The Longevity Family: Starting from the Foundation Establishment Ancestor

At the center of the dark golden sands of time, from the heart of the crystal lotus, a faint but incredibly pure aura of a key fragment ignited the flame in Han Mu's eyes like a beacon. Without the slightest hesitation, Han Mu transformed into an elusive streak of light, rushing towards the pool at top speed under the cover of the hourglass's grey light field!

"My lord, be careful!" Zhou Meng whispered, his hands already forming a magic seal, ready to activate some kind of protective secret technique from the "Time Guardian" inheritance. Bai Ling's figure flickered, closely following Han Mu's flank, vigilantly watching their surroundings. Luo Feng's eyes widened, his fists clenched, muttering, "Good stuff! My lord, hurry and grab it! But that lotus looks too hot to handle..."

The moment Han Mu's palm touched the invisible barrier at the edge of the pool, the four fragments of the "Coffin of Origin" on his palm became slightly hot, and an overwhelming, ancient aura containing the essence of "Origin" erupted! The barrier constructed by the power of "Reverse Time" seemed to have encountered its nemesis, and with a "hissing" sound, it quickly melted away, leaving a gap.

Han Mu's hand passed through the gap, ignoring the rich power of time and the corrosive influence of the chaotic pollution contained in the pool, and accurately grabbed the crystal lotus! The lotus seemed to sense something, trembled slightly, and the faint light at the lotus heart suddenly brightened. A gentle force of resistance came, but it was not strong. Instead, it carried a kind of probing and... joy?

Han Mu didn't have time to savor the experience. He closed his fingers and gently plucked the entire crystal lotus, along with the small patch of "Time-Source Sand" from which it was rooted, into his hand. It felt cool to the touch, yet strangely warm. The lotus rotated slightly in his palm, and the faint light from its heart slowly seeped into the petals. Instantly, the entire lotus withered all its light and aura, transforming into a seemingly ordinary crystal sculpture made of special material.

The instant the lotus was plucked, the entire dark golden sand pool trembled violently, and the viscous "Sand of Time" within surged turbulently. On the surface of the towering black pillar, hundreds of feet tall, countless chaotic runes suddenly flickered wildly, emitting piercing shrieks! The gray mist in the entire array's core area churned violently, and a vast, furious will, imbued with terrifying pressure, descended with a deafening roar, locking onto Han Mu, who held the lotus!

"How dare you, you ants, steal my possession!" A cold, hoarse voice, like the friction of metal, exploded in the minds of the four, causing Zhou Meng, Bai Ling, and Luo Feng to feel their blood churn and their faces turn pale.

Han Mu remained motionless, quickly storing the crystal lotus in his storage ring. At the same time, his gaze turned coldly to the dark gray energy vortex atop the black ridge. The vortex spun wildly, and a blurry, gigantic face formed from gray mist emerged from it, its empty eyes burning with gray flames staring intently at Han Mu.

The will of "Eclipse"! Or rather, a wisp of "Eclipse" divine thought condensed at the core of this great formation!

"Hand over the 'Lotus of Time'! I will grant you a complete corpse!" The giant face of gray mist roared, and the gray mist in the entire area boiled over. A terrifying pressure surged like a tide, far exceeding that of a Taiyi True Immortal, and faintly touching the threshold of a Taiyi Jade Immortal! This was merely a wisp of "Eclipse of Time" manifested with the help of the great formation. Its true strength was definitely at the late stage or even the peak of the Taiyi Jade Immortal realm!

"My lord, it's that old monster's divine sense! With the help of the great formation, his clone's strength is close to the early stage of Taiyi Jade Immortal! Moreover, it can mobilize part of the power of the great formation!" Zhou Meng's forehead "Time" mark shone brightly, resisting the pressure, and he quickly transmitted his voice.

"I knew it wouldn't be that easy! Picking a flower has brought the real culprit here!" Luo Feng grinned, his blood surging, ready to fight to the death.

Han Mu remained unmoved. Facing the oppressive aura and roar of the giant gray mist face, he simply raised his right hand slowly, palm facing upward. A strange light gathered in his palm, a light that was neither black nor white, containing an ancient Daoist charm that seemed to possess both "beginning" and "end," and could seemingly evolve all things.

The power of "Origin"!

Although it was only a wisp, in this environment filled with the aura of "rebellion," it was like a lighthouse in the dark night, or a hot iron falling into a snowdrift, instantly causing the surrounding churning gray mist to pause, and the giant face of the gray mist also revealed obvious shock, anger and fear.

"You are... the variable who possesses the 'Origin' fragment! Han Mu!" The voice of the giant gray-mist face carried a hint of incredulous rage. "You dare to deliver yourself to my doorstep! Very well! Today I will capture you, extract the 'Origin' fragment, refine your soul, and make up for my losses!"

Before the words were finished, the giant face of gray mist suddenly opened its huge mouth, and a gray beam of light, purely condensed from the power of "reversal" time, carrying a terrifying will of annihilation, decay, and reversal of everything, tore through the gray mist and instantly blasted towards Han Mu! Wherever the beam of light passed, even space itself rippled strangely, as if time was flowing backward and accelerating, creating utter chaos.

The power of this attack has reached the level of the early stage of Taiyi Jade Immortal! Moreover, it contains an erosion effect on the soul and the origin of time!

"My lord!" Zhou Meng and Bai Ling's expressions changed drastically, and they were about to step forward.

Han Mu merely snorted coldly, neither dodging nor avoiding, and gently clenched his raised palm towards the incoming gray beam of light.

"broken."

Without a deafening roar, the seemingly terrifying gray beam of light shattered the moment it touched the wisp of "Origin" light in Han Mu's palm, like fragile glass colliding with divine iron! It turned into countless tiny specks of light, which were then completely obliterated by the "Origin" light.

The expression on the giant face of the gray mist froze.

"You barely managed to reach the threshold of Jade Immortal with the help of the formation, yet you dare to be presumptuous in front of me?" Han Mu's voice was calm, but it carried an indifference as if looking down on ants. "Your clone and this formation eye will remain here today."

The "Blood Bone Hourglass" in his other hand shone brightly, and he threw it directly into the dark golden sand pool! The hourglass fell into the pool but did not sink. Instead, it floated above the churning "Sands of Time." The dark red sand grains in the upper part poured out in reverse at an unprecedented speed, and a strange wave spread out, resonating with the remaining, not yet completely polluted, essence of time in the pool!

"No! What have you done?!" The giant face of gray mist roared in shock and anger, feeling its control over the array's core and the energy in the pool being rapidly stripped away and disrupted!

"I'll destroy your foundation." As soon as Han Mu finished speaking, his figure moved again. This time, his target was the black ridge pillar itself! The light of "Origin" in his palm condensed into a phantom ancient longsword, which he slashed down at the base of the ridge pillar!