Demonic Figurines Knock on the Mausoleum

Ying Zheng's fingertips, wreathed in the pure and heavy will of Human Dao imperial authority, like the brush of heavenly law that decrees fate, slowly pointed towards the speck of chaotic gray light on Cheng Xi's brow that maintained their fragile balance! Before his fingertip even reached, an invisible chain of will had already imprisoned space. The fluctuations of the chaotic gray light abruptly halted, and the delicate balance that had just been established instantly showed cracks!

The water of the Dragon Source in the stone pool churned violently, its milky white light flickering unstintingly! Deep within the stone cave, the pressure of the Ancestor Dragon True Spirit became even more agitated and chaotic due to the intervention of imperial authority, like an enraged dragon disturbed from its slumber!

The strings were about to snap! Life and death on a razor's edge!

Just as the decisive finger was about to touch the brow—

"Report—!!!"

A scream, so sharp it distorted, carrying boundless terror, violently tore through the dead silence of the stone cave! A Mausoleum Guard, covered in blood and with shattered armor, scrambled into the cave. It was Wang Wu, who had been left to guard the burial pits! His face was smeared with mud and blood, his eyes filled only with extreme terror. He collapsed before Ying Zheng, his voice hoarse like a broken gong:

"Great King! General Meng! Something terrible has happened! The soldier terracotta figures... the soldier terracotta figures are alive! The Demonic Root... the Demonic Root is eating the figures! And... and countless demonic tentacles have emerged! They're devouring the other soldier terracotta figures... turning them... turning into monsters! They... they're about to break out!"

BOOM!

It was like thunder exploding in the stone cave! Ying Zheng's finger, poised to strike Cheng Xi's brow, suddenly stopped! His deep Dragon Eyes instantly contracted, his icy gaze piercing Wang Wu like a sharp sword: "What did you say?!"

Meng Tian was struck as if by lightning, his fierce eyes shooting out a beam of disbelief: "Demonic tentacles? Devouring soldiers? Monsters?!"

Wang Wu spoke incoherently, gesturing wildly, his voice choked with sobs: "It's absolutely true! The pit... it's full of dark gold demonic tentacles! They're emerging from the soldier俑's bodies! Swallowing any俑 they see! They devour the clay and bronze... and then... they grow barbs and iron hooks! What's... what's even more terrifying is... those intact soldier俑 that were touched by the tentacles... they... they're changing too!"

As if to confirm his words—

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—!!!

Deep within the Imperial Mausoleum of Mount Li, a tremor far more intense and frequent than before suddenly erupted! It was like thousands of troops galloping underground! The muffled sounds of impact, the cracking of clay, the grinding of metal, mixed with a non-human, low and chaotic roar, pierced through the thick rock layers. It was like the death knell from hell, striking hard at the hearts of everyone in the stone cave!

"ROAR—!!!"

A non-human roar, filled with ferocity, chaos, and the sound of grinding metal, penetrated from the direction of the burial pits! Following it, a second, a third... countless roars! They converged into a tide of demonic sounds that made one's soul tremble!

Ying Zheng abruptly turned his head, his gaze piercing through the stone cave's walls, as if he could see the hellish scene unfolding deep within the mausoleum! The finger he had placed on Cheng Xi's brow ultimately did not press down. Within those deep Dragon Eyes, icy killing intent and a solemn, mountain-like imperial pressure intertwined and surged!

Internal threats unresolved, external demons at the gates! This Imperial Mausoleum of Mount Li had become the eye of the storm!

The burial pits had become a demonic realm on earth!

At the bottom of the pit, dozens of demonic root tentacles, covered in dark gold cuticles and as thick as giant pythons, writhed wildly! They had devoured dozens of soldier terracotta warriors, their mouths crushing and melting fragments of clay and broken bronze weapons! On the surface of the tentacles, the dark gold cuticle layer had become as thick as armor, and at the edges, ferocious barbs and spikes, gleaming with a sinister metallic cold light, had formed! The tips had even mutated into sharp protrusions resembling bronze halberds and spears!

These demonic root tentacles had completely transformed into dark gold demonic tentacles, like killing machines!

Even more terrifying were the thousands of soldier terracotta warriors at the bottom of the pit that had merely been trembling before!

Any terracotta warriors that had been entangled by the demonic tentacles, or even just splashed by the dark gold mucus flowing on their surfaces, their grayish-brown clay bodies began to writhe as if alive! Countless fine dark gold patterns spread wildly from the points of contact, instantly covering the bodies of the terracotta warriors! Deep within the hollow eye sockets of the terracotta warriors, two points of demonic light, scarlet as blood, ignited!

