Corpse-Deity Demonic Embryo

On the jade platform, congealed blood formed scabs. Cheng Xi's eyes were tightly shut, his mouth and nose devoid of any breath, his skin a pale, cold gray, stiff as a stone effigy. The uncontrollable outburst of Chaos Killing Intent Energy, like the final flicker of a dying lamp, had completely consumed his remaining life force. Meng Tian's sorrowful glance as he departed was a final farewell.

Ying Zheng's dark, profound dragon robe brushed the blood-stained edge of the jade platform. His Dragon Eyes swept over the "corpse" with neither joy nor sorrow, only an ice-bound indifference. For him, the story of Lord Chang'an, Cheng Xi, had ended the moment the alarm of the demonic transformation of the soldier effigies sounded. What occupied the jade platform now was merely a remnant to be dealt with, defiled by evil.

"Guards," the Emperor's voice, still clear and cold, echoed in the vibrating stone cavern.

Two Shadow Guards, clad in dark armor and wearing bronze ghost masks, emerged like phantoms from the shadows in a corner of the cavern, kneeling on one knee, awaiting orders in silence.

"Take this corpse," Ying Zheng's gaze lingered on the congealed dark gold bloodstains on Cheng Xi's chest, "and move it into the 'Profound Ice Abyss' to be sealed forever."

"Yes!" The Shadow Guards' voices were hoarse and devoid of emotion. The Profound Ice Abyss was a frigid pit forged from ten thousand years of profound ice deep within the Imperial Mausoleum, specifically for sealing malevolent spirits and strange corpses. Those who entered this abyss would have their souls scattered and be eternally frozen. This was the Emperor's final disposition for this "variable."

The Shadow Guards stepped forward, their movements precise as puppets, and lifted Cheng Xi's icy "corpse" from either side. The moment they touched Cheng Xi's arm—

Chh... Chh-chh...

An extremely faint, yet bone-chilling sound emanated from the cinnabar field area of the "corpse"! It was as if something... was slowly awakening and wriggling beneath the solid ice!

Ying Zheng's Dragon Eyes narrowed sharply!

The Shadow Guards' movements froze instantly! Though their masked faces revealed no expression, their tensed bodies betrayed extreme vigilance!

Beneath the skin of Cheng Xi's cinnabar field, covered by the congealed blood, a minuscule point of dark gold light was faintly glowing through the dried bloodstains! Though weak, the light carried a cold, viscous life force, like the eyes of a viper! As the light intensified, the bloodscabs covering it began to subtly rise and crack as if alive!

Corpse-Deity transformation?! No! It was the core of the Chaos Killing Intent Energy, a mixture of the uncontrolled turbid evil and the Demon Lizard's residual blood. After the host's life force was extinguished, it had not dissipated but, in this foul incubator, had begun to gestate some unknown demonic embryo!

"Retreat!" Ying Zheng's voice was like an ice blade! Almost simultaneously, the Tai'a Sword at his waist let out a low dragon's roar. The sword had not yet been unsheathed, but an invisible imperial will had already transformed into a heavy hammer, smashing down fiercely onto the wriggling cinnabar field!

Boom!

A dull thud! Cheng Xi's "corpse" was violently slammed onto the cold Ink Jade Platform by the immense force! His chest caved in, and the sound of cracking bones was clearly audible! However, the dark gold light at the cinnabar field merely flickered violently. Far from being extinguished, it seemed to be stimulated, swelling abruptly by a circle! Large patches of bloodscabs covering it crumbled away, revealing a wriggling, dark golden fleshy protrusion underneath! On the surface of the protrusion, countless fine, vein-like dark gold patterns rapidly spread, pulsing with even greater vigor!

A more chilling, chaotic demonic intent, imbued with a pure instinct for devouring, spread from the protrusion like a waking poison mist!

"Roar--!" Deep within the stone cavern, the pressure of the Ancestor Dragon True Spirit was stirred by this pure demonic intent, letting out an even more furious roar! The entire stone cavern shook more violently!

