Shi Yan stood near the Sun Essence, sensing the power of the Solar Star flowing continuously from it, pouring into his heart. Within his heart resided the Star Martial Soul inherited from the Three Gods Sect's Star God. Originally, this Star Martial Soul could only absorb the power of the stars; it couldn't absorb even a sliver of sunlight. However, this time, facing the Sun Essence, the moment the solar power entered his body, the Star Martial Soul activated and absorbed the solar power as well. Why? Shi Yan knew this was not as simple as the Profound Ice Cold Flame had claimed—"it's not as simple as being able to obtain solar power just because the sun belongs to the stars." If it were that easy, the Three Gods Sect wouldn't distinguish between the Blazing Sun Martial Soul and the Star Martial Soul. There must have been a fundamental difference between the Blazing Sun Martial Soul and the Star Martial Soul; they must have been distinct. But if that wasn't the reason, then why could this Star Martial Soul absorb solar power?

Shi Yan frowned, flashes of electrical light streaked through his mind, and he seemed to grasp something faint. The strange energy released from the acupoints!

A sudden bright thought illuminated him, and Shi Yan understood completely. Recently, his heart had absorbed a considerable amount of that mysterious energy. If that mysterious energy could cause changes in the Undying Martial Soul and the Petrification Martial Soul, couldn't it also trigger a beneficial mutation in the Star Martial Soul, evolving it to this marvelous degree? It must be so!

Shi Yan nodded with certainty.

"Whoosh!"

From the Sun Essence, the Core Fire rapidly absorbed the intense energy emanating from the solar flames. Clusters of solar fire, like living ribbons, vanished into the fiery light mass of the Core Fire, becoming part of its energy and causing a marvelous transformation in the Core Fire's flame power.

Ten meters away, Shi Yan remained motionless, but the Star Martial Soul within his body was also absorbing the solar power from the Sun Essence, competing with the Core Fire for the energy flowing from the Sun Essence.

Under the absorption of both, the scorching, dazzling sunlight began to dim little by little. The originally crimson meteorite from beyond the heavens gradually lost its brilliance, slowly shifting back towards a normal meteorite. Without a sound, the fiery radiance of that extraterrestrial rock had diminished severalfold. This intense, high temperature gradually vanished. The heat across the entire desert began to cool down as the energy within the Sun Essence dissipated.

"Don't you all feel much cooler?" "Yes, the heat in this desert seems to be receding bit by bit." "Mmm... it's quite comfortable. It looks like things are changing here. I wonder if this change will help us find the way back?" "Who knows? I really don't want to stay in this hellhole any longer. If this goes on, who knows when it will end." "Stop the nonsense! We entered the Abyss Battlefield to slay the remnants of the Yang family. We haven't even seen Yang Mu and the others yet. Even if we find a way out, do you honestly think you have the nerve to return?" "..."

Warriors from various factions across the Boundless Sea gathered in small clusters, murmuring amongst themselves. Cao Zhilan sat alone to one side, her delicate eyebrows deeply furrowed. A subtle, captivating light flickered within her expressive eyes. Quietly activating her Spirit God Martial Soul, Cao Zhilan began observing her surroundings, trying to decipher the abnormality of the desert from the minute changes in the air.

After a while, Cao Zhilan suddenly stood up and announced, "We can go take a look now. I've noticed there are no longer strong flame fluctuations over there, nor any psychic attacks capable of destroying our souls. Now is the perfect time to proceed; there shouldn't be any danger." "We'll follow your lead!" Pan Zhe stood up abruptly.

Half an hour later.

Cao Zhilan, Zhai Yanqing, Gu Linglong, and Pan Zhe returned after their reconnaissance, reappearing ten meters away from the Sun Essence. Gazing at it from a distance, their expressions were all extremely strange.

"Where is Shi Yan?" Gu Linglong cried out in annoyance. "That brat has vanished again! How are we supposed to find him now?" Cao Zhilan remained silent, only staring at the Sun Essence with a bizarre expression, her heart churning with massive waves. Was this still the Sun Essence? This was clearly just an ordinary meteorite from beyond the heavens! How could the Sun Essence, originating from the Heart of the Sun and possessing the purest solar flame power, have turned into this state? Who could have absorbed all the solar power from the Sun Essence in such a short time? Could it have been Shi Yan?

Cao Zhilan's mind filled with immense doubt. She stared at the Sun Essence, now reduced to a common stone, speechless for a long time. For the first time, she felt an uncontrollable sense of uncertainty regarding Shi Yan, feeling that he was shrouded in too much mystery, so much so that even she couldn't penetrate it. Her Spirit God Martial Soul was the most exceptional of all souls, easily penetrating hearts and discerning all hidden means of others. Now, even she felt incapable of seeing through Shi Yan, which actually instilled in her a sense of panic and unease. She disliked anyone being able to escape her perceptive grasp; she intensely disliked this feeling.

