The Longevity Family: Starting from the Foundation Establishment Ancestor

"Time Reversal Array - Ultimate Sacrifice! Molten Core, explode for me!!!"

The eclipse's frenzied roar still echoed in the heart of the molten core, and the enormous fireball, with a diameter exceeding ten thousand miles, began to collapse and shrink rapidly inward! The extremely concentrated dark gray to black mist at the center was like the core of a detonated powder keg, its destructive energy compressing and accumulating at a speed beyond perception, threatening to completely obliterate this sea of ​​stars in the next instant, along with all life within it, including eclipse itself, as well as Han Mu and the others, utterly annihilating them!

"No! This old monster is about to self-destruct the core of the Molten Core! This is destructive energy powerful enough to severely injure a Grand Luo Immortal! There's no escape!" Zhou Meng roared hoarsely, his face deathly pale. Bai Ling bit her lip, her hand gripping her sword trembling slightly. Luo Feng was so frightened that he sat down on the ground with a thud, muttering incoherently, "It's over, it's over, I haven't had my fill yet..."

Faced with this terrifying power capable of destroying the world, Han Mu remained calm, even a sharp glint flashing in his eyes. This was the moment he had been waiting for! Eclipse, cornered, compressed, sacrificed, and detonated all the remaining power of the great formation, its own essence, and the core energy of the corrupted Molten Core. While seemingly a fatal blow, it also presented him with a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity—a chance to completely purify and "pluck" the core essence of this ancient fire-elemental star at minimal cost!

"Want to self-destruct? Did you ask me first?" Han Mu's voice was indifferent, yet carried an air of authority that held life and death in his hands. He held nothing back, using his mind to communicate with the three fragments of the "Key of Time" within his body that had just begun to fuse and were somewhat dormant due to the use of the "Time Anchor Point," forcibly awakening them! At the same time, the four fragments of the "Coffin of Origin" within his dantian vibrated simultaneously, creating a strange resonance with the "Key of Time"!

"Based on origins, guided by time, the town!"

Han Mu held his hands in a cupped gesture, making a "grasping" motion towards the molten core, which was collapsing madly and whose internal destructive energy was about to reach a critical point. An indescribable, strange Daoist aura, a mixture of the "Origin" that pacifies all things and the "Time" that freezes the long river, suddenly erupted from his body, transforming into an invisible, intangible, yet seemingly enveloping giant gray-white hand, which gently grasped the raging core.

There was no sound, no clash of light. The terrifying self-destruction process, which would have made even a Great Luo Immortal retreat, suddenly froze under the gentle grasp of this gray-white giant hand, like a giant beast being strangled! The frantically compressed energy stopped contracting, the destructive fluctuations were forcibly solidified, and even the last remaining trace of madness in the core of the eroded time was suppressed by this higher-level power, unable to move.

"No...impossible! What kind of power is this?! You...you are not Taiyi! You..." The remaining will of Shi Shi let out a desperate and unwilling scream, and then, under the suppression of the gray-white giant hand, it was extinguished and annihilated completely like a candle in the wind. This core giant of the "Reverse Time Alliance," who had been plotting for ten thousand years and whose ferocious power was terrifying, was completely destroyed, body and soul.

The gray-white giant hand did not disperse, but slowly closed in. The suppressed and solidified core of the Molten Heart, along with the remaining, partially corrupted, vast fire elemental essence, as well as the chaotic energy condensed from Shi Shi's lifelong cultivation and the power of the great formation, were forcibly "lifted" out by this giant hand and condensed in the void into a ball of energy light with a diameter of a hundred feet, its interior interwoven with crimson gold and dark gray, slowly rotating.

Han Mu's face paled slightly, and a trickle of golden blood spilled from the corner of his mouth. Simultaneously using the power of the "Coffin of Origin" and the "Key of Time" to forcibly suppress and peel away the core of an ancient star was an immense burden even for him, especially since the key had just used its "anchoring" ability. However, his eyes remained bright. With a wave of his hand, the hundred-foot-long ball of energy rapidly shrank, eventually transforming into a fist-sized, fiery crystal sphere with a base of crimson gold and flowing gray patterns on its surface. It landed in his palm, its temperature terrifyingly high, yet firmly bound by a layer of grayish-white light.

"My lord! Are you alright?" Zhou Meng and the other two rushed over and were shocked to see the blood at the corner of Han Mu's mouth.

"It's nothing, just a slight backlash. I can recover quickly." Han Mu waved his hand, looking at the "Heart of Molten Core (Fragment)" in his hand. He felt the terrifying fire elemental power and the partially corrupted "Reversed" power of time contained within it, and he already had a plan in mind. This thing, after purification, is an excellent cultivation resource, and it can also be used to refine fire-type treasures. Perhaps... it can even reveal some secret methods of refining "Time Dao Seeds" by the forces under the "Time Venerable".

He brought up the system panel and quickly scanned it.

Name: Han Mu

[True Realm: Late Stage of Taiyi Jade Immortal (Peak, slight backlash, requires meditation)]

[Time Rule: 92%]

[Status: Minor internal injuries. Successfully prevented Molten Core from self-destructing, defeated "Eclipse," and obtained "Molten Core (Fragment)."]

[Celestial Aura: -4500 points (Complete the task to receive generous rewards)]

[System Notification: Main quest "Searching for the Key in the Sea of ​​Fire" is fully completed, and the third key fragment has been obtained. Bonus rewards have been issued. Side quest "Destroying the Time-Reversing Array" is over-completed, and a portion of the "Eclipse" memory fragment has been obtained (can be analyzed). New quest triggered: "Purification and Exploration"—Purify the core of the Molten Core and explore possible clues to the legacy left by the "Burning Sky Firesmith." Warning: The self-destruction of the Molten Core has been forcibly aborted, but the Star Sea structure is unstable; it is recommended to leave as soon as possible.]

"My lord, this big iron ball... it looks too hot to handle. What are you going to do with it?" Luo Feng shrank back as he looked at the crystal ball in Han Mu's hand that was emitting terrifying energy.

"Good stuff, we'll need it later." Han Mu put away the crystal ball, his gaze sweeping over the Molten Heart, which was slowly calming down after its core was stripped away, but was still scarred and its flames were much dimmer. "We shouldn't stay here any longer. Let's go back to the flying boat and leave the Burning Sky Star Sea."

Just then, the "Molten Core (Fragment)" that had been put away suddenly trembled slightly. A trace of extremely weak but exceptionally pure and ancient fire-elemental intent, mixed with a bit of vague directional information, entered Han Mu's sea of ​​consciousness. That direction seemed to point to the deeper part of the star sea, to an absolute forbidden zone that was not even marked on the "Shadow Guild's" star map.

Han Mu's eyes flickered slightly. The "Heart of Molten Fire," the secluded abode of the "Burning Sky Fire Craftsmen"... Could it not refer to the star itself, but rather to the hidden portal within the star's core that leads to the true secluded abode? Was that wisp of thought just now triggered by some hidden mechanism after the core was stripped away?

"Let's leave first and then discuss this further." Han Mu suppressed his thoughts and quickly led the three of them back to the Bone Dragon.