174: Chapter 175 The heavens and earth trembled, and the truth was revealed.

The ground was like torn fabric, with hideous cracks spreading wildly in all directions.

These cracks were several zhang wide and bottomless, with gravel constantly tumbling from their edges, emitting a rumbling echo.

Lin Ye's figure flashed, and he instantly soared into the air.

He looked down, his pupils shrinking violently.

The scene before him far exceeded his expectations.

The buildings in Qishan Village were perishing in an extremely bizarre manner.

Those houses, as if weathered away, began from the roof and turned into ash-white powder inch by inch.

"This is..."

Lin Ye was shocked; wherever his gaze fell, the entire village was "evaporating."

At the same time, a System notification came to his ears:

"Ding! Essence + 160, Qi + 30, Spirit + 100"

This was a gift from The Butcher.

Accompanied by a surge of majestic energy pouring into his body, Lin Ye's various attributes began to skyrocket.

However, at this moment, Lin Ye's attention was not on this at all.

This was because as Qishan Village completely disappeared, the surroundings were once again shrouded in gray mist, though it was much thinner than before.

Moreover, these gray mists seemed to be pulled by some force and began to flow slowly in one direction.

At the same time, a red dot of light appeared in Lin Ye's field of vision.

That dot of light was extremely faint, like a candle in the wind, and could be extinguished at any moment.

"It's the Commander!"

Lin Ye's heart stirred, and a figure instantly appeared in his mind.

Without the slightest hesitation, he fully activated Lightning Flash Movement, his figure turning into a bolt of white lightning as he sped toward the direction of the red dot.

The distance of several hundred zhang was covered in an instant.

However, when Lin Ye clearly saw the figure before him, his steps came to an abrupt halt.

A figure resembling a withered corpse was sitting cross-legged on the ground, hair disheveled and draped over its shoulders, gray-white strands drifting slightly in the mist.

Under the hair was a face so old it was nearly terrifying.

The skin was withered and yellow, tightly clinging to the bones, with almost no flesh visible; it was truly a skeleton covered in a layer of human skin.

The eyes were deeply sunken, with heavy dark shadows around the eye sockets.

The lips were chapped and white, without a trace of blood color.

If not for the faint light occasionally flashing in those eyes, Lin Ye would have even suspected that the person was already a corpse.

The Commander at this moment was so aged that it was unbelievable; where was even a shred of the high spirits from when they first met?

Yet even so, the person's spine remained straight.

Like a drawn sword, the whole body exuded a biting sharpness.

And across his knees lay a blood-colored long blade.

The blade was about three feet long, with a dark, dull red color throughout, as if it had been soaked in blood a thousand times over.

The blade was engraved with dark red patterns; these patterns were like living things, spreading and pulsing on the blade, emitting a faint red light.

In Lin Ye's perception, this blade seemed to be alive.

It was like a heart; every time it pulsed, it would send a faint stream of power into the Commander's body.

Although that power was extremely weak, it was maintaining the Commander's last glimmer of life.

This must be the Spiritual Artifact that The Woodcutter spoke of.

And it was precisely because of this Spiritual Artifact that the person had been able to hold on in this bizarre gray mist for a whole month.

But now it seemed that the energy of this Spiritual Artifact was clearly about to run out.

The red patterns on the blade were flickering unsteadily, as if they might be completely extinguished at any moment.

Seeming to sense that someone was approaching, the Commander slowly raised his head.

Just this simple movement seemed to have exhausted all of his strength.

His neck made a clicking sound, like a rusty machine struggling to operate.

But when he saw clearly that the person who had come was Lin Ye, a flash of light suddenly burst from the Commander's eyes!

It was an undisguised astonishment, even mixed with a trace of disbelief.

Clearly, he hadn't expected Lin Ye to still be alive.

And not only alive, but appearing to be in surprisingly good condition.

His complexion was rosy, his aura thick, his spirit full, and there was not even a trace of his life force being drained.

How could this be?

The power of this great formation was something even he, who possessed a Spiritual Artifact, could not fully resist; how was Lin Ye unaffected?

The Commander's heart filled with doubt, but he no longer had the strength to ask.

"Commander!"

Lin Ye hurriedly stepped forward, crouched down, and placed a hand on the Commander's shoulder, pure Internal Qi flowing like a gentle stream into the other's body.

Nourished by the Internal Qi, the Commander's withered body felt like a long-parched land meeting a sweet rain, and those long-dried Meridians began to regain a hint of vitality.

The Commander's complexion improved slightly, at least not as gray and defeated as before.

"Lin... Ye, they..." The Commander's voice was hoarse and low, intermittent and barely audible.

"Rest assured, Commander, they have already left."

"But Commander, what exactly is going on here? Have you seen a..."

Before Lin Ye could finish his sentence, a voice suddenly came from behind him.

"Let me explain."

The voice was unhurried, and the tone carried a hint of a smile.

Lin Ye turned abruptly, the black iron heavy staff instantly in his hand.

A familiar figure walked out from the thin mist.

It was The Woodcutter.

However, The Woodcutter at this moment was like a different person compared to before.

His body no longer possessed that simple and honest temperament; it was replaced by a sense of aloof composure.

The originally murky eyes had now become exceptionally clear, deep like an ancient well.

A faint smile hung on the corners of his mouth as he looked at Lin Ye.

"Don't be nervous; I've only come to answer your doubts." The Woodcutter raised his hand, signaling Lin Ye to relax.

However, Lin Ye had no intention of relaxing his vigilance; the patterns on the black iron heavy staff were already glowing, ready to strike at any moment.

The Woodcutter smiled at the sight, not minding at all.

"Who exactly are you, and what is your purpose?"

Lin Ye stood in front of the Commander and spoke coldly.

He had felt there was something wrong with this guy from the beginning, but judging from the other's actions, it didn't seem like there was any hostility.

Until now, the Demon revival he spoke of had not occurred, and only then did Lin Ye confirm that the other had been deliberately deceiving them all along.

"Purpose? That is a long story; all of this must start from twelve years ago."

His tone was calm, as if he were telling a story unrelated to himself.

"Twelve years ago, I inadvertently discovered the anomaly here."

"To be precise, it was a legendary rank Spiritual Artifact!"

Hearing this, Lin Ye already understood most of it.

"So, there was never any world-destroying Demon about to awaken; everything was a trick you directed and acted out yourself?"

The Woodcutter laughed, his smile carrying a hint of playfulness.

"That's right."

"The reason I set up this Dust-Sealing Absolute Thought Formation was indeed not to Seal any Demon, but to help me refine that Spiritual Artifact."