“Yes, it seems like there’s some divine power involved.” Jerry nodded, looking still shaken.

Lu Ning said calmly, "It's alright, don't worry."

He glanced at the crystal; its dim yellow light had dissipated, turning grayish-white, and it lay on the ground.

He thought for a moment, then picked up the crystal; no more death energy surged from within it.

He jumped down from the altar.

An Lan looked at the crystal in Lu Ning's hand and asked, "Lu Ning, what's with this crystal? Why did you suddenly stop just now?"

Lu Ning glanced at the surrounding plants, a mixture of flesh and blood, and said, "I saw what this oasis looked like before through the crystal."

Everyone was taken aback.

An Lan was somewhat taken aback: "What do you mean? You saw the past?"

Lu Ning nodded.

Everyone's eyes widened in shock.

The ability to see the past is something that even a demigod probably couldn't do.

Ya'en frowned and asked, "Lu Ning, what did you see?"

Lu Ning recounted what he had seen earlier.

Everyone fell silent.

The air was silent for a few seconds. Ling Chuan sighed and said, "So it seems this place was originally a city of a civilized race, but now only this mutated oasis remains?"

Su Qi lowered his gaze and slowly said, "The mist swallowed their entire civilization. Do you think we humans will end up like them?"

Everyone fell silent.

No one can answer that.

After a moment of silence, Steve forced a smile and said, "I don't think so. After all, we've been holding off the fog for so long. Maybe once those demigods achieve godhood, we can launch a counterattack?"

Hearing this, An Lan's eyes dimmed slightly. He smiled and said, "Perhaps. No matter what happens in the future, we are still alive now, and humanity still exists. We should continue to work hard for the continuation of our race."

Yann smiled and nodded: "Don't think about it too much, let's go."

Lu Ning didn't say anything more. He handed the shattered crystal to An Lan so that he could do research on it later.

He then carried the stone tablet over the altar and continued forward.

Inside the stone tablet, wisps of death energy surged into Lu Ning's body.

His mental strength increased rapidly.

Lu Ning discovered that the extremely powerful aura of death, besides its strong corrosive properties, had also significantly boosted his mental strength.

After reaching the seventh level, Lu Ning discovered that his mental strength was improving much more slowly.

Although the cultivation speed is faster than before due to the increased spiritual pollution in the current environment, it is estimated that it will still take two or three years to break through to the eighth level.

As a result, after entering this oasis, both the stone tablet and the death power within the crystal rapidly enhanced his mental strength.

The combined increase in mental strength from these two things is greater than what he could achieve in three to five months of his own cultivation.

At this rate, his breakthrough time will be significantly shortened.

The altar is located in the central area of ​​the oasis.

After moving away from the altar, Lu Ning and his group clearly felt a change in the surrounding plant environment, which seemed to be shifting towards the outer environment.

Having gained experience from their previous exploration of the oasis, Lu Ning and his group quickened their pace considerably.

The dangers and troubles they faced before are no longer a problem for them now.

After all, their own strength is formidable enough, and the unknown could bring some trouble.

But once the source of the danger is known, these troubles cease to be troubles.

In less than a day, they left the oasis and returned to the desert.

Looking at the yellow dust and bone powder filling the distance, An Lan said, "Based on what the members of those two extinction brigades said, there are probably three other teams also conducting ritual activities, and the central area is probably the area with the highest level of spiritual pollution."

Yaen nodded slightly, then said, "Anlan, should we go directly to the core area with the highest level of mental pollution, or should we find the other three teams first?"

An Lan thought for a moment and said, "According to the two members of the Returning to the Dead Brigade, there are two Saint-level Yellow Spring Priests leading the team in the central area, and their strength is extraordinary."

"Furthermore, we are unsure what their ritual is or whether it enhances their strength. Although we have three Saints and Lu Ning, whose strength is comparable to that of a Saint, fighting on their home turf may lead to unexpected events and personnel losses."

"Therefore, my suggestion is to first find the other three teams and disrupt their rituals. According to the rules of ritual law, disrupting the surrounding ritual nodes will likely have a significant impact on their rituals in the central area. This should weaken the Yellow Springs Priests in the central area and undermine their home-field advantage."

At that time, the situation will be much more favorable for us, and we are less likely to suffer casualties.

After listening to An Lan's suggestion, Ya En nodded: "Then let's do it your way. How do we find the other three teams?"

An Lan smiled and said, "The distribution of ritual nodes is generally around the central area. By getting close to the area with the highest concentration of mental pollution, we should be able to detect other locations with high levels of mental pollution, just like how we discovered this oasis."

"Then let's go."