152: Chapter 152 The Undercurrents of the Nascent Soul and the Ownership of the Fragments

As the words faded, those several Divine Thoughts sweeping across the area did not retreat. Instead, they carried an even more intense scrutiny and greed, locking onto that geng metal true spirit fragment and Lin Chen, whom Senior Xuanjizi had named.

In the Void Realm, it felt as if several invisible mountains were pressing down from thin air, each representing a Nascent Soul expert capable of overturning rivers and seas, and whose stomp could make the Central Continent tremble.

This space, just purified by the geng metal Qi, instantly became as viscous as a mud pit.

Lin Chen felt his Divine Soul being pressed by countless cold steel needles, every breath accompanied by tearing pain.

This was absolute suppression from a higher life level, the unbridgeable chasm between a Golden Core and a Nascent Soul.

His protective spiritual power was thin as a cicada's wing before such pressure, ready to collapse at the slightest touch.

But he did not retreat, nor did he bend his back even slightly.

His only movable right hand clenched into a fist, nails digging deep into his palm, using the sharp pain to resist the terrifying pressure that could have forced him to his knees.

He knew that he represented not just himself, but also his son, who had just been pulled back from the gates of death, and the entire crumbling Lin family.

Right in this suffocating standoff, one of the most overbearing Divine Thoughts, sharp as a peerless divine sword, was no longer satisfied with silent pressure.

It twisted in mid-air, condensing directly into a rumbling thunderous sound that echoed throughout Dragonfall Gorge.

"Senior Xuanjizi, this is an ancient geng metal true spirit fragment; those who see it have a share. This child is merely at the Early Stage Golden Core; what virtue or ability does he have to deserve sole possession of such a divine object?"

The voice sounded like thousands of sword blades humming simultaneously, every word carrying a sharpness that could sever a Divine Soul, undisguised in its unquestionable possessiveness from the direction of the Divine Sword Sect.

With the sounding of this voice, the pressure from the other Nascent Soul Divine Thoughts also increased abruptly, as if silently echoing, jointly pressuring Senior Xuanjizi.

Senior Xuanjizi's Incarnation, formed by Divine Thought, furrowed his brows slightly, about to speak.

Lin Chen preempted him, forcibly enduring the pressure that threatened to crush him, and bowed towards the Void Realm. His movements were somewhat stiff due to the pain in his Divine Soul, but his posture was neither humble nor arrogant.

He did not argue about who the geng metal true spirit fragment belonged to, nor did he foolishly declare his own sovereignty.

He simply turned around slowly, pointing his chin at Shadow Erosion, who was pinned to the rock wall by Inspector Feng Xingyun's wind blade, charred all over, and breathing weakly.

"Seniors, this object appeared because of the slaying of this fiend."

His voice was somewhat hoarse from the exhaustion of spiritual power, yet it was transmitted with exceptional clarity into every Divine Thought.

"This fiend carried the power of the Ink Abyss, infiltrated the heart of our Central Continent, and set up this Heaven-Sealing and Earth-Isolating Array. As for his purpose, this Junior dares not speculate, but it must be self-evident."

Lin Chen's gaze swept across the devastated canyon, across the remains of the Yao Beasts that had turned to ash, and finally landed back on the geng metal true spirit fragment floating in mid-air, emitting endless temptation.

There was no greed in his eyes, only the heaviness of surviving a disaster.

"This Junior's cultivation is shallow, and my vision is limited. I only know one thing—if our homeland is about to fall, this object is a Sharp Weapon to save the world, not a dusty collection piece locked in someone's treasure vault."

These words were spoken with great impact. He cleverly avoided the dispute over ownership and directly tied the existence of the geng metal true spirit fragment to the imminent Ink Abyss crisis.

Now, whoever forced a grab would be equivalent to ignoring the righteousness of the Human Race, caring only for their own private interests.

Those previously aggressive Nascent Soul Divine Thoughts clearly showed a slight hesitation after Lin Chen's words.

Senior Xuanjizi's Incarnation took a deep look at Lin Chen, a hint of undisguised approval flowing in those calm eyes.

This little guy not only had Heaven-Defying Luck and combat power far beyond his peers, but also the courage and intelligence to remain calm in the face of Nascent Soul monsters and settle the situation with a single sentence.

"Young Friend Lin speaks the truth."

Senior Xuanjizi seized the opportunity, his voice rising abruptly, and his large sleeve swung violently.

A soft light curtain woven from countless profound Talismans appeared out of thin air, like a gentle hand, wrapping the geng metal true spirit fragment without a trace of worldly fire.

On the light curtain, all Laws circulated, isolating all prying eyes and greed.

"This matter is of great importance, involving the Ink Abyss, and cannot be decided by any single family or sect. I propose that this object be temporarily stored by the Heavenly Pivot Pavilion, and that all parties be convened immediately to discuss strategies to deal with the Ink Abyss. Before a conclusion is reached, whoever takes it by force will be an enemy of our Myriad Laws Pavilion and an enemy of the entire Human Race of the Central Continent!"

The last eight words were almost shouted by Senior Xuanjizi, his voice containing the vast magic power of a Late Stage Nascent Soul and unquestionable determination, crashing like Nine Heavens thunder into the hearts of every Nascent Soul monster.

He directly brought out the two mountains that no one could carry: the Myriad Laws Pavilion and the righteousness of the Human Race.

There was deathly silence in the Void Realm.

A moment later, that overbearing Divine Thought from the Divine Sword Sect let out a cold snort containing extreme unwillingness, and finally, it slowly retreated like a receding tide.

