Staying in the sect, controlling beasts and cultivating immortals

"Mo Heng! Lock onto the Spirit Pivot! Find its 'heart'!" Yu Changsheng's voice was like tempered iron. His gaze never left the center of the ruins.

There, the earth rose higher and higher, and huge, bottomless cracks spread outwards like ugly scars.

The cracks no longer revealed soil, but a chilling, deathly gray-white that seemed to have solidified for eternity!

The grayish-white light was not dazzling, but it carried an aura of freezing time and space and ending all things, and was purer and more ancient than the finger bones of the gods and demons in the Burial Ruins of Gods.

Boom! ! !
This time, my heartbeat suddenly intensified, as if a thunder god from the heavens was beating a giant drum in my ear!
The ground of the entire Lietian City ruins suddenly arched upwards!
Boom! ! !
Crashed!

Countless enormous, gray-white skeletons, seemingly compressed from the remnants of stars, carrying with them solidified chaotic energy and dense, desolate power, shattered the earth and pierced the sky!
It was not a complete skeleton, but countless unimaginably huge broken bones, each engraved with natural, mysterious Dao patterns, flowing with a silent and profound meaning that even the passage of time could not erase.

They collided, squeezed, and piled up against each other, emitting a deafening roar. Amidst the billowing dust, they quickly outlined a terrifying silhouette large enough to cover half of Rift Sky City—the remains of a giant's upper body!
It had no head, and the neck was a jagged fracture, as if it had been torn off by some unimaginable force.

The broken neck bone shimmered with a faint light, like stars being annihilated.

Its chest resembled a broken ancient continent, its ribs like mountains supporting the sky, and its grayish-white bones were covered with deep cracks and huge holes, from which swirled a viscous, inky mist.

What is most chilling is its only remaining arm.

The arm was severed at the shoulder blade, leaving only the upper arm and a small section of the forearm, the cut equally gruesome.

At the end of the arm were not hands, but five enormous, gray-white bone fingers that looked like pillars supporting the sky!
The bony fingers were slightly curled, with wisps of chaotic primordial energy swirling around the fingertips. The mere existence of these fingers caused the surrounding space to continuously collapse and distort, forming small vortexes of primordial chaos.

"The remains of the buried god...this is the true key...The Rift Heaven Alliance used its power to corrupt the source core fragments and create pseudo-gods and demons...while it itself...has been dormant...enshrined by the Rift Heaven Alliance beneath the city foundation, absorbing nourishment from all living beings..."

Mo Heng's voice trembled slightly. The phantom of the Returning Void Star Orbit Compass before him flickered wildly, countless chaotic runes and data streams cascading down like a waterfall, finally pinpointing a location with difficulty—the very center of the massive skeletal remains's "chest," a hollow area formed by several broken, enormous ribs intertwined. Deep within the hollow, a slowly pulsating core, emitting a murky gray-white light, was faintly visible—the very source of that terrifying heartbeat!

"Your Majesty! The core is right there! It... it's actively absorbing the dissipated Origin of Returning to Nothingness after the Sword of Annihilation devoured the fragments! It's... accelerating its awakening!"

As if to confirm Mo Heng's words, the huge skeletal remains suddenly trembled!
The murky gray-white light in the core of the chest cavity suddenly intensified!

The only remaining arm, with its five towering bones, slowly and stiffly rose up!

The movements seemed slow, yet they carried a heavy, timeless weight, as if the weight of the entire world was pressing down on that arm.

Without a target, without technique, it simply lifted itself up, and then, towards the direction of the Divine Dynasty army, towards Yu Changsheng, towards the alluring sword of annihilation, towards this very space—

With a single finger strike!
Silently.

Time seemed to be stripped away in that instant. There was no earth-shattering explosion, no piercing shriek tearing through space. There was only an absolute, all-consuming "emptiness," like ink dripping into clear water, spreading out instantly from the tip of the bone finger that had struck!
Wherever it goes, space itself is "erased"!
Light disappears, sound vanishes, matter decomposes into the most primitive stream of particles, and then returns to utter nothingness.

Whether it was the collapsing boulders, the twisted metal debris, or the few Demon Slayers soldiers and half of the Sky Patrol airship that were unfortunately swept by the edge of this "emptiness," they vanished without a trace, like pencil drawings erased by an eraser, before they could even let out a scream, as if they had never existed.

This is the purest form of annihilation! It is the ultimate manifestation of the Void! It is far more absolute and more irresistible than what the Annihilation Sword has currently demonstrated!

"The Barrier of Return to Nothingness!" Yu Changsheng's pupils shrank sharply. The moment the giant finger struck, he felt an unprecedented threat of death.

Without further hesitation, he poured the remaining imperial essence into the Annihilation Sword without reservation! On the sword's body, the dark red divine patterns erupted with dazzling blood light.

