128: Chapter 128 The Heart of Annihilation, The Mystery of Reincarnation

At the edge of the abyss, Lin Wan stood quietly, his gaze penetrating the nearly shattered "Zhou Tian Star Sealing Demon Formation" to cast into the boundless darkness below. Although neither his naked eyes nor his Divine Sense could glimpse its full form, the throbbing from the depths of his Soul, that great terror akin to facing the end of the Universe, clearly told him—what was throbbing below was the true body of the "heart of decay," the terrifying source that had birthed the "Temple of Decay," threatened the entire "Tiannan Realm," and might even involve the "samsara mirror" and ancient secrets.

The "corruption heart key" clenched tightly in his hand also seemed to receive some kind of summons at this moment, throbbing extraordinarily violently and emitting a burning, pure aura of decay, echoing with the "Annihilation" Dao charm at the bottom of the abyss, as if it could not wait to return to its main body. Meanwhile, the "star-moon divine mirror" in his other hand emitted a soft yet resolute starlight, and upon its mirror surface, the phantom of the damaged Formation diagram below was faintly reflected, as if guiding him toward something.

"Daoist Xinghe used his own Dao Fruit and the divine mirror to set up this Formation, stripping away the 'corruption heart key' to delay its revival. Now that the Formation diagram is about to break and the key is here, should I reinforce the Seal, or..." Thoughts spun rapidly in Lin Wan's mind.

Following the guidance of Daoist Xinghe's remnant Soul, he needed to use the "corruption heart key" as a guide and the "star-moon divine mirror" as a foundation to restabilize and repair this "Zhou Tian Star Sealing Demon Formation," keeping the "heart of decay" sealed. This was the safest method, which could temporarily eliminate the blood sacrifice threat of the "Temple of Decay" and buy more time for the "Tiannan Realm."

But this was not a permanent solution. The Formation was already damaged; even if repaired, how long could it last? Furthermore, the "Annihilation" Dao charm contained within the "heart of decay" and related to the "samsara mirror" was always a hidden danger. More importantly, Lin Wan had an intuition that the secrets hidden behind this "heart of decay" might be of vital significance for his pursuit of the "samsara mirror" and his understanding of the essence of "the end." Merely sealing it away might cause him to miss crucial clues.

"Perhaps... I can try to use the 'Primordial Chaos Qi' and the power of 'Purification' to conduct a deep probe while reinforcing the Seal? Even if I only touch its periphery to sense its essence, I might still gain something. With the 'star-moon divine mirror' and the 'corruption heart key' here, and with the Formation barrier, as long as I do not go deep into the core, the risk should be controllable." A bold idea rose in Lin Wan's heart.

Wealth is found in danger, and the Great Dao is also sought in danger. Facing an existence that might involve the ultimate secrets of antiquity, if he stopped out of fear, he might miss a vital Opportunity.

"Let's do it! First, use the 'corruption heart key' and the 'divine mirror' to stabilize the Formation base, then try to use the 'Primordial Chaos Qi' as tentacles to sense its core mysteries. If it proves impossible, I will retreat immediately and reinforce the Seal with all my might." Lin Wan's eyes turned resolute as he made his decision.

He hesitated no longer, forming hand Seals as the magic power within his body surged. Following the rudimentary control methods of the "Zhou Tian Star Sealing Demon Formation" transmitted in Daoist Xinghe's remnant Soul, and cooperating with the guidance of the "star-moon divine mirror," he began to try to communicate with and activate the damaged starry Formation diagram.

The "star-moon divine mirror" burst with brilliant light, its mirror surface casting a thick pillar of starlight that shone directly onto the crack at the center of the Formation diagram. At the same time, Lin Wan threw out the "corruption heart key" in his hand, wrapping it in magic power and slowly pushing it toward the crack.

As soon as the "corruption heart key" neared the crack, it immediately seemed to have found its home, erupting with a dense black light and actively flying toward the crack, as if seeking to merge into it and return to the main body of the "heart of decay."

"Now!" Lin Wan's eyes turned sharp. He slammed his hands together and chanted under his breath, activating the sealing power contained within the "star-moon divine mirror." At the same time, he separated a wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi" and sent it surging toward the crack, closely following the "corruption heart key"!

"Buzz—!"

The instant the "corruption heart key" sank into the crack of the Formation diagram, the entire damaged "Zhou Tian Star Sealing Demon Formation" shook violently! Those dim starry runes seemed to be injected with a stimulant, suddenly lighting up and emitting brilliant starlight! Guided by the "corruption heart key" returning to its proper position at the "Formation eye" and the sealing power of the "star-moon divine mirror," the crack in the Formation diagram began to slowly close and repair itself at a speed visible to the naked eye!

