At the altar's summit, though the Purification Essence's radiance had turned inward, that vast and pure power's afterglow still filled the air, forming a sharp contrast with the demonic energy wrapped around Xu Zhan's phantom. With large amounts of essence power absorbed by Xiao Qi's jade pendant, the root sustaining the demonic erosion seemed shaken. Those pitch-black chains, like gangrenous sores, visibly dimmed and thinned.
Xiao Qi stood before his father's phantom, clearly feeling the more distinct painful struggle emanating from it, and that will belonging to Xu Zhan himself, suppressed by demonic energy for who knows how many years, was struggling to revive.
He didn't hesitate in the slightest. The Purification Source, just significantly enhanced, surged and circulated within him, far purer and vaster than before. He extended both hands, palms upward, condensing this newly gained powerful force into two soft yet incredibly firm pure light pillars, like the purest heavenly light at dawn breaking, directly shining upon Xu Zhan's phantom!
"Hiss—hiss hiss—!"
That dense, viscous demonic energy, upon contact with this reinforced Purification Light, let out intense melting sounds like hot soup on snow! Large swathes of black energy were forcibly peeled from the phantom and evaporated!
"Ah—!"
Above the altar, the demon's remnant soul let out a painful and furious howl. The sound even stirred the surrounding starry sky to tremble! It was clearly closely connected to this demonic energy; Xiao Qi purifying the demonic energy was equivalent to directly attacking its main body!
"Junior! You seek death!!" The demonic thought was like a monstrous wave, trying to impact Xiao Qi's mind, but at this moment Xiao Qi's Dao-heart was firm, protected by the jade pendant and newly gained essence, that demonic thought impact could no longer easily shake him.
The Purification Light continued to shine, and the demonic energy on Xu Zhan's phantom retreated visibly. His originally twisted, painful face gradually became peaceful, and his struggling movements slowed.
Finally, when the last few strands of the most stubborn demonic energy wrapped around his heart area were forcibly dispelled—
Xu Zhan's phantom's eyes, which had been tightly closed, suddenly opened!
What kind of eyes they were... filled with endless exhaustion, as if bearing eons of vicissitude and pain, but deep within that exhaustion, a light of clarity, like a candle in the wind yet incredibly resilient, ignited!
His gaze first swept somewhat blankly across this strange starry sky altar, finally fixing on the youth so close at hand, fully channeling Purification Power with tears in his eyes watching him.
Time seemed to freeze at this moment.
Xu Zhan's gaze, from initial blankness, quickly transformed into incredible shock, then endless guilt and grief, followed by unspeakable excitement and reluctance at seeing his own flesh and blood... finally, all emotions transformed into a bone-deep, unquestionable resolve!
His lips trembled, seeming to want to call his son's name, wanting to express a thousand words, but this phantom formed from a remnant soul and obsession could no longer produce sound.
However, a faint yet incredibly clear divine thought containing all of Xu Zhan's remaining soul power and will, like a bridge crossing life and death, precisely and without obstruction transmitted to the depths of Xiao Qi's sea of consciousness!
"Xiao Qi... my... child..."
Just this opening call, that familiar intent carrying spoiling and guilt, made Xiao Qi's whole body shake violently, tears breaking through again.
"To see you grown up... Father... dies without regret..."
"Time is short... listen to me..."
Xu Zhan's divine thought was urgent and heavy, as if competing with some invisible force for this brief moment of clarity.
"The Xu family's 'Purification Source'... is the seed of the ancient 'World-Purifying Green Lotus'... it is protection... and also a curse... the demon 'Void Nightmare'... destroyed my Xu family... its true purpose... was to take the lotus seed essence... make up for its defects... achieve a perfect demonic body..."
"Back then... I knew I couldn't win... used my soul as sacrifice... activated the ancestral shrine seal... sealed most of the lotus seed essence... into your body... and used myself as bait... carrying part of the corrupted essence... lured Void Nightmare's divided soul... to be sealed together here... the altar... is a fragment of the ancient 'Nine Heavens Demon-Sealing Formation' core..."
"Void Nightmare's remnant soul... is cunning... it wasn't completely sealed... part of its consciousness... still lurks outside... controlling the Shadow Snake Pavilion... it let you grow... intending to let the lotus seed in your body mature... finally... harvest everything together..."
"Breaking the balance... the seal will shatter... Void Nightmare will emerge... catastrophe will arrive..."
"Remember! Do not let Void Nightmare... gather the complete lotus seed essence... do not let it... obtain the complete 'World-Purifying Green Lotus' power..."
"Protect well... the essence in your body... that is... hope..."
"Leave quickly... get out of here... the altar will collapse..."
Xu Zhan's divine thought became extremely weak here, intermittent, his illusory figure also began to violently fluctuate, becoming transparent, and the temporarily suppressed demonic energy seemed to start stirring again, wanting to rewrap around him.
He used his last strength to condense a gaze filled with reluctance, attachment, and endless blessing, deeply looking at Xiao Qi once more, as if wanting to carve his son's appearance into eternity.
"Live on... Xiao Qi... for Father... and your mother... live... well..."
The divine thought abruptly stopped.
Xu Zhan's phantom, in that last gaze full of fatherly love, completely exhausted its power, no longer able to maintain clarity. The light in his eyes was quickly covered by pain and chaos again, his figure became even more faint, as if it might dissipate at any moment.
And that altar, because of the core essence's transfer and the demonic energy's violent fluctuation, began to emit unbearable "crack" sounds. The runes on the nine layers of stone platforms flickered unsteadily, and the entire starry sky began to shake violently!
The seal was about to collapse!