Chapter 554

"The World-Ender… essence absorption…" Zhou Kongming's eye twitched slightly.

A perfectly good divine art, after being randomly altered by the world's will, had turned straight into a demonic technique.

The Yin-Yang Essence Absorption and Joyful Union Divine Art.

Though its rank was low, that didn't mean its effects were weak.

On the contrary, as a divine art widely disseminated across the entire Tai Xuan Realm, its functionality was unquestionable.

It could not only enhance cultivation during practice and purify magic power.

Those with higher comprehension could even perceive the subtle essence of yin and yang, imbuing their spiritual energy, true origin, or even magic power with a trace of "yin-yang" attribute.

This granted a significant advantage in battles at the same level.

At least, it did for all below Jin Dan.

As for side effects…

No particularly severe side effects had been reported—mostly just those with weak wills becoming overly addicted.

In short, compared to those obscure, supreme, and true scriptures that often caused loss of self in the Grand Void or damage to heart and spirit, the Yin-Yang Essence Absorption and Joyful Union Divine Art was already extremely safe.

That was precisely why he had originally passed down this divine art.

Yet now, the Yin-Yang Essence Absorption and Joyful Union Divine Art…

Had, under the world's will's revision and transformation, shifted from its original "gentle" nature to a "radical" one, amplifying certain aspects.

So much so that users could now steal the innate talents of peculiar races and make them their own.

To some extent, the divine art Zhou Xian now used could no longer be called the Yin-Yang Essence Absorption and Joyful Union Divine Art—it should be called…

"The Yin-Yang Refining Spirit and Stealing Source Divine Art…"

Refining the spirit's source, stealing its essence—the principle was none other than Tai Xuan Realm's "essence absorption" secret art!

Naming it thus was not wrong.

Of course, this also meant the side effects were no longer ordinary.

If one couldn't bear it, the result was bodily transformation and spiritual corruption, twisted and warped…

Still, he had to admit, apart from objective factors, some of the concepts behind the Yin-Yang Refining Spirit and Stealing Source Divine Art were quite ingenious.

After silently memorizing the Yin-Yang Refining Spirit and Stealing Source Divine Art, Zhou Kongming turned his gaze to Qi Xing's other underground bases.

As for whether Zhou Xian would succeed…

He had zero concern about that.

Obviously!

The world's will is openly giving him a backdoor, for heaven's sake!

…

…

Inside the Spirit-Null Lab.

Zhou Xian pressed one hand against the surface of the Yangyuan civilization organism, his face flushed crimson as the faint spiritual energy within his meridians surged wildly.

Had Zhou Kongming not used the Spirit Absorption Method to refine their bones and improve their physiques before they left the cultivation pods…

Any ordinary person at Qi Cultivation Level One, having just entered the path, would have died—or been crippled—trying such extreme overuse of spiritual energy.

"Come!" Zhou Xian roared inwardly.

A scorching, pure, strange energy was extracted from within the Yangyuan civilization organism.

It flowed through his palm, seeping relentlessly into his skin, flesh, bones, organs, and even his soul.

In an instant!

Every inch of his body erupted in agony as if a billion ants were gnawing at his flesh from within.

The excruciating pain nearly knocked him unconscious, yet he clenched his teeth, silently enduring the unbearable ordeal.

Endure!

Must endure!

To climb step by step to the summit!

To avoid dying ignorant and unaware!

To never again experience the worst ending—the world's collapse, all turning to dust!

He must!

Must obtain the greatest opportunity at the dawn of the Spirit Tide's revival!

Gradually, a faint blue glow surfaced beneath Zhou Xian's skin, and tiny droplets of blood seeped from his pores.

His pure white uniform was instantly stained red, glowing eerily under the blue light.

His life force steadily dwindled, like a bonfire reduced to embers, about to be extinguished…

Logically, Heng should have intervened by now—after all, Zhou Xian was the first human to enter the path.

Letting him slip into life-or-death peril at this stage contradicted Zhou Kongming's goal of "reviving humanity."

But this was Zhou Kongming's order, so Heng merely watched in silence.

The master's command supersedes all!

After thirty seconds, Zhou Xian's life force had nearly vanished; he stood frozen, eyes dull and dark.

A radiant blue glow emanated from him, illuminating the entire Spirit-Null Lab.

The Yangyuan civilization possessed individual self-awareness, seamless communication through a collective consciousness network, and extraordinarily long lifespans…

Each individual carried an immense volume of information.

Through the Yin-Yang Refining Spirit and Stealing Source Divine Art, Zhou Xian's body had digested the Yangyuan organism's innate talent, refining it into a shimmering blue rune, quietly suspended above his thin, barely-there spiritual sea.

But!

Vast amounts of information surged in alongside his innate heavenly talent, instantly clouding Zhou Xian's consciousness, leaving him barely able to cling to a sliver of clarity.

'Is it really this difficult to directly absorb an unprocessed Yangyuan innate talent body?'

Zhou Xian couldn't help but feel bewildered.

In his previous life, though he was among the first batch of Qixing newborns, he had never strived to improve himself during those most precious early days.

