"Fellow Daoist Xiao, my master's physical body is already severely damaged, please do not touch it casually," Mu Ling said solemnly.
"Ah!" Xiao Wenbing exclaimed, turning his head to look. Zhang Yaqi was lying in the mist. Although she hadn't woken up, she looked like she was asleep. Moreover, her chest was rising and falling slightly, indicating that she was still breathing. She didn't look like an injured person at all.
However, Xiao Wenbing knew even more that Mu Ling would never be so idle as to deceive him.
After a long silence, Xiao Wenbing asked, "Mu Ling, what exactly happened during the Three Thunderstorms?"
With a wave of his hand, Mu Ling retracted the vine, which instantly transformed into an arm. He then said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, my master took the Qiankun Ring into the thundercloud storm and used the power of order within the ring to restore calm to that turbulent chaos."
"Is that so?" Xiao Wenbing asked doubtfully. He had passed through that thundercloud storm to reach the Flame Realm, and he still vividly remembered the powerful energy within the storm.
If that can be considered a calm chaotic force, then I wonder what the thundercloud storms look like when they are in a state of agitation and turmoil.
"That's right. However, although the master has restrained the power of chaos, his physical body has also suffered great damage."
Xiao Wenbing turned his head and looked at Zhang Yaqi in the mist, and asked, "During this time, you were the one manipulating the Qiankun Ring, weren't you?"
Mu Ling nodded slightly and said, "That's right."
Xiao Wenbing took a deep breath and said, "Thank you very much, Fellow Daoist Mu."
He was genuinely grateful. If the Wood Spirit hadn't been there, Zhang Yaqi's physical body would have long been destroyed by lightning and reduced to cosmic dust. Similarly, if the Wood Spirit hadn't manipulated the power of order within the Universe Ring, the protective barrier would likely have been breached by the immortals like Quini, who would have obtained the Earth Spirit.
As for what the immortal who obtained the Earth Spirit would think, that remains to be seen.
"Fellow Daoist Xiao, you are too kind. Mu Ling was just doing her duty."
Xiao Wenbing shook his head slightly and asked, "Fellow Daoist Mu, how did these people manage to enter and exit the Thundercloud Storm safely?" This question had been lingering in his mind.
Although these immortals possessed extraordinary cultivation, they were still far inferior to the Treasure God and the Dark God. Since even the Treasure God dared not venture deeper, and the Dark God destroyed it, how could they possibly take the Qiankun Ring away amidst the thundercloud storm?
"These immortals used a disintegration technique," Mu Ling said calmly.
"What kind of demonic skill is that?" Xiao Wenbing frowned. Just from the name, he knew it wasn't some kind of honorable skill.
"That is a profound technique that stimulates the immortal energy within the body. Once used, it can squeeze out every bit of potential within the body. If an immortal uses it, it is enough to protect their companions for about ten minutes in the thundercloud storm."
"Ten minutes..." Xiao Wenbing murmured, "And then what?"
"Ten minutes later, these immortals were completely annihilated."
Xiao Wenbing felt a chill in his heart. Mu Ling spoke calmly, but he couldn't feel at ease.
However, now he finally understood why there were only five immortals left in the Flame Realm. The biggest reason was that they had exhausted themselves trying to retrieve the Universe Ring.
It is clear that they were willing to risk their lives to save the Flame Realm.
After a long pause, Xiao Wenbing put the matter aside and asked, "Fellow Daoist Mu, you said you shouldn't take Quini's life, which seems to be related to Yaqi's recovery. Why is that?"
The Wood Spirit smiled and said, "In order to suppress the power of chaos, Master's physical body was damaged. Only when the five spirits are gathered can she fully recover."
"The five spirits gather? Is that... even possible?" Xiao Wenbing said with a wry smile.
Indeed, the Five Spirits are all spiritual beings of heaven and earth, and finding even one of them is as difficult as ascending to heaven. For all five to gather together is basically like trying to see flowers in a mirror or scoop the moon's reflection in water.
Volume 4, The Divine Artifacts, Chapter 319: The Substitution of the Five Elements
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Mu Ling smiled slightly and said softly, "Exactly, given the current situation, that's absolutely impossible."
Xiao Wenbing was taken aback, then angrily said, "Fellow Daoist Mu, what do you mean by this? Does this mean Yaqi will never wake up again?"
"No, no." The Wood Spirit shook its head rapidly and quickly explained, "Although it is absolutely impossible for the five spirits to gather together, it is not impossible to save our master."
