Yuan Ming's eyes revealed a hint of confusion, and just as he was about to speak, Long Chong by his side took a step forward.

Suddenly, the entire hall came to life. The floor flipped outward from beneath their feet, transforming into a land full of charred pits and divots. The walls around them disappeared in an instant, and the ceiling above turned into a sky of blazing red. In the blink of an eye, the two men found themselves on an open battlefield.

Shrill screeches echoed all around, and numerous fireballs fell from above like meteors, their long trails filling the sky as if even the heavens themselves were set ablaze.

Long Chong's expression changed. As he swung his long spear, he prepared to counter the rain of fire.

However, suddenly his vision darkened as if someone had fiercely struck his head, and he instantly fell unconscious.

Behind him, Yuan Ming sighed and silently apologized in his heart before storing the unconscious Long Chong, who had been knocked out by his illusion.

Fireballs rained down on Yuan Ming, passing through him like illusions, revealing that everything around him was an illusion.

He flipped his palm to retrieve a Spiritual Beast Bag, simultaneously linking his Divine Soul to the Shura Blood Devouring Map.

In the next instant, the Three-eyed Crow and Hong Ling appeared before him.

"Hong Ling, help me break the array," Yuan Ming said as he channeled a spell toward the Three-eyed Crow with both hands.

When Yuan Ming had arrived at this place, he hadn't felt any spatial displacement; he speculated that he was trapped by another formation, not actually on a battlefield showered with meteoric fireballs.

As the demonic power of the Three-eyed Crow flowed in, Yuan Ming's mana steadily climbed and soon reached the standard of the late-stage Core Formation level.

Yuan Ming concentrated the demonic power of the Three-eyed Crow at his brow, extended his finger, and drew on his forehead. The skin of his forehead suddenly split open, revealing a bird's eye filled with Blood Light, identical to one on the forehead of the Three-eyed Crow.

His Golden Sunflower Beast Taming Technique was incomplete, but he had used it repeatedly and was already very skilled in this secret technique. By leveraging his powerful Divine Soul, he had gradually learned to borrow the Divine Skills of spirit beasts.

Immediately after, Yuan Ming exerted his mana, and Blood Light shot out from the bird's eye at his brow, sweeping around him.

Under the illumination of the Blood Light, the surroundings twisted and shifted, revealing the scene inside the hall once more. However, under the cover of the Blood Light, the scene acquired a hazy feel, as if it was very distant from Yuan Ming.

Knowing this was the effect of the formation, Yuan Ming focused even more on searching for the formation's flaws.

The Illusion-breaking Demon Eyes of the Three-eyed Crow could break illusions and were further enhanced after the melding. Without the Stealing Heaven Tripod, Yuan Ming's Divine Sense was not as sharp as the Pupil Technique.

But this did not mean that the Three-eyed Crow's melded Divine Soul was stronger than Yuan Ming's; they simply specialized in different areas.

Perhaps sensing Yuan Ming's probing, the sky suddenly flashed, and the number of falling meteors increased manifold, causing one's scalp to tingle.

However, Hong Ling remained calm. Her hands moved through the air as if strumming a harp, causing the blazing meteors roaring toward them to suddenly veer off course, crashing into uninhabited areas.

In an instant, booming explosions, howling winds, and deafening noises enveloped the entire battlefield, mixed in with flames and smoke.

Yet around Yuan Ming and Hong Ling, there seemed to be an invisible wall that blocked all the encroaching fire and smoke.

"Found it." Amidst the flying dust, the Blood Light shooting from Yuan Ming's brow pointed toward the eastern sky.

The moment he spoke, Hong Ling's eyebrows raised, and with a flick of her wrist, a beam of red light surged out, striking the area illuminated by the Blood Light like lightning.

With a "crack," in the east, a fist-sized Treasure Bead suddenly appeared. Cracks spread across its surface, and within moments, the bead exploded into fragments, scattering on the ground.

The scenery shifted once more, and Yuan Ming found himself back in the grand hall without having moved an inch.

