Chapter 192: Chaos Choice, the Whisper of Thorns

The doctor's will-projection hung high amid the starlight dome, its cold gaze like an invisible shackle, utterly crushing the last remnants of silence within the stone hall. His pale fingers, outlined by light, pointed at the emerald primal crystal at the hall's center—radiating pure green light and sustaining the final sanctuary—its gentle aura strangled by an invisible crushing pressure that felt like a tangible hand. The light dimmed and flickered at a visible pace, as if about to be extinguished at any moment.

【Surrender the key. Offer the vessel. Otherwise, the dust of annihilation shall be your eternal fate.】 The cold thought carried no emotion, only absolute dominion.

Xiang Lingna froze in place, sweat instantly soaking her tattered garments. The doctor's gaze pierced like a cold probe, shattering her soul's defenses and locking firmly onto her right arm—covered to the shoulder, inscribed with ominous runes—of dark purple crystal. The key… was that what he meant by "key"? Her own mutated power? Or herself? And the vessel… Priestess Liyana! Despair surged like a freezing tide, drowning her instantly. Surrender Liyana? Impossible! But if the primal crystal was destroyed, this last sanctuary would collapse in an instant, exposing them all to the doctor's flood of annihilation!

Sister Ai Li stood before Liyana, her body taut as a drawn bowstring, gripping the last remaining alloy shortblade, her icy eyes fixed on the dome's projection, searching for any possible flaw. Yet she knew: against this level of will-pressure, physical attack was nearly futile.

Zero's console hovered beside Xiang Lingna, data streams flashing wildly as it attempted to analyze the projection's energy composition and origin, seeking possibilities for interference or disconnection. "Will-projection… reliant on… dome starlight crystal network… energy frequency resonance… forced interference… risk extremely high… may trigger… spatial collapse…"

Risk extremely high… Xiang Lingna's heart sank. Was surrender the only option? Or to watch helplessly as the crystal was destroyed?

At that moment, Xiang Lingna's right-arm crystal erupted in searing pain! Not from the doctor's pressure—but from within the crystal itself! Under the dual stimulation of the doctor's annihilation pressure and the pure energy of the primal crystal below, the nascent, ravenous chaotic force within her arm crystal erupted into total frenzy! It no longer wished to lie dormant, no longer obeyed Xiang Lingna's suppression—like a shark scenting blood, it craved consumption with wild desperation.

Its target: the emerald primal crystal, locked by the doctor and radiating irresistible energy!

Hum—!!!

Xiang Lingna's right arm rose uncontrollably! Dark purple, emerald green, and milky white chaotic light swirled violently within the crystal; the inscribed runes glowed like living things! A powerful, chaotic suction erupted from the palm of the crystal, aimed directly at the primal crystal below!

"No! Lingna! Stop!" Sister Ai Li cried in horror. What was Lingna doing? Attacking the very core of their only sanctuary?

"Energy... out of control... Chaos Core... runaway!" Zero's alarm shrieked shrilly.

Xiang Lingna herself was terrified! "Stop! Shut down!" she screamed internally, trying to reclaim control of her right arm. But the chaotic will was too violent! It was utterly drawn to the pure, immense energy of the primal crystal—like a starving wolf pouncing! An invisible energy channel was forcibly forged between the crystal and the primal crystal! Pure natural energy, like a punctured balloon, began flowing uncontrollably into Xiang Lingna's crystal arm!

Hssss—!

Pure green light clashed violently with the chaotic nebula glow! Xiang Lingna felt her right arm being roasted on a furnace, as if molten lava was being poured into her veins! The agony drove her to a piercing scream! Worse still, two opposing, equally immense energies violently collided and tore through her fragile meridians! Her skin instantly cracked into a spiderweb of fissures, blood seeping out!

Above, the doctor's will-projection paused slightly, a flicker of surprise in his cold thought: 【Oh? Trying to devour the primal? Overreaching… key…】

He did not stop her—on the contrary, he seemed delighted to see her destroyed by her own power! The annihilation pressure locking the primal crystal even relaxed slightly, like a cold spectator awaiting the spectacle.

"Lingna!" Sister Ai Li, seeing Lingna bleeding from all seven orifices, her skin cracked and blistering, could no longer remain calm. She charged toward Lingna, reaching to seize her out-of-control right arm!

"Don't come near me!" Xiang Lingna roared. She felt her body and soul tearing apart! Her right-arm crystal greedily devoured the primal energy, yet her body could not withstand it! At that instant, within her mind, a faint but crystal-clear thought—tough as thorned vines—surfaced like a lifeline: the final imprint of Priestess Liyana's Thorn Order, left within her consciousness!

【Guide… not oppose… Order is the vein… Chaos is the flood… Use the vein… to channel the flood…】

Was that Priestess Liyana's voice? In excruciating pain, Xiang Lingna grasped this insight! Resistance would only accelerate destruction! She ceased trying to suppress the arm's devouring instinct; instead, enduring the tearing agony, she focused every shred of her remaining mental energy, attempting to "understand" and "guide" the wild energy flooding her body!

The Thorn Order's imprint glowed faintly in her mind, forming resilient "veins," forcibly inserted into the raging chaotic flood! Starlight dust acted as a buffer and lubricant, struggling to harmonize the energies! She no longer trapped the devoured pure energy in her arm—she guided it, like a floodgate opening, forcing it along the Thorn Order veins throughout her entire body! Some repaired her torn meridians and cracked flesh; the rest… she violently redirected toward the unconscious Liyana!

Since she could not strip away those toxin-like crystals, she would use this violent force to forcibly pour it into Priestess Liyana—overwhelming and counteracting the crystals' erosion with sheer energy!

"Ughhhhh—!" Xiang Lingna roared like a beast, her right-arm crystal blazing with blinding light, becoming the energy bridge between the primal crystal and Liyana! Vast pure energy, mixed with chaotic properties, surged into Liyana's body like a ruptured dam!

Liyana's body arched violently! Beneath her ashen skin, dark purple veins and emerald light clashed fiercely, as if countless snakes writhed beneath her flesh! The dark purple crystals on her forehead and chest erupted with unprecedented violet resistance, frantically draining Liyana's life force to fight the sudden energy flood! Her body trembled violently, blood laced with dark purple specks oozing from her mouth!

"You're insane!" Sister Ai Li reached her, seeing Liyana's intensified agony, her eyes blazing with fury, ready to strike and break Lingna's connection.

"Don't touch her!" Zero's electronic voice buzzed urgently, "Energy flow… highly unstable… forced interruption… both… will… annihilate!"

Above, the doctor's will-projection sensed the anomaly. Lingna's madness was not mere destruction—it resembled… a dangerous gamble? 【Dying struggle… intriguing… but… enough!】 His cold thought turned impatient; the annihilation pressure locking the primal crystal coalesced again, preparing to end this farce once and for all!

Xiang Lingna's consciousness teetered on the edge, battered by agony and energy surges. She felt like a broken ship about to shatter in a storm. The guided energy flood was too vast; the Thorn Order's veins flickered like candles in the wind, ready to be swept away. Liyana's body seemed at its limit… Had she gambled wrong?

At this critical moment, another transformation occurred!

Beneath Liyana, the soft moss-covered ground suddenly glowed faintly! Ancient runes of thorns and crescent moons flashed and vanished! A deeper, older will—awakened by the chaotic energy clash and Liyana's residual Moon Priestess bloodline—stirred silently into awareness!

Simultaneously, the dark purple runes on Xiang Lingna's right-arm crystal, having absorbed partial primal energy, pulsed and shimmered—now faintly resonating with the ancient runes that had surfaced on the ground?