The sequence is too involutional, luckily I am too.

The underground stronghold of the Shadow Serpent is filled with a damp atmosphere, thick with the rust and an eerie aura.

Chen Li's clothes were wrinkled and his hair was disheveled, giving him a somewhat disheveled appearance.

He huddled in the corner, cautiously peeking out and observing intently for a long time. Only after confirming that there were no pursuers from the Judgment Department behind him did he slowly step out of the shadows, his body hunched over.

"My lord, our plan... has failed!"

Chen Li was somewhat uneasy. Just a few days ago, he had confidently declared that his plan was foolproof, but now he had suffered a complete defeat.

Furthermore, a priest of the Demon God was captured alive by Russell, the deputy minister of the Judgment Department.

Worse still, Muyun Technology has been thoroughly targeted for its possession of strange artifacts and its collusion with believers of the strange gods.

Because of Chen Ye's involvement, he lived a life of constant anxiety, and only dared to risk coming to report back after lying low for many days.

Chen Li's voice echoed in the empty stronghold, but there was no response in the darkness for a long time.

A deathly silence spread, and his unease grew. Just as he was about to turn and take his leave, a blurry snake shadow quietly materialized from the depths of the shadows.

"Your plan was fine, but this time it was the adjudication department that set it up, so you can't be blamed."

The envoy's voice was as cold as ice, devoid of any emotion, but to Chen Li, it was like heavenly music, making him breathe a sigh of relief.

"My lord..."

Chen Li was filled with gratitude and was about to take the opportunity to express his loyalty when he was interrupted by the envoy.

"This failure didn't affect you too much, did it?"

"Not at the moment."

Chen Li shook his head and said, "Chen Ye only knows that the device can attract alien beasts, but he knows nothing else. The Judgment Department probably won't be able to get anything out of him."

"However, it will probably be difficult for many believers within Muyun to remain hidden any longer."

The apostle fell silent again, then said, "A few losses are nothing compared to our God's plan."

"However, there is one thing that I find strange."

Chen Li composed himself and carefully considered his tone as he analyzed, "Our plan was extremely secretive, yet the Judgment Department was able to prepare in advance. My subordinates suspect that there is a traitor within our ranks."

"impossible!"

The messenger refuted him sharply without hesitation, the serpent's shadow instantly swelling several times in size, its oppressive aura sweeping across the entire area: "All who believe in our god have their souls branded, with no possibility of betrayal, not even under coercion!"

"My lord, please calm your anger. I was not referring to those believers who have already embraced our god."

Chen Li shook his head and produced his evidence.

"Minister of Trade Guo Zhicai has had dealings with us privately. Although he is not the most devout believer, he is aware of our existence."

"His son, Guo Qingzhi, was also on this mission, and he was forced to join, but he died unexpectedly during the mission."

"But Guo Zhicai did nothing after he found out, and even actively cooperated with the adjudication department's investigation."

"I believe this person's behavior is highly unusual; perhaps it is..."

"That's enough!"

Suddenly, the messenger shouted angrily, interrupting Chen Li's analysis.

"I want to hear your remedial measures, not your shirking of responsibility! As for Guo Zhicai, you don't need to investigate him anymore; he could never betray our God!"

After saying this, the messenger reverted to his usual cold demeanor and said, "My god will make a big move in a few days; just act accordingly."

After speaking, the messenger disappeared into the shadows once more.

"A big move... and I can't even know about it?"

A cold glint flashed in Chen Li's eyes. If he failed, these lackeys of the evil god would no longer bother with him.

But it doesn't matter. It would be best if there were some big moves. In that case, both sides would be severely damaged, and Mu Yun would be able to completely control Shelter 056!

At that time, that item will naturally belong to Mu Yun.

……

On the other side, Lu Yan resumed his fulfilling cultivation life, traveling between the forging room and his dormitory every day.

During the day, he practiced the Floating Pagoda Breathing Technique while forging ironware.

At night, he practiced the Ghostly Firefly Meditation Technique while simultaneously training the Three Devious Arts.

As for Yao Qing, she was taken away by Yao Xiangyang after breaking through to the 8th level of the Witch Sequence and has not appeared since.

