40: Breaking the Restraint, Soul Searching Successfully (4,000-Word Chapter)

"Click."

The heavy stone door of the secret chamber was pushed open, and the jade steps echoed crisply under Xiao Zhuo's boots.

As he stepped onto the ancient threshold of Xuan Yuan Hall, the night wind carried a strong scent of wine towards him.

Almost simultaneously, a figure floated down like a leaf in the wind—it was True Man Xuanlun.

"Revered Master." Xiao Zhuo had already sensed True Man Xuanlun drinking alone on the peak through his rapidly expanding Divine Sense, so he remained calm and performed the Disciple's present.

The lingering sandalwood scent in the hall and the crisp aroma of wine in the air intertwined under the cool moonlight.

"Good kid! Did you really succeed?!" True Man Xuanlun's drunken eyes widened, showing seven parts intoxication and three parts surprise.

A condensed Divine Sense instantly swept towards Xiao Zhuo, intending to probe his depth.

However, as soon as that Divine Sense touched Xiao Zhuo's clothes, it melted away silently like a snowflake falling into a bottomless, dark pool, unable to penetrate his body in the slightest!

"I didn't fail my mission." Xiao Zhuo smiled faintly, and a powerful, irresistible Divine Sense, condensed as if substantial, suddenly emanated from his body.

Although it was only released and retracted in an instant, it was like a fleeting glimpse, showcasing a transformative power.

"Without further ado, let's go to Zhenyang Hall!"

True Man Xuanlun felt the pressure of the Divine Soul, which far surpassed the Condensing Aperture Realm, and his face first showed astonishment, then was replaced by immense relief, repeating three times: "Good! Good! Good!"

Before his words finished, his figure had already soared into the sky.

A flash of azure light appeared under Xiao Zhuo's feet, transforming into a condensed azure rainbow, closely following behind him.

A distance of five li, under the extreme speed of Azure Light Evasion, was but an instant.

The two did not stop in the front hall but were directly guided by an invisible Qi towards a carved quiet room deep in the back hall.

Inside the room, Immortal Master Xuan Qing was holding a gleaming carving knife, concentrating on carving a piece of stone as black as ink.

The stone carving had already taken on a human form but exuded an evil Aura that made one's heart palpitate.

Its eye sockets were deep like tunnels leading to the netherworld, and a chilling wind seemed to swirl and howl through its disheveled stone hair.

Although the upper body was not yet complete, the muscle lines revealed a ferocious sense of power.

The most bizarre thing was that even before the statue's eyes were carved, a tyrannical, cold, and evil will, seemingly capable of freezing the Soul, had already seeped out in wisps, filling the entire room.

"Senior Brother, this is..." As soon as True Man Xuanlun stepped into the quiet room, he was awestruck by the terrifying Aura emanating from the unfinished statue and couldn't help but ask.

Immortal Master Xuan Qing's eyes flashed with a hint of solemnity and helplessness, but he did not explain, turning his gaze directly to Xiao Zhuo with an inquiring look: "You two, Revered Master and Disciple, arrived in just three days. Could it be... Junior Martial Nephew Xiao has succeeded?"

"Reporting to Sect Master, this Disciple has indeed cultivated the True Explanation of Soul Refining to the Perfection Realm." Xiao Zhuo bowed, his voice calm yet containing undeniable certainty.

A sharp gleam burst forth from Immortal Master Xuan Qing's eyes!

With a sweep of his large sleeve, the stone chips on the floor were cleared as if by an invisible hand: "Follow me!"

He said no more, turning and striding out.

Xiao Zhuo and True Man Xuanlun exchanged glances, both seeing the solemnity in each other's eyes, and quickly followed.

Passing through two deep corridors, the three entered a seemingly ordinary guest room.

Immortal Master Xuan Qing gently touched a hidden protrusion on the wall with his fingertip—

"Rumble rumble..."

A heavy stone slab on the ground silently slid open, revealing a dark, bottomless entrance leading downwards.

As the three descended the steps, ancient oil lamps embedded in the walls on both sides of the passage seemed to be awakened by an invisible force, lighting up one after another with dim yellow glows, illuminating the damp and cold stone steps.

The passage was deep, extending for a thousand meters.

