633: Lu Xueqi and Biyao (16)

The radiance suddenly brightened by a fraction.

It seemed as if it had been awakened from a deep sleep.

Immediately following that,

The Star Gathering Formation trembled slightly.

The points of starlight gathered towards it,

as if summoned,

began to actively drift toward the tortoise shell,

merging into those ancient patterns.

The halo emitted by the tortoise shell

gradually stabilized.

It was no longer weakly flickering as before,

but instead continuously radiated a gentle, faint blue light.

The temperature also seemed to have risen slightly.

An indescribable aura, vast and boundless,

centered on the tortoise shell,

slowly spread outwards.

This aura

echoed faintly with the grand Star Power of Falling Star Lake outside the hall.

Su Han held his breath,

staring intently at the changes in the tortoise shell.

Elder Mu also looked grave,

forming a hand seal with his fingers,

cautiously maintaining the operation of the Formation,

and sensing every trace of energy flow.

As time passed,

the changes in the tortoise shell became increasingly obvious.

Those patterns seemed to come alive.

Light flowed like water within the patterns,

and vaguely,

they seemed to form some profound design.

This design was constantly changing,

resembling the orbital path of the stars,

deep and mysterious.

"Incredible..."

Elder Mu murmured.

"This tortoise shell... it seems to be breathing."

"No, it is 'conversing' with this lake."

Just then,

a sudden anomaly occurred.

At the center of the tortoise shell,

an extremely dazzling point of blue light suddenly lit up.

Immediately after,

a blue ray, thin as a hair,

shot out from that point of light.

It did not shoot towards the sky,

but instead shot straight,

towards the unconscious Bi Yao in Su Han's arms.

More accurately,

it shot towards the position of Bi Yao's heart.

"Be careful!"

Elder Mu cried out.

Su Han's heart tightened,

but he did not react too strongly,

because from that blue ray of light,

he did not sense any malice or danger.

Instead, it was a gentle power carrying vigorous life force.

The blue ray touched Bi Yao's body,

and did not cause any harm.

Instead, like a drop of water merging into a lake,

it silently sank into Bi Yao's chest.

Immediately following that,

Bi Yao's pale complexion

visibly recovered a trace of extremely faint color.

Although she was still unconscious,

the unsettling Death Qi that had been lingering around her brow

seemed to have been dispelled slightly.

And within Bi Yao's body,

the previously dormant, faint magic power

also seemed to be stirred by this ray of starlight-like power,

beginning to circulate extremely slowly on its own.

Although it still could not resist the Power of Gui Xu,

at least,

it was no longer stagnant water.

"It's effective!"

Su Han exclaimed in pleasant surprise.

Elder Mu also breathed a sigh of relief,

but his expression did not relax.

"This tortoise shell is indeed spontaneously protecting its Master."

"The Star Power it draws is extremely pure and gentle."

"It can indeed nourish Miss Bi Yao's life force,"

"and delay the devouring by the Power of Gui Xu."

"But this is merely a drop in the bucket."

"The Power of Gui Xu is like a persistent ulcer,"

"clinging deep within her Divine Soul and Dao Foundation."

"This amount of Star Power can only offer temporary relief, not eradication."

"And..."

He frowned deeply.

"This tortoise shell seems... incomplete."

"What?" Su Han was stunned.

"Elder, what do you mean?"

Elder Mu pointed to an inconspicuous broken line of pattern on the edge of the tortoise shell.

"Look here."

"And here."

"These patterns should have been continuous,"

"but they are interrupted and blurred at critical nodes."

"It looks like... a part is missing."

"Or, it suffered some severe damage."

"Causing the internal 'Dao patterns' to be incomplete."

"Precisely because of this,"

"the power it emits now, although pure,"

"is limited in total amount,"

"and lacks sustained power."

"It is more like an instinctive, passive reaction,"

"rather than an active, conscious activation."

Su Han's heart sank.

"Incomplete? Damaged?"

"Is there any way to repair or complete it?"

Elder Mu smiled bitterly and shook his head.

"For such a naturally formed divine object,"

"its Dao patterns are generated by Heaven and Earth,"

"containing fundamental Laws."

"How could they be easily repaired by human effort?"

"Unless..."

He looked outside the hall,

looking at the massive pillar of light eternally descending in the center of the lake.

"Unless we can find the power core that shares the same origin."

"Or know its origin and complete form."

"Only then might there be a glimmer of hope."

"Same origin power core..." Su Han murmured,

his gaze also shifting towards the magnificent silver-white pillar of light.

"You mean..."

Elder Mu slowly nodded.

"The core of Falling Star Lake."

"That legendary 'Star Source Light'."

"If there is any power in this world that might completely resonate with this tortoise shell,"

"and even mend its defects..."

"then it is very likely the light source in the center of the lake."

"But this is just speculation."

"And..."

His tone became incomparably serious.

"The lake center area"

"is where the power of this Secret Realm is most concentrated, and where the Laws are most bizarre."

"That pillar of light appears gentle,"

"but the boundless Star Source Power contained within it"

"is absolutely not something we can approach easily with our current cultivation."

"The Ancient Water Tribe established their Holy Land for worship here,"

"there must be a reason and taboos."

"Approaching rashly, fortune and misfortune are unpredictable."

Su Han was silent for a moment,

his gaze falling on Bi Yao's still pale face,

then looking at the tortoise shell radiating a soft blue light.

"No matter what,"

"this is a sliver of hope."

"We need to understand more."

"About this tortoise shell,"

"about Falling Star Lake,"

"about the Ancient Water Tribe and that Star Source Light."

"Please instruct me, Elder."

His voice was calm,

but the determination within it

was undeniable.

Elder Mu looked at him,

a look of approval and a hint of complexity in his eyes.

"Very well."

"Since we have reached this point,"

"some risks must ultimately be faced."

"We will rest here for a few days first."

"I need to observe the changes in the state of the tortoise shell and Miss Bi Yao."

"At the same time, I also need to explore this ruin,"

"perhaps we can find some information left behind by the Ancient Water Tribe."

"This might help us determine how to proceed next."

"Furthermore..."

He looked at Su Han and Lu Xueqi.

"Neither of you is in peak condition."

"Especially Su Han."

"You forcefully activated a secret technique earlier, and then went through a series of incidents."

"Your Dao foundation already shows signs of instability."

"You must regulate your breathing and recover as soon as possible."

"Cultivating in this place filled with Star Power,"

"might also be beneficial for you to stabilize your Realm, or even advance further."

Su Han knew Elder Mu was right.

Suppressing the urgency in his heart,

he nodded.

"This Junior understands."

Elder Mu then looked at Lu Xueqi.

"Xue Qi,"

"you are responsible for keeping watch over the surroundings."

"Although this place appears peaceful,"

"it is, after all, an ancient ruin."

"There might be some entities we haven't noticed yet,"

"or strange phenomena formed by the erosion of time."

"You must be extremely careful."

Lu Xueqi nodded.

"Yes, Master."

Having made the arrangements,

Elder Mu refocused his attention on the tortoise shell and the Formation,

beginning to record and deduce in greater detail.

Su Han then sat cross-legged beside Bi Yao,

starting to circulate his Qi to regulate his condition.

The Star Power permeating the air here

was pure and gentle.

Inhaling it into his body,

it rapidly merged into every part of his limbs and bones,

actually being easier to refine and absorb than the Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi outside.

Moreover, it carried a strange nourishing effect.

It was not only repairing the hidden injuries of his body,

but even his Divine Soul felt a sense of coolness and comfort. (End of Chapter)