Origin Attraction

Where the golden light reached, the originally thick, roiling, corrosive gray-black demonic qi let out a piercing, shrill sound like countless tiny shrieks!

Its contact with the Merit Golden Light was no longer mere dissolution, but complete annihilation!

It was like snowdrifts meeting a true scorching sun.

The demonic qi visibly vanished in large swaths, fading and dissolving into nothingness.

The range covered by the golden light rapidly expanded, and the basin's edge, once shrouded in pitch-black demonic mist, began to reveal the true terrain beneath.

Shattered black rock, a dry and cracked lakebed, twisted plant remains...

The purification efficiency had increased by no less than a hundredfold!

But correspondingly, Xuande's mana consumption rate had also reached an astonishing level.

Maintaining the physical manifestation of the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus and fully driving such a large-scale Merit Golden Light for high-intensity purification demanded mana like a bottomless pit.

Even as a late-stage Zenith Heaven Golden Immortal with a deep foundation, he felt clear pressure.

He did not pause. Driving the lotus platform like a mobile source of purification, he began systematically cleansing the surface demonic qi along the basin's edge.

Where the golden light passed, demonic qi retreated, filth cleared.

Even the uncomfortable, chilling aura in the air was swept away.

Replacing it was a somewhat thin but very fresh spiritual energy.

Days passed one after another.

The gray-black wall of mist above the basin was eroded and compressed from the edges inward by an ever-expanding golden halo.

Xuande's original lotus platform was the core and source of this halo.

Finally, after an unknown duration of high-intensity purification, Xuande felt that his mana had been depleted by seventy or eighty percent, and his Primordial Spirit was transmitting waves of fatigue.

He knew he could not continue; he had to recover.

With a thought, the light of the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus slowly receded, the lotus platform form gradually faded, and it transformed back into Xuande's human-shaped Dao body.

At this moment, his face was slightly pale, and his aura was somewhat unstable, clearly showing immense exhaustion.

He glanced at the large area he had cleansed.

About one-tenth of the basin's outer perimeter was now completely free of demonic qi.

Though the land remained broken and desolate, at least the suffocating evil aura was gone.

This progress was far faster than when he had tested with small light orbs earlier.

"The effect is significant, but the consumption is heavy," Xuande assessed in his mind. "It seems I can only advance in intervals."

He quickly withdrew from the range of the isolation barrier he had set up.

Although the spiritual energy inside the basin had somewhat recovered due to the demonic qi's dissipation, the speed was too slow, and it was mixed and impure, unsuitable for quickly restoring mana.

He needed to find a place outside with relatively abundant spiritual energy.

Soon, he landed in a small valley about a hundred li from the basin's barrier.

This place was less affected by the demonic qi and still had some spiritual energy.

He set to work again, arranging a small barrier focused on gathering spiritual energy and defense, protecting the site where he would temporarily go into seclusion to recover.

Entering the barrier, he sat cross-legged.

Xuande immediately began operating his cultivation technique at full power, absorbing external spiritual energy.

At the same time, he mobilized the Merit origin within his body, slowly restoring his depleted mana and mind.

This consumption was too great, and recovery would take time.

Thus, Xuande began a cyclical purification process: restore to peak condition, enter the demonic qi barrier, manifest the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus, perform high-intensity purification, then withdraw when mana was mostly spent, and recover within the outer barrier.

With each cycle, he pushed the cleansed area a great distance toward the basin's center.

As the surface demonic qi was continuously cleared, he also saw the true appearance of this region more clearly: a massive, shattered basin, as if struck by a meteor, filled everywhere with bottomless fissures and collapsed boulders.

In many places, remnants of broken structures and twisted wreckage could still be seen—a brutal testament to the former glory of the Rahula Demon Palace.

The purification work was not smooth sailing.

Sometimes, he encountered nodes where the demonic qi was especially dense and solid, making purification exceptionally laborious.

Other times, the demonic qi would contain fragments of chaotic will or negative emotional impacts that tried to disturb his mind.

But all of this was easily dissolved by his stable Dao heart and Merit Golden Light.

Unknowingly, this cycle repeated eight or nine times.

Between consumption and recovery, thousands of years slipped by in silence.

When Xuande completed the ninth purification cycle.

And once again stepped into the restriction at full strength, the scene before him had changed dramatically.

The oppressive gray-black demon mist that had once shrouded the entire basin had completely vanished!

