219: Chapter 219 Qi Refining Tiger's Mouth to Seize the World Heart

Su Changge stood before the stone door.

Deep in the cracks, that long, deep breathing sound still echoed in his ears, carrying a kind of ancient and pulsating life rhythm.

His heart was beating violently, like war drums.

The Qi flowing within his body remained only at the Qi Refining First Layer.

He was clear-headed; if what lay dormant here was truly a living creature with immense power, then with his current cultivation, he would have no power to resist.

He took a deep breath, suppressing the instinctive panic in his heart, while maintaining a calm and indifferent expression on his face.

"What is there to fear? Even if a living thing is lurking here, it cannot harm this King in the slightest."

Deep inside, however, a voice was screaming desperately: *God, if there really is a living thing, I will definitely run away, not even looking back!*

Su Changge reached out his palm and gently pushed the ancient stone door.

The door, sealed for ten thousand years, emitted a dull friction sound as it slowly opened inward.

He stepped inside, each step steady and determined, with Lin Waner following closely behind him like a shadow.

What met his eyes was a vast and boundless tomb hall, large enough to accommodate several ordinary martial arts arenas.

On the dome, hundreds of large night-luminescent pearls were embedded, emitting a bright and soft radiance, illuminating the entire tomb like daylight and dispelling the eternal darkness.

In the center of the hall, a stone throne about the height of a person stood majestically.

On the throne sat a withered skeleton, draped in a faded but still golden-glowing Dragon robe, wearing an imperial crown.

Despite the erosion of time, leaving only bones, a majestic Imperial Might had not dissipated; instead, it made the dignity and extraordinariness of the person in life even more apparent.

On the left hand of the skeleton, a pitch-black space ring was worn on the finger bone.

The right hand tightly gripped a pure white bead, about the size of a fist, which was emitting wisps of faint, holy white light.

This light was exactly what Su Changge was looking for—the heart of the realm.

Beside the stone throne, a dried-up blood altar caught his eye.

On the surface of the altar, a Phoenix ready to take flight was intricately carved, and on the totem, mottled dark black bloodstains remained, revealing traces of some ancient and mysterious sacrifice.

The heart-palpitating breathing sound from before had now vanished.

The entire tomb hall fell into a dead silence, with only the footsteps of Su Changge and Lin Waner echoing endlessly in this vast space.

Su Changge stared at the heart of the realm in the skeleton's palm, his heartbeat suddenly accelerating.

*That is the heart of the realm!*

A desire he had never felt before surged within him.

*As long as I obtain this item, I can find a glimmer of survival!*

Lin Waner looked at the skeleton on the stone throne, instinctively shrinking her neck, her eyes filled with terror.

"Fellow Daoist, is... is that the remains of that Empress?"

Her voice trembled slightly.

Su Changge nodded slightly and walked slowly toward the stone throne.

He was cautious with every step, afraid of triggering hidden killing intent.

Until he reached the stone throne, the path had been calm, with no mechanisms triggered.

He stopped beside the stone throne and stared at the face of the skeleton.

Although only white bones remained, the contours were shockingly identical to Ye Qingyao.

Complex emotions intertwined in Su Changge's heart; there was both familiarity with Ye Qingyao and reverence for the departed powerhouse.

Su Changge cleared his throat and bowed respectfully to the skeleton.

"Senior Empress, Junior Su Changge has come rashly today to take the heart of the realm to purify the Blood Abyss Realm. Please forgive me for any offense."

After speaking, he reached out his palm, intending to take the heart of the realm from the skeleton's hand.

However, just as his fingertips touched the shoulder of the skeleton.

In an instant, the entire tomb hall shook violently, as if a Dragon was turning over.

The remaining blood Qi in the Blood Abyss Realm, as if summoned by some ancient call, surged out from every crack in the hall.

The blood Qi was a deep dark red, instantly condensing into blood-colored dragons over ten zhang long, circling and dancing in the hall, emitting piercing shrieks that chilled the heart.

Su Changge's face changed drastically, and he retreated several steps, pulling Lin Waner aside.

*Damn it, what is this turn of events?*

All the blood-colored dragons, as if pulled by an invisible force, rushed straight toward the skeleton on the stone throne.

They burrowed into the skeleton and were absorbed entirely.

