43: Chapter 43 Spirit Gathering Breakthrough, Mid-Foundation Establishment Stage

The copper bells of the bell tower wailed in the yin wind, as dull as a funeral bell.

Lin Yue stood under the eaves of a tea shop at the street corner, his gaze piercing through the ancient building fifty zhang away, which was shrouded in grayish-black demonic energy.

The spirit radiance stone talisman burned hot against his chest; the evil power of the Yin Gathering Formation had reached its peak, even twisting the sunlight into a bizarre cyan-gray.

"Elder Liu's people have already infiltrated from the western drainage outlet, cutting off the retreat." Zhao Meng approached like an iron tower, his broad-bladed long saber faintly shimmering with blood-red light.

"All exits have been locked tight; Mysterious Water won't be able to escape even if he had wings."

Lin Yue nodded, his gaze falling upon the two green-robed "guards" in front of the bell tower's gate.

Their eyes were hollow, their bodies wreathed in black energy, echoing the snake shadows slithering on the walls; these were "Yin Puppets" completely eroded by the Formation.

"Is there any hope for them?" Lin Yue's voice was flat.

Zhao Meng fell silent for a moment, shaking his head: "Their Divine Soul was swallowed long ago, and their Meridians are completely rotted; the only way is liberation." He made a downward hacking gesture.

Lin Yue said no more and gripped his spirit radiance stone long sword. Silver radiance flowed along the blade like condensed moonlight.

"Move."

As those two words were uttered, the two figures shot out like black lightning!

Fifty zhang was covered in an instant!

Non-human hissing erupted from the throats of the Yin Puppets, their arms elongating bizarrely, and pitch-black sharp claws wreathed in bone-corroding black energy lunged forward!

Lin Yue did not dodge or evade, shifting his body with Flowing Cloud Steps as his long sword traced a precise silver arc!

"Squelch!"

The sword light swept across the wrist of the Yin Puppet on the left; silver radiance and black energy collided violently, like boiling oil poured on snow.

The black energy dissipated, and the Yin Puppet's movements suddenly stalled.

"Now!" Lin Yue shouted in a low voice.

Zhao Meng swept the back of his blade, striking the back of the right Yin Puppet's neck with the force of a thousand jun!

"Bang!"

With a dull sound of bone cracking, the Yin Puppet fell forward.

Lin Yue's sword light flashed again, piercing the brow of the left Yin Puppet, and the silver Sword Qi extinguished the ghostly fire within its skull.

The Yin Puppet collapsed, black energy escaping from its seven orifices only to be cleansed into nothingness by the lingering power of the spirit radiance.

From the sudden attack to the resolution, it took only a breath's time.

The two looked at each other, and Zhao Meng delivered a flying kick to the heavy gate carved with malevolent ghosts!

"Boom!"

The door bolt snapped, and the wooden doors swung open! An even denser, foul-smelling yin-cold air rushed out like a poisonous miasma.

The hall was empty; on a stone platform in the center, a three-foot black plate was covered in evil runes, its bone needle spinning crazily and buzzing as it pointed toward a basement entrance in the corner.

Lin Yue leaned over to inspect the Formation Plate; the runes matched the silver lines of the rubbing, and the Green Wood Sect's evil emblem was clearly visible on the edge.

He pointed his fingers into the air, and the power of spirit radiance descended.

"Buzz!"

The Formation Plate shook violently, and cracks began to spread.

"The power of the formation eye is being consumed rapidly; Mysterious Water already knows we are here." Lin Yue stood up.

"Who cares if he knows! Today, I will take his dog head to sacrifice to my brothers!" Zhao Meng roared, charging first into the dark entrance.

The stone steps were steep and slippery; the further down they went, the colder and more foul it became. Wall torches flickered, casting ghostly shadows.

Strange rustling sounds came from within the walls, as if countless living things were gnawing.

"Watch out!"

Lin Yue swung his sword toward his feet!

Countless tiny black tendrils sprouted from the stone cracks, their tips equipped with suckers that emitted an air of swallowing Spiritual Qi—the feelers of Spirit Devourer Insect larvae!

"Sizzle, sizzle!" Silver radiance severed the black tendrils, and black smoke exploded. More tentacles surged from the depths!

"That old fogey actually turned the underground palace into an insect nest!" Zhao Meng roared, fire spirits surging as his long saber burst into flames!

"Blazing Flame Slash!"

The flaming Sword Aura swept across, charring a large area of tentacles, and a burnt stench filled the air.

