Blood Curtain over the Imperial Capital, Tragedy in the Abyss

The Void Realm fluctuated, and Nightmare, bringing Su Wanqing with him, took a step out, having returned to the Tianxuan Continent and standing just outside the Imperial Capital.

However, the sight before them caused both their pupils to suddenly contract!

The magnificent Imperial Capital, once prosperous and brimming with Dragon Qi, was now completely enveloped by an enormous, blood-red, bizarre light curtain! Countless painful, twisted human faces and beast shadows struggled and roared on the curtain. The sickeningly thick smell of blood and monstrous resentment were clearly detectable even from a distance! Inside the Imperial Capital, there was absolute silence; no sounds of living beings could be heard, only a chilling gurgling sound, like blood flowing, faintly emanating from within!

The entire Imperial Capital had actually been turned into a massive Blood Sacrifice Hell!

"This... this is..." Su Wanqing covered her mouth, her beautiful eyes filled with shock and disbelief. Although the Imperial Dynasty had wronged her, this hellish scene still exceeded the limits of her imagination.

Nightmare's expression was grim, and the rule fragment instantly scanned the blood-colored light curtain.

[Analysis: Super Large Blood Sacrifice Vengeful Soul Array. Using the essence blood and souls of billions of living beings as fuel, it forcibly activates the Evil Dragon Malice Vein hidden underground, merging with Void Realm evil energy, intending to tear open the world barrier and usher in an unnameable entity. The Formation core is located at the Imperial City Ancestral Temple, and the energy reaction has reached the critical point!]

[Warning: The Formation is fully activated. Forcibly entering will incur the backlash of the entire Formation and the impact of the Evil Dragon Malice Vein!]

[Qianyuan Pavilion distress signal source detected: Located in the southeast corner of the Imperial City, deep underground. The signal is about to disappear completely!]

"Zhao Wuji! How dare you commit such an inhuman atrocity!" The killing intent in Nightmare's eyes almost solidified. He hadn't expected Zhao Wuji to be so utterly insane as to use the billions of lives in the entire Imperial Capital as sacrifices!

Was he trying to forcibly summon the entity behind the Shadow Clan? Or did he have another motive? The mention of the character "Su" in the distress signal caused his unease to rapidly escalate.

"Senior Brother, what should we do now?" Su Wanqing asked anxiously. She had also faintly sensed the distress signal.

"The Formation is complete. Forcibly breaking it will accelerate the Blood Sacrifice process and might even cause uncontrollable consequences." Nightmare frantically used the rule fragment for deduction. "We must destroy it from the internal core, or... find the person controlling the Formation!"

The rule fragment quickly locked onto the final location of the rapidly fading distress signal—the southeast corner of the Imperial City, somewhere underground beneath the Qianyuan Pavilion headquarters.

"Follow me!"

Nightmare pulled Su Wanqing along. The rule fragment flashed, and instead of directly charging the blood-colored light curtain, he activated the newly acquired "Void Beacon" ability! He had been to the Imperial Capital before and had already recorded the coordinates!

A silver-gray spatial door flashed and vanished, and the two figures disappeared instantly.

The next moment, in the southeast corner of the Imperial City, beneath a secluded ruin at the Qianyuan Pavilion headquarters, space subtly fluctuated, and their figures emerged.

This area had clearly suffered a fierce battle; buildings had collapsed, the ground was scorched black, and powerful Spell fluctuations and the smell of blood lingered. The rule fragment instantly locked onto the entrance of a secret chamber hidden deep underground by layers of Restriction. The entrance was covered in cracks, and the Restriction was on the verge of collapse.

Nightmare waved his hand, breaking the remaining Restriction, and quickly snuck in with Su Wanqing.

Inside the secret chamber, the light was dim, filled with heavy smells of blood and medicine. Several Cultivators wearing Qianyuan Pavilion attire lay dead in pools of blood. Only an elder in the center of the room, covered in wounds and with a broken black dagger plunged into his chest, was still clinging to his last breath. He tightly grasped a cracked Jade Talisman, which was the source of the distress signal.

