Chapter 53

The will of Rotclaw surged like a freezing poison tide, violently assaulting Lin Mo’s mind. Countless illusions of destruction and decay tore at his nerves; the power sustaining the Thorn Prison fluctuated wildly, and under Rotclaw’s influence, Elly grew even more frenzied—the clash of lunar radiance and violet qi nearly tore the dark gold roots apart!

“Get out!” Lin Mo’s eyes burned crimson as he let out a beast-like roar! The power of the Seed of Life surged and roared within him; the tiny orange-red glow at his core, fused with fragments of the earth vein, erupted in searing light, fiercely resisting Rotclaw’s invasion! The Thorn Root Domain sensed its lord’s peril—more energy roots burst from the ground, loyal sentinels encircling Lin Mo, radiating resilient protective will that somewhat dulled Rotclaw’s assault.

But this was merely treating the symptom, not the disease! Rotclaw’s will was like a bone-deep plague, endless and unceasing, while Elly’s condition deteriorated rapidly!

“Big Sister Elly…” Xiang Lingna’s sobs reached him. She stared at the figure within the Thorn Prison—once cold yet reliable, now writhing in torment as if possessed by a demon—her small face filled with sorrow and resolve. She gripped tightly the crude shard of the Purifying Vessel on her chest; the water stains along its edge had long dried, but now, spurred by her pure concern and protective intent, the faintest seed-like green glow at its center flared brightly!

Hum!

An extremely faint yet utterly pure natural breath—like the first breeze after spring snowmelt—swept instantly across the entire Thorn Heart Domain! This breath carried vibrant life and soul-soothing power; though weak, it miraculously pierced the Thorn Prison’s barrier and gently brushed over Elly’s body!

Elly’s frantic struggles froze mid-motion! Within her, the raging lunar power and withered corruption, soothed by this pure natural breath, paused for a single instant… as if a drop of clear spring water had fallen into a boiling pot of oil! In her silver-white pupils, the eerie violet hue receded momentarily, revealing a flicker of pain and confusion beneath!

“Huh?!” Lin Mo, Copperbeard, and Wrench all sensed this strange natural breath! Lin Mo distinctly felt it shared the same origin as Liyana’s natural power—but purer, closer to… the Source? As if… the first green hue at the dawn of the world!

"Lingna girl? You...?" Copperbeard’s green eyes widened in disbelief as he stared at the shard in her hand, glowing with a faint green light.

Lingna herself was stunned. She looked at the glowing shard in her hand, then at Elly, now momentarily still within the prison—a thought flashed through her mind like lightning: “The vessel… held… water from the Elven World… and… leaves of Starlight Moss…”

Elven purified water! Residual fragments of Starlight Moss leaves! Left behind in the Purifying Vessel shard, awakened by Lingna’s pure intent and protective heart—had triggered a trace... of primordial life’s miraculous power!

“Brother Lin Mo! This… works!” Lingna seized it like a lifeline, raising the shard glowing with green light high and shouting at Lin Mo.

Lin Mo instantly understood! In Liyana’s final transmitted thought, she had mentioned the Jade Forest! Mentioned powerful natural relics brimming with life! Lingna’s accidental use of the residual elven relics had summoned this faint breath—weak, yet the crucial key to purifying withering and calming lunar power!

“Send it… inside!” Lin Mo decided instantly, gritting his teeth against Rotclaw’s assault, manipulating the Thorn Prison to open a narrow fissure!

Lingna did not hesitate—she poured all her strength into hurling the shard, glowing with pure green radiance, toward Elly within the prison’s gap!

The shard traced a faint green arc through the air, piercing the fissure precisely, landing on Elly’s heaving chest!

Hiss—

Like a red-hot iron plunged into water! The instant the shard touched Elly’s body, the pure green radiance exploded—transforming into countless fine, emerald-like specks that instantly merged into her body!

“Ughhh—!” Elly let out a piercing cry, mingling agony with release! Within her, the lunar power, as if guided by the purest force, instantly calmed and withdrew, no longer raging wildly! The deep purple withering corruption, like snow exposed to blazing sun, hissed shrilly as it melted and shrank before their eyes—the purple patterns on her skin faded and vanished rapidly!

