2954

 Chapter 2954: Let's See Who Can Outlast the Other 

Outside the Ice and Fire Secret Treasury, the battle between the Seventh Realm Ancestors had already stopped. The land within a radius of a hundred thousand miles was devastated beyond recognition. Fortunately, this was the Origin Continent; if it were like Lin Moyu's previous Great World, it wouldn't have withstood the power of the Seventh Realm Ancestors, and a single battle could have completely destroyed it. No matter how damaged the Origin Continent gets, it can recover quickly given some time. 

Once the ten slots for the Ice and Fire Secret Treasury were filled, the Seventh Realm Ancestors naturally stopped fighting. Continuing to fight would be meaningless. Lei Xiaocang and Jin Jutao now understood what had happened; the two members of the Hundred Herb Alliance weren't there to demand slots but to deliberately create chaos so that the two grasses could enter. At the time, they had overlooked the two grasses because, being plants, it wasn't unusual for the Dao Sovereigns of the Hundred Herb Alliance to have some grasses growing on them. 

Unexpectedly, these two grasses suddenly erupted with powerful force and twisted together, making their power even stronger through the collision of ice and fire, allowing them to rush into the treasury. Although Lei Xiaocang tried to block them with a sea of thunder, he ultimately couldn't stop them and could only watch as they entered the treasury. 

Once the ice and fire grasses entered the treasury, the two Seventh Realm Ancestors of the Hundred Herb Alliance simultaneously retreated and stopped fighting. Lei Xiaocang and Jin Jutao understood what was going on. They felt they had been played and looked very displeased. 

Lei Xiaocang said in a low voice, "Aren't you afraid you won't make it out of the Northern Continent?" Jin Jutao also said viciously, "Do you really think our demon clan is easy to bully? Even if your entire Hundred Herb Alliance comes, we can wipe you out." For nearly a thousand years, they had been responsible for this Ice and Fire Secret Treasury, and today's events were a slap in their faces. 

One of the Seventh Realm Ancestors from the Hundred Herb Alliance, dragging his massive body, stepped forward, "Friends, don't be angry. It was just a misunderstanding. Qingyuan Three is here to apologize." The other Seventh Realm Ancestor also said, "Qingyuan Four also apologizes. Our actions were due to special circumstances." Lei Xiaocang and Jin Jutao were taken aback. Why were they suddenly so polite after being so aggressive? 

Lei Xiaocang asked, "Why?" Qingyuan Three threw out a token, which was purple-gold with purple lightning entwined around it, exuding a heavy pressure. Lei Xiaocang recognized the token, "It's the clan leader's token." He asked Qingyuan Three, "How did you get the clan leader's token?" This token came from the clan leader of the Thunder Light Purple Stripe Tiger and wasn't easily obtained. 

Qingyuan Three activated the token, which emitted light and projected an image. The image showed a giant purple tiger, the clan leader of the Thunder Light Purple Stripe Tiger. In front of him was a lush ancient tree, looking like a Qingyuan Giant Tree but even larger. The purple tiger's deep voice said, "Qingyuan Clan Leader, let's agree on this." The Qingyuan Clan Leader said, "Agreed. We'll use our own methods to enter the Ice and Fire Secret Treasury. If successful, the slots are ours. If not, we won't force it." The purple tiger nodded, "Good, it's agreed. Take the token to Lei Xiaocang. But you can only send up to two Seventh Realm members." The Qingyuan Clan Leader said, "Naturally." 

The image ended, recording only a few brief exchanges but clearly explaining the previous situation. The clan leader of the Qingyuan lineage of the Hundred Herb Alliance had first approached the clan leader of the Thunder Light Purple Stripe Tiger. They agreed that the Hundred Herb Alliance could enter the Ice and Fire Secret Treasury, but they had to find their own way to obtain slots; the demon clan wouldn't give them directly. If they obtained slots through their own methods, the demon clan wouldn't interfere. As for any transactions between the two sides regarding the slots, that was another matter. At least on the surface, the Thunder Light Purple Stripe Tiger's clan leader agreed to the Qingyuan lineage's request. 

Lei Xiaocang held the token, murmuring, "So that's what happened. It was all an act." He felt helpless; with the clan leader's token in hand, he couldn't even be angry. Not far away, Lu Zeng also witnessed the scene. He suddenly realized something: the ice and fire grasses from the Hundred Herb Alliance might not be there to activate their bloodlines, or the intelligence was wrong. 

With this thought, a small boat appeared in his palm, silently flying away and disappearing into the sky. 

Inside the treasury, three days had passed, and Lin Moyu had used the skeleton generals to explore a large area. The treasury was vast and incredibly uniform in terrain. It appeared like a sandwich cookie, with the ice layer in the sky and the sea of fire on the ground as the cookie's outer layers. The mist in the middle was the filling. The entire treasury was flat and endless, extending infinitely. 

In three days of exploration, besides the seven demon Dao Sovereigns who entered, Lin Moyu hadn't found any other life forms. There were no extraterrestrial gods, no illusory bugs, not even the two ice and fire grasses. Lin Moyu was ninety percent sure the two ice and fire grasses had entered, but they had disappeared. He was also eighty percent sure that the two ice and fire grasses weren't there to enhance their bloodlines. 

"If not to enhance their bloodlines, then what are they here for?" "The ice and fire grasses are avatars of the Hundred Herb Alliance's leader." "The seeds used to create them came from beyond the heavens, so the Hundred Herb Alliance's leader is likely similar to the Three Ancestors." "This means he knows there's an extraterrestrial god in the Ice and Fire Secret Treasury and that there are Ice and Fire Dao Stones." 

Realizing this, Lin Moyu's eyes lit up, "That's right, they came not to enhance their bloodlines but for the Ice and Fire Dao Stones. The mysterious leader of the Hundred Herb Alliance has the same goal as the Three Ancestors, which is to obtain the Ice and Fire Dao Stones." Lin Moyu realized he had grasped the key point and thought even deeper. 

If the leader of the Hundred Herb Alliance and the Three Ancestors are similar, knowing about the Ice and Fire Dao Stones in the treasury, why didn't he send someone earlier? Why wait until now? Although the members of the Hundred Herb Alliance don't like ice and fire, it doesn't mean they fear them. Dao Sovereigns of the Sixth Realm could certainly come here without issue. 

This suggests only one explanation: the Hundred Herb Alliance's leader knew that even if they came before, they wouldn't find the Ice and Fire Dao Stones. He might know things even the Three Ancestors don't. This time, he sent people because of the ice and fire grasses. These two grasses, with ice and fire attributes and as his avatars, are equivalent to him being here personally. Given that each person can only enter the treasury once, he must be confident in finding the Ice and Fire Dao Stones. 

Realizing this, Lin Moyu felt enlightened; everything made sense. The talk of enhancing bloodlines was just a cover; the real goal was the Ice and Fire Dao Stones. Lin Moyu smiled, "Looks like they're here to compete with me for the stones!" "Let's see who can outlast the other!" 

On the tenth day in the treasury, the skeleton generals finally made a discovery!