Using the Blood Light in his brow to observe his surroundings, and seeing no other forbidden barriers, he finally stepped forward and walked up to the formation at the center of the hall.

Yuan Ming observed the sphere wrapped in rune chains, thought for a moment, and instead of taking out the Evil Feather, he took out the black Fire Burning Stick that he had obtained earlier and threw it into the formation.

As soon as the Fire Burning Stick entered the realm of the formation, several chains made of flaming spiritual light violently extended from the formation like serpents, lashing toward the Fire Burning Stick.

However, the moment the rune chains touched the Fire Burning Stick, they reverted to spirit light and dissipated into the air, incapable of even obstructing it momentarily.

This stick seemed to be the bane of flames.

The Fire Burning Stick continued to spiral forward, easily piercing through the rune chains enveloping the sphere like puncturing paper, and with a "puff," it plunged into the sphere at the center of the formation.

The Great Array shook violently, all the rune chains turned into spirit light and faded away, and within a few breaths, it completely collapsed.

As the rune chains dissipated, the object inside the sphere also revealed itself—a strangely shaped Red Arrow; its arrowhead was like a bird, the feathers resembled fire, and its shaft bore series of rune imprints.

With the chains no longer entangling it, the arrow suddenly burst forth with an unbelievably intense heat.

At the same time, outside the palace, a sun in the sky transformed into a stream of light and plunged into the Dui Palace.

Yuan Ming immediately noticed the walls and ceiling brighten sharply as an unknown force surged into the arrow not far from him.

Thick spirit light, like tangible clay, emerged from the arrow, rapidly transforming and solidifying its form, eventually turning into a fiery, ethereal Fire Bird, which let out a piercing shriek at Yuan Ming and Hong Ling.

Then, the Fire Bird Illusion opened its mouth and spewed a ball of golden flames toward him.

The moment the golden flames appeared, the temperature inside the palace soared again, and the ruby floor and walls seemed to spontaneously combust, emitting bursts of orange-red flames.

The palace had completely turned into a sea of fire.

Yuan Ming tightened as he watched the golden flames flying toward him.

In the obscure depths of his mind, he felt as though he had been locked onto by something and no matter how he tried to flee, he could not avoid the incoming golden flames.

The golden flames contained an extremely high temperature; Yuan Ming believed that anything that came in contact with it would instantly burn into green smoke, leaving not even a trace of residue.

At his side, Hong Ling saw the golden flames flying toward them and an uncontrollable panic surged in her, rendering her unable to move.

Yuan Ming was also terrified, but he was not immobilized. He formed a hand seal with a flick.

Beneath the Fire Bird Illusion, a Fire Burning Stick that had fallen to the ground due to the dispersion of a Formation wobbled and then suddenly leaped up, striking at the Fire Bird Illusion in midair.

The Fire Bird Illusion didn't notice the attack of the Fire Burning Stick in time and immediately let out a terrible scream, transforming back into viscous spirit light and burrowed back into the arrows.

Next, Yuan Ming controlled the Fire Burning Stick to fly towards the golden flames, twisting in midair, scattering the golden flames, and with them, the terrifying sensation in his heart vanished, no longer feeling as if he was being locked onto by the intangible.

The blazing ocean within the hall dissipated concurrently, and the insufferable heat rapidly cooled down.

Seeing this scene, Hong Ling let out a long breath and then asked, "Fellow Daoist Yuan, what exactly was that Divine Bird Illusion just now?"

She had been completely immobilized facing the Fire Bird Illusion!

"If I'm not mistaken, that should have been the legendary Three-legged Golden Crow," Yuan Ming didn't conceal the truth.

Hong Ling was taken aback, her expression trembling with shock. Seeing her reaction, Yuan Ming knew she had misunderstood and immediately explained.

"Fellow Daoist Hong Ling, do not be nervous. That wasn't the ancient world-ending Golden Crow of legend, but rather a replica created by the Golden Sunflower Immortal. He sealed the Divine Souls of several Level 5 Golden Crows into arrows after exterminating them, and as you saw, although it is a replica, its power is truly unbeatable," he explained.

