565: Lu Xueqi (42)

A wave of Devilish Qi, far purer, more ancient, and more terrifying than before, erupted!

The Devilish Qi in the deep pit instantly solidified, then contracted inwards, forming a shield as black as ink, seemingly capable of absorbing all light, in front of the dark red glow.

Upon the shield, a blurry but infinitely resentful and majestic phantom face emerged.

"Boom!!!"

The blue lightning sword fiercely struck the black demonic shield!

An indescribable roar exploded.

Blue and black, ultimate yang and ultimate yin, two extremely opposing energies collided with the utmost intensity!

The dazzling light made Su Han and Bi Yao instinctively close their eyes.

A terrifying energy storm, centered on the collision point, swept in all directions!

The plaza ground was peeled back and shattered layer by layer like paper.

The surrounding palace ruins collapsed like sandcastles in this storm.

Su Han and Bi Yao were shaken by the impact wave, their Qi and blood churning, and they retreated repeatedly, barely stabilizing themselves.

The energy storm slowly subsided.

The two hurriedly looked towards the deep pit.

They saw that the black shield, condensed from pure Devilish Qi, was already covered in cracks, and then shattered with a "bang," turning back into Devilish Qi.

However, the blue lightning sword, formed by the tianya divine sword, also exhausted its power, flying back with dim light, landing in Lu Xueqi's pale hand.

In the deep pit, the dark red glow also seemed to dim slightly, and its pulsation frequency slowed down.

Evidently, Lu Xueqi's full-power strike, though it failed to directly hit the Origin, still caused a certain impact.

The surrounding Devilish Qi and demonic creatures lost their support and scattered, reverting to unconscious Devilish Qi, drifting around the deep pit.

The attack temporarily ceased.

But the trio's mood did not relax.

Because the terrifying Devilish Qi in the deep pit had not disappeared; instead, it became even more violent from being provoked.

The dark red glow "stared" fixedly at Lu Xueqi, filled with icy killing intent.

"It's enraged."

Su Han said in a deep voice, gripping his qingming sword, standing in front of Lu Xueqi, who was temporarily weak from excessive spiritual energy consumption.

Bi Yao also moved closer, and the three once again formed a defensive formation.

Indeed, the Devilish Qi in the deep pit began to gather again, and on a much larger scale than before.

All the Devilish Qi in the entire deep pit seemed to come alive, surging like a tide.

The dark red glow slowly rose, and as it ascended, the surrounding Devilish Qi frantically converged towards it, and an enormous outline gradually began to take shape.

Head, body, limbs... Finally, a colossal demonic shadow, ten zhang tall and entirely condensed from pure Devilish Qi, appeared above the deep pit!

The demonic shadow's face was blurry, with only two crimson points of light for eyes, but the pressure it emanated changed the color of the sky and earth, and made Su Han and the other two's hearts tremble, as if they were facing an ancient demon god!

The aura of this demonic shadow far surpassed the Golden Core Stage, and even felt more terrifying to Su Han than some Nascent Soul Stage old monsters!

"What... what kind of monster is this, exactly?"

Bi Yao's voice was dry, her beautiful eyes filled with shock.

Merely a partial manifestation of its power possessed such might; what kind of disaster would it be if its true body escaped?

The demonic shadow solidified, lowering its head to gaze down at the three below, as if looking at three ants.

It slowly raised its massive hand, formed of Devilish Qi, and slammed it down towards the trio's position!

This palm strike, seemingly slow, enveloped the surrounding space, leaving no room for escape.

Before the palm wind even arrived, the terrifying pressure had already caused the ground beneath the trio's feet to crack and sink.

Su Han's pupils constricted; he felt a fatal threat.

He roared, injecting all his spiritual energy into the qingming sword without reservation.

Lu Xueqi forced her spiritual energy, and the tianya sword once again bloomed with blue light, but it was noticeably dimmer than before.

Bi Yao also bit her tongue, spitting a mouthful of vital blood onto the heartbreak flower, which instantly turned crimson as blood, emitting a strange and powerful aura.

The three prepared to fight to the death!

Just at this critical moment, an anomaly occurred again!

The netherworld token on Su Han's chest suddenly broke free from its cord and flew up automatically!

It floated above Su Han's head, emitting a deep, faint glow.

This faint glow was not strong, but it carried an indescribable majesty and ancientness.

Where the faint glow shone, the pervasive Devilish Qi actually became docile, as if a subject meeting a monarch, even subtly retreating to both sides.

And the huge demonic shadow's descending palm actually paused abruptly upon entering the range of the faint glow!

In the demonic shadow's crimson eyes, for the first time, an emotion other than pure violence appeared; it was a kind of confusion, a kind of... disbelief?

