“Puxius, Canglan Fairy, quickly lend a hand!” The moment Puxius entered, he immediately triggered three persistent War Puppets. Moreover, within this small space, the very fabric of the world seemed to turn utterly grim and shadowy, with violent arcs of lightning crackling, spitting out electric light from time to time. Puxius, now a specter of bloody mist, dodged backward while shouting, “The protective formation is activated! Hurry and help me destroy these puppets!”

The demon and the immortal, seeing the dense, dark clouds above laced with copious amounts of silver-white lightning, occasionally punctuated by the tongue-like flickers of golden lightning, couldn't help but see their expressions shift slightly. They inwardly acknowledged the formidable power of this guarding formation. Especially those golden bolts, which already contained a hint of annihilation intent.

However, the more powerful the protective formation, the greater the inherent value of this Crystal Ancient Clan ruin. Without hesitation, they dared not delay. They unleashed their respective demonic bows and immortal arts, each engaging one War Puppet possessing the strength of the Integration Stage, plunging into a fierce melee.

Simultaneously, the savage silver lightning lashed out like a swarm of wildly dancing snakes, furiously assaulting the three intruders. The sheer power of such lightning meant that even a Transformation God level expert, struck by a single bolt, would likely be instantly vaporized; even a Void Refinement expert couldn't withstand it for long.

Yet, these three were no ordinary beings. The entirety of the Three Realms was vast, teeming with towering figures. And those reaching the Integration Stage numbered a mere four or five hundred. These three were among them. Each possessed their own unique, hard-won expertise. They allowed the silver snakes to writhe and the thunder to crash, yet it failed to shake them in the slightest.

Under Lei Dong and Infidi’s Concealment Technique, once they entered this void fissure, they remained utterly still, fearful of attracting the formation's attack. Thankfully, as of now, the formation of this ruin clearly had not detected them, so the lightning did not pay them any mind.

It wasn't that they feared the lightning itself, but being targeted would inevitably expose their presence, forcing them to enact the second contingency plan.

Given the circumstances, Lei Dong and Infidi settled in to watch the show with peace of mind. Take Puxius for instance; though his methods were bloody and brutal, his cultivation was genuinely impressive. A thick pall of blood mist shrouded him, making his already savage appearance seem even more vicious and cruel.

In this state, his combat prowess was astonishing. He engaged directly with one of the golden War Puppets, barely ten feet tall yet possessing formidable might. Furthermore, he had to constantly evade and endure the onslaught of silver lightning. With every movement, rich blood mist flowed, seemingly granting him immense fighting power, enabling him to fight with increasing ferocity. In the one-on-one confrontation, he gradually began to suppress the golden, crystal-like War Puppet.

The other two were no less capable. Bai Mu revealed his true form, transforming into a massive tiger two to three hundred feet long, his white and black stripes radiating imposing majesty. A single roar sent the War Puppet flying backward, whereupon he pounced, engaging it in close combat. Every action was imbued with an aura of savage might.

In all his lifetimes, this was the first time Lei Dong had seen a living Divine Beast White Tiger. He couldn't help but take a few extra glances; after all, this was a purebred Divine Beast, and the ancestor of Lei Hu. One shouldn't assume Divine Beasts are common in the Demon Spirit Realm. In reality, super-beings reaching the Divine Beast tier have frighteningly low reproduction rates. Even over ten thousand years, a single White Tiger might not be born into the clan.

And even among Divine Beasts, not all could attain the strength of the Integration Stage. Only the absolute elite, through fortunate timing, favorable geography, personal effort, and sheer opportunity, could advance to that level.

According to Lei Dong’s memory, throughout the Three Realms, there were perhaps only a dozen or so White Tigers at the Integration Stage. The most formidable among them was Hu Wang Bai Li, one of the Ten Greatest Experts of the Three Realms. For the current joint expeditionary force of the Three Realms, Bai Li served as the supreme commander representing the Demon Spirit Realm.

Then there was Canglan Fairy; she originated from the Immortal Spirit Palace, a prestigious lineage within the Immortal Clan, holding the rank of Supreme Elder—a figure of considerable prestige and renown throughout the Three Realms. She activated a pagoda-shaped spiritual treasure. As the treasure spun, sharp beams of white sword light whistled out, completely overpowering the golden, crystal-like War Puppet. And when the silver lightning struck her, it was deflected by a faint white mist, unable to harm her in the slightest.

Moreover, she appeared to be the most relaxed of the trio, drifting with an effortless grace.

After the two sides had fought fiercely for a full hour, Bai Mu achieved the first success, batting the puppet’s head away with one swipe, then opening his maw to swallow the entire puppet whole. Immediately following him, Canglan Fairy summoned an ancient bronze mirror inscribed with profound runes. From the mirror erupted a beam of white light that struck the already battered puppet, blasting it into pieces.

