The severe pain from his right arm and the invasion of that cold demonic energy instantly sobered Tang Xiao Qi. He grunted. The Purification Source instinctively circulated, white light flashing at his arm wound. The demonic energy trying to burrow in met its nemesis, making sizzling sounds as it was quickly forced out and dissolved. But the physical trauma from the shadow shuttle and the shock when the demonic energy first entered still made his movements pause.
And the demonic fire chain wrapping toward his feet was already inches away!
"Xiao Qi!" Mu Qingfeng's eyes were about to split, wanting to help, but was firmly entangled by his opponent.
Liu Yun was also surrounded by several Flaming Sun Sect disciples, unable to break free.
Just as the demonic fire chain was about to wrap tight, dragging Xiao Qi into the shadows—
"Squeak—!"
A shrill, ear-piercing sound wave containing strange penetrating power suddenly erupted from Xiao Qi's chest! It was the rabbit spirit! It had somehow emerged, standing on Xiao Qi's shoulder, its fur all standing on end. Its small three-petaled mouth opened, emitting a scream completely mismatched with its size, as if it could tear apart the soul!
This sound wave wasn't a physical attack but directly acted on spiritual sense! The Shadow Snake Pavilion demon cultivator controlling the demonic fire chain was caught off guard, feeling his sea of consciousness stabbed by needles in excruciating pain. His spell control instantly showed a trace of disorder—the chain's speed and aim both deviated by a hair's breadth!
Just this hair's breadth!
Xiao Qi forcefully endured his right arm's pain, pushing the Wandering Dragon Nine Turns movement technique to the limit. Starlight ripples rippled beneath his feet, his form ghost-like sliding back several feet, narrowly avoiding the chain's wrapping range!
"Damned beast!" The demon cultivator was both shocked and angry—unexpectedly interfered with by a seemingly harmless rabbit.
However, this brief delay gave Qingxu Temple time to react. Two nearby disciples, taking hard hits from opponents, sent their sword light whirling back to slash at the demonic fire chain, temporarily forcing it back.
Xiao Qi caught his breath, but his heart sank. The demon cultivators were indeed lurking nearby, and their target was clearly him! In this desperate situation of righteous chaos and demon cultivators circling, Qingxu Temple was like a lone boat in a furious sea, liable to capsize at any moment.
He couldn't stay passive like this! He had to break the deadlock!
His gaze again投向 the core inheritance light sphere protected by layers of restrictions in the starry sky's center. If there was any variable, any opportunity, perhaps... only there!
Intense will drove him. He no longer held his position in the formation, shouting to Mu Qingfeng: "Senior Brother, I'll try that altar!"
Before his words fell, he had already transformed into a stream of light, pushing the Wandering Dragon Nine Turns to the limit, disregarding his right arm's injury. Like a fish swimming upstream, he threaded through the chaotic battle's gaps and crisscrossing spiritual storms, desperately rushing toward the altar!
"Stop him!"
"Don't let him near!"
Whether Flaming Sun Sect, Mysterious Mechanism Holy Land, or hidden demon cultivators, all noticed his movement. Instantly, more attacks rained down on him! Sword energy, fireballs, ice cones, shadow shuttles... covering him from all directions!
Xiao Qi pushed the Black Tortoise Shield to its limit, the earth-yellow shield shadow rotating before him, blocking most attacks with continuous explosions. The wok swung left and right, batting away fish that slipped through. Blood seeped from his lips, his internal organs shaken, but his eyes were more determined than ever. Relying on exquisite movement and powerful defense, he forced his way through the hail of attacks to the very front of the altar's outermost seven-colored light screen that had once annihilated a cultivator!
One step further was the death zone!
He stopped, facing that endlessly circulating, death-emanating restriction. Taking a deep breath, he cast aside all distracting thoughts. The pain in his right arm, the shouting around him, seemed to fade away. His entire mind sank into the jade pendant at his chest, channeling that pure Purification Source. Simultaneously, the Spirit Concentration Art fully circulated, pushing his spiritual perception to its peak.
He extended his hand, not to touch the restriction, but to extend that peaceful, pure breath carrying protective and purifying intent, like he had when communicating with the palace door, slowly toward the restriction, attempting another "communication."
This time, the moment the purification breath touched the light screen, something happened!
The originally stably circulating seven-colored restriction didn't produce a recognition-like fluctuation like the palace door had. Instead, it was like a calm lake with a stone thrown into it, suddenly churning up monstrous waves!
"Hum—!!!"
The entire altar—all nine stone levels—all the ancient runes on them simultaneously erupted with blinding light! A pressure far more terrifying and vast than the earlier soul impact, like a slumbering ancient god-demon awakening,轰然 descended!
Xiao Qi rushing toward the altar bore the brunt. He felt as if the entire starry sky's power was pressing down on him. Thump—he fell to one knee, using the wok to prop himself up, barely managing to hold. Blood seeped from all seven apertures, his consciousness almost dissipating!
And everyone in the chaos, friend or foe, was all ruthlessly pressed to the ground by this sudden, irresistible pressure. Those with weaker cultivation directly fainted. Even top disciples like Mu Qingfeng, Mu Xue, and Yan Feng were as if carrying mountains, unable to move, their eyes filled with endless horror!
What happened?!
In this extreme oppression and silence, at the altar's top, beside that constantly evolving pure light source, the void began violently twisting and fluctuating!
Then, in countless horrified gazes, a blurred, semi-transparent phantom was slowly "squeezed" out from that twisted void!
It was a middle-aged man's figure, his features vaguely showing past determination and handsome looks. But at this moment, his body was tightly wrapped and pierced by countless black chain-like thick demonic energies! The demonic energy writhed and eroded within his phantom like a living thing, making his entire figure appear twisted and in pain.
His eyes were filled with endless struggle, pain, and a trace of deeply buried clarity. His mouth opened as if wanting to scream, but no sound emerged, only making a silent howling shape. That twisted face revealed a heart-tearing despair and unwillingness!
When Xiao Qi struggled to lift his head and saw that demonic-energy-wrapped, painfully struggling phantom's face, he was struck like lightning, his mind instantly blank!
That face... that face that had appeared in his dreams countless times, with warmth and doting, and with tragic final farewell...
It was his father!
It was Xu Zhan!!!
"Father—!!!"
A heart-tearing, soul-shattering cry containing endless grief, shock, and disbelief suddenly burst from Xiao Qi's throat, breaking through resistance to the pressure, echoing under this silent starry sky!
He forgot the pain in his body, forgot the surrounding danger, forgot that terrifying pressure. His eyes held only that demonic-energy-tortured, painfully struggling phantom!
His father... hadn't he already... Why was his phantom here? Why wrapped in demonic energy? What was going on?!
The massive impact, like a tsunami, destroyed Xiao Qi's mental defenses, making him instantly collapse.