"Crack... crackle..."

The harsh sound of joints grinding together erupted densely! One by one, the soldier terracotta army infected by the demonic markings, stiffly, yet with unwavering resolve... began to move! They were no longer inanimate objects, but had transformed into—demonized soldier terracotta army—covered in dark gold demonic markings, their eyes glowing with scarlet demonic light, and wielding bronze weapons!

Initially, the movements of these demonized puppets were somewhat stiff, but after just a few breaths, driven by the demonic markings within their bodies, they became swift and ferocious! They no longer maintained their orderly formations, but like ants thrown into boiling water, they fell into a frenzied chaos! Some demonized puppets swung their bronze weapons, wildly hacking at the uncorrupted soldier puppets beside them, tearing them apart and devouring them! Others, as if summoned by an unseen force, followed the writhing dark gold demonic tentacles, marching with heavy and chaotic steps, like a black tide, charging towards the entrance of the corridor at the edge of the burial pits...

Target—the upper levels of the mausoleum! Target—the flesh and blood of the living!

"Hold them back! We absolutely cannot let these monsters break through!" On the edge of the pit wall, the surviving Mausoleum Guards erupted with their last vestiges of courage in despair! Arrows rained down upon the charging demonized yongshi! However, their clay bodies, covered in demonic markings, proved surprisingly tough. Ordinary arrows struck them, only to spark a few times! A thrust from a bronze ge produced a sound of clashing metal!

The tide of demonized puppets, under the barrage of arrows, like moving fortresses, ferociously charged towards the hastily formed defensive line of the Mausoleum Guards!

BANG! CRACKLE!

The sounds of shattering bones and screams instantly erupted! How could flesh and blood withstand these demonized clay and metal puppets? The defensive line was torn apart like paper! Limbs and broken weapons flew everywhere! Wang Wu watched with his own eyes as several of his comrades were split in half by the bronze swords of the demonized yǒng, and then swept up by the dark gold demonic tentacles into mouths filled with sharp teeth!

"Retreat! Retreat to the upper level corridor! Seal the entrance with giant stones!" Wang Wu roared, his eyes bloodshot, leading the remaining soldiers in a fighting retreat. Corpses were scattered everywhere as they retreated in disarray into the depths of the narrow corridor. Behind them, the heavy footsteps of the demonized yongshi and the whistling of the dark gold demonic tentacles tearing through the air, like the music of death, relentlessly pursued them!

The dire news brought by Wang Wu and the tide of demonic roars from underground, like ice water poured over their heads, instantly froze the air in the stone cave.

Ying Zheng's finger, poised to strike Cheng Xi's brow, remained suspended in mid-air. Within his Dragon Eyes, icy killing intent and a solemn, mountain-like imperial pressure surged violently. Deep within the mausoleum, the elite troops he had prepared to take into the underworld had transformed into a demonic army that had turned on its master! This was no longer just about Cheng Xi's life and death, but a threat to the fate of Great Qin, a threat to the foundation of his Ancestor Dragon inheritance!

Meng Tian's face turned ashen, the hand holding his command token trembling violently. The demonization of the Terracotta Army, the devouring by the demonic tentacles... this was more terrifying than demonic evils invading the palace! If these monsters were allowed to break out of the mausoleum... Xianyang would be in danger!

Just as their hearts were shaken and the balance was about to completely collapse—

"Ugh—!!!"

On the jade platform, the unconscious Cheng Xi suddenly arched his body, letting out a shrill howl that was not human! The speck of chaotic gray light on his brow, simultaneously imprisoned by imperial authority and Ancestor Dragon pressure, like a cornered beast, under the stimulus of impending death, unleashed an unprecedented ferocity and... a variable!

BUZZ—!!!

A composite frequency shockwave, far more violent and chaotic than before, suddenly exploded from the depths of Cheng Xi's collapsing dantian! This was no longer a precise frequency modulation, but a desperate, self-destructive act in the face of peril and... indiscriminate attack!

The shockwave ignored the residual Dragon Qi diversion paths within his body. Like a runaway torrent, it rampaged through his already ravaged meridians! Wherever it passed, the already fragile meridians shattered inch by inch! The temporarily suppressed Turbid Fiendish Power, like gunpowder ignited, instantly broke free from its restraints, mixing with the newly formed remnants of Chaos Earth Fiend, transforming into even more turbid and violent Chaos Fiendish Energy, raging madly!

