Under the fierce battle sky, the Hua Lineage's secret guards and the Chi Lineage's guards fought desperately. The sky was filled with exploding and intertwining source light, and the crimson gold and ink black streams tore through the night, making the whole world flicker between light and darkness, and the killing aura surged like a tide.
Just as the battle reached its Ultimate —BOOM!! Without any warning, the eternal sky trembled violently, not cracking or tearing open. The entire sky, like an ancient glass curtain covering eternity, was slowly torn apart from the two poles of heaven and earth by an unseen, supreme hand.
The next second, time and space froze; the wind stopped, the clouds stagnated, and the flow ceased.
All laws of heaven and earth were sealed off, yin and yang fell silent, life and death were severed, the five elements were Annihilation, the river of destiny was completely cut off, and the axis of reincarnation was frozen in place. All rules, all logic, and all void fields in the world were completely closed off by an invisible barrier.
The entire battlefield was stripped, cut off, and isolated from the vast universe.
The gale that swept across the wilderness hovered in mid-air, the suspended pebbles remained frozen in place, and the shattered blades and fragments of source light that exploded in mid-air all stopped at the end of their trajectory.
Everything was still, except for human movement. Chi Xiyue slowly raised her right hand. There was no wind, no surge of power, no earth-shattering opening move, not even a trace of Source Power fluctuation. Her gaze was calm, her lips parted slightly, and she softly uttered three words: "Ruins Encompass All Manifestations."
A faint, almost transparent glow slowly emanated from her body. This was not a light illuminating the darkness, but a light cleansing the world. Centered on her, the surrounding world was wiped clean, stripping away all the superficial colors of humanity, revealing the most primal and desolate gray-white background of the universe at its beginning.
The faint light was silent, slow, and without force, like a wisp of clear water sinking into the inky night, spreading evenly across the fields. Wherever the light passed, the green mountains faded, turning into withered ashes and dead mountains. Ancient forests lost their color, their branches and leaves turning into gray-white skeletons. The sky lost its azure, becoming a desolate expanse. In an instant, the world lost all its vibrant colors, leaving only a monotonous, desolate, and deathly pale gray.
Only Chi Xiyue, with her bright clothes, clear features, and complete, translucent body and soul, was the only remaining color and vitality in this desolate, gray-white world. As that layer of primal white light enveloped each of the Hua Lineage's secret guards—sizzle—
Instantly, countless fine black lines, as thin as hair, covered the surface of everyone's skin. This was not an external imprint, but rather the forced manifestation of all the cultivation flaws buried deep within their lives, never to be revealed before: cracks in their Dao foundation, old injuries to their soul, depletion of lifespan, imperfections in their Fate Soul, accumulation of elixirs and toxins, and fundamental loopholes left from forcibly breaking through to a higher realm...
All the hidden dangers lurking deep within their bones and souls, which they themselves were unaware of, were now clearly revealed. Their pupils constricted, and their minds resounded.
They witnessed firsthand the trajectory of their life's cultivation, the end of their lifespan, the flaws in every supernatural power, and the crisscrossing cracks on their Fate Soul.
An Ultimate panic, a feeling of being completely seen through by the very origin of heaven and earth, of being utterly naked and nowhere to hide, exploded from the deepest part of one's soul. "No--!" Someone turned pale and retreated frantically, but it was too late. When one witnesses one's own limitations, the barrier of one's Dao heart will collapse on its own.
The first to collapse were the cultivators with the weakest physical foundations, crackling and popping...
A silent cracking sound spread from within his body. His bones and muscles shattered inch by inch, but his skin and flesh did not bleed. His body stood still, but it gradually shrank, withered, and dissolved from the inside out.
Immediately afterwards, several wounded guards with broken Fate Soul silently lost consciousness, their countless fragments of consciousness scattering like broken stars. Their eyes instantly became empty and lifeless. Those with cracked Dao hearts stared directly at their own obsessions for a moment, and their Dao hearts completely shattered. The Source Power within their bodies surged wildly in reverse, and even a scream was locked in their throats as their souls disintegrated on their own.
At the same time, Chi Xiyue slowly unfolded her palms, and a ball of absolute blank light emerged from her palms, without color, brightness, temperature, or form. It was the initial void of the universe before the birth of all things, the original origin of all colors, all sources, and all living beings. The blank light quietly spread out.
The Source Power, vitality, Fate Soul, and primordial essence within all the cultivators of the Hua Lineage were instantly illuminated with unparalleled clarity. Their cultivation was no longer under their own control. It was not being plundered, but rather Return to the Ruins on its own, like sand settling to the bottom, like fallen leaves returning to the earth, wisps and strands detaching from their physical bodies and quietly merging into this blank void.
No blood, no explosion, no cracking, no pain, only a silent dissolution. Chi Xiyue slowly closed her eyes, and the Wuji Mark dormant between her brows quietly bloomed with a sliver of light. Buzz—in an instant, the souls and consciousness of dozens of Hua Lineage guards were forcibly connected, overlapped, and resonated.
One person's fear becomes everyone's fear; one person's cracked foundation spreads into cracks in everyone's; one person's despair transforms into the collapse of everyone's soul. Thousands of consciousnesses are like millions of mirrors, reflecting and magnifying the same flaw. The spirit is completely Annihilation, and the vast battlefield is Ultimate silent.
Heaven and earth were silent, wind and clouds were still, only extremely faint and chilling cracking sounds echoed intermittently. What was shattering was not the mountain rocks, nor the void. What was shattering was the foundation of the Dao, what was cracking was the Fate Soul. Dozens of top True Annihilation Realm cultivators from the Hua Lineage stood frozen between the gray and white heaven and earth, their expressions ranging from fear, madness, bewilderment, to despair.
