Chapter 54 The Core... is... there
"The core... is... there!" Granny Green Ivy's voice was hoarse and weak, and she cast her gaze with difficulty towards the base of the main vine—there lurked a dense mass of dark red, foul source matter, pulsing like a living thing! It was this substance that pumped out the aura of depravity like a heart, contaminating the entire lifeline!
"Leave it to me!" Li Jiuyou's eyes flashed with ferocity, and the red-gold demonic fire rose up, ready to pounce on the filthy source!
"No!" Granny Qingteng shouted urgently, "The source of decadence has become entangled with the core of the veins! If we forcefully destroy it, the veins will be destroyed! The dome will collapse, and the forest... will all perish!" Her eyes revealed deep exhaustion and compassion. "Only... the vitality of Jianmu... can be... stripped away and purified..."
Jiang Xuelan took a step forward, his icy blue eyes fixed on the pulsating filthy essence: "A Che!"
"Here!" Ah Che jumped down from Man Gu's arms. His face was pale, but his eyes were resolute. He ran to Jiang Xuelan's side, energizing his pure wood spirit energy with all his might. A tender green halo shone like a small sun, wrapping itself around the Jianmu fragment in Jiang Xuelan's hand!
Under the blessing of Ache's pure wood spirit, the Jianmu fragments instantly burst into a burst of emerald green brilliance! It was like a scorching green sun rising in a filthy demonic cave! The majestic and pure breath of life swept across the entire dome space like a tsunami!
The filthy vines entwined on the main vines let out a shrill wail, quickly withering and scorching like snow exposed to the scorching sun! Even the pulsating filthy essence twisted violently, the dark red halo on its surface forcibly suppressed by the emerald green light!
"Now!" A final glint flashed in Grandma Green Ivy's eyes! She fiercely thrust the nearly shattered wooden staff into the ground at the base of the main vine! The charred remains of the wooden staff instantly radiated a faint, yet incredibly resilient, golden light! Like a chain, the golden light instantly wrapped around the ball of filthy essence, temporarily securing it!
"Freeze! Peel!" Jiang Xuelan shouted fiercely! He raised the Jianmu fragment high in the air, pouring his icy immortal energy into it without reservation! A strange scene appeared! Under the guidance of the icy immortal energy, the emerald green light of the Jianmu tree transformed into countless emerald green threads wrapped with ice-blue frost patterns! These threads were like the most precise probes, accurately piercing the interior of the filthy source material locked by the golden light of the wooden staff!
The filthy essence was like an ice cube thrown into boiling oil, boiling violently and melting! The dark red filth was wrapped in emerald green light threads, frozen, and peeled away! With each peel, a strand of dark red filth was purified into nothingness, and the corresponding filthy veins on the main vine also withered a little!
"Ugh!" The filthy source let out an inhuman roar, struggling in its last moments! A terrifying suction force suddenly erupted, attempting to devour Jiang Xuelan and A Che, who were so close! At the same time, several deeply hidden, venomous, snake-like tentacles of filth suddenly shot out from the puddle on the ground, piercing A Che's back!
"Be careful!" Li Jiuyou's pupils suddenly shrank! Without a second thought, he instinctively blocked in front of A Che! The red-gold demonic fire erupted, forming a shield! But in the rush, the shield failed to fully form!
Two foul tentacles fiercely pierced the demon fire shield and pierced into Li Jiuyou's left shoulder and right abdomen! Severe pain and a cold, foul erosion instantly came! Li Jiuyou groaned, and his red-gold eyes instantly filled with dark red bloodshot!
"Li Jiuyou!" Jiang Xuelan's icy-blue pupils suddenly contracted! An unprecedented icy rage erupted like a volcano from the frozen sea of consciousness! The icy-blue light from the newly formed vines on his wrist instantly became blindingly bright! A pure, icy will, following the blood pact, violently surged into Li Jiuyou's sea of consciousness, forcibly dispelling the encroaching filth!
"Get out of here!" Li Jiuyou felt the support of that icy will, and his ferocity erupted completely! Instead of retreating, he advanced, allowing the filthy tentacles to penetrate deeper. Crimson-gold demonic fire surged through the wound, burning the filthy tentacles in reverse! At the same time, his right fist condensed into crimson-gold demonic fire, fused with icy will. With a determination to perish together, he smashed it fiercely into the filthy source core, which was locked by the emerald green light and the golden light of the wooden staff!
Boom——!!!
The red-gold flame wrapped with ice-blue frost patterns, like a hammer of judgment from the pure world, smashed fiercely into the core of the filthy source!
There were no earth-shattering explosions.