Xiao Wenbing's heart finally settled, though he was still a little confused by the roundabout way the man had been talking. One minute he insisted on all five elements gathering, the next he was willing to compromise. However, now that he had achieved Nascent Soul, his mind worked quickly. After a moment's thought, he immediately understood: "Could a substitute be used?"
"Fellow Daoist Xiao is right." The Wood Spirit gave a thumbs up, thinking to itself that this person's mind was quite quick. It laughed loudly, "Among the five elements, the wood and earth elements are naturally not a problem. As long as we collect the substitutes for the other three elements, we can wake up safely."
Xiao Wenbing nodded repeatedly. With the Earth Spirit and Wood Spirit already in the Qiankun Circle, there was naturally no need for any substitutes. As for the remaining three elements, Xiao Wenbing looked up at the peaceful figure in the mist and murmured, "Yaqi, don't worry, I won't let you stay here for too long."
He made up his mind that no matter how difficult it was to find substitutes for the other three systems, he would collect them. He would fight against any obstacle, no matter how difficult, and he would never give up.
The wood spirit sensed his determination, smiled reassuringly, and said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, the most difficult fire-type substitute has been found. It can be said that although the road is difficult, we are now 90% confident."
"Ninety percent?" Xiao Wenbing was greatly surprised. His eyebrows relaxed, and he suddenly remembered someone. He asked, "Fellow Daoist Mu, is the fire-type substitute you mentioned Quini?"
“Indeed, Fellow Daoist Xiao is indeed intelligent. The immortal fire on his body comes from the Fire Spirit Immortal. It would be enough to ask for some of it.”
Xiao Wenbing smiled slightly, thinking to himself, "You and the Mirror God have gone to great lengths to protect this person's life. If I still couldn't guess, wouldn't I be too stupid? The strange thing is, how did the Mirror God know that Yaqi needed the power of the five elements?" He took a breath and asked, "Fellow Daoist Wood, although we already possess the energy of earth, wood, and fire, that's only three out of five elements. Could it be that the Qiankun Circle originally contained them?"
The Wood Spirit shook its head and said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, there are no substitutes for the Water and Metal elements in the Qiankun Circle." It glanced at Xiao Wenbing, whose face was full of disappointment, and then suddenly laughed loudly, "Although there are none in the Qiankun Circle, I know where they are."
Xiao Wenbing's eyes lit up, and the gloom in his heart vanished. He asked in surprise, "Where?"
“Well, Fellow Daoist Xiao, although I know the location, retrieving it will not be an easy task.”
"That's natural." Xiao Wenbing understood, of course, that although it was merely a substitute for the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, obtaining it would certainly be a very difficult task. However, he had no other choice, and besides, he had an incredibly powerful backer behind him: "Fellow Daoist Mu, rest assured. If I'm unable to do so, I will ask the Treasure God to lend a hand."
"Baby God?" Mu Ling's expression suddenly became extremely strange.
"What?" Xiao Wenbing looked at its strange expression, and suddenly seemed to understand something. He asked, "It wouldn't happen to be one of the substitutes, would it?"
Mu Ling gave him a wry smile. She said, "In the Immortal Realm, it's not difficult to find a substitute for the metal element. But in the Lower Realm, as far as I know, the only one is the Treasure God. However, the Treasure God is a deity after all, and it will be extremely difficult to obtain metal energy from its territory."
Hearing him describe how difficult it was, Xiao Wenbing found it amusing and said, "Fellow Daoist Mu, since it's on the Treasure God's body, leave it to me."
Mu Ling remained silent for a moment, then said helplessly, "There is no other way."
"Then what about alternatives to water systems?"
"Water-based substitutes are the easiest to find among the five elemental spirits, but obtaining them is just as difficult."
"Speaking."
"Fellow Daoist, have you ever heard of the Underworld?"
"Of course I've heard of it."
"Then you should know about the Nether Water now, fellow Daoist."
"Netherwater?" Xiao Wenbing exclaimed in surprise, his expression also turning strange.
Mu Ling was startled and asked, "What's wrong?"
"Fellow Daoist Mu, is Nether Water enough?"
"Indeed, but the underworld is fraught with danger, and obtaining the underworld water is extremely difficult."
"Difficult as it may be?" Xiao Wenbing laughed heartily, his face returning to normal. He said, "Don't worry, fellow Daoist. It's just a little bit of Nether Water, haha..." He patted his chest and said with great pride, "Leave it to me."
Mu Ling was overjoyed to hear his confident tone. She bowed deeply to him and said, "Then I'll trouble you, fellow Daoist."
Xiao Wenbing shook his head repeatedly, saying: No, it should be...
Fellow Daoist Mu is the one.
Having left the Qiankun Circle, Xiao Wenbing had resolved a major issue that had been weighing on his mind, and his expression was one of unbridled joy.