"Fire can counter them! Move fast!"

The two transformed into streaks of light and sped downward!

At the end of the stone steps, the space suddenly opened up.

It was a stone chamber of half an acre, thirty feet high.

In the center stood a ten-foot-tall pitch-black evil stele, covered in writhing evil runes and emitting grayish-black demonic energy. It was connected to dozens of skulls on the walls, whose eerie green ghostly fires formed a complete Yin Gathering Formation.

Mysterious Water stood before the stele, his withered hands holding a fragment of dragon jade that flowed with golden light. He was slowly pressing it toward a dragon-shaped groove on the stele's surface.

Three fragments were already embedded in the groove.

Beside Mysterious Water, more than ten green-robed demonic Cultivators stood in Formation, on guard. Their leader was the sinister middle-aged man who had been clamoring the previous night.

"Hehe... you've come at just the right time." Mysterious Water's raspy laughter echoed. "The Four Spirits Yin Gathering Heaven-Reaching Formation only lacks this final 'Keystone.' Clan Leader Lin, thank you for personally delivering it."

Lin Yue's gaze was ice-cold: "You knew all along that the Tortoise Shell Star Map pointed to the formation eye. Releasing the rubbings, leaking the news, and last night's ambush were all to lure me here with the fragment to help you complete the final step."

"Smart! Unfortunately, it's too late!" Mysterious Water turned around, his withered face twisting with excitement.

"Once the four jades are in place, the grand Formation will be complete! It will draw Spiritual Qi from Black Stone City's hidden veins and the spirit radiance stone Mineral Vein! All the Cultivators in the city will become the nutrients for my Breakthrough to the Golden Core! Hahaha!"

"Wishful thinking!" Zhao Meng roared, his flaming long saber turning into a crimson meteor as he charged forward boldly!

"Stop him!" the sinister middle-aged man shouted, attacking alongside several demonic Cultivators!

Yin lightning, poisonous fog, bone spears, Soul banners... demonic techniques and ghostly wails filled the air, accompanied by a foul wind!

"Boom! Clang! Sizzle—!"

The sounds of explosions, clashing metal, and annihilation filled the underground palace!

Zhao Meng was courageous, his saber dancing like a wheel as he broke through attacks and shook off Demonic Weapons. However, trapped in the heavy encirclement, he was hard-pressed to defend all sides and was soon wounded and bleeding, with demonic energy invading his body.

Lin Yue remained exceptionally calm. He did not immediately help but focused all his senses on the evil stele and Mysterious Water.

Within the Grotto-Heaven, the World Tree trembled violently!

The silver patterns on the tree's trunk shone brightly, and the light of the verdant fruit at the top accelerated its flow, creating a strong resonance across space with the three fragments on the stele and the one in Mysterious Water's hand!

The fruit seemed ready to fall, as if it wanted to fly into the stele's groove!

"Do you feel it? The 'Keystone' is calling to its companions! They originally belonged to the Green Wood Sect! Hand over the fragment, and perhaps I'll leave your remnant Soul to witness my Golden Core ceremony!" Mysterious Water grinned hideously, pressing the fragment toward the groove again!

Three inches from the groove!

At the critical moment!

A sharp light flashed in Lin Yue's eyes. Instead of rushing at Mysterious Water, he swung his sword to strike the side stone wall!

"Now! Elder Liu!"

The silver Sword Aura struck the stone wall!

"Boom!"

The stone wall exploded, revealing a large hole! Through the dust, Liu Chengfeng roared: "Attack! Eradicate these evil-doers!"

Dozens of agile figures surged out like a flood!

They were the elites of Liu Chengfeng's Artifact Refining Workshop, holding spirit radiance stone blades and Formation-breaking giant axes, their silver radiance and cold light intimidating!

"For Black Stone City! Kill!"

Liu Chengfeng took the lead, his bronze war hammer carrying wind and thunder as it smashed toward a demonic Cultivator!

"Poof!" The bone shield and shoulder were crushed, and the man fell to the ground screaming.

Giant axes swung, silver radiance and firelight intertwining as the demonic Cultivators' Formation collapsed instantly! Screams, bone-cracking, and the sounds of weapons breaking rang out in unison!

The tide of battle turned!

"Liu Chengfeng! You treacherous old dog! How dare you!!" Mysterious Water's eyes nearly split from rage, and his movements stalled slightly.

The moment of Opportunity!

