166: Sacred Oak Symbiosis Ceremony

Above the ruins of the wealthy district.

Hatties slowly raised his head, his gaze piercing through space, directly towards the Oak Tree Cathedral.

Behind him, the terrifying humanoid figure composed of countless dark spirals faintly reappeared.

Just then,

In the Void Realm before him, clusters of pale white flames ignited out of thin air.

The flames condensed into a face that was neither sad nor joyful, yet exquisitely beautiful.

It was Celestine.

“Thank you, Fellow Daoist, for your assistance; the Golden Armor Corpse can now return to its place.”

“However, all living beings in this city are White Bone Gospel Society believers…”

Celestine’s voice was ethereal and compassionate, carrying a hint of detached pity.

Under Hatties’s mask, his single eye, a dark spiral, rotated silently.

He spoke hoarsely.

“You take the common populace, I take the extraordinary Bloodline.”

The white flames flickered, and a faint, indifferent smile finally appeared on that exquisitely beautiful face.

In the air, only an ethereal voice remained.

“Agreed.”

......

At the same time,

In the Reverse Life Forest Secret Realm.

A pool of viscous green liquid slowly swirled in a massive basin, emitting a rich aura of life.

Submerged in the pool were lifelike tree skeletons.

They were once powerful members of the Oak Family, and although they had now become tree skeletons,

as long as they were within the Oak Family’s Secret Realm, they still retained their powerful strength from when they were alive.

This was the Oak Family’s Legacy.

Marcus stood at the edge of the pool, the steel needles on his face trembling slightly.

Beside him, Sheila had already stitched together a new body.

At this moment, both of them stared intently at the scene displayed on the liquid surface, falling into a prolonged silence.

The terrifying humanoid figure, composed of countless dark spirals, hovered above the city.

The eerie divine statue, condensed above the Oak Tree Cathedral, receiving the incense of all people.

“Is this… really Oak Tree City?”

On Sheila’s strange yet perfect face, for the first time, self-doubt appeared.

“Did we… misread the location?”

She felt that there might be something wrong with her perception.

Gurgle, gurgle…

In the green liquid pool, the liquid churned violently.

Gradually, a perfectly sculpted male body slowly rose from the pool.

Long plant roots extended from all over this body, connecting to the deep bottom of the pool like umbilical cords.

Alvin Oak slowly opened his eyes.

His expression was also very grim.

As the true master of Oak Tree City and the controller of the Reverse Life Forest Secret Realm, he naturally saw everything happening outside.

However, at this moment, he completely failed to comprehend the current situation.

The extraordinary paths displayed by those monsters

were something he had never seen before, and he couldn't recall any similar information.

It was as if this group of powerful individuals had suddenly emerged from some crack in the ground.

“The fellow stirring the Black Flame vortex is very likely part of the same group that infiltrated the Secret Realm earlier.”

Marcus’s voice was hoarse, but his tone was full of apprehension.

“As for the Oak Tree Cathedral… we still don’t know what happened.”

“We must act quickly…”

They both saw clearly that

these uninvited guests were, in their respective ways, frantically plundering the life force of the city.

If they delayed any longer, the preparations they had painstakingly made might be completely destroyed.

“There is no time left.”

Alvin’s voice sounded somewhat strained.

“The White Bone Gospel Society is continuously transforming the common people in the city, plundering all their life force and Souls.”

“This new force that has entered the city has begun to frantically harvest nobles and the wealthy, not even sparing those with extraordinary Bloodline.”

A hint of self-mockery appeared in his eyes.

“I originally thought that collecting enough life force would be the simplest part of the entire plan, but unexpectedly, problems arose here instead.”

Marcus asked hoarsely.

“Should we start now?”

“If we initiate the ritual now, the Oak Family’s Legacy of a thousand years of Bloodline will be completely severed…”

“Begin.”

Alvin slowly turned around, a look of determination flashing in his eyes.

“Anyway, such a prolonged struggle has long been meaningless.”

