C1301 The Shocking Illusion
In a remote sector of the extraterrestrial battlefield, a contingent of the Silverscale Tribe was making their way back to the Silver Sands Astral Domain. Their natural armor shimmered with an icy metallic sheen. Without warning, a luminous silver mountain peak materialized in the void beside them.
The peak was not particularly towering, yet it was covered in vast swathes of peculiar patterns. Upon closer inspection, these patterns resembled water ripples, seemingly imbued with the profound meaning of flowing water.
"The Water-Silver Holy Mountain!" exclaimed the lead Silverscale Tribe warrior, his body quivering with excitement. "The legends speak of a water-silver Holy Mountain in Brugeth! Have we stumbled upon it by sheer luck?"
"Leader! Our warriors have scoured the Shattered Star for years and never found the Water-Silver Holy Mountain!"
"Our fortune has arrived!" The Silverscale Tribe warriors erupted in jubilation. Their distinct lineage allowed them to extract minute particles of silver from the so-called "Water-Silver Holy Mountain," merging it into their innate armor to enhance their combat prowess. Unable to contain their excitement, they promptly altered their course.
...
Tens of millions of miles away, a tribe of nearly a hundred Fire Lizard members stood vigil over a dark red meteorite. Employing their blood magic, they extracted sulfur-scented fiery essence from the stone beneath them.
Sparks intermittently fused into their flesh, causing numerous bumps to erupt across their skin. This dark-red meteorite originated from a fractured Domain within Brugeth, a region known for its frequent volcanic activity. When the Domain shattered, many similar meteorites were formed.
Every few years, the Fire Lizard Tribe would gather their kin and journey to this site to draw upon the residual fiery essence within the meteorites, purifying their bloodlines.
"Hmm?" A slight Fire Lizard warrior, brandishing a pair of sharp utensils, let out a piercing cry. "Look! Over there!"
His clamor roused the other Fire Lizard tribespeople from their meditative state. They all looked in the direction he pointed and beheld a series of wondrous, colorful ripples in the distant Star River. Within these undulating ripples, they spotted intersecting streams of fire.
Deep within these fiery streams flowed molten lava, a veritable fountain of life for the Fire Lizard Clan. In an instant, every member of the tribe leapt to their feet.
"Charge! Quickly, let's charge!"
Majestic waves of vital energy were infused into the meteorite beneath them, causing the dark red stone to emit a howling sound in the void.
Members of the Fire Lizard Clan swung their blades with frenzied vigor, as if they were supercharged.
...
Seven striking members of the Moonlit Wanderers abruptly opened their eyes at the base of a chilly meteorite.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
They stepped out in succession, standing atop the polished meteorite. Guided by their blood magic, they gazed ahead in unison.
A crescent moon, casting a soft lunar glow, had mysteriously appeared.
The luminous crescent hung silently amidst variously sized meteorites in the void.
Its light was so pure that merely gazing upon it seemed to enrich the bloodlines of the Moonlit Wanderers.
"The Moonshield!"
After exclaiming in astonishment, the seven Moonlit Wanderers swiftly soared towards it.
...
Boom!
A brawny Stoneborn man, his body as solid as granite, raced through the sky.
His eyes burned with fervent greed, fixated unwaveringly on what lay ahead.
Before him, a treasure he had long coveted seemed to materialize, tantalizingly within reach.
He began to lose himself, succumbing to madness bit by bit.
...
The Ebon Star's controlled Starway, shaped like a scallop shell, also glided through the sky.
Xu Jingyao, wielding the Flame Spear, shuddered as he cast his gaze into the distance.
He spotted a colossal, crimson meteorite that had suddenly emerged, bearing the mark of scarlet lightning—the solar nucleus—and he, along with the Divine Artifact's artifact soul, felt a simultaneous resonance.
Zhu Huan snapped out of his reverie and peered intently, also catching a glimpse of the immense solar nucleus.
"Something's not right. In the shattered realm of Brugeth, it's improbable to find such a large and intact solar nucleus," Zhu Huan murmured.
"Hmm!"
Wei Zhuo of the Thunder Sect let out a cry of surprise upon sighting a storm vortex, a maelstrom of lightning, in a distant region.
He sensed the ultimate truth of the Way of Heaven's lightning emanating from it.
After a brief hesitation, Wei Zhuo announced, "My friends, I must take my leave for a moment!"
With no further explanation, the sect master, a figure of great power in the Everlands, transformed into a bolt of lightning and vanished.
Cao Jiaze, clueless about what had transpired, stared blankly at the spot where Wei Zhuo had disappeared, squinting as he tried to discern something, but to no avail.
Above the meteorite, the Solar Spirits of the various sects, including the Unbound cultivators, seemed to have lost their minds, ignoring Cao Jiaze's advice and departing one after the other. Although they flew in different directions, Jiaze sensed a convergence in their paths, as if they were destined to meet somewhere in the future.
