On the jade platform, filthy blood had congealed like scabs. Cheng Xi's eyes were tightly shut, with not the slightest breath left between his nose and lips. His skin was bluish-gray and cold, stiff as a stone figurine. That out-of-control eruption of Chaos Killing Intent Energy had been like the final blaze that burned away the last of the lamp oil, completely swallowing his remaining vitality. Meng Tian's grief-stricken backward glance when he left had already been a farewell.
Ying Zheng's Mysterious Black Dragon Robe swept past the bloodstained edge of the jade platform. His dragon eyes swept over the "corpse," holding neither sorrow nor joy, only ice-sealed indifference. To him, Lord Chang'an Cheng Xi's story had ended the moment the alarm of the demonic transformation of the soldier figurines sounded. What occupied the jade platform now was merely a contaminated, evil-stained remnant that needed to be dealt with.
"Guards." The emperor's voice remained clear and cold within the trembling stone cavern.
Two Shadow Guards clad in black armor and wearing bronze ghost masks emerged like specters from the shadows in the corner of the cavern. They dropped to one knee and silently awaited orders.
"Move this corpse," Ying Zheng said, his gaze passing over the congealed Dark Gold blood filth on Cheng Xi's chest, "into the Profound Ice Abyss. Seal it there forever."
"Yes!" The Shadow Guards' voices were hoarse and utterly emotionless. The Profound Ice Abyss was a frozen cavern forged from Ten-Thousand-Year Mystic Ice in the deepest reaches of the imperial mausoleum, used specifically to suppress evil entities and strange corpses. Those who entered that abyss would have their souls scattered and remain ice-sealed for eternity. This was the emperor's final disposal of an "unpredictable variable."
The Shadow Guards stepped forward, their movements precise as puppets, and lifted Cheng Xi's cold "corpse" from either side. Just as they touched Cheng Xi's arms—
Hiss... hiss, hiss...
An extremely faint yet hair-raising sound came from the "corpse's" dantian! It was as if something... was slowly awakening and writhing beneath solid ice!
Ying Zheng's dragon eyes suddenly contracted!
The Shadow Guards instantly froze! Their masked faces revealed no expression, but their taut bodies showed extreme vigilance!
At Cheng Xi's dantian, beneath skin covered in filthy blood, an incomparably faint Dark Gold glow began to shine dimly through the congealed blood scabs! Though weak, the light carried a cold, sticky vitality, like the eyes of a venomous serpent! As it lit up, the blood scabs covering it actually rose and fell slightly like living things, cracking apart!
Corpse-deity transformation?! No! It was the core of Chaos Killing Intent Energy formed from the uncontrolled turbid killing intent mixed with the demon lizard's residual blood. After the host's vitality had been extinguished, it had not dissipated. Instead, within that filthy breeding ground, it had begun to nurture some unknown demonic embryo!
"Fall back!" Ying Zheng's voice cut down like ice blades! At almost the same instant, the Tai'a Sword at his waist gave a low dragon cry. Though the sword remained sheathed, an invisible imperial will had already turned into a heavy hammer and smashed viciously toward the writhing dantian!
Boom!
A muffled blast rang out! Cheng Xi's "corpse" was violently hurled onto the cold Ink Jade Platform by that immense force! His chest caved in, and the sound of breaking bones was clearly audible! Yet the Dark Gold glow at his dantian only flickered violently once. It did not go out; instead, it suddenly swelled by a full circle as if stimulated! Large patches of blood scabs collapsed, revealing a writhing, Dark Gold fleshy bulge beneath! Across its surface, countless fine, blood-vessel-like Dark Gold markings spread rapidly, pulsing with even greater force!
An even colder, more chaotic demonic intent, carrying a pure instinct to devour, spread from the bulge like poisonous miasma awakening!
"Roar—!" Deep within the stone cavern, the pressure of the Ancestor Dragon True Spirit was stirred by that pure demonic intent, releasing an even more furious roar! The entire cavern's tremors intensified!
