242: The power of the Ruins

The moment his whereabouts were exposed, Li Ao's heart was calm. As the black palm print, imbued with the mournful wails of Souls, was about to shatter the spatial fragment he was hiding in, his figure had already vanished from the spot like a ghost.

"Boom!"

That enormous spatial fragment exploded with a roar under the black palm print, turning into countless dust particles, which were swept away by the surrounding nirvana chaotic currents.

"Hm? What speed!" The leading Seven-Star Dou Zun of the Hall of Souls (let's call him Soul Li for now) narrowed his ghost-fire-like eyes, his Divine Thought instantly spreading out. He roared, "Be careful! An expert has infiltrated! Form the ‘Ten Thousand Souls Devouring Spirit Array’ to defend against the enemy!"

The other five Soul Hall Elders reacted extremely quickly as well. Upon hearing the command, they immediately changed their hand Seals. The strange Formation, which had originally been focused on extracting nirvana source core Qi and destroying the Seal, glowed brightly. Countless resentful Souls roared as they surged out from the central Soul Banner, forming a thick black light screen that enveloped the six individuals along with the Formation. Above the light screen, countless painful, twisted faces writhed, emitting an icy fluctuation that corroded the Soul.

However, their reaction was fast, but Li Ao's speed was even faster!

Just as the black light screen was about to close, a blurry grey figure, as if directly ignoring the obstruction of space, abruptly appeared within the light screen, at the edge of the Formation, behind a Soul Hall Elder whose strength was around One-Star Dou Zun!

It was Li Ao! He did not choose a long-range attack, but rather, relying on his profound understanding of the Annihilation Rule and the peerless strength of his Hegemonic Body, he directly penetrated the energy field on the periphery of the Formation, which had not yet fully stabilized, to carry out a precise decapitation… or rather, a clear-out!

"What?!" That One-Star Dou Zun felt an icy killing intent, which made his Soul freeze, assail him from behind. Terrified, he was about to unleash all his Dou Qi to defend himself when a hand, covered with grey patterns and seemingly containing the true meaning of the annihilation of heaven and earth, lightly pressed onto his back.

"Return to Nothing."

There was no earth-shattering explosion, nor was there a scene of flesh and blood flying. The body of that Soul Hall Elder, along with the black mist protecting his body, the vast Dou Qi within him, and his terrified Soul, disintegrated and vanished inch by inch from the level of existence the moment it came into contact with that hand, like words erased by an eraser.

He didn't even manage to let out a scream. In less than a tenth of a breath, his entire being completely turned into Void Realm, leaving not even a speck of dust. Only a wisp of pure but cold energy remained in place, which was then swallowed by the grey patterns on Li Ao's palm to replenish some of his consumption.

Silence!

Dead silence!

Whether it was the other five Soul Hall Elders within the Formation, or Soul Li, who had just stabilized his figure and was standing by in full alert, all were profoundly shaken by this bizarre and terrifying scene!

What kind of method was this?! Directly turning a person into Void Realm? Not even a Soul imprint remaining? This had completely surpassed their understanding of conventional Dou Qi combat!

"Bastard! Who exactly are you?!" Soul Li was both shocked and enraged, his hoarse roar carrying a hint of imperceptible fear. He stared intently at the grey figure. The aura emanating from the opponent was clearly only at the Dou Zun level (Li Ao had deliberately restrained some of it), but that indifference and deathly stillness, as if he held the ultimate fate of all things, sent chills down the spine of even this Seven-Star Dou Zun.

Li Ao slowly turned around, his gaze calmly sweeping over the remaining five people, finally resting on Soul Li. He had no interest in answering the other party's question, merely sensing the strong yearning for the Chaos Origin behind the light membrane ahead, emanating from the fragment of the "nirvana ancient talisman" within him.

"Bugs of the Hall of Souls, do you dare to covet the nirvana source core?" Li Ao's voice was not loud, but it carried a cold sense of judgment, "This place shall be your burial ground."

"Arrogant! Form the array and kill him!" Soul Li roared, forcefully suppressing the unease in his heart. The opponent's methods were strange, but there was only one of him, while they still had five people, and with the Ten Thousand Souls Devouring Spirit Array to assist them, they might not be without a chance to fight!

With his command, the remaining four Dou Zun simultaneously spat out a mouthful of vital blood, which merged into the central Soul Banner. The Soul Banner vibrated violently, the countless painful faces on its surface emitting sharp wails, condensing into five incomparably ferocious black giant pythons, entirely composed of Soul poison and resentment. Each python exuded terrifying fluctuations comparable to a Five-Star Dou Zun, biting towards Li Ao from different directions!

The Soul pythons condensed by this Ten Thousand Souls Devouring Spirit Array were not only powerful in physical attack, but what was even more terrifying was their accompanying Soul erosion and curse power. Once an ordinary Dou Zun was entangled, their Soul Sea would shatter in an instant, turning them into a walking corpse.

Facing this encirclement that would make even a Seven-Star Dou Zun stand ready, Li Ao merely raised his right hand slightly.

He did not use any weapon, but simply opened his five fingers and, facing the Void Realm ahead, gently clenched them.

"Void Annihilation."

As these two words were uttered, a "Return to Nothingness" Domain, far more vast and profound than when he had erased the One-Star Dou Zun earlier, suddenly spread out with him as the center!

The five roaring Soul pythons, the moment they rushed into this invisible Domain, were like plunging into an unseen swamp, their speed drastically reduced. The thick, inseparable resentful black Qi and Soul poison curses on their bodies began to melt and disintegrate at a visible rate, like ice and snow under a scorching sun. The countless resentful Souls that made up their bodies no longer emitted fierce roars, but rather shrill screams filled with extreme fear, and then one by one, like bubbles, they popped and shattered, returning to Void Realm.

In less than a single breath, the five menacing Soul pythons were completely purified and erased within this "Void Annihilation" Domain, leaving not a trace.

"Pfft!"

Under the backlash of the Formation, the four Soul Hall Elders presiding over the Formation simultaneously spat out a large mouthful of fresh blood, their auras instantly weakened, their faces filled with unbelievable terror. Even Soul Li let out a muffled groan, the black mist around him violently churning, clearly having suffered considerable injury.

The look in his eyes towards Li Ao had been completely replaced by terror. What kind of monster was this?! His power seemed to completely counter all the Cultivation Techniques of the Hall of Souls!

"Escape!"

A clear thought uncontrollably rose in Soul Li's heart. He knew that he had hit a wall, and it was an unprecedented wall, one with absolute rule-based countering!

However, would Li Ao give them this chance?

His gaze, like that of one looking at dead men, had already locked onto the leading Soul Li.