Seeing Xiao Wenbing's expression, Quini and the others, who had been waiting anxiously outside, were overjoyed. Quini stepped forward and asked, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, has the Earth Spirit agreed?"
Xiao Wenbing was startled, then suddenly remembered that he had come to the Qiankun Circle to inquire about how to save the Flame Realm, but upon seeing Yaqi, he had lost his composure and completely forgotten about the matter. Now, looking at the ball of flame and the cloud of smoke around him, his heart pounded. How was he supposed to deal with this?
He laughed and said, "I'm starting to see something. I'll go ask around."
After saying that, he once again entered a meditative state, immersing his divine sense into the Qiankun Circle, leaving Quini and the others staring at each other with wide eyes, their hearts pounding wildly.
Of course, it's not that these immortals are incompetent. It's just that the Qiankun Ring has been in their hands for so long, and they've racked their brains, but in the end, they haven't even managed to capture the Earth Spirit, let alone open that protective shield.
Quini and the others knew perfectly well that even if Xiao Wenbing didn't come to steal the Qiankun Ring, they would be helpless against it. Therefore, they truly held Xiao Wenbing in the highest regard and with the greatest enthusiasm.
“Shabir, what do you think?” Quini looked at Xiao Wenbing, who was in meditation, with a blank expression.
"I don't know, but... we have no way out." Shabir said blankly, his voice even sounding a little dazed.
"Yes, there's no way out."
“However…” Shabir said hesitantly, “He said that there is already some progress.”
"Yes, hopefully there's some progress."
The two men exchanged a glance, both unable to figure out what was going on. However, faced with the Qiankun Ring in Xiao Wenbing's hand, they dared not have any more covetous thoughts, nor did they dare to send out any divine sense to explore it.
One reason was the fear of being discovered by Xiao Wenbing, but another was a reluctance to face reality. What if Xiao Wenbing really did deliver bad news…
Queenie looked up at the temple and sighed deeply.
Since the discovery of the existence of the Earth Spirit within the Qiankun Circle, the entire strategy of the Flame Realm has undergone a complete transformation.
Sending the Dark God into the cultivation world and retrieving the Qiankun Ring from the thundercloud storm were both his suggestions. As a result, only five of the dozens of immortals remained, and five immortals were no longer enough to prolong the decline of the Tree of Life. Therefore, for him, Xiao Wenbing was now his last hope.
"Shabir, do you think I will be the greatest sinner in the Flame Realm?"
After a long silence, Shabir finally said, "If you are, then so am I."
Xiao Wenbing arrived at the Qiankun Circle and, facing the Wood Spirit, immediately asked, "Fellow Daoist Wood, I wish to save the Flame Realm. Do you have a way?"
Mu Ling shook his head repeatedly and said, "The Tree of Life in this realm has completely withered and there is no possibility of revival. It cannot be saved."
Xiao Wenbing was greatly surprised and asked, "Then, what about burying the Earth Spirit next to the Tree of Life?"
“That won’t work either.” Mu Ling said without hesitation, “If it were ten thousand years earlier, there might have been a glimmer of hope, but now there is absolutely no chance.”
Xiao Wenbing's expression darkened. He naturally didn't doubt Mu Ling's words, but if he told them the truth, how could Quini and the others possibly give up? For these people of the Flame Realm, the Earth Spirit was their last hope; it was absolutely impossible for them to give up and silently wait for death.
If these words were to get out, another fierce battle would likely ensue. What would be the point of his painstaking efforts to prevent the two sides from fighting? More importantly, how could he obtain the celestial fire from Queenie after becoming her enemy?
“Fellow Daoist Xiao, the Flame Realm is already at its end, beyond saving. However…” Mu Ling hesitated.
"But what?"
Mu Ling looked up at him and said, "Fellow Daoist Xiao, although the Flame Realm is destined to perish, they are unaware of it. If we ask Quini for Flame Fire now, he probably won't refuse."
"Do you want me to lie to him?"
“That’s right. As long as we get the Immortal Flame, we’ll return to the cultivation world immediately. Right now, there are thunderclouds and storms blocking the passage between the two worlds, and there are very few immortals left in the Flame Realm. Quini will definitely have no way to find us.”
Xiao Wenbing was startled, a hint of suspicion in his eyes as he looked at the Wood Spirit. Weren't the spirits of the five elements supposed to be honest people? This Wood Spirit also seemed honest and unassuming, but its cunning was far more profound. Hmm, the Earth Spirit was much more endearing.
After a moment's thought, Xiao Wenbing smiled and said, "I understand."