A life of leisure is worse than a life of flowers and splendour

When Wushuang set foot on the third island, a strong, almost suffocating feeling of discomfort instantly swept over her. She couldn't help but frown, secretly wondering where this inexplicable emotion came from.

Looking up, I was met with a dreamlike, fairy-like scene. Lush trees, lush and verdant, resembled the rolling waves of a green ocean; delicate and beautiful flowers competed for beauty, exuding an enchanting fragrance; crystal-clear streams gurgled, their ripples sparkling with crystalline light. In the distance, rolling mountains, shrouded in clouds and mist, added a touch of mystery to the entire scene.

Yet, despite the enchanting beauty before her, Wushuang felt a lingering sense of strangeness deep within. She felt as if she were in an illusory world, where everything around her seemed real, yet a faint air of unreality permeated her. This conflicting feeling left her feeling lost and uneasy. She couldn't help but reach out to touch the beautiful flowers, wanting to confirm whether all this was just an illusion. But the moment her fingertips touched the petals, the soft touch and delicate fragrance told her that everything was real. But why couldn't she shake that feeling of unreality?

Everyone noticed Wushuang's abnormality, and their nerves immediately tensed up. Everyone's face showed a look of vigilance, as if they smelled the breath of impending danger. Everyone entered a state of high alert in an instant.

Without hesitation, Master Nian Shuang dashed in front of Wushuang. His towering frame, like an impenetrable fortress, tightly shielded Wushuang behind him. The movement was swift and practiced, as if he had experienced this countless times. He leaned slightly to the side, using his broad back to block any attack from any direction, just as he had done every time he faced danger in the gravity field.

Wushuang watched the scene unfold, a complex wave of emotions welling up within her. On the one hand, she felt immense warmth and reassurance at Master Nian Shuang's meticulous protection; yet, on the other, she secretly worried that if this continued, she would gradually lose her ability to handle danger independently, becoming increasingly dependent on others. For a moment, Wushuang even felt that if she continued in this overprotective environment for too long, she might truly become "spoiled."

Despite her swirling thoughts, Wushuang forced herself to calm down and began to carefully observe her surroundings. She stared wide-eyed, not missing a single detail. She simultaneously released her spiritual sense, scanning the surroundings over and over again. However, no matter how hard she tried, she couldn't find anything unusual.

"What's wrong with my disciple? Is there something wrong?" asked Master Xuancheng.

"Master, I can't explain it clearly. I just feel something is wrong, but I can't tell where." Wushuang said with a frown.

"Master, don't be afraid, it's okay. There is indeed something strange here. It seems to be dependent on the Tianyuan Continent, and it is absorbing the vitality and luck of the Tianyuan Continent. But it does not affect the people above. This should be a large formation. I only saw a little bit and can't be completely sure. I have to walk further and see more to be sure." Xiao Meng said.

What? Wushuang's eyes widened as he relayed Xiao Meng's secret words to Xuancheng Zhenjun. Xuancheng Zhenjun was surprised, but remained calm. "Don't show any strangeness. Just pretend you don't know. Don't mention it later. Let's talk about it after we leave here. Since it doesn't affect us, let's continue on."

"Okay Master."

After the two of them finished their secret conversation, Master Xuancheng said, "It's nothing. It must be your first time seeing such an environment, so you're not used to it. Just walk around more and you'll be fine." After saying that, Master Xuancheng also let down his guard and just observed everything he saw calmly.

The others didn't notice anything unusual, and after hearing what he said, they all relaxed, gradually letting down their guard. However, despite the apparent ease, everyone was still secretly on edge, not daring to be careless.

This third island was quite similar to the first. It shared the same vast expanse of land and the same lush vegetation. The only difference was that several extremely rare and unique spiritual plants grew here. These plants exuded a mysterious and alluring aura, as if telling people of their precious value.

Having arrived, everyone naturally wouldn't let this rare opportunity slip by. So, they began to carefully explore the island, their eyes sharp, not missing any corner that might hide a spiritual plant. They weaved through the dense jungle, carefully observing the form and characteristics of each plant, hoping to find some rare treasure.

Here, Wushuang also harvested several rare spiritual plants that would be useful for his own cultivation, which greatly delighted him. The islands that followed also had several unique spiritual plants of their own, but some were completely barren, others tiny, as bare as floating boulders. Regardless of their usefulness or appearance, Wushuang carefully explored each island, leaving no corner untouched.

Finally, Wushuang discovered that the spiritual plants harvested from these islands were actually divided into five elements. The wood attribute had only wood spiritual plants, the fire attribute had only fire spiritual plants, and if the bare boulders were considered earth spiritual plants, Wushuang slowly deduced in his mind. No other formation was arranged this way. Something seemed amiss. Perhaps his knowledge of formations was still too superficial?

"Master, try replacing that boulder with gold." Biyun said. According to his limited experience, the boulder should be a mineral, so the gold attribute is closer.

Wushuang changed it, but she didn't understand it.

"Master, this is a formation that absorbs vitality and luck, and also transmits the absorbed vitality and luck away!" Xiao Meng said.

"What? Xiao Meng, you can understand this formation? What should we do then?"

"Master, I don't understand the formation, but I can see things that you can't see. I don't know what to do about this." Xiao Meng shared what she saw with Wushuang.

"Master, the green one is vitality, and the purple one is luck."

Wushuang stared wide-eyed at the scene before him in disbelief. Purple and green gases filled the air, intertwining and tangling like a mysterious and dazzling cloud. The concentration of these gases far exceeded that of the vast continent below, creating a powerful visual impact.

Wushuang observed carefully and discovered that purple and green air from the continent below was rising continuously, like a series of agile dragons, converging towards the island. Once the air reached the island, it was quickly absorbed by it without any pause.

Meanwhile, the various gases on the island weren't stagnant either. They flowed and spread along intricate paths, some moving slowly like trickles, others like surging rivers. However, while they could only be seen flowing, their ultimate destination was difficult to discern. The entire scene felt like a dream, yet Wushuang couldn't help but frown.