118: Chapter 118 Netherworld Crystal Core

Before the "crack" sound had even dissipated, the thick stone door of the stone house was suddenly shattered by a tremendous force from the outside!

Amidst the flying rubble, a figure clad in silver armor strode in.

The sword tassel on the sword at his waist swayed without wind, and the Spiritual Qi swirling around his body remained condensed and unscattered—it was none other than the commander of the Zhenxi Army, Ye Chen!

He unleashed his Domain Realm cultivation wantonly!

He glanced at the cracked barrier of the Spirit Gathering Array, his gaze finally falling on Zhang Wen, a trace of disdain curling the corners of his mouth.

"A mere brat at the Peak of the Microscopic Realm, yet you dare to come and snatch something that my Zhenxi Army has set its sights on?"

Before the words had even faded, the power of Ye Chen's Domain suddenly erupted from his body!

The pale golden Domain spread out like a tide, and the Spiritual Qi inside the stone house was instantly compressed into stagnation.

Zhang Wen felt as if a giant boulder were pressing against his chest; his wounds, which had just begun to heal, started to bleed again, and his hand gripping the spear couldn't help but tremble.

The gap between the Domain Realm and the Subtle Realm was like a natural chasm; just the suppression of his aura made him almost unable to move.

"If only Master were here." Zhang Wen began to miss Teacher Lin Mo.

"The treasure beneath this array is not something you can touch."

Ye Chen took a step forward, and the power of his Domain intensified once more.

"If you're sensible, get lost, and I might leave you with an intact corpse. If you dare to obstruct me..."

Before he finished speaking, Zhang Wen suddenly raised his hand to press against his chest.

Two Talismans slipped from his lapel; one emitted a soft pink light and was the protective Talisman that Ding Siyi had shoved into his hands earlier.

The surface of the Talisman was embroidered with fine concentric patterns and still retained the warmth of her fingertips;

The other was dark gold, with the unique lightning patterns of the Hundred Refinements Pool carved along its edges—it was the reward for passing the Lightning Tribulation trial.

"If you want to touch me, you'll have to get past these Talismans first!"

Zhang Wen gritted his teeth and injected Spiritual Qi into the two Talismans.

The pink-light Talisman lit up first, and a translucent light shield enveloped him.

Ye Chen's Domain power collided with the light shield and was actually forcefully blocked; the concentric patterns on the shield flickered, dissipating the pressure layer by layer.

Ye Chen's eyes narrowed: "A protective Talisman? Interesting."

He raised his hand, forming a palm, and gathered Spiritual Qi to strike at Zhang Wen, the palm wind carrying a sharp sound that tore through the air.

But just as the palm wind approached, the dark gold lightning-patterned protective Talisman suddenly erupted with Lightning Radiance!

Countless tiny lightning arcs coiled around the outside of the light shield, forming a lightning net, and Ye Chen's palm wind struck the lightning net.

It was instantly deflected by the lightning arcs, and even his silver armor was scorched with several small black spots by the splashing lightning arcs.

"A lightning-pattern Talisman from the Hundred Refinements Pool?"

Ye Chen finally set aside his contempt. "You are a student of Qinglan University? That's a bit troublesome, but—"

He abruptly drew his sword, golden brilliance rising on the blade. "Do you think you can block my sword with just two disposable protective Talismans?"

Zhang Wen took advantage of this gap and swept his gaze across the crack in the Spirit Gathering Array.

The Eye of Thunder Punishment had already seen through it; as long as he blasted it with Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder one more time, he could completely break the outer barrier.

He gripped the sky-splitting startling thunder spear tightly, caught a glimpse of Ye Chen's sword about to descend, and decisively pushed the power of one of the Talismans to its limit.

"Diminutive for Ding Siyi's Talisman protects me, the lightning-pattern protective Talisman attacks you—today, I am determined to break into this Spirit Gathering Array!"

The lightning net of the dark gold Talisman suddenly surged, and countless lightning arcs coalesced into a lightning spear, shooting towards Ye Chen.

Ye Chen had no choice but to retract his sword to parry; the lightning spear collided with the blade, erupting in blinding Lightning Radiance, shaking him back half a step.

Taking advantage of this momentary gap, Zhang Wen leaped towards the crack in the Spirit Gathering Array.

The sky-splitting startling thunder spear in his hand gathered the last trace of Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder and fiercely stabbed at the barrier!

"Seeking death!"

Ye Chen had been forced back by the lightning arcs, and seeing Zhang Wen about to break the array, he roared and swung his sword to strike.

But at this very moment, the pink-light Talisman on Zhang Wen's chest suddenly shone brightly, the light shield instantly extended, wrapping around him entirely and rushing towards the crack—

"Boom!"

The outer barrier of the Spirit Gathering Array completely shattered, and Zhang Wen's figure disappeared into the darkness behind the barrier.

Leaving behind only Ye Chen's sword stroke that had hit nothing, and the lightning arcs and pink light that had not yet dissipated within the stone house.

Ye Chen stood before the broken barrier, his expression so gloomy it could drip water.

