25: The Lord of Decay has broken free! My brother is calling for reinforcements!
"The seal here won't hold much longer! We must leave the Star of Wither immediately and report the situation to Mother and Father!"
Su Jue nodded.
He didn't want to stay here any longer either.
Although that Lord of Decay sounded very impressive, he didn't want to run into him right now.
But... before leaving, was there still something left undone?
Su Jue's gaze fell upon the nearby Decay Mother Nest, which was frozen into an ice sculpture.
A monster of the Dharma Idol Realm.
This thing... should be quite valuable, right?
Even the smallest mosquito is still meat!
It shouldn't be wasted!
He broke free from Ao Ning's hand, took a few steps with his short legs, and ran to the ice sculpture.
"Little brother, what are you doing?!" Ao Ning said anxiously, "Hurry up and let's go!"
Su Jue ignored her.
He reached out his small hand and pressed it against the massive ice sculpture.
Then, with a thought.
[Decay Aura, activate!]
[Target locked: Decay Mother Nest (Frozen State)]
[Beginning decomposition and absorption!]
Buzz!
A gray aura enveloped the entire ice sculpture.
A strange scene occurred.
That indestructible ice, which contained the Saint-level Law of Frost, actually began to... melt the moment it touched the gray aura!
No, it wasn't melting.
It was decomposing!
It was being directly decomposed into the most primitive energy from the level of laws by Su Jue's Decay Aura!
Pure ice energy and equally pure Decay energy turned into two torrents, frantically surging into Su Jue's body!
[Ding! Absorbed 'Saint-level Law of Frost', Ice Law affinity +5%!]
[Ding! Absorbed 'Dharma Idol Realm Decay Source', Decay Law affinity +10%!]
[Ding! Massive energy influx, beginning to impact martial cultivation realm!]
[True Essence Realm Second Stage... Breakthrough!]
[True Essence Realm Third Stage... Breakthrough!]
[True Essence Realm Fourth Stage... Breakthrough!]
Boom! Boom! Boom!
Three muffled sounds echoed from within Su Jue's body!
His aura climbed steadily!
Under Ao Ning's already numb gaze, he actually broke through three realms on the spot!
He soared directly from the True Essence Realm First Stage to the Fourth Stage!
And it wasn't over yet!
After all its energy was sucked dry, the massive Mother Nest ice sculpture shattered with a "crack."
A demon core the size of a human head, pitch-black throughout and radiating the pressure of the Dharma Idol Realm, fell out from within.
[Ding! High-quality energy body discovered: Dharma Idol Realm demon core (Decay Attribute)!]
[Quality: Eighth-Grade Spiritual Material!]
Su Jue's eyes lit up, and he grabbed the demon core, hugging it to his chest.
He opened his mouth, preparing to take a bite.
"Stop!"
Ao Ning finally reacted, teleporting to his side and snatching the demon core away.
"Are you crazy!"
"This is a Dharma Idol Realm demon core! The power of laws inside is incredibly violent! If you swallow it now, your body will explode!"
She was truly about to be scared into a heart attack by this younger brother.
This little brat! How does he dare to stuff anything into his mouth!
Su Jue looked at her with dissatisfaction.
Why are you snatching my snacks again!
He reached out his little hand, trying to snatch it back.
Just then.
"Buzz—"
A dull, massive sound came from deep underground.
The entire Star of Wither shook violently along with it!
A terrifying pressure, more than ten times stronger than before, erupted from the ground!
The gray clouds in the sky were hit by this pressure and a huge hole was torn right through them!
A pillar of pitch-black light shot up from where the rift had just closed!
It connected heaven and earth!
"Jie jie jie jie... Freedom..."
"This seat... is finally... free!!!"
A crazed, joyful voice filled with endless malice echoed across the entire planet!
The seal was completely broken!
The Lord of Decay had escaped!
"Not good! Let's go!"
Ao Ning's face instantly turned deathly pale!
She no longer cared to explain to Su Jue, pulling him into her arms and tearing open a spatial rift with her other hand, intending to flee!
But just as she was about to step into the rift.
A giant hand made of black demonic qi that could blot out the sun reached out from that pillar of black light!
With one grab, it seized the foot she was about to step into the rift with!
"Want to leave?"
"Jie jie jie..."
"You discovered this seat's secret and still want to leave?"
"Stay here and become the nourishment for... this seat's return!"
That giant hand made of pure black demonic qi was clearly an illusory energy body, yet when it gripped Ao Ning's ankle, it brought a cold touch that felt physical.
Even more terrifying, a cold, vicious force filled with the aura of Decay was frantically surging into her body through that hand!
Sizzle—
The moment Ao Ning's Saint Realm dragon body touched this power, black smoke actually began to rise from it!
The frost shield on her body was like paper, instantly pierced and disintegrated!
Her skin and flesh were turning gray and necrotic at a speed visible to the naked eye!
"Ah!"
Ao Ning let out a groan of pain, her face as pale as paper.
She could feel her Life force being frantically drained away!
Even her soul felt as if it were about to be frozen and decayed!
Is this... the power of the peak Saint King Realm?
Just a trace of leaked aura left her, a Saint Realm expert, with no power to resist!
Despair!
An unprecedented despair flooded her heart.
She struggled with all her might, pushing her Law of Frost to the limit in an attempt to freeze the demonic hand.
But her power before the opponent was like a stream hitting the ocean, unable to stir even a single ripple.
"Jie jie jie... It's useless..."
"Before this seat's Source Decay, all laws will be decomposed..."
"Give up resisting, little dragon girl."
"Becoming a part of this seat is your supreme honor!"
That crazed voice echoed in her soul.
Seeing that Ao Ning was about to be completely dragged into the darkness below by that demonic hand.
"Let go of... my sister!"
Just then, a childish and angry voice rang out from her arms.
It was Su Jue!
He looked at Ao Ning's pained expression and her decaying body.
A surge of nameless fire flared up from the bottom of his heart!
This cheap third sister, although her head wasn't quite right and she thought about dissecting him all day long.
But along this journey, she had been responsible.
She had even stepped in to save his Life just now.
And now, he was supposed to watch her be dragged away and eaten by some ugly freak?
Su Jue wouldn't allow it!
"System! Is there a way?!"
He roared in his heart.
[Warning! Detected peak Saint King Realm level attack!]
[Performing extreme analysis...]
[Analysis failed! The opponent's power level is too high, exceeding the current analysis limit!]
[Generating solutions...]
[Option 1: Immediately activate 'Starry Sky Demon Dragon Emperor's Reverse Scale' to summon the Saint King's descent. Success rate: 99%.]
[Option 2: Immediately use the 'leaf of the ancient tree of life' to block the fatal attack and utilize the Law of Time contained within for a spatial jump. Success rate: 70%.]
[Option 3 (Not recommended): Host detonates all power in the body, including the 'Power of Creation and Destruction', to perish along with the opponent. Success rate: 0.001%.]