Pure Destruction and Life, Eye of Creation!

The severed vines had yet to hit the ground when the entire valley began to quake violently.

The soil churned endlessly, and the rock walls cracked apart one after another. Hundreds of vines burst from the ground at once, intertwining to block off the three's retreat. Vast, broad leaves also descended from the sky, their edges exceptionally sharp.

At the same time, the Icefire Spring suddenly roiled. Crimson spring water surged dozens of meters into the air, and scorching flames swept across the ground.

The milky-white spring water on the other side moved as well, its frigid power rapidly spreading. The flowers, grass, and ground along its path were all covered in thick ice.

The forces of ice and fire attacked from both sides, sending the temperature at the center of the valley completely out of control.

Tang Ya had just released her Sinful Blue Silver Grass when the oncoming heat wave forced her back several steps.

"What's going on? Could there be someone else here?" Tang Ya asked, her face filled with shock and suspicion.

"It's not just someone."

Long Xiaoyao stood in front of the two, his broad black robe snapping loudly in the energy storm.

"This place is too suitable for plants to grow. The plants here have existed for who knows how many years. Just like when we first entered, many of them have already developed intelligence. Some may even possess a hundred thousand years of cultivation."

Long Wushang looked in the direction of the springs and saw two strange plants slowly rising on either side of the spring eyes.

On the left was a completely crimson plant, surrounded by rolling flames. Its stamen contained an incomparably pure fire-attribute energy.

On the right was a large white plant shaped like an eight-pointed star. Every leaf was covered in frost, and frigid energy poured continuously from its roots.

The records in the illustrated guide flashed through Long Wushang's mind.

"Blazing Apricot Delicate."

"Star Anise Mysterious Ice Grass."

Upon hearing their names, the two immortal herbs paused their assault. But immediately afterward, even more violent ice and fire energy shot into the sky.

"Outsiders, leave the valley at once!"

The ice and fire energies intertwined, forming a powerful will that echoed throughout the valley.

"This place does not permit humans to set foot within it!"

Countless leaves rose at once. Several plants with tens of thousands of years of cultivation launched the first attack, sending vines, pollen, poisonous mist, and sharp leaves flying in from every direction. Even the rock walls on both sides were blasted apart in great sections.

"Insolence! A bunch of beasts dares stand in my way!"

Long Xiaoyao's expression darkened as he decisively stepped forward.

The Dark Sacred Dragon martial soul instantly possessed him, and nine soul rings rose one after another beneath his feet.

Terrifying darkness formed into a vast domain, forcibly enveloping the heart of the valley.

The light within the valley rapidly dimmed. All the charging vines were pressed downward by the immense force, while several weaker plants were directly flattened to the ground, their roots and stems trembling without end.

Yet Blazing Apricot Delicate and Star Anise Mysterious Ice Grass did not retreat.

They were rooted near the two spring eyes, supported by an almost inexhaustible supply of ice and fire power.

Crimson fire waves broke through the dark domain, followed closely by frigid energy. The two forces met in midair and slammed head-on into Long Xiaoyao.

Long Xiaoyao thrust both hands forward, condensing his soul power into two dragon claws that seized the torrents of ice and fire at the same time.

The three forces collided wildly at the center of the valley. The surrounding herbs lowered their branches and leaves, while cracks were torn across the ground.

"Wushang, don't destroy the spring eyes!" Long Xiaoyao hurriedly warned when he saw Long Wushang preparing to use his Demon Puppet.

"I know." The space behind Long Wushang twisted, and the Original Sin Demon Puppet descended once more.

The divine ring representing gluttony lit up rapidly, and a black vortex appeared beneath the torrent of ice and fire.

A powerful suction force erupted. Nearly half of the heaven and earth energy that had been continuously flowing toward the two immortal herbs was intercepted on the spot.

The flames around Blazing Apricot Delicate quickly weakened, while the frost on Star Anise Mysterious Ice Grass's leaves began to fade.

