262: Starfield Crisis, Mystery of Depletion

The lingering warmth of the Emotion Celebration had not yet dissipated, but the warning from the twin moon token pressed down like a heavy stone on The Seven of Lu Chen. The living beings in the square had gradually dispersed, and the spiritual light of the Two-World Passage remained soft, yet the aura around The seven people became a bit more solemn. Lu Chen held the faintly glowing twin moon token, his fingertips caressing the twin moon patterns on the token, clearly perceiving the deathly silent fluctuations coming from a distant direction—that power was cold and desolate, devoid of any emotion, constantly devouring the warmth of living beings like a deep abyss. It was precisely the source of the emotional depletion crisis seen in the twin moon token's image.

"That crisis-ridden place is far from the two worlds; we need to use the power of the twin moon token and Myriad Worlds Empathy Technique to open a Spirit Domain passage to it." Ling Xi traced the twin moon token with her fingertips. The faint purple Formation spiritual light intertwined with the token's aura as she softly analyzed, "Opening the passage requires a large amount of emotion and Spiritual Qi. We need to first stabilize our minds, gather our strength, and ensure we are not disturbed by spatial turbulence and unknown risks along the way." Lin Yulan held a bamboo slip, Spiritual Qi flowing through her fingertips as she quickly deduced the general Veins of the crisis-ridden area. She said in a deep voice, "The deduction shows that the Spiritual Qi in that area is sparse, filled with dense negative energy, and is called the 'Desolate Spirit Domain.' Most living beings there are corroded by negative forces, and their situation is perilous. We need to bring enough purifying spiritual liquid and Healing Pills to be fully prepared."

The seven people immediately returned to Seven Emotions Academy to rest and prepare. Luo Wanning hastened to refine Spirit Pills that could purify the dead silence, using the Spiritual Qi of plants and trees and emotional power as a guide. When the Medicinal Pill formed, it emitted a gentle green light, capable of temporarily resisting the erosion of deathly silence. Hai Qinghan condensed water-element spiritual liquid; the gentle spiritual liquid could nourish the mind damaged by depleted emotions. Bing Ningshuang prepared ice-sealing defensive talismans, which could briefly block the spread of dead silence. Zhu Yanyao refined her fire spiritual power, making the flames even purer, capable of incinerating weak negative energy. Lu Chen, meanwhile, nourished the twin moon token with the Eternal Love Seal, strengthening the token's guidance and protective power. Ling Xi repeatedly deduced the details of the Spirit Domain passage's setup, ensuring its stability and safety.

Three days later, The seven people gathered at the center of the Two-World Passage. Lu Chen held the twin moon token, and the Eternal Love Seal on his brow glowed intensely, pure spiritual light of love intertwined with the token's power. The six women stood around him, each activating their emotional power and Spiritual Qi, injecting them into the twin moon token along the Veins of the Myriad Worlds Empathy Technique. A dazzling seven-colored spiritual light suddenly erupted, fiercely striking the Void Realm. A wide Spirit Domain passage slowly emerged, with faint gray mist swirling within—it was the aura of the Desolate Spirit Domain. Though it carried the oppressive feeling of deathly silence, under the protection of The seven people's emotional power, it dared not easily intrude.

"The passage is open. The Spiritual Qi inside is chaotic, and the dead silence is hidden. Everyone, follow closely behind me. Rely on the spiritual light of the Love Seal and do not scatter." Lu Chen said in a deep voice, stepping into the passage first. The spiritual light of the Love Seal formed a protective cover that firmly enveloped The six women. The gray mist inside the passage surged wildly, hissing as it struck the protective cover, but it could not penetrate. The seven people advanced steadily, faintly hearing the weak whimpers of living beings, seemingly the wails of those tormented by the dead silence, which made their hearts sink.