On the sword, the dark red divine rune burst forth with an unprecedentedly dazzling blood light, like burning blood vessels. Countless newly formed gray-white ancient runes flowed and lit up wildly, and the entire sword emitted a sharp, almost crying clang that was unable to bear the burden!
Om-!
A dark barrier, as deep as the membrane of the universe but with violently twisted and boiling edges, suddenly unfolded in front of the Divine Dynasty army! This was not a defense, but a forcibly simulated "Return to the Void"!
Using the power of the Chaos Origin Core fragments devoured by the Annihilation Sword as a guide, and supplemented by Yu Changsheng's will to burn through his Emperor Body Dao Foundation, he attempted to construct a temporary dam of the same origin before the true torrent of Annihilation!

laugh--! ! !
The "emptiness" fingertip of the Buried God's Remains touched the barrier of the Void. There was no earth-shattering collision as expected, only a "melting" sound that froze one's primordial spirit and caused the laws to annihilate each other.

The gray barrier, like solid ice thrown into lava, instantly boiled, collapsed, and twisted! Countless fine cracks, shimmering with the light of returning stars, spread wildly across the barrier's surface, like a dying beast struggling and howling.

Yu Changsheng's body trembled violently, and purple-gold imperial blood gushed from his mouth like a spring. The dark red Dao wounds covering his body instantly expanded and deepened, as if his entire body was about to completely disintegrate in the next moment!

The Sword of Annihilation wailed even louder, and a tiny crack even appeared on its spine! The space beneath his feet collapsed silently, forming a continuously expanding miniature black hole that devoured the dissipating imperial blood and chaotic energy.

"Emperor!" Wang Cheng's eyes were bloodshot. Ignoring the fact that the hideous wound on his chest, which had just been forcibly healed by the Emperor's blood, burst open again, the crimson-gold blood mixed with the filthy dark purple, he roared wildly. His last remaining chaotic bone arm burst out with its last light, trying to rush towards the crumbling barrier.

"Don't move!" Mo Heng roared with unprecedented panic and insight. "Wang Cheng! Protect the formation! It's drawing power from the barrier! The Emperor is buying us time! Flame Dragon! The Sea of ​​Eternal Night, contract and concentrate to isolate the core pressure! All Sky Patrol Army! Void Crossbows, abandon your target and bombard the skeleton's broken right shoulder joint with all your might! That's the weak point where its power is flowing right now!"

The Guixu Star Orbit Compass in front of Mo Heng spun wildly, its pointer struggling to point towards the skeletal giant's right scapula, which resembled a fractured mountain range, amidst the chaotic energy turbulence. His hands formed a lightning-fast hand seal, forcibly drawing upon the power of the Imperial Array and transforming it into fine yet precise gray guiding beams of light, which shot towards the deep cracks in the skeletal giant's right shoulder joint!
The Fiery Dragon roared in response, no longer circling and guarding. Its massive body coiled and contracted, compressing the Chaos True Fire into a condensed light membrane that enveloped Yu Changsheng and the Sword of Annihilation, desperately resisting the Annihilation Will that penetrated through the barrier and froze their souls.

The Eternal Night Sea of ​​the Evil Beasts also contracted rapidly, the viscous darkness becoming even deeper, tightly enveloping the remaining Demon Slayer Army and the fleet of flying ships, isolating them from the aftershocks that could instantly turn low-level cultivators to ashes.

Under the deputy commander's desperate order, the remaining Sky-Patrol Ship abandoned all evasive maneuvers and turned its cannons around. The eerie blue beams of light, like a final meteor shower, recklessly blasted towards the right shoulder joint of the skeleton pointed to by Mo Heng, disregarding the risk of being torn apart by the dissipating energy!
boom! boom! boom!
The explosion illuminated the massive, greyish-white skeleton, sending bone fragments flying and widening several pre-existing cracks. The skeletal giant's pointed bone finger seemed to pause slightly, and the spreading "emptiness" erosion slowed down almost imperceptibly.

That slight slowdown!
In Yu Changsheng's eyes, the chaos and the light of the void swirled wildly, like two supernovae about to explode. He caught a fleeting glimpse of power fluctuation caused by the disruption of the joints during the struggle between the barrier and the giant skeletal finger!
"Not enough! Just one more moment!" Yu Changsheng roared inwardly. His imperial body was on the verge of collapse, the mournful cry of the Annihilation Sword was like a dying lament, and the cracks in the Void Barrier had reached their limit, about to shatter completely in the next moment!
He abruptly lowered his head, his gaze piercing through his gushing imperial blood, locking onto the hilt of the Annihilation Sword—the "Return to the Void Star Orbit Compass" forged from the remnants of the Myriad Manifestations Celestial Mystery Disc! At the core of the compass, the constantly appearing and disappearing gray dot of the Return to the Void was now flickering violently due to the extreme tension between the two forces of the Return to the Void, almost extinguished.

An extremely crazy thought, like lightning, cleaved through his sea of ​​consciousness, which was on the verge of chaos!

