Yi Tianyun felt the Evil Fire. Thankfully, he had the Shadow Cloak, or he would have been done for. However, the flames continued to surge, and it didn’t look like they would stop anytime soon.

"Let go!" Illusory Zither cried out when she saw the Evil Fire. "That’s the Evil Fire from the Fire Dragon Stone buried inside! It will melt you!"

Yi Tianyun gritted his teeth, the determined look in his eyes unwavering. There wasn’t much time left, and he didn’t utter a single word. Five seconds was an incredibly short amount of time. For cultivators of their level, each second could feel like an eternity.

"Break!"

Yi Tianyun roared, his arms continuing to strain as he pried at the stone pillar. Cracks began to spiderweb across its surface, but at the same time, more and more Evil Fire seeped in. The Shadow Cloak granted him immunity, but its effect was limited. He heaved against the pillar a few more times but couldn’t snap it before the five seconds were up.

The moment the Shadow Cloak’s effect vanished, the Evil Fire immediately surged forward. It bored into his body and began to madly incinerate him from the inside out! A searing heat erupted from within, causing him a degree of pain, but it was still bearable.

Thanks to his formidable Physique, withstanding the flames wasn’t an issue. However, if this continued, he would inevitably suffer severe injuries. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

"If this goes on, you’ll die, even with a physique like that!" Illusory Zither couldn’t help but scream as she watched Yi Tianyun risk everything. She didn’t want to see him die. It wasn’t about her own escape; she was genuinely terrified for his life!

"I won’t die before I get you out of here. Trust me..." Yi Tianyun looked at her, a faint smile on his lips. His voice held an indescribable resolve.

"You..."

Illusory Zither’s eyes welled up and tears streamed down her face. Biting her lip, she desperately wanted to get up and help, but with the Celestial Thunder Array active, she was completely immobilized. Otherwise, she would have helped long ago instead of just sitting in the cage, weeping as she watched Yi Tianyun.

The next moment, a divine light flared in Yi Tianyun’s eyes as the power within his body erupted to its absolute peak!

"BREAK!"

As Yi Tianyun roared, his strength suddenly multiplied severalfold. His arms bulged with power as he wrenched the pillars apart with all his might!

"CRASH!"

With a final, deafening crack, the two stone pillars were utterly shattered!

The pillars had finally crumbled under Yi Tianyun’s immense strength, leaving a gaping hole in the cage. Illusory Zither could now easily walk out.

However, as the pillars crumbled, the Array completely failed. Without its foundation, the great formation vanished.

At that moment, the tension left his body, only to be replaced by excruciating pain. He couldn’t help but stumble backward. The invading Evil Fire had inflicted far more severe damage than even he had anticipated.

The already wild Evil Fire became even more ferocious, tearing through his limbs and continuing to burn his body. He could even smell something scorching—his internal organs were being roasted.

Just as he was about to hit the ground, he fell into an embrace.

He struggled to open his eyes. The first thing he saw was Illusory Zither’s tear-reddened eyes. Her mouth was moving, saying something, but he couldn’t hear her. He just felt his consciousness starting to fade. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t keep his eyes open. ’This Evil Fire has inflicted some serious damage,’ he thought. ’Even a peak Spirit Pill Stage cultivator would be severely wounded by an attack like this.’

Still, he wasn’t worried. He could only focus on resisting the Evil Fire inside him, trying to suppress it. ’The injuries are serious, but not fatal. My incredible Physique isn’t just for show.’

Before long, he felt a cooling sensation rapidly seep in through his skin, swiftly extinguishing the Evil Fire within him and bringing immediate relief.

An unknown amount of time passed. He felt the pain throughout his body had mostly vanished, replaced by a refreshing coolness. He had never felt so comfortable.

"Mmm..." He slowly opened his eyes.

The first thing he saw was Illusory Zither, her eyes red and swollen from crying. She was hugging him tightly, unwilling to let go.

"This is..."

Yi Tianyun then noticed that one of the Divine Runes on Illusory Zither’s forehead was missing. That very same rune was now inscribed upon his own chest, steadily radiating a cool energy. He knew this was Illusory Zither’s power. She had transferred one of her Divine Runes to him.

He didn’t know what the side effects would be, but he knew it must have come at a great cost. Transferring a talent-based Divine Rune not only shortened one’s lifespan but also lowered their cultivation level! In truth, those two things could be regained through training without too much difficulty.

The most critical part was that her talent had been transferred to him; it was as if they now each possessed half of it. Illusory Zither’s own talent was now greatly diminished, but it was still usable.

The biggest reason Illusory Zither had done this was, of course, to use the transferred talent to heal him in the most effective way and save his life. After all, her Ice Attribute was the perfect counter to the Evil Fire.

Realizing what she had done, Yi Tianyun was deeply moved. He never expected Illusory Zither would go to such lengths for him. ’It seems I wasn’t wrong about her.’

"Ding! Successfully obtained the Celestial Eye Talent!"

At that moment, a system notification sounded, confirming that he had indeed obtained the talent!

"You transferred your Divine Rune to me? Are you insane!" Yi Tianyun shook his head and sat up. His injuries were fully healed. He had thought it would take him a long time to recover, but thanks to Illusory Zither’s treatment, his recovery had been swift.

"I never like to be in anyone’s debt. As long as you’re all right, that’s all that matters!" Illusory Zither wiped away her tears with the back of her hand, her expression shifting from sorrow to a smile. She didn’t seem to care at all about her own loss.

"I would have recovered on my own. This must have taken a huge toll on you, right?" Yi Tianyun asked.

"It’s nothing. Like I said, I don’t like owing anyone, whether they’re a stranger or one of my own," Illusory Zither said with a faint smile. "You were willing to save me, so think of this as my gift to you. It’s nothing."

"It’s just... this is a rather precious gift," Yi Tianyun said with a smile, the somber atmosphere finally lifting. "But there really are a lot of arrays here, one linked to the next. I can’t believe I still got caught in the end."

"Exactly. I never expected Thundercloud to set up two layers of arrays. Even after breaking the outer seal, this cage was still incredibly difficult to destroy." Illusory Zither’s expression darkened. "He’s truly ruthless. He was that worried I’d escape, wasn’t he..."

"That’s for sure. We need to get out of here now. We shouldn’t linger," Yi Tianyun said, getting to his feet. He was worried that Thundercloud might send people after them, so leaving quickly was the best option.

Illusory Zither nodded and started to lead Yi Tianyun away. But just as they were about to leave, he stopped.

"Hold on a second!"

Then, under Illusory Zither’s confused gaze, he began prying the Luminous Pearls from the walls. He juggled one in his hand and said, "These things are priceless. It’d be a shame to leave them here. Besides, I’m short on cash for Elixir Pills."

Illusory Zither rolled her eyes at him. And here she was, wondering what important thing he had stopped for.