After an unknown period of travel, light gradually appeared ahead. The seven people stepped out of the passage and were instantly shocked by the sight before them—the sky of the Desolate Spirit Domain was a hazy gray, with no sun or moon, only sparse spiritual light barely illuminating the land. The ground was cracked like a tortoise shell, with faint black Qi emanating from the fissures. Even the toughest Spiritual Plants had withered, turning into charred remains. The air was filled with dense dead silence, bone-chillingly cold. Inhaling even a breath would stiffen one's body, make one's mind feel heavy, and cause emotional power to become sluggish.

"The dead silence here is denser than imagined. It can suppress emotions, erode the mind, and with prolonged exposure, even powerful Cultivators will gradually lose warmth and become walking corpses." Hai Qinghan frowned deeply, water-element Spiritual Qi gently flowing around her, attempting to dispel the dead silence nearby. However, it was swallowed upon contact, and her expression changed slightly. "This power is more insidious than Void Evil Energy. It doesn't actively attack but specializes in extracting emotions, making it even more dangerous."

The seven people walked slowly, and all the living beings they saw along the way were in a miserable state—Cultivators in coarse cloth robes walked numbly on the cracked earth, their eyes hollow and expressionless. Even when they brushed past each other, there was no communication, like Soulless Puppets. Young children huddled in corners, their eyes vacant, lacking the liveliness and agility children should have, without even the strength to cry. Their emotional power was almost completely dissipated. Occasionally, living beings could be seen lying on the ground, their aura weak, their eyes full of numb despair, having lost all reaction to their surroundings.

Luo Wanning looked at the scene before her, especially the children who had lost their smiles, her eyes reddening with heartache. She quickly walked to a huddled child, trying to nourish their mind with the Spiritual Qi of plants and trees, but found that most of the emotional power within the child had been extracted, and the Spiritual Qi could not penetrate at all. She tightly clasped Lu Chen's hand, her voice choked, "Big Brother Lu, the living beings here are too pitiful. We must save them. We cannot let them completely become Puppets of deathly silence."

Lu Chen gently patted her hand, his eyes filled with determination and compassion, "Don't worry, since we have come, we will never allow the dead silence to spread. We will definitely find the root cause, purify the crisis, and restore warmth here." The six women also nodded, their eyes full of resolve. Even if the crisis was perilous, they would never retreat.

Just then, several Cultivators in silver-white tight-fitting attire quickly approached from a distance. Faint but pure emotional power swirled around them. Though their aura was weary, their eyes remained firm, clearly indicating they were among the few living beings in the Spirit Domain not completely eroded by dead silence. The leading Cultivator saw the emotional spiritual light on The seven people and a trace of wariness flashed in his eyes, which then turned to pleasant surprise. He quickly stepped forward and bowed, "Are you the emotional Guardians from the outside world? I am Xing Xuan, an Elder of the Star Clan. I sensed the Spirit Domain passage opening and a dense emotional power surging in, so I specifically came to investigate."

"Star Clan?" Lu Chen nodded in response, "We sensed an emotional depletion crisis here and came specifically to investigate its source. May I ask where the dead silence here originates from?" Xing Xuan sighed deeply, leading The seven people towards the Star Clan's encampment. As they walked, he slowly explained, "The Spirit Domain's crisis originates from the 'desolate star core' at its center. It was formed by negative matter remaining from the Universe's creation, lying dormant for countless ages. Recently, for some unknown reason, it suddenly became active, emitting dense dead silence, constantly extracting the emotions of the Spirit Domain's living beings, causing everyone to gradually become numb and indifferent, turning into walking corpses. Our Clan has guarded the Spirit Domain for generations, attempting to resist the dead silence, but ultimately, we are powerless. Many of our Clan members have also been eroded, and our situation is dire."

As he spoke, everyone arrived at the Star Clan encampment—a valley enveloped by faint spiritual light. The Spiritual Qi within the valley was slightly denser than outside, and a few vibrant Spiritual Plants were faintly visible, clearly a pure land protected by the Star Clan's own power. Many Star Clan Cultivators resided in the valley, most of them weary but still clinging to their last emotional power. Seeing The seven people arrive, their eyes flashed with hope.