Sunlight could finally shine unobstructed onto this land that had lain silent for countless ages.

Looking out, though the land was still scarred and broken.

At least the pervasive, evil, and cold aura was no longer felt.

The surface demonic qi had been purified!

Yet Xuande felt little joy in his heart; instead, he grew more solemn.

Because he could clearly sense.

Deep beneath his feet, that cold, filthy aura entangled with the Earth Veins had not disappeared.

It had merely shifted from permeating the surface to hiding deep underground.

It was like the pus of a wound—the surface cleaned, but the root still festering inside.

He descended to the center of the basin, where the demonic qi had been densest.

The ground was a massive, bottomless pit, its edges jagged and uneven, the interior pitch black, exuding a heart-stopping aura.

Even with the surface demonic qi gone, standing at the edge of this pit.

Xuande could still feel faint but stubborn demonic qi fluctuations rising from the depths of the earth.

And... a more subtle pull?

No, it wasn't simply a pull.

Xuande focused his senses.

With the interference of the surface demonic qi removed.

His spiritual perception of the underground situation became much clearer.

Deep within the demonic qi remnants buried in the Earth Veins.

He seemed to sense an extremely faint fluctuation that resonated subtly with his own origin?

That fluctuation was very peculiar—not the evil of demonic qi.

Nor the heaviness of ordinary Earth Veins.

Instead, it carried an ancient, pure, and even somewhat familiar lotus scent?

It had an indescribable similarity and resonance with his own Merit Golden Lotus origin!

"This is..." Xuande's heart shook.

Deep within these Earth Veins, besides demonic qi, was there something else related to lotuses hidden?

And something that could resonate with his Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus origin?

Zhenyuanzi's instructions echoed in his ears:

"After purification, leave the Earth Veins in that area as they are for now. Don't touch them. Wait until the demonic qi dissipates, then I'll go investigate carefully."

According to the original plan, he should now notify Zhenyuanzi to come and examine the specific condition of the Earth Veins.

But that subtle attraction from the depths of the Earth Veins, resonating with his own origin.

And the possible secret related to lotuses hidden within.

Was like a feather, gently tickling his curiosity and desire to explore.

Why did Rahula build his demon palace here?

Why, after his self-destruction, did the demonic qi remain so deeply and stubbornly?

Beneath this place, besides the polluted Earth Veins, was there some secret of Rahula's hidden?

Or... something left from a more ancient era, related to the Chaos Green Lotus?

Once this thought arose, it was hard to settle.

He bore the origin of the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus.

His perception of same-source or higher-grade lotus auras was the keenest.

That trace of resonance was faint, but it could not be mistaken.

"Daoist friend Zhenyuanzi's investigation is certainly prudent, but it is based on the perspective of the Earth Veins. This thread of origin resonance may only be clarified if I descend myself."

Xuande stared into the bottomless pit, his gaze shifting.

The risk was immense.

The depths of the Earth Vein were unclear—demonic qi and the vein itself, perhaps even other things, could be entangled together. Plunging in recklessly meant facing unpredictable dangers at any moment.

Moreover, he had promised Zhenyuanzi not to disturb the Earth Vein after purification.

But opportunity might also lie within.

If there truly were remnants or secrets related to the Chaos Green Lotus below, it could have an incalculable impact on his cultivation and even the future of the West.

Weighing the options, a flash of resolve crossed Xuande's eyes.

First, he set up several of his strongest protective and warning restrictions at the edge of the pit, just in case.

Then, he sat down cross-legged again.

Not to recover his power, but to adjust his mind, his magic, and his Merit Golden Light to their sharpest, most heightened state.

He would explore the unknown depths of the Earth Vein in his strongest form.

"Daoist friend Zhenyuanzi, forgive me. This object may be of great importance to my origin. I must descend and investigate first. If danger arises, I will withdraw in time."

Xuande murmured inwardly, offering himself an explanation for his actions.

Preparations complete, he stood and cast one last glance at the basin whose surface he had purified. Then, his Merit Golden Light blazed forth, forming a solid golden barrier that encased him securely.

Without hesitation, Xuande leaped, transforming into a brilliant golden streak of light.

He plunged straight into the dark pit, bottomless and exuding residual demonic qi and mysterious fluctuations, hurtling downward toward the depths of the Earth Vein, toward the source that drew him in.