There was only a silent scream that seemed to come from the Nine Nether Hell, full of extreme resentment, and it stopped abruptly!
The filthy essence instantly deflated and disintegrated like a popped balloon, transforming into dark red ash that flew all over the sky and quickly dissolved into the emerald green light!
With the annihilation of the Essence Core, all the filthy veins on the main vine instantly withered and peeled away! The filthy vines that clung to the dome seemed to have lost their foundation, charring, breaking, and falling in large sections! The dark red "vessels" that bound the main vine broke off inch by inch!
Buzz——!!!
Freed from the suppression of filth, the main emerald vine that supported the heavens and the earth suddenly erupted in an unprecedented burst of brilliant green light! Pure and vast life energy, like a flood bursting through a dam, instantly swept across the entire dome! Wherever the light reached, all remaining filth was thoroughly purified! The cracked emerald vine barrier healed and grew at a speed visible to the naked eye in the green light! The dim dome once again bloomed with a warm and majestic emerald glow, even brighter and more vibrant than before! The light penetrated the gaps between the vines and sprinkled onto the shimmering Emerald Dream Lake below, illuminating the entire forest in a transparent green!
The Emerald Heart, reborn from the ashes!
The entire Emerald Forest erupted in deafening cheers! The tree spirits' mournful sobs instantly transformed into ecstatic singing and dancing!
"It's done...it's done..." Li Jiuyou looked at the scene before him, his tense nerves suddenly relaxed. The sharp pain and the weakness of the filth washed over him simultaneously. He stumbled a step, the wounds on his left shoulder and right abdomen still oozing blood, staining his scarlet-gold vine robe red.
A cold hand held his arm firmly.
Li Jiuyou tilted his head, meeting Jiang Xuelan's icy blue eyes so close to him. His face remained pale, but something seemed different deep within them. Before Li Jiuyou could shake him off (or curse out loud), a stream of cool, pure life energy flowed through Jiang Xuelan's hand and into his body, quickly suppressing the filth and excruciating pain from the wound. Simultaneously, the icy blue glow of the vine patterns on Jiang Xuelan's arm resonated with the crimson-gold shimmer of his own, and a faint, strange aura, a mixture of icy mist and sparks, enveloped both of them. Reflected by the brilliant emerald light of the dome, it refracted into a miniature rainbow bridge.
"Fuck..." Li Jiuyou looked at the annoying rainbow and was about to curse, but his body was honestly soothed by the icy energy and felt a little more comfortable. He bit back the curse words that were about to come out of his mouth, and his expression was distorted.
Che cheered and leaped towards the suspended Jianmu fragments. The fragments seemed to take a liking to him, gently enveloping him in a emerald green glow. Man Gu grinned broadly. Xuan Jia marveled at the miniature rainbow bridge. "Turtle! Built-in neon effects? This blood pact is truly impressive!"
Qingluo excitedly rushed to Grandma Qingteng: "Grandma! We succeeded!"
However, Granny Green Vine's figure gradually became transparent amidst the magnificent green light erupting from the Emerald Main Vine. The wooden staff in her hand shattered completely, transforming into tiny specks of golden light that merged with the Main Vine. She looked at the cheering forest, at Jiang Xuelan and Li Jiuyou supporting each other (awkwardly), at the joyful A-Che, and a smile of relief and satisfaction spread across her wrinkled face, as serene as an autumn leaf.
"Guard... continue... very good..." Her old voice was like whispers on the wind, and her figure finally turned into countless tiny, gleaming dark green vine leaves, which fell like gentle rain and merged into the reborn emerald main vine, completely becoming one with it.
Only the charred Jianmu leaf fell down intact and landed gently in Ache's open palm.
The cheers gradually died down. The tree spirits gazed at the radiant main vine, seemingly understanding something. They lowered their heads, folded their hands over their chests, and began to sing a low, distant elegy. The song echoed beneath the emerald dome, carrying with it a mixture of respect for the fallen guardian and gratitude for the new hope.
Jiang Xuelan silently looked at the place where Grandma Qingteng disappeared, a complex look flashing across his icy blue eyes. He tightened his grip on Li Jiuyou slightly.
Li Jiuyou felt the cold force on his arm, looked at the rain of vine leaves floating in the sky, and then looked at Jiang Xuelan's profile beside him, which was rarely covered with frost. For the first time in his life, he did not shake off the hand, but turned his head awkwardly and muttered: "...This old woman runs so fast." But his voice lacked the usual irritability, and there was a little more of emptiness that he himself did not even notice.
Ah Che held the charred Jianmu leaf in his hand, tears dripping onto it. The leaf trembled slightly, and a tiny, barely perceptible emerald green bud quietly poked out from the charred edge.
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