Opportunity’s knocking, and the whole crew jumps in like it’s the final round of a game show.
Master Yideng, calm and collected as ever, just smiles and watches—maybe he’s running low on energy, so he’s not about to try for any fancy light tricks. Grace Kwok and Howard Hopeless, though, are scrambling around, patting the walls like they’re hunting for a secret stash. Gabriel Yang’s only got one arm, so he’s at half speed, but lucky for him, his wife Lydia Drake is a hand-speed legend—her hands move so fast they’re a blur, slapping the wall like a pro. Duke Simon Duan can’t compete and doesn’t have a speedy spouse, so he goes rogue: strips off his shoes, socks, and shirt, sticks to the wall, and rolls around like a human lint roller. Weirdly enough, it works.
Beams of light shoot up to the ceiling like fireworks. With a constant clink-clank, a shower of colored shards rains down like falling stars. You can’t collect or keep these—if they hit the ground, they fade away. So everyone’s chasing after them, flailing around like they’re playing a wild round of Monopoly cash grab.
Light sprinkles over everyone, their eyes glaze and clear, then glaze again. The shards give a little enlightenment buzz—just for a second, Howard Hopeless feels like he’s about to level up and become a master.
After snagging a few shards, Gabriel Yang beams, “It’s working! Not super obvious, but it’s helping! If I could chill here for three days, I’d be totally healed!”
“Amitabha, well said.” Master Yideng finally exhales, then turns to Jill Young: “This is a rare chance, Miss Young. You’re close to a breakthrough yourself—why not take the opportunity?”
“Haha, no rush! We found the place, it’s not running away. Doesn’t matter if I’m first or last—let’s fix Gabriel up first. Once he’s good, we’ll talk. Besides,” Jill glances at the giant hole, “check out that break—it wasn’t natural, it was smashed open and healed. Someone super tough fought here before, so you know it’s dangerous. Bet it won’t be easy this time either, and who knows how many folks’ll show up. When friend and foe mix, someone’s gotta stand guard.”
“Jill!” Grace Kwok is touched. She knows Jill Young and Wu Zhengfeng came here at least half for her. If not for her, Jill and Joan—who barely know Gabriel or Lydia—wouldn’t have trekked thousands of miles and risked the South China Sea. And if they didn’t trust her, they wouldn’t let Gabriel get treated first. Sure, they’re easygoing, but there’s no denying they’ve done her a huge favor.
“Alright, enough chit-chat—let’s keep moving.” Jill palms the cave wall a few times, and red handprints burst out, shooting rays to the innermost ring of the ceiling. The red dots shine like giant stars, lighting up the dome.
Jill and Joan share a quick smile, then take up guard at the cave entrance. The red shards are way stronger than the purple ones—they’ll heal Gabriel even faster. Jill just keeps her hand on the wall, letting Gabriel and the others soak up the benefits.
Suddenly, everyone inside gasps in surprise as a blast of red light erupts behind them—this is no ordinary glow.
Whoa, what’s going on now?
“Huh?” Jill Young spins around, surprised. The red light fragments don’t drift down like before—they’re swirling in midair, buzzing with heat and intensity. Honestly, these red shards are like the divas of the bunch: way stronger than the purple ones, but also way pickier. They totally ignore Grace and Gabriel, and even if you grab one, it slips right through your fingers like a hologram—seriously, these things are next-level.
Looks like these red shards are a whole different animal compared to the others.
Then, after a moment of swirling, the red shards gather at the very center of the tree hollow. With a sound like wind chimes, they fit together piece by piece, forming a diamond-shaped crystal about the size of a dragon’s eye. As it clicks into place, there’s a deep, booming thud—like a giant heartbeat—that echoes far and wide.
Thump! Jill Young’s own heart seems to echo the beat, as dragon-shaped energy coils around her, both real and phantom power swirling in a dance of light. Her body heats up fast, like she’s gearing up for the ultimate showdown—waves of heat radiate out in every direction.
Jill doesn’t feel anything wrong—in fact, she’s more fired up than ever. Everyone can tell she’s got a deeper connection to this tree than anyone else. No more holding back: she flashes to the center of the cave and plants her palm firmly on the ground.
It’s like Jill just hit a secret switch—the cave floods with red light, spreading out in all directions.
The walls start to glow with red marks, each one looking like a mysterious rune. Suddenly, countless red beams shoot up to the ceiling, gathering into a ring about six feet wide. Red shards pour down like a waterfall, swirling through the air and fusing into more diamond crystals.
Something wild is happening—the crystals snap together, spinning and twirling, each one shining brighter than the last. From outside, the whole tree starts to shimmer, sunlight or not. Inside the hollow, it’s even more dazzling: the flying crystals look like a bunch of mini suns, swirling in a multi-dimensional spiral.
And right at the center of that swirling spiral, something dazzling begins to take shape—a streak of celestial light, radiating pure, otherworldly energy, like it’s revealing the deepest secret of the universe.
