"Actually, no."
At this moment, Di Tian suddenly opened his palm, revealing the branch and leaves he had plucked. "There is Heaven and Earth Origin Energy in this area, just no pure Heaven and Earth Origin Energy. What exists here is destruction energy. A kind of energy that, upon absorption, will strip away all life. However, in this current region, this energy is very faint, making it hard for you to detect. Precisely because of this, it gives you the feeling that Heaven and Earth Origin Energy doesn't exist in this area. So if you say there is no Heaven and Earth Origin Energy here, it can be understood that way. Of course..."
Before he finished, Di Tian rigorously added, "I mean, currently only in this specific area."
"But..."
Xiao Xiao swept her gaze over these lush trees, appearing slightly hesitant. Although these plants were all black, they should still be a form of life, right? How could one say there was no existence of life?
Seemingly perceiving Xiao Xiao's unspoken thoughts, Chen Junting, who was pinching the branch and leaves he had taken from Di Tian's hand, spoke up: "Xiao Xiao, life indeed does not exist here, because all the plants on this island have actually been reduced to dead matter. In other words, the vitality they possessed has already been stripped away by destruction."
Right at this moment, Wu Feng walked up to a large tree. When she pressed her palm against it, it was ice-cold to the touch. Not only was there no trace of a life aura transmitted, but she even felt a thick sense of silent extinction instantly rise up.
Immediately after, it coiled towards Wu Feng.
Looking at it, it seemed intent on devouring her life force.
Whoosh—
The sudden change made her face shift. Ultimate Fire instantly erupted, resisting this destructive aura and burning towards the entire tree while she quickly pulled her palm away.
Beside her, Ye Guyi, who was originally standing next to Wu Feng and paying slight attention to her actions, immediately took action upon seeing this. Angel Holy Light shrouded Wu Feng's body, helping her expel the destructive aura.
"Thanks."
Wu Feng shook her hand, inevitably feeling a lingering fear.
Then she turned her head to look at the tree she had ignited. Who would have thought that the Ultimate Fire on the tree was like rootless duckweed; not only did it fail to produce a burning effect, but on the contrary, it was rapidly snuffed out by the destructive aura emanating from the tree, dissipating into nothingness.
Wu Feng frowned deeply and turned her head to say to everyone: "These trees don't seem real; it's like they've been carbonized. They're as hard as iron and stone, and indeed lack even the slightest trace of life aura."
These words perfectly confirmed what Chen Junting had said, and just as Di Tian had stated, there was probably no life existing on the island.
Of course, this was only limited to this specific area.
Because in the eyes of both Di Tian and Chen Junting, they believed that this island or this archipelago chain wouldn't lack even a single region with signs of life.
As for the reason...
It was nothing else but the fact that this place wasn't entirely the handiwork of the God of Destruction.
Anyway, in Chen Junting's view, this island was probably first acted upon by the Goddess of Life, allowing it to exist while full of vitality, and then the God of Destruction made his move, stripping away most of the island's vitality. But ultimately, a portion would be left behind; otherwise, wouldn't the trial he experienced be limited to just one god?
This would contradict what was described in the trial.
However, although Chen Junting thought this way in his heart, the others didn't know his thoughts. Instead, they began discussing what impact it would have to continue staying on such an island.
"I'm afraid the situation will be very bad."
Dugu Xin took out a poisonous herb from his storage soul tool. In just a few breaths' time, this poisonous herb turned the same black color as this forest, and then he closed his palm and gave it a pinch.
Crack—
After being carbonized, a gentle pinch like this shattered it into powder.
"Look, this is the result. All living creatures rely on Heaven and Earth Origin Energy with vitality to survive; this is unquestionable. Water and sunlight are the origins of life; what they bring is an elevation of life energy. In a place without any life energy, our own life aura will continuously be consumed. It won't be a problem for a short time, but if it drags on, I'm afraid we'll turn into dried corpses here, or carbonize just like those plants."
"After all, the destruction energy here doesn't only exist within the plants. Just as Senior Di Tian said, this destruction energy is also in the air; it's omnipresent. It's just that at our current level, we can't feel it. In other words, the destructive aura filling this place right now isn't much, and can even be said to be sparse. It's mostly contained within solid entities, like the plants or this land. As for that sparse bit in the air, we've already mostly adapted to it. Coupled with the contrast from these trees and the land, that's why we had the illusion that there seems to be no destruction attribute in the air."
