Dan Shu's body—or rather, the Ambrosial Arbor itself—suddenly deflated like a punctured balloon.
But this deflation was different from that of a normal balloon.
It was more like some force had transformed, shifting from a state of stacked equilibrium to one of internal consumption. The once-swollen Arbor began to wither and decay, and even the appearance of Dan Shu it had formed instantly shriveled.
Because the Arbor's roots ran so deep within the Fyxestroll Garden, everyone was forced to retreat back outside the seal.
The seal itself borrowed power from the Arbor, and through the power of the High Elder, it had formed a self-contained, locked structure.
In a moment of carelessness, the Xianzhou had neglected the importance of the High Elder's role in managing the seal. As a result, the seal in this area had been left abandoned for many years.
And now, as if finally fulfilling its original purpose, the seal crumbled like sand. Along with it, the Arbor's roots, which had once rampaged freely within the Fyxestroll Garden, also disintegrated.
"What is Dan Shu doing?"
March 7th ran out of the seal with everyone else. She hadn't expected Dan Shu to act so decisively, or to cause such a huge commotion. She looked back, and lo and behold, the entire old Dragon Palace at the bottom of the sea had collapsed and disappeared.
The entire Fyxestroll Garden could feel the effects of the Arbor's withering. The previously supported areas all collapsed, falling into the depths of the cavern.
"Dan Shu must be retracting the Arbor's original root system. She must have used the Stellaron's power to annihilate both Destruction and Abundance... together."
The Dharma Eye on Fu Xuan's forehead glowed faintly, and she quickly saw the changes in the Arbor.
"The Stellaron is like a millstone, or some kind of special converter. It can convert the power of Abundance into Destruction, and it can also use the power of Destruction to act back upon the Arbor."
"In this way, the Arbor is using its own power to destroy itself."
"The Stellaron... is truly a wondrous thing."
Fu Xuan marveled at the miraculous power of the Stellaron. Dan Shu had taken its abilities to a whole new level. In terms of effect, it was far more efficient than simply using the Stellaron's power for destruction.
Hearing this, Stelle subconsciously touched her chest, wondering if she had a similar power. That would be truly amazing.
Stelle was already starting to dream of one day becoming a big boss like Dan Shu, cornering the renowned leaders of the Xianzhou Alliance with just a few words.
Noldrei didn't care about Dan Shu's final fate. She had simply chosen her own way to die.
Jing Yuan, on the other hand, was worried about the future of the Xianzhou.
It was impossible for the Xianzhou to rid itself of the influence of the Abundance's blessings. Even without the Arbor, it wouldn't work, because many things had been developed using the power of the Abundance.
In the future, if they wanted to develop further or find replacements, they would still end up on the path of coming into contact with the power of the Abundance.
This meant that the cycle of faith Noldrei had spoken of would still occur.
In the past, this issue could be ignored and shifted to other conflicts, but once it was pointed out, it could no longer be disregarded.
Jing Yuan stepped forward, taking Fu Xuan's place, and asked Noldrei, "Now that Dan Shu has temporarily given up on destroying the entire Scalegorge Waterscape, are there any other good ways to deal with the followers of Yaoshi?"
Noldrei looked at him in shock.
"Brother, aren't you the General of the Luofu? Is it really okay for you to ask me about this?"
Jing Yuan was completely unfazed at this point. He said with a calm expression, "The Xianzhou is by no means an isolated place in the universe. There are certainly methods that the Xianzhou people haven't thought of, and powerful outsiders they've never seen. As the saying goes, 'The sea accepts all rivers, its capacity is great.' We will naturally be humble and ask others about things we don't know."
"You see, brother, am I not asking for your guidance now?"
Noldrei clapped Jing Yuan's shoulder and said seriously, "You've used that 'take-ism' very well. In fact, just do as Dan Shu planned. She will definitely leave you a sapling of the Arbor. She absolutely won't completely end the trouble of the Arbor."
"Given that Dan Shu has merged with the Arbor, we naturally need to consider the possibility that the Arbor is still alive. It's also possible that one day the Arbor will feel that its roots have been stuck here for too long and decide to move somewhere else."
Jing Yuan felt that this Arbor was having it a bit too easy. If one day the Arbor was in a bad mood, would it start a riot on the Luofu to make its presence known?
This damn thing... it would have been better to just let Dan Shu self-destruct from the start.
Noldrei seemed to have read Jing Yuan's thoughts. He said with a smile, "Of course, we should ask our dear Master Diviner about this. See if she can divine anything. You see, she is the Master Diviner of the Divination Commission, and now also the Master of the Alchemy Commission."
"Although I was the one who appointed her, and it doesn't hold much real power... will the General really refuse?"
"I just so happen to want to see if Fu Xuan has the ability to manage these followers of Yaoshi in the Alchemy Commission."
Jing Yuan felt that Noldrei was thinking too much. He said cautiously, "Good brother, would you like to reconsider? If it really doesn't work out, I can find some savvy Foxians from the Sky-Faring Commission to come over."
He seemed to feel that saying this was too damaging to Fu Xuan's pride, so he quickly added, "Of course, I don't mean to look down on Fu Xuan. I just think that this arrangement isn't good for the Six Charioteers. After all, we still need an Alchemy Commission that serves the interests of the Xianzhou."
Fu Xuan's face instantly changed. This was clearly saying that once she became the Master of the Alchemy Commission, she would no longer serve the interests of the Xianzhou.
It wasn't that Jing Yuan had anything against Fu Xuan. It was just that her performance while following Noldrei had been too disappointing. It seemed that without her divination ability, she had reverted to a little girl.
Given this, Jing Yuan was indeed a bit worried about letting Fu Xuan manage the Alchemy Commission.
"Don't worry. The old Fu Xuan couldn't, but the current Fu Xuan definitely can. After all, the old Fu Xuan hadn't suffered so many setbacks, nor did she expect that the good or bad outcomes of her divinations had nothing to do with her own efforts."
Noldrei felt a little like laughing at the thought of this. The Master Diviner had always thought she could find an opportunity to interfere with fate between good and bad fortune.
But as it turned out, this 'fate' had been in his and Dan Shu's hands all along.
The more one tries to grasp fate, the more one is enslaved by it.
Among the people Noldrei knew, those Stellaron Hunters must have already reached this stage.