Chapter 108: The Two Worlds Collapse. Innate and Acquired

The five-element energy within the small world had already turned completely chaotic.

What should have been a sunny and clear world year-round was now shrouded in oppressive black clouds. Torrential rain poured down, covering the land in suffocating gloom.

Violent energy rampaged through the skies, entwined with thunder and lightning. Sand and stones were swept into the air, while fiery meteors crashed down endlessly, reducing the scenery of the small world to ruins bit by bit.

The ground split open, fissures tearing into bottomless abysses. The spirit herb field was completely destroyed, and spirit plants were consumed by fire until they turned to ash and tumbled into the cracks below.

From the direction of the Beast King Manor came the anguished cries of the low-level beasts that could not withstand the destruction. They scattered across the Wild Plains in panic, running for their lives.

It was nothing short of the apocalypse.

The only place still intact across the entire small world was the core region, shielded by the formations that the beasts within the world jointly activated. For now, it stood unscathed.

Wind Dragon brought Nantian Wan'er and Lu Chen to the core region.

There, the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree had begun to wither and dim. The Innate Bagua Diagram linked to its roots flickered, as if it were on the verge of collapse.

Nantian Wan'er fixed her gaze on the tree. It was something the green-robed Daoist had left behind. She had never understood its true purpose, yet now the source of every calamity devastating the small world was none other than this very tree.

A pitch-black vortex coiled above it, releasing elemental techniques of all five elements that shot across the minor world, wreaking havoc wherever they struck.

The tree's branches twisted like serpents, each one carrying elemental attacks. Wherever they landed, they latched on tightly, draining all energy to replenish the tree.

Bai Ze sat cross-legged beneath it with a group of beasts, channeling spirit qi and core power along the Innate Bagua Diagram into the Divine Tree.

Flame Demon and the other chieftains hovered above the tree in their core elemental forms. They poured constant streams of primordial five-element core essences into the tree's trunk in a desperate effort to keep its energy supplied.

The Fire Phoenix's nest in the branches had already been struck down by lightning. The phoenix itself, along with Eggy, lay bound by the tree's vines. It trembled on the ground, its core spirit qi nearly drained dry.

When it saw Nantian Wan'er, the Fire Phoenix forced open its eyes and let out a faint cry. It struggled, trying to crawl toward her with Eggy, but could not even rise.

Nantian Wan'er rushed forward and wrapped both the Fire Phoenix and Eggy in her spirit qi. The phoenix, comforted by her spirit qi, brushed against her lightly before falling unconscious again.

"The small world seemed stable just now," Nantian Wan'er said anxiously, setting the Fire Phoenix and Eggy beside Lu Chen. "How did it suddenly become like this?"

Wind Dragon urged, "Miss Wan'er, you must find a way to wake up Little Lu. He is the only one who can end this disaster."

With that, he also turned back into his core elemental form and fused back with his real body, joining the chieftains in resisting the Divine Tree's onslaught.

Nantian Wan'er's heart ached as she watched the vines slam again and again against the defensive barrier, while she remained powerless to wake Lu Chen. "Lu-gege's mind has also been invaded. I can't wake him. Why has everything turned to this when just moments ago, it was fine? If he doesn't wake up, what are we supposed to do?"

Bai Ze coughed up blood and collapsed. Struggling, he said, "During the battle, the king relied too heavily on Dao Arts. The Divine Tree consumed too much energy."

Nantian Wan'er quickly supported him, feeding him two Heaven Restoration Pills to ease his condition.

"When our king was awake, he barely managed to maintain the supply of spirit qi. But once he fell unconscious, the link between the small world within the medallion and the outside world was cut.

"Deprived of primordial spirit qi, the Green Sovereign Divine Tree now seeks to survive by ravaging the small world, devouring its laws and energies. All we can do is keep feeding it energy to try to quell its hunger."

Violent energy kept gathering in the sky, preparing to strike the barrier with full force.

Blood streamed constantly from Bai Ze's lips, yet he didn't dare to stop channeling his spirit qi. "We can't hold out much longer. Think of a way to wake the king up as soon as possible."

The Green Sovereign Divine Tree's next strike landed. Bai Ze was thrown to the ground, and more and more demonic beasts started to fail to withstand the attacks, collapsing one after another.

The massive surge of spirit qi ripped their skin apart, sending blood gushing out. The crimson flow soaked the ground like rain, turning it scarlet.

The tree's roots stretched in a network beneath the ground. All that blood was drawn toward them, flowing along the carved lines of the Innate Bagua Diagram into the tree itself.

Nantian Wan'er quickly rushed among the fallen beasts, feeding them Heaven Restoration Pills one after another, trying to restore their spirit qi.

When she saw the widening cracks, she cried out, "The passage has already opened! Why hasn't the disaster stopped?"

"Both worlds remain under the king's control," Bai Ze answered, swallowing a handful of pills before shifting into his core elemental form again. He channeled his spirit qi into the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree once more. "With him unconscious, we can't control the flow of spirit qi. We must wake him up soon. We won't last much longer."

"I know what to do now," Nantian Wan'er swallowed a handful of Heaven Restoration Pills, then actively guided the spirit qi in the Heavenly Pool toward the small world. "I can't wake Lu-gege up, but I know how to control the flow of spirit qi. Hopefully, this can at least slow down the disaster."