PUFF! PUFF! PUFF!

Countless blood wounds instantly burst open on Cheng Xi's body! What sprayed out was no longer blood, but filthy blood mixed with viscous gray, gold, and black energy! The Turbid Fiendish Meridians that had just faded beneath his skin instantly turned a dazzling dark gold, like red-hot branding irons, pulsing and spreading wildly! An icy, chaotic aura filled with a desire for destruction erupted from his body!

The balance had completely collapsed! The backlash was like a mountain collapsing and a tsunami surging!

"This is bad! The evil energy within him has completely lost control!" Meng Tian exclaimed in horror. The Ancestor Dragon Token in his hand was violently repelled by this burst of Chaos Fiendish Energy, its light dimming! The Dragon Source water in the stone pool was also violently impacted, the churning milky white currents instantly becoming chaotic!

Even more terrifying was that this out-of-control Chaos Fiendish Energy shockwave, containing the final frantic will of the Chaos Origin Point, had penetrated the stone cave's walls, ignoring spatial barriers, and instantly produced a strange resonance with the demonized soldier俑 and writhing dark gold demonic tentacles charging in the depths of the mausoleum...

BOOM—!!!

The vibration of the entire Imperial Mausoleum of Mount Li suddenly intensified tenfold! It was like the earth was turning over!

"ROAR—!!!"

The demonic roars from the direction of the burial pits instantly became incomparably high-pitched and chaotic! As if stimulated and attracted by something fatal! The scarlet demonic light of the charging demonized terracotta warriors surged, their charging speed increasing dramatically! The writhing dark gold demonic tentacles, as if injected with adrenaline, wildly thrashed against the pit walls, tearing through the rock, launching an even more ferocious assault towards the upper level corridor!

The Chaos Fiendish Energy erupting from Cheng Xi's body was like sparks thrown into boiling oil, completely igniting all the corrupted and demonized beings deep within the Imperial Mausoleum! It plunged them into utter madness and bloodlust!

The strings snapped! Demons descend upon the Imperial Mausoleum!

At the foot of Mount Li, beneath the withered locust tree.

Flames blazed in Yan Lingji's golden-orange eyes as she pressed her hands firmly onto the scorching ground. Deep beneath the earth, the near-shattered Dark Gold core, under the residual might of Pangu's will and the scorching of the orange-blue fire line, had finally reached its limit!

Pfft--!

A faint, annihilating sound on the level of laws, audible only to Yan Lingji! The Dark Gold core completely shattered! It transformed into billions of burning, dark golden fireflies, piercing through the soil and fleeing madly in all directions!

"Burn!" How could Yan Lingji allow this last source of pollution to escape? The orange-red light of her Heart Lamp instantly surged to its extreme! The orange-blue fire line exploded, forming a massive fire net covering the underground space! The fire net, carrying the purifying will to incinerate all filth, fiercely enveloped the scattering dark golden fireflies!

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle--!

The vast majority of the dark golden fireflies, like moths drawn to a flame, instantly dissolved and were purified under the orange-blue fire net! They turned into wisps of smoke! However, a small, extremely weak, and fastest group of fireflies, as if possessing sentience, narrowly pierced through the gaps in the fire net and disappeared into the even darker depths of the earth.

Yan Lingji was too weak to pursue; her mental energy was nearly depleted. But the core was destroyed, and most of the pollution had been purified! She clearly sensed that in this buried Earth Vein area, occupied by the Demonic Root, the viscous, malicious, chaotic demonic intent was rapidly receding, like a retreating tide. The warm, thick vitality belonging to the earth itself was slowly flowing back from all directions.

Success! The source of the Earth Vein's pollution, the node at the foot of Mount Li... cleared!

She let out a long sigh, her taut mind suddenly relaxing, and an intense fatigue washed over her like a tide. She slowly withdrew her hands from the ground, the orange-red flame of her Heart Lamp gradually retracted, and the illusory Zhurong figure behind her quietly dissipated.

However, the moment her guard dropped--

Whoosh! Whoosh!

Two escaping dark golden fireflies, as if alive, silently emerged from a rock crevice not far from her side! Carrying their last vestiges of unwillingness and venom, like poisoned needles, they shot fiercely towards her back, where her defenses were weakened by exhaustion!

Yan Lingji's hair stood on end! The orange-red flames instinctively rose to protect her body, but it was too late in her haste!

At this critical moment--

Buzz!

