14: : Annihilation in the ashes, mortal bones ascend to immortality

"I... I'm not dead?"

An extremely faint consciousness, bearing endless confusion and tearing pain, struggled like a spark submerged beneath Ten Thousand Year Profound Ice, attempting to awaken from the primordial obscurity of the nascent chaos.

There was no sensation of a body. No feedback from the five senses. Only a slowly circulating Chaotic Vortex of gray, white, gold, and black chaotic colors, constantly rotating, generating, and dissolving, deep within his consciousness. This vortex was as small as a mustard seed, yet so heavy it seemed to carry the origin and end of the entire world. It devoured everything and derived everything. Chen Feng's faint consciousness was like a speck of dust clinging to a massive celestial body—insignificant, yet strangely protected and nourished by this Chaotic Vortex.

A chaos dao foundation... a concept derived from the residual information of the life plate, vaguely surfaced in his consciousness.

Was this the foundation he had forcefully forged in a life-or-death struggle using the life plate, drawing Immortal Spiritual Qi as a hammer, using his own disintegration as the embryo, and integrating the fragments of Earth Fiend Ore Marrow—a foundation created amidst certain death?

The price was steep. He couldn't sense any meridians, nor his Dantian Qi Sea. The faint spiritual power of the former Qi Refining Second Layer was completely gone. The "self" perceived by that weak consciousness seemed to be only the slowly rotating chaos base point, and the flicker of Immortal Spiritual Light, which held all his memories and obsessions, firmly protected at its core.

Everything external felt as distant as if separated by a lifetime.

Until—

BOOM—!!!

A bolt of lightning, whose color defied description, carrying the absolute will to obliterate everything and end all creation, tore through the spatial barrier of the Immortal Transformation Pool, striking down fiercely like a giant axe splitting the heavens and earth!

Heavenly Condemnation! The Might of World Destruction!

Even though his consciousness was submerged deep within the chaos base point, Chen Feng's faint spiritual light instantly erupted with excruciating pain and alarm, as if pierced simultaneously by billions of searing steel needles, nearing complete extinction! It was the fear of ultimate destruction, stemming from biological instinct!

However, the anticipated destruction of body and soul did not occur.

Just as the World-Destroying Lightning was about to completely annihilate this space, erasing Chen Feng’s nascent chaos dao foundation along with it—

Buzz—!

Deep within Chen Feng's consciousness, the slowly rotating chaos base point violently shuddered, as if stimulated by this supreme destructive will! An indescribable, ancient aura, seemingly capable of encompassing the end of all things and even incorporating "ending" itself into its evolutionary sequence, burst forth!

The World-Destroying Lightning fiercely struck the area where the chaos base point resided!

There was no earth-shattering explosion.

There was no frantic annihilation of energy.

Only a strange, soul-freezing... silence.

The destructive energy of the World-Destroying Lightning, enough to obliterate a minor world, was silently swallowed by the rotating gray vortex—like a clay ox entering the sea—the moment it encountered the chaotic aura emanating from the chaos base point, an aura that encompassed all Daos and even "ending" itself!

The Chaotic Vortex rotated violently, expanding and contracting! Gray mist surged frantically, and the Dark Gold Ore Marrow specks suspended inside burst forth with dazzling light! It acted like a bottomless black hole and a greedy furnace, forcefully decomposing, swallowing, and converting the terrifying Heavenly Condemnation Lightning, which was capable of slaying Golden Immortals! The laws of destruction and the Nirvana Will contained within the lightning were forcibly analyzed and imprinted by the chaos base point, transforming into fine, black patterns that flashed with Nirvana Lightning, branding themselves deep within the Chaotic Vortex, becoming a part of its evolution!

This process appeared calm, but was in fact extremely perilous!

With every swallow, the chaos base point violently shook, as if it would be instantly burst apart by the destructive power! Chen Feng’s faint consciousness attached to it endured excruciating agony, feeling as though it were repeatedly struck by billions of lightning bolts, his True Spirit ground into dust inch by inch! This was a torture more terrifying than the disintegration of the physical body, striking directly at the origin of the True Spirit!

He didn't know how long passed—perhaps only an instant, perhaps eternity.

The heaven-destroying, earth-annihilating Nirvana Lightning was finally... completely swallowed by the nascent chaos base point!

The chaos base point slowly stopped its frantic rotation, its volume seemingly expanding slightly. Within the gray mist, there was an imperceptible yet heart-stopping hint of Nirvana Lightning Intent. It floated silently deep within his consciousness, radiating an aura that was more ancient, heavier, and more dangerous after undergoing the baptism of destruction.

