105: Ancient Domain Tracking, Desperate Healing

Deep within the dark and profound primeval jungle of the Savage Ancient Domain.

A stream of light, interwoven with bronze and seven colors, tore through the space at near-breaking speed, madly weaving between towering ancient trees and jagged strange rocks, leaving sharp sonic booms in its wake and startling countless lurking poisonous insects and ferocious beasts.

Li Ao pushed the Thunder Sound Steps to his limit, even burning his vital energy and blood essence, just to increase his speed by another fraction.

In his arms, the light of Medusa's Soul body grew increasingly dim, and the seven-colored rune on her brow appeared somewhat blurry; the deteriorating light pillar she had just withstood from the Nine-Headed Celestial Snake Remnant Soul had caused considerable shock and damage to her Soul Origin.

He could clearly feel the weakness and coldness of the Soul body in his arms; the pain originating from the depths of her Soul caused even the resilient Medusa to slightly furrow her delicate brows.

"I must find a safe place to heal Your Majesty as quickly as possible!" Li Ao was burning with anxiety, spreading his Soul perception to its fullest extent, searching for a suitable hiding spot.

The violent and greedy will originating from the Nine-Headed Celestial Snake Remnant Soul behind them, though somewhat weakened by the distance, clung to them like a maggot on bone, locking onto them tightly, clearly unwilling to give up the blood essence demon fruit, a supreme treasure containing majestic vital Qi.

Moreover, he could vaguely sense several other cold auras converging on their location from different directions! It was the pursuit force from the Hall of Souls!

That Six-Star Dou Zong Elder obviously hadn't given up and was gathering people, attempting to encircle and eliminate them!

With the ancient domain's dangerous terrain ahead and the Serpent Soul and Hall of Souls pursuers behind, the situation was extremely critical!

"Head northeast!" Medusa's faint but still clear voice came from his arms.

"I sense... a trace of weak... homologous Bloodline aura over there; perhaps... it can temporarily shield us from that monster's perception."

Li Ao did not hesitate, immediately changing direction and speeding toward the northeast as Medusa directed.

He had absolute trust in Medusa's Bloodline perception.

Sure enough, after flying at full speed for about the time it takes an incense stick to burn, the heart-pounding will of the Nine-Headed Celestial Snake behind them seemed to blur slightly, as if interfered with by some invisible force.

Before them, a strange swamp appeared.

The swamp contained not murky mud, but a viscous liquid emitting a faint silver light.

The air was filled with a subtle scent of fishy sweetness and decay, yet deep within this aroma, there was a hint of indescribable antiquity and sanctity.

In the center of the swamp grew an extremely peculiar old tree.

Its trunk was twisted like a coiled python, its bark dark silver, covered in patterns resembling snake scales.

The tree had no leaves, only a few strange flowers at the top, emitting a hazy silver light and shaped like serpent pupils.

"This is... Serpent Scale Wood and Underworld Pupil Flower?" Li Ao recognized these two peculiar plants, which were long extinct in the outside world.

Serpent Scale Wood was rumored to contain a faint trace of Ancient Heavenly Serpent Bloodline, while the Underworld Pupil Flower preferred to grow in extremely Yin locations and could disrupt Soul perception.

No wonder the Nine-Headed Celestial Snake Remnant Soul's perception had weakened; the unique environment and the faint homologous aura of the Serpent Scale Wood formed a natural shield here.

"Right here... below..." Medusa's voice was even weaker.

Li Ao probed beneath the swamp with his Soul Power and discovered that beneath the silver marsh was a small, hollowed-out space supported by some kind of beast bone, with an extremely concealed entrance.

Without hesitation, he plunged into the viscous silver swamp, holding Medusa.

Strangely, the swamp did not offer much resistance or filth; instead, a slightly cool energy that calmed the mind and Qi enveloped them.

Diving to the bottom of the swamp, they smoothly entered the bone structure space.

The space was small, only accommodating a few people, but it was dry and clean.

The air was filled with the faint fragrance emanating from the Serpent Scale Wood roots and the Soul disruption field provided by the Underworld Pupil Flowers, making it indeed an excellent hiding place.

Li Ao immediately set up several layers of concealment and protective Restrictions at the entrance, maximizing the effect of the thousand illusions breath hiding talisman, completely isolating the internal and external auras.

Only after completing all this did he carefully lay Medusa down in the center of the space.

At this moment, Medusa's Soul body was nearly transparent, as if it could dissipate at any moment, and her stunningly beautiful face showed undisguised pain and exhaustion.

"Your Majesty, hold on!" Li Ao quickly took out several Medicinal Pills for nourishing the Soul, intending to feed them to Medusa, but since she was a Soul body, she could not consume physical Medicinal Pills.

