"Fellow Daoist Long, we are all here to seek opportunities in this Secret Realm, each on their own path. There is no such thing as first come, first served," Huan Ling Zi said, his eyes narrowing as he spoke slowly.

The cultivators who had followed him also took a step forward.

"If that's the case, then it's all about skill," Long Chong said. He had no sooner finished speaking than he lit up with a glow.

Thinking that Long Chong was going to snatch the Earth Core Fire Lotus, Qing Tong didn't have time to think. His figure flashed, turning into a tunneling light that sped toward the center of the Magma Lake.

However, he had only flown out about ten zhang when he saw Long Chong stop at the edge of the Magma Lake, not stepping into the lake's area at all, the corners of his mouth curving into a subtle smile.

Qing Tong inwardly cursed, realizing something was amiss and hastily stopped in his tracks.

But before he could steady himself, the Magma Lake below suddenly churned violently, and several Fire Crocodiles leaped out of the lake, opening their huge mouths to spew molten lava at him.

Qing Tong was startled by the formidable demonic power of the Fire Crocodiles and swiftly dodged.

However, the Fire Crocodiles, which had already been disturbed once by Yuan Ming and the others, were furiously enraged and simultaneously launched an attack, effectively blocking all of Qing Tong's escape routes.

Qing Tong barely evaded the attacks of two Fire Crocodiles, but a stream of molten lava came at him from a blind spot and hit him hard.

Qing Tong did not panic and quickly raised his hand, calling forth an ancient round shield enveloped within a hazy purple aura to block the molten lava.

The intense molten lava hit the round shield, immediately emitting billows of purple smoke and a "puff puff" sound.

Just like Yuan Ming's Silver Shield, the purple round shield was instantly burned through, creating a large hole.

The molten lava that burst in landed on Qing Tong's Protective Treasure Light, scorching him so severely that he screamed in agony and fell toward the sea of fire below.

Two Fire Crocodiles were already waiting there, opening their mouths to bite at Qing Tong.

Just then, a streak of blue light, like a rainbow, shot from the distance. It arrived beneath Qing Tong in an instant and spread out with a "whoosh," forming a blue light screen that caught his body.

The two Fire Crocodiles bit down hard on it. The crystalline light screen twisted and deformed but didn't shatter.

Qing Tong caught his breath and stepped on the blue light screen, using it to propel himself out. His figure flickered like a ghost, leaving behind a trail of serpentine illusions that dazzled the eyes.

The surrounding Fire Crocodiles were confused by the illusions, becoming sluggish for a moment.

Seizing the opportunity, Qing Tong broke out of the encirclement and shot towards the shore.

The group of irate Fire Crocodiles gave chase, and over a dozen Magma Fire Columns vied with each other to strike at Qing Tong's back.

The previously horizontal blue light screen suddenly stood erect, blocking the Magma Fire Columns for a moment, and Qing Tong successfully escaped from the lake.

After landing, he didn't dare to stay put. Guarding his burned chest with mana, he continued his escape without noticing the Fire Crocodiles that had stopped pursuing at the lakeshore.

"Haha"

Long Chong, having returned to Yuan Ming and the others, watched Qing Tong's wretched state and laughed so hard he could hardly stand straight.

The others, upon seeing the scene, also struggled to suppress their laughter.

Yuan Ming did not laugh but instead gave Xue Jiao a glance.

The blue light screen that had just saved Qing Tong was emitted by this woman. It was not a Magic Treasure but merely an ordinary flow of water, yet it had twice blocked the attack of the Red Fire Crocodiles, which was quite extraordinary.

Moreover, Xue Jiao was not purely defensive. During the two instances when she countered the Fire Crocodiles, she launched attacks as well. Many extremely fine Water Needles were shot from within the blue light screen, targeting the vulnerable areas such as the Fire Crocodiles' eyes and nostrils. Otherwise, Qing Tong would not have been able to escape so smoothly.

Those Water Needles were so fine that they were difficult to detect by a slightly weaker Divine Sense.

Yuan Ming silently marveled, noting that the Merfolk were incredibly adept in water control. He knew he would have to be extremely careful if he ever fought with this woman in the future.

Having reached a place of safety, Qing Tong quickly tended to his wounds and immediately turned to Long Chong.

"Long Chong, you and I are irreconcilable!" Flames nearly shot from his eyes as he raised his hand and grasped two thin, black, glossy swords that gleamed with a faint black light, hurling them at Long Chong.

"It's not my fault you went there. Are you blaming me?" Long Chong sneered, fearless. As a flash of light appeared in his hand, a blue spear materialized, and he prepared to meet the attack.

Just when the two were about to clash, a figure suddenly flashed out and stood between them. It was Daoist Qian Bao from Golden Turtle Island.

He pushed out his palms to the left and right, meeting Qing Tong and Long Chong respectively. In his palms, he held a round jade and a square seal.

The round jade surged with blue light, forming a vertical mighty round shield like a giant shield in front of Qing Tong, while from the square seal emerged a peak made of yellow light that blocked Long Chong.

"Fellow Daoists, please calm down and hear me out," he interjected.

The slender long swords in Qing Tong's hands struck the azure giant shield, and with a flash of blue light, they were rebuffed, vibrating with a hint of blue light and moving twice as fast as before.

The long spear held by Long Chong only struck out halfway before stopping in front of the yellow mountain peak.

Qing Tong hastily made a series of hand seals, managing to regain control over the slender swords and said in a deep voice, "Thousand Treasures, what is the meaning of this?"

"Fellow Daoists, a harmonious atmosphere breeds fortune. We've come into this secret realm in search of the numerous heavenly materials, earthly treasures, and opportunities, have we not? To start fighting to the death over treasures we haven't even acquired yet would surely be a loss," Daoist Qian Bao chuckled.