The two immortal herbs immediately sensed that something was wrong and desperately drew even more energy from the spring eyes. Yet the faster they drew it, the more fiercely the black vortex devoured it.

"Impossible!"

"How can you take the power of the Icefire Spring?"

Long Wushang stood before the Demon Puppet, his black hair blown back by the rushing air. "There is nothing impossible in this world."

He pressed both hands down, and the vortex expanded once more. Having lost a massive supply of heaven and earth energy, the attacks of the surrounding immortal herbs visibly weakened.

"Xiaoya, to the right!"

Tang Ya had long been waiting for this chance. Dozens of dark-gold Bluesilver Grass vines shot across the ground, avoiding the highly poisonous flowers and plants as they specifically coiled around the vine-type plants responsible for attacking.

This time, she did not devour recklessly. The Sinful Blue Silver Grass tightly latched onto its targets' roots and stems, drawing only the soul power they had stored within their vines.

A giant vine with over fifty thousand years of cultivation struggled madly, its tendrils lashing repeatedly at Tang Ya. But a dark dragon claw released with a wave of Long Wushang's hand smashed them apart on the spot.

"Behave yourself!"

Tang Ya seized the opportunity to activate her fifth soul skill.

Dark-gold patterns rapidly spread across the giant vine's surface, and the energy within it flowed through the Sinful Blue Silver Grass into Tang Ya's body.

Her cheeks quickly flushed red, her soul power fluctuations rose continuously, and the Bluesilver Grass beneath her feet grew even thicker.

Realizing that its strength was draining away, the giant vine immediately fell into a frenzy.

It pulled part of its roots from the ground, desperately trying to retreat underground. Tang Ya's gaze hardened as she violently pulled back with both hands.

"Weren't you fierce when you were ganging up on us just now?"

The giant vine lost its balance, and its enormous main body was forcibly dragged out of the soil.

On the other side, Long Xiaoyao had already completely suppressed the two immortal herbs.

The phantom of the Dark Sacred Dragon coiled above the valley, its two dragon claws respectively sealing off the two terrifying ice and fire energies.

Blazing Apricot Delicate tried to draw upon the fire spring for a counterattack, but Long Xiaoyao's eighth soul ring suddenly lit up.

Darkness sealed off the surroundings, forcibly cutting the connection between the two immortal herbs and the Icefire Spring for a brief moment.

Though it was only an instant, it was enough.

Long Wushang swept across the battlefield and arrived directly between the two immortal herbs.

The Original Sin Demon Puppet raised both arms at once, and an enormous pressure crashed down.

Blazing Apricot Delicate's petals tightly closed, while Star Anise Mysterious Ice Grass was pressed close to the ground.

All the surrounding plants that had still been resisting came to a halt. Countless vines froze in midair, no longer daring to continue their attack.

Long Wushang looked at the two immortal herbs before him. They had both developed intelligence and possessed a full hundred thousand years of cultivation. If he simply consumed and refined them like this, he could not guarantee that he would be able to withstand it.

"Human, I admit that you are strong, but I must still warn you. This is that person's territory. You had better not act recklessly, or the consequences will be beyond what you can bear."

Blazing Apricot Delicate continued threatening the cold-faced Long Wushang, while Star Anise Mysterious Ice Grass beside it nodded repeatedly in agreement.

Long Xiaoyao looked at them with contempt flashing through his eyes. The force in his hands increased once more, causing the two immortal herbs to howl in agony.

A cold gleam flashed through Long Wushang's eyes as he watched. What ignorant creatures. Since they refuse to appreciate kindness, there is nothing more to say. They can obediently become nourishment for my servants.

Under Long Wushang and Tang Ya's watchful eyes, Long Xiaoyao's eyes erupted with dazzling divine light once more. A violet-green rune resembling an eye slowly emerged on his forehead, radiating the aura of boundless destruction and endless life.

This was the fusion of the Blade of Life he had reclaimed and the Destruction Core within his spiritual sea—a product born from the union of pure destruction and pure life: the Eye of Creation.