Lin Yue moved! Pushing Flowing Cloud Steps to the limit, he turned into a blurred line, dodging the turbulent aftershocks and lunging straight for Mysterious Water!

The spirit radiance stone long sword let out a clear, long cry, its silver radiance blazing as it turned into a condensed light shuttle, tearing through the air and piercing straight for Mysterious Water's wrist that held the jade!

Precise! Ruthless! Decisive!

"Junior, how dare you!" Mysterious Water roared and pulled his hand back, his other palm churning with black energy as he condensed a pitch-black bone shield to block the front!

"Clang—!!!"

The collision of sword and shield was far more explosive than ever before!

Silver radiance and black energy consumed and annihilated each other frantically; the shockwave swept out like ripples, flipping and cracking the stone slabs!

Mysterious Water swayed slightly, astonished by the power of Lin Yue's sword.

"Your opponent is me!" Lin Yue growled, his voice as cold as the wind from the Nine Netherworld.

He did not compete in Spiritual Qi but pushed the "purification" trait of the spirit radiance stone to its limit. His sword techniques were like a rainstorm, continuously slashing at the weak points of Mysterious Water's demonic energy nodes!

Silver radiance formed a net; with every collision, the black energy thinned slightly. Mysterious Water's Spiritual Qi consumption intensified, and he was forced back repeatedly, further from the stele's groove.

"Useless fools! Help me!" Mysterious Water cried for help.

His subordinates were in even worse shape.

Zhao Meng caught a flaw in the sinister middle-aged man's defense; his flaming long saber shot out like a poisonous dragon, shattering the Demonic Weapon and embedding its blade deep into the man's shoulder blade!

"Ah—!" With a scream and a stumble, two Artifact Refining Workshop Disciples crossed their giant axes and finished him off instantly.

Under the pincer attack of Liu Chengfeng and Zhao Meng, the remaining demonic Cultivators were killed, wounded, or scattered, leaving them no time to worry about anything else.

"Good-for-nothing things!" Seeing the tide had turned, a flash of crazed determination crossed Mysterious Water's eyes!

"If you cut off my path to the Dao... then let's all die together!"

He bit the tip of his tongue hard and spat out a mouthful of foul blood—his life essence—onto the evil stele!

"With my essence blood, I sacrifice to the Nether Capital! Let ten thousand ghosts grieve together, and the Formation extinguish all living beings!"

"Buzz—!!!"

The evil runes on the stele all exploded with a ghastly green light!

The ghostly fires in the skulls shot up three feet, their collective wailing sharp and ear-piercing!

The power of the Yin Gathering Formation was pushed beyond its limits by the secret technique!

Boundless yin-evil power surged like a black tide from the stele and the skulls, filling the underground palace!

The pressure was palpable, the air becoming thick and heavy.

Liu Chengfeng, Zhao Meng, and the others felt their Spiritual Qi stagnate, and their Divine Souls felt as if they were soaked in ice water, their movements slowing down abruptly.

Even the silver light of Lin Yue's spirit radiance protection was suppressed until it was dim and flickering!

"Hahaha! Let's all perish together! With companions on the Yellow Springs, it's not a loss!" Mysterious Water's face was distorted like a ghost's, black energy boiling as his cultivation temporarily climbed near the Perfection of the Foundation Establishment!

His hands transformed into hideous pitch-black ghost claws, concentrating yin-evil power and tearing with all-out brutality as he lunged recklessly at Lin Yue!

This strike contained the crazed will of his entire life's cultivation, intent on shredding Lin Yue and the fragment!

Life and death hung by a thread!

Lin Yue's pupils constricted suddenly as he felt the threat of death!

But there was no fear in his eyes, only ice-cold killing intent and determination!

"You want to perish together? You're not worthy!"

He reached into his robe with his left hand and crushed the last and most powerful "Spirit Radiance Evil-Breaking Bead"!

Simultaneously, his mind sank into the Grotto-Heaven. He no longer suppressed the resonance but actively guided all his Divine Sense and Spiritual Qi into the green fruit at the top of the World Tree, which was shining at its peak!

"World Tree! Help me!"

"Buzz—!"

The silver-white purification light sphere in his robe exploded like a small sun, temporarily holding back the ghost claws!

Almost at the same time... within the Grotto-Heaven, the green fruit at the top of the World Tree detached from its branch!

Wrapped in the Laws of the Grotto-Heaven, it transformed into pure emerald light, containing fragments of the Law of Life Origin, and surged out through Lin Yue's arm Meridians!