"The monk may run, but the temple cannot! Pass down the order to blockade the entire Black Wind Stockade; even if he gets the treasure, he won't be getting out of the Black Wind Stockade!"

The moment he passed through the outer barrier, Spiritual Qi so dense it was almost liquefied rushed towards his face.

Zhang Wen instinctively held his breath; inside the cave, it was no longer the rough rock walls of the stone house, but a crystal ore vein shimmering with a deep blue luster.

The inner layer runes of the Spirit Gathering Array were carved directly onto the crystals, flowing with a dark light that was of the same origin as the Cloaked Figure's blood array.

He had just steadied himself when the Eye of Thunder Punishment suddenly throbbed violently, its vision piercing through layers of crystals to land on the bronze coffin half-buried in the rock and soil at the bottom of the cave.

The coffin body was covered in twisted patterns, each one absorbing the surrounding Spiritual Qi.

And in the center of the coffin lid was embedded a fist-sized black crystal, with soul fire faintly flickering within it—it was the "Opportunity" mentioned in the System's prompt!

"This is... an embryo of a soul weapon?"

Zhang Wen's heart jolted.

He had once seen records in ancient books that a soul weapon required a thousand-year soul crystal as a base, supplemented by the tempering of a million living souls.

Yet this crystal before him, although not yet fully formed, was already capable of autonomously absorbing Spiritual Qi, making it several times stronger than the prototype of an ordinary soul weapon.

But before he could get close, the inner layer runes suddenly lit up! Countless dark purple light chains shot out from the crystals, heading straight for his vital points.

Zhang Wen hurriedly activated Ding Siyi's pink-light protective Talisman, and the light shield expanded again, only to be violently shaken by the impact of the light chains.

The luster of the concentric patterns dimmed visibly; the power of these runes was actually even more overbearing than Ye Chen's Domain pressure!

"I must break the inner layer runes first!"

Zhang Wen gritted his teeth and injected all his remaining Spiritual Qi into the sky-splitting startling thunder spear.

The Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder remaining on the thunder lin kai was completely awakened, and the tip of the spear erupted with blinding Lightning Radiance.

He stared at the trajectory of the flowing runes, and the Eye of Thunder Punishment finally captured a flaw.

At a node of the runes, there was a tiny crack, likely left behind when the Cloaked Figure tried to force his way in earlier!

Zhang Wen leaped up, the spear tip pointing straight at that crack.

The Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder surged along the spear shaft into the runes; amidst the "zizzing" sound of electric current, the dark purple light chains instantly halted, and the patterns on the crystals began to shatter inch by inch.

But at this very moment, the bronze coffin suddenly shook violently, and the black crystal in the center of the coffin lid erupted with a suction force.

The Spiritual Qi within the cave flowed madly towards the crystal, and even Zhang Wen's Spiritual Qi was pulled into instability!

"Not good! This crystal is accelerating its formation!"

Just as Zhang Wen wanted to step forward to stop it, Ye Chen's roar suddenly came from outside the cave.

"Brat, come out here!"

Following this, a golden Sword Qi shattered the remaining outer barrier, and Ye Chen's figure burst through the smoke and dust, his sword pointing straight at Zhang Wen's back.

"You dare to snatch my things? Today, I will leave you without an intact corpse!"

Zhang Wen hurriedly turned around, the lightning-pattern protective Talisman lit up again, and the lightning net instantly expanded.

But this time, Ye Chen directly activated his Domain power, and the golden Domain suppressed the lightning net tightly.

The Sword Qi pierced through the gaps in the lightning arcs, grazing Zhang Wen's shoulder and carving a deep groove into the crystals!

"The two protective Talismans can't hold on much longer!"

Zhang Wen's heart tightened.

The light shield of Ding Siyi's protective Talisman was already covered in cracks, and the lightning net of the dark gold Talisman was left with only a thin layer.

He glanced at the bronze coffin—the soul fire of the black crystal was growing brighter and brighter; if he waited any longer, not only would the Opportunity be lost, but he would also be slain by Ye Chen.

In desperation, Zhang Wen could no longer care about anything else.

He abruptly sidestepped to avoid another sword strike from Ye Chen, and using the impact force of the Sword Qi, he rushed towards the bronze coffin.

At the same time, he gathered the last power of the pink-light protective Talisman into his palm and fiercely struck the black crystal on the coffin lid!

"You're crazy! That crystal hasn't formed, if you touch it, you'll be backlashed by the soul fire!"

Ye Chen's expression changed drastically, and he hurriedly chased forward, but it was already too late—Zhang Wen's palm had just touched the black crystal.

The crystal suddenly erupted with a soft light; not only did the soul fire not backlash, but it instead surged into his body along his palm, creating a miraculous resonance with the Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder!

The System's prompt suddenly sounded: [Detected that the host has made contact with "Unawakened Soul Weapon · nether crystal core", the Nine Heavens Tribulation Thunder and the soul core have produced a resonance. Do you wish to perform Fusion with the Opportunity?]