This clear explanation made the faces of those who still had doubts about Di Tian's words suddenly change. Of course, excluding Chen Junting and Di Tian.
Because they had both reached the Realm of Heaven and Man as One, and their spiritual power was also above the ordinary Limit Douluo level; otherwise, it would be hard to perceive.
At the same time, "Then what do we do?"
He Caitou glanced at the others and proposed.
"Should we leave?"
After all, no matter how they put it, coming here wasn't their assessment; they only came here out of a certain curiosity.
If they couldn't stay, then they should just leave.
Wasn't that right?
When He Caitou said this, everyone looked at each other in dismay. Clearly, his proposal was the best method right now.
It was at this moment,
"He's right, you all should leave."
Chen Junting suddenly spoke up, attracting everyone's attention.
"Big Brother Junting..."
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao wanted to say something, but was interrupted by Chen Junting raising his hand. "Although this place is also related to gods, it's not suitable for you. Don't forget, the Sea God's Divine Trial is your current priority. Don't be greedy."
"Besides, I came here to participate in an assessment. How dangerous a place that requires a soul master with Limit Douluo combat power to undergo an assessment could be, I probably don't need to explain here, right?"
Immediately, Huo Yuhao swallowed the words that had reached his mouth.
Those words were indeed true.
If they really wanted to venture through it, it seemed they indeed weren't qualified.
Besides, their visit here was mostly out of curiosity anyway.
At this time, Xiao Bai from the side added the last straw: "Your big brother's words make sense. You must not forget the Divine Trial bestowed by Lord Sea God. The third test only has a time limit of one year, you know. And where are you now? A month has passed, and you still haven't made much progress. Don't fail it when the time comes."
"If that happens, people will die! I don't care if you guys die, but make absolutely sure you don't drag Miss Dong'er down with you."
The last sentence was spoken by Xiao Bai in a very sinister and serious tone. But they had to admit, these words were indeed the truth.
Especially the last part, "...drag Miss Dong'er down with you," formed a critical hit against Huo Yuhao, leaving him with no other thoughts.
Even though Xiao Bai was playfully glared at by Wang Dong'er, who then comforted Huo Yuhao by saying "It's fine," it couldn't change his mind. So, after taking a deep breath, he looked at the others.
But there was no need to wait for him to speak...
"Then let's go back and continue the third test." Bei Bei spoke up, which also meant he was representing himself, He Caitou, and Ma Xiaotao.
As for Gu Tianchen and the others, they also expressed their agreement.
"Alright, then let's leave first. After the assessment is over, maybe we can come back here to explore again."
"By then, we wouldn't even need to explore." As soon as Huo Yuhao's voice fell, Wang Dong'er hooked his arm, and then took over the conversation in a teasing tone, "Maybe by the time our assessment is over, Big Brother Junting will have already finished exploring this island, so why would we need to exert ourselves? When that time comes, we'll just have Big Brother Junting take us for a stroll around the island."
Hearing this, Chen Junting, who found it a bit amusing, couldn't help but curl his lips slightly upward. "Dong'er's words actually make sense. Once your Divine Trial is over, I'll bring you guys here again for some training."
Thus, after deciding to temporarily leave this island, Gu Tianchen and the others walked toward the sea area outside the island. After all, staying here any longer wouldn't be a good thing for them.
As for Di Tian, after parting ways with them, he dove into the depths of the forest alone, and his whereabouts became unknown.
Just as the group was about to reach the island's coast, Chen Junting called aside exactly two people: Huo Yuhao and Dugu Xin.
Regarding this, Dugu Xin was puzzled.
In contrast, Huo Yuhao already had a guess in his heart.
The next second, after Dugu Xin saw Chen Junting wave him over alone, he stepped forward and asked: "Chen, what's the matter?"
"It's nothing major."
Afterward, Chen Junting told him that in the subsequent Divine Trials, even if he broke through level ninety, he should not absorb his ninth soul ring.
As for the reason, he naturally disclosed everything.
"The Aromatic Silk Beauty, huh..."
After slightly pondering the reason and deeming it feasible, Dugu Xin naturally nodded in agreement without hesitation. "No problem. It just so happens I want to see whether the soul ring obtained by reverse-deducing the Aromatic Silk Beauty can truly make my poison irresistible."
