90: Star Base, Gravekeeper Blood Sacrifice

Absolute darkness.

It was purer and deeper than the chaotic veil of the Space-Time Graveyard. There was no light, no sound, no sense of time passing, and he even lost the physical sensation of his "body" existing.

Chen Feng's consciousness drifted in this boundless darkness. It was like being cast into the womb of the universe, unable to sense any boundaries, only a warm yet heavy... sensation of being enveloped. The searing pain from the stellar vault emblem forcibly extracting his vitality and ultimate end aura had vanished, replaced by a strange tranquility, almost like returning to the mother's embrace.

"Last Light..." He called out in the depths of his consciousness, but the only response was the faint, star-blue light deep within his Dantian, and the vast, ancient star vault will that enveloped him.

He did not know how much time had passed.

An extremely faint, deep blue light, like the birth of a star, lit up without warning in the depths of the darkness.

Following this, came the second point, the third... Countless deep blue light points lit up in sequence, outlining complex and profound trajectories, finally converging in Chen Feng's "vision" into an unimaginably vast, slowly rotating—Star Vortex cosmic panorama! This panorama was homologous to the phantom image at the core of his nirvana star vortex life wheel in his Dantian, yet it was more complete and vaster, seemingly containing all the mysteries from the dawn of the universe.

[Core of the Stellar Vault Throne Inheritance: star source sea of consciousness (Initial Activation)]

[Status: Origin Returner Will Accessed | star remains pedestal Forging Preparation (1%)]

star remains pedestal?

This unfamiliar term was like a stone tossed into a deep pool, rippling through Chen Feng's dormant consciousness. The core of the inheritance... wasn't the direct bestowal of power, but... the forging of some kind of pedestal?

Just as the thought arose—

Buzz!

An irresistible, gentle yet incredibly firm pulling force came from the core of the rotating Star Vortex cosmos. Chen Feng's disembodied consciousness, as if pulled by invisible threads, slowly sank toward the core of the Star Vortex cosmos...

There was no sensation of falling, only a strange feeling of constantly delving deeper and being assimilated. The closer he got to the core, the clearer and heavier the star vault will enveloping him became, carrying the vicissitudes of countless tribulations and the anticipation of protection.

Finally, his consciousness "touched" the core.

It was not a vortex of energy, but a gigantic, icy... phantom pedestal! It was forged from countless star remains, fragmented law runes, and solidified marks of civilization...

The pedestal was a deep dark blue, like the backdrop of deep space, its surface covered in crisscrossing cracks and crater-like indentations. It was not a physical entity, but rather a... framework!—condensed from pure will and laws. A feeling of profound weight and solidity, as if it could bear the mass of all the stars in the heavens, washed over him.

[star remains pedestal (Primordial Form)]: Ultimate Vessel of the Stellar Vault Throne Inheritance | Status: Unforged | Forging Progress: 1%

[Forging Requirements: Origin Returner Source (Life/Energy/Will) | Pure star vault Source (Extremely Scarce) | Source of Annihilation (Environmentally Abundant) | Ultimate End Erosion (Convertible)]

Forging a pedestal? Using my... source?

Chen Feng understood instantly! The stellar vault emblem's Origin Returner guidance was not a grant of power, but rather treating his collapsing, ultimate end-eroded remnant body... as the core material and furnace fire... for forging this "star remains pedestal"!

The moment his consciousness contacted the primordial star remains pedestal—

Boom!

A vast star vault power, like an invisible giant hammer, violently struck his disembodied "existence"!

Excruciating pain! Pain surpassing all previous suffering! It was not physical pain, but the ultimate torment of his soul, will, and existence imprint being forcibly hammered and refined!

"Aaaargh—!!!"

Chen Feng let out a silent wail in the depths of his consciousness! He felt as if everything he was being violently shredded and decomposed by this power! His residual vitality, the dim Nirvana Star Fire, Su Wanzhao's dormant will, and even the suppressed but stubborn tribulation imprint... were all forcibly stripped away, turning into streams of light—some bright, some dark, some warm, some cold. Like ore thrown into a furnace, they were fiercely "smashed" toward the icy primordial star remains pedestal!

Sizzle, sizzle, sizzle—!

The moment the light streams contacted the pedestal, they erupted in intense light from energy annihilation and law fusion! The icy, dark blue surface of the star remains pedestal, under the impact of the light streams, began to glow faintly with their respective characteristics, like a heated brand: pale gold representing vitality, star-blue for Nirvana Star Fire, the pure purple glow of Su Wanzhao's will, and the gray decay of the tribulation imprint... But these glows were unstable, flickering and clashing wildly, trying to leave their mark on the pedestal!

