Chapter 434: Five Elements Unity, an Ancient Forbidden Technique

"Yage!" Lin Xuan shouted, "It has launched an attack!"

Before the words had even faded, a powerful energy fluctuation descended from the sky, piercing the hall's energy barrier and striking the energy platform directly. The formless shockwave cut into the purification field of the Gold Element Core like a sharp blade, disrupting the balanced cycle of Yin and Yang.

Yamada Ichiro let out a muffled groan, his face turning pale in an instant, and a trace of blood spilled from his mouth. The Yin and Yang energies lost control and began to vibrate violently; the purple-black energy inside the Gold Element Core seized the opportunity to counterattack, attempting to reoccupy the core.

"Yamada!" Lin Xuan stepped forward quickly, releasing Wood Element energy. According to the principle of the Five Elements mutual restraint, wood overcomes metal; Wood Element energy could suppress the chaos of the Gold Element energy.

The green Wood Element energy coiled around the out-of-control Gold Element Core like vines, gradually stabilizing the chaotic energy field. But just as Lin Xuan was focusing all his efforts on the Gold Element Core, an anomaly occurred at the Water Element Core.

Carlos's eyes suddenly turned purple, his gaze hollow and cold, and a strange smile appeared at the corners of his mouth. His fingers began to tremble, and the flow of energy controlling the Crystal Skull changed; wisps of purple began to mix into the originally clear blue energy, and the Purification Technique was turning into a Pollution Technique.

"Oh no! Carlos has been affected by Yage!" Xiao Yuan reacted quickly and immediately mobilized Earth Element energy. According to the Five Elements mutual restraint, earth overcomes water, which could suppress the anomaly in the Water Element energy.

Xiao Yuan pressed her palms against the floor, and a wave of yellow energy quickly spread to the Water Element Core, forming an earthy-yellow energy barrier that severed the abnormal energy transmission between Carlos and the Water Element Core. Deprived of his energy source, Carlos's body shuddered, his eyes returned to normal, but he immediately fell into a coma.

Although the crisis was temporarily averted, the damage had already been done. Yamada Ichiro had suffered a severe energy backlash and his aura was weak; Carlos's mind had been affected by Void Pollution and he remained unconscious; more importantly, the purification process of the Gold and Water Element Cores had been forcibly interrupted and had not been fully successful.

"Quick, take them to rest," Lin Xuan ordered, while carefully placing all Five Cores into a specially made energy container, "Xu Feng, analyze the purification results immediately."

Medical personnel quickly transported the two injured Practitioners to the lounge, while Xu Feng connected complex energy analysis instruments to perform a comprehensive scan of the Five Cores.

Half an hour later, Xu Feng returned with a grave expression.

"The situation is not optimistic," Xu Feng said, pulling up a holographic projection showing the energy status of the Five Cores, "The purification success rate for the fire, wood, and earth cores exceeds 90%, but the purification of the gold and water cores only reached 65% and 72%."

"What does this mean?" Xiao Yuan asked.

Xu Feng shook his head: "The Five Elements Energy Cycle cannot close perfectly. According to calculations of the Void Resonance frequency, our formed pulse frequency will have a deviation of about 17%. This is enough to weaken the pulse's strike effect on Yage, making it impossible to seal it completely."

The hall fell into silence. After such arduous efforts, all Five Cores had been purified, yet they still could not achieve the expected result; this was undoubtedly a heavy blow.

"Is there any other way?" Xiao Yuan asked softly.

Xu Feng hesitated for a moment: "Theoretically, if someone could control the Five Elements energy simultaneously, they might be able to manually harmonize the Five Cores to achieve perfect balance. But this requires extremely high Five Elements control ability, and the risk is immense."

Everyone's eyes turned in unison toward Lin Xuan. As a core figure of the Five Elements City Guardian Network, Lin Xuan was one of the few Practitioners capable of controlling Five Elements energy simultaneously.

Lin Xuan pondered for a moment, then looked up and scanned the group: "I can try."

"No! It's too dangerous!" Xiao Yuan immediately objected, "If the Five Elements energy runs simultaneously, the slightest carelessness will lead to energy chaos and a Five Elements backlash. That would directly damage your foundation, or even..." She did not continue, but everyone understood the severity of the consequences.

Lin Xuan's gaze became firm: "There is no choice. Before the summer solstice midnight, we don't have time to re-purify the gold and water cores. Besides, Yage is already alert; the next purification will only face stronger interference."

He walked toward the pedestal where the Five Cores were placed and turned to look at the group: "Prepare the ritual. I need a quiet environment and auxiliary input of Five Elements energy. If there is any abnormality, do not hesitate—cut off all energy connections immediately."

Xiao Yuan wanted to object again, but seeing Lin Xuan's resolute gaze, she finally just nodded: "I will monitor your vital signs the entire time."

Xu Feng adjusted the Energy Array in the central hall, placing the Five Cores according to the Five Elements directions to form a perfect Five Elements Energy Cycle diagram. Lin Xuan stood in the center, closed his eyes, and began to adjust his breathing, preparing to face the greatest challenge of his cultivation career.

Outside the window, the purple aurora grew more intense, and distorted spatial ripples were vaguely visible in the sky. Yage was accelerating its reorganization, and time was running out. Lin Xuan knew he had to succeed; there was no second chance.

His fingers brushed lightly over the Five Cores, feeling their different energy rhythms. The Fire Element Core was full of passion and vitality, the Wood Element Core contained life and growth, the Earth Element Core was steady and inclusive, the Gold Element Core was sharp and condensed, and the Water Element Core was flowing and deep. These energies both generated and restrained each other, forming the most fundamental energy cycle in the universe.

"Let's begin," Lin Xuan took a deep breath, "May the balance of the universe guide us."

Inside the central hall, the Five Void Cores were placed according to the Five Elements directions, forming a perfect energy cycle array. Thin threads of energy connected the cores, but these connections were unstable, flickering and dimming, revealing the energy disorder caused by the incomplete purification of the gold and water cores.

Lin Xuan stood in the center of the array, his expression grave. After long deliberation, he had finally made a decision that could almost be called insane.

"I will attempt the 'Five Elements Unity' secret technique." Lin Xuan's voice was steady and firm.

As soon as these words were spoken, the hall fell into dead silence. Xu Feng's face showed shock, and the other Practitioners looked at each other, unable to believe their ears.

"No!" Xiao Yuan was the first to object; she walked quickly to Lin Xuan, "Five Elements Unity is an ancient forbidden technique. Ancient texts clearly record that out of ten who attempt it, nine die, and even those who survive by luck suffer permanent damage to their cultivation!"

"Xiao Yuan is right," Xu Feng also stepped forward to dissuade him, "That secret technique requires the Practitioner to temporarily leave their physical body and communicate directly with the energy source in the form of a Spirit Body. In this state, the Spirit Body is extremely fragile; the slightest carelessness will cause the Spirit Body to dissipate, and it will never be able to return to the physical body."

Lin Xuan took a deep breath and looked around at everyone: "I know the risks. But right now, we have no other choice. There is less than twenty-four hours until the summer solstice midnight, Yage is accelerating its reorganization, we have no time to re-purify the cores, and there is no alternative plan."