Liam''s Perspective


    The Guardian''s power crashed against me like a tidal wave. I staggered backward, barely maintaining my footing. My muscles screamed in protest as I forced myself into a defensive stance.


    "You cannot win," the Guardian repeated, its voice echoing through the chamber.


    I wiped blood from my chin. "I''ve heard that before."


    This wasn''t working. Twelve resurrections, each time stronger than before. If I destroyed it again, what woulde next? A Martial Saint? I''d be dead in seconds.


    I needed to think differently. This wasn''t just about raw power.


    The Guardian struck. I dodged, barely. Its fist shattered the stone where I''d stood moments before. I countered with a Spirit Severing de, but the attack merely rippled through its form like water.


    "Interesting," I muttered.


    I''d destroyed itpletely twelve times, yet it always returned, stronger than before. That defied all naturalws of cultivation. Something else was at work here.


    The Guardian''s next attack caught me across the chest. Pain exploded through my body as I mmed into the wall. Blood filled my mouth. Three ribs, broken at minimum.


    "Not... giving up..." I pushed myself to my feet.


    The cavern around us. The moisture in the air. The tree itself. Everything here felt connected, like parts of a whole.


    A formation.


    The realization struck me like lightning. This wasn''t just a guardian - this was part of the tower''s array. No wonder destroying it did nothing!


    I had to find the formation''s source, its "Array Eye."


    The Guardian attacked again, but this time I was ready. I sidestepped and struck not at it, but at a stctite hanging above. The stone cracked and fell, but nothing changed.


    Not that, then. <small ss="in-imprint-a">Help us continue by reading at the source: *.</small>


    The Guardian''s elongated arm whipped toward me. I ducked and rolled,ing up near a cluster of glowing crystals embedded in the wall. I smashed them with a quick blow.


    Nothing.


    The Guardian''s next attack sent me flying across the chamber. I crashed into a pool of water, the liquid strangely warm. As I dragged myself out, I noticed how quickly my wounds began to close.


    "The water," I realized. "It''s healing me."


    That meant it was part of the formation. I channeled energy into my palm and struck the pool''s surface. The water churned and bubbled but settled momentster.


    Not the source either.


    The Guardian loomed over me. I braced for impact, but instead of attacking, it spoke.


    "You begin to understand, but too slowly. Your time runs out."


    It was right. I could feel Elder Foster''s energy signature growing stronger above us. He''d returned faster than expected.


    I nced around desperately. What was I missing?


    The Three Pure Ancient Tree stood cidly at the center, its silver leaves shimmering. The Guardian itself seemed to shimmer in resonance with the tree.


    "Wait." My eyes widened. "It''s not just defending the tree. They''re connected."


    I looked up at the ceiling of the cavern, then higher in my mind''s eye, visualizing the Hydrating Tower rising above us.


    The tower itself. The tree. The water. The Guardian. All parts of a single, massive formation.


    And formations always had a center.


    "The tower," I whispered. "The Hydrating Tower is the Array Eye."


    The Guardian''s expression shifted, confirming my theory.


    I didn''t hesitate. I sprinted toward the hole I''d made in the ceiling, channeling what little energy I had left into my legs. The Guardian lunged after me, but it was toote. I leapt up, grabbing the edge of the opening and pulling myself through.


    "Knight!" Elder Foster stood on the fifth floor, Sundering Spear in hand. "What have you done?"


    I ignored him, rushing past toward the stairs. He grabbed for my arm, but I twisted away.


    "Stop! You''ll destabilize everything!"


    I burst onto the tower''s roof, the cool night air hitting my face. Below me, I could feel the entire formation humming with power. The Hydrating Tower was more than a building—it was the physical manifestation of the formation''s core.


    Elder Foster emerged behind me, his face contorted with anger. "Knight, whatever you''re thinking—"


    "Sorry about this," I said, and leapt from the roof.


    Inded on the ground outside the tower and immediately spun around. The massive structure loomed above me, its pale stone gleaming in the moonlight. I gathered every ounce of strength I had left and channeled it into my fist.


    "Chaotic Dragon Strike!"


    My fist connected with the tower''s base. The impact sent shockwaves through the ground. Cracks spiderwebbed up the tower''s surface. The entire structure swayed but didn''t fall.


    "Knight!" Elder Foster shouted from above. "You fool! Do you know what you''re doing?"


    I knew exactly what I was doing. Destroying the Array Eye would copse the formation. No formation meant no endlessly resurrecting Guardian.


    I drew on my reserves, finding strength I didn''t know I had left. One more strike would do it.


    "Nine Heavens Destruction Palm!"


    My palm mmed into the already damaged base. The impact was devastating. The cracks widened, shooting up through all seven floors of the ancient structure. Stone groaned and shifted.


    For a moment, nothing happened.


    Then, with a thunderous roar, the Hydrating Tower began to copse.


    Elder Foster leapt clear,nding beside me with rage in his eyes. "You''ve destroyed a thousand-year legacy!"


    The tower came down in sections, each floor crumbling into the one below. Dust billowed outward, filling the night air. The ground shook beneath our feet.


    As the dust began to settle, I stared at the rubble, waiting. Had I seeded? Or had I just angered a Martial Marquis-level Guardian and destroyed an irreceable relic for nothing?


    A faint glow emerged from the center of the debris. The dust parted as if blown by an invisible wind, revealing the Three Pure Ancient Tree, now uprooted from its cavern home. It hovered a few feet above the ground, its silver leaves rustling without a breeze.


    And there was no Guardian in sight.


    "It worked," I breathed, allowing myself a moment of relief.


    Elder Foster stared in disbelief. "The tree... it''s exposed."


    I stepped toward it, half-expecting the Guardian to reappear. Nothing happened. The formation was broken. The tree''s defense mechanism was disabled.


    The tree seemed to respond to my approach, its leaves turning toward me like a flower following the sun. I reached out, my fingertips inches from its trunk.


    "Don''t touch it!" Elder Foster snapped. "You''ve done enough damage."


    I paused, looking over my shoulder at him. "I need this tree, Elder Foster. You know why."


    His jaw tightened. "The Pavilion Master sent you for information, not to steal ancient treasures."


    "The Pavilion Master wants me to save Isabelle," I corrected him. "This tree will help me do that."


    "By destroying an ancient wonder? By decimating the tower that has stood for a millennium?"


    "By any means necessary," I said softly.


    Elder Foster''s expression darkened. "Then you leave me no choice."


    He raised his Sundering Spear, its tip gleaming with deadly purpose. I turned fully to face him, knowing I had little strength left to fight.


    The ground beneath us suddenly trembled. The tree''s glow intensified, bing almost blinding.


    "What now?" Foster growled.


    A new sound emerged from the rubble—not the cracking of stone or the settling of debris, but something wet and fluid. Something forming.


    From the center of the ruins, a figure began to rise.


    "Impossible," I whispered.


    The Guardian was reforming, but differently this time. Its body was more solid, less translucent. Its features had be sharper, more defined. And its eyes—its eyes were fixed directly on me.


    "The tower is gone," Foster said, his voice tight with fear. "How is it still manifesting?"


    The Guardian stepped forward, its movements no longer fluid but precise and purposeful. When it spoke, its voice echoed with power that made my bones vibrate.


    "Did you think the tower was the source?" it asked. "The tower was merely a shell."


    A cold realization washed over me. I''d been wrong. The tower wasn''t the Array Eye—it was just a container.


    "The true heart of this formation," the Guardian continued, "has always been me."