"It's useless..." Medusa shook her head slightly, her purple eyes dim.

"That deteriorating Law... it is eroding the Origin... ordinary Medicinal Pills... are ineffective."

Li Ao's heart sank.

He could feel that Medusa's Soul Origin was slowly being corroded by a gray, decaying Death Qi; although the speed was not fast, the consequences would be unimaginable if left unchecked.

"I will try using the Annihilation Rule!" Li Ao's eyes sharpened.

His only option now was to rely on the Nirvana Power, which similarly touched the rule level, to see if it could dissolve the erosion of the deteriorating Law.

He sat cross-legged beside Medusa, placing his hands lightly above her Soul body, not daring to touch her directly.

He closed his eyes, sinking his consciousness into his Sea of Consciousness, fully communicating with that wisp of gray Annihilation Rule Origin.

"The Concept of Nirvana is not solely destruction... returning to nothingness can also lead to creation..."

Recalling the intertwined life and death enlightenment he gained when previously treating Medusa, he cautiously guided a wisp of Nirvana Qi—the most refined, stripped of all violence, leaving only the Concepts of "Return to the Ruins" and "Purification"—like the finest thread, slowly transferring it into Medusa's Soul.

This process was more perilous than Alchemy or combat!

He had to precisely control the Nirvana Power, targeting only the deteriorating Death Qi without harming Medusa's already damaged Soul Origin in the slightest!

The gray Qi flowed into Medusa's Soul like a clear spring.

The gray, deteriorating Death Qi that had stubbornly adhered to her Origin seemed to meet its nemesis upon contact with this higher-level, more fundamental Concept of "Nirvana," letting out a silent wail as it began to be stripped away, purified, and annihilated little by little!

It was effective!

Li Ao rejoiced inwardly but dared not relax his guard in the slightest, focusing even more intently on manipulating that wisp of Nirvana Qi, carefully clearing away the fatal "toxins" like the most precise surgical blade.

Medusa kept her eyes tightly closed, her long lashes trembling slightly.

She could clearly feel a cold, desolate, yet strangely soothing aura circulating deep within her Soul.

Wherever it passed, the agonizing sense of decay gradually receded, replaced by a kind of exhaustion akin to collapse, and... a trace of indescribable peace of mind.

Time slowly passed in the silent healing session.

Li Ao's face gradually turned pale, and fine beads of sweat appeared on his forehead.

This extremely delicate control over the Rule caused immense consumption of his Soul.

After an unknown amount of time, when the last trace of gray Death Qi was completely purified by the Nirvana Qi, Li Ao abruptly withdrew his hands, his body swaying, nearly collapsing from exhaustion.

Although Medusa's Soul body was still illusory, the signs of impending collapse had vanished; the light, though faint, had stabilized.

She slowly opened her eyes.

Although her purple pupils still carried fatigue, they had regained their usual clarity and sharpness.

She looked at the pale-faced and listless Li Ao before her, remained silent for a moment, then parted her crimson lips.

Her voice was still clear and cold, but with less distance: "Thank you."

Li Ao waved his hand, swallowed several Medicinal Pills to recover his Dou Qi and Soul Power, and sat cross-legged to regulate his breathing: "It is good that Your Majesty is safe.

Although the deteriorating Law has been removed, Your Majesty's Soul Origin was severely damaged this time and requires long-term recuperation."

Medusa nodded slightly, said nothing more, and closed her eyes, beginning to fully absorb the faint homologous aura and Soul Power of the location to repair her injuries.

Silence fell within the bone structure space, broken only by the faint sounds of breathing (Li Ao) and Soul fluctuations (Medusa).

However, this silence did not last long.

Suddenly, Li Ao snapped his eyes open, his gaze sharply fixed on the area above the swamp!

He sensed several powerful auras circling and searching above the swamp!

One of them belonged to the Hall of Souls Six-Star Dou Zong Elder!

"They found us!" Li Ao's heart tightened.

Although the thousand illusions breath hiding talisman and the natural shielding of this place were effective, with the opponent searching repeatedly at such close range, detection was only a matter of time!

Medusa also opened her eyes, a cold light flashing across her purple pupils.

"How much have you recovered?" Li Ao asked in a deep voice.

"Less than thirty percent," Medusa's voice was icy, "but I still possess the strength to fight."

Li Ao looked at Medusa's stubborn and cold gaze, then sensed the increasingly close search fluctuations above, knowing they could no longer hide.

He took a deep breath, a trace of determination flashing in his eyes: "In that case..."

He slowly stood up, the bronze luster faintly circulating beneath his skin once more, and a sharp killing intent began to coalesce.

"Then... we'll fight our way out!"