The cracked Qingping Sword Sheath in her arms let out another faint hum! The cloud patterns at the sheath's opening flowed, and a condensed green Sword Intent was unleashed in response. Though weak, it struck the two dark golden fireflies with pinpoint accuracy!

Pfft! Pfft!

The Sword Intent annihilated the fireflies, and then dissipated itself. The cracks on the sword sheath seemed to have increased by one, its light completely dimmed.

Yan Lingji, her heart still pounding, looked back only to see the faint smoke of the two annihilated fireflies. She gazed deeply at the sword sheath in her arms, holding it even tighter. The call from Pangu Hall came, carrying praise and new guidance—there were still other contaminated nodes deep within Mount Li's main Earth Vein that needed purification, but her strength was nearly depleted and she needed to recover first.

She cast one last look at the withered Demonic Locust Tree and, dragging her exhausted body, staggered towards the main peak of Mount Li. There, an uncorrupted Earth Vein Spirit Eye could help her recover.

Inside the stone cave, the deathly silence was shattered by demonic roars and tremors.

Cheng Xi lay collapsed on the jade platform, covered in bloodstains, his breath so weak it was almost gone. The uncontrolled eruption of Chaos Fiendish Energy had consumed his last spark of life. The Dark Gold Turbid Fiendish Meridians beneath his skin were stiff like dead snakes. The gray glint between his brows was completely extinguished, leaving only a void of deathly silence.

Meng Tian knelt on the ground, blood seeping from the corner of his mouth, the Ancestor Dragon Token's light dimmed. He stared fixedly at Cheng Xi, tears welling in his tiger-like eyes, filled with anger and unwillingness. Lord Chang'an... ultimately couldn't hold on?

Ying Zheng slowly retracted the fingers he had held suspended in mid-air. His dragon robe fluttered without wind, and an icy, ultimate imperial killing intent permeated the air, instantly overwhelming the Ancestor Dragon Pressure deep within the stone cave and the tide of demonic roars from underground! He didn't even glance at the lifeless Cheng Xi, his gaze like ten thousand years of ice, piercing through the rock walls and locking onto the direction from which the demonic sounds emanated deep within the Imperial Mausoleum.

"Meng Tian!"

"Your subordinate is here!" Meng Tian suppressed his injuries, straightening his spine.

"Take my Tiger Tally!" Ying Zheng's voice was like a chilling wind from the netherworld, each word carrying a killing intent that even the Wei River couldn't wash away. "Mobilize the Lantian Elite Guards! The Mount Li Guards! Seal all exits of Mount Li! Seal the Imperial Mausoleum's passages, layer by layer! Use wrought iron! Use massive stones! Use oil!"

"If any demonic creature shows its head..." Within Ying Zheng's Dragon Eyes, dark gold light burned like flames. He spoke word by word, like golden decrees, announcing the emperor's thunderous wrath:

"Kill without mercy! Burn their bodies! Destroy their souls! I want this Mount Li... to become a crematorium for those beasts! Let their wails... become the sacrifices for my coronation ceremony!"

"Understood!" Meng Tian took the golden Tiger Tally, feeling the immense Ancestor Dragon's Power and supreme killing intent contained within. His chest boiled with fervor! He cast one last look at the lifeless Cheng Xi on the jade platform, his grief transforming into resolute killing intent, and then rushed out of the stone cave like a fierce tiger!

Ying Zheng stood alone in the center of the stone cave, his dark black dragon robe rustling in the chaotic energy fluctuations. He slowly raised his hand and placed it on the hilt of the Tai'a Sword at his waist. Within the sheath, the slumbering Ancestor Dragon True Spirit's power was completely stirred by the demonic energy deep within the Imperial Mausoleum and the emperor's fury, emitting a low, majestic dragon roar.

His gaze swept over the lifeless Cheng Xi, then turned towards the direction of the demonic roars from deep within the Imperial Mausoleum. Within his Dragon Eyes, coldness and heat intertwined. Internal strife and external threats? No, in Ying Zheng's eyes, they were all... enemies that could be slain!

"Convey my decree:" Ying Zheng's voice echoed through the stone cave, piercing through the rock walls and reaching the Imperial Mausoleum guards, and the entire Xianyang!

"Effective immediately, Mount Li is sealed! Xianyang... is under curfew!"

"Anyone who spreads demonic rumors or causes trouble during the chaos..."

"Shall have their... entire clan... exterminated—!"

The emperor's wrath was like a prison, locking down Xianyang! The Demonic Calamity of Mount Li would finally begin its climax with the most tragic bloodshed!