Just as Elder Zhu Li and the others were about to destroy the Earth Demon Puppets, Xiao Feng quickly intervened, saying, "Elder Zhu Li, there's no need for you to deal with these puppets personally. Leave them to me!"
As soon as Xiao Feng finished speaking, he immediately released his soul power, enveloping the Earth Demon Puppets.
Having personally crafted Earth Demon Puppets before, Xiao Feng was well aware of their strengths and weaknesses.
If one chose to confront the Earth Demon Puppets head-on, the only way to end the battle would be to dismantle them completely.
However, Xiao Feng had no intention of engaging in a direct confrontation. Instead, he planned to take control of these puppets directly.
Each Earth Demon Puppet contained a soul imprint left by its creator. Xiao Feng only needed to erase that imprint and replace it with his own to gain control over the puppets.
Of course, while this method sounded simple in theory, it was far from easy in practice.
First, the soul imprints within the Earth Demon Puppets were hidden in extremely obscure locations. If Xiao Feng hadn't personally crafted such puppets before, it would have been nearly impossible for him to locate those imprints.
Second, one's soul power had to be exceptionally strong—at least a full realm above that of the puppet's creator—to forcibly erase the existing soul imprint.
If the Sage of Creation were still alive, Xiao Feng would never have been able to erase the soul imprints he had left within the Earth Demon Puppets.
Unfortunately, the Sage of Creation had perished countless years ago. Even the ancient ruins he had created were on the verge of collapse, let alone the soul imprints left within these Earth Demon Puppets.
With soul power comparable to that of a peak seventh-grade alchemist, Xiao Feng quickly erased the nearly dissipated soul imprints within the Earth Demon Puppets and effortlessly took control of ten peak Dou Zong-level puppets.
*Crack, crack, crack...*
As soon as Xiao Feng took control of the Earth Demon Puppets, the heavy stone door slowly creaked open, revealing a dark passageway. A faint, ancient aura wafted out from within.
"Let's go," Elder Zhu Li said, leading Xiao Feng and the others into the dark passage.
Although the ancient ruins might hold many dangers, with three Dou Saint-level experts accompanying them, those dangers were hardly worth worrying about.
After passing through the dark passage, Xiao Feng and the others suddenly found themselves in a vast hall that was thousands of feet tall.
*Bang, bang, bang...*
Under the somewhat surprised gazes of Elder Zhu Li and the others, Xiao Feng suddenly formed hand seals and summoned thousands of shadow clones in one go.
"Go! Strip this place of all its treasures—leave nothing behind!"
At Xiao Feng's command, the shadow clones instantly turned into streaks of light, disappearing from sight as they rushed into the surrounding pavilions and palaces like bandits.
Seeing this, Elder Zhu Li and the others couldn't help but chuckle. They then led Xiao Feng and Zi Yan deeper into the palace.
For Dou Saint-level experts like Elder Zhu Li, ordinary treasures were hardly worth their attention. Naturally, they wouldn't lower themselves to compete with Xiao Feng for such items.
After traversing the massive palace for about fifteen minutes, Xiao Feng and the others finally stopped in front of a stone door.
"This should be the place. The medicinal aura here is the strongest," Zi Yan said, sniffing the air before pointing at the moss-covered stone door ahead. "The ancient forest Xiao Feng mentioned should be behind this door."
*Boom!!!*
Without hesitation, Elder Zhu Li waved his hand, forcefully blasting open the stone door.
As the door shattered, an overwhelming medicinal fragrance surged out.
The sight of the ancient forest, composed entirely of rare and precious spiritual herbs, left even Elder Zhu Li and the others momentarily stunned.
After all, these herbs had been sealed within the ancient ruins for tens of thousands of years, and among them were some exceedingly rare ten-thousand-year-old spiritual herbs.
*Gulp!*
Zi Yan couldn't help but swallow hard. "Wow! This place is like a dream come true for me!"
If it weren't for the fact that she knew the even more precious Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit awaited her, Zi Yan would have wanted to stay here forever.
Xiao Feng didn't bother with formalities either. He walked to the edge of the ancient forest and activated the power of the Stone-Stone Fruit.
*Rumble...*
With a deafening roar, a large portion of the ancient forest in front of Xiao Feng was lifted by the underground rocks. He then enveloped it with his spiritual power and stored it within Hueco Mundo.
"Huh?"
Seeing the sizable ancient forest being systematically stored away by Xiao Feng, Elder Zhu Li and the others couldn't help but show expressions of surprise.
At first, they hadn't sensed the existence of the Hueco Mundo. However, as Xiao Feng stored away the ancient herbs and opened a passage connecting the Hueco Mundo to the real world, they faintly detected the presence of a special spatial entrance.
Although Dou Saint-level experts could create independent spaces within the void, they couldn't carry those spaces with them like Xiao Feng could.
If it weren't for the fact that Xiao Feng was the son-in-law of the Ancient Void Dragon Clan, Elder Zhu Li and the others would have been eager to study this ability further to satisfy their curiosity.
After several hours of work, Xiao Feng finally managed to relocate the entire ancient forest, along with the magical beasts living within it, into the Hueco Mundo. This added a splash of color to the otherwise pale and desolate Hueco Mundo.
"Found it!"
At the same time, Zi Yan finally sensed the space where the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit was located.
After passing through the outermost Beast Spirit Barrier of that space, Xiao Feng and the others found themselves standing on a vast plain.
The plain was covered in crimson soil, mixed with patches of pale, chalk-like white.
At the center of the plain stood an ancient stone altar, a hundred feet tall, emanating a terrifying pressure that sent shivers down their spines.
"It really is the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit!"
Elder Zhu Li was the first to sense the presence of the Dragon-Phoenix Origin Fruit at the top of the altar. Without hesitation, he used his spatial power to teleport Xiao Feng and the others to the top of the altar.
Xiao Feng felt a brief blur before his vision cleared, and he found himself standing at the summit of the hundred-foot-tall altar.
In the center of the altar was a stone platform, half gold and half purple, with a half-foot-deep indentation in the middle.
Within that indentation, a small sapling had grown out of the stone. The sapling was no thicker than a thumb, yet it coiled and twisted like a dragon.
At the very top of the sapling hung a fruit the size of a palm.
The fruit was a mix of gold and purple. The golden side faintly resembled a miniature Ancient Void Dragon, while the purple side took the shape of a soaring Ancient Heavenly Phoenix.
(End of Chapter)
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