It stared fixedly at the netherworld token emitting the faint glow, its massive body trembling slightly.

The attack stopped abruptly.

The terrifying pressure also eased.

Su Han and the other two looked at this sudden change with surprise and uncertainty.

This netherworld token actually had a restraining effect on this terrifying demonic shadow?

No, it wasn't like restraint; it was more like a kind of... hierarchical suppression?

Su Han had a sudden inspiration, trying to communicate with the netherworld token above his head with his mind.

At the same time, he recalled the profound Concept he felt when he obtained the netherworld token, and that inexplicable incantation.

Subconsciously, he chanted it in a low voice, following that Concept:

"Netherworld... Guide, Yellow Springs... Return to Origin..."

As the incantation was uttered, the sound was not loud, but it seemed to carry a peculiar rhythm.

The netherworld token above his head vibrated gently with the incantation, and the faint glow it emitted became more solid.

A blurry rune, formed of faint light, slowly emerged in front of the token.

When the huge demonic shadow saw this rune, its body trembled violently, and its crimson eyes revealed an extremely complex expression: awe, fear, and even a hint of... fanaticism?

Its massive body actually slowly... knelt on one knee!

Towards the netherworld token, towards Su Han, it lowered its hideous head!

As if bowing to their monarch!

This scene completely stunned Su Han, Lu Xueqi, and Bi Yao.

This reversal came too suddenly, too incredibly.

This terrifying demonic shadow actually knelt before the netherworld token, before Su Han?

What was the Origin of this netherworld token, after all?

What was its relationship with this suppressed demonic creature?

The truth of Liubo Mountain seemed to be thousands of times more complex than they had imagined.

Su Han looked at the kneeling demonic shadow, then at the netherworld token floating above his head, and a stormy sea raged in his heart.

He vaguely felt that he had touched the edge of a shocking secret.

And this secret was very likely to have intricate, inseparable ties with himself and the disappeared Netherworld Dao.

The road ahead was becoming increasingly unclear.

But at this moment, the crisis seemed to be temporarily resolved.

The demonic shadow knelt motionlessly, and the surrounding Devilish Qi also calmed down.

The dark red glow in the deep pit was still pulsating, but the rhythm was much smoother.

Su Han took a deep breath, knowing that now was not the time to delve deeper.

He tried to control the netherworld token with his mind.

The netherworld token's faint glow swirled, and it slowly flew back into his hand.

The kneeling demonic shadow raised its head, its crimson eyes glancing at Su Han, its gaze complex and unclear, then its massive body slowly dissipated, turning back into pure Devilish Qi, returning to the deep pit.

The deep pit returned to its previous appearance, Devilish Qi slowly flowing, and the dark red glow quietly pulsating.

It was as if the world-destroying attack and the bizarre scene of the demon god kneeling earlier were just an illusion.

But the destroyed plaza ground around them, as well as the trio's injuries and depleted spiritual energy, clearly told them that everything just now was real.

"It's not advisable to stay here long."

Su Han tightly gripped the netherworld token in his hand, feeling the residual warmth on it, and said in a deep voice.

Although the demonic shadow had retreated, this place was too strange, and no one knew what else might happen.

Lu Xueqi and Bi Yao both nodded; they also needed to find a safe place to restore their spiritual energy as soon as possible.

The three dared not linger there any longer, carefully retreating, leaving the Devilish Qi-filled plaza, and quickly heading towards the deeper parts of the ruins, the direction the astrolabe ultimately pointed.

Along the way, the three remained silent, each processing the thrilling experience they had just had.

The anomaly of the netherworld token, the kneeling of the demonic shadow—all of it was like a massive enigma, shrouding their hearts.

The journey to Liubo Mountain seemed to be dragging them into an unfathomable vortex.

And what role did the netherworld token in Su Han's hand play in this vortex?

Was it a key, a token, or... shackles?

No one knew the answer.

They could only continue forward, groping for the outline of the truth in this ancient and dangerous ruin.

The Devilish Qi deep pit behind them was gradually obscured by the ruins, but that dark red light seemed to be imprinted in the trio's hearts, lingering.

The path ahead was still shrouded in mist, but a premonition grew clearer and clearer: what awaited them at the core of Liubo Mountain might not be a traditional immortal Treasure Trove, but a startling truth concerning ancient secrets, possibly even overturning their cognition.

Su Han tightened his grip on the netherworld token, his gaze firmly fixed on the depths of the ruins.

No matter what lay ahead, he had to continue.

This was not just for Opportunity, but also to unravel the mysteries entwined around him.

His footsteps echoed emptily on the ancient flagstones, one step at a time, moving towards the unknown depths. (End of Chapter)