Pan Zhe and Zhai Yanqing also knew some legends about the Sun Essence. They too stared blankly at the Sun Essence, now turned into ordinary rock, at a loss for words for a moment.

After a long, long pause.

"I think that fellow Shi Yan must have left. Well, what we need to do now is determine his direction." Cao Zhilan took a deep breath, released her Spirit God Martial Soul's perception for a moment, and then suddenly pointed in one direction. "Over there, there seems to be some power lingering in that direction!"

She paused, then let out a soft "Huh?" with a rather strange expression on her face.

"What is it?" Pan Zhe asked.

"Haven't you noticed that this desert is different now from when we entered? Extend your spiritual power—haven't you encountered any resistance again? My Martial Soul can finally cover its normal range now. Hmm... over there, there must be a formation and barrier. I think we can finally leave this hellhole..." Cao Zhilan said calmly.

"It really is like that!" Gu Linglong exclaimed. "The desert is getting cooler and cooler, and the strange resistive force that enveloped the desert seems to have completely vanished." "It seems all of this is due to the change in this stone..." Zhai Yanqing looked at the Sun Essence that had turned into common stone. "To be precise, because of the change in this Sun Essence, the entire desert has changed along with it."

"I know!" Cao Zhilan's delicate body trembled, her eyes bright, and she gasped, "The entire desert is a bizarre formation! And this Sun Essence is the source of power for the entire formation, the core. Once the energy in the core vanishes completely, this grand, massive formation will completely lose its effect, revealing its true appearance."

"Heavens, such a huge formation exists?" Gu Linglong covered her mouth with a soft gasp.

"It does!" Cao Zhilan nodded, pondered for a moment, and then concluded, "We shouldn't linger here any longer. I can sense that in that direction lies the teleportation array to leave. Hmm, we can go over there. I think Shi Yan probably left that way too."

A short while later.

Cao Zhilan and her group indeed discovered an ancient formation in the desert, strikingly similar to the one they used to enter the area. Without much hesitation, they stepped onto the platform. After a flash of rainbow light, they vanished from the desert.

A vast, boundless forest stretched out, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth exceptionally dense. The forest was filled with the songs of birds and the fragrance of flowers, and the fresh air that rushed to meet them was exhilarating, leaving one feeling comfortable and refreshed.

Above an ancient, towering tree, Shi Yan was hidden among the dense foliage, a hundred meters above the ground, gazing into the distance. After being teleported here from the ancient array in the desert, Shi Yan initially thought he had returned to the Boundless Sea, perhaps landing on some island rich with spiritual energy. However, upon looking up at the sky, he immediately realized he was mistaken; he was still within the Abyss Battlefield.

The sky was clear, dotted with white clouds, but there were no sun, moon, or stars. The Star Martial Soul within him could not sense the influx of stellar power. A world without celestial bodies was clearly not the Boundless Sea. This place was still the Abyss Battlefield, just with a different environment.

Although this was the Abyss Battlefield, the spiritual energy of heaven and earth here was extremely dense, significantly contradicting what Yang Mu and the others had claimed. According to their descriptions, the spiritual energy in the Abyss Battlefield was extremely sparse, making it very unsuitable for martial cultivation. It was merely an ancient battlefield, filled only with ancient corpses and explorers, with no martial artists living there. Yet, standing a hundred meters high, Shi Yan gazed far into the distance and saw that the sprawling forest was teeming with vitality. In the far distance, there seemed to be a magnificent town constructed entirely of massive stones. Colored flags fluttered atop the city walls, and he could vaguely see figures moving about. That ancient stone city was about ten li away from Shi Yan's position. The entire city was enveloped by some kind of mysterious power, making it impossible for Shi Yan to probe with his divine sense. Looking further out, there was an endless forest, and he could even hear the terrifying roars of some demonic beasts. This place did not seem significantly different from the outside world—it had spiritual energy, demonic beasts, and apparently, martial artists, but lacked the sun, moon, and stars.

After observing from his hundred-meter vantage point for a while, Shi Yan pondered and decided to head toward that colossal stone city to see if martial artists truly resided within.

"Bang!"

Like a great bird, Shi Yan dove down and landed steadily on the ground. Suddenly, an extremely soft and yielding energy, like billions of ropes, coiled around his entire body. The moment he landed, he found himself utterly restrained, unable to move.

"Damn alien!"

A cold, faint murmur reached Shi Yan's ear, coming from behind him. Shi Yan tried to turn his head to see the person behind him but found his neck wouldn't turn. Immediately afterward, he smelled a sweet, orchid-like fragrance that rushed into his Sea of Consciousness, instantly making him dizzy and causing him to collapse to the ground, falling unconscious.