Simultaneously, an unimaginably vast suction force erupted from the countless cracks and indentations of the star remains pedestal! Its target was precisely the external area of the star source sea of consciousness—the omnipresent, thick, and viscous Source of Annihilation in the Space-Time Graveyard!

Buzz!

The location where Chen Feng's broken body—which had long vanished in reality—had been (that land of corpses imprinted with stellar halos), the space suddenly warped! A miniature vortex constructed of star dome laws appeared out of thin air, frantically drawing and devouring the surrounding solidified corpse dust, icy metal fragments, and even the aura of annihilation contained within the giant beast remains!

These devoured sources of annihilation, like an icy torrent, ignored spatial distance and directly poured onto the primordial star remains pedestal within the star source sea of consciousness!

Sizzle—!!!

The torrent of the Source of Annihilation made contact with the pedestal, emitting an even harsher sound of erosion! The icy power of deathly stillness frantically corroded the flickering light stream imprints on the pedestal's surface, attempting to freeze and assimilate them! The pedestal itself groaned under the deluge of the Source of Annihilation, and the cracks on its surface seemed to be expanding!

[star remains pedestal Forging Progress: 2%...3%...]

[Warning: Origin Returner Source Conflict (Nirvana Star Fire/tribulation imprint) | Source of Annihilation Overload | Pedestal Structure Unstable (Cracks Expanded 0.1%)]

The forging continued, the pain intensified, and crises lurked!

Chen Feng's hammered consciousness, amidst the excruciating pain, desperately "stared" at the purple light stream on the pedestal's surface, which represented Su Wanzhao's pure will. Under the erosion of the Source of Annihilation and the gray decay aura of the tribulation imprint, it was rapidly dimming, like a candle flame in a gale! The core area of the pedestal also began to destabilize due to the weakening of this protective will, and faint gray cracks were subtly spreading!

"No! Last Light!" Chen Feng let out a silent roar in the furnace of his consciousness! His powerful protective will, like the last bit of fuel, desperately poured into the nearly extinguished purple light stream!

Buzz!

The purple light stream suddenly brightened for an instant! It temporarily resisted the erosion! The spread of cracks in the pedestal's core area slowed down slightly.

But this was merely drinking poison to quench thirst! His own will was also being rapidly consumed during the forging!

What was worse, the gray light stream of the tribulation imprint, which had been thrown into the "furnace" alongside everything else, was stimulated by the Source of Annihilation. Like a viper doused in oil, it began frantically eroding and polluting the surrounding light streams representing vitality and Nirvana Star Fire! The gray decay quickly spread across the pedestal area it occupied, radiating a chilling malice that made the heart tremble!

[tribulation imprint Erosion Intensified! Contaminated Area Expanding! Forging Contamination Risk: +5%]

Internal and external troubles! The forging had not yet succeeded, but the pedestal was already in danger of collapsing and being contaminated!

Just as this difficult and crisis-ridden forging process was being maintained—

Buzz!

An extremely subtle, yet cold fluctuation carrying a higher-level ultimate end will, quietly spread from a corner deep within the pedestal that was temporarily concealed by the Source of Annihilation...

It was the dormant primordial ultimate end crystal!

It had not been completely thrown into the furnace for forging. Instead, in this environment rich with the Source of Annihilation, like a hibernating viper, it was quietly absorbing the scattered annihilation energy and the contaminated aura of the tribulation imprint! The gray light on its surface seemed... to have solidified by an infinitesimal amount? A more reserved and dangerous "hunger" was quietly breeding deep within the pedestal... It was also using this forging process to silently recover!

Meanwhile, at the forging site of the star remains pedestal—the land of corpses in the Space-Time Graveyard.

The deep blue transmission halo had long dispersed, leaving only a scorched star imprint. The dust had settled.

Three Gravediggers stood at the edge of the imprint, their dark red eyes fixed intently on the barren scorched earth. The tall Gravedigger leading them held a bone staff, the dark red crystal at its tip slowly pulsing, emitting cold and furious fluctuations.

"The... star vault's... protection... blocked... the tracking..." Its hoarse voice carried suppressed rage.

"The... ultimate end... seed's... aura... vanished..." Another blade-wielding Gravedigger (whose broken blade had been crudely repaired with some kind of bone glue) emitted a grating sound of unwillingness.

