133: Heart fire forges the soul, love threads entwine.

"Boom—!"

The entire black ancient hall shook violently. Above the dome, countless black dust and rubble tumbled down. At the top of the altar, the mass of "heart of annihilation" rotated and expanded wildly, and more grayish-white streams of Qi extended out like tentacles, baring their fangs and brandishing their claws, emitting a violent aura that sought to devour all life force. Having lost the final seal provided by the Venerable of Living Beings' skeleton, this accumulated Nirvana Power of countless ages finally began to spiral completely out of control!

The terrifying pressure impacted them like a materialized tsunami, wave after wave. Xiao Yi Xian bore the brunt of it, her face instantly turning pale, and the poison Qi that had just settled in her body became restless again. She let out a muffled groan, a thread of black blood spilling from the corner of her mouth, and she could barely stand steady.

Li Ao was at a critical moment in treating Medusa. The emerald green light of the seed of living beings fiercely clashed with the gray mark of extinction. The mark was about to be completely purified, and this moment absolutely could not be interrupted! He gritted his teeth, his Soul Power surged out wildly, communicating with the black iron in his glabella!

"Buzz!"

The black iron trembled, and a deeper, more fundamental Nirvana Origin intent spread out, not to resist, but to form a "Domain." A gray Domain, three zhang in radius centered around Li Ao, suddenly appeared. Within the Domain, the wildly impacting Nirvana Power seemed to have encountered a leader of its own kind; it became much gentler, bypassed this area, and continued to rage further away.

This was Li Ao's deeper application of the black iron and Nirvana Origin under duress! He used his own Origin to temporarily delineate a "safe zone"!

However, maintaining this Domain consumed a huge amount of Soul Power. Li Ao's face turned pale at a visible speed, and a stabbing pain came from his Sea of Consciousness, but his gaze was firm. He stubbornly supported the Domain while simultaneously fully activating the seed of living beings.

The emerald green life energy acted like the most skillful craftsman, slowly repairing Medusa's damaged Meridians and internal organs, and expelling the last trace of stubborn Nirvana Power. The gray mark on her chest finally disappeared completely, and her pale skin recovered its former fairness and elasticity, even faintly revealing a lustrous sheen after being cleansed by the life energy.

"Mmm..." A faint moan, carrying the lingering pain, escaped Medusa's lips. Her long eyelashes fluttered a few times, and she slowly opened her eyes.

At first, her purple eyes still held a hint of confusion and weakness, but when she clearly saw Li Ao, who was close by, pale-faced but with a focused gaze, and felt the immense vitality within her body and the hand he tightly held, memories flooded back like a tide.

The fatal sneak attack in front of the palace gates... the resolve to block that strike for him... the coldness of impending death... and now, the firm strength transmitted through his palm, the strength of him saving her at all costs, even overdrafting his own reserves... An unprecedented, complicated, and indescribable emotion instantly wrapped around her heart like a vine. It was the throbbing of surviving a catastrophe, the warm current of being protected, and something deeper... something she herself could not clearly define.

She had never thought that her heart, which had been cold for countless years, would produce such violent ripples because of a human man.

"You... woke up?" Seeing her open her eyes, the tension in Li Ao's heart slightly eased, his voice filled with unconcealed exhaustion and hoarseness.

Medusa did not reply; she only stared blankly at him. The frost in her purple eyes had completely melted, leaving only a deep, flowing light that seemed capable of drawing a person in. She turned her hand and gently squeezed his hand back. This subtle action spoke volumes.

Just then, the heart of annihilation at the top of the altar erupted again! An even more powerful impact fiercely slammed into the Domain maintained by Li Ao!

"Pfft!" Li Ao's body violently shook, and he suddenly spat out a mouthful of fresh blood. The scope of the Domain instantly shrank to barely cover the three of them, and its light dimmed to the extreme. The excessive overdraft of Soul Power caused his vision to blur repeatedly.

"Li Ao!" Medusa and Xiao Yi Xian exclaimed simultaneously.

Medusa forced herself to sit up. Although the seed of living beings had healed most of her injuries, her Origin Qi had not yet recovered, and she could only worry anxiously at this moment. Xiao Yi Xian was even more precarious, swaying under the impact of the leaked pressure.

This could not continue! A fierce look flashed in Li Ao's eyes. Fleeing was not an option; if the heart of annihilation fully erupted, the entire Ancient Domain of Extinction could be destroyed, leaving them nowhere to run!

The only path to survival lay within the heart of annihilation itself!

