zhou Yuan, like a little mouse, had finally bored out a small hole.

The hole was far too small to affect the boundary’s circulation. Moreover, the boundary’s power would naturally repair it as time passed. However, even an ant hole could destroy a thousand-mile dike. Once the Heavenly Fire Tree King blasted the boundary with its power, the hole would become the breakthrough it needed to escape.

Phew. Zhou Yuan inwardly breathed a sigh of relief. The first step was completed at least. Only one final step remained between him and success.

Zhou Yuan carefully withdrew his Spirit power and seated himself within the shadow.

His gaze turned towards the floating stone platforms above him. Although the overseeing Heavenly Sun experts and the Nascent Source expert would constantly look towards him, they were unable to discover his presence.

The hole in the boundary was done...but this was merely the start. For the Heavenly Fire Tree King to break out, the Nascent Source expert needed to be forced off his platform.

This was the most troublesome part of the plan.

Zhou Yuan’s expressions fluctuated indeterminately. After a long silence, a determined look flitted across his eyes.

...

A gray-robed Nascent Source expert was sitting quietly on a stone platform. He understood how important this location was and thus did not dare to relax. His senses would scan the surroundings for any disturbances from time to time. Fortunately, he had yet to find anything out of the ordinary.

He mumbled to himself, “I wonder how the battle above is going...but with the endless support from the tree king, victory is only a matter of time.”

His expression suddenly changed as his gaze abruptly swept downwards. He had sensed a faint disturbance below.

His pupils violently shrank. Unbeknownst to him, a figure cloaked in a black robe had appeared on one of the chains below.

The figure stood there like a ghost. What alarmed the gray-robed Nascent Source expert the most was that he had not detected how this figure had appeared!

The Nascent Source expert swiftly reacted with a shout, “Someone infiltrated this place!”

The numerous Heavenly Sun experts immediately cast their gazes over, bewilderment appearing in their eyes as they locked onto the black-robed figure.

The gray-robed Nascent Source expert did not attack but shouted, “Who are you?!”

“Kekekeke…”

The only response was a strange, piercing laugh. The black-robed figure suddenly dashed forward, heading directly towards them.

“Impudent!”

The Nascent Source expert was both alarmed and angered. He had not expected the intruder to be so insolent. Not only had he not run away when discovered, he even dared to charge towards them.

“Since you want to die…” Before he could finish his sentence, fear flooded the eyes of the Nascent Source expert and the numerous surrounding Heavenly Sun experts. They had detected a Law Domain slowly spreading from the black-robed figure.

“Law Domain?!” The gray-robed Nascent Source expert’s voice turned shrill as terror covered his face.

The intruder was a Law Domain expert?!

Which Tianyuan Region grand elder was this?!

“Retreat! Quickly retreat!” the gray-robed Nascent Source expert frantically roared as the Law Domain expanded. He had zero intention of facing the mysterious intruder because he knew that all of them would become fish on the chopping board the moment they fell into the Law Domain!

Hence, he did not hesitate as he instantly leaped back, leaving the stone platform...

Faces also filled with fear, the Heavenly Sun experts fled faster than rabbits. In a short span of a few breaths, all of them had retreated a substantial distance.

As a result, the area around the black-robed figure was left empty.

Under the black robe, a smirk appeared on a youthful face.

Elder tree king, what are you waiting for?

An astonishing undulation suddenly erupted from the center of the countless chains.