At its end, a vast underground space appeared, with dozens of tightly sealed, heavy stone chambers lining both sides.

On the doors and walls of each stone chamber, dense, ancient runes, flickering with faint spiritual light, were inscribed, forming a powerful suppression array that firmly locked in the Devilish Qi escaping from within the chambers.

Xiao Zhuo's Divine Sense quietly spread out, and he immediately felt a powerful suppressive force pervading the area.

His Divine Sense here was like being stuck in a mire, barely able to probe a range of about thirty meters, with deeper areas blocked by invisible Restriction barriers.

Even so, he could clearly sense the turbulent Devilish Qi fluctuations, full of violence and despair, in the nearby stone chambers.

The three continued without stopping, heading directly to the innermost stone chamber.

Immortal Master Xuan Qing took out a jade Talisman engraved with complex cloud patterns and gently pressed it onto a recessed Restriction hub in the center of the stone door.

Hum!

The runes on the surface of the stone door rotated rapidly, and with the sound of heavy mechanisms, it slowly opened inwards.

The scene inside came into view: four thick metal chains, inscribed with blood-colored runes, extended from the four corners of the stone chamber, firmly imprisoning a body, shrunk to the size of a four or five-year-old child, in mid-air!

That was the demon formed by Blood Cloud!

A golden Talisman, flowing with light, was still affixed to its chest, and a powerful suppressive force permeated its body, completely sealing its demonic Divine Ability, making even the self-destruction of its demon core an extravagant hope.

As for the Sheep-Headed Demon, Yang Mianmian (Sheep Mianmian), he was nowhere to be seen.

Immortal Master Xuan Qing nodded slightly towards Xiao Zhuo.

Xiao Zhuo understood, stepping into the stone chamber with an unperturbed expression.

The power suppressing Divine Sense in the prison seemed to be deliberately weakened in this special cell.

Blood Cloud noticed someone approaching and struggled to lift his head, his crimson eyes first flashing with a habitual hint of disdain and malice.

However, the moment his gaze met Xiao Zhuo's calm pupils—

Boom!

An indescribable fear, originating from the deepest part of his Soul, like ice water poured over him, instantly engulfed him!

That gaze! It seemed to penetrate his skin and directly behold his dirty and defiled Soul Origin!

A terrifying feeling of being completely stripped bare, with all secrets exposed, seized him!

"No... impossible... a mere lowly Human Race..." His teeth chattered, and he let out an unconscious hiss, trying to use words to dispel the bone-deep chill, more like trying to bolster his own crumbling will.

Xiao Zhuo ignored his delirium, stopping three meters away from him, and slowly closed his eyes.

In the depths of his Sea of Consciousness (Divine Sea), the golden Divine Soul, covered in platinum Divine Runes, suddenly opened its eyes, filled with infinite profound mysteries!

Hiss hiss hiss—!

A point of extreme golden light suddenly lit up between Xiao Zhuo's eyebrows, then transformed into thousands of Divine Sense threads, as fine as hair but condensed like platinum Divine Needles, silently piercing into Blood Cloud's head!

Xiao Zhuo's consciousness was instantly pulled into a turbulent, roaring crimson sea of blood!

The viscous blood waves exuded a nauseatingly sweet stench and endless resentment, as if condensed from the wails of billions of living beings.

"Is this the illusion manifested by the guardian Restriction? The true core of the Sea of Consciousness (Divine Sea) must be hidden beneath this foul sea of blood!" Xiao Zhuo's Divine Sense Incarnation—a pale golden phantom standing above the blood waves—instantly saw through the illusion.

The power contained in this sea of blood was vast and evil, its intensity subtly exceeding the limits of an ordinary Divine Sea Realm Divine Sense, carrying a kind of pressure originating from a higher-level existence, which even made Xiao Zhuo frown.

But he showed no fear.

With a slight thought, the pale golden phantom suddenly disintegrated, re-transforming into those myriad incomparably condensed platinum Divine Sense threads, like the sharpest probes, unhesitatingly plunging into the surging sea of blood!

"Roar—!"