“It’s time for the Oak Family to put an end to this Bloodline illness that has plagued it for a thousand years!”

He intended to use this ritual to completely cleanse himself of the Bloodline curse.

For this day, he had endured for far too long; no one could stop him!

“This is, after all, Oak Tree City, a place my Oak Family has managed for a thousand years.”

Alvin’s gaze returned to the image in the pool, his voice cold and firm.

“No matter where they came from…”

“Once the ritual begins, no one will be able to leave!”

The moment his voice fell.

More thick plant roots suddenly sprouted from Alvin’s body, frantically burrowing into the bottom of the pool.

Gurgle, gurgle…

The liquid in the entire green liquid pool instantly began to boil violently.

The Sacred Oak Symbiosis Ritual was activated!

......

Rumble!!!

The entire Oak Tree City suddenly began to shake violently.

The ground groaned under the strain, as if some colossal entity was awakening beneath the earth.

Countless visibly pale yellow pollen particles surged madly from cracks in the ground, instantly enveloping the entire city.

The hard stone roads cracked inch by inch.

Countless fine white roots broke through the earth from beneath the ground.

They wriggled frantically, sucking all living beings they touched into withered bones.

The tragic state of the city reached its peak at this moment.

Whoosh, whoosh, whoosh…

All the Black Flame Death Soldiers stopped their movements and leaped onto the tops of various buildings.

Streaks of dark flames emanated from their bodies, resisting the dense pollen in the air.

But even so, their exposed skin began to show signs of flesh and blood withering.

Rumble!!!

As countless life forces were swallowed by the earth, the tremors of Oak Tree City grew even more intense.

Gradually,

the entire Oak Tree City actually slowly rose from the ground!

The area beneath the city was not solid ground at all!

It was an unimaginably massive, ancient, and lush giant oak tree canopy!

The entire city itself grew on this giant tree!

And beneath the giant tree, an inverted, vast oak forest also slowly appeared from the Void Realm.

An extremely rich aura of life emanated from it.

The Reverse Life Forest Secret Realm, at this moment, completely overlapped with reality!

It was like a reflection, mirroring the ascending Oak Tree City,

forming a vertically symmetrical, isolated absolute Domain.

......

Outside the city.

Deep within a nearly depleted mine.

A massive, ferocious dark-golden figure was coiled motionless, continuously absorbing wisps of Gold Property Imperishable from its surroundings.

Suddenly, the figure trembled violently.

A pair of dull eyes abruptly looked towards Oak Tree City.

The Golden Armor Corpse sensed that

in that direction, an immeasurably vast life aura was surging wildly.

This aura made its long-dormant killing instinct feel an irresistible craving.

The gold-copper mine could only enhance the power of its Gold Property Imperishable Divine Ability.

However, the growth of a zombie's Realm ultimately still required devouring massive amounts of life.

“Roar…”

The Golden Armor Corpse suddenly opened its maw and let out a low roar.

It took a powerful breath, completely devouring the last trace of Gold Property Imperishable in the mine.

Immediately, its massive, heavy body silently sank into the deep shadows around it.

With a speed completely inconsistent with its size, it surged towards Oak Tree City.

......

A moment later,

the Golden Armor Corpse’s figure abruptly appeared on the outskirts of Oak Tree City.

However, the city had now vanished,

and in its place, there was only a giant, ethereal bubble emitting a green glow, enveloped by an invisible green barrier.

Thud!

The Golden Armor Corpse attempted to pass directly through the shadows and infiltrate it.

However, it was repelled by an invisible, powerful force, which violently flung it out of the shadows!

The Golden Armor Corpse climbed to its feet, its black, hollow eyes silently observing the Secret Realm barrier before it.

Relying on its formidable combat instinct, it began to search for weak points in this Secret Realm barrier.

Boom! Boom! Boom!!!

Its indestructible claws and the ferocious dark-golden horn on its forehead

struck the same spot violently, again and again!

Dull thuds echoed continuously across the desolate wilderness.