The orange power of earth was so strong that it was only a hair weaker than connate earth energy, making it impossible for ordinary plant roots to constrain it. However, Lu Yun was calling upon the connate energy of wood with the Mastery of the Five Elements. Infused with almost aphrodisiac-like potency, the plants furiously devoured the surging earth-attribute energy.

Wood could counter earth, but earth could nurture wood.

Fertilization from this tremendous nutrient almost gave the plants life and turned them into nymphs and sprites, strengthening them further to take in even more of what the elder was summoning.

In Lu Yun’s eyes, this was a beneficial feedback cycle, but to the aghast elder on the other side, this spelled absolute doom. He hadn’t thought that the enemy would summon connate wood energy without a second thought and fully counter his earth incantations!

The plants devoured every last bit of earth energy in the void, reverting the ground from its swampy form and clearing the hazy air. All sorts of flora sprouted beneath their feet and entangled the charging titans.

The titans were tremendously strong as they were on the level of dao origin immortals, but so were the plants here! What they lacked was a conscious thought pattern—which the arrival of the connate wood energy resolved, sparking self-awareness and enabling them to explode with the same might as the titans.

No matter how the titans roared and struggled, they couldn’t rip free of the plants.

“Connate wood energy! What kind of person is he to be able to call upon that? Is he the Azure Dragon King?” The wizened elder paused to stare at Lu Yun in the air, his overwhelmed eyes filling with disbelief. In his mind, the ability to summon connate wood energy was the signature combat art of the Azure Dragon King.

Connate wood energy!

Such a being had also existed in the time before Emperors Fall. The Azure Dragon King was the son of the Azure Dragon of the east, one of the four notables who’d founded the four cardinal divine tribes.

Just like the moat snake, there was only one instance of the Azure Dragon King’s bloodline, and his bloodline was even more terrifying than the kui or moat snake’s. Azure Dragon had been a divine spirit manifested out of certain rules, and the Azure Dragon King the first of its direct bloodline.

Though the Azure Dragon King had died in the era before Emperors Fall, it wasn’t long before the Azure Dragon birthed another Azure Dragon King that was the same as the one before. Now that Lu Yun replicated their signature combat art in summoning connate wood energy, that gave the illustrious elder the impression that Lu Yun was the latest one

“So what if he’s the Azure Dragon King?!” the elder suddenly howled at the skies. “You will not disturb my master’s rest even if your father the Azure Dragon came here in person! We protect Master Xuan Yuan to our deaths!”

He suddenly split himself into five and stood in the position of the five elements, taking up the ringing incantation anew.

Rays of pentacolored light streaked through the skies and imbued the titans with radiant splendor. Pentacolor armor appeared on the hulking figures and they swung the great axes in their hands, hacking through the plants so they could charge again at Lu Yun.

One by one they took to the air—not in flight, but with mighty leaps and bounds from their strength alone.

Hummmm.

The second they took to air was when the Skyturning Seal arrived. The mountainesque seal slammed down, smashing them into the ground. Despite that, the titans were so hardy that they weren’t really injured by the blows. Nailed to the earth, they whined and yelled since at most, the slams stung them a slight bit.

It was still a rather impressive sight, all things considered.

……

Five thousand kilometers away, the great elder of the Xuan Yuan Slaves raged with fury. Lu Yun’s counterattack reigned dominant in the space between them, and none of the elder’s incantations found any footing within the vicinity.

However, more Xuan Yuan Slaves poured in from all directions and set up a perimeter around the zone of connate wood energy. Five enormous altar projections stood in their respective directions, restoring calm and order to the chaotic energy of the land. A figure stood on each of the gigantic altars, ones that looked down coldly at the trespassing trio.

“Venerated High Priests!” The elder shook with excitement when he saw the altars and fell to his knees.

“This slave greets the hallowed high priests!”

“Greetings to the venerated high priests!”

“We greet the noble high priests!”

Greetings and acknowledgments rose and fell in all directions. It seemed that all of the Xuan Yuan Slaves in this tomb realm were kneeling on the ground and worshipping the figures on the altars.

……

“The high priests of the five elemental rites! It’s the five high priests under Xuan Yuan’s banner!” Ashu widened his eyes at the altars and the figures standing on top of them. “To think that they’re still alive…”

“No.” Seemingly in response to Ashu’s words, the shadow at the centermost altar sharpened into focus as a real man. He seemed to be in his thirties and wore a long, bright yellow robe. He appeared elegant and poised, and the trace of a warm smile could be found on his face. “The five original priests have been long lost in the river of time. No one could’ve survived from the era until now.”

“But you really are the priest of earth, and you stand upon the altar of earth…” Ashu slowly rose in the air to take a better look. “Are you their descendant?”

The priest of earth shook his head again. “At best, we can be described as their successors. We are not of their bloodline.” The man erased the smile on his face and turned chilly. “Speak, what is it that you have come here for?”

“The spleen!” Lu Yun flew over as well. “I want the spleen of heaven and earth in the yin tomb!”

He didn’t waste time beating around the bush as the five priests were simply too strong. If they decided to stop the trio, Lu Yun would have no way of entering the yin realm tomb, to say nothing of obtaining the spleen.

The Xuan Yuan Slaves only possessed great physical strength and the bizarre incantation art. They couldn’t cultivate, but that hardly applied to the five priests. In fact, Lu Yun sensed domineering cultivation realms from all of them.

He didn’t know what they’d practiced, but if they took to the field, neither Ashu nor the demon sovereign would be their match. What shocked him was that the five altars beneath their feet were the real deal! They were identical to the Water and Metal Altar he’d seen before, as well as the Wood Altar he’d moved to hell!

Or was there more than one set of altars to the five elements in the world?

The priests quieted at his answer.

“The spleen has become a god and a poisonous blight upon the Xuan Yuan Tomb. It would be wonderful if you could take him away. However, you won’t be able to with your current level of strength,” raised the priest of earth after a long period of silence.