The sea of blood, as if enraged by a Vicious Beast, stirred up monstrous waves, and countless blood-colored tentacles, condensed from resentment and demonic Sha, frantically entangled and tore at the invading platinum threads, attempting to pollute, devour, and assimilate them!

However, those platinum threads were the manifestation of the True Explanation of Soul Refining's Perfection Realm, containing the power of the Divine Soul capable of destroying Divine Souls!

No matter how the blood waves impacted or how the tentacles twisted and killed, the platinum threads remained brilliant and unsullied, rapidly traversing and probing the filthy ocean like a sea-stabilizing needle.

In just a few breaths, the myriad threads had formed a net, clearly mapping out all the energy nodes and rune Veins of the entire sea of blood!

The next moment, all the platinum threads converged like a hundred rivers returning to the sea, instantly gathering above the sea of blood!

Amidst a burst of light, a Soul-breaking Divine Cone, about three feet long, entirely flowing with destructive platinum Divine Runes, and with an incomparably sharp tip, condensed into form!

"Break!"

Xiao Zhuo's Divine Thought was like an imperial decree!

Hum—!

The tip of the Divine Cone erupted with dazzling platinum Divine Light, and an invisible yet space-shaking ripple of vibration spread out with a roar!

The Divine Cone, like a meteor falling to the earth, carrying an unstoppable Aura, fiercely pierced into the core of the turbulent sea of blood!

Deep within the sea of blood, it was not empty, but hidden nine core runes that pulsed like hearts and emitted an ominous blood-red light!

They were like living beings, sensing imminent catastrophe the moment the Divine Cone pierced in, and frantically swam and dodged within the blood waves.

But the Divine Cone was faster! The platinum Divine Runes flowed, ignoring spatial barriers, and each flash precisely appeared next to a blood-colored rune!

Puff! Puff! Puff!

Crushing! The platinum Divine Cone, like a red-hot iron piercing through ice and snow, easily penetrated and tore apart one blood-colored rune after another!

The moment the runes disintegrated, they let out a shrill shriek like ghosts wailing, causing the surrounding sea of blood to violently evaporate and collapse!

As the ninth core rune was completely annihilated, the originally boundless and foul sea of blood, like a punctured bubble, rapidly dried up and dissipated, finally leaving only a thin layer of blood-colored mist, which also quickly vanished into thin air.

With the blood sea Restriction broken, Xiao Zhuo's Divine Sense Incarnation condensed again.

Before him was no longer a false blood-colored space, but a true Sea of Consciousness (Divine Sea) belonging to Blood Cloud—a desperate world filled with foul bloodstains, broken limbs, and endless wails!

Blood Cloud's trembling Soul Main Body, in the form of a red-haired man, was exposed less than a hundred meters in front of Xiao Zhuo!

"Father King... the guardian Restriction personally set by Father King... was... was actually broken?!" Blood Cloud's Soul Body twisted with extreme fear.

He looked at Xiao Zhuo, who was approaching step by step, as if seeing a demon god coming for his life, his mind a blank.

This completely subverted his understanding!

Even the peak Revered Master of the Human Race, who specialized in Divine Souls, was helpless against this Restriction, yet it was so easily dismantled by a Human Race youth in the Condensing Aperture Realm?!

Xiao Zhuo's Divine Sense Incarnation was expressionless, taking a step, and space seemed to fold under his feet, instantly crossing a hundred-meter distance, appearing beside Blood Cloud's Soul Body.

With another thought, a Soul Refining Cage, composed of countless flowing platinum Divine Runes and possessing twelve dazzling interfaces, appeared out of thin air, enveloping Blood Cloud's Soul Body and himself within it!

"No—!" Blood Cloud let out a desperate Soul howl, but under the absolute suppression of the Soul Refining Cage, his resistance was like a mantis trying to stop a chariot, instantly crushed, his Soul Body stiff and unable to move.

Xiao Zhuo no longer hesitated, his Divine Sense Incarnation disintegrated again, transforming into myriad platinum lights, like the most precise surgical knives, piercing unimpededly into the depths of Blood Cloud's defenceless Soul Origin!

The Soul Searching Secret Art recorded in the Soul Sealing Divine Ability displayed its unparalleled power at this moment!