Meanwhile, Yuan Ming stepped forward and picked up the Red Arrow that had fallen to the ground.

The arrow concealed the Divine Soul of a Golden Crow, which he placed in a Sealing Stone Box and sealed with several Sealing Talismans.

But just at that moment, an unexpected change occurred.

Two rays of golden light shot out from underneath the ground without any warning—two golden ropes, binding him and Hong Ling's bodies tightly together at an incredible speed.

"What is this!" Blood Light shimmered over Hong Ling. Her body suddenly swelled several times in size, then abruptly shrank back.

However, those golden ropes were truly wondrous, firmly binding Hong Ling no matter how her form changed.

Though startled, Yuan Ming was not thrown into disarray. He executed the "Six Jia Qimen" technique he had just grasped, and his body flickered, transforming into a purple lumpy mass—the Purple Extreme Tai Sui.

His body reappeared several meters away, freeing himself from the binds.

"This Six Jia Qimen's ability to switch form and substance is indeed useful, even the ropes that even Hong Ling could not break free from could be escaped," Yuan Ming rejoiced inwardly.

From outside the doors came a sound of surprise, clearly shocked that Yuan Ming had escaped the golden ropes.

"Who's there?" Yuan Ming looked toward the entrance.

The rope that had bound the Purple Extreme Tai Sui suddenly loosened, shooting out and wrapping around Hong Ling, nearly turning her into a rice dumpling.

The Blood Light on Hong Ling dissipated greatly, and she fell to the ground, unstable.

"Hehe, Fellow Daoist Yuan, your skills are indeed exceptional, even breaking free from the Fairy Binding Rope. May I know what secret technique that was? Please enlighten me," a figure walked in, it was Daoist Qian Bao.

"Fellow Daoist Qian Bao! I wonder what offense Yuan has caused you, to make you strike against me?" Yuan Ming asked in a deep voice.

"Fellow Daoist Yuan, why pretend to be ignorant? We have come to Three Immortals Island precisely to seize treasures. The innocent would not be encumbered by possession. Hand over all treasures, including the Golden Crow Divine Arrow you just collected, and I can promise on behalf of my master to spare your life," Daoist Qian Bao stood ten yards away, his face displaying a cold smile.

"The necessary questions of course must be asked clearly. You and I have fought side by side after all; Yuan must understand your motives thoroughly before we can fight wholeheartedly," Yuan Ming said calmly.

"A fine declaration of a whole-hearted fight. It's rare to see you, Fellow Daoist Yuan, so spirited. Use whatever hidden cards you've got! At Magma Lake, you summoned two being of Nascent Soul level power, this red-clothed woman being one of them. Call out the other too, let's see just how formidable they are," Daoist Qian Bao laughed out loud.

He had harbored no small dread of Yuan Ming initially, but now that he had captured Hong Ling, he was full of confidence. A beam of golden light shot from his head, transforming into a Nine-story Scripture Pillar. It was densely covered with Spiritual Patterns that shifted continuously, emitting streaks of golden light.

"Is that so, then I shall comply with respect, Blood Shadow!" Yuan Ming glanced at the Nine-story Scripture Pillar and shouted out.

Blood Shadow had been waiting impatiently and shot out from Yuan Ming's body. Its body spun, transforming into a gigantic blood-colored palm several meters wide and fiercely struck toward Daoist Qian Bao!

He struck with full force immediately; the blood-colored palm appeared to be a Great Divine Power, emitting nine distinct forces from the palm. The entire hall trembled unstably, seemingly unable to withstand a single strike from the blood palm!

Daoist Qian Bao was unintimidated, forming a hand seal and pointed!

The golden light emitted by the Nine-story Scripture Pillar suddenly intensified, deluging the entire hall and forming a tough Barrier, enveloping Yuan Ming, Hong Ling, and Blood Shadow within.

The trio instantly felt as if they were at the depths of an ocean, struggling to even lift a hand; the blood-colored palm also slowed for an instant.

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