Chapter 385: Wood and Water Beget Fallen Wood

“Physiological Age: 882/899.”

Without stopping the work in his hands, Li Fan glanced at the Huan Zhen panel while setting up the Formation.

Continuous selfless labor was not without a price.

When Li Fan broke free from that state of complete mental immersion, a Formation-setting process akin to an Epiphany,

an uncontrollable sense of weakness surged in his heart.

Under extreme strain, his physiological age increased rapidly.

Now, Li Fan had truly reached the end of his life.

“It's time to rest.”

This thought involuntarily popped into his mind.

But immediately, he used it as the main material for [Reverse Dao Heart Refinement].

Forcibly suppressing all slackness and fatigue.

“If I'm not ruthless with myself, how can I seek Transcendence in this perilous Cultivation World?”

Li Fan said to himself, then shook off his lethargy, forcing his aging self to burn the last moments of his life to resume the Formation work.

The expressions and reactions of Yan Hang and the others below were all within Li Fan's expectations.

Actually, there was no need for them to report it.

When Li Fan had just used the Dutian Record to apply for cross-regional work from Qi Buyi, he had already explained his current physical condition.

After Qi Buyi's persuasion failed, she decisively granted Li Fan's request.

“Theoretically, the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance should extend my life. But nothing is absolute; I must also be prepared for the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance to act unexpectedly.”

“Fortunately, I have enough contribution points and one Life-Sustaining Fruit left. When necessary, I can buy or exchange for some life-extending items to buy some time to wrap up this life.”

…

After Yan Hang and the others submitted their report, it was like a stone sinking into the ocean, not causing a single ripple.

This left the group of five both puzzled and disappointed.

However, Li Fan himself seemed completely unaffected, which made them admire him even more.

Thus, amidst the calm of various affairs, another half a year passed.

On this day, a sudden upheaval occurred in the peaceful Water Grotto-Heaven.

The azure water world began to shake violently without warning.

Caught off guard, Li Fan's Formation-setting process was forced to a halt.

Subconsciously wanting to observe what was happening around him, he only felt as if the entire world was spinning; he was dizzy and unable to do so.

Fortunately, Yan Hang and the others reacted very quickly.

The moment the mutation occurred, they flew to Li Fan's side, took out various protective Magic Treasures, and surrounded him to protect him in the center.

Within the protective shield formed by rays of light, the impact of the external upheaval was finally somewhat isolated.

Only then did Li Fan see clearly what was happening in this Water Attribute Grotto-Heaven.

The straight boundary between water and wood now seemed as if it were being squeezed by a massive force.

Forming wavy, twisted lines.

The calm water surface, unchanged for ten thousand years, was now surging with monstrous waves.

Rising into the sky, it connected with the Wood Attribute Grotto-Heaven intruding from above.

Amidst the massive friction sounds that resembled the roar of thunder, the Giant Inverted Tree above everyone's heads also seemed to have moved closer.

The pointed, continuous branches kept extending downward; after touching the Water Grotto-Heaven, they became fragmented and withered.

But it only slightly slowed the growth momentum, as they still firmly pierced the boundary between the two realms.

The originally pure and peaceful water-attribute Spiritual Qi in the world also gradually became turbulent.

Li Fan and the others watched the upheaval in the grotto-heaven with solemn expressions.

In the Dutian Record, they had already received a reminder from Qi Buyi.

“Don't panic, everyone. This is a sign of the further development of [Five Elements United].”

“It's faster than we anticipated. It seems everyone needs to speed up the progress.”

“Be careful and watch for changes that may arise from the intersection of the two realms. Report any special circumstances promptly.”

…

Once the changes began, there was no momentum to stop them.

However, human adaptability is also extremely terrifying.

Soon, Li Fan and the others became accustomed to working in an environment of intermittent surging waves and the roar of friction.

For them, these at most affected their state of mind but did not pose an actual threat.

The real danger came from the strange creations produced during the Fusion of the water and wood realms.

These were monsters formed from the withered branch debris of the Giant Inverted Tree falling into the Water Grotto-Heaven, mixing the changes of both water and wood attributes.

Varying in shape, their entire bodies were composed of withered yellow wood.

Azure water flowed continuously over the wooden body surfaces, like blood visible on the outside.

They were extremely aggressive and very sensitive to the aura of Cultivators.

Even from tens of thousands of miles away, they would spontaneously seek out the nearest Cultivator to attack.

The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance had tried many things, but so far they had not been able to find a suitable way to deal with them.

Battle was inevitable.

Although the bodies of these monsters looked like withered wood, their texture was unexpectedly hard.

A full-strength blow from a Nascent Soul Cultivator could only leave a shallow scar on them.

Fortunately, their fighting style was quite clumsy, and their numbers were relatively scarce.

The Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance side often acted in groups of several people.

Relying on numerical superiority and suppression with sophisticated equipment.

After spending some time, they could safely exterminate the monsters without any mishaps.

After each battle, Yan Hang and the others would report the battle process in detail through the Dutian Record.

After collecting a large amount of data, the Ten Thousand Immortals Alliance also compiled the key points for fighting these monsters and pushed them to every Cultivator.

In each grotto-heaven, because the fused attributes were different, the monsters that appeared also varied.

The monster Li Fan and the others encountered, where wood and water merged with wood being dominant, was named “Fallen Wood.”

There were two most effective techniques for dealing with Fallen Wood.

One was a fire-attribute Cultivation Technique. Under the burning of fierce flames, the wood burned and the water boiled, turning the Fallen Wood into fly ash.

The second was a Separation-type technique.

Completely separating the blue water flowing on the surface of the Fallen Wood from its main body.

The Fallen Wood would then collapse on its own, transforming from a terrifying and fierce monster back into pure wood and water Qi in the blink of an eye.

Separation techniques were not only useful against Fallen Wood but also had outstanding effects when dealing with monsters of other fused attributes.

Unfortunately, it was far too niche, and very few Cultivators had mastered it.

Everyone could only rely on conventional Cultivation Techniques of various attributes to cope.

Having summarized the battle strategies, the Cultivators were now more at ease when facing the monsters produced in the grotto-heaven.

Unfortunately, most Cultivators were still worried.

On this day, another piece of withered wood debris fell, transforming into a monster that looked like both human and beast, fragmented and incomplete, and launched an attack on Li Fan and the others.

Soon, Yan Hang's group of five went up to meet it.

While setting up the Formation, Li Fan observed the battle between the two sides.

“Compared to the first one we saw, the fighting styles and techniques of these Fallen Wood have indeed made significant progress.”

“These individuals separated from the inverted tree seem to have a collective consciousness.”

Watching the intense battle scene not far away, Li Fan was secretly alarmed.

“This is just the Fusion of wood and water attributes. If there were one or even several more attributes, wouldn't the monsters be even more powerful?”