Chapter 76
The guesthouse was completely enveloped in a pale golden halo, like a warm, secluded bubble, isolating it from all the darkness, sea breeze, and the unfathomable, chilling aura of the demons.
"Wow……"
"A miracle...it really is a miracle..."
Inside, the guests crowded around the windows erupted in uncontrollable gasps, their eyes wide and mouths agape. The fear they had felt moments before seemed to have been instantly dispelled by the warm, powerful golden light. Director Chen, in particular, was so excited his entire body trembled. He clasped his hands together and repeatedly bowed to Zhuohua outside the light barrier, muttering, "A circle! The master has drawn a circle! A protective circle! We're saved! Thank you, Master! Thank you, Qitian… uh, no, thank you, Master Zhuohua!"
Zhuohua didn't even bother to glance at the noisy mortals. She turned her head and looked at the frost feather on her shoulder, which was curiously rubbing its little head against the edge of the golden light shield.
"I'm leaving." She said softly, her voice not loud, but it clearly penetrated the light barrier and reached Lu Xiao's ears.
Lu Xiao stood inside the doorway, gazing intently at her through the barrier of light flowing with golden runes. Without uttering a word, he simply nodded slightly, his eyes filled with a heavy sense of entrustment and a silent admonition—"Be careful."
Zhuohua glanced one last time at the tall figure within the light barrier, then turned away without a backward glance. Under the moonlight, her slender figure suddenly accelerated, transforming into a streak of light too fast for the naked eye to follow, shooting towards the dark sea that had just been frozen and still held an ominous, deathly stillness!
The frost feathers on its shoulder let out a clear and excited cry: "Screech—!" Its small body instantly burst forth with a dazzling icy blue light, its size expanding rapidly in the wind! Its magnificent tail feathers, condensed from ice crystals, trailed long, dreamlike trails of ice shards across the night sky. Its wings spread wide, like ice arrows released from a bow, closely following its master's figure, plunging headlong into the icy depths of the endless darkness!
This time, the target is the source.
Deep in the ocean, the area previously frozen solid by Zhuohua's unparalleled divine power resembled a colossal and bizarre crystal palace that had suddenly appeared. Huge, jagged ice shards refracted the faint sunlight filtering through the seawater, presenting a dark and icy blue hue. The seawater here was forcibly frozen; even the seaweed and innocent schools of fish, which had been swaying slowly with the ocean currents, remained frozen in the instant before being solidified, becoming eerie and silent decorations within this underwater ice palace.
Absolute silence enveloped this place. There was no sound of flowing water, no sign of life, only an extreme chill that penetrated to the bone, as if it could freeze even the soul, like a million cold steel needles silently piercing every inch of the intruder's senses. This was a death zone forcibly paused by divine power.
Zhuohua hovered in the center of the ice palace, enveloped in a thin, almost transparent halo of divine power that shielded her from the terrifyingly low temperatures that could instantly freeze steel. Her long, icy blue hair remained motionless in the frozen seawater, but her eyes, sharp as a hawk's, pierced through layers of dark blue ice crystals, scanning the battlefield that had been thoroughly "purified."
On her shoulder, the miniature Frostfeather, usually so lively and playful, nestled close to Zhuohua's neck, its icy blue eyes darting around warily as it emitted a low, warning chirp: "Chirp...chirp chirp!" (Master, something's there! The smell of something bad is still there!)
"Hmm," Zhuohua responded softly, slightly raising her fingertips.
Buzz!
A golden divine light, extremely condensed and as thin as a hair, yet containing terrifying cutting power, shot out silently from her fingertips, accurately striking a huge, seemingly normal ice shard several meters thick in front of her!
"Snap—splash!"
The hard, dark ice was like fragile glass before the divine light, shattering instantly and scattering ice shards everywhere! The ice layer was forcibly peeled away, revealing the frozen seabed silt beneath.
Beneath the turned-up mud and sand, a faint, yet slowly pulsating, purplish-red light was suddenly exposed to the divine light!
The light was extremely malevolent, carrying a viscous, dark texture that seemed capable of corrupting the soul. It was not a physical entity, but rather more like a seed, no bigger than a grain of rice, condensing the deepest malice and filth, yet constantly radiating a nauseating, chilling aura. It was this aura that stubbornly resisted the purification of the surrounding divine power, becoming the only "living thing" in this deathly icy realm.
"Found it." A cold glint flashed in Zhuohua's eyes. She made a grasping motion in the air, and an invisible divine power instantly transformed into a golden palm, precisely seizing the pulsating, purple light that was trying to burrow deeper into the sand to escape, and bringing it right before her eyes.
The tiny, purplish-red speck of light, no bigger than a grain of rice, struggled and thrashed wildly in her palm, which was brimming with divine power, like a poisonous fish pulled ashore. Wisps of thick, inky black energy rose from its surface, carrying a pungent stench of sulfur and decay, attempting to erode the divine power that enveloped it. The black energy twisted and shifted, vaguely conjuring countless hideous, tormented, and silently howling faces of vengeful hatred, emitting chilling shrieks that could only be perceived at the soul level.
"Hmph, a mere crystal of demonic energy, yet you dare to be so presumptuous?" Zhuohua sneered, and divine power surged from his fingertips! The golden hand suddenly tightened!