"Seal!" Cold light erupted from Ying Zheng's eyes, no longer hesitating! The Tai'a Sword was finally drawn half an inch! A condensed, solid dark gold sword aura, entwined with purple-gold Dragon Qi, shot out from the sheath, carrying the Emperor's judgment and the Ancestor Dragon's supreme majesty. Like a spear of heavenly punishment, it fiercely pierced the wriggling demonic embryo in Cheng Xi's cinnabar field!

On the upper level of the Imperial Mausoleum, at the end of the passageway, the massive Dragon-Slaying Stone Gate rumbled shut, kicking up dust and smoke.

"Hold the line! Reinforce! Prepare the oil!" Meng Tian's roar echoed in the narrow passageway, carrying the scent of iron and blood. He was covered in blood, his heavy armor bearing deep scratches and dark gold stains left by the claws of the Demonic Soldiers. Behind him, the remaining dozens of elite soldiers from the Elite Guards and Mausoleum Guards leaned against the Dragon-Slaying Stone, using their bodies to support the hastily piled stone barrier. Every one of them was wounded, but their eyes were as fierce as hungry wolves.

Beyond the stone gate lay hell.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The heavy impacts sounded like war drums, each one causing the thick Dragon-Slaying Stone and the barrier behind it to tremble violently, sending down loose stones! On the surface of the stone gate, the tough material forged from dark iron and granite bore several web-like dents! At the center of each dent were the marks of the demonic soldier's bronze heavy sword strikes, interspersed with the sticky, foul stains of frantically thrashing dark gold demonic tentacles!

"Hh... hh..." Non-human growls and the sound of grinding metal seeped through the cracks of the stone gate, like bone-scraping cold winds. Scarlet demonic light shone through the gaps, illuminating the blood-stained, weary, yet resolute faces in the passageway.

"General! The oil is ready!" a captain reported hoarsely, behind him soldiers carrying several cauldrons of boiling, foul-smelling black oil.

Meng Tian nodded, a fierce glint in his eyes. He abruptly drew the sword at his waist, slashed his palm, and his scalding blood instantly dyed the blade red! He raised the bloodied sword high, his tiger eyes sweeping over the remaining soldiers, his voice tearing like silk:

"Valiant Qin! Share the national hardship!"

"We will not cease fighting until the last drop of blood is shed!" The remaining soldiers erupted in earth-shattering roars, drowning out the demonic roars from outside the gate! The last vestiges of their blood ignited in their desperate situation!

"With my blood! Ignite the Dragon Qi! Burn the demons!" Meng Tian roared, thrusting the blood-stained longsword fiercely into a rock crevice at his feet! Simultaneously, the Ancestor Dragon Token, bestowed by Ying Zheng, erupted with unprecedented dark gold light!

Buzz--!

Deep within the earth veins of Mount Li, the unpolluted power of the Dragon Source, stirred by the blood sacrifice and the token, erupted! A condensed, light gold dragon-shaped energy surged, piercing the rock layers and instantly coiling around the bloodied sword Meng Tian had thrust into the crevice!

The bloodied sword as the conduit, the Dragon Qi as the fire!

"Burn--!"

Meng Tian gripped the sword hilt with both hands and, using all his strength, fiercely heaved upwards!

Rumble--!!!

The boiling oil, following the pre-set grooves, poured down like a crimson waterfall from the pre-arranged holes above the Dragon-Slaying Stone! The scalding black oil instantly coated the surface of the stone gate, and even seeped through the impact cracks, splashing onto the crowded Demonic Soldiers and demonic tentacles outside!

Almost simultaneously!

The light gold Dragon Qi, coiled around the bloodied sword, transformed into a majestic, flaming giant dragon, following the trajectory of the poured oil, and surged forth!

Chh--!!!!

The Dragon Flame met the oil, erupting in sky-burning, earth-destroying crimson and gold flames! The flames were no ordinary fire, but the Demon-Burning Dragon Flame, imbued with the Dragon Vein Earth Energy and the Ancestor Dragon Killing Intent!

"Roar--!!!"

