Chapter 2257 Trust

In the midst of their conversation, Farouk reached out to take the wooden box passed to him by his subordinate, placing the slightly yellowed sapling of the sacred tree inside before handing it to Ovi.

"Make sure to protect the sacred tree sapling!"

"Yes, Elder!"

In a moment of crisis, Ovi forced himself to calm down, gritting his teeth as he took the box from Farouk.

No matter what, they had to safeguard the sacred tree sapling!

"Let's go!"

Ovi shouted, immediately leading the more than twenty others present out of the main hall, heading towards the exit of the Temple of Incantation.

Seeing this, Fang Heng also followed Ovi towards the rear exit of the temple.

Outside, after breaking through the defensive field created by the sacred tree sapling, the three major tribes pressed forward, breaking through the temple's perimeter. Vannes, Ian, and the Leaf tribe elders were still struggling to delay them at the entrance to the main hall.

Fang Heng and Ovi hurried towards the rear exit until they reached the position of the temple's back door.

This was bad

Arriving at the exit, Ovi's heart sank.

While the main hall of the Temple of Incantation was the primary target of the three major tribes, there were still some members of the Root tribe guarding the rear exits, as if they had known they would attempt to escape and had already blocked all exits.

There was no time!

They had to force their way out!

Ovi didn't rush out immediately. Instead, he took a deep breath and said, "Fang Heng."

"Hmm?"

Fang Heng turned to look at Ovi beside him.

"No matter what, the sacred tree sapling must not be taken by the other tribes. We can only take a gamble. You and I are different. You're human. If something happens to me, you don't need to worry about me. Just leave on your own."

Fang Heng fell into a moment of silence.

He wanted to suggest, "Why don't you just give me the sapling, and I'll try my best to take you with me?"

"You're strange. You're different from other members of the Leaf tribe. Aren't you afraid I might suddenly snatch the sacred tree sapling from your tribe?"

"Don't joke. I trust you," Ovi said, sighing. "If I could, I would entrust the sacred tree sapling to you. Perhaps your abilities are more suitable for protecting and escorting it than mine."

"Oh?" Fang Heng looked slightly surprised. "Why not?"

"Even among our Leaf tribe, only a few understand how to properly protect and escort the sapling. Once a normal person comes into contact with it, the sapling will quickly wither. Even if I were to give it to you now, it would be useless."

Really?

Fang Heng felt a bit uneasy, looking at Ovi, trying to determine if he was being deceived by any subtle expressions or details.

After all, he had been fooled by members of the Leaf tribe too many times, and he was starting to develop some PTSD.

"Fang Heng, you've helped me a lot. These two books are related to dimensional world magic arrays, which might be useful for you in the future. Take them for now," Ovi said, almost as if he were settling affairs, pulling out two thick volumes from his pocket. "I know this situation is tough. Escaping from this surrounded group is nearly impossible, especially considering those elders who can use special secret techniques and have a faint connection to the sacred tree sapling, allowing them to track it."

Fang Heng furrowed his brow.

For the first time, he realized not all members of the Leaf tribe were the same.

Alright.

Fang Heng took the books and nodded. "Understood. I'll try my best to find a way to get you out with me."

"Thank you."

Ovi said, patting his cheek, boosting his spirits, then rallying the more than twenty Leaf tribe guards accompanying him. "Go! Together! Break through and protect the Leaf tribe!"

"Yes!"

The guards immediately rushed towards the back door, attempting to break through the Root tribe guards and make their escape!

"Root entanglement!"

Outside the door, the Root tribe, seeing a group of Wood Tribe members attempting to break through, immediately released spells to block them!

Like snakes, roots swiftly crawled toward the Leaf tribe guards!

The guards dared not be careless.

Once entangled by the roots, they would almost lose their combat abilities.

The guards were forced to halt and laboriously clear the snake-like roots from the ground.

Two Root tribe elders stood behind the battlefield, coldly observing the Leaf tribe being gradually pushed into a corner.

Unless they concentrated their divine perception, they could only sense a rough area where the sacred tree sapling might be.

Hence, they were unaware that the sapling was currently on Ovi.

Elders of their stature generally held themselves in high regard.

Seeing no elders among the opposing forces, they naturally wouldn't easily intervene.

Ovi charged into the battlefield, fighting with all his might.

However, as he watched his comrades being entangled by roots one by one, their breakthrough becoming increasingly feeble, and even with two enemy Root tribe elders eyeing them from behind, Ovi's heart sank deeper and deeper.

It was even more difficult than he had imagined.

There seemed to be no hope at all!

What should they do!?

Wait, where was Fang Heng?

Ovi suddenly realized he hadn't seen any sign of Fang Heng.

Although he knew deep down that Fang Heng alone couldn't change the tide of the battle.

Was today the day they would meet their end here?

Just as he was thinking, Ovi's pupils constricted as he caught sight of several flashes of red creatures in his peripheral vision.

Lickers!

A vast horde of Lickers quickly poured out from behind the temple!

Here they come!

They were the special creatures Fang Heng had controlled in the dimensional world before!

The horde of Lickers spread out instantly towards the front!

It was the first time the Root tribe encountered such powerful creatures, and they were not yet familiar with the characteristics of the Lickers. They attempted to eliminate them using long-range skills.

However, they soon found out that the Lickers' defensive capabilities were terrifying!

Ordinary nature arrows were ineffective against them! They could only rely on the skill of entangling roots to temporarily restrain them.

Unfortunately, there were too many Lickers!

There was hope!

With the Lickers catching the Root tribe off guard, the battle line even pushed forward by more than ten meters.

Ovi even glimpsed a glimmer of hope and was about to make a break for it when he felt a hand on his shoulder.

Turning around, Ovi was startled, "Fang Heng?"

"Don't panic!"

"What?"

"Follow me."

With that, Fang Heng pulled Ovi back towards the rear.

Ovi didn't know what Fang Heng was up to. Watching Fang Heng lead him back inside the temple, even heading towards a side hall deeper within, Ovi grew anxious and said, "Fang Heng, relying solely on the Lickers won't hold them off for long. We should make a break for it while we still have a chance, or it'll only get harder later."

"I know."

Fang Heng said as he led Ovi deeper into the Temple of Incantation, heading straight for the lowest-level warehouse.

"We have other options."

What?

Ovi felt suspicious, but he followed Fang Heng forward.

Before they even approached the underground warehouse, Ovi heard the sound of heavy thudding coming from not far away within the warehouse.

That was...