In the next instant, they all turned into countless tiny ashes. Their souls, origins, cultivation, consciousness, and traces all Return to the Ruins, merging into the Wuji void, completely disappearing into the world without a trace. The dozens of powerful figures who had been rampaging and killing just moments before were now utterly Annihilation.
The gray-white world slowly returned to normal, the mountains and rivers regained their pale hues, and the sky returned to tranquility.
Chi Xiyue slowly withdrew her palm, and the Wuji Mark between her brows gradually disappeared into her body. The vast Daoist aura that suppressed all directions and encompassed the void was completely subdued, and she once again transformed into the Wenwan and serene woman of the Chi Lineage.
Looking up at the group of Chi Lineage guards who were still kneeling on one knee, their hearts trembling, she said in a gentle and calm voice, "Alright, you may all continue your patrol." "Yes!" Dozens of guards clasped their fists and bowed in unison, their eyes filled with utter awe, and no one dared to show the slightest contempt.
Chi Xiyue nodded slightly, turned gracefully, and slowly stepped into the deep night. Her elegant figure gradually disappeared into the vast expanse of heaven and earth. Behind her, all the guards bowed deeply in unison and solemnly announced, "Respectfully bidding farewell to Senior Sister--!"
The night was as still as water. Deep within the Chi Lineage, Qin Yu and Chi Ninghua stood side by side before the palace corridor. The world in the distance had returned to calm, with only wisps of the boundless Wuji aura still slowly flowing across the sky, as if telling the story of the earth-shattering scene that had just occurred.
Chi Ninghua gazed silently into the distance, her clear eyes now shining brightly, her eyebrows slightly raised, and her face revealing undisguised reverence. "Senior Sister is still Senior Sister." With a single move, she annihilated dozens of True Annihilation Realm · Supreme Annihilation.
She exhaled softly, a hint of pride in her voice. "Among the younger generation of the entire Eternal Nonexistence Limitless Domain, those who can achieve this are few and far between." Qin Yu also gazed at the now tranquil night sky, the scene of Chi Xiyue's attack flashing through his mind. There was no earth-shattering collision, no world-destroying divine power.
Just standing there quietly, the entire world began to fall silent. Qin Yu nodded slowly. "Hmm." "She is indeed too powerful." As his voice fell, his gaze gradually calmed down. He murmured to himself, "Chi Xiyue..." "Just as rumored." "One of the five strongest in the Eternal Nonexistence Limitless Domain." "Wuji Realm." "Everyone who can reach this point has already stood at the true peak of the entire Eternal Nonexistence Limitless Domain."
Qin Yu slowly withdrew his gaze, the Ring Master Soul Diagram still slowly deducing the Daoist trajectory left by the divine power just now deep in his sea of consciousness. The more he deduced, the more he could feel the vastness within it.
Meanwhile, in the deepest secret chamber of the Hua Lineage's Grand Elder's palace, hundreds of sealing arrays were activated, completely isolating the entire chamber from the outside world. Hua Yin sat cross-legged in the center of a pitch-black altar, dense demonic energy constantly swirling around his body, his damaged Fate Soul essence being repaired little by little, yet his eyes remained closed.
The same image kept flashing through his mind: the old house, Qin Yu standing in mid-air, one sword piercing through his Ten Thousand Effects Bury Fate Realm, another sword piercing through his Fate Soul's origin, and finally, those extremely calm eyes silently watching him. Hua Yin's body suddenly trembled, and "Pfft--" a large mouthful of blood suddenly spurted out. The blood fell onto the altar.
It corroded the entire altar, creating large cracks. A scarlet killing mark suddenly lit up on his forehead, burning continuously, and his eyes churned with blood-red light. Beneath his sleeves, the knuckles of his ten fingers made a constant cracking sound. His whole body began to tremble slightly. "Qin Yu..." "Qin Yu..." With each time he uttered the name, his Fate Soul trembled violently.
This battle has left an indelible shadow deep within his Fate Soul. The image of that young man has become an inescapable inner demon, firmly rooted in the deepest part of his Fate Soul. No matter how he tries to suppress it, he can never dispel it. Finally, Hua Yin suddenly raised his head.
His eyes were filled with madness as he roared, "Qin Yu--!!" "If I don't grind you to dust, my hatred will not be appeased!!" "Ahhhhhh--!!" The entire secret chamber shook violently, and the surrounding sealing formations roared continuously.
... After a long while, Hua Yin slowly calmed down. He stretched out his slightly trembling right hand, and a pitch-black jade box slowly appeared. The jade box opened. A pill quietly floated inside. The pill was no bigger than a longan, but it was like a star core of an abyss that had been solidified for hundreds of millions of years. It was pitch black all over and had no luster.
Dark red lines flowed slowly, like living veins, pulsating gently, perfectly in sync with the rhythm of the Fate Soul's heartbeat.
Upon closer inspection, a struggling black shadow was faintly sealed inside the pill. The shadow twisted and condensed at times. Occasionally, it would transform into a human face filled with pain and resentment, only to disintegrate again in the next instant, turning into dense demonic patterns that roamed within the pill. The entire pill remained quietly suspended there.
Yet it continuously emitted an extremely faint warmth, like holding a slowly beating heart. In the air, a faint whisper could be heard, constantly tempting all who saw it. Around the altar, demonic energy actually gathered towards the pill. Hua Yin looked at the pill, a struggle flashing in his eyes.