In the outside world, the silver radiance of the spirit radiance stone long sword in Lin Yue's right hand reached its extreme. The emerald World Tree Origin power merged into the silver radiance!

As they blended, a mysterious change occurred!

A faint "Chaos color," resembling the beginning of all things before Chaos had opened, appeared at the tip of the sword!

This color was faint, yet it contained a terrifying aura that made Mysterious Water's Soul tremble and surpassed all understanding!

"That... what is that?!" Mysterious Water's madness instantly turned into boundless fear, his voice changing pitch.

"A gift for your journey to the afterlife!"

Lin Yue roared, pouring all the Spiritual Qi surging within him due to his imminent Breakthrough, along with the Origin power gifted by the World Tree, unreservedly into this sword!

He swung the long sword!

There was no earth-shaking sound, only a beam of brilliant light, condensed to the extreme and dripping with a faint Chaos hue at its edges. It tore through the dark demonic energy of the underground palace, silent and unstoppable, meeting the ghost claws and meeting Mysterious Water's burning body!

"No—!!!"

Mysterious Water let out a desperate, shrill scream, trying his best to push his ghost claws and protective demonic aura.

All resistance was like snow in sunlight before the beam of light that contained the Origin of "purification" and "vitality" and touched upon a trace of "Chaos."

The ghost claws vanished inch by inch, and the layers of demonic aura shattered.

The beam of light pierced through Mysterious Water's withered body.

No flesh and blood flew, and there was no booming explosion.

Mysterious Water's body, like a sand sculpture weathered by the wind, began to rapidly disintegrate and dissipate from the point of impact, turning into fine dust. Not even a trace of his remnant Soul or black energy remained, as he was completely annihilated into the void by the Chaos color.

Mysterious Water, the last Late Stage Foundation Establishment Elder of the Green Wood Sect, was destroyed in both form and spirit.

With his death, the "Four Spirits Yin Gathering Heaven-Reaching Formation," which was closely linked to him, lost its core driver and began to collapse.

The ghastly green light on the stele quickly dimmed, and the runes broke off and peeled away. The ghostly fires in the skulls went out with a "poof," and the skulls shattered into dust.

Even more astonishingly, the massive amount of pure Heaven and Earth Spiritual Qi and earth vein spiritual power that had been bound and refined by the grand Formation for countless years, now free from its shackles and the demonic filth, erupted like a volcano that had been suppressed for years!

"Rumble—!"

A torrent of Spiritual Qi, so pure it was nearly liquid, mixed with traces of the heavy scent of the earth veins and the fresh fragrance of plants after purification, surged frantically from the base of the stele, the cracks in the ground, and the holes in the walls! In an instant, it submerged the underground palace in a sea of Spiritual Qi!

Being the first to be hit, Lin Yue was enveloped by the majestic torrent of Spiritual Qi. The turbulent Spiritual Qi within his body was like rain after a long drought, frantically devouring and absorbing the dense and pure Spiritual Qi around him!

The saturated, spinning Early Stage Foundation Establishment Qi vortex within his Dantian let out a clear hum and collapsed with a bang!

A broader and tougher Dantian void, and a new Qi vortex—more condensed, brilliant, spinning faster, and with a faint hint of gold at its center—quickly reorganized and took shape!

Surging Spiritual Qi was like a flood that had burst its dam, washing through every meridian, bringing tearing and swelling pain, only to be continuously nourished, repaired, and widened by the pure Spiritual Qi pouring in!

The aura around his body rose steadily, becoming solid, heavy, and unfathomably deep!

The Middle Foundation Establishment Stage was achieved naturally!

"Spiritual Qi feedback! A gift from Heaven and Earth! Little friend Lin, quickly guard your mind and guide the spirits to stabilize your realm!" Liu Chengfeng's voice came, full of surprise and joy, as he and the others exerted their full power to absorb the Spiritual Qi tide.

Lin Yue closed his eyes, his mind sinking into his body.

On one hand, he guided the violent Spiritual Qi to circulate steadily according to the Foundation Establishment chapter of the "Qi Gathering Art," widening his Meridians and condensing the Qi vortex; on the other hand, he split his attention to communicate with the Grotto-Heaven.

With a thought, nearly half of the massive outpouring of pure Spiritual Qi was drawn by an invisible force, pouring continuously into the spirit radiance stone talisman on his chest. In reality, it was being quietly absorbed by the Grotto-Heaven entrance hidden by the talisman, gathering to nourish the World Tree and the newborn small world.