He abruptly looked up at the wildly spinning grayish-white vortex, and an incomparably insane thought surfaced in his mind—to use the black iron to try and communicate with, or even... refine a trace of the heart of annihilation's Origin! Only by truly controlling a portion of the power could he quell this riot!

"Act as my Protector!" Li Ao shouted softly to Medusa and Xiao Yi Xian. He immediately stopped hesitating, sat down cross-legged, sank his consciousness into his Sea of Consciousness, and communicated with the black iron with all his might. At the same time, he cautiously separated a wisp of Soul Power, like a tentacle, actively probing toward the raging heart of annihilation!

This was an extremely dangerous move! His Soul Power was as tiny as a firefly before the vast Nirvana Origin; the slightest mistake would result in instant assimilation and erasure!

However, just as his Soul tendril was about to touch the heart of annihilation, an anomaly occurred again!

The black iron in his glabella suddenly erupted with unprecedented heat! It was no longer the previous trembling and yearning, but a kind of majesty, as if it had been provoked and angered!

A Nirvana intent, countless times purer, older, and more domineering than Li Ao's own Soul Power, suddenly burst forth from the black iron, transforming into a condensed gray beam of light that arrived before his own probe, shooting directly into the core of the heart of annihilation!

"Buzz—!!!" The entire rioting heart of annihilation suddenly paused, as if a pause button had been pressed!

The grayish-white streams of Qi that were originally raging violently instantly became docile and quiet before this gray beam originating from the black iron, like a subject encountering an emperor, even showing signs of fear and submission!

The black iron seemed to be forcefully suppressing the heart of annihilation using its own higher hierarchy!

At the same time, the wisp of Soul Power Li Ao had extended took the Opportunity to merge with a trace of the Nirvana Origin that had been suppressed by the black iron and become relatively docile.

"Boom!" As if the Universe had just opened, Li Ao's entire consciousness was pulled into a strange Realm. He "saw" endless stars from birth to destruction, saw the rise and fall of continents, and saw the Reincarnation and end of life... Countless fragments of rules concerning "extinction" surged into his Soul like a flood.

This was not forced indoctrination, but a gentle "demonstration" and "resonance" under the protection of the black iron.

His Soul, under the baptism of the Nirvana Origin, was like iron ore thrown into a furnace, undergoing a thousand refinements. Intense pain and enlightenment intertwined; the Soul Power that had been depleted due to overdraft actually began to recover, grow, and transform at a slow but steady pace under this tempering!

In his glabella, his Soul Power materialized and faintly formed the rudimentary shape of an extremely blurry gray talisman seal, emanating the aura of extinction.

He did not know how much time had passed; perhaps it was an instant, perhaps ten thousand years.

When Li Ao opened his eyes again, a deep gray light flashed deep within them and vanished. He felt that his Soul Power was not only fully recovered but had also achieved a Breakthrough to a new level—Spirit Realm Mid Stage! He was not far from the Late Stage either! Furthermore, his comprehension of the Nirvana Origin had increased by several grades!

At the top of the altar, the heart of annihilation was still slowly rotating, but it was no longer violent; instead, it displayed a strange "calmness." It separated a wisp of slender, seemingly living gray Qi, which curled around Li Ao's fingertip like a docile pet.

He had succeeded! Utilizing the might of the black iron, he not only quelled the heart of annihilation's riot but also refined and controlled a wisp of its core Origin!

The ancient hall stopped shaking.

Li Ao stood up tall, feeling the increased power within him and the wisp of Nirvana Origin at his fingertip that he controlled perfectly, and a heroic spirit suddenly rose in his heart. He turned and looked at the two women behind him.

Medusa had already stood up. Although her aura was still somewhat weak, the radiance in her purple eyes was brighter and more moving than ever before. She looked at Li Ao, at the docile Nirvana Origin at his fingertip, and her eyes were filled with shock and... a hint of pride.

Xiao Yi Xian also walked over, a look of relief on her face, and her gaze toward Li Ao was full of reliance and admiration.

Having passed the catastrophe, the gazes of the three intersected in the air. No words were needed; a bond of shared life and death, and deeply rooted affection, was now unbreakable.

Li Ao reached out his hand, gently brushed Medusa's slightly messy hair, and said softly, "It's over."

He then looked at Xiao Yi Xian, taking her still slightly cold hand: "It is time for us to leave here."

The core Opportunity of the Ancient Domain of Extinction has been obtained. It is time to return to Central Plains and face the monstrous storm that has already begun!