Inside the Immortal Transformation Pool space, there was dead silence.

The torn spatial rift slowly closed. The Immortal Spiritual Mist, which had been thick as mercury, was much thinner, even carrying a faint hint of burnt odor. The smooth, milky-white "ground" at the bottom of the pool was covered in spiderweb-like scorched cracks, and the spot where Chen Feng had collapsed now held a terrifying, bottomless pit, its edges flickering with minute spatial electric arcs.

At the edge of the pit, a body lay quietly.

This body was no longer in the wretched state of a broken ragdoll. The skin displayed a warm, jade-like texture, yet subtly radiated a restrained, dark luster, heavy like the earth. The muscle lines were smooth but contained explosive power, and the bone density was astonishingly high, as if forged from Divine Metal. His height also seemed to have increased slightly, his physique approaching perfection, a combination of strength and beauty. However, his entire body was covered in fine cracks, like crazing on porcelain, and deep within the cracks, subtle three-colored lights—gray, gold, and black—occasionally circulated, carrying a hint of unsettling Nirvana aura.

This was precisely the physical body that had been completely reshaped after the chaos base point devoured the Heavenly Condemnation!

Chen Feng's faint consciousness slowly surfaced, as if rising from the deepest seabed, struggling to return to this brand new shell.

"Ugh..."

A groan suppressing endless pain was squeezed from his throat. He slowly opened his eyes.

His vision was initially blurred, then became incredibly clear, allowing him to see even the most minute Immortal Spiritual Dust floating in the air. Hearing, smell, touch... all his senses became unprecedentedly sharp! He could clearly "hear" the low roar of his blood surging through vessels as tough as Dragon Tendons, "smell" the lingering burnt odor of lightning and the heavy fragrance of Immortal Spiritual Qi in the space, and "feel" the faint pulsation-like tremor transmitted from the cold pool bottom beneath him!

A complete transformation!

But following this was an even clearer, sharper pain originating from the deepest parts of his body! The fine cracks covering his entire body seemed connected to his soul, and every heartbeat brought a tearing agony. Although the chaos base point was slowly rotating and releasing faint Chaotic Airflow to nourish this powerful physical body, this power was too high-grade and too heavy—like a child swinging a thousand-jin sledgehammer—and every operation overwhelmed his body, causing the cracks to ache faintly. Worse still, the Nirvana Heavenly Condemnation power imprinted deep within the chaos base point, like a coiled venomous dragon, emitted a cold destructive aura, constantly reminding him of the "forbidden" nature of this body and dao foundation.

He struggled to sit up, lowering his head to examine his brand new, crack-covered "Chaotic Immortal Body."

There was no sensation of spiritual power circulating.

No signs of a realm breakthrough.

In fact... even the fluctuations of the Qi Refining First Layer were so faint they were practically nonexistent!

A mortal!

This absurd yet utterly true realization made Chen Feng's heart sink instantly. The strength of his physical body likely far surpassed ordinary Foundation Establishment Cultivators! But internally, it was completely empty! The chaos base point had devoured the Heavenly Condemnation and reshaped his body, but it hadn't generated any "power" he could command! Or rather, the chaos base point was the power, but its level was too high and too chaotic for him to mobilize even a fraction of it!

He was now a mortal with a physique as sturdy as a God or Demon... yet utterly powerless!

"This... is the chaos dao foundation?" Chen Feng pulled a bitter curve at the corner of his mouth. This foundation defied the heavens, but it was also a dead end! He possessed a treasure mountain he couldn't enter!

Just then, deep within his Sea of Consciousness, the cracked, dimly lit gray [cosmic destiny plate] trembled extremely faintly. A fragmented stream of information, seeming as if it could extinguish at any moment, was transmitted with difficulty:

[Chaos dao foundation... Reshaping complete...]

[Physical Body Strength: Earth Immortal Early Stage (Cracked state, requires stabilization)]

[Energy Core: chaos base point (Nascent, Nirvana Heavenly Condemnation Imprint)]

[Usable Energy: None (Base point energy level is too high; Host cultivation realm insufficient for guidance)]

[Host Current Realm: ??? (chaos base point is evolving; cannot be measured by conventional realms)]

[Combat Power Assessment: Mortal Peak (Physical Strength), ineffective against those protected by Immortal Essence Power.]

[WARNING! Immortal Transformation Pool Rule Backlash is imminent! Space is about to seal! Detected faint Spatial Beacon (Su Wanzhao · Guanghan Ruins)...]

[Recommendation: Immediately... leave... search for... beacon...]

Mortal Peak? Ineffective against Immortal Essence Power?