"Suppress!" A cold gleam burst from Ying Zheng's eyes. He hesitated no longer! The Tai'a Sword finally left its sheath by half an inch! A condensed Dark Gold sword aura, tangible as substance and entwined with Purple-Gold Dragon Qi, shot from the sheath. Carrying the emperor's will of judgment and the supreme majesty of the Ancestor Dragon, it stabbed viciously toward the writhing demonic embryo in Cheng Xi's dantian like a spear of heavenly punishment!
In the upper levels of the imperial mausoleum, at the end of the passageway, the enormous Dragon-Slaying Stone gate crashed down, filling the air with dust.
"Hold the line! Reinforce it! Prepare the fire oil!" Meng Tian's furious roar echoed through the narrow passageway, carrying the scent of iron and blood. He was drenched in blood, his heavy armor covered in deep claw marks and Dark Gold stains left by Demonic Soldiers. Behind him, the few dozen remaining elites of the Sharp Warriors Battalion and Mausoleum Guards leaned against the Dragon-Slaying Stone, using their bodies to brace the hastily piled stone barricade. Every one of them was wounded, yet their eyes were as savage as starving wolves.
Beyond the stone gate was hell.
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Heavy impacts rang out like war drums. Every blow sent the massive Dragon-Slaying Stone and the barricade behind it trembling violently, showering down fragments of rock! Several spider-web-like dents had actually been smashed into the gate's sturdy surface of black iron and granite! At the centers of those dents were the marks of bronze heavy swords wielded by the demonic soldier figurines, mixed with sticky stains left by frantically lashing Dark Gold Demonic Tentacles!
"Grr... grr..." Inhuman growls and the scraping of metal seeped through the cracks in the stone gate like bone-chilling wind. Scarlet demonic light shone through the gaps, illuminating faces smeared with blood filth, exhausted yet resolute.
"General! The fire oil is ready!" A colonel reported hoarsely. Behind him, soldiers carried several great cauldrons of boiling black oil, their fumes acrid and pungent.
Meng Tian nodded, a fierce light flashing in his eyes. He abruptly drew the sword at his waist and sliced open his palm. Scalding blood instantly dyed the blade red! He raised the bloodied sword high, his tiger eyes sweeping over the surviving soldiers as his voice tore through the air:
"Valiant Old Qin! Together, we face the nation's calamity!"
"Until our blood runs dry! Until death ends the battle!" The surviving soldiers erupted in an earth-shaking roar, drowning out the demonic howls beyond the gate! Their final hot blood ignited in the desperate situation!
"With my blood! I summon dragon qi! Burn the demons!" Meng Tian roared, driving the bloodstained sword viciously into a crack in the rock beneath his feet! At the same time, the Ancestor Dragon Token Ying Zheng had granted him burst with unprecedented Dark Gold light from within his arms!
Buzzz—!
Deep within Mount Li's dragon veins, the uncontaminated power of the dragon source was stirred by the blood sacrifice and the token, erupting with a thunderous surge! A condensed pale golden dragon-shaped current of qi pierced through the rock strata and instantly coiled around the blood sword embedded in the crack!
The blood sword was the guide, and dragon qi was the fire!
"Burn—!"
Meng Tian gripped the hilt with both hands, used up every ounce of strength in his body, and fiercely lifted it upward!
Rumble—!!!
Boiling fire oil rushed through the prearranged channels like a crimson waterfall, pouring down from openings left above the Dragon-Slaying Stone! The scalding black oil instantly covered the surface of the stone gate and splashed through the impact cracks onto the crowded Demonic Soldiers and Demonic Tentacles outside!
Almost at the same time!
The pale golden dragon qi coiled around the blood sword turned into a majestic flaming giant dragon and surged out along the trail of splashed fire oil!
Hiss—!!!!
When dragon flame met fire oil, it erupted into crimson-gold flames capable of burning heaven and destroying earth! This was no ordinary fire, but Demon-Burning Dragon Flame containing Dragon Vein Earth Energy and Ancestor Dragon Killing Intent!
"Awooo—!!!"
