The Demon Heart Cave Master proposed to recruit the Old Monster in Stone, and Lu Tu immediately gave permission.
He had not anticipated, however, that multiple recruitment attempts would fail.
Of course, Lu Tu was also aware of the dark thoughts of the Demon Heart Cave Master and the others, but he couldn't quibble over them since the great battle loomed and they were in urgent need of people.
Yet, he couldn't simply tolerate their schemings. After much thought, he simply decided to make a move himself, taking the Demon Heart and Blood Shadow, two Nascent Soul Cultivators, to pressure the Old Monster in Stone to force him to come out of seclusion!
Deep within the cave,
Ning Zhuo slowly opened his eyes. Despite his fatigue, his gaze was filled with joy.
"The Stone Cast Earth Treasure Divine Power... sixty percent complete!"
He was preparing to rest when he discovered that Sun Lingtong was nowhere to be seen.
"Eh? Where has the boss gone?"
Flying Message that Sun Lingtong had specifically left behind, circled around Ning Zhuo like a bird.
Upon receiving and reading the message, Ning Zhuo immediately understood the whole story.
"The boss has suddenly come up with something new."
Ning Zhuo shook his head helplessly, and let out a bitter laugh.
He promptly chiseled through the Stone Skin and saw the Fetal Breathing Spirit Boat that had already become a Stone Boat. The latter was struggling mightily to survive, with the full text of the "Heavenly Born Earth Nourished Fetal Breath Great Method" shimmering brightly.
Ning Zhuo approached the Stone Boat, permeating it with his Divine Sense.
Sun Lingtong sensed this and immediately communicated with Ning Zhuo using Divine Sense.
"Little Zhuo, having fun?"
"Relying on this method, not only has my physical foundation surged, but I'm also privy to the past experiences of the Old Monster in Stone."
"As an Earth Core, it's really boring. But occasionally, there are many novel things happening."
"Come and play too!"
Sun Lingtong enthusiastically invited Ning Zhuo.
Relieved, Ning Zhuo said, "Boss, it's good that you're alright."
"I'm going to rest in the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon now."
"This is Thousand Peak Forest, after all, it's enemy territory. We should mine as quickly as possible, lest any accidents occur."
No sooner had Ning Zhuo finished speaking, than a strong power fluctuation arose.
It rapidly covered the entire mountain.
On the periphery, an immense Array was activated, and the Formation Barrier formed encompassed the entire Heavenly Pillar Giant Tree!
Sun Ning and the other: ??!!
Sun Lingtong could no longer care about cultivating: "No, this is bad, could this be a trap? Little Zhuo, let's run."
Ning Zhuo reacted even faster.
As soon as Sun Lingtong transmitted his thoughts using Divine Sense, Ning Zhuo pulled out the Fetal Breathing Spirit Boat, taking both the boat and Sun Lingtong, and plunged headfirst into the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon.
Sun Lingtong, now with Stone Skin several inches thick, was vigorously struggling with little arms and legs.
Ning Zhuo, now in control of sixty percent Divine Power, recognized the details at a glance. Using Divine Sense to communicate with Sun Lingtong, he said: "Don't thrash about, boss. I'll take care of your Stone Skin. Just wait a moment; let's get out of here first!"
Yet, upon reaching the Dragon Head Cabin, Ning Zhuo found an extremely bad reality.
"Boss, we can't run. The Array suppresses space; the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon can't move at all. Forcing it would be like an egg smashing into a stone wall," Ning Zhuo transmitted with Divine Sense.
"?!?!" Sun Lingtong felt as if struck by lightning from a clear sky.
"I'll let you out first." Ning Zhuo stretched out his hand, preparing to release Sun Lingtong from the Stone Skin.
Then, the voice of Mo Yuan Cave Master echoed throughout the mountain: "Lu Hong of the Six Cave Sect, with Demon Heart, Blood Shadow, two Cave Masters, have come to visit your mountain."
"Old Monster in Stone, come out for a talk, shall we?"
The sound waves were mighty, following the cave mouth all the way through, finally reaching deep inside the cave.
The Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon slightly quaked amidst the sound waves.
Within the Dragon Head Cabin, the hearts of Ning Zhuo and Sun Lingtong skipped a beat.
"Lu Hong? The Mo Yuan Great Cave Master of the Six Cave Sect!"
"And Demon Heart, Blood Shadow... why have they come here?"
"They want to contact the Old Monster in Stone, such a stance, they want to pressure him to leave his seclusion!"
The two communicated through Divine Sense, nearly instantaneously realizing the gravity of the situation.
Unable to traverse the void, the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon had very limited space to manoeuvre.
Once the three Nascent Soul Cultivators found out that the Old Monster in Stone was dead and saw signs of mining, they would never withdraw the Array but would conduct an extensive search instead.
By that time, could the Ten-Thousand-Li Travelling Dragon continue to hide and evade the search of these three people?
The likelihood was too small!
Because, prior to this, Sun Lingtong had tried. Within the Main Hall of the Six Cave Sect, they had been discovered by the Demon Heart Cave Master.
And now, the Demon Heart Cave Master was among those present.
Not only that, but the Mo Yuan Great Cave Master, recognized as even more powerful, had also personally arrived!
A desperate situation!
The ups and downs of life came too quickly, too suddenly.
Just now, the two Sun Nings were still in a state of joy, envisioning the future amidst a wonderful reality. But in the blink of an eye, it took a sharp downturn, plunging into a desperate situation.
The pressure of death weighed heavily upon them.
Ning Zhuo's face turned pale; he found breathing difficult: "How could we break this situation?"
Sun Lingtong, instinctively, struggled vigorously within the thick Stone Skin.
Suddenly, Sun Lingtong's movements abruptly paused, his Divine Sense violently fluctuating: "Little Zhuo, I, I've thought of a way!"
"We can both sneak into the Stone Ball, allowing the Stone Skin to wrap and cover us."
"That way, we can impersonate the Old Monster in Stone."
Ning Zhuo shook his head: "I've considered that. It's not reliable! Because Mo Yuan and the others will surely test the Old Monster in Stone. We don't even know the Old Monster's tone of voice or manner of speaking..."
As he spoke, Ning Zhuo paused.
He suddenly remembered the exchange he had with Sun Lingtong not long ago.
By actively undergoing the transformation into Stone Cast Earth Treasure and Fetal Breathing State with the Fetal Breathing Spirit Boat, Sun Lingtong had accessed many memories of the Old Monster in Stone.
The tone of voice and manner of speaking were naturally included!
Outside the cave,
Mo Yuan, Demon Heart, and Blood Shadow hovered in the sky, waiting a moment, yet not seeing any response from the Old Monster in Stone.