"It's working!" Lin Wan rejoiced in his heart. But at the same time, he also felt that the wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi" that had probed into the crack of the Formation diagram and entered the periphery of the abyss along with the "corruption heart key" was instantly submerged and enveloped by an unimaginable, cold, deathly silent, and terrifying power that contained the Concept of absolute "nothingness" and "termination"!

That was the most fundamental "Annihilation" Dao charm radiating from the main body of the "heart of decay"! Compared to the mixed and decayed aura of the periphery, it was more than a hundred times more powerful and pure! Even if it was just a single wisp, it was enough to instantly sever the life force of a Void Refining Late Stage Cultivator, extinguishing their Divine Soul!

Lin Wan's wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi" was like a lonely boat in a violent storm, instantly becoming precarious, as if it would be assimilated and annihilated by that vast "Annihilation" Dao charm at any moment. Had it not been for the extremely high essence of the "Primordial Chaos Qi" and its integration of the "Purification" attribute, it would probably have completely dissipated the moment it entered.

"What a terrifying power of 'Annihilation'! Is this the core Origin of the 'heart of decay'? It is indeed extraordinary!" Lin Wan's mind shook violently. He hastily guarded that wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi," fully operating his "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit" to provide support with his own will and Dao charm, and tried to use this wisp of ancestral Qi as a tentacle to carefully sense and analyze the pure "Annihilation" Dao charm around him.

Initially, he could only feel boundless cold, deathly silence, and nothingness, as if all existence had lost its meaning here, leaving only eternal annihilation and termination. But gradually, as Lin Wan's "Primordial Chaos Qi" struggled to maintain and adapt within the tide of annihilation, he began to capture some finer, more essential things.

This "Annihilation" Dao charm was not a simple destruction and termination. Deep within it, there seemed to be a strange rhythm that felt as if it could "reverse" some process. It did not merely turn "existence" into "nothingness," but seemed more like executing some supreme... Law instruction that returned "order" to "disorder," turned "being" into "nothingness," and guided "life" to "extinction"?

Furthermore, in the depths of this pure-to-the-extreme "Annihilation," Lin Wan's wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi," as well as the "samsara mirror" fragments in his Sea of Consciousness that were closely linked to the "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit," both sensed an extremely weak yet incomparably familiar resonant fluctuation!

This fluctuation... shared the same Origin as the "samsara mirror" fragments! But it was more ancient, more obscure, as if it were its opposite, or perhaps a distorted product of it in some extreme direction!

The "samsara mirror" reflected the heavens, perceived Reincarnation, and contained Dao charms such as "creation and destruction," "cycle," and "reflection." Meanwhile, the "Annihilation" Dao charm of this "heart of decay" represented the ultimate "termination," "nothingness," and "extinction." Could it be an extreme, distorted form of the "destruction" aspect within "Reincarnation"? No, it seemed to be even more than that...

Just as Lin Wan was fully focused, trying to analyze the deeper secrets of this "Annihilation" Dao charm and explore its connection with the "samsara mirror," a sudden change occurred!

At the bottom of the abyss, the terrifying existence belonging to the main body of the "heart of decay," which originally throbbed only slowly and rhythmically, seemed to sense the return of the "corruption heart key" and the "prying" of that wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi," and suddenly... accelerated its throbbing rhythm!

"Thump! Thump! Thump!"

Like the beating of war drums, or like the heart of some sleeping giant beast being awakened, the dull, heavy throbbing sound filled with endless annihilation and decay, like a tangible tide, surged upward violently from the bottom of the abyss along the crack in the Formation diagram (which, though closing, still had gaps)!

The entire "Zhou Tian Star Sealing Demon Formation" shook violently, and the newly lit starry runes flickered intensely once more, turning unstable. The speed at which the crack was closing suddenly slowed down, and there was even a faint tendency for it to expand again!

"Not good! It has been alarmed!" Lin Wan's expression changed slightly. He hastily increased his magic power output, fully activating the "star-moon divine mirror" to stabilize the Formation diagram. At the same time, he wanted to withdraw the wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi" that had probed into the periphery of the abyss.

However, it was already too late.

At the bottom of the abyss, the main body of the "heart of decay" seemed to have developed a great "interest" in Lin Wan's wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi." A larger and more condensed "Annihilation" Dao charm, like countless icy tentacles, instantly wrapped around it, firmly locking onto Lin Wan's wisp of "Primordial Chaos Qi." Then, tracing back along the connection between this wisp of ancestral Qi and Lin Wan's main body, it surged upward violently, attempting to invade Lin Wan's Sea of Consciousness and pollute his "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit"!