Chen Feng's heart turned completely cold. This meant that any random Immortal Realm Cultivator in the Qi Refining stage, as long as they could utilize Immortal Essence Power, could easily crush his empty shell!

What tightened his heart even more was the life plate's warning—Immortal Transformation Pool Rule Backlash! Spatial sealing!

As if to confirm the life plate's warning, the entire Immortal Transformation Pool space violently shook! The sparse Immortal Spiritual Mist began to churn fiercely, the silver runes lit up on the pool bottom flashed wildly, and a powerful spatial force, carrying the will to repel and obliterate, rapidly condensed! The spatial barrier above, which had been torn by the Heavenly Condemnation, was now rapidly closing and strengthening at a visible speed! An invisible power of confinement, like heavy shackles, began to envelop the entire space!

He could not stay here long!

Chen Feng endured the intense pain from the cracks covering his body and struggled to stand up. His body was incredibly heavy; every movement pulled at the minute wounds all over him, bringing agonizing pain. But he couldn't worry about that! His gaze instantly swept across the devastated pool bottom, landing on the edge of the pit—where a palm-sized, broken metallic fragment, stained with dark gold blood and scorched marks, lay quietly.

It was the life plate! The gray disc that had started everything had not been completely destroyed after enduring the Immortal Spiritual Infusion and the Heavenly Condemnation bombardment; only a corner had shattered, and the disc itself was covered in spiderweb cracks, its light dimmed to the extreme!

Chen Feng stumbled over and grabbed the cold metallic fragment. It felt heavy in his hand, carrying a familiar throbbing sensation of blood connection. This life plate was his only reliance!

"Beacon... Su Wanzhao..." He looked up, his scarlet eyes fixed on the spot where Su Wanzhao had vanished—the spatial vortex had long disappeared, leaving behind only an extremely faint, cold, and aloof Sword Intent fluctuation.

Go! He must leave immediately! He had to find her!

Chen Feng no longer hesitated, using all his strength to stagger and run towards the direction of the rapidly closing rift—the weakest point of the Immortal Transformation Pool spatial barrier! Every step he took on the smooth pool bottom produced a heavy thud, shaking his body and causing the cracks to ache intensely, blood foam mixed with organ fragments constantly spilling from his mouth.

The spatial barrier above was getting closer, like a giant mouth closing! The invisible repulsive force dragged heavily at his steps like a swamp!

"Ugh Ah—!" Chen Feng let out a beast-like roar, his eyes blood red. The chaos base point seemed to sense his intense will to survive, vibrating slightly, and a faint but extremely pure Chaotic Airflow instantly circulated throughout his limbs and body!

BOOM!

He exerted force abruptly with his feet! The incredibly hard ground at the bottom of the pool was actually stamped into a shallow depression! His body shot forward like an arrow released from a bow, charging resolutely towards the rift—now only wide enough for one person and flickering with dangerous Spatial Turbulence!

Pffft!

The moment his body passed through the rift, it was as if he were being sliced by countless sharp spatial fragments! His already cracked body gained countless new fine wounds! The intense pain nearly made him faint!

Before his eyes was an endless, chaotic Spatial Tunnel, radiating multicolored light! Massive tearing forces came from all directions, threatening to shred him completely!

Just at this critical moment between life and death, the fragment of the fate plate tightly clenched in his hand seemed stimulated by the chaotic spatial force, and the most central crack on the disc suddenly lit up with a barely perceptible gray glow!

[Consuming... Nirvana Heavenly Condemnation residue... activating... Spatial Anchoring...]

[Locked onto... faint beacon... Guanghan...]

The fragment of the fate plate suddenly became scalding hot! An extremely faint gray light, carrying a certain Nirvana aura, ignored the chaotic Spatial Turbulence and instantly shot toward the endless depths of the void ahead, seemingly connecting to an extremely distant, cold, and aloof coordinate!

A faint yet precise pulling force transmitted, dragging Chen Feng through the violent Spatial Turbulence, drifting with difficulty but determination towards the direction indicated by the gray line, like a small boat in a raging sea... just as the Immortal Transformation Pool space completely sealed off.

Untold thousands of miles away from this location, deep within a massive palace suspended above the Nine Heavens Gale, forged entirely from white Immortal Jade and shrouded in soft moonlight.

Atop an ancient altar carved from Ten Thousand Year Cold Jade, covered in profound stellar trajectories.

In the center of the altar, the nearly extinguished ice-blue starlight suddenly pulsed, as if injected with a distant, faint "fuse" carrying a Nirvana aura! A thread of vitality, extremely weak and almost imperceptible, like a sleeping seed, struggled to sprout deep within the shattered Sword Imprint.