"Pfft!"
A soft sound, like crushing a tiny, rotten berry. The eerie purple light shattered in response!
At the very moment it shattered—
"Hiss! Hiss! Hiss!"
A sharp howl, originating from the depths of the soul and filled with endless resentment and unwillingness, suddenly exploded in this desolate, icy abyss! The sound did not travel through the seawater, but pierced directly into the depths of consciousness, carrying a powerful mental impact!
Frostfeather's small body stiffened abruptly, its icy blue feathers bursting open instantly, letting out a sharp, painful cry: "Chirp—!!" Clearly, it was severely impacted by this sudden mental attack.
At the same time, the remains of the demonic creatures, frozen within the massive ice shards, seemed to be detonated by the destruction at the core! Countless twisted, purplish-black phantoms of remnant souls, condensed from Yin energy, shrieked as they soared into the sky from the shattered ice! They had no physical form, yet they carried intense resentment and curses, like a swarm of bees emerging from a punctured beehive, baring their fangs and claws as they pounced upon Zhuohua and Shuangling! The entire ice palace was instantly filled with countless mournful phantoms of vengeful souls, demonic energy surging to the heavens, as if the gates of hell had been opened!
"You're courting death." Zhuohua's eyes were as cold as ancient ice. Facing the surging tide of souls, she didn't retreat but advanced instead! Her left hand still firmly held the demonic seed that had shattered, with a small, more condensed, and dark purple crystal remaining at its core. Her right hand suddenly rose, her five fingers spread, and pressed down in mid-air against the surging tide of vengeful souls!
"net!"
An ancient and majestic syllable escaped from her lips, carrying the supreme will to cleanse the heavens and purify evil!
Buzz—!
Centered on her palm, a circle of pure, warm, and seemingly containing the first ray of light at the beginning of the universe suddenly burst forth!
The golden light wasn't dazzling, but it carried an irresistible purifying power, like sunlight illuminating ice and snow. Wherever the ripples passed, those hideous, howling phantoms of vengeful spirits, like snowflakes thrown into boiling oil, didn't even have time to scream before silently melting, disintegrating, and turning into nothingness the moment they came into contact with the golden light!
Golden light swept across the vast frozen region like a raging torrent! Wherever it passed, the frozen remains of demonic creatures in the ice, the lingering demonic filth on the seabed, and even the chilling malevolent energy permeating the air, were all rapidly decomposed, purified, and annihilated under this pure and pristine divine light, like filth thrown into a furnace! The entire ice palace was bathed in a sacred golden glow, and the previous suffocating gloom and deathly silence were swept away, leaving only a purity and tranquility like the beginning of time.
In just a few breaths, the surging tide of souls was completely swept away! The entire frozen space was now completely clear and transparent, with only the huge block of ice remaining after being purified, and the magic crystal in Zhuohua's palm that had lost all power of resistance and was now just a pure, dark entity.
Frostfeather's ruffled feathers slowly calmed down. It affectionately rubbed its little head against Zhuohua's cheek, making a purring sound that sounded like it had just escaped a disaster, tinged with a hint of grievance: "Chirp chirp..." (Master is so amazing, that naughty thing scared the bird to death!)
Zhuohua looked down at the tiny, purplish-red magic crystal in her palm, the size of a grain of rice, cool to the touch, and as hard as a gemstone. It no longer emitted a foul stench and black aura, but still contained a pure and profound dark primordial power. The touch of the crystal was as hard as ice crystals and had a strange suction force, like a small, cold black hole.
Just as her divine power was carefully probing the crystal core, a long-lost voice, tinged with surprise and realization, resounded like a clear spring dripping onto a jade plate, directly from the depths of her vast sea of consciousness:
[Master? This…this is a fragment of the primordial demonic energy of the 'Nine Nether Demon Lord,' shattered and scattered into the endless void by your final divine power on the battlefield between gods and demons! Although it is billions of times thinner, its cold, filthy, and all-corroding nature is unmistakable! How could it appear in this mortal world? And even…be condensed into a crystal?]
It was the voice of the spatial spirit! The accompanying spatial spirit that had fallen into silence after her rebirth due to the depletion of her divine power!
A sharp, almost tangible glint flashed in Zhuohua's eyes! So that's how it is! Everything connects now!
In the final battle between gods and demons, the Nine Nether Demon Lord perished, his shattered primordial demonic energy scattering across the myriad realms… Some fragments, like foul-smelling dust, drifted down to this mortal world, where spiritual energy was scarce. The evil sects of this world, walking the edge of darkness and thirsting for power, such as that so-called "Mysterious Yin Sect," like hyenas smelling carrion, unexpectedly discovered this scattered demonic energy. They treasured it, forcibly collecting and condensing it into "Yin Sha Seed" crystals using some secret method! These crystals were then used as the "seeds" and energy cores of evil to create those inhuman, demonic creatures that polluted the heavens and earth!
"Heh." Zhuo Hua's lips curled into a cold and mocking smile as he toyed with the dark purple magic crystal between his fingers. His eyes, however, shone with an astonishing light, like a hunter who had discovered a great treasure. "Xuan Yin Sect... truly a godsend."
Fragments of demonic energy? Sources of pollution? In her eyes, who desperately needed to restore her divine power, these were the finest "resources"!
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