Beyond the stone gate, the area instantly became an infernal sea of flames! The Dark Gold Demonic Markings covering the Demonic Soldiers struck by dragon flame and fire oil emitted piercing sizzling sounds as they melted like snow and ice! Their tough ceramic-metal bodies swiftly reddened, softened, and cracked beneath the dragon flame! The Dark Gold Cuticle covering the Demonic Tentacles burned violently, belching foul black smoke as they twisted and lashed madly, yet they could not extinguish the bone-clinging dragon flame!
Countless Demonic Soldiers turned into burning torches in the sea of fire, releasing shrill wails! Dark Gold Demonic Tentacles rolled and snapped apart amid the blazing flames! The berserk assault of the Demonic Tide was forcibly checked by this demon-burning fire born of a fight to the death!
Yet there was no joy on Meng Tian's face. Supporting himself with the blood sword, he knelt on one knee, his face deathly pale from blood loss and exhaustion. Though the dragon flame burned fiercely, it would eventually end. The fire oil would also run out. And the number of Demonic Soldiers outside... was bottomless!
"General! The fire oil... only one final cauldron remains!" The colonel's voice carried despair.
Meng Tian raised his head and stared at the increasingly dense impact dents on the Dragon-Slaying Stone, illuminated by the flames. Listening to the still-rising, ever more savage demon roars within the sea of fire outside, his tiger eyes reddened.
"The last cauldron..." He panted, his voice hoarse. "When the stone gate is about to break... pour it before the gate... then..." He looked around at the surviving comrades beside him, their eyes resolute, and spoke each word slowly:
"Follow me... to our deaths!"
Biyou Palace's spirit pool was deathly silent as an abyss.
The World Purifying Green Lotus shone dimly. At the savage crack along the edge of the Lotus Platform, a strand of piercing Dark Gold Demonic Markings coiled like a venomous serpent, greedily sucking in the pure sacred source leaking from the green lotus and... the sage blood Lord Tongtian had spilled while mending the wound!
Lord Tongtian sat cross-legged upon the Lotus Platform, his face paler than the jade platform. One hand formed seals and pressed against the crack. Azure Dao Rhyme swirled around his fingertips as it fiercely fought the Dark Gold Demonic Markings. Every circulation of Dao Rhyme carried immense force, attempting to grind away that thin strand of demonic markings. Yet though tiny, the markings contained contamination originating from the Lord of Nirvana, far surpassing their size in essence. They were extraordinarily stubborn!
Even more terrifyingly, the demonic markings were like seeds possessing intelligence. Using sage blood as a breeding ground and the green lotus's source as soil, they quietly took root! Strands of exceedingly faint, chaotic, sticky demonic thoughts followed the connection to his Dao foundation like the finest roots, silently piercing deep into Lord Tongtian's Sage Soul! They stirred the hidden hostility within him born from Heavenly Dao's Injustice, while attempting to contaminate the pure sharpness of the supreme Sky-Severing Sword Intent!
"Evil obstruction!" Sword light inhaled and exhaled in Lord Tongtian's eyes. Within the sea of consciousness of his Sage Soul, the Netherworld Sword Prison manifested once again, with billions of sword lights shredding the invading roots of demonic thoughts. Every slaughter brought pain and depletion at the level of his Sage Soul. The crack in the green lotus beneath him seemed to widen by the slightest, almost imperceptible amount under the assault from within and without!
His gaze pierced the void and fell toward Mount Li, toward the source that had triggered the demonic seed's backlash—Ancestor Dragon True Spirit's riot caused by Ying Zheng's judgment strike, and the demonic embryo awakening in the dantian of Cheng Xi's "corpse"! With both tribulations occurring at once, the Heavenly Dao Crack trembled, allowing the demonic seed embedded in his Dao foundation to find a chance to erupt!
"The Eye of Tribulation is dead, yet its embers can still burn a Sage..." Lord Tongtian's voice carried a trace of fatigue, but even more cold insight. He no longer forcefully suppressed it. Instead, he drew in the sword prison and sank most of his mind into deducing and analyzing the essence of that strand of demonic markings. Since it could not be eradicated immediately, he would treat it as a whetstone! He would temper his sword heart with demonic thoughts and hone his Dao foundation with contamination! This was the way of the Jie Sect: live toward death!
