196: Nascent Soul Tribulation

Outside the black hole, the chilling aura of the Netherworld Darkfire splattered across the Void Realm like ink, colliding with the twisted gravity at the black hole's edge, producing sharp, sizzling sounds.

Ox-Head and Horse-Face appeared, treading on two rolling masses of black mist. The curved horn on Ox-Head's forehead gleamed with a cold, metallic luster, and Horse-Face's fangs, protruding from his mouth, were stained with un-dried, eerie green drool.

Behind them, three thousand Yin Soldiers, each with dull grey armor and holding chains and wailing staffs, caused fine, icy cracks to appear in space with every step they took.

"Is this the place?" Ox-Head rumbled, his bell-like eyes sweeping over the darkness ahead, which was illuminated by an eerie blue fire. The white mist he exhaled instantly evaporated upon touching the edge of the firelight.

Horse-Face flicked his long tail, and the chains wrapped around his fingertips clinked crisply. "The Underworld Compass shows that his aura dissipated here. It's just..." He furrowed his long, equine face, his gaze circling above the sea of fire. "The aura of the Netherworld Darkfire is too dense, abnormally dense; even the Soul Sense of the Yin Soldiers can't penetrate it."

A Yin Soldier in the front rank attempted to take half a step forward, but the Soul Lamp at his waist suddenly extinguished with a 'puff,' and he let out a shrill scream as half of his body was scorched into ashes by the escaping fire threads.

The other Yin Soldiers immediately stirred, retreating in unison, their hands gripping their weapons trembling—they were beings of the Netherworld, most afraid of this Origin Fire that could incinerate the Divine Soul.

Ox-Head slammed his demon axe against his waist; the runes on the axe blade flickered bright and dim. "Useless! It's just some overflowing fire malevolence, why are you so scared?"

Despite his words, he dared not approach either. The tyrannical aura surging within that sea of fire made even his Soul Core tremble.

Horse-Face pulled out a cracked turtle shell from his sleeve and dripped a few drops of his essence blood onto it, but the turtle shell exploded the moment it touched the firelight.

"No, this isn't right," his expression changed abruptly. "There's the Origin aura of the Netherworld Darkfire in this sea of fire. Could that kid... be inside?"

Yet, no matter how they urged their Yin Power to investigate, only surging, eerie purple flames remained in the sea of fire. The protagonist's aura seemed to have been completely swallowed, without even a trace of Soul fluctuation.

Occasionally, a few wisps of flame, carried by the wind, drifted towards the Yin Soldier formation, causing the soldiers to hastily wave their weapons to block them. However, when these flames touched the Yin Soldiers' armor, they directly burned through the Netherworld Profound Iron, leaving behind smoking holes.

"My lord," a Yin Soldier stammered, "This fire is too sinister. How about... we retreat ten li and guard from there? And investigate when the fire subsides?"

Ox-Head glared at him fiercely but ultimately did not order them to advance further. He gazed at the sea of fire, which could even incinerate Yin Qi, a hint of apprehension flashing in his eyes:

"Hmph, I doubt he can escape! Give the order, set up the Netherworld Soul Locking Array, and surround this black hole! I want to see how long he can hide inside!"

The three thousand Yin Soldiers immediately dispersed, the chains in their hands beginning to emit a faint green light, attempting to cast a net around the black hole.

However, each time the light from the chains approached the edge of the sea of fire, it was blocked by an invisible wall of fire, emitting sizzling sounds of dissolution, and was unable to completely seal it off.

Horse-Face stood beside Ox-Head, gazing at the endlessly surging eerie purple, and whispered, "The aura of this Netherworld Darkfire... seems even more potent than in legends. If that kid is truly inside, he's probably already turned to ashes, right?"

Ox-Head did not reply, only staring intently into the depths of the sea of fire.

He always felt that beneath this seemingly violent flame, something was quietly changing. That heart-palpitating aura seemed to be growing stronger with the passage of time... In the depths of the black hole, the eerie purple sea of fire was no longer a purgatory that devoured everything; instead, it had become Li Xiangyun's refining furnace.

He floated in the center of the fiery waves, his robes long since reduced to ashes, his exposed skin covered in fine fire patterns. Every inch of his muscle tissue resonated with the wandering flames.

The initial needle-like stinging pain had transformed into a continuous scorching, as if his entire being had been thrown into molten refined iron, with even his bone marrow emitting a 'sizzling' sound.

"Hoo..." He forcefully exhaled a breath of turbid Qi mixed with sparks, and as his chest rose and fell, one could see the trajectory of the flames flowing through his respiratory tract.

Adapting to the violent nature of the Netherworld Darkfire was not difficult; the challenge was to touch the Origin, hidden deep within the flames, emitting an aura of world destruction.

It was like trying to grasp the fire seed at the Earth's core through boiling magma; a slight misstep would lead to complete incineration, becoming nourishment for the flames.

Within his Dantian, the Golden Core was emitting increasingly rapid hums. Its surface spiritual light had transformed from a smooth black and white into a chaotic color with eerie purple patterns.

Each rotation caused tiny flames to spill out, colliding with the spiritual power flowing through his Meridians, producing crackling sounds.

"I must... face it directly." Li Xiangyun gritted his teeth, the sweet taste of blood mixed with the scorching heat of the flames surging up his throat.

He suddenly recalled Cang Lanzi's dying Entrustment, that aged voice seemingly echoing in his ears: "Netherworld Darkfire, it burns away illusions, and can also reshape the true self... Breaking down to rebuild is the right path."

He no longer tried to neutralize the violent Qi of the flames with his spiritual power; instead, he actively withdrew the last layer of his mental defense.

In an instant, the sea of fire was like a lit powder keg. Countless eerie blue fire tongues surged madly into his body through his pores, mouth, and nose.

"Aargh—!"

Excruciating pain erupted, tearing at his heart and lungs. He felt his Physical Body disintegrating inch by inch.

His skin charred and peeled in the flames, his muscle fibers burned to ashes, and even his hard bones glowed crimson, as if they were about to melt the next second.

This pain far surpassed any previous tempering. It was as if countless knives forged of flame were simultaneously cutting his limbs and bones. Even his Golden Core developed wrinkles in this extreme scorching.

"Now!" He desperately suppressed the urge to faint, using his last shred of clarity to guide the Golden Core within his Dantian.

The Golden Core, increasingly solidified by the flames, violently crashed into his Divine Soul. The moment they touched, a crisp sound, like shattering glass, rang out.

The eerie purple patterns on the Golden Core's surface frantically swirled, while the Divine Soul, like a drop of water thrown into boiling oil, violently churned and fused.

Just then, deafening thunder suddenly roared outside the black hole.

Streaks of purple-gold Heavenly Tribulation lightning tore through the Void Realm, precisely striking the center of the sea of fire—the Nascent Soul Tribulation, surprisingly, had been triggered at this very moment!

"Boom!" The first bolt of Heavenly Tribulation lightning passed through the sea of fire, smashing heavily onto Li Xiangyun's Golden Core.

At this point, his body had completely vanished, leaving only the Golden Core fused with the power of his Divine Soul. The Netherworld Darkfire tightly enveloped this Golden Core, attempting to melt it, but was fiercely suppressed by the Heavenly Tribulation.

The power of thunder and the fire of the Netherworld fiercely clashed on the Golden Core. The former carried the tyranny of destruction and purification, while the latter was imbued with the madness of incinerating all things.

He felt his Golden Core being repeatedly torn apart by these two forces, sometimes on the verge of collapse from the lightning strikes, and other times in agonizing pain from the burning flames.