131: The collision of eyebrows and the interweaving of reality and illusion

The black of the Shadow Eaters remnant Soul and the gold of the White-Robed Figure, like two intersecting lightning bolts, simultaneously struck Liu Shan's glabella.

There was no earth-shattering roar, only an eerie silence.

Liu Shan's consciousness felt like it had been thrown into a meat grinder, with black and gold wildly colliding at his glabella, tearing at his Divine Soul. He could clearly feel the Shadow Eaters's greed—they wanted to devour his Xuan Jin Bloodline and occupy this body that could balance the Spiritual Vein and Shadow Eaters; he could also feel the White-Robed Figure's indifference—he only wanted to erase the last 'noise' and let the Xu Seal completely control this body.

"Ugh..."

The intense pain made him curl up on the ground, his fingernails digging deep into the mud of Chenyuan Lake. The mud, mixed with spiritual field soil and lake water, seeped into his body through his fingertips, bringing a faint coolness that temporarily alleviated the pain of his Divine Soul being torn apart.

Liu Zhi and Lin Qingxue rushed over to help him, but they were repelled by an invisible force. Black and gold light formed a giant vortex around Liu Shan, isolating them outside, leaving them to watch helplessly as he struggled in pain within the light, powerless to do anything.

"Liu Shan!" Lin Qingxue's voice was filled with despair, her soft sword continuously hacking at the edge of the vortex, but only leaving shallow marks on the light wall. "Hold on! We'll find a way!"

Liu Zhi's eyes were also red, and he threw all the spiritual items he could find on him—a few healing Medicinal Pills, a Low-Grade Spirit Stone, and even half a finished dry ration—towards the vortex. As soon as these items touched the light wall, they were instantly pulverized, transforming into the purest energy, absorbed by Liu Shan at the center of the vortex.

The White-Robed Figure floated outside the vortex, his pale face devoid of any expression, only the light in his black eyes growing brighter and brighter, clearly fully activating the Xu Seal. He watched Liu Shan struggle in pain within the vortex, as if admiring a work in progress.

The leading Shadow Eaters remnant Soul had already condensed into a black mist, clinging tightly to the surface of the vortex and continuously infiltrating it. Its crimson eyes were filled with madness; it was clearly going all out, even if it meant mutual destruction, it would seize Liu Shan's Xuan Jin Bloodline.

The vortex spun faster and faster, the black and gold lights gradually intertwining, forming an eerie grey. Liu Shan's body flickered in and out of the grey light, at times becoming transparent, revealing the outlines of his bones and Meridians; at other times becoming solid, with half-black and half-gold patterns appearing on his skin, as if two Souls were forcibly crammed into the same body.

"Soon..." The White-Robed Figure's voice carried a hint of imperceptible excitement. "The Xuan Jin Bloodline will fuse with the Xu Seal, and the Origin of the Shadow Eaters will also become your nourishment... By then, you will become my most perfect 'vessel'."

The words "vessel" pierced deep into Liu Shan's consciousness like needles. He recalled Mo Chu's eyes before he dissipated, Lin Qingxue's gentleness as she healed him in the spiritual field, Liu Zhi's dependence when he called him "Dad"... These images were like nails, firmly pinning down his crumbling Divine Soul.

"I am not... a vessel..."

He squeezed out a few words through gritted teeth, using his last ounce of strength. As these words left his mouth, the cool power within his body, stimulated by the spiritual field soil and Chenyuan Lake water, suddenly surged, rushing through his Meridians towards his glabella, colliding with the black and gold lights!

"Om—!"

The grey vortex suddenly vibrated, and a crack actually appeared in its center, from which a pure cyan-gold light emanated. In that light, one could vaguely see the spiritual fields of Luoxia Valley, the stone tablet of Return to Ruin Path, the Soul Locking Chain of Chenyuan Lake... All the scenes related to Liu Shan slowly flowed within this light.

"This is..." The White-Robed Figure's expression changed drastically for the first time, a trace of disbelief flashing in his black eyes. "The Origin will of the Spiritual Vein? How could it possibly..."

The cyan-gold light grew brighter and brighter, actually forcing back the black and gold lights by a few points. Liu Shan's consciousness rapidly cleared within the light; he could feel that his Divine Soul was resonating with the Spiritual Vein of this mountain range. The water of Chenyuan Lake, the rocks of Return to Ruin Path, and even the power of the Shadow Eaters and Xu Seal, all became clearly discernible in this resonance.