Lu Yan was not surprised at all, after all, it might involve the original sequence, and no amount of caution was too much.

He was just curious: why would Yao Xiangyang let Yao Qing awaken the witch sequence when the original path had already been severed?

Is it that they don't know, or is there another solution?

Lu Yan couldn't think of a reasonable explanation for a while, so he simply stopped thinking about it and continued practicing the Three Devious Techniques.

These past few days, he's had the Three Devils relentlessly disrupt his emotions. Although it's not as bad as the time he was under the Witch's gaze, his mental strength is indeed steadily improving.

Moreover, due to the continuous manipulation of the supernatural, the Ranger/Supernatural Master's progress is also rapidly increasing.

And now, we are just one step away from achieving a breakthrough!

Suddenly, Lu Yan sensed something and moved the three small plants to his side, placing them alongside the three little monsters.

[Forest Ranger/Witch Hunter: 100% (Promotion Potential)]

Seeing the subtitles appear before him, Lu Yan clicked on them without hesitation.

The familiar sense of detachment returned as Lu Yan descended once more into that mysterious space.

This time, however, there were no longer only a single sequence of phantoms in the space.

The vast space was clearly divided into two halves: the left side was lush with vegetation and full of life; the right side was shrouded in black mist and deathly still.

The forest ranger, clad in a robe woven from green leaves, stands on the side of life; the demon tamer, wrapped in a black cloak, stands amidst pollution.

Lu Yan looked down at the two sides as they continuously summoned their creations, and the forces of nature clashed fiercely with the polluted aura.

The battle was a back-and-forth affair, with the natural side sometimes having the upper hand and the other side launching a counterattack from an unexpected angle, but no one was ever able to completely eliminate the other.

Just as Lu Yan was losing patience, the battle situation suddenly changed.

The two opposing camps slowly approached each other. The plant on the left stretched out its branches and leaves wildly, entangled the strange creature on the right, and devoured it completely. The strange creature's power that was devoured did not dissipate, but instead turned into black seeds, which were buried in the soil by the plant's roots.

Moments later, the seed sprouted from the soil and opened into a strange black bud. However, after blooming, it did not produce fruit, but rather various new and bizarre shapes.

Life and death, nature and pollution—two originally opposing poles—have achieved a perfect symbiotic balance at this moment, becoming indistinguishable from one another.

The next second, Lu Yan's consciousness suddenly returned to his body, and a notification popped up on the panel.

[Promotion successful, obtained Sequence 8 - Treant/Gravedigger]

Before he could examine it closely, the two sequence names on the subtitles suddenly twisted and rotated, like two intertwined vortexes, and finally merged completely into one.

[Fusion successful, obtained Special Sequence 8 - The Wicked Gardener!]

[Gain the Trait - Yin-Yang Vision: You can see the forces of nature and pollution, greatly increasing your perception]

[Gain the Trait "Body of Withering and Flourishing": You can freely switch between natural and polluted states. In the corresponding environment, your recovery speed is greatly increased, your ability to cultivate plants/monsters is greatly increased, and the probability of mutation is greatly increased.]

[Gain Skill: Tree Soldier Guardians: After use, you can consume mental energy to awaken and control the surrounding plants/monsters. The amount consumed depends on the strength of the plants/monsters.]

[Gain skill - Twin Cycle: After use, your plants will transform into monsters upon death, and your monsters will transform into monster seeds upon death.]

"They actually fused together..."

The anticipated scenario of the two sequences clashing did not occur; instead, they merged perfectly, directly creating a special sequence!

Not only that, but even in the originally lifeless and gloomy ghost realm, a place of life has appeared.

After a moment's thought, he realized that this was originally the ability that the Tree Shepherd had awakened, but it had been merged with the Ghost Realm.

Without the slightest hesitation, Lu Yan threw the three small plants in as well.

"It seems that not only can cultivation methods and special abilities complement each other, but sequences can also break through barriers through fusion."

With this in mind, he became even more determined to collect more sequences.

As long as we can continue to integrate and optimize, our future combat power will be limitless.