As the blood Qi poured in, a faint phantom began to emerge on the surface of the skeleton, and the phantom gradually solidified, its contours becoming clearer.

Finally, a phantom of a woman wearing a golden Dragon robe appeared clearly.

Her face was identical to Ye Qingyao's, but her complexion was extremely pale, and her eyes were filled with endless violence and resentment.

A vast and peerless Imperial Might permeated from her body, making it hard to breathe.

Lin Waner looked at the phantom, her legs trembling uncontrollably, her voice carrying a weeping tone.

"Fellow Daoist, is... is that the soul of the Empress?"

Su Changge's face was already pale.

He looked at the phantom that resembled Ye Qingyao so much, his heartbeat like a drum.

*A remnant soul of Ye Qingyao's past life?*

The phantom slowly turned on the stone throne, those eyes without a trace of warmth looking directly toward Su Changge.

A layer of cold sweat instantly covered Su Changge's back.

He could clearly perceive that the pressure emitted by this phantom was at the Great Emperor realm.

Even if it was just a remnant soul phantom, it could easily crush him, a mere Cultivator at the Qi Refining First Layer.

Su Changge urgently called out to the System in his heart.

*System, quickly exchange for a pressure effect, the most powerful one!*

[Effect exchange successful, consumed 1000 emotion points.]

A majestic and holy pressure rose from Su Changge's body and spread out, colliding head-on with the phantom's Imperial Might.

The air in the entire tomb hall twisted and trembled with the impact of this invisible force.

The phantom's movements paused for an instant, and a hint of confusion appeared in its eyes as it looked at Su Changge.

Su Changge exhaled half a breath imperceptibly, while pretending to be unfathomable on the surface.

"This King has come this time only for the heart of the realm. You, step back."

His heart was screaming wildly: *God, please don't come over! I'm just a rookie at the Qi Refining First Layer!*

The phantom stood on the stone throne, staring at Su Changge, its gaze lingering for a full half minute.

Suddenly, it opened its lips and let out an ear-piercing, deafening shriek, the sound vibrating so hard that the entire hall trembled.

Above the dome, nearly half of the night-luminescent pearls shattered in response, and the light in the hall dimmed instantly.

The phantom raised its arm, its will controlling the stones in the hall.

Huge stones weighing hundreds of catties were stripped from the four walls, carrying the momentum of ten thousand jun, and smashed toward Su Changge.

Su Changge's face turned white, and he pulled Lin Waner to retreat rapidly, dodging the flying boulders.

At the same time, his thoughts raced, and he called the System again.

*System, quickly exchange for a defensive barrier effect, the highest level!*

[Effect exchange successful, consumed 500 emotion points.]

A transparent barrier appeared around them, steadily blocking the smashing boulders.

The stones hit the barrier and instantly crumbled into powder, but failed to shake the barrier in the slightest.

Su Changge looked at the increasingly violent phantom, thoughts flashing rapidly in his mind.

*Such a stalemate is definitely not a long-term plan.*

He didn't have many emotion points left, and he couldn't hold on for too long.

He had to get the heart of the realm and leave this place as soon as possible.

Su Changge dodged the phantom's attacks while trying to call out that familiar name.

"Ye Qingyao!"

Hearing the three words "Ye Qingyao", the phantom's movements stopped abruptly.

The shrieking also dissipated.

It stood blankly on the stone throne, its head slightly tilted, a wave of confusion appearing in its eyes, and it muttered unconsciously.

"Ye Qingyao? Ye Qingyao?"

A light of hope bloomed in Su Changge's eyes.

*It worked!*

Su Changge pressed his advantage and called out again: "Ye Qingyao! I am Su Changge!"

Hearing the name "Su Changge", the phantom's movements became even slower, the confusion in its eyes grew thicker, and the pressure emitted from its body significantly weakened.

Su Changge captured the moment of the phantom's trance, knowing this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

He tapped his toes on the ground, his figure like lightning, rushing toward the stone throne, extending his palm to take the heart of the realm from the skeleton's hand.

However, just as Su Changge's fingertips were about to touch the heart of the realm, the phantom suddenly recovered its clarity, the confusion in its eyes dissipated, replaced by extreme violence.

The phantom raised its hand and slapped down toward Su Changge's chest.

Su Changge's face instantly turned pale.

If this palm landed squarely on him, he would have no chance of survival and would be instantly turned into a pile of meat paste.