Even though the mountains in the north were mostly barren, there were some coniferous forests. All the locations which had been invaded by those abyssal creatures were desolate after their departure. In fact, even the color of the ground turned a deadly gray. It seemed as if the insects and bugs living in the soil had been devoured by them. They did not leave behind the slightest trace of life force.
What a terrifying clan it was!
Tang Wulin subconsciously clenched his fists in rage. He could not allow such a clan to invade the continent. Otherwise, it would certainly end up as an apocalyptic catastrophe.
âRegimental Commander Guo, pull yourself together. The Northern Army Corps needs your guidance,â said Tang Wulin to Guo Zhenfeng softly.
Guo Zhenfeng was a lieutenant general after all. He had already recovered after the momentary distraction. He stood upright abruptly and executed a military salute toward Tang Wulin and the four great Limit Douluos.
âI hereby represent the Northern Army Corps to thank Your Excellencies for the timely reinforcement. If help had arrived a moment later, Iâm afraid that the entire Northern Army Corps may...â At this point, a look of agony flashed past his eyes. However, he had regained his composure at this very moment. He spoke in all apparent seriousness, âDo you have any instructions for us, Your Excellencies?â
Tang Wulin said, âPlease get the army prepared, regimental commander. We donât represent the Federation, but as a part of Shrek Academy and the Tang Sect, weâd like to express our gratitude to the Northern Army Corps for your sacrifices to the continent. You guarded the defense line with determination such that the abyssal creatures failed in their invasion of the continent. Youâve prevented misery and suffering. Well, youâve certainly done your best.â
Guo Zhenfeng clenched his fists tightly. âFor the Federation!â
Tang Wulin gave him a military salute. âFor the Federation!â
Guo Zhenfeng left to get his army ready. The remaining Northern Army Corpsâ soldiers needed to be moved once again. They had to rebuild new defense lines. Although they did not have adequate manpower and supplies, they had to make preparations for the defense lines before the reinforcements arrived.
No one knew the terrain better than the Northern Army Corps. With the preliminary works prepared, they would be able to build complete defense lines once the reinforcements were here.
Tang Wulin and his team made their way to the highest mountain peak to survey the area.
The weather in Thule was truly cold beyond comparison. The entire Thule was covered in snow and ice, and the visibility of this place was limited. Tang Wulinâs vision was restricted to a certain range despite his Purple Demon Eyes.
However, he could see that it was all dark despite straining his eyes to gaze into the distance. There was no telling where the passage exit was from which the abyssal creatures were coming. However, the number of abyssal creatures which appeared far exceeded the number Tang Wulin encountered when he was in the Blood God Army in the past.
Nonetheless, the Blood God Army managed to suppress the abyssal creatures in the abyssal passage. On the other hand, if the abyssal creatures of medium-low rank were truly unleashed, spewing out akin to an oil blowout, to the outside, and with adequate space, their numbers would increase exponentially.
âYour Excellencies, Iâd like to check out the location of the abyssal passage here,â said Tang Wulin in a deep voice.
âNo.â Before the rest of the three Limit Douluos could even say anything, Yali had already spoken.
Tang Wulin said helplessly, âMother, we need to identify the position, so we can utilize the large-scale lethal weapons for the attack when the great army troops are here.â
Tang Wulin did not know the evolution of the abyssal creatures for the past six thousand years, but mankindâs soul technology had advanced rapidly over six millennia. There were a large number of lethal weapons being deployed to Thule currently. These weapons could be used to blast the abyssal creatures to kingdom come.
Yali scolded, âYouâre charged with important tasks here, and youâre our absolute core. Have you forgotten the Heartless Douluo and the Amorous Douluoâs advice to you before you left? Your safety is of utmost importance. Whether we can achieve victory or not depends on it. Hence, you should never risk your life at all times. Do you understand?â
Tang Wulin said helplessly, âMother, itâs not much of a risk really. As long as itâs not the abyssal Sage King, the abyssal creatures canât hurt me.â Aside from his demigod-rank capability, he had a connection to the Ancient Life Tree which allowed him to break free from the battlefield at any time.
Unless he encountered the God-ranked abyssal Sage King, it would definitely not be an easy task for them to capture him.
âPavilion Master, itâs best not to risk it. Prioritize safety above all else. Your safety comes first.â The experienced and prudent Yuanen Zhentian concurred with Yaliâs opinion.
Tang Wulin felt compelled to follow the advice as he did not wish to go against the Limit Douluos. âAlright then.â
Out of the blue, he was prompted by a sudden impulse. At the same time the feeling arose, a green-gold halo illuminated on his body.
The few Limit Douluos looked toward him subconsciously. Before Tang Wulin could do anything, a ray of green-gold light shone upon the ground before him.
A green-gold crystal ball appeared. One could see there was a seed contained in the crystal ball.
The green-gold light dispersed silently into the ground. Soon after, the surrounding land was tainted with the color.
It took only a moment before the green-gold radiance surged out of the ground and transformed into a tiny sapling. In the next moment, the sapling grew rapidly under the nourishment of the green-gold radiance. A few minutes later, the sapling grew to a few tens of meters tall. It was a scaled-down version of the Ancient Life Tree.
What was that...
The people shifted their gaze to look at the mini version of the Ancient Life Tree. They had an astonished look in their eyes.
What was happening?
Tang Wulin closed his eyes to sense the incomparably dense life force emitted before him. A moment later, he had a joyous look on his face as he had figured out what it was.
The corners of his lips curved into a faint smile. âThereâs no need to worry about my safety anymore. This is the message I received from the Ancient Life Tree.â
âThe Ancient Life Tree had transformed the life force I transferred earlier into the purest form of the Douluo Continentâs life force to produce a seed to be germinated over here. Iâm Natureâs Child, henceforth, Iâm closely related to it. Therefore, I can return to the Ancient Life Tree anytime regardless of my location. Furthermore, with the Life Subtree here, it will be much easier and faster for me to transfer the life force to the Ancient Life Tree. In other words, itâs like an outpost for the Ancient Life Tree.â
Just as how the numerous Limit Douluos protected Tang Wulin, the Ancient Life Tree protected him similarly. After all, he was the only person capable of bringing more life force to the Ancient Life Tree to hasten its growth.
The numerous Limit Douluos marveled in astonishment. It was their first time to witness such a miraculous scene.
Undoubtedly, the Ancient Life Treeâs life force was the purest form in the entire Douluo Continent. It was the origin of life in the continent and was ranked the highest.
It was precisely this reason that the Ancient Life Tree was having trouble surviving in the continent today with its depleting life energy, not to mention having a separate subtree. At present, it sensed an abundance of the abyssal creatures which meant more life force, so it spared no effort in grafting a subtree for Tang Wulin. Simultaneously, the subtree could protect Tang Wulin as well as receive the life force from him.
The more powerful the lifeâs origin, the more powerful the continentâs response would be. Currently, the Ancient Life Tree had yet to recover to the extent of the previous Ancient Gold Tree due to the lack of the life force. Truly, it was a rare opportunity for the Ancient Life Tree today.
The newly-germinated Life Subtree began to grow jade-green leaves one at a time. Faint green-gold halos spread outward rapidly into the surroundings. Where the halos passed, the soil which was gray-white earlier regained its vitality. Innumerable plants began to grow from the soil. Although it was limited to this mountain, a splash of green aura was added to the Thuleâs wasteland at last.