232: Chapter 232 Conquering the Sea of ​​Consciousness (Part 1): Your Empire, My Rules

The moment the golden light pierced between his brows, a violent sense of vertigo assailed him, as if his entire being had been cast into a chaotic space-time flow.

When his vision cleared once more, Xu Chen found himself no longer in that opulent underground palace, but in a world of gray, deathly stillness.

'Is this... Wu Mingkong's Sea of Consciousness?'

Xu Chen's Hongmeng Primordial Spirit hovered in mid-air, his gaze sweeping the surroundings, his brows involuntarily knitting slightly.

All he saw was devastation.

The firmament above was covered in shocking, massive fissures, like a mirror cleaved by a giant axe. Countless gray void tempests poured in through the cracks, howling like vengeful ghosts.

Each howl stirred up a storm of destruction across this land.

The earth had long since shattered, magma had dried up, mountains and rivers were broken. What might have once been a grand, magnificent landscape of a vast realm now lay in ruins.

Tattered battle flags stood planted across the ground, flapping sharply in the cold wind, exuding the desolation of a hero's final stand.

This was no longer a cultivator's Sea of Consciousness; it was clearly a world on the brink of apocalypse.

'The damage to her soul has actually reached such a severe extent.'

Xu Chen thought to himself, abandoning his usual air of irreverence.

The Sea of Consciousness is a reflection of a cultivator's inner world.

Back then, Wu Mingkong must have taken this very world as her crucible, attempting to reforge the laws of heaven and earth when she forcefully attempted to break through to the Emperor Realm. The backlash from her failure had caused this 'realm' to collapse completely.

If not for an incredibly tenacious imperial obsession stubbornly sustaining it, this Sea of Consciousness should have dissipated long ago, and her own soul would have scattered to the winds.

'Truly a stubborn woman.'

Xu Chen sighed.

Preferring to cling to ruins rather than fade away—such a will indeed lived up to the title of Empress.

Roar——!

Just as Xu Chen was observing the environment, a draconic roar, filled with savagery and agony, suddenly erupted from the ruins below.

Boom!

The earth trembled, countless shattered stones shooting skyward.

A colossal dragon, its entire body formed from mystic ice, roared as it erupted from the depths of the abyss.

The dragon was a full thousand zhang in length. Though its aura was imposing, its body was covered in dense, intricate cracks. Black baleful energy continuously seeped from the fissures, making it appear ferocious and terrifying.

This was Wu Mingkong's residual self-preservation instinct, the final guardian of this Sea of Consciousness.

'Outsider... begone!'

The Frost Dragon opened its maw. The sound it emitted was not a simple draconic roar, but a hoarse, icy, and murderously furious roar.

Even with her soul on the verge of collapse, this Empress would not permit anyone to set foot in her domain.

As the roar faded, the frigid air in the sky instantly erupted, transforming into countless sharp swords of ice. Like a violent storm, they surged toward Xu Chen, seeking to shred him to pieces.

The assault was extremely fierce. Every single ice sword contained the will and pressure of a Quasi-Emperor. If an ordinary Saint's Primordial Spirit had barged in here, it would likely have been instantly shredded, turning them into a fool on the spot.

'Your temper is not small, but unfortunately, you are far too weak now.'

Xu Chen stood with his hands clasped behind his back. Facing the sky full of ice swords, he didn't even show any intention of dodging.

A faint, serene smile curled at the corner of his mouth as he willed it.

'Hongmeng Dharmakaya, manifest!'

Hum——

In an instant, a golden light ten thousand zhang long erupted from within him, instantly dispelling the surrounding grayness and cold.

Within that golden radiance, Xu Chen's Primordial Spirit form swelled violently with the wind.

Ten zhang, a hundred zhang, a thousand zhang...

In the blink of an eye, he transformed into a golden giant that towered between heaven and earth.

This giant was formed from the purest Hongmeng Purple Qi, its visage solemn and sacred, inviolable, as if it were the one true deity of this world.

Before this Hongmeng Giant, the Frost Dragon, which had initially seemed immense, instantly appeared as small and insignificant as a tiny snake.

Clang, clang, clang——

The countless ice swords crashed against the golden giant's body, producing a series of crisp ringing sounds before shattering into powder like eggs hitting a rock.

They couldn't even breach its defense!

'How... is this possible...'

A flicker of human-like terror and confusion passed through the Frost Dragon's massive draconic eyes.

It couldn't comprehend why the Primordial Spirit of this intruder was so powerful—so powerful that it instinctively wanted to submit.

'Nothing is impossible.'

Xu Chen, now the giant, looked down upon the Frost Dragon below. His voice boomed like a great bell, reverberating throughout the Sea of Consciousness world, shaking the very firmament.

'Your realm is shattered. Your power is exhausted. Now, you can't even protect yourself.'

'Wu Mingkong, see clearly.'

Xu Chen slowly raised that sky-covering golden hand, pointing at the broken mountains and rivers around them.

'This ruin, you cannot hold.'

'Since you cannot hold it, then I shall take over.'

Before his words even faded, that immense golden palm, carrying an invincible might, began to press down slowly upon the Frost Dragon below.

'Suppress!'

Boom——

Before the golden palm even descended, the terrifying Hongmeng pressure had already caused the space below to crack and shatter inch by inch.

