Xiao Han's palms, carrying a terrifying power that seemed to shatter the heavens and earth and return them to chaos, slammed into the Void Whisperers's body!
"Pfft--!"
There was no earth-shattering explosion; instead, it sounded like something being forcibly torn apart.
The teleportation array shuddered violently, bursting forth with blinding white light. The runes on it flickered wildly, as if it were about to collapse at any moment.
"Ahhh--!"
The Void Whisperers let out a roar more shrill and agonizing than ever before. The sound was no longer a shriek, but rather carried a tremor and fear of a soul being torn apart.
The thick, inky black aura emanating from it dissipated rapidly, like a punctured balloon. Countless tentacles drooped and withered helplessly, and its surging power receded as quickly as the tide.
It turns out that this cunning Void Whisperers had connected a portion of its core essence to a key node of the teleportation array through that hidden energy flow, attempting to use it as a springboard to slowly corrupt and erode the teleportation center of the first level of the Heaven-Piercing Tower, ultimately achieving its sinister goal of controlling the entire tower!
Xiao Han's attack severely damaged a portion of its soul essence and severed its connection with the teleportation array!
"Strike while the iron is hot!" A cold glint flashed in Xiao Han's eyes; he wouldn't give it a chance to breathe.
Above the Chaos Green Lotus Martial Soul, the blurry phantom of the World Tree suddenly became clearer, and the [Myriad Trees Spring Forth] divine power was activated in response. Countless vines, shimmering with emerald light and engraved with profound runes, sprang forth out of thin air, like chains with life, instantly wrapping around and binding the greatly weakened Void Whisperers.
The pure life force and purifying power emanating from the blue lotus vines are the nemesis of such evil things. Every contact causes the Void Whisperers to emit a painful "sizzling" sound, as the black energy is continuously purified and dissolved.
At the same time, the Eternal Night Void Emperor Martial Soul also erupted with powerful soul fluctuations. [Soul Intimidation] struck the already injured soul of the Void Whisperers like an invisible hammer, causing its consciousness to fall into brief confusion and stagnation. Immediately afterward, the power of [Shadow Devour] quietly activated, forcibly stripping and absorbing strands of pure negative soul energy from the Void Whisperers's body.
"No--! My lord will not let you go!" The Void Whisperers uttered its final curse in despair. Its core, composed of tentacles, suddenly expanded, flashing with an extremely dangerous destructive light, as if it wanted to detonate its own core and perish together with Xiao Han!
"Trying to self-destruct? Did you ask me first!" Xiao Han snorted, and the [Soul Origin Treasure Jade] between his brows shone brightly, unleashing a vast and powerful soul pressure that pressed down like Mount Tai.
The Void Whisperers's core, which was about to explode, was actually suppressed and frozen for a moment by this powerful soul suppression.
It was this moment of stagnation that determined its ultimate fate.
The purifying light of the Chaos Green Lotus and the devouring power of the Eternal Night Monarch, like a millstone of yin and yang, mercilessly crushed its remains and soul.
"Sizzle..."
With a sickeningly loud Obliteration sound, the enormous body of the Void Whisperers disintegrated inch by inch, finally turning into a wisp of green smoke and completely dissipating into the air.
Only a fist-sized, jet-black crystal, its surface covered with twisted runes, emanating a chilling and ominous aura, remained, silently suspended in mid-air.
[Void Remnant Crystal].
Xiao Han reached out and took the [Void Remnant Crystal] into his hand.
[Ding! Special item "Void Remnant Crystal" detected. Contains some of the Void Whisperers's original information and a small amount of pure Void energy. It can be used to analyze the weaknesses of Void creatures, or sacrificed to the system in exchange for special rewards.]
The system notification tone sounded at the appropriate time.
With the complete annihilation of the Void Whisperers, the evil and oppressive atmosphere that had permeated the air vanished.
The crisis is over.
On the plain, the Martial Artists who had miraculously survived collapsed to the ground, panting heavily, their faces still bearing the lingering fear of their ordeal. When they looked at Xiao Han, their gazes held not only gratitude for surviving the ordeal, but also a deep sense of awe and an indescribable complexity.
Xiao Han's previously displayed Star Demon power, which was both righteous and evil, and domineering beyond compare, had left a very deep impression on them.
"Thank you so much... for saving me, hero!" An old man at the Martial Emperor Realm, who had lost an arm, struggled to his feet and bowed to Xiao Han from afar, his voice hoarse but full of sincerity.
The others followed suit, their gratitude evident in their expressions.
Xiao Han nodded slightly, his gaze turning to the small teleportation array that was still flickering. Through subtle inquiries from the survivors, he finally gained some understanding of the first level of the Heaven-Piercing Tower.
It turns out that the true core trial of this first level is not treasure hunting, but "protecting the Starfire"!
The Starfire is the core of the energy circulation on the first level of the Heaven-Piercing Tower, and the inexhaustible source of the stellar power here. Once the Starfire is extinguished or contaminated, the entire first level will fall into energy depletion and chaos.
This teleportation array, targeted by the Void Whisperers, is one of the key paths to the core area of "Starfire".
Just then, the teleportation array, which had been calming down, suddenly started flashing intensely again, more rapidly than ever before.
A wave of energy far more powerful, colder, and more malevolent than the previous Void Whisperers faintly emanated from the other end of the teleportation array. Along with it came several extremely faint, intermittent, yet desperate cries for help!
"Not good!" Xiao Han's pupils suddenly contracted.
The Void Whisperers' schemes are likely far more complex than simply eroding the teleportation hub! A more powerful enemy and a deeper conspiracy are already quietly unfolding on the other side of the teleportation array!
A truly tough battle is about to begin!
The teleportation array flashed rapidly, and the chilling, evil aura emanating from it—far surpassing that of the previous Void Whisperers— was like an invisible giant hand, gripping everyone's hearts tightly. A few faint, desperate cries for help came intermittently from the other side of the portal, like the last gasps of a drowning person.
"That voice... it's Qin Yueyao! The prodigy of the Star Radiance Qin Family in the Imperial Capital!" A surviving Martial Artist exclaimed in shock, his face turning deathly pale. "Their team was the first to enter, and they are extremely strong. Could it be that even they..."
Everyone's hearts sank. The Star Radiance Qin Family was one of the four great families in the Imperial Capital, on par with the Su Family. Qin Yueyao was an outstanding figure among the younger generation. Even she had issued such a desperate cry for help. The situation on the other end of the teleportation array had exceeded their expectations.
[Ding! God-Level Choice activated!]
The "Starfire Altar" is currently under heavy attack from "Void Polluters (Elite Level, Martial Emperor Realm Late-Stage Peak)". The core "Starfire" is about to be extinguished; once extinguished, the first level of the Heaven-Piercing Tower will be completely transformed into the Void Demon Realm!