"It seems that as long as you step onto the bridge surface, you can avoid the lightning and fire attacks." Zhu Yu's gaze lingered over several flying snakes, nodding slowly after they slithered ashore.

"You've done well. This is the antidote to the Purple Fluorescent Poison, consider it a reward for you." Mao Yi approvingly said to Yuan Ming, tossing over a small white porcelain bottle.

Yuan Ming caught the bottle, smiled, and put it away.

Hua Zhi had already concocted the antidote yesterday, and both he and Yun Luo Fairy's Purple Fluorescent Poison had been resolved long ago, making the item unnecessary.

Mao Yi closed his eyes to control the flying snakes to continue moving forward, soon disappearing into the red mist.

At this moment, his expression changed slightly as he opened his eyes.

"What happened?" Ouyang Qiang asked.

"The connection between the flying snakes and my mind suddenly severed." Mao Yi said in a deep voice.

"Were they killed?"

"I don't know. They might have been killed, or perhaps isolated by some kind of barrier on the bridge." Mao Yi said slowly.

"It seems this Yan Emperor has some tricks." Ouyang Qiang's eyes flickered slightly.

"Before the Yan Emperor disappeared, he was only at the Dharma manifestation stage. Even if he faked his death to escape and hide here, how could he possibly harm all four of us at once?" Zhu Yu said disdainfully.

"Heh, Fellow Daoist Zhu Yu is indeed the leader of Azure Dragon Pond, truly heroic. In this case, please allow Fellow Daoist Zhu Yu to be the first to ascend the bridge while we support you from outside, how about that?" Ouyang Qiang laughed, speaking thus.

"Alright then, I'll leave it to you." Zhu Yu sneered, striding towards the stone bridge.

"Hey, Brother Zhu Yu, why get angry? We always go first in everything, so what are all these subordinates for? In my opinion, it's better for each faction to send a scout to probe the situation first." Bai Yuan hurriedly stopped Zhu Yu, suggesting.

Upon hearing this, all the Returning to Void cultivators present, along with several Level 5 Demon Race members from Azure Dragon Pond, changed their expressions simultaneously.

"That's actually a good idea. Wu Xiang, you try walking the bridge." Zhu Yu pondered for a moment, nodding, before turning to a man dressed in black and directly instructing him.

The man in black trembled, seemingly very reluctant, but ultimately stepped forward silently, not daring to defy Zhu Yu's will.

"Very well, Jiang Huan, you should go." Mao Yi said.

"Yes!" From the Black Evil Sect crowd, a red-haired man's face turned pale, trembling slightly as he stepped out.

Bai Yuan looked at the cultivators from Luo Jia Mountain by his side and finally chose the eldest one, named He Xin.

"Is anyone willing to go?" Ouyang Qiang turned to look at the group from Dongji Palace.

The situation on the stone bridge was unclear, who would be willing to act as a spy?

Including Yuan Ming, several Returning to Void cultivators from Dongji Palace lowered their heads.

"Since no one is willing, let's draw lots." Ouyang Qiang raised his hand, summoning a bamboo tube filled with bamboo sticks.

Ouyang Qiang swiftly inscribed the names of several people from Dongji Palace on the bamboo sticks, injecting a spell into the tube.

The bamboo tube shook violently under everyone's gaze, and after a moment, a bamboo stick fell out, bearing Yuan Ming's name.

"Then it's decided to be you." Ouyang Qiang put away the Magic Treasure, saying lightly.

The crowd, seeing this, collectively sighed in relief.

"Fellow Daoist Yuan, be cautious." Huangfu Jue advised.

Yuan Ming didn't speak, but waved to pick up the bamboo stick from the ground, nodded slightly at Huangfu Jue, and walked out of the crowd.

Just then, like worrying for his safety, Yun Luo Fairy suddenly grabbed his hand. Yuan Ming lifted his head, meeting her gaze.

"Be careful." Yun Luo Fairy murmured with her lips, advising.

At the same time, another voice entered Yuan Ming's Sea of Consciousness: "Ouyang Qiang manipulated the result."

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming's face showed no change, he just lightly patted Yun Luo Fairy's hand on his back, then joined the scouts selected by the other three forces.

"This Shared Fate Talisman, you should wear it closely. It is a talisman I specially researched. Two talismans make a pair; they can not only detect the life and death of the wearer but also communicate with them." Bai Yuan said, sweeping his hand, eight yellow talismans flew out instantly, with four falling before Yuan Ming and the other three.

"Fellow Daoist Bai, is this Shared Fate Talisman reliable? There are prohibitions on the stone bridge. Let's not allow the prohibition to block the sensing." Ouyang Qiang asked.

"Rest assured, Fellow Daoist Ouyang, this Shared Fate Talisman is made from spiritual materials with extremely strong sensing abilities. The prohibition cannot block it; at least I've never seen a prohibition that can obstruct the Shared Fate Talisman." Bai Yuan laughed.

Hearing this, Ouyang Qiang and the others felt relieved.

Yuan Ming and the other three took the talismans, wearing them.

An eerie wave emanated from the talismans, merging into their bodies.

The four showed slight surprise on their faces, then silently walked towards the stone bridge, through the red mist curtain enveloping the bridge, completely vanishing from everyone's sight.

Ouyang Qiang and her group immediately directed their gaze towards the Shared Fate Talisman, and at that moment, the talisman representing Wu Xiang suddenly exploded, shattering into fragments that scattered down.

Next was Jiang Huan, whose Shared Fate Talisman first cracked abruptly but quickly mended itself. However, after holding on for a quarter of an hour, it exploded simultaneously with He Xin from Luo Jia Mountain's talisman. Text- a*[email protected]+e!d$ f$r%om! M|V|$L+EMP&Y.R.