Even a shattered Integration Stage puppet, once its materials were broken down and sold, was extremely valuable. Canglan Fairy swept her flowing sleeves, gathering all the components into her Universe Within the Sleeve.

“Roar!” The cultivation technique of the Blood Demon King Puxius was exponentially more potent against powerful beings with flesh and blood. But puppets, lacking such matter, were his bane. After another incense stick’s worth of time, only when he manifested a rain of blood arrows did he finally annihilate his Integration Stage puppet.

Having secured their kills, the three felt little joy of victory. After all, this seemed to be merely the first hurdle. Who knew what dangers lay hidden within this ruin? Yet, people die for wealth and birds starve for food. With matters having reached this point, none would consider turning back.

“Canglan Fairy, you are the most familiar with formations among the three of us. Please locate the eye of the guarding formation. We must speed up our efforts to break it,” Puxius said, reverting from his blood mist form to his normal Demon King guise, frowning deeply. “The power of these lightning bolts seems to be continually increasing. Bai Mu and I will guard you.”

“That is natural,” Canglan Fairy replied without demurral, once again summoning her ancient spiritual mirror. As it spun violently, it shot out a faint white light. Wherever the light passed, the various colored lightning bolts instinctively retreated.

And she, like a celestial maiden descended from the heavens, her white robes fluttering, began weaving through the dark clouds and lightning to search for the formation's core. Puxius and Bai Mu positioned themselves around her as a precaution.

Canglan Fairy proved worthy of her reputation as a formation expert. She spent only half a day before pinpointing the location of the formation's eye. Working together, they faced the raging thunder, each unleashing their mightiest attacks. Moments later, the eye was destroyed. The towering dark clouds above completely dissipated, restoring the atmosphere to one of bright and refreshing clarity.

Though this was a small, contained space, a sun hung visibly in the sky, bathing the vast expanse of earth in unbroken light. Only after shattering the formation could everyone behold the true appearance of this mini-realm.

It was an exquisitely beautiful small space. The sky was brilliant and crisp. The ground was covered in lush, verdant trees, expanses of grass, and flowers. As far as the eye could see, it resembled a peerless, secluded paradise.

Even Lei Dong, floating high in the sky, felt a slight jolt of surprise. He had not expected the ruins of the Crystal Ancient Clan to be so beautiful.

Due to the passage of untold years, some of the trees on the ground had grown several hundred feet tall, piercing the heavens. The largest and thickest trunk measured tens of feet in diameter and towered over several thousand feet high; its sprawling canopy, penetrating the cloud layer, spanned no less than seventy to eighty li across.

Beneath the trees lay a large lake of clear, pristine water, where living creatures occasionally surfaced, revealing backs tens of feet long. Of course, although these beings were not small, they posed no significant threat to the current assembly, even given the abundant Chaotic Spiritual Energy present.

Because this was a confined space, its diameter barely reaching tens of thousands of li—much like a small pond cannot harbor a great leviathan—it was difficult for this narrow area to spawn creatures capable of threatening Integration Stage powerhouses.

Most striking was an ancient temple built against a mountain at the lake's edge. That temple had stood for countless ages yet remained upright, appearing as fresh as new, imbued with a golden, semi-translucent hue.

The temple’s entire style was unique; though its form was strange, it possessed an indescribable aesthetic beauty, seemingly deeply harmonized with the universe's most subtle laws. Upon seeing the temple, Lei Dong’s pupils involuntarily constricted.

“It truly is the architectural style of the Crystal Ancient Clan,” Puxius laughed heartily. “That is a Temple of Heaven Sacrifice belonging to the Crystal Ancient Clan. It seems this must be one of the legendary Holy Lands of the Crystal Ancient Clan.”

If Puxius could recognize it, the others naturally could too. However, no one dared to move rashly. Rumor had it that while immense and precious resources could be obtained from the Crystal Ancient Clan Holy Lands, they were also among the most difficult ruins to explore.

The Crystal Ancient Clan was no minor race; they were a power so formidable that they nearly exterminated the Demon Race. How could they leave one of their most sacred sites without rigorous defenses?

It was highly probable that the three Integration Stage puppets encountered earlier were merely an appetizer.

Even Lei Dong retrieved scattered intelligence from his memories regarding the Crystal Ancient Clan Holy Lands, causing his brow to furrow slightly. At the same time, his vigilance reached its peak. Regardless of how peaceful the surroundings seemed, they were surely concealing something inconceivable.

What concerned Lei Dong most was that temple. Why did its architectural style and design bear such a striking resemblance to the Demon Emperor Palace left to him by the Demon Emperor? Could the Demon Emperor and the Crystal Ancient Clan possibly have some hidden connection?