The New Ruler

However, the lord glanced behind him and said:

"If this really is the Execution Stone Mine, then it means we've already exited the great formation used to seal the mine..."

He glanced around, then cupped his hands and addressed the void in a loud voice:

"I am Zhao Yunzhong, the newly enthroned ruler of Huanyou Nation. I humbly request that my fellow Daoist from the Pusi Kingdom appear and meet with us!"

Suddenly hearing his master speak, Third Brother Yuan, who was about to rush out, stopped in his tracks. Thinking of his master's words, he came to his senses and realized something, and began to look around.

Zhao Yunzhong stood firmly in place, showing respect yet maintaining his composure, waiting for this fellow Daoist from the Pusi Kingdom to appear.

After this grand formation was completed, all the upper-level cultivators in the Huanyou Nation knew about it.

They also knew how powerful this formation was, and that no one had been able to break it to this day.

Even those wicked creatures who colluded with Execution Stone were helpless against this formation.

The fact that they could open the array barrier so easily and release the two of them suggests that the legendary array-setting cultivators from the Pusi Kingdom must be here.

Zhao Yunzhong had been disguised as a royal guard all the way, and he only came here this time for certain reasons.

However, the other party had likely been hiding in the shadows and overheard his conversation with Third Brother Yuan, so they probably knew that their identity could not possibly be that of a guard.

Since the other party's actions indicated friendship rather than hostility, he simply and openly admitted his identity to avoid mutual suspicion and unnecessary trouble.

Seeing that he was aware of his presence, Lin Xiao, who hadn't intended to hide, stepped out from the shadows and bowed to the two of them, saying:

"I am Lin Xiao, the sect leader of the Lingxian Sect in the Pusi Kingdom. I greet you both."

Upon seeing him emerge, Third Brother Yuan returned the greeting and said:

"Yuan Jinsheng, Vice Sect Leader of the Empty Mountain Sect of Huanyou Nation, greets Sect Master Lin."

Zhao Yunzhong smiled and returned the greeting:

"It's the renowned Sect Master Lin of the Lingxian Sect! A pleasure to meet you."

As top leaders of the new regime in Huanyou Nation, the two naturally had some knowledge of the news from neighboring countries, not to mention that the Alliance Army of several neighboring countries were stationed in Huanyou Nation to work with the Huanyou Nation to eliminate the remaining rebels.

In a country like Pusi Kingdom, where a three-way power balance had been maintained for a long time, the sudden emergence of a formidable and impressive Lingxian Sect naturally spread the news even faster.

It would be hard for them not to know.

Both of them were quite surprised to see the young man in front of them, whose face still looked somewhat immature.

Zhao Yunzhong sighed:

"I never expected Sect Master Lin to be so young; he's truly a prodigy!"

The three exchanged only a few words of pleasantries before Yuan Jinsheng was already extremely anxious. Without further ado, they arrived at the entrance of the mine that Yuan Jinsheng had sensed.

Just as Yuan Jinsheng was about to rush down, Zhao Yunzhong stopped him and said:

"Are you out of your mind?! There are Execution Stone down there! If you go down like that, you'll not only fail to rescue Yingzi, but you'll also lose your life!"

But Yuan Jinsheng turned to look at him with a resolute expression:

"My lord, I must go down this time, and I can't wait to think of any more solutions. The sooner I go down, the more likely it is to buy my son a chance to survive."

"As you've always known, I'm not good at using my brain, so the solution is the same as before, I'll leave it to you!"

After saying that, he turned around and rushed into the mine without hesitation.

"Third Brother--!"

Zhao Yunzhong's cultivation was only at the Golden Core Early Stage, and Yuan Jinsheng was extremely powerful; how could he possibly stop him?

They could only watch helplessly as Yuan Jinsheng disappeared into the dark depths of the mine.

Lin Xiao could have stopped him, but he didn't.

Firstly, we weren't familiar with each other.

Secondly, this is a father-son relationship, and he didn't know how to stop it.

Looking at the deep, dark mine shaft, Lin Xiao calmly said to Zhao Yunzhong:

"The only solution now is for us to quickly devise a way to descend without being affected by the Execution Stone."

Zhao Yunzhong nodded with a somewhat sorrowful expression.

The two stood outside the mine entrance, frowning in thought.

A moment later, Lin Xiao suddenly thought of something and asked Zhao Yunzhong:

"By the way, Sect Leader Yuan just said that he chased those people to the outside of the great formation, and then their aura disappeared? But after entering, he sensed his son's presence in this Execution Stone?"

Zhao Yunzhong nodded:

That's true.

Upon hearing this, Lin Xiao seemed to have thought of something. He made a hand gesture, and suddenly a thin layer of white mist rose from the open ground where they were.

Then, the white mist gradually formed a huge underground landscape.

There are many tunnels crisscrossing the area.

At the heart of this network of tunnels lies a massive cavern.

Then, several red lights suddenly appeared in the cave.

The red light flashed a few times and then disappeared.

Another red light was gradually approaching the central cave in the tunnel, but the closer it got to the central cave, the weaker the red light became, and soon it completely disappeared into the underground landscape constructed by the white mist.

Upon seeing this, Zhao Yunzhong was extremely shocked:

"Sect Master Lin, this is..."

Lin Xiao explained:

"When the great formation was first built, I left a Law Technique here. This Law Technique can silently attach itself to a person and remain in a dormant, sealed state. In this way, its Spiritual Qi is condensed and not easily absorbed by the Execution Stone. When needed, it can be activated to briefly confirm the location of the person it has attached to."

He pointed to the central cave and said:

"The red light that just appeared in this central cave was very likely the remnant of the Execution Stone Incident that the Alliance Army are currently hunting."

"As for this white mist, it is one of the effects of this great formation. It can instantly survey the entire terrain within the formation. Fortunately, although the underground is a spirit-destroying Execution Stone, the Spiritual Qi on the ground is still quite abundant, allowing the great formation to absorb and operate on its own, which is why it has been able to maintain its current state."

In fact, Lin Xiao also incorporated the Spirit Gathering Formation into it. Otherwise, given the average concentration of Spiritual Qi and the natural flow rate in the Mortal Realm, the array would inevitably be insufficient to compensate for the deficiencies.

Hearing his explanation, Zhao Yunzhong was even more shocked, and he said with great admiration:

"Sect Master Lin is truly benevolent! He actually used such a powerful formation to seal this Execution Stone. I wonder if the Lingxian Sect also has such an ancestral tradition..."

"Boom--!"

Before he could finish speaking, a deafening roar suddenly echoed from afar! It was like a thunderclap in broad daylight, shaking the heavens and the earth!

The two of them turned around in surprise at the direction from which the sound came!

In the distance, a huge cloud of dust rose into the sky, scattering grass, wood, and stone fragments everywhere, billowing yellow smoke.

Just as the two were about to rush over to investigate, Lin Xiao saw Zhao Yunzhong, clutching his heart with his facial features contorted to the extreme, before collapsing to the ground with a 'thud'.

"Your Ruler Zhao! What's wrong?"

Lin Xiao quickly helped him up and sat him against a large rock, his brows furrowed as he asked.