"Hmph! Want to backlash against me? Keep dreaming!"

[part:gemini-3.1-flash-lite]

A cold light flashed in Lin Wan's eyes. Instead of immediately severing his connection to that wisp of Primordial Chaos Qi, he hardened his heart and made an even crazier move!

Not only did he not withdraw that wisp of Primordial Chaos Qi, but he split off another large portion of "Primordial Chaos Qi" and, following the original connection, surged into the abyss like a bursting dam, pouring it into the locked wisp of Primordial Chaos Qi!

He wanted to... fight attack with attack! Using his own massive "Primordial Chaos Qi" to forcefully clash against the "Nirvana" Concept of the "heart of decay", he aimed to forcibly "snatch" back that locked wisp of Primordial Chaos Qi, and perhaps... take the Opportunity to peek deeper into its core secrets!

"Chaos returns to one, all Laws yield! Come back to me!"

Lin Wan roared, and his "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit" spun frantically at an unprecedented speed. Massive amounts of Chaos mana and "Primordial Chaos Qi" surged out, following his connection to that wisp of Primordial Chaos Qi, and violently crashed into the cold tentacles condensed by the "Nirvana" Concept!

"Boom—!!"

Indescribable, as if from two different dimensions, the wills and Concepts of two supreme powers representing the "Origin of Chaos" and the "Ultimate Nirvana" collided violently at the edge of the abyss and the cracks in the Formation! There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a more essential, Law-level, silent annihilation, confrontation, and devouring!

Lin Wan's "Primordial Chaos Qi", carrying the vibrant vitality of creation and the will to encompass all things, was like a grey, raging tide. Meanwhile, the "Nirvana" Concept of the "heart of decay" was like the coldest absolute zero, capable of freezing everything, wanting to drag all vitality and all existence into eternal Nirvana.

The two forces, opposite in nature, both represented some form of the ultimate. As they collided, they instantly fell into the most intense consumption and confrontation.

Lin Wan felt as if his Sea of Consciousness were being pierced by billions of ice needles, and as if countless worlds were being born and dying within his consciousness. The intense pain and the impact of the Concepts made his face instantly turn pale, and thin wisps of pale golden blood (Void Refining blood) seeped from his seven orifices. However, he gritted his teeth, his eyes sharp as knives, guarding his mind. He frantically urged the "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit", even pushing the power of the "Purification Fragment" to the limit, integrating it into the "Primordial Chaos Qi" to enhance its ability to purify and assimilate "Nirvana".

The "heart of decay" seemed not to have expected Lin Wan's counterattack to be so intense and "cost-ignoring". A hint of surprise leaked from that cold, Nirvana-filled will, which then transformed into even more violent rage. The pulsations at the bottom of the abyss became more intense, and more "Nirvana" Concepts surged out like a black tide, wanting to completely submerge and assimilate Lin Wan's "Primordial Chaos Qi".

This was a contest of will, cultivation, and understanding of the Dao. It was extremely dangerous; a moment of carelessness could lead to damage to his Dao foundation, or even being eroded by the "Nirvana" Concept, turning into a walking corpse or simply returning to nothingness.

However, right in the midst of this most intense confrontation, at a subtle moment where the two opposite supreme Concepts violently collided, annihilated, and penetrated each other—

"Hum—!"

In Lin Wan's Sea of Consciousness, the "samsara mirror" fragment that had always been floating quietly and merging with the "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit", along with the page of the "chapter of time and space" deep within his Magic Treasure, vibrated violently at the same time, erupting with unprecedented light!

The "samsara mirror" fragment projected a hazy phantom that seemed able to reflect the past and future, shining onto the intersection of the "Chaos" and "Nirvana" forces that were currently clashing. On the "chapter of time and space" page, those unrecognizable ancient characters seemed to come alive, turning into streams of light that merged into that hazy phantom.

In an instant, Lin Wan's "consciousness", or rather the wisp of Divine Thought he had attached to that "Primordial Chaos Qi", seemed to be pulled into a strange, bizarre dimension that transcended time and space!

He "saw"... a huge, flawless, ancient bronze mirror emitting a warm white light, as if it could reflect all the mysteries of the heavens and myriad worlds—the main body of the "samsara mirror"! It hung high above the endless Void Realm, its surface flowing, reflecting the birth and death of the heavens and the cycle of Reincarnation.