Outside the stone gate, it instantly became an inferno! The dark gold demonic markings covering the Demonic Soldiers hit by the Dragon Flame and oil let out ear-piercing sizzling sounds, melting like ice and snow! Their tough ceramic-gold bodies rapidly turned red under the Dragon Flame, softening and cracking! The dark gold cuticle on the surface of the demonic tentacles burned fiercely, emitting a foul, charred black smoke, writhing and thrashing frantically, but unable to extinguish this clinging, parasitic Dragon Flame!

Countless Demonic Soldiers turned into burning torches in the sea of fire, emitting tragic wails! Dark gold demonic tentacles writhed and broke in the flames! The onslaught of the frenzied demonic tide was forcefully contained by this death-defying, demon-burning fire!

However, there was no joy on Meng Tian's face. He leaned on the bloodied sword, kneeling on the ground, his face pale from blood loss and exhaustion. Though the Dragon Flame was fierce, it would eventually run out. The oil would also be depleted. And the number of demonic creatures outside the gate... was bottomless!

"General! The oil... there's only one cauldron left!" the captain's voice was filled with despair.

Meng Tian looked up, gazing at the increasingly dense impact dents on the Dragon-Slaying Stone illuminated by the flames, listening to the even more ferocious demonic roars still rising and falling from within the sea of fire outside the gate. His tiger eyes were bloodshot.

"The last cauldron..." he panted, his voice hoarse, "When the stone gate is about to break... pour it in front of the gate... and then..." He surveyed the surviving comrades around him, their eyes resolute, and said word by word:

"Follow me... to death!"

The spiritual pool of Biyou Palace was as dead as an abyss.

The World Purifying Green Lotus's light dimmed. On the lotus platform's edge, at the hideous crack, a sliver of dazzling Dark Gold Demonic Markings coiled like a venomous snake, greedily sucking the pure, sacred essence of the Green Lotus and... the Sage's Blood spilled by Lord Tongtian as he mended his wounds!

Lord Tongtian sat cross-legged on the lotus platform, his face paler than the Ink Jade Platform. He formed a seal with one hand and pressed it against the crack, Azure Dao Rhyme swirling around his fingertips, fiercely clashing with the Dark Gold Demonic Markings. Each circulation of Dao Rhyme carried immense force, attempting to obliterate the demonic markings. However, though minuscule, the markings contained an essence pollution from the "Lord of Nirvana" far exceeding their size, proving exceptionally stubborn!

Even more terrifying, the demonic markings, like sentient seeds, were using the Sage's Blood as a warm bed and the Green Lotus's essence as soil, quietly taking root! Faint, chaotic, and sticky wisps of demonic thoughts were, through the Dao Foundation connection, like the finest tendrils, stealthily piercing into the depths of Lord Tongtian's Sage Soul! They stirred the malevolence hidden within him due to the Heavenly Dao's Injustice, and even attempted to corrupt the pure sharpness of his supreme Sky-Severing Sword Intent!

"Vermin!" Sword light flickered in Lord Tongtian's eyes. Within his Sage Soul's sea of consciousness, the Netherworld Sword Prison manifested again, its myriad sword lights strangling the invading demonic thought tendrils. Each strangulation brought a piercing pain and consumption at the Sage Soul level. The crack on the Green Lotus beneath him, due to this internal and external assault, had actually widened by a... imperceptible amount!

His gaze pierced through the void, landing in the direction of Mount Li, towards the source that had triggered the demonic seed's backlash—Ying Zheng's decisive sword strike that agitated the Ancestor Dragon True Spirit, and the demonic embryo awakening in Cheng Xi's "corpse" Dantian! These two tribulations occurring simultaneously caused the Heavenly Dao Crack to tremble, giving the demonic seed embedded in his Dao Foundation the opportunity to erupt!

"The Eye of Tribulation is dead, yet its embers can still burn the sage..." Lord Tongtian's voice carried a hint of exhaustion, and an even colder clarity. He no longer forcefully suppressed it. Instead, he retracted the Sword Prison, sinking most of his focus into deducing and analyzing the essence of the demonic markings. Since immediate eradication was impossible, he would treat it as a whetstone! He would use the demonic thoughts to temper his sword heart, and the pollution to hone his Dao Foundation! This was the way of the Intercepting Sect, to be born from death!

