Wherever the golden light reached, the originally thick, churning, corrosive Gray-Black Demon Mist—
let out shrill, piercing cries, as if countless tiny voices were screaming!
When it touched the Merit Golden Light, the mist no longer merely dissolved as before. It was utterly annihilated!
It was like snow meeting the blazing sun.
The demon mist vanished in vast swathes, fading into nothingness at a speed visible to the naked eye.
The golden light rapidly spread, pushing into the basin's outer reaches, which had been shrouded in darkness by the demon mist.
The true terrain beneath began to emerge.
Broken black rocks, a dried and cracked lakebed, twisted plant remains...
The purification was more than a hundred times as effective as before!
But in turn, Xuande's energy consumption had reached a staggering rate.
Maintaining the manifested form of the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus—
and driving such a vast expanse of Merit Golden Light at full strength to purify the area so intensively demanded energy like a bottomless pit.
Even as a late-stage Grand Unity Golden Immortal with a deep foundation, he felt the strain.
He did not stop. Guiding the lotus platform along the basin's edge, he began systematically clearing the demon mist from the surface.
Where the golden light passed, the demon mist retreated and the filth was cleansed.
Even the oppressive chill in the air was swept away.
In its place was Spiritual Energy that was somewhat thin, but remarkably fresh.
Day after day passed.
Above the basin, a constantly expanding golden radiance ate inward from the edges, compressing the Gray-Black Demon Mist.
Xuande's lotus platform was the core and source of that radiance.
At last, after an unknown stretch of intense purification, Xuande felt that he had expended seven or eight tenths of his energy. His Primordial Spirit, too, was sending waves of fatigue.
He knew he could not continue. He had to recover.
With a thought, the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus's light gradually dimmed. Its lotus-platform form faded and transformed back into Xuande's human Dao body.
His face was slightly pale, and his aura unsteady. Clearly, the exertion had been immense.
He looked over the vast area he had cleared.
About a tenth of the basin's outer area had now been rid of demon mist.
The land remained broken and barren, but at least that suffocating, evil aura was gone.
He had made far more progress this way than when he had tested the waters with the small orb of light.
The results are impressive, but so is the cost.
Xuande assessed the situation. It seems I can only advance in stages.
He quickly withdrew beyond the bounds of the isolation ward he had set up.
Although the basin's Spiritual Energy had begun to recover as the demon mist dissipated,
the process was too slow, and the energy was impure. It was unsuitable for restoring his strength quickly.
He needed to find a place outside with a relatively abundant supply of Spiritual Energy.
Before long, he landed in a small valley about a hundred miles from the basin's ward.
This place had been less affected by the demon mist and still held some Spiritual Energy.
He set up a small ward focused on gathering Spiritual Energy and providing protection,
safeguarding a place where he could temporarily withdraw to recover.
He entered the ward and sat cross-legged.
Xuande immediately began circulating his cultivation technique at full force, absorbing the Spiritual Energy around him.
At the same time, he drew on the Merit Origin Essence within himself to slowly restore his depleted energy and spirit.
The exertion had been immense, and recovery would take time as well.
Thus began Xuande's repeated cycle of purification:
Once he had fully recovered, he entered the warded area filled with demon mist, manifested the true form of the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus, and undertook an intense purification.
After expending most of his energy, he withdrew to recover within the ward he had set up on the outskirts.
With each cycle, he pushed the purified area a considerable distance closer to the basin's center.
As more and more of the surface demon mist was cleared, he gained a clearer view of the area's true appearance.
It was a vast, shattered basin, as if struck by a meteor.
Deep fissures and collapsed boulders lay everywhere.
In many places, he could still see traces of ruined buildings and twisted wreckage—the cruel remnants of the former glory of the Rahula Demon Palace.
The purification did not go smoothly every time.
At times, he encountered pockets where the demon mist was especially dense and solid, making them far harder to cleanse.
At other times, fragments of chaotic will or surges of negative emotion lingered in the mist, trying to disrupt his mind.
But his steadfast Dao heart and Merit Golden Light easily dispelled them all.
Before he knew it, he had completed this cycle eight or nine times.
As he alternated between exertion and recovery, thousands of years passed.
When Xuande completed the ninth cycle of purification
and stepped inside the ward once more, fully restored, the sight before him had changed completely.
The oppressive Gray-Black Demon Mist that had once shrouded the entire basin had vanished!
At last, sunlight fell unobstructed upon this land, which had lain dormant for countless ages.