Hearing the movement, the elder struggled to open his cloudy eyes. When he saw Nightmare and Su Wanqing, especially the latter, a final spark erupted in his gaze.

"Fellow Daoist Ye... it... it really is you..." The elder was dying, every word terribly difficult to utter. "Quick... leave... Zhao Wuji... he's gone mad... He's not just using the Imperial Capital for Blood Sacrifice... he's also... he's also forcibly fusing the Evil Dragon's soul with... with the 'Seed of Primordial Darkness' bestowed by the Shadow Clan... He wants to... transform into a devil... and Break through the limits of this world..."

"Miss Su... run quickly... He... his ultimate target... is you... your Nine Aperture Exquisite Body... is... is the best... Fusion stabilizer..." The elder used his last ounce of strength to look at Su Wanqing, his eyes full of urgency and warning.

Poof!

Before he could finish speaking, the broken dagger in his chest suddenly emitted a pitch-black evil light, instantly annihilating his last trace of vitality! The elder's eyes completely dimmed, his arm fell limp, and the Jade Talisman shattered alongside it.

The secret chamber fell into deadly silence.

Nightmare's expression was terrifyingly cold.

Su Wanqing's delicate body trembled, and her face was pale. She finally understood what the "Su" in the distress signal meant! Zhao Wuji's target, from beginning to end, was her! The Imperial Dynasty capturing her wasn't just for the altar; it was for Zhao Wuji's insane plan! Using the Blood Sacrifice of billions of lives, fusing the power of devils, and then using her Nine Aperture Exquisite Body as a stabilizer to help him Break through!

What incredible madness and malice!

"Zhao! Wu! Ji!" Nightmare spoke syllable by syllable, the killing intent in his voice plunging the temperature of the entire secret chamber to freezing point!

The rule fragment operated frantically, combining the elder's dying words with previous clues, instantly deducing Zhao Wuji's approximate plan and likely location!

The Ancestral Temple! The source of the underground Evil Dragon Malice Vein! He must be carrying out the final Fusion there!

"Wan Qing, stay here. I will set up a Formation to protect you..." Nightmare turned, preparing to place Su Wanqing somewhere safe first.

However, just at that moment—

Boom! Rumble! Rumble!

The ground beneath the entire Imperial Capital shook violently! The blood-colored light curtain enveloping the Imperial Capital suddenly contracted inward. All the bloody light, resentment, and energy surged frantically toward the Imperial City Ancestral Temple, like a hundred rivers flowing into the sea!

A terrifying will—extremely evil, chaotic, and powerful, yet mixed with Zhao Wuji's aura and a Dragon roar—suddenly shot up from beneath the Ancestral Temple, stirring up the wind and clouds for thousands of miles!

"Hahaha! Success! I have succeeded! Infinite power! This is the power that transcends this world!"

Zhao Wuji's maniacal and triumphant laughter spread everywhere, but his voice had become strangely distorted, seeming to blend a Dragon roar, shadow whispers, and his original voice, full of non-human contortion!

"Su Wanqing! I sense you! The perfect container! Come! Merge with me, and together we shall ascend the Limitless Great Dao!"

A terrifying suction force suddenly came from the direction of the Ancestral Temple, ignoring space and directly locking onto Su Wanqing! Simultaneously, several gigantic tentacles, composed entirely of foul blood, shadows, and Dragon Malice, tore through the earth and violently grabbed toward the Qianyuan Pavilion's underground secret chamber!

Zhao Wuji, or rather, the fused monster, had attacked directly! He sensed Su Wanqing's presence!

"Senior Brother!" Su Wanqing's face lost all color. The power contained within the suction force and the tentacles made it impossible for her to resist!

