Searching for Souls and Unveiling Secrets: The Ancient Demon's Scheme

Han Li slumped under the shattered stone wall, his right arm twisted unnaturally, blood continuously seeping from the corners of his mouth. His face was filled with pain, shock, and a deeply hidden trace of fear. He stared intently at the slowly approaching Nightmare, as if looking at a demon god stepping out of Chaos.

"You... what kind of monster are you?!" Han Li's voice was hoarse, filled with disbelief. He possessed the Ancient Demon Bloodline and was considered an outlier in this realm, with strength far exceeding those of the same rank, yet he couldn't even withstand a single punch from the opponent! That kind of power completely exceeded his understanding.

Nightmare did not answer his question. His rule fragment coldly locked onto him, and an invisible pressure, carrying the meaning of Annihilation and Chaos, descended like a mountain, pinning Han Li firmly to the ground, unable to even move a finger.

"Answer my question," Nightmare's voice was devoid of emotion. "Your purpose, and the one behind you."

Han Li tried to struggle, but that pressure was like a brand deep within his Soul, making him unable to even mobilize the thin Ancient Demon power within his body. A flash of desperate madness crossed his eyes, as he wanted to activate some secret technique to self-destruct his Divine Soul.

However, Nightmare's rule fragment moved slightly, having long been prepared for this move. The rule fragment triggered the Chaos Dao Foundation, and a trace of even more eerie power, which seemed capable of fixing thoughts and freezing consciousness, instantly invaded Han Li's Sea of Consciousness!

This was the "Soul Suppression" power, a Fusion of the void lotus seed's spatial charm and the Dao Rhyme of Annihilation!

Han Li's newly arisen thought of self-destruction was instantly frozen, as if encased in ice, and even his thinking became sluggish. Only endless terror remained in his eyes as he watched Nightmare's eyes, deep as Chaos, draw closer.

Nightmare extended a finger, its tip wreathed in a gray chaos qi flow, and lightly tapped Han Li's forehead.

"Since you won't speak, I will see for myself."

Soul Search!

The chaos qi flow was like the finest probe, ignoring the instinctive resistance of Han Li's Divine Soul and forcibly invading the depths of his memory! Nightmare's rule fragment operated at high speed, and with the assistance of the primal cube's analytical capabilities, it frantically read and organized Han Li's chaotic and complex memory fragments.

Scene after scene, piece after piece of information flooded into Nightmare's rule fragment:

* **Ancient Demon Bloodline:** Han Li was not purely of the Human Race. His ancestors were descendants of a branch of Ancient Demons who had lived in seclusion before the arrival of the Spirit-Exhaustion Era. Their Bloodline inherited the power of the "Shadow Wolf," excelling in concealment, speed, and attacks using Evil Qi. However, due to the impurity of the Bloodline and drastic environmental changes, the Legacy had long been incomplete, and its power was far less than before.

* **Lurking in Shiquan:** Han Li's branch had been lurking near Shiquan Village for generations. Their true purpose was to monitor the Back Mountain Forbidden Land! According to ancestral teachings, a supreme treasure concerning the resurgence of the Ancient Demon Tribe was sealed within the Forbidden Ground, or perhaps... an ancient "contract" or "passage."

* **The Mastermind:** The one who drove the wolf pack to attack the village was not Han Li himself, but another force! In Han Li's memory, information about this force was very blurry, as if under some kind of Restriction. He only vaguely remembered a code name—"Eclipse Moon." The Eshi Yue Organization also seemed to be searching for the secrets of the Back Mountain Forbidden Land and had mastered a method to drive Vicious Beasts using rule fragments (of the same origin as the silver-white creations but more primitive and chaotic). Han Li and the Eclipse Moon were not entirely on the same side; their relationship was more like mutual utilization and mutual wariness. The Eshi Yue Organization provided resources and methods to help him purify his Bloodline, while he provided intelligence on Shiquan Village and the back mountain to the Eshi Yue Organization.

* **Recent Abnormalities:** Recently, the Seal of the Back Mountain Forbidden Land seemed to have loosened for unknown reasons, with that ancient fluctuation leaking out from time to time. This drew the focused attention of the Eshi Yue Organization and prompted Han Li to accelerate his actions, attempting to be the first to find and control that Ancient Demon Treasure before the Seal was completely undone. The wolf pack attack was both a test and a weakening of the village's strength by the Eshi Yue Organization, as well as a way to create Chaos to facilitate their clandestine activities.

* **Regarding Nightmare:** Nightmare's sudden appearance and the display of his vastly different power caught both Han Li and the Eshi Yue Organization by surprise and made them wary. Han Li originally wanted to find out Nightmare's background to see if he could utilize or seize his power, but he didn't expect to kick a steel plate.

At this point in the memory reading, Han Li's Divine Soul, unable to withstand the erosion of the Chaos power, began to show signs of collapse, and the memory fragments became increasingly chaotic.

Nightmare's rule fragment moved slightly, stopping the Soul Search. Continuing further would cause Han Li's Soul Flying Away and Spirit Scattering, and might instead trigger deeper Restrictions within his Divine Soul, which would be more loss than gain.

He withdrew his finger. Han Li slumped down like a heap of mud, his eyes unfocused and his breath weak; he was already ruined.

Nightmare's rule fragment digested the information obtained, his gaze becoming even deeper.

"Ancient Demon descendant... Eclipse Moon... rule fragments driving Vicious Beasts... the treasure or passage sealed in the back mountain..."

All of this seemed to point to the same core—the Back Mountain Forbidden Land!

What Shiquan Village had protected for generations, what the Ancient Demon Tribe coveted, and what the Eshi Yue Organization sought were all related to this. And he, this "Otherworldly Visitor" who had arrived by accident, seemed to have unintentionally been drawn into the center of the vortex surrounding the secrets of the Forbidden Ground.

"Eclipse Moon... rule fragment..." Nightmare's rule fragment captured the key. The power the Eclipse Moon possessed to drive Vicious Beasts was of the same origin as that silver-white creation; this was definitely no coincidence! Could this Eshi Yue Organization be related to the force behind that silver-white creation? Or perhaps, they had mastered some method of utilizing those rule fragments?

Was his own arrival in this realm also within their expectations or observations?

The sense of crisis rose again. A single Han Li was not to be feared, but that Eshi Yue Organization hidden in the shadows, capable of driving beast tides and potentially possessing rule fragments, was definitely a huge threat!

His rule fragment swept over the dying Han Li, but he did not deliver the killing blow. This person was still useful; perhaps he could serve as a pawn in dealing with the Eshi Yue Organization, or be used to verify some conjectures.

He turned and looked at the villagers, the Old Village Chief, the Medicine Old Man, and others who had rushed over upon hearing the news but dared not approach, their faces written with terror.

"This man is ruined. Take him away and keep him under strict guard," Nightmare ordered indifferently. "Village Chief, Medicine Old Man, follow me. There are some things you should know now."

The Old Village Chief and the Medicine Old Man looked at each other, their hearts in turmoil. They hurriedly bowed and replied, "Yes, Mr. Ye."

Nightmare walked toward the ancient tree in the center of the village, but his rule fragment had already locked onto the direction of the Back Mountain Forbidden Land from afar.

The mist was being peeled away layer by layer, but a greater storm was already brewing. The Eshi Yue Organization would definitely not let the matter rest. And the key to solving all the mysteries seemed to lie within that heavily sealed back mountain.

It was time to prepare for entering the Forbidden Ground.