Chapter 119

The hellish scene deep in the cave gripped everyone's throats like a cold iron clamp—the writhing corrupted earth, the twisted silhouette of the Withered Wang Ting, and the slowly opening rift in the sky, watched by the phantom gaze of a terrifying eye… The doctor's target was never their small sanctuary, but the core source of the Withered Forest—the Withered Wang Ting! He intended to open a passage to Annihilation there!

"We must… stop him!" Lin Mo's voice was hoarse but unyielding; though dim, the Star Dust Crystal on his chest still stubbornly glowed. If Wang Ting fell, the entire forest—and even deeper ley lines—would be utterly corrupted; they would have no chance of survival!

"How do we stop him?" Wrench stared at the boundless corrupted earth and the massive rift in the sky, his pea-sized eyes filled with despair. "We're not even enough to fill the gaps in those giant vines!"

Copperbeard's single eye locked onto the dark red sky and the colossal rift; the dwarf's resilience burned fierce in despair. "The rift… isn't fully open yet… he needs… energy… and time!" He snapped his gaze toward Uncle Suolin. "Moon Tear Lake! Where is it? What's its use?"

Uncle Suolin forced down his fear and pointed toward the edge of the corrupted earth, a direction relatively closer to their cave. There, faintly visible, was a sunken area—though also bathed in dark red skylight and covered in rotten moss, the center seemed to hold a relatively calm, faintly reflective surface of water.

"That… is the ruins of Moon Tear Lake… the most important… natural node on Wang Ting's outskirts…" Uncle Suolin's voice trembled with sorrow. "Once… it was the forest's… eye of life… now… it's been seized by corruption… but its core… the Moonlight Jewel… should still lie at the lake's bottom… If we can activate it… it can temporarily dispel the Annihilation aura above Wang Ting… disrupt the rift's opening… and send a signal… to any resistance forces deep within Wang Ting!"

The Moonlight Jewel! Activate it, and they could disrupt the doctor's arrival—and even contact possible resistance forces inside Wang Ting!

The flame of hope ignited again! Though faint, it was their only chance!

"How do we get there? How do we activate it?" Lin Mo pressed. Time was running out; the rift in the sky widened every second.

Uncle Suolin looked from the cave's exit toward the newly grown but limited patch of Star-veined Wood forest, then farther to the endless, deadly-corrupted mossy plain, his eyes heavy with dread. "The corrupted earth... is filled with... Withered spores... toxic bogs... and lurking... corrupted forest creatures... every step a death trap..." He paused, his gaze falling on Lin Mo's Star Dust Crystal. "Perhaps... only... pure energy... can briefly... carve... a path..."

Star Dust Crystal!

Lin Mo instantly understood Uncle Suolin's meaning. Star Dust energy strongly suppressed and purified corrupted energy—it might act like a guiding beacon, carving a relatively safe path through the corrupted earth!

"I'll lead the way!" Lin Mo didn't hesitate. He took a deep breath, focused all his will, and reconnected with the Star Dust Crystal on his chest. Though faint, the crystal's glow was forcibly condensed and compressed into a solid, milky-white beam—like a searchlight—projected toward Moon Tear Lake!

Hss—

Where the Star Dust beam passed, it burned like a red-hot iron through grease! The dark purple moss covering the ground withered instantly, blackened, and billowed acrid smoke! The airborne Withered spores were purified and scattered! A one-meter-wide "safe path," emitting faint purification energy, was forcibly burned into the corrupted earth!

"Go!" Lin Mo growled, stepping first onto the fragile, fleeting path carved by Star Dust energy. Each step dimmed the crystal's glow a little more, and his body swayed slightly. It was a heavy burden on his weakened frame.

Copperbeard said nothing, his massive body following close behind, Rune-Carving Knife gripped tight, his single eye scanning the churning corruption on both sides of the path. Wrench dragged his "Survival Arm," pulling Xiang Lingna along, gritting his teeth to keep up. Uncle Suolin, forcing his strength, walked last as guide and final defense.

The Star Dust beam was a lonely boat in darkness, stubbornly piercing through thick decay. Beyond the light, churning purple-black mist and writhing rotten moss swirled. From within the mist came chilling hisses and skittering sounds—as if countless greedy eyes watched from the dark, waiting for the moment the light faded.

"Left! Something's there!" Wrench suddenly screamed, pointing at the mist near the beam's edge.

Three swift, dog-like black shadows—like skinned hounds—slid soundlessly along the beam's edge! They had sharp bony claws and dripping fangs, their crimson eyes fixed on the group, emitting low, hunger-filled whimpers.

"Corrupted Claw Hyenas! Corrupted Forest Swift Panthers!" Uncle Suolin hissed, instantly drawing his broken longbow, another faint moonlight arrow forming.

"Ignore them! Push forward!" Lin Mo gritted his teeth, boosting the Star Dust beam's power. The path ahead burned faster, but the crystal on his chest sent searing, overloaded pain.

Suddenly!

Splash!

The ground ahead collapsed violently! A hidden, stinking dark purple toxic bog erupted! Thick, sucker-covered corrupted tentacles, like giant serpents, shot up from the bubbling mire, lashing toward Lin Mo at the front!

"Watch out!" Copperbeard roared, lunging forward, his Rune-Carving Knife flashing emerald light as it slashed down the thickest tentacle!

Plosch! Foul purple-black fluid sprayed! The tentacle was severed—but more erupted from the bog!

"Lingna! Star-veined Wood! Stabilize the ground!" Lin Mo shouted, simultaneously focusing the Star Dust beam directly above the bog, burning the tentacles!

Xiang Lingna's face was pale, but her reaction was swift! She pressed both hands onto the relatively "clean" corrupted ground beneath her feet, channeling every ounce of her remaining natural affinity!

Puff! Puff! Puff!

Several silver-white Star-veined Wood saplings erupted from the ground at the edge of the collapse with astonishing speed! Their roots plunged downward furiously, secreting potent purification agents that instantly neutralized part of the bog's corrosiveness. Meanwhile, tough roots wove like steel bars, hardening a small patch of stable ground atop the collapsing bog!

Lin Mo and Copperbeard leaped across the bog! Wrench pulled Xiang Lingna right behind them! Uncle Suolin brought up the rear, his moonlight arrows precisely piercing and pinning the pursuing tentacles to the bog's edge!

Narrow escape! But Lin Mo's Star Dust Crystal now glowed like a candle in the wind; his steps grew unsteady. Moon Tear Lake lay just ahead—but this stretch felt like a chasm between worlds!

Worse—the Star Dust beam's purification radius was shrinking! The churning corruption on both sides pressed inward! The lurking Corrupted Claw Hyenas hissed in excitement, drawing closer!

"Lin Mo brother!" Xiang Lingna stared at Lin Mo's swaying back, tears welling in her eyes.

Then, Uncle Suolin suddenly pointed at the faintly glowing center of Moon Tear Lake: "Look! The lake bottom! There's light!"

All turned. Beneath the dark red sky and corrupted moss, within the murky waters of Moon Tear Lake, a single, extremely faint yet utterly pure emerald glow—like a sleeping heart—began to pulse slowly, steadily.

The Moonlight Jewel! It sensed the Star Dust's purification power! It sensed their approach! It was responding—on its own!