In her silver-white pupils, coldness and chaos receded, replaced by deep black—but deep within, a faint, unerasable silver glow remained, like moonlight. She gasped heavily, her body limp from exhaustion and the agony of purification, yet her consciousness… finally cleared!

Success! Lingna’s accidental use of the residual elven relics had summoned the primordial life breath—the crucial key to purifying Elly’s corruption and calming her lunar power!

Lin Mo exhaled deeply; the pressure from Rotclaw’s will seemed to ease slightly with Elly’s stabilization. He immediately retracted the Thorn Prison, the roots flowing back into the earth as gentle energy. Copperbeard and Wrench rushed forward, supporting the drained Elly.

“Lingna… thank you…” Elly whispered weakly, voice hoarse, her gaze at Lingna filled with complex emotion—fear, gratitude, and a hint of… confusion over the power she had lost control of.

Lingna flung herself beside Elly, tears falling steadily: “Big Sister Elly… you’re safe… that’s all that matters…”

Yet the crisis was not over!

At the Thorn Passage node, Rotclaw’s will had been repelled—but not destroyed! It seemed utterly enraged by the pure primordial life breath Lingna had triggered! A more furious, more ravenous will crashed down! This time, it was no longer pure mental assault—it carried… tangible spatial tearing power!

Crack! Crack-crack!

Around the stable Thorn Passage node, space fractured like fragile glass, spiderwebbing with black cracks! An overwhelming stench of withering, mixed with Rotclaw’s nauseating decay, seeped out like thick poison from the fissures! A colossal, terrifying claw-shadow, covered in rotting bark, dripping purple slime from its fingertips, struggled inch by inch to squeeze through the space rift!

“Damn! That thing… it’s forcing its way through!” Copperbeard’s face turned ashen, gripping his forge hammer tightly!

Lin Mo’s heart sank to the abyss! Rotclaw was willing to pay any price to forcibly breach the dimensional barrier! With the Thorn Heart Domain’s current strength, they could not possibly stop a being of this caliber from descending!

“Activate… Thorn Barrier! Maximum power!” Lin Mo roared, pouring the Seed of Life and Earth Vein Heart’s power furiously into the Earth Vein Arbiter!

Hum! Hum! Hum!

Countless dark gold thorn roots burst from the ground, layer upon layer, frantically constructing wall after wall before the passage node! The Root Domain’s power was pushed to its limit—the entire depression bathed in a dark gold aura!

Yet against the slowly emerging withered giant claw-shadow, the Thorn Barrier shattered like paper! The space rift widened under the claw’s force! More withering energy poured in—the faint green mosses just sprouting at the depression’s edge instantly withered into black ash!

It won’t hold! Impossible to hold!

“Lin Mo! Use it!” Copperbeard pointed sharply at the deep earth fissure where the orange-red Earth Vein Heart floated silently! “Detonate it! Blow the passage! Bury the rift and that damn claw together!” This was the dwarven way—direct, brutal, final!

Detonate the Earth Vein Heart? That was the foundation of the Thorn Heart! The source of hope! Lingna gasped, clutching her mouth in horror. Elly struggled to rise, her eyes filled with defiance.

Lin Mo stared at the Earth Vein Heart—bearing Liyana’s sacrifice, bearing the domain’s future—and then at the claw about to tear through space. His eyes burned with pain and torment. Detonate it, and abandon all, return to the wasteland’s despair. Do not detonate, and Rotclaw descends—everyone dies.

At this moment of life-or-death, a hair’s breadth from catastrophe—

The Purifying Vessel shard on Lingna’s chest, sensing the overwhelming withering energy and spatial tearing, flared again—the faint green glow within no longer gentle, but charged with… fury? A primal fury to defend home, to resist invasion!

Simultaneously, the thorn runes on the guard of Lin Mo’s Earth Vein Arbiter blade erupted in unprecedented resonance! A deep, solemn, unwavering will—rooted in earth, defending to the end—awoke with a thunderous surge from within the blade!

The green glow in Lingna’s hand and the thorn runes on the blade resonated across space—a faint bridge of light, woven from pure green and dark gold thorn patterns, instantly linked the two!

A blurred, infinite vitality and ancient majesty, transmitted through the light bridge, directly entered Lin Mo’s mind:

“Root… in earth… life… protect… thorn… is… boundary…”

“With heart as guide… with blade as key… open… the Jade Gate…”