At the Green Lotus's crack, the confrontation between the Dao Rhyme's azure light and the Dark Gold Demonic Markings fell into a strange stalemate. The azure light was like an abyss, encompassing all things; the demonic markings were like needles, drilling into the bone and piercing the heart. Sage's Blood flowed slowly at the edge of the crack, half purified by the azure light, half stained dark gold by the demonic markings... like the chaotic boundary between Dao and Demonic.

Dark gold sword energy, like a heavenly judgment, tore through the air, carrying the imperial might to annihilate all things and the Ancestor Dragon Killing Intent, instantly striking the writhing dark gold bulge on Cheng Xi's Dantian!

Time seemed to freeze.

The instant the sword tip touched the pulsating surface of the bulge—

Buzz!!!

An indescribable, viscous, glue-like dark gold chaotic force field erupted from the demonic embryo's core without warning! The force field wasn't large, only covering an area of a few inches around the demonic embryo, yet it possessed a terrifying characteristic of devouring, distorting, and confusing all laws!

Ch-rr-!!!

A piercing sound of annihilation, like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts! The dark gold sword energy, imbued with supreme power, upon entering this chaotic force field, was like sinking into an endless mire! Its sharp sword light was forcibly twisted and decomposed! The purple-gold Dragon Qi and Ancestor Dragon Killing Intent entwined around it were madly devoured and assimilated by the chaotic force field! The sword energy's speed visibly waned and dimmed!

For the first time, shock appeared in Ying Zheng's Dragon Eyes! He clearly perceived the power contained in his sword strike being rapidly dissolved by that bizarre force field! This was absolutely not the power of Cheng Xi in life, but a Chaos Demonic Embryo nurtured in the throes of life and death, after the demonic embryo devoured all the essence of the host's remaining body and merged with uncontrolled Chaos Killing Intent, Turbid Evil essence, and Demon Lizard's residual blood! Though its power was nascent, its attributes were bizarre and unparalleled!

"Break!" Ying Zheng roared, the power of his Ancestor Dragon True Spirit surging within him, attempting to forcibly push the sword energy through!

However, at the peak of this power struggle—

Splish!

A faint cracking sound, like a ripe fruit splitting open, echoed!

The dark gold bulge on Cheng Xi's Dantian suddenly split open! There was no blood, only viscous, paste-like dark gold light bursting forth! Within the light, a miniature demonic claw, covered in fine dark gold scales and with talons like hooks, shot out from the opening! The tip of the claw was entwined with viscous chaotic demonic energy, and with pinpoint accuracy... it grabbed the approaching dark gold sword energy!

Claw met sword!

Boom—!!!

A terrifying explosion erupted centered on Cheng Xi's Dantian! Rampant dark gold and chaotic energy, like a breached flood, instantly swept through the entire stone cave! The Ink Jade Platform shattered into pieces! The Dragon Source water in the stone pool was churned into monstrous waves! Two Shadow Guards were sent flying like broken kites, crashing against the rock wall with broken bones!

Amidst the swirling dust, Ying Zheng's dark black dragon robe billowed, dark gold Dragon Qi circulating around him, blocking the explosion's aftermath three feet away! He stared intently at the center of the explosion!

As the dust settled slightly.

The Ink Jade Platform had turned to powder. In its place, Cheng Xi's "corpse"... had vanished.

Only a pool of slowly writhing, viscous, living dark gold sludge remained! In the center of the sludge, a demonic claw covered in fine scales was loosely held, and in its palm, a tiny fragment of dark gold sword energy was being madly devoured and dissolved by the sludge! On the sludge's surface, countless tiny dark gold bubbles churned and burst, emitting a nauseating sulfurous stench and chaotic demonic intent!

Chaos Demonic Embryo, devoured the Emperor Sword, transformed... into Corpse-Deity Demonic Sludge!