"A Stellaron? With Xianzhou's capabilities, it might be troublesome, but not a huge problem, right?" Tingyun tilted her head, trying to understand.
She wasn't exactly high-ranking, but as the resourceful Miss Tingyun, it made sense that she had some sources in Luofu.
Yukong smiled faintly and put away her worry. Worry wouldn't solve the problem—better to think about the next step.
...Dan Heng and Blade's battle ultimately did not break out.
Not because someone stopped them.
But because—
------------------------------------
"Ahhh! What's that giant thing?!"
The ground began to tremble.
The roots of the Arbor started spreading rapidly, breaking through the soil beneath their feet, even the hardest rocks unable to stop their growth.
"Ahh, how annoying," Fu Xuan exclaimed, eyes wide in shock.
Sensing the gaze, March 7th looked over curiously.
A huge figure stood in midair. Facing her was Jing Yuan, but she didn't seem to care about the Luofu general, instead admiring her own arm.
Though they'd never seen her before, everyone instantly recognized the figure.
Lord Ravager, Phantylia!
And she wasn't alone. Under some mysterious force, the Arbor's roots were growing visibly fast, spreading in all directions.
But March 7th wasn't focused on that...
"Why does she look different from what Herta showed us?"
March 7th asked in confusion.
Herta had shown them an image of Phantylia when they were on Jarilo.
But March remembered—Phantylia didn't look like this.
"Phantylia is a being of energy. This body is likely the result of her merging with the Arbor."
Fu Xuan looked grim.
When the Arbor was first granted to the Xianzhou, she hadn't been born yet, so she didn't witness its miracles.
But the records and experiences of Diviners confirmed that the Arbor wasn't just a useless piece of wood.
The miracles bestowed by Abundance wouldn't vanish just because of a temporary halt.
Now, with Destruction and Abundance combined—two infamous forces across the universe—who knows what might happen.
Just then, Jing Yuan descended from the sky. Seeing this, Fu Xuan hurriedly stepped forward and asked urgently,
"Jing Yuan, what is going on? Weren't you stopping Phantylia? Why are you here?"
Shaking his head slightly, Jing Yuan explained,
"Perhaps she felt hiding was pointless. Sensing my approach, Phantylia didn't conceal herself and instead emerged, merging directly with the Arbor. I had no choice but to chase her. But I believe... she did it deliberately."
As they spoke, Phantylia seemed to finish admiring her new body. She lowered her head slightly, looking down at the people below.
"...Hehe, Xianzhou Luofu, The Nameless, Stellaron Hunters… I didn't expect all of you to rush over to congratulate me so eagerly just as I've obtained such a perfect body. It's making this little lady quite flustered."
"Uh… thanks, I guess!" someone mumbled awkwardly.
Blade didn't care about any of this. Right now, all he wanted was to settle things with Dan Heng.
But before he could act, a seductive voice came from the side.
"Alright, now is not the best time to make a move. Later, we'll take our time."
A tall figure stood atop a stone pillar, her lifeless eyes looking this way. She raised her right index finger to her lips and smiled slightly.
The Words of Power made Blade restrain himself a bit, but the look in his eyes still screamed he wanted to stab Dan Heng a few times.
"Stellaron Hunters, are you joining this fun competition too?"
Phantylia's gaze fell on Kafka as she spoke softly.
Facing Phantylia's question, Kafka smiled faintly, hands behind her back, walking forward nonchalantly.
"The Stellaron Hunters have no intention of joining your rivalry. However, before the outcome is decided, could we perhaps serve as honored spectators?"
Watching the two leave without a care, Fu Xuan bit her lip hard.
"A bunch of bastards," she muttered under her breath—but that alone wasn't enough to shake her.
Suddenly, she realized something.
Her gaze turned to the silent Dan Heng.
"Why do I feel like everything's going according to someone's plan?"
Looking down at the wary crowd, Phantylia chuckled softly, then shook her head regretfully.
"What a shame. I had planned to use a certain Xianzhou Foxian's body to infiltrate the Xianzhou, making its destruction even more beautiful... but I was interrupted. No matter when I think of it, it's such a pity."
"Hah! You still want to take over a Xianzhou body? You bastard!"
Upon hearing Phantylia's scheme, Fu Xuan angrily cursed with the few harsh words she knew.
"Foxian... could it be Tingyun or Yukong?"
"Judging by the timing, it should be Miss Tingyun. Miss Yukong is too high-profile—reckless action might lead to wildly unexpected consequences," Dan Heng speculated.
"Then, by this logic, didn't we save Tingyun twice now?"
Ignoring the others' conversation, Jing Yuan spoke in a heavy tone.
"Lord Ravager Phantylia, since you've offended the Xianzhou, then after today's battle, the pursuit of the Hunt will follow you to the ends of the universe!"
"If given the chance, I'd love to personally test your strength."
She laughed lightly, and the atmosphere turned subtle.
Phantylia waved her fan gently. The next moment, the roots of the Ambrosial Arbor rose into the air, intertwining to form several wooden spheres.
Before the crowd could react, the spheres bloomed, and several large creatures exuding the aura of abundance stepped out.
"Monsters!"
"Abundance creations!"
After the quick explanation, Fu Xuan looked at Phantylia with growing dread.
"To so easily create multiple abundance creatures of this level... it seems Phantylia has drawn considerable power from the Ambrosial Arbor. Everyone, fall back! Leave this to us!"
Due to the Ambrosial Arbor's nature, no one could live near it.
As a result, only those who came to suppress the secret teachings of The Plague's Author were present.
All of them had some combat power.
But aside from a few, the rest were of no help against Phantylia or the creatures she summoned using the Ambrosial Arbor's power.
Retreating was the only option.
"Then let me see—can the General of Luofu lead his troops to defeat these cuties and reach me?"
...
No one knew how much time had passed.
Yukong, feeling restless, was about to go for a walk to calm her nerves when her phone buzzed just as she put it in her pocket.
She took it out and looked.
"What?!"
The message was simple—it was from Stelle.
[Stelle: Yukong, quick, notify my big brother—Phantylia is attacking!
[Stelle: {image}]
Attached was a photo of several people confronting the monsters, with Phantylia watching gleefully in the distance.
Seeing this, Yukong had no time for a walk—she turned and ran back quickly.
...
"This isn't working! These things regenerate way too fast. No matter how much we hit them, it doesn't matter. How are we supposed to deal with this?!"
After a round of attacks, the destroyed abundance creatures quickly regenerated before the stunned crowd.
Even the deer-like beast that was focused on had half its body frozen and a third shattered, yet it fully recovered in moments. Its terrifying regeneration left everyone at a loss.
"Yo! Yo!"
Worst of all, the deer was mocking them!
Stelle's eye twitched slightly as she looked at her cracked weapon.
Yep—she was the one who shattered that third of the body.
"That does it, I've had it!"
"Hey, hey, don't be rash! We need a strategy—charging in blindly won't work!"
Seeing Stelle about to move, March 7th quickly grabbed her hand, pleading.
"Who said I was going to fight?"
"Huh? Then what are you doing?"
March 7th blinked, then saw Stelle pull out her phone, open a chat with a certain Foxian lady, take a photo, send it, and then—
"Big bro! Someone's bullying me!!!"