As far as the eye could see, the land was still devastated and broken.
But at least that ever-present evil chill could no longer be felt.
The surface demon mist had been completely purified!
Yet Xuande felt little joy. Instead, he grew even more solemn.
Because he could clearly sense it:
Deep beneath the ground, the chill and filth entwined with the Earth Vein had not disappeared.
They had merely retreated from the surface and sunk underground.
It was like pus in a wound: the surface had been cleaned, but the infection remained beneath.
He descended into the basin's central area, where the demon mist had been thickest.
The ground there was a vast, unfathomably deep pit, its jagged rim surrounding a darkness that emanated an unsettling aura.
Even though the surface demon mist had dispersed, as he stood at the edge of the pit,
Xuande could still feel faint yet stubborn pulses of demon mist coming from deep underground.
And... an even subtler attraction?
No, it was more than mere attraction.
Xuande focused his senses and probed carefully.
With the interference of the surface demon mist gone,
his spiritual perception of what lay underground had become much clearer.
Deep within the remnants of demon mist entangled in the Earth Vein,
he seemed to sense an extremely faint pulse that resonated with his own Origin Essence.
It was quite unusual—not the wickedness of demon mist,
nor the weightiness of an ordinary Earth Vein.
Instead, it carried an ancient, pure quality, and even a hint of a familiar lotus-like aura.
It bore an ineffable resemblance to, and resonance with, the Origin Essence of his own Merit Golden Lotus!
What is this...? Xuande was shaken.
Besides the demon mist, was there something else hidden deep within this Earth Vein—something connected to a lotus?
And something capable of resonating with the Origin Essence of his Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus?
Zhenyuanzi's instructions echoed in his ears:
"After purifying the area, leave the Earth Vein as it is. Don't tamper with it. Once the demon mist has dispersed, I'll come and investigate it carefully."
According to the original plan, he should now notify Zhenyuanzi to come investigate the Earth Vein.
But the subtle pull from deep within the Earth Vein, drawing on his own Origin Essence,
and the secret that might be hidden there, something connected to a lotus,
stirred his curiosity and desire to investigate like a feather gently tickling his mind.
Why had Rahula built his demon palace here?
Why had so much demon mist remained here after his self-destruction, and why had it proved so stubborn?
Besides the corrupted Earth Vein, might something of Rahula's still be hidden below?
Or... some remnant from a still more ancient age, something connected to the Chaos Green Lotus?
Once the thought arose, it was hard to quiet.
He bore the Origin Essence of the Twelve-Petal Merit Golden Lotus.
He was exceptionally sensitive to the auras of lotuses of the same origin or a higher order.
The resonance was faint, but he could not be mistaken.
"Zhenyuanzi's investigation would certainly be the prudent choice, but he would be looking at it from the perspective of the Earth Vein's structure.
"This subtle resonance with my Origin Essence—perhaps only I can discover the truth by going down there myself."
Xuande gazed into the unfathomably deep pit, his expression shifting.
The risk was enormous.
He knew nothing about the depths of the Earth Vein. The demon mist might be entangled with the Earth Vein, or even with something else. If he ventured down recklessly, he could encounter an unforeseeable danger at any moment.
Besides, he had promised Zhenyuanzi not to tamper with the Earth Vein after purifying the area.
But there might be an opportunity as well.
If something connected to the Chaos Green Lotus really had been left behind below,
it might have an immeasurable impact on his cultivation—or even the future of the entire West.
After weighing his options again and again, a resolute glint flashed in Xuande's eyes.
First, he set up several of his strongest protective and warning wards around the pit's edge, just in case.
Then he sat cross-legged once more.
He was not restoring his energy. Instead, he brought his mind, energy, and Merit Golden Light to their peak, sharpening his senses to the utmost.
He would explore the unknown depths of the Earth Vein in his strongest possible state.
"Fellow Daoist Zhenyuanzi, forgive me.
"This object may be deeply connected to my Origin Essence. I must go down and investigate first.
"If danger arises, I will withdraw at once."
Xuande silently said the words in his heart, offering an explanation for his decision.
Once he was ready, he stood and took one last look at the basin whose surface he had purified. Then the Merit Golden Light around him blazed, forming a dense golden shield that protected him completely.
Without hesitation, Xuande leaped forward, transforming into a dazzling streak of golden light.
He plunged straight into the unfathomably deep, dark pit, where remnants of demon mist and mysterious pulses lingered.
He sped downward, toward the depths of the Earth Vein and the source of the force drawing him in.