With someone taking the lead, the other Divine Thoughts also gradually retracted their pressure and finally disappeared without a trace.

A Nascent Soul-level conflict that was about to explode due to the birth of a divine object was unexpectedly suppressed by the concerted effort of Senior Xuanjizi and Lin Chen.

Only after confirming that all prying gazes had left did the nerves that Lin Chen had kept tightly wound finally relax.

A sense of exhaustion from the depths of his Divine Soul surged like a bursting dam, making his vision go black and his body sway involuntarily.

But he did not fall.

He turned around immediately, staggering quickly to the battered beast carriage.

Lin Haoyu was still slumped there, his face as pale as paper, his breath so weak it seemed it could cease at any moment.

Lin Chen's heart felt like it was being gripped tightly by a giant hand. He quickly took out a warm jade bottle from his storage ring and poured out a Medicinal Pill the size of a longan, emerald green all over, emitting a rich Aura of vitality.

This was the top-grade healing pill "Rejuvenation Creation Pill" that he had requested Su Qingyao to refine personally using the thousand-year Spirit Medicine awarded by the System. There were only three in the entire Lin family.

Without the slightest hesitation, he roughly pinched open Lin Haoyu's mouth, stuffed the Medicinal Pill in without a word, and then pointed his fingers like swords, pressing on several major acupoints on his son's chest, using the last trace of Chaos spiritual power in his body to help him dissolve the medicinal power.

The Medicinal Pill melted upon entering his mouth, and a vast life essence flowed rapidly through Lin Haoyu's Meridians to his limbs and bones.

His dried-up Dantian and damaged Meridians began to greedily absorb this power, like land long parched for rain.

Lin Haoyu's brows relaxed, and his originally weak breathing gradually became steady and strong.

Lin Chen carefully checked again, confirming that his son only had overdrawn spiritual power and Origin, and was not in mortal danger, before the heart that had been hanging in his throat finally fell back into his stomach.

His entire Aura deflated instantly, and the physical exhaustion and the sharp pain in his left shoulder could no longer be suppressed, causing him to lean against the frame of the carriage, gasping for breath.

He cast a glance at Inspector Feng Xingyun not far away.

Inspector Feng Xingyun immediately understood. He put away the remaining shock on his face, stepped forward, and took out a special chain shimmering with silver Talismans from his own Magic Treasure.

This was the "Spirit-Binding Rope" specially used by the Sky Patrol Division to deal with evil spirits. Once bound, not to mention spiritual power, even the Divine Soul would be imprisoned.

He skillfully bound Shadow Erosion, who had completely passed out, tightly, and pasted several Seal Talismans on his Dantian, only then did he breathe a sigh of relief and nod at Lin Chen.

The moment the geng metal true spirit fragment was completely sealed by Senior Xuanjizi's Talisman light curtain, the stone ring that Lin Chen had been wearing on his left thumb finally stopped its frantic vibration and absorption.

A warm current slowly seeped out from inside the stone ring, flowing through Lin Chen's limbs and bones, silently nourishing his nearly exhausted Meridians.

He subconsciously raised his hand.

He saw that the stone ring that had accompanied him for many years now had a trace of elusive yet extremely sharp golden light flowing between the originally simple, earthy-yellow patterns on its surface.

This golden light, like a living thing, wandered slowly among the patterns, adding a bit of indescribable nobility and killing intent to the ring.

At the same time, a cold stream of information surged into his exhausted Sea of Consciousness without warning.

[Detected that the host has successfully contacted and absorbed a trace of the geng metal true spirit Origin. Ring form upgrade complete.]

[Ability unlocked: Law Aura Simulation.]

[Can simulate the Aura of the geng metal true spirit fragment for a short time, possessing a powerful deterrent and restraining effect on the power of the Ink Abyss and evil objects.]

Lin Chen's heart jumped violently.

He clenched his fist calmly, hiding the stone ring that had undergone a metamorphosis, along with the new sense of power, deep within his palm.

Outwardly, he was still that exhausted, heavily injured figure with depleted spiritual power, his face even paler than before.

This trump card had come too timely and must be hidden even deeper.

"Young Friend Lin, this place is not suitable for a long stay." Senior Xuanjizi's Incarnation floated to Lin Chen, made a "please" gesture to him, and signaled for him to go to the Heavenly Pivot Pavilion together.

"There are some things that require you to personally explain to the Elders in the Pavilion."

Lin Chen nodded without saying much.

He carefully picked up Lin Haoyu, placed him in the beast carriage that Inspector Feng Xingyun had urgently repaired, and instructed him to ensure the person was safely returned to the Lin family.

After doing all this, he straightened up, ready to follow Senior Xuanjizi and leave.

At the last moment before his body ascended, his heart moved, and borrowing the last weak connection between his Chaos Golden Core and the earth, he quietly activated [Earth Pulse Perception].

His "sight" instantly pierced through layers of rock, scanning the messy Dragonfall Gorge beneath his feet one last time.

This time, what he "saw" was no longer the surface, but deeper, much deeper.

In the underground core where the geng metal true spirit fragment had just rushed out, deep within the torn cavity, an extremely subtle space rift, almost integrated with the darkness, was closing extremely slowly and irreversibly at a speed invisible to the naked eye because it had lost the suppression of the fragment.

It was as if what had been sealed there originally was far more than just one thing.

Lin Chen's pupils shrank slightly, and an inexplicable chill crept up his spine.

And Senior Xuanjizi's Incarnation had already wrapped him up, turning into a stream of light, shooting into the sky, and disappearing at the end of the horizon in an instant.