Yuan Ming was the only one left.

The fall of the three Returning Void Cultivators clearly drained the group's confidence. At this moment, they no longer expected any results, and Mao Yi and others even began selecting the next subordinate to scout the path.

However, after thirty minutes passed, Yuan Ming's Shared Fate Talisman still floated mid-air without a single crack.

"Oh, this person does have some skill, what's his name? Why haven't I heard of him before?" Zhu Yu expressed interest and asked casually.

"His name is Yuan Ming, a rare Level 5 Array Master. Who knows what kind of bad judgment you had, Ouyang Qiang, to use such a talent for pathfinding." Mao Yi sneered, looking at Ouyang Qiang with a hint of meaning.

Ouyang Qiang did not reply, instead grabbing the Shared Fate Talisman.

"Yuan Ming, tell me your current situation." She quickly inquired.

As Yuan Ming crossed the fiery curtain and set foot on the stone bridge, he immediately felt hot winds howling towards him, making him feel as if he were inside a Pill Furnace, being burnt and refined like medicinal materials.

Yuan Ming immediately cast spells, summoning two Fire Resistance Magic Treasures and added several layers of Water attribute protective shields around himself, just barely resisting the onslaught of hot wind.

But before he could walk much further, large patches of ghostly blue flames suddenly surged on the bridge surface. Without getting close, Yuan Ming's Divine Soul felt a blend of frost and searing heat.

Yuan Ming was not surprised by this; he knew there was no way the bridge would let him pass smoothly.

The ghostly blue flames in front were definitely some kind of True Fire; without understanding its nature, he couldn't recklessly withstand it.

With a sharp mind, Yuan Ming decisively reached towards his Storage Ring. A flicker of spirit light flashed in his fingers, and Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter appeared instantly, gripped in his palm.

Since no one could spy on the situation on the bridge, he was not worried about exposing the fact that he had Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter.

With a soft "whoosh," Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter transformed into a black shadow, striking the ghostly blue flames, which shattered immediately upon contact.

Not only that, but the next moment, the shattered blue flames seemed to receive an order, all swiftly reversing direction, madly rushing toward Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter, being completely devoured by it.

With its aid, no flame could approach Yuan Ming's body, let alone harm him.

After the ghostly blue flames were devoured, orange-red flames like tiny ants surged again on the stone bridge, seemingly a new True Fire. But before Yuan Ming could examine it closely, a suction force emanated from Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter, actively devouring the newly arisen True Fire.

Seeing this, Yuan Ming nodded secretly.

Earlier, when discovering that Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter could absorb Flame Beast Crystal Cores, he guessed it might be able to directly absorb flames for power. Now, upon trying it, it was indeed so.

Thus, he no longer worried about river flames attacking while crossing the bridge, saving him quite a bit of effort.

At this moment, the Shared Fate Talisman on Yuan Ming suddenly flashed, with Ouyang Qiang's voice coming through: "Yuan Ming, tell me your current situation."

Yuan Ming remained expressionless. Although he was ostensibly part of Dongji Palace, in truth, he was only in name. Ouyang Qiang treated him as a disposable pawn, throwing him on the stone bridge to test the path; he had nothing to say.

However, after this event, his already little goodwill towards Dongji Palace completely vanished.

Yuan Ming ignored Ouyang Qiang and put away the Shared Fate Talisman, continuing forward.

Various True Flames and fierce flames kept attacking, their power growing increasingly intense.

However, with Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter as his protective body, no matter what True Fire attacked, it became completely powerless in the face of this scepter, being entirely devoured.

The red light on Emperor Yan's Ruyi Scepter grew brighter and brighter, with a "boom" it flared up, exuding a scorching temperature.

"The Flame Yellow Ruyi Scepters in Ouyang Qiang and Mao Yi's hands, though imposing, don't seem to have the effect of devouring flames. Why does mine? Could something have happened when this scepter drifted to Three Immortals Island, causing some mutation?" Yuan Ming murmured to himself as he looked at the short scepter in his hand.

He then shook his head and continued moving forward.

Before he had taken a hundred steps, a sudden crack resounded in the sky.

Yuan Ming had no time to react before a bolt of Thunder struck down at him, the white Lei Guang instantly hitting his body, transforming into countless tiny arcs that penetrated his body through his pores.

Just like that, Yuan Ming felt a pain like a thousand ants gnawing at his heart. The scent of burning flesh emanated from his body, and his smooth skin turned charred and shrunken, like charcoal.

Fortunately, Yuan Ming possessed the Body of Wanxiang, his Qi-Blood abundant. The burnt flesh from the Thunder Fire quickly regenerated, soon restoring to its original state.

However, at this moment, more Thunder strikes came down from the sky, increasing in both number and frequency, further invading Yuan Ming's physical body, drilling into his meridians, significantly slowing his flesh's regenerative speed.

Yuan Ming was startled, realizing he couldn't rely solely on his physical body to resist any longer. He immediately shifted his focus, transforming his body into the form of an Undying Tree.

Subsequently, countless bolts of Thunder struck down, hitting the top of Yuan Ming's Undying Tree form. The Lei Guang transformed into fire, infiltrating the branches but found no meridians or flesh to burn, its power greatly reduced compared to before.

The Undying Tree's abundant life force rapidly healed the injuries caused by the Thunder Fire, far surpassing the self-healing capabilities of Yuan Ming's physical body.

In this way, a delicate balance was achieved: Yuan Ming still had to endure the pain, but his life was no longer in danger.

Yet in the Undying Tree form, he couldn't move, only allowing the Thunder Fire to strike continuously on his branches and canopy.