'No! This Empress will not submit!'

The Frost Dragon let out a shrill roar, frantically burning its remaining source power, attempting to break through the blockade of that golden hand. It gnashed its teeth and brandished its claws, spewing frigid air, striving to defend the Empress's final shred of dignity.

'You will submit, whether you wish to or not.'

Xu Chen's gaze was indifferent. The speed of his descending palm abruptly increased.

For this kind of frenzied subconsciousness born from severe injury, reason was useless. The only method was to beat it into submission, to beat it awake!

Thump!

The golden palm descended without suspense.

The seemingly ferocious Frost Dragon let out a mournful cry the moment it contacted the Hongmeng golden light. Its massive body was not shattered by the blow; instead, it was pinned firmly to the ground by that golden radiance, unable to move.

'Growl...'

The dragon still struggled, but under the erosion of the Hongmeng Qi, the black baleful energy on its body began to rapidly dissipate. Its originally frenzied eyes gradually grew clear and docile.

'Disperse!'

Xu Chen uttered a light command.

Pinned to the ground, the Frost Dragon let out a low groan of relief before its body transformed into countless sparkling motes of spiritual energy, dispersing into the air.

These motes of light did not vanish. Instead, like fireflies, they floated around, merging back into this parched earth.

As the guardian beast was 'purified,' the tempests raging around them also ceased.

The furious roar of 'Begone!' that had been echoing in his ears finally disappeared.

The entire Sea of Consciousness world fell into an eerie, yet tranquil, silence.

'Hah...'

Xu Chen dispersed his Dharmakaya, reverting to his normal size as he slowly descended.

Now, with the guardian mist cleared, the core region of this Sea of Consciousness was finally revealed before Xu Chen's eyes.

It was a solitary, dilapidated palace floating in the void.

The palace was named 'Weiyang Palace.' Though its walls were mottled, its tiles fallen, and even half its main gate missing, it still tenaciously emitted a faint imperial golden light, barely maintaining this last bastion of purity from being devoured by the surrounding darkness.

That was the final hiding place of Wu Mingkong's true spirit.

It was also the 'cage' in which she had imprisoned herself for thousands of years.

'Locking yourself in a cage is not a good habit.'

Xu Chen looked at the tightly shut palace doors and shook his head gently.

He stepped forward, treading on the void, walking step by step toward that tottering palace.

Without the Frost Dragon to obstruct him, he encountered no resistance this time. That single palm strike had utterly shattered all of Wu Mingkong's external defenses, and also shattered that hard shell of hers.

Arriving before the palace doors, Xu Chen stopped.

Observed up close, the palace appeared even more desolate.

Vermilion pillars were covered in sword marks—scars left by inner demons.

Xu Chen reached out, gently placing his hand upon the palace door.

Beneath his palm, he could feel an extremely faint tremor.

It was the person inside, afraid, resisting, making her final struggle.

'Wu Mingkong, open the door.'

Xu Chen's voice was not loud, yet it clearly pierced through the palace door, reaching inside.

...

Inside, there was only dead silence. No response.

'You won't open it?'

Xu Chen raised an eyebrow, a mischievous smile curling at the corner of his mouth. 'If you don't, I'll force my way in. Don't blame me if it hurts.'

If it were any other time, he might have had the patience for a game of repeated, polite visits.

But now, this Empress's soul was on the verge of collapse. Any further delay, and she might truly scatter to nothingness.

Extraordinary times called for extraordinary measures.

'Break!'

Hongmeng Purple Qi surged and ebbed in Xu Chen's palm.

Boom!

The already dilapidated palace door let out a groan of unbearable strain before collapsing inward with a crash.

As dust swirled, the scene inside the great hall was laid bare.

Empty. Desolate.

No luxurious decorations, only endless loneliness.

And in the very center of the hall stood a transparent cage forged from ten-thousand-year mystic ice.

Inside that cage, a semi-transparent figure was curled up.

She was not wearing the majestic dragon robes of the outside world, but a blood-stained, plain white battle gown. Her long hair was disheveled, cascading over her shoulders.

She hugged her knees, burying her head deep in the crook of her arms, like a wounded little beast hiding in a corner, licking its wounds alone.

Hearing the sound of the collapsing door, the figure shuddered violently.

She slowly raised her head.

Revealing a face so pale it was almost translucent, yet still breathtakingly beautiful.

That was Wu Mingkong's true spirit.

Now, in those phoenix eyes that should have looked down upon all living beings, there was no imperiousness, only deep terror and helplessness.

She looked at Xu Chen, standing at the entrance, his body radiating a dazzling golden light, as if looking at a demon god who had forcibly invaded her world.

'You... stay away...'

Her voice trembled, carrying a hint of a sob.

It was vulnerability, after all pretenses had been stripped away.

Xu Chen looked at her. The indifference in his eyes faded, replaced by a deep pity, and... an even stronger desire for conquest.

'Don't be afraid.'

Xu Chen stepped over the threshold, walking step by step toward that ice cage.

With each step, the golden light on his body grew stronger, dispelling the gloom within the hall.

'I am here to take you over.'

He walked up to the ice cage, looking down at this former Empress from his height. He reached out, placing his hand on the cold bars of the cage.

'From today onward, your realm is mine to rule.'

'And you, are also mine.'