The world tree sapling swayed joyfully, its leaves stretching out as the silver-gray patterns became clearer and brighter. Its trunk grew visibly taller, and its vitality became even more exuberant.

After an unknown amount of time, the Spiritual Qi tide in the underground palace gradually subsided, becoming dense and gentle.

Lin Yue slowly opened his eyes.

The sharp light in his eyes was restrained, his divine radiance was clear, and his aura was as steady as a mountain, containing a heart-palpitating sharp vitality.

The Middle Foundation Establishment Stage was complete!

He raised his hand, and a wisp of Spiritual Qi flowed at his fingertips, carrying a faint golden glow and feeling warm and heavy to the touch.

"Congratulations, Clan Leader Lin, on your great progress in cultivation! This battle has turned a disaster into a blessing!" Zhao Meng strode over, his wounded face full of excitement and admiration.

Liu Chengfeng stroked his beard and smiled, full of praise.

At this time, the black evil stele had completely collapsed, leaving rubble all over the ground. Among the stones, three fragments of dragon jade, which had lost their luster but were still warm, lay quietly.

Lin Yue stepped forward and picked them up.

The moment his fingers touched the fragments, his own fragment, which he kept close to him, flew out automatically.

The four fragments hovered in his palm, attracting each other and emitting a soft, bright golden glow.

As the glow flowed, the edges of the fragments fit together perfectly and finally merged into one, turning into a palm-sized, complete, and flawless dragon jade that flowed with warm golden light and seemed to have cloud-mist dragon shadows swimming within!

"Buzz..."

The dragon jade let out a light hum and flew up on its own, slowly rotating once in the middle of the stone chamber.

Wherever it passed, it scattered dots of golden light rain.

The light rain fell on the Puppets whose erosion by the Formation was not yet complete, purifying the last remaining yin-evil energy.

Although it could not bring back the Souls and lives that had long since vanished, it allowed their hideous faces to find peace.

The light rain fell into the cracks in the walls, killing the remaining Spirit Devourer eggs and larvae.

The light rain fell on the cracks in the ground, and the fissures slowly crawled shut and healed.

After a moment, the light of the dragon jade faded, and it slowly descended, lying quietly in Lin Yue's open palm. It was cool to the touch and contained a majestic and upright spiritual Opportunity.

Liu Chengfeng looked closely and sighed, stroking his palm: "Blessings and misfortunes are intertwined.

Mysterious Water plotted meticulously, using the entire city as a sacrifice, in a vain attempt at a Golden Core dream.

Who would have thought that the Heavenly Dao is clear and retribution is certain? In the end, his entire cultivation and the Spiritual Qi he had gathered for a hundred years all served to help you, little friend, break through your realm and obtain this treasure. How wonderful, how marvelous!"

Lin Yue gripped the dragon jade tightly, clearly feeling a mysterious and stable connection established between it and the World Tree in the Grotto-Heaven.

Every wisp of vitality from the World Tree seemed to be nourished and enhanced by the dragon jade;

The majestic spiritual Opportunity and ancient meaning within the dragon jade also slowly fed back into the growth of the Grotto-Heaven through this connection.

This struggle and conspiracy surrounding the dragon jade and spirit radiance stones, which had lasted for a hundred years, finally came to an end with Mysterious Water's total annihilation, the complete collapse of the Yin Gathering Formation, and the dragon jade becoming whole again.

However, Lin Yue knew deep down that the path of the Dao is long, and this might only be the starting point of a broader chapter.

He put away the dragon jade and turned to look at the light gradually brightening at the exit of the underground palace.

"Let's go."

His voice was calm, carrying the steady power that comes after experiencing a life-and-death struggle and the baptism of a Breakthrough.

"The filth here has been cleared; it's time to see the light of day again."

Liu Chengfeng and Zhao Meng nodded and followed closely with their subordinates.

The group stepped through the dissipating demonic energy and the abundant Spiritual Qi, heading up the stone steps.

Behind them, the dark conspiracy came to an end.

Ahead of them was the unknown exit leading to the sunlight.

In the distance, the copper bells of the bell tower were rung by someone unknown. The sound of the bells carried through the fresh air; this time, it was crisp, melodious, and full of life.

It was as if it were washing away the haze of the past, and also as if it were welcoming a true powerhouse who had risen from blood, fire, and Opportunity into a broader world.