By the time humanity fully stepped beyond their home planet, the very top among them had already achieved Jin Dan, refined countless wondrous methods, waged war against various races, and seized their innate talents to make them their own.

But he had only reached Foundation Establishment, so the talent bodies he absorbed were only processed ones…

Though there was little danger, the innate talents he gained were dozens of times weaker.

One step behind, and every step after falls behind!

For this, he endured countless hardships, took countless detours, and barely reached Soul Transformation's peak, catching only the distant silhouettes of those few Void-Return Supreme Beings.

Yet, just as he was about to make that 'ultimate leap'!

The 'World Destroyer'… appeared!

The Void-Return Supreme Beings flew toward their doom like moths into flame—and were effortlessly crushed by that giant hand.

And in his helplessness, he, along with all other beings in the universe, witnessed the final moment of the world's collapse.

He died without knowing why.

What does your life or death have to do with you?

In the terrifying catastrophe of the world's destruction, even Void-Return Supreme Beings were but ants—what of him? …

But!

He refused!

He refused to die so aimlessly, without reason or struggle!

Now, after so much effort, he had been granted a second chance—how could he…

'How could he fall at the very first step!'

Zhou Xian gritted his teeth and forced out the words.

Instantly!

Boom—!

His soul trembled, and for a moment, it seemed as if the primordial chaos of heaven and earth, the separation of yin and yang, and all other grand scenes manifested before him.

But in the next instant, all those visions vanished into nothingness.

Yet within the depths of Zhou Xian's soul, a vortex emitting immense gravitational pull had somehow appeared.

Hum~!

A resonant hum echoed through his soul—the vortex, like a black hole, swallowed the overwhelming torrent of information whole.

'Aaaah—!'

The consciousness crushed under the torrent of information suddenly relaxed; the pent-up resentment in his heart drove Zhou Xian to roar.

The luminous runes within his spiritual sea erupted with a brilliance far surpassing before, blinding light drowning the entire Spirit-Null Laboratory.

How long passed, no one knew.

Only gradually did the light fade.

Zhou Xian, drenched in blood, lay collapsed in the Spirit-Null Laboratory, barely clinging to life.

Before him, the Yangyuan civilization's biological specimen on the lab table had grown dull and lifeless, like a wall ravaged by decades of wind and rain.

Heng continued observing for a while, confirmed no further changes, then dispatched a nursing robot into the lab to retrieve Zhou Xian.

……

……

'Tsk tsk! This plot is really…'

Outside Qixing, seated in the void, Zhou Kongming clucked in wonder.

The reborn boy strives to master his fate, fighting to prevent the world's destruction.

If only a stirring background score had played when he roared, perhaps it might've had just a tiny bit of热血?

If only I weren't the biggest 'villain' in this plot, the viewing experience might've been better.

'So clichéd.'

This kind of plot hasn't been popular for decades already!

But then again, this world's idiotic World Will is truly fucking dark.

Slapped down a whole group of Void-Return Beings?

Wiped out the world?

If I had that kind of power, would I still be just Void-Return?

This World Will clearly took a journalism course!

Fabricated his past-life memories with selective excerpts, pieced together haphazardly, and exaggerated wildly.

He ranted inwardly for a long while!

Zhou Kongming stood up and headed toward Qixing.

Obviously.

He wasn't a real villain!

To prevent that kid from, because of his so-called 'past-life memories,' leading this new batch of Qixing newborns astray,

Even for the sake of his mission, he had to go and 'guide' him back on track.

……

……

Deep within Task World 1.

Xu Xing's Sword Intent Manifestation watched with interest as Zhou Kongming returned to Qixing, disguising himself as an indistinct black shadow, and found the unconscious Zhou Xian.

The gap between them was too great.

One was merely at Qi Condensation Level One, while the other stood at the pinnacle of this world—Return to Void Perfect.

If a Return to Void Perfect deliberately sought out a Qi Condensation Level One, even the deepest favor of the World Will was useless.

After healing him, Zhou Kongming revealed his identity as the 'World Destroyer'.

This completely stunned Zhou Xian, who had just acquired the innate talent of the Yanyuan civilization's lifeforms and felt his future was bright.

It was like a brand-new Level One account, having just received its starter gear and never left the newbie village, only to find the max-level final boss from last cycle blocking the gate.

Zhou Xian felt the sky had collapsed.

Then, Zhou Kongming explained the entire backstory to him, even pointing out the false past-life memories fabricated by the World Will.

Still, Zhou Xian naturally did not believe him.

He stubbornly believed Zhou Kongming must have some scheme—absolutely intending to exploit his identity as a 'Reincarnator'!

But on the surface, he pretended to believe.

He secretly resolved that, when establishing an organization against the 'World Destroyer' in the future, he must make it far more secretive.

Then Zhou Kongming killed him with a single sword strike.

Of course, he was soon revived by the Twelve Zodiac Cosmic Light Sword Array.

This time, Zhou Xian believed.

"Fascinating," Xu Xing watched with great interest.

The World Will, unable to directly interfere with reality, still could not match a Return to Void Sword Cultivator who could simply cut a person down in the real world. (End of Chapter)