Xing Xuan led The seven people into the Clan's council hall and took out a yellowed ancient book. The book was inscribed with ancient Star Clan patterns and radiated a faint spiritual light. He opened the ancient book, pointing to the records within, and said, "This is an ancient book passed down by our Clan. It details the origin and characteristics of the desolate star core. It shares the same origin as the legendary Void Evil Energy, but it is more adept at devouring emotions and can continuously absorb the negative emotions of living beings to strengthen itself. Once it fully erupts, the dead silence will spread to other Spirit Domains, with unimaginable consequences."

As soon as he finished speaking, the ancient book suddenly burst forth with an ancient spiritual light, which gradually condensed into a small booklet and fell into Lu Chen's hand. The cover was inscribed with the four characters "Deathly Silent Power Identification Technique." The booklet meticulously detailed the aura characteristics, erosion methods, and identification techniques of dead silence, which could help Cultivators precisely perceive the hidden locations of dead silence, avoid its erosion, and even initially resist weak deathly silent energy. It was a crucial technique for dealing with the current crisis.

Lu Chen carefully put away the small booklet, his heart heavy—the desolate star core shared the same origin as Void Evil Energy and specialized in devouring emotions, making its danger far exceed any crisis encountered before. Seeing this, Ling Xi proactively spoke, "Elder Xing Xuan, I am skilled in Formations. I can use the twin moon token and my own cultivation to investigate the specific location of the desolate star core, preparing for the subsequent purification of the crisis." Xing Xuan heard this, his eyes filled with gratitude, "Thank you for your help, young lady! The desolate star core's aura is extremely hidden, and the surrounding dead silence is dense. The investigation will be extremely perilous, so please be very careful."

Ling Xi nodded and walked to the center of the council hall, taking out the twin moon token. The spiritual light of her Formation burst forth intensely from her fingertips. The faint purple Formation patterns spread along the ground, intertwining with the power of the twin moon token, gradually forming an investigative Formation pattern that extended towards the center of the Spirit Domain. She closed her eyes, her mind highly concentrated, sensing the energy fluctuations transmitted by the Formation patterns, her expression becoming increasingly focused. A moment later, Ling Xi opened her eyes, her face slightly pale, but her eyes were full of understanding, "The desolate star core is at the center of the Desolate Spirit Domain. There is a bottomless Dark Abyss there, and the star core floats at the edge of the Dark Abyss. The surrounding dead silence is the densest, and it is enveloped by a powerful negative energy barrier. Approaching it will be extremely difficult."

The edge of the Dark Abyss, the desolate star core, co-originating Evil Energy, devouring emotions... Countless pieces of information intertwined in the minds of The seven people, making them increasingly aware that this crisis was far more arduous than imagined. Luo Wanning looked at the Star Clan living beings outside the hall who were holding onto their emotions, especially the hope in the eyes of the young children, and once again clasped Lu Chen's hand, her tone firm, "No matter how difficult it is, we must approach the star core, purify the dead silence, and protect the living beings here."

Lu Chen nodded, his eyes filled with resolve, and looked at The six women beside him, "The edge of the Dark Abyss is perilous, and the dead silence is dense. We need to rely on the Eternal Love Seal, the twin moon token, and our own emotional power, supporting each other and moving forward steadily. As long as The seven people are united in heart and our bonds remain unbroken, we will surely be able to resist the dead silence, uncover the mysteries of the desolate star core, and resolve this crisis."

The six women all nodded, their eyes filled with understanding and determination. Xing Xuan looked at the seven figures standing side by side, his heart filled with gratitude and hope—he knew that these seven emotional Guardians were the hope of the Desolate Spirit Domain and even countless living beings. And the desolate star core at the edge of the Dark Abyss was also emitting cold dead silence, awaiting the arrival of The seven people. A difficult confrontation concerning the survival of the Spirit Domain and the continuation of emotions was already on the verge of breaking out.