In the Spirit World, Diggs of the Shadowkin gazed at the menacing flora. Nearly a thousand Otherkin visitors were impaled and suspended in midair. A deep anticipation glowed in his gray-green eyes. He and Pei Yuling had emerged on the surface, far from the depths below. A giant tree with razor-sharp branches grew ominously beside them, leafless, its branches stabbing out in all directions.
Pei Yuling looked up to see the bizarre tree towering nearly a kilometer high, dwarfing the gradually forming mountains of the Spirit World. Its branches had already claimed a thousand acres of the sky. The gray-brown limbs seemed capable of siphoning vitality and energy from all plant life in the Spirit World for its own growth and strength.
"What an enormous tree," Pei Yuling remarked.
"Big? You call this big?" Diggs chuckled derisively, giving Pei Yuling a condescending glance. "It's merely a sapling now. Wait until it fully matures; you'll see that the entire Spirit World won't be able to contain it!"
Pei Yuling was astounded. "Is that true?"
"Its roots are in the Spirit World, drawing life from it. But its branches will reach out infinitely, extending to every corner of the Brugeth Astral Domain, piercing through massive meteorites that resemble the stars of a Domain, drawing strength from them," Diggs explained, his face beaming with pride and his eyes sparkling with an unusual light.
Pei Yuling was left speechless by the revelation.
"Just wait and see. Every creature in the Brugeth Astral Domain will be drawn here. Regardless of their original location or activity, they will fall under the spell of the butterfly's illusion, lured by the sight of rare treasures beyond their wildest dreams!"
"We just need to wait quietly, and they will arrive at the Spirit World one after another," Diggs said, his eyes alight with wonder as he gazed at the enigmatic tree. "Then, they will nourish it, allowing it to mature and bear fruit!"
"That fruit could grant me eternal life, so I'll never grow old again!"
Chen Qinghuang's words left everyone deeply shaken, prompting a newfound understanding of Diggs, the lifespan limits of various creatures, and the Uxthar Tree. Beru, lost in thought, murmured to himself, "He didn't lie. He was right; he found the legendary divine tree. If only we had believed him back then. If he could have broken the lifespan limit, it wouldn't have been wrong for him to lead the Shadowkin as their patriarch." Realizing his old friend's actions were justified, Beru was consumed with guilt. Even he had thought Diggs had lost his mind back then, believing he was seduced by malevolent forces, leading to the horrific sacrifices and the grave error that cost him everything.
"The Uxthar Tree actually exists?" Yan Qiling whispered incredulously.
"Uxthar Tree..." Yu Yuan echoed, the name stirring a vague familiarity. He was sure he had once heard of the Uxthar Tree's origins, but the details eluded him.
"Eh?" Yu Yuan's attention was suddenly drawn to a group from the Crypt Clan. A dozen of their seventh and eighth-level warriors were frantically heading toward the Spirit World, their eyes burning with fervor. Despite their proximity, the other Crypt Clan members seemed oblivious to them, as if something far more precious lay ahead.
"How is this possible? Are they blind?" Yan Ziyang of the Wraithcult was taken aback by the bizarre scene. "They didn't even glance our way. Something's not right here."
Beru, Leo, and the others also sensed the oddity, their brows furrowed in concern. The Empress, with an icy demeanor, glanced at the three Starborn and said without emotion, "Without my power guiding you, you'd be as deluded as they are, lured by a nonexistent treasure to your demise in the Spirit World, only to become sustenance for the Uxthar Tree to flourish."
"Ah!" Denise exclaimed, her face draining of color in fright.
Leo looked contemplative, and after a moment, he gently nodded. "So it was your assistance."
"All life within the Brugeth Astral Domain is under the influence of the butterfly's illusions, all drawn towards the Spirit World," Chen Qinghuang said, the corners of her mouth curling slightly. "The moment they start moving, they draw closer to the Spirit World and will inevitably fall into its grasp."
"Should we just observe the changes?" Yu Yuan asked.
"There are those who haven't lost their way. Unfortunately, they can't prevent the others from doing so."
The Empress' gaze pierced through the spatial distance, as if in an instant, she was focusing on a specific realm. "If you wish, you can reach out to that young man, Cao Jiaze. He's quite distressed, floundering about with no clue, only able to fret."
"Cao Jiaze!" Yu Yuan called out.
In the next instant, empowered by the Empress' might, he saw the image of Cao Jiaze and the silhouettes of those departing.
Among those who had left and were ensnared in the butterfly's illusion were Yuan Lianyao and Faang Yao.
Zhu Huan and Wei Zhuo were unexpectedly among them as well.
"Even those in the Unbound state are unable to escape!"