A cold light burst forth in Nightmare's eyes. He pulled Su Wanqing behind him, unleashing the rule fragment and the Annihilation Domain with full power!

"Courting death!"

He pressed his fingers together like a sword. Annihilation Sword Intent shot into the sky, instantly severing the invisible suction lock! At the same time, he struck out with a backhand palm, and the Annihilation Great Hand Seal bravely met the terrifying grabbing tentacles!

Boom!

A terrifying energy collision erupted, instantly leveling the entire Qianyuan Pavilion ruin!

Nightmare's body swayed slightly, and a hint of solemnity flashed in his eyes.

Dao Integration Peak! And not an ordinary Dao Integration Peak! Zhao Wuji, having fused the Evil Dragon Malice Vein, the Shadow Clan's Seed of Primordial Darkness, and the power of the Blood Sacrifice, had reached the absolute limit that this world could accommodate, perhaps even slightly exceeding it! Bizarre and powerful!

"Oh? You managed to block my casual strike? Worthy of being an Annihilation Legacy successor!" Zhao Wuji's surprised yet even more greedy voice came from the direction of the Ancestral Temple. "Your Law, your power, will eventually become my nourishment! Become a part of me!"

More foul blood tentacles and shadowy claws emerged from all directions, grabbing toward Nightmare and Su Wanqing like an inescapable net! The entire Imperial Capital ruin seemed to come alive, transforming into an extension of Zhao Wuji's body!

Nightmare protected Su Wanqing, moving like lightning, weaving through countless attacks. Annihilation Finger Force continuously shot out, annihilating the incoming tentacles and claws. However, the opponent's attacks were endless, and their power was bizarre and mixed, carrying strong contamination that even caused the Annihilation Domain to sizzle as it was eroded.

This won't work! He must strike directly at the core!

"rule fragment! Lock onto the core! Calculate the optimal path!"

[Calculating... Path generated! Requires breaking through three layers of defense: Blood Malice Shield, Dragon Soul Barrier, Primordial Darkness Barrier... Weakness analysis complete...]

A sharp light flashed in Nightmare's eyes, and the rule fragment instantly transmitted the calculated information stream into his Sea of Consciousness.

"Wan Qing, hold tight!"

He gave a low shout, wrapping one arm around Su Wanqing's slender waist. With the other hand, he grasped the Void Realm, and the rule fragment energy highly condensed, transforming into a gray-black Annihilation Sword that seemed capable of severing Karma and destiny!

"Annihilation: Law Breaker!"

He transformed his body into a sword, achieving the unity of man and sword. Carrying the ultimate sharpness that could shatter all Laws, he followed the optimal path calculated by the rule fragment, instantly piercing through the layered Blood Malice Shield, Dragon Soul Barrier, and Primordial Darkness Barrier as if tearing cloth!

The speed was extreme!

In barely a ten-thousandth of a second, he brought Su Wanqing with him, directly slicing through the heavy obstacles and rushing into the absolute core beneath the Ancestral Temple!

The scene before them suddenly opened up, yet it was like a true Hell on earth!

A massive Blood Pool churned, soaking countless twisted corpses. In the center of the Blood Pool, on a throne constructed of white bones and pitch-black metal, a monster was slowly rising.

It vaguely retained Zhao Wuji's outline, but half its body was covered in shattered Dragon scales, while the other half was entirely composed of writhing shadows. A twisted Dragon horn grew on its forehead. One eye was a golden Dragon pupil, and the other was pure black! Its entire body radiated a terrifying and chaotic evil aura!

It was the fused Zhao Wuji!

Beside the throne, a figure bound by shadowy chains and unconscious was suspended—it was actually the Pavilion Master of Qianyuan Pavilion!

"You finally came... my... container and... nourishment..." Zhao Wuji (the monster) let out a twisted laugh, his greedy gaze fiercely locked onto Su Wanqing and Nightmare.

The final showdown erupted violently in this core location of the Blood Sacrifice!