Under her control, the Heavenly Pool's spirit qi surged through the rift and rushed into the small world.

The black and white fish received the call. Flames and water flickered in their eyes as they channeled fire- and water-attribute spirit qi, charging headlong through the rift to wrestle against the raging energy.

The Acquired Green Sovereign Divine Tree followed after the twin fish, unleashing thousands of vines infused with wind and lightning, striking from both sides of the rift.

The small world's spirit qi clashed with the Heavenly Pool's at the rift.

It was a battle between acquired and innate. The impact seemed fierce, but as the saying went, "The Innate is born, and the Acquired is formed." The difference in their quality was immeasurable.

Even with the Heavenly Pool's power to rely on, the twin fish and the Acquired Divine Tree could only ease the calamity wrought by the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree.

As time ticked by, the rift, torn apart by the struggle of the two types of spirit qi, expanded to ten zhang wide. Elements, energy, and matter began to flow rapidly between the two worlds.

The innate and acquired energy clashed violently, breaking apart old laws while shaping new ones.

Spirit pellets began to take shape within the Heavenly Pool's sea of qi. The spirit liquid thickened into spirit pellets. This was a sign that the spirit qi had grown more abundant, a phenomenon that usually appeared only after reaching perfect mastery of the Qi Regulation Realm.

These pellets clumped together and solidified, sinking to the bottom of the sea of qi, gradually forming stone-like fragments.

In the small world, the elemental matter had long since stabilized, and the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree itself now stood as a complete body. Creation gave way to destruction, and the fury of the raging energies grew all the more violent.

The twin fish and the Acquired Green Sovereign Divine Tree could no longer hold their ground. They were forced to retreat step by step, while the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree's roots and branches stealthily slipped through the rift toward the Heavenly Pool.

Its vines pierced through, greedily absorbing energy from the sea of qi, devouring the newly formed spirit pellets, and drawing upon the very laws of the Heavenly Pool.

The Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree grew even more frenzied once it absorbed the energy, yet Lu Chen remained unconscious, and Nantian Wan'er was nearing her limit."

A crisp bang rang out as the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree struck once more, shattering the protective barrier around the core region.

Endless sand, lightning, and storms poured through like they had found a vent, unleashing all their fury upon the core region. Those beneath the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree were swept away instantly.

With that, the last sanctuary in the small world had been destroyed.

Watching the barriers collapse around her, Nantian Wan'er spat a mouthful of blood. Despair filled her heart. "It has already absorbed the primeval spirit qi. So why is it still like this? Lu-gege, can you please wake up? I can't hold on much longer..."

Despite being unconscious, Lu Chen seemed to hear her cry. "

Hmm?

"

He let out a faint snort, and the Innate Bagua Diagram etched around their ankles began to glow and spread outward.

With each breath, the diagram extended toward the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree, eventually linking with the markings beneath its roots.

This linked the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree to their bodies, and the spirit qi light that spilled from the Innate Bagua Diagram reformed the shattered barrier.

"What's this? I'm now connected with the Innate Bagua Diagram beneath the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree."

Looking down, Nantian Wan'er saw the Innate Bagua Diagram spread beneath her feet. It was the gift the green-robed Daoist had entrusted to them. Until now, they had only used it to unleash Dao Arts, never realizing it had another purpose.

"That's right! He said if there's trouble, we can contact him through the diagram."

Nantian Wan'er quickly channeled all her spirit qi into the diagram to summon the green-robed Daoist.

As soon as Nantian Wan'er circulated her spirit qi, a voice rang in her mind. "

You finally thought of contacting me? How did the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree suddenly wither, and why did this fool pass out at such a time?

"

It was the green-robed Daoist.

Nantian Wan'er said anxiously. "Senior, everything has gone out of control here. What should I do now? Lu-gege has exhausted his energy, and I can barely hold on."

"To solve this, we must either merge the two worlds or sever their link completely."

The green-robed Daoist sounded urgent. "But with Lu Chen unconscious and the Innate Green Sovereign Divine Tree withered, I can't manifest in this world either. Ha... such a perfect hand of cards, and yet he managed to ruin it so quickly."

He wanted to curse aloud, never having imagined that the gift he gave Lu Chen would be wasted so fast.

Nantian Wan'er, sharp and perceptive, sensed more than urgency in his tone. Beneath it lay a calm steadiness, showing he already had a plan and was merely venting his frustration.

"Senior, please don't say that now. How do we resolve this crisis?"

"There is a way. But we will need Grandpa Feng for that, and he hasn't shown up yet."

The green-robed Daoist manipulated the diagram, peering deep into the small world. "We must spread the divine ability across the Heavenly Pool and then use the Stone Wall Formation to separate the worlds. We have no time to waste. The Heavenly Pool is on the verge of collapse."

"I understand what needs to be done, but Lu-gege still hasn't woken up."

Nantian Wan'er glanced at Lu Chen and said, "For now, the only way is for me to use the Dao Art. At least it will keep the Heavenly Pool from being destroyed. Once Lu-gege wakes up, we'll still have a chance to try again."

"

Ah...

I suppose that's all we can do now, " the green-robed Daoist sighed, both helpless and resentful. "I've been away for too long. I forgot just how destructive my true body is. No matter how good the cards being dealt are, the hand can get ruined in an instant. I should have expected this."