The pond water gurgled, its temperature rising rapidly.
"You little thief, what have you done?!" The Third Transformation guard glared at Fang Yuan and seized him by the neck, squeezing hard.
Despite the searing pain, it meant nothing to Fang Yuan.
He didn't even glance at the guard. Instead, he carefully examined the pond water undergoing its transformation.
"That sheepskin map — it fits what I suspected before. It's definitely an immortal material that's been processed so its true nature doesn't show on the surface. Now that it's been immersed in this pond water, it's immediately reacting."
"I'd already found it strange that this tribe's oasis was so small. Now it's clear — someone tampered with it long ago, turning it into a Gu refinement site."
In the Western Desert, a normal oasis would never be that small. Or rather, any oasis that could endure long-term would be large, at least big enough to hold a lake.
A tiny oasis like this pond would be like a shooting star in the night sky — it would appear and vanish in a flash, eventually buried by the desert's wind and sand.
That this tribe, where young Dao Tian resided, could depend on such a small oasis to survive and multiply meant it had persisted for many years. Even with Gu Masters providing protection, ordinary mortals could not indefinitely withstand heaven's might. For this tiny oasis to endure, there had to be something unusual about it.
"Are you going to talk or not? If you don't, I'll squeeze the life out of you right here!" The Third Transformation Gu Master's eyes blazed with fury.
The water temperature continued to climb, reaching a level unbearable for ordinary people.
The Third Transformation Gu Master gripped Fang Yuan's neck and burst to the surface, then leaped with all his strength, landing directly on the bank.
"He's here!"
"So this is the little traitor?"
"Such audacious treachery! Speak — who sent you?!"
The bank was already crowded with the tribe's leadership — the various clan elders, the Fourth Transformation clan chief, and even the crippled former chief.
Fang Yuan was drenched. The moment he was pulled ashore, he was restrained and subjected to one interrogation after another, with absolutely no ability to resist or struggle.
Fang Yuan could only cough repeatedly, saying nothing.
"The pond water has started boiling — a red light is coming from inside!" someone cried out in alarm.
The tribe's leadership all wore expressions of tension, and some had cold sweat beading on their foreheads.
This pond contained a spirit spring and produced Yuan Stones — it was the very foundation of the tribe's survival in the desert. If it were destroyed, it would be nothing short of a catastrophe that could wipe out the entire clan!
In just a few breaths, the red light pierced through the pond water and shot skyward, painting the sky above the oasis crimson. It could be seen for a hundred li in every direction.
The tribe's leaders were all caught off guard. They had no idea what was happening — how could they possibly stop it?
The clan chief's face was twisted with rage, and he was about to interrogate Fang Yuan again when someone stopped him.
It was the old chief.
The old chief's legs were gone — lost to battle wounds. His upper body floated forward as he approached Fang Yuan.
He heaved a deep sigh and pleaded earnestly, "Child, I'm afraid you've been manipulated by someone. If the tribe has wronged you in any way, I apologize to you personally. Whatever compensation you want, I'll bear it all myself. But this matter is of extreme gravity — it concerns the lives of over a thousand people in our tribe! Tell everyone everything you know. If something goes wrong, it will be the life and death of hundreds of families."
"Heh." Fang Yuan let out a cold laugh.
Now that he was outside the cave, there was no longer any concealment. Sand Owl certainly knew the full situation.
If he stayed silent, the tribe's leaders would resort to torture to force it out of him — at least there would be time to stall. But if he spoke, Sand Owl would likely activate his methods immediately, killing him on the spot.
If young Dao Tian's body died, Fang Yuan would undoubtedly fail his exploration.
Of two evils, choose the lesser. How could Fang Yuan possibly say a word?
"You damned bastard! How could this tribe have produced a monster like you?!" Fang Yuan's attitude instantly enraged the clan chief, who kicked him hard, sending him sprawling.
Fang Yuan laughed coldly, "Go ahead and beat me to death! Kill me, and you'll never learn anything!!"
"You!!" The clan chief stared wide-eyed, momentarily frozen.
"Ha ha ha! Good, good grandson — your grandfather here just loves seeing that fiery temperament of yours!" Sand Owl's manic laughter echoed in Fang Yuan's ears.
"Never mind." The old chief stopped the current clan chief once more. He looked at Fang Yuan, and the kindly, sorrowful expression he had worn moments ago had vanished entirely, replaced by a cold, ruthless look. He spoke in a low voice, ordering his subordinates, "This boy refuses to see reason. Use the soul search technique. Even if it destroys his soul, no one can blame us for it."
Only now did the old man reveal his true face as a person of authority.
"Yes!" A Third Transformation clan elder immediately stepped forward, grabbed Fang Yuan's head without hesitation, and began performing the soul search technique.
Intense agony surged through him, and even Fang Yuan couldn't help but tremble all over, his pupils contracting sharply.
In this instant, the Dream Realm activated, launching a terrifying process of erosion against his soul.
Fang Yuan's soul foundation began depleting directly in units of ten million.
He had originally retained one hundred and fifty million units of human soul. Now it plummeted rapidly — one hundred and forty million, one hundred and thirty million, one hundred and twenty million…
In just a few breaths, Fang Yuan's soul foundation had dropped all the way to ninety million, crashing straight below the one hundred million mark!