He suddenly understood.

The Xuan Jin Bloodline was not a key, nor was it a vessel. It was a bridge, a bridge connecting the Spiritual Vein, Shadow Eaters, and Xu Seal. And he, Liu Shan, was not some chosen one; he just happened to stand at the center of this bridge, using his Divine Soul to balance these three vastly different powers.

"Balance..." he murmured, his consciousness completely merging with the cyan-gold light.

As these two words left his mouth, the grey vortex suddenly stopped spinning. The black, gold, and cyan-gold lights formed a stable triangle in the air. Each light slowly flowed, neither devouring nor being devoured by the others, achieving a subtle balance.

Liu Shan's body slowly floated in the air. The scar on his glabella completely disappeared, replaced by a three-color intertwined mark, like a tiny star, emitting a soft glow. His eyes slowly opened; his left eye was the deep black of Shadow Eaters, his right eye was the pale gold of the Xu Seal, but deep within his pupils, a trace of cyan-gold clarity was hidden.

The White-Robed Figure looked at him, a hint of apprehension flashing in his black eyes: "You... you can actually control this balance?"

The Shadow Eaters remnant Soul also stopped its collision, its crimson eyes filled with fear. It could feel that its power was being assimilated by the cyan-gold light, becoming less pure and no longer destructive.

Liu Shan did not answer. He floated at the center of the triangular light, able to clearly feel every movement of this mountain range—the Shadow Eaters's dormancy at the bottom of the lake, the Xu Seal's circulation within the White-Robed Figure's body, the Spiritual Vein's pulsation deep within the Duan Yun Mountains... He could even feel the direction of Luoxia Valley, the spiritual power fluctuations of Liu Zhi and Lin Qingxue becoming stable, and the Formation Plate in the Pill Chamber seemed to have restarted.

He stretched out his hand, and cyan-gold light condensed in his palm, forming the shape of a sword—it was the appearance of the Thunderclap Saber, yet it also carried the agility of a soft sword and the toughness of a Soul Locking Chain.

The White-Robed Figure's face completely darkened. He could feel that although Liu Shan's power was not as great as his, it could restrain his Xu Seal. If this balance were allowed to continue, his millennia-long scheme might very well fail.

"I cannot let you live." He roared, and the pale gold light exploded, no longer bothering with the Shadow Eaters remnant Soul, but instead condensing into a long spear, carrying an aura of destruction, directly piercing towards Liu Shan's heart!

The Shadow Eaters remnant Soul also seemed to understand something, letting out a sharp hiss, transforming into a black arrow, closely following, its target also Liu Shan's heart!

The two attacks, one after another, carrying the ultimate power of black and gold, tore through the air, emitting a piercing sharp sound.

Liu Shan floated in place, not dodging. He looked at the golden spear and the black arrow feather. The deep black of his left eye and the pale gold of his right eye slowly merged, finally turning into the same cyan-gold as the mark on his glabella.

He raised the cyan-gold long sword in his palm, its tip pointing diagonally towards the ground, which was the starting stance of Po Wang Swordplay—'Guarding Simplicity'.

But this time, what flowed on the sword body was no longer pure New Power, but Liu Shan's own power, a Fusion of Shadow Eaters, Xu Seal, and Spiritual Vein.

The golden spear and the black arrow feather stopped just an inch from his heart.

The cyan-gold sword light was like a calm lake surface, steadily holding the two attacks in mid-air, neither rebounding nor absorbing them, just letting them float quietly, unable to move.

The White-Robed Figure and the Shadow Eaters remnant Soul simultaneously let out a horrified shriek. They could feel that their power was being assimilated by the cyan-gold sword light, little by little...

Liu Shan's gaze passed over them, looking towards the darkness at the bottom of Chenyuan Lake, towards the end of Return to Ruin Path, and towards the direction of Luoxia Valley.

He knew that this balance was only temporary.

But he also knew that from this moment on, he was no longer anyone's pawn or vessel.

He was Liu Shan, the Luoxia Valley Master, the inheritor of the Xuan Jin Bloodline, and also... the new balancer of this mountain range.

The cyan-gold sword light slowly bloomed above Chenyuan Lake.