"We must... retrieve it!" The third Gravedigger's voice was sharp. "The seed... is... the key... it is... our tribe's... hope... of escaping... this eternal... tomb!"

The tall Gravedigger leading them fell silent for a moment, the dark red crystal at the tip of its bone staff pulsing more intensely. It slowly raised its bone staff and pointed toward the terrifying hill next to them, which was piled high with countless giant beast skulls.

"Awaken... the dormant... foul blood... perform... the blood sacrifice..."

Its voice was cold and cruel.

"Use... our tribe's... blood... to communicate... with the guixu will... and pinpoint... the seed's... coordinates!"

The bodies of the other two Gravediggers trembled slightly, and a trace of instinctive fear flashed in their dark red eyes, but this was quickly replaced by a more fanatical greed.

"For... freedom... for... rebirth!"

They roared in unison, like the prayers of fanatics.

The tall Gravedigger stopped speaking, and the dark red crystal at the tip of its bone staff suddenly burst forth with dazzling bloody light! It chanted a difficult, ancient spell, seemingly originating from the depths of hell!

Buzz—!!!

Following its chant, the massive hill of skulls... suddenly... came alive!

Within the countless huge, empty eye sockets, grudges, deathly stillness, and unwilling wills that had lingered for billions of years instantly boiled up, like awakened specters! Gray decay dust writhed and peeled off like living matter! The entire hill resonated with a teeth-grinding sound of bone friction and wailing!

The tall Gravedigger violently plunged the bone staff into the center of the scorched imprint beneath its feet!

"Using... the remains... as the altar... using... resentment... as the fuel... using... our tribe's... blood... as the guide!"

It let out a tearing roar, abruptly raised its other grime-covered arm, and savagely slashed open its own wrist with the crude bone fragment blade!

Hiss—!

No fresh blood spurted out.

What flowed out was a thick, dark gray liquid, viscous like crude oil and emitting a pungent stench of sulfur and rusting metal! This liquid was like a living thing, carrying intense, icy malice, gurgling out of the incision and dripping onto the scorched imprint where the bone staff was inserted!

Sizzle—!!!

Like scorching acid dripping onto ice! The scorched imprint was instantly corroded, emitting pungent blue smoke! The dark gray foul blood seemed to possess life, winding up the bone staff and frantically surging into the pulsing dark red crystal at its tip!

The crystal was instantly stained a filthy dark gray! Its pulsing became frantic and chaotic, radiating a foul, evil power... mixed with the Path of Slaughter, annihilation, decay, and the Gravediggers' source!

"Ugh—!" The tall Gravedigger let out a muffled groan of pain, its body trembling violently. The grime-covered armor cracked and peeled away, revealing the more gray and crystallized skin beneath! The price it paid was clearly immense!

Seeing this, the fanaticism in the eyes of the other two Gravediggers intensified! Without hesitation, they also slashed open their own wrists with their broken blades! The same viscous, foul-smelling dark gray blood gushed out, converging like streams into the contaminated crystal!

Buzz—!!!

The crystal, having absorbed the source foul blood of the three Gravediggers, suddenly swelled in volume! Its pulsing was like a frantic war drum! A foul, evil, dark gray energy beam carrying a powerful homing will suddenly erupted from the crystal's tip, ignoring space and violently... shooting toward the massive hill of skulls!

Boom—!!!

The moment the beam struck the hill of skulls, the entire hill was like a powder keg being ignited! The boiling resentment in the eye sockets of countless giant beast skulls was completely ignited by the foul blood beam! Viscous dark red resentment flames instantly covered the entire hill, like hellish magma! The painful wails of billions of dead souls converged into tangible sound waves, tearing through the dead air!

At the intersection of the resentment flames and the foul blood energy, the space at the top of the hill began to violently twist and collapse! A slowly rotating, evil vortex, composed of pure filth and resentment, its edges streaming with dark red bloody light, gradually took shape!

In the center of the vortex, a terrifying, cold, and vast will carrying the absolute ultimate end will, like a sleeping behemoth awakened by the smell of blood, slowly... projected itself!

This will swept over the boiling hill of skulls, swept over the three Gravediggers whose auras were weak but whose eyes were fanatical, and finally... locked onto the scorched star imprint!

An extremely faint, yet unbelievably clear... residual trace of the ultimate end aura was... locked onto by the guixu will!

"Found... it..."

A cold, soul-freezing thought, seemingly composed of the overlaid wails of billions of dead souls, descended with a roar from the depths of the foul vortex!