Blood Cloud's memory torrent, like a breached river, surged and unfolded before Xiao Zhuo's "eyes":

Birth in a blood-colored cave: Opening his ignorant eyes in a viscous blood pool, instinctively devouring the energy contained within the pool... Ten years old, taking form: The demonic body initially stabilized, transforming into the appearance of a red-haired child, brought to a bloody arena... First "feeding": Facing the Human Race "blood food" restrained by chains, their faces filled with terror and despair, under the cold gaze of his Father King, he pounced with nascent cruelty, tearing open throats and greedily devouring warm vital blood... The taste of fear made him tremble and intoxicated... Growth through slaughter: At seventeen, he advanced to Baleful Rank, following the Hundred Demon Mountain hunting party, wandering like a ghost across the land of Jizhou.

Villages turned into seas of fire, towns became dead zones!

Memory fragments were filled with the dying screams of the Human Race, the cries of children, torn limbs, and pale, drained corpses... Massacres flashed by like a revolving lantern, cold and cruel.

Just before he advanced to Nightmare Grade, the number of innocent Human Race directly or indirectly killed by him was already shocking!

Advancement to Nightmare Grade and Hundred Demon Mission: At thirty-seven, after devouring enough vital blood and Souls, he finally stepped into Nightmare Grade, gaining the qualification to contend for the title of "Hundred Demon."

From then on, his life was a continuous completion of various bloody missions issued by Hundred Demon Mountain, accumulating "demonic merits," while continuing the endless slaughter and devouring.

Until he received the missions of "demon core dissemination" and "collection of specific Human Race children," personally given by Silver Moon Venerable King...

Xiao Zhuo, like a cold bystander, flipped through this "demon's diary" steeped in Human Race blood.

Five hundred thousand! This was a vague but incredibly heavy number he captured from Blood Cloud's complex memories!

And this was just one Nightmare-rank Demon!

Hundred Demon Mountain had a hundred demons, and beyond the hundred demons, there were countless more demons!

The Human Race, in their eyes, were merely livestock for blood and resources for advancement!

Finally, the most crucial information was extracted:

Hundred Demon Mountain Lair: Located deep in the northwest of Jizhou, with specific coordinates, spatial nodes, outer perimeter defenses, and core area structure... all clear!

Silver Moon Venerable King: Those few distant glimpses in Blood Cloud's memory made Xiao Zhuo feel his Soul freeze, even through the memory!

That was not simply powerful, but a desperate sense of "abyss" that seemed to devour light!

Even more terrifying, this Revered Master of Hundred Demon Mountain was not only not dead, his injuries were about to heal, and he was even... attempting to Breakthrough to the legendary Dominator Rank!

Those collected children were precisely the "pure blood food" prepared for his Breakthrough!

Blood Cloud's memory clearly mentioned that Silver Moon Venerable King, before his Breakthrough, already had the ability to contend with weaker Dominator Rank existences!

Blood Cloud's Identity: He was actually the only direct descendant of "Blood God Venerable King," ranked fourth in Hundred Demon Mountain!

Missing for three days, his Father King had likely noticed the anomaly!

demon core and Traitor: The Origin of the demon core was mysterious, provided by higher-level demons; Hundred Demon Mountain was only responsible for its dissemination and control.

The traitors in Qingyang City and Yuyang Sect indeed existed, but they were not handled by Blood Cloud's line; he knew nothing about it.

Hum!

In the underground prison of Zhenyang Hall, inside the stone chamber.

Xiao Zhuo's tightly closed eyes suddenly opened!

The myriad platinum rays of light covering Blood Cloud's brow instantly receded.

"Pfft!" His face suddenly turned pale, and his body uncontrollably staggered back two steps.

It wasn't due to excessive Divine Soul consumption, but the mental shock brought by the memory fragments of five hundred thousand Human Race deaths, and the unfathomable terrifying pressure of Silver Moon Venerable King, like two invisible mountains, heavily pressing on his heart!

His eyes were filled with an undisguised deep fatigue and unprecedented worry.

The stone chamber was dead silent.

Immortal Master Xuan Qing and True Man Xuanlun's gazes were fixed on Xiao Zhuo's face, waiting for the news he brought back, news that could determine the fate of the Sect and even Jizhou.