"No way we’re hiding this commotion—wait, what?!" Jill Young whips her head around, her face darkening. "Speak of the devil, and he shows up—and it’s someone we know!" Across the lake, a wave of creepy, chilling energy rises and expands. There’s only one person in the world with a vibe this nasty. It’s even stronger and weirder than last time.
Grace Kwok shivers as the evil aura hits her. Her heart starts pounding like crazy—feels like she’s staring down her worst enemy. On the big ship across the lake, the wicked energy goes wild, shooting skyward like a starving ghost finally spotting a feast. It’s desperate, no patience left.
"That rotten old bastard’s even worse than last time! If we don’t take him out now, forget about healing—nothing else matters! While we’re all still in top shape, let’s hit them first!" With the enemy right in their faces, Jill Young barks orders: "Grace, you stay here with Gabriel. Everyone else, with me! I’ve got a whole crew of experts—let’s scare them to death and charge!—Huh?"
Just as Jill leaps outside, the swirling lights suddenly surge. A powerful suction ignores everyone else and yanks her backward, pulling her straight toward the tree’s center. Joan reacts fast, whipping her sleeve around Jill’s arm. Jill flips and lands, stomping hard enough to leave two prints in the ground.
But the brighter the lights get, the stronger the pull—both on her body and her mind. The weird temptation tugs at her nonstop, harder to resist than sleep and even more tempting than the smell of a miracle pill. Light ribbons pierce through her, waves of insight crashing into her heart. Jill knows there’s something amazing at the core of all that glow.
Whatever’s at the center is sending out signals, like a super clingy suitor who just won’t take no for an answer. But Jill grits her teeth, muscles tight as steel cables, face flushed, fighting the pull with all she’s got. The ground creaks under her feet as she struggles forward.
I can’t go right now—the enemy’s right here, I’ve gotta hold the line!
But then Joan steps over and gives her a gentle shove on the shoulder. Jill stumbles back a few steps, surprised. Joan says calmly, "See? You’re basically frozen in place, can’t help at all. I get it now—whatever’s in there has its eye on you. If you don’t go, it’ll keep yanking you forever. So you might as well get it over with—don’t worry about anything else."
"But…" Jill grits her teeth, peeking out the cave. A big ship is barreling upstream, getting closer. Besides the creepy energy, there are a few other strong presences too. Something feels off, and she looks at Joan, worried: "Can you hold them off?"
Joan grins with total confidence: "Listen to yourself, you’re out of breath just talking. Even if I couldn’t hold them off, you wouldn’t be much help. Besides, don’t you know who I am? I’m the legendary Tianshan Child—Wu Zhengfeng!" She gives Jill’s shoulder another reassuring squeeze. "Relax, I won’t let them lay a finger on you—now go!"
"I’ll wrap this up and get out fast—promise!" With Joan’s push, Jill’s feet leave the ground and she’s swept into the light. As she flies to the center, some mysterious process finally kicks off. Intense light forms a radiant sphere, and Jill sits inside, completely unconscious—deep in enlightenment mode.
Wind howls, clouds above start spinning faster. Inside the glow, everything blurs—except for Jill’s platinum hair, waving like a battle flag.
This place has to be defended—no matter what.
Is it tough?
Yeah, looks pretty tough.
The big ship crashes through the waves, bringing not just top fighters, but another massive energy surges skyward. Maybe it’s the tree’s transformation—someone’s finally lost their cool. That overwhelming force bulldozes across the lake, making everyone’s heart sink. Master Yideng and Gabriel Yang tense up, bracing for a showdown. Whoever’s coming is a real legend.
How many legends are there in the world? And now this little mystery island’s got two of them!
But Joan doesn’t flinch. She flashes to the cave entrance, standing tall like a true boss. With a confident smirk, she slams her aura against the oncoming force—hers is even fiercer. The clash sends waves rolling across the lake, splashing onto the big ship. In this invisible showdown, Joan comes out on top.
Boom! It’s like thunder cracks overhead, then a series of explosions rumbles from the distant shore. Gunpowder’s supposed to be imperial-only, so what’s with all these blasts? Whatever’s happening out there, it’s bad news.
But right now, no one’s thinking about anything else—when you meet your enemy on a narrow path, only the bold survive. When masters clash, there’s no room for distractions.
Whoosh—a figure appears at the ship’s prow. White robes, silver mask, fiddling with the Stormstone. It’s the Silver Priest. His eyes flash, locking with Joan’s in midair—like blades clashing. That’s how legends recognize each other.
"Go!" Silver Priest waves, and Hundred Scars Daoist jumps in first. He’s already spotted that familiar platinum hair—there’s only one person it could be. Rage, hate, obsession—all boil over as Hundred Scars leaps across the sky, unleashing a ghostly green palm strike—the Xuanming Death Palm!