"Boom!"
A deafening blast erupted, making even Yang Wenqing's primordial spirit tremble. Lan Ying jolted in fright inside the pocket on his chest.
A wave of heat and a powerful shock wave followed, rushing straight at them. The banyan branches near the explosion snapped and rapidly carbonized in the searing flames. The fire tried to climb higher, only to be blocked by the layers upon layers of branches above.
Then the flames spread into the open space, devouring the nearby wood spirit aura and oxygen. The gale this stirred up nearly knocked even some Third Realm cultivators off their feet.
Kang Tai and the others nearby fled immediately, followed by the many cultivators Yang Wenqing had brought. As they retreated from the flames, they summoned their defensive artifacts.
But the fire spread so quickly that many had no time to react. Some cultivators with insufficient cultivation were swallowed outright.
At that moment, Chang Heng said quietly beside him, "These flames are at least four thousand degrees, nearly the highest temperature a Third Realm fire cultivator can control. At such temperatures, water won't extinguish the fire—it'll fuel it!"
This was how things reversed themselves when pushed to an extreme. Such an effect existed within five-element restraint.
Everyone involuntarily looked behind them at his words, their eyes filled with fire. In the distance, Ding Mu and the others were also withdrawing from the area.
"Crack!"
Something seemed to snap, followed by a succession of thunderous rumbles.
Yang Wenqing immediately warned, "Watch overhead!"
Massive branches were falling from above. Zhao Xian instantly deployed the Artifact Formation around him. Surging killing intent and hundreds of Demon Race divine souls blasted an energy surge upward, shredding the falling branches.
The sounds of breaking wood echoed incessantly, as though the entire banyan tree were about to