However, the next moment, a tiny crack appeared on the mirror's surface. From within the crack, a wisp of pure, heart-chilling pitch-blackness seeped out—that was "Nirvana", one of the initial, most original forms of "the end". This blackness, like a virus, spread and eroded across the mirror's surface. Wherever it passed, the scenes reflected in the mirror turned from vibrant vitality into deathly silence, decay, and finally, into absolute nothingness and Nirvana.

The "samsara mirror" trembled violently, erupting with its final light in an attempt to disperse and Purify this wisp of "Nirvana". An indescribable battle involving the Origin of the heavens erupted... In the end, the "samsara mirror" shattered, turning into countless fragments that scattered across the heavens. That wisp of "Nirvana" Origin was also severely damaged in the battle, disintegrating and splitting. A part of it combined with the remains of an ancient god-demon who had fallen in the war and held the authority of "decay". Nourished by endless resentment, Death Qi, and the will of "the end", it evolved and mutated over long ages, finally... forming this "heart of decay"!

When the "samsara mirror" shattered, a larger fragment containing the power of "reflection" and partial "Purification" was sent flying. A tiny speck that broke off its edge happened to be contaminated by a wisp of the purest particles from the disintegration of the "Nirvana" Origin. Through some incredible coincidence, the two did not completely annihilate each other; instead, they formed a subtle, dialectical balance, eventually falling into this "Abyss of Buried Gods". After undergoing eons of evolution, it turned into this "corruption heart key"!

Therefore, the "corruption heart key" is not only the manifestation of the core Origin of the "heart of decay" and a key, but its deepest part also Seals a wisp of strange Dao rhyme originating from the "samsara mirror" that is in dialectical balance with "Nirvana". It is the key balance point that maintains the Seal and delays the complete resurrection of the "heart of decay"! It was precisely because Daoist Xinghe realized this that he used the "star-moon divine mirror" in conjunction with the "corruption heart key" to set up a great Formation and Seal it.

The resonance between the "samsara mirror" fragment and the "chapter of time and space" page allowed Lin Wan to "see" the original truth of this long-sealed history regarding the shattering of the "samsara mirror", the birth of the "Nirvana" Origin, and the Formation of the "heart of decay"!

Although it was just a fleeting glimpse and the information was incomplete, the impact on Lin Wan was undoubtedly subversive!

So, "the end" did not arise out of thin air; its initial, most original form, "Nirvana", was directly related to the shattering of the "samsara mirror"! Was it because some "error" or "loophole" appeared in the process of the "samsara mirror" reflecting the heavens and maintaining Reincarnation that led to the infiltration and birth of "Nirvana"? Or was "Nirvana" originally a part of "Reincarnation", and it was just that the "samsara mirror" failed to fully control it at some stage, leading to its loss of control and mutation?

The "heart of decay" was actually the product of the combination of the "Nirvana" Origin and the remains of ancient god-demons! And the "corruption heart key" was an even stranger creation containing the dual Dao rhymes of the "samsara mirror" and "Nirvana"!

All of this pointed to that ancient "War of the End" that affected the heavens. Its root cause might be far more complex and ancient than imagined, and it might even involve the "samsara mirror" itself and the ultimate mystery of the "Reincarnation" Dao!

"Boom!"

Just as Lin Wan's mind was shaken and he was immersed in the shocking truth he had just "seen", in the outside world, the confrontation between the large amount of "Primordial Chaos Qi" he had injected into the abyss and the "Nirvana" Concept of the "heart of decay" had reached a fever pitch. Due to a momentary lapse in Lin Wan's mind, there was a tiny, insignificant lag in his control of the "Primordial Chaos Qi".

It was this tiny lag that was keenly captured by the cold, Nirvana-filled will of the "heart of decay"! A more condensed, more terrifying "Nirvana" Concept, like a poisonous dragon leaving its cave, instantly broke through the defense line of the "Primordial Chaos Qi", and along the connection, slammed fiercely against the barriers of Lin Wan's Sea of Consciousness!

"Puff—!"

Lin Wan was struck as if by a heavy blow, spitting out a mouthful of pale golden blood. His Sea of Consciousness shook violently, his vision went black, and his connection to that "Primordial Chaos Qi" in the abyss instantly became weak. Even worse, a cold, deathly silent "Nirvana" will, which seemed capable of freezing thoughts and annihilating everything, had already invaded his Sea of Consciousness and began to frantically attack his "Chaos Samsara Dao Fruit", attempting to pollute his Dao foundation and drag him into eternal Nirvana!

Crisis! An unprecedented crisis!