At the green lotus's crack, the confrontation between Azure Dao Rhyme and Dark Gold Demonic Markings fell into a strange deadlock. The azure light was abyssal, embracing all things; the demonic markings were like needles, corroding bone and piercing the heart. Sage blood slowly flowed along the crack's edge. Half was purified by the azure light, while the other half was dyed Dark Gold by the demonic markings... like the chaotic boundary between Dao and demon.
The Dark Gold sword aura was like a judgment from heavenly punishment, tearing through the air with imperial might capable of annihilating all things and Ancestor Dragon Killing Intent. In an instant, it stabbed upon the writhing Dark Gold bulge in Cheng Xi's dantian!
Time seemed to freeze.
At the instant the sword tip touched the pulsing surface of the bulge—
Buzzz!!!
An indescribable Dark Gold Chaos Force Field, sticky as glue, erupted from the core of the demonic embryo without warning! The force field was not large, covering only the small area around the embryo, yet it possessed the terrifying property of devouring, twisting, and throwing all laws into chaos!
Hiss—crack—!!!
The piercing sound of annihilation was like the wailing of ten thousand ghosts! The Dark Gold sword aura, containing supreme might, fell into an endless mire the instant it entered the Chaos Force Field! Its sharp sword light was forcibly twisted and broken down! The Purple-Gold Dragon Qi and Ancestor Dragon Killing Intent wrapped around it were frantically devoured and assimilated by that chaotic force field! The sword aura slowed and dimmed at a speed visible to the naked eye!
For the first time, shock appeared in Ying Zheng's dragon eyes! He could clearly sense that the power contained within his strike was being rapidly dissolved by that bizarre force field! This was absolutely not Cheng Xi's power in life. It was a Chaos Demonic Embryo, formed between life and death after devouring every last essence of the host's remains and fusing uncontrolled Chaos Killing Intent Energy, the turbid killing intent source, and the demon lizard's residual blood! Though newborn in strength, its nature was incomparably bizarre!
"Break!" Ying Zheng roared. The power of the Ancestor Dragon True Spirit surged wildly within him as he attempted to force the sword aura through!
However, at the peak of this clash of power—
Splat!
A faint cracking sound, like ripe fruit splitting open, sounded!
The Dark Gold bulge at Cheng Xi's dantian suddenly split apart! There was no blood, only thick Dark Gold light, viscous as pulp, bursting outward! Within that light, a miniature demonic claw covered in fine Dark Gold scales, with hooked talons, suddenly thrust out from the opening! Thick chaos demonic qi curled around its claw tips as it reached out with perfect precision... and grabbed the Dark Gold sword aura that had stabbed near!
Claw and sword collided!
Boom—!!!
A terrifying explosion erupted from Cheng Xi's dantian! Berserk Dark Gold and Chaos Energy surged like a flood bursting through a dam, instantly sweeping across the entire stone cavern! The jade platform shattered inch by inch! The dragon source water in the stone pool was stirred into towering waves! The two Shadow Guards were sent flying like broken string kites, smashing into the rock wall with shattered bones and torn tendons!
Amid the billowing dust, Ying Zheng's Mysterious Black Dragon Robe swelled. Dark Gold dragon qi flowed around him, blocking the explosive shockwaves firmly three feet away! He stared fixedly at the center of the explosion!
As the dust gradually settled.
The Ink Jade Platform had turned to powder. In place, Cheng Xi's "corpse"... had vanished.
All that remained was a pool of thick Dark Gold sludge, slowly writhing like a living thing! At the center of the sludge, a scaled demonic claw was half-clenched. In its palm, a faint fragment of Dark Gold sword aura was being frantically devoured and dissolved by the sludge! Countless tiny Dark Gold bubbles rolled and burst across its surface, emitting nauseating sulfur stench and chaotic demonic intent!
The Chaos Demonic Embryo devoured the emperor's sword, took form... Corpse-Deity Demonic Sludge!
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