"It won't disappoint you."
Smiling, he patted Dugu Xin's shoulder, signaling him to leave first, as he wanted to keep Huo Yuhao behind for a chat. So after Dugu Xin turned and left, Huo Yuhao stepped forward and said, "Big Brother Junting, you want to ask me about the self-created soul skill, right."
"You guessed it too."
Chen Junting reached his hand forward, indicating they could talk while walking.
"Two years have passed, how's the progress?"
"Quite fruitful."
"That's good then."
Hearing him say this, Chen Junting didn't ask further. After all, it involved Wang Dong'er's life, so he naturally knew what he was doing.
He only reminded him at the end, "There are a total of nine tests in the Sea God's Divine Trial. Before the ninth test, you still have a chance. But no matter what, the sooner the better. Set a time limit of three years, does that work for you?"
"Yes!"
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao answered resolutely.
"Good."
Chen Junting patted Huo Yuhao's shoulder while pushing him forward. "Although I don't know how long it will take to pass my trial, I imagine it won't be short. I hope that by the time I come out, you will have already attracted the attention of that god in the Divine Realm."
After speaking, the two continued walking towards the outside of the island.
Not long after, the group arrived at the coast.
Facing the sea and looking out, how should he put it?
He could only say that the black sea seen from the air after entering here was a completely different feeling from the black sea looked at from the ground ahead, and it was even more shocking precisely because they were up close.
The seawater undulated, with roaring waves crashing against the shore, as if rolling up a thousand layers of waves heralding the arrival of darkness. When it slightly calmed down, the pitch-black, ink-like seawater looked like a terrifying abyss, seemingly ready to devour a person at any moment.
Xiao Bai approached the shore, but didn't impulsively enter the water. Instead, she chose to extend a finger to lightly touch the sea surface, giving people the feeling as if the majestic King of the Devil Spirit Great White Sharks couldn't swim.
However, this action was a wise move.
The moment her finger touched the water surface, Xiao Bai suddenly felt her whole body shake. Immediately after, a terrifying suction force came from the seawater. The soul power, qi and blood power, and even life force within her body swarmed out along her finger. At the same time, the aura of destruction also crept up along her finger.
In addition to her horror, Xiao Bai hurriedly pulled her finger out of the seawater. However, in just this brief moment, the front of her finger had already shriveled up.
"This seawater can't be touched either!"
Xiao Bai looked at her finger, feeling both distressed and somewhat frightened. "The seawater is like the trees in the forest, but compared to the trees, the seawater isn't just destructive; it also has a very strong devouring ability. Once you touch it, it will accelerate all the loss."
Gu Tianchen raised the side of his palm and glanced at the sky.
"In other words, we can only fly out."
Xiao Bai nodded slightly. "That's right, we can only fly."
Other than that, there was probably no other way.
However, flying wasn't a difficult task for the people or beasts present. After all, once one's cultivation reached Soul Sage, they could tread the void, so crossing a 300-meter sea area was still a piece of cake.
"In that case, let's get moving!"
Phoenix wings unfurled, and a fiery red figure soared into the sky!
Seeing this, Wu Feng wasn't willing to fall behind either, as her dragon wings instantly spread open.
But before she could catch up, Ma Xiaotao had already flown past the height at which Chen Junting had carried them in on his flying sword.
The next second, Ma Xiaotao's figure suddenly plummeted.
Seeing that things were bad, Wu Feng hurriedly flew up and caught her.
This unexpected turn of events caused the two to hurriedly land back where they started.
"It's a flight ban."
After Ma Xiaotao steadied her figure, she wasn't flustered, and recounted her experience just now.
"I just flew up about two hundred meters or so, and up there it felt like there was an invisible force that swatted me down with a slap. In other words, there is actually a limit to flying here."
Chen Junting narrowed his eyes and looked up at the sky.
This was actually an accidental discovery that helped him obtain a piece of information, regardless of whether it was useful or not.
At this moment, Ma Xiaotao continued, "Let's all be careful when we fly out later. Otherwise, if we get swatted into the sea by this force, the consequences..."
She didn't need to continue her sentence; the others already understood the so-called consequences.
Although they now knew about the flight ban, getting out was still not a difficult task for them; at most, they would just have to lower their flight altitude a bit.
This restriction, so easy!
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