"Just now, Long Chong deliberately lured me into danger. Everyone present here saw it; he was the provocateur!" Qing Tong said coldly.

"What a joke, it's your own greed that made you so eager to feed the crocodiles. What does that have to do with me?" Long Chong retorted with disdain.

Enraged, Qing Tong's swords glowed with dark light once more in her hands.

"Have you two come here to quarrel and make a spectacle of yourselves? Please move elsewhere and don't hinder our gathering of the Earth Core Fire Lotuses," Golden Cloud Fairy said with a trace of impatience and a cold voice.

"Qing Tong, I have important business to take care of and have no time to bicker with you. Once we're out of the secret realm, we can settle our differences once and for all," Long Chong, apparently wary of Golden Cloud Fairy, was the first to put away his weapon and backed away.

Unable to contain his anger, Qing Tong opened his mouth to say something more, but Xue Jiao's lips moved slightly as if she was transmitting a message to him.

Qing Tong's expression changed subtly, and after taking a deep breath, the anger on his face receded like the tidewater, and he too withdrew.

"Brother Long, be careful. Qing Tong is one to bear grudges, having been thwarted by you, he likely won't let the matter rest," Yuan Ming transmitted a warning.

"Rest assured, I'm well aware of Qing Tong's little tricks," Long Chong said nonchalantly.

"Thousand Treasures is right; there is something very strange about Magma Lake, as no sign of life can be detected. Just now, each of those Fire Crocodiles possessed the strength of a third-level demon beast. Fighting them one-on-one, it will be quite difficult to obtain those Earth Core Fire Lotuses. Since we are all gathered here by fate, why not join forces and gather the lotuses together?" Huan Ling Zi said regretfully, but his face showed a smile as he stepped forward to propose.

"Huan Ling Zi's proposal is indeed brilliant. I wonder what the others think?" Daoist Qian Bao nodded in agreement.

"Given the strength of the demon beasts at present, joining forces to confront them is indeed the best strategy," Yun Jiuxiao voiced his approval.

Golden Cloud Fairy, Qing Tong, Xue Jiao, Hou Santong, and others also nodded their heads in succession, but Long Chong's group and Zhong Ling's party of three abstained from expressing their agreement.

"Fellow Daoist Long, do you perhaps find this proposal unsuitable?" Daoist Qian Bao asked, looking over at him.

"Brother Yuan, what do you think..." Long Chong said.

At this moment, Daoist Qian Bao finally took notice of Yuan Ming, a look of surprise flashing in his eyes.

Long Chong was the son of the Island Master of Thousand Dragon Island and was known for his unruly character. Yet now, he was actually seeking Yuan Ming's opinion, which was quite unexpected.

"As for the proposal made by Daoist Qian Bao and Huan Ling Zi, we naturally agree," Yuan Ming said after a brief contemplation.

Daoist Qian Bao nodded with a smile towards Yuan Ming and looked towards Zhong Ling's party.

"We three practice wood attribute cultivation methods, and our spirit beasts are also of the Wood type, which are greatly restrained by these Fire Crocodiles. We would rather not take this risk," Zhong Ling communicated with the other two using transmitted messages and declined.

"What Zhong Ling has said is also my thought," Baili Zhui of Red Leaf Island added.

"We three are of inferior strength and truly wouldn't be of much assistance. Rest assured, we shall take our leave immediately and will not disturb you in claiming the treasure," Hua Ping said with a bow, and the three turned to walk away towards the distance.

"This..." Suddenly short of three allies, everyone was momentarily taken aback.

Yuan Ming smiled faintly, as the three were consistent in their prudence; yet, this was also a correct decision. They knew when to hold back and when to act, for one must give up something in order to gain something else.

"I knew they would shrink back, a bunch of turtles withdrawing their heads," Qing Tong clicked his tongue and snorted disdainfully.

"Please wait, the talismanic technique of Yuzhu Island, the Arrays of Red Leaf Island, and the Ten Thousand Wood Nourishing Essence Secret Skill of Wanhua Island are well known throughout the East Sea cultivation world. You three are selling yourselves short," Daoist Qian Bao hurriedly urged them to stay.

"It is not that we are being modest; our strength is indeed lacking, and we do not wish to take this risk," Zhong Ling explained.

"Fellow Daoists act with caution, which I respect. How about this offer? You need not engage directly. Just set up the Ten Thousand Wood Formation on the shore and help restrain some of the Fire Crocodiles from afar," Daoist Qian Bao proposed after a moment's thought.

Upon hearing they could avoid the risk, Zhong Ling and the others exchanged looks and then nodded in agreement.

Others who heard this wore expressions of suppressed annoyance, but none raised objections.

"Brother Long, what kind of Array is the Ten Thousand Wood Formation? Why does Daoist Qian Bao put such value in it?" Yuan Ming inquired through transmission.

Yan Sijing had gathered a lot of information about the East Sea, but hadn't mentioned this formation.

"The Ten Thousand Wood Formation is a combined Array from Yuzhu Island, Red Leaf Island, and Wanhua Island. They specialize in Wood Attribute Divine Skills and have a close relationship. The predecessors of the Three Islands shared and exchanged their Divine Skills, creating this powerful Ten Thousand Wood Formation, which has been a renowned tale in the East Sea Cultivation World. The Formation is incredibly powerful, especially suited for defense and trapping enemies. Zhong Ling and the others are outstanding Core Formation cultivators from their respective islands; the Array they set up is likely capable of trapping even Nascent Soul cultivators for a while," Long Chong explained.

Upon hearing this, Yuan Ming realized that with this Formation's help, obtaining the Fire Lotuses would indeed be twice as effective with half the effort and safer as well.

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