Blood Sacrifice! Using the Emperor's blood as a catalyst and the Sword of Annihilation as a bridge, we will connect with the remaining power of the Chaos Origin Core fragments that were absorbed by the remains of the Buried God and are currently fighting against him! We will use it as fuel to ignite the Star Orbit Compass and forcibly anchor the beating "heart" in the core of the Buried God's chest cavity!
No time to hesitate!

With his left hand held together like a knife, Yu Changsheng slashed his scarred chest with a fierce determination!

scoff!

A deep, bone-revealing wound opened up, and the purple-gold imperial blood containing his last essence of Dao foundation, mixed with the origin of the Chaos Emperor Seal and the backlash power of the Annihilation Sword, surged out like burning magma!

This blood is no longer for nourishment, but for sacrifice!

"With my imperial blood! I will ignite your star orbit! Settle it!" Yu Changsheng roared, slamming the gushing imperial blood fiercely against the Guixu Star Orbit Compass on the sword's edge!

boom--! ! !
The instant the Purple-Gold Emperor's Blood touched the core gray dot of the compass, it was like boiling oil being poured into ice water, or a star falling into a black hole! An indescribable, terrifying energy storm, a mixture of primordial chaos and the end of the void, erupted instantly!
The illusory images of star trails on the compass instantly solidified and surged! Countless thin yet incredibly resilient gray lines, like living chains of the starry sky, ignored the annihilating barrier of the Ruins of Return, ignored the terrifying pressure of annihilation emanating from the remains of the Buried God, and precisely pierced through the hole formed by the intersecting broken ribs in the chest of the skeletal giant, fiercely stabbing into the slowly pulsating core that emitted a murky gray-white light—the "heart"!
Om-! ! !
For the first time, the massive body of the Burial God's Remains trembled violently and uncontrollably! The descending bone fingers suddenly stopped! The spreading "emptiness" froze instantly, as if being choked by an invisible giant hand!
At the core of the skeletal giant's chest cavity, the murky gray-white light was pierced and bound by countless gray chains, violently twisting and pulsating, emitting a dull and painful "thump-thump" sound, like a heart forcibly imprisoned, one that did not belong to it! An even more ancient, more chaotic, and more furious will, like an enraged primordial beast, burst forth from that core, descending with a deafening roar! This will carried a trace of the cold aura from the previous fragments of the chaotic source core, yet it was even more vast and primordial!
"Roar--!!!"

No longer a heartbeat, but a true, earth-shattering roar of agony! The skeletal giant's single arm lashed out wildly, no longer locking onto the divine army, but instinctively reaching for the chains at its chest! Its massive bone fingers ripped through space, creating deep spatial rifts, and the entire ruins of Rift Sky City collapsed and annihilated at an accelerated pace under its struggle, like a fragile sandcastle!
The price Yu Changsheng paid was devastating.

By forcibly manipulating the star orbit with the Emperor's blood, he communicated with and briefly "fixed" the core of the Burial God's Remains, as if he had detonated a star on his already collapsing foundation.

His vision went black, and purple-gold blood gushed from all seven orifices. The cracks covering his body suddenly burst forth with blinding light, as if he were about to completely disintegrate and turn to ashes in the next moment! The Sword of Annihilation let out an extremely mournful cry, and the tiny crack on the spine of the sword instantly expanded, and the dark red divine runes dimmed!
The barrier of the Void finally gave way at this moment, shattering like a broken mirror! Terrifying annihilation shockwaves swept out, crashing heavily into the Chaos True Fire shield condensed by the Flame Dragon and the Eternal Night Sea of ​​the Evil Demon!
puff!puff!
As if struck by a heavy blow, the Fiery Dragon tumbled and flew backward, its protective flames flickering and its scales flying off.

The Eternal Night Sea of ​​the Evil Beasts churned violently like an inkwell tossed with a giant rock, its deep darkness instantly thinning by more than half, emitting painful howls.

The Demon Slayer Army and the airship cluster, protected within, crumbled like leaves in a storm. Their battle formation and baleful aura instantly dissipated, and countless soldiers were blasted to their deaths, coughing up blood and collapsing to the ground. Wang Cheng was slammed into the ground by the shockwave, his wounds, which had just begun to heal, reopened, and his domineering bloodline dimmed.

However, the annihilation power of the shattered barrier was largely negated and distorted by the frantic struggle of the remains of the buried god and the intense pain of its core being locked, and it did not completely erase everything behind it as expected!
"Your Majesty!" Mo Heng cried out hoarsely. He saw Yu Changsheng's almost vanishing figure and heard the mournful cry of the Annihilation Sword.

The illusory image of the Returning Void Star Orbit Compass before him flickered violently due to the severe injury to Yu Changsheng's main body, threatening to collapse at any moment! He suddenly bit his tongue, spitting a mouthful of blood essence onto the projection of the Myriad Transformations Returning Void Furnace before him! (End of Chapter)