Chapter 1172: Eternal Darkness

Something indeed went wrong inside the Star Axis Hall! Moreover, the upheaval is huge— even the Heaven Axis Son seems to have been injured or trapped! The "them" they speak of is very likely the "Eternal Darkness" that Xuanji warned about at the end!

The target is... the Star Patrol Torch? Or the Primordial Star Core he just obtained?

Whatever it is, the opponent comes in a fierce onslaught, even a massive entity like the Star Axis Hall can suddenly be attacked from within!

He glanced at the temporarily stabilized Star-fallen Eye behind him, and felt the newly acquired Primordial Star Core in his dantian.

This place is no longer suitable for lingering. He must rush back to the Star Axis Hall at once!

Although the road ahead is perilous and shrouded in mist, he is no longer the Han Wuxian who just stepped onto the Stargazing Cliff. The insight from the Wordless Star Stele and the mastery of the Primordial Star Core have greatly increased his strength, and he now also possesses some means to counter the power of the Silence Extinction Wasteland.

Han Wuxian's eyes flashed with a cold light, the Return to Ruin Sword Intent surged skyward, his form turning into a streak of gray radiance, and without hesitation he burst out of the underground ruins, racing toward the Star Axis Hall!

Han Wuxian pushed his speed to the limit, the Return to Ruin Sword Essence surged within him, creating a subtle resonance with the newly obtained Primordial Star Core, greatly enhancing his ability to ride stellar turbulence and traverse folded space. The journey that had taken several days was cut by more than half as he pressed at full speed.

The nearer he got to the Star Axis Hall, the heavier the atmosphere in the air became. The once harmonious and pure stellar aura now mingled with threads of Chaos and ferocity, and even a familiar… whiff of Silence Extinction Wasteland!

It is indeed related to Eternal Darkness!

He did not rush straight toward the gate; instead, while still a thousand li from the Star Axis Hall's main peak, he quietly retracted his aura, lowered his altitude, and used the terrain and the chaotic spiritual currents to conceal himself. At the same time, he linked his divine consciousness with the Primordial Star Core, sensing the energy fluctuations ahead.

The Primordial Star Core truly lives up to being a treasure of the Star Palace; its perception far surpasses ordinary divine consciousness. In an instant, the energy distribution within a thousand li ahead unfolded before his eyes like a star map.

The Star Axis Hall's Sect Protection Array— the Celestial Sphere Star Array— has already been activated, but its light flickers unpredictably, and several key nodes emit unusually dim starlight, even showing gaps! Toward the main peak, dozens of powerful auras clash violently, the explosion of spiritual energy flashing like collapsing stars. Among them, he vaguely sensed the vast yet clearly chaotic aura of the Heaven Axis Son, and the more familiar but now hurried and weakened stellar force fluctuation of Yun Chen.

What weighed heavier on his mind was that he also sensed several other powerful auras. These auras were cold, obscure, bearing a devouring-light deathly silence, sharing origin with the gray arrows and shuttle-shaped artifacts, yet amplified by more than a hundred times! They moved like poisonous snakes in the shadows, grappling with the Star Axis Hall's Elders and constantly trying to seep toward a certain direction deep within the main peak.

That direction… based on his earlier memories, Han Wuxian judged it to be the Star Axis Hall's forbidden zone! Rumor has it that it is the core of the Hall's leyline, the very foundation that generations of sect masters have sealed away to draw star power to nourish the sect.

Their target is indeed the foundation of the Star Axis Hall! Perhaps it also involves the Star Patrol Torch, which can sense and even affect the leyline's star marrow?

We can't wait any longer!

Han Wuxian's gaze hardened, ready to move, when a sudden warning arose in his heart! The Primordial Star Core trembled faintly, indicating an extremely subtle spatial fluctuation to his side and behind.

He didn't think, and swung his sword backhanded! The gray-white Return to Ruin sword blade tore through space, silently erasing a patch of void.

"Eh?"

A light 'eh' sounded, and from the previously empty space a vague gray figure staggered out, seemingly surprised by Han Wuxian's acuity and the sword's strange power. The figure was cloaked entirely in a gray robe, wearing a plain gray mask that revealed only a pair of cold, merciless eyes; its aura matched that of the earlier assassin but was as deep as the sea, evidently possessing a late-stage—or even consummate—Transformation of the Divine cultivation.

"Eternal Darkness's lackey!" Han Wuxian barked coldly, and the Return to Ruin Sword Realm instantly unfolded, a gray-white Silence Extinction field enveloping the surroundings, cutting off any probing.

The gray-robed figure steadied himself, not attacking immediately, but examined Han Wuxian with those emotionless eyes, his voice hoarse and strange: "The aura of the Primordial Star Core… you actually obtained that immortal's inheritance? And even broke through the mid-stage of Transformation of the Divine? Indeed… a variable."

The amount of information conveyed in his words was immense; not only did he know about the Primordial Star Core, but he also seemed to understand Han Wuxian's cultivation progress as if by heart.

"What have you done to the Star Axis Hall?" Han Wuxian's sword tip pointed at the opponent, murderous intent locked.

"We are cleansing the portal, retrieving relics." The gray-robed figure replied indifferently, and a pair of gray short spikes silently appeared in his hand, each entwined with a heart‑pounding annihilation force. "As for you, surrender the Primordial Star Core and the Star Patrol Torch, and perhaps we will spare your entire soul."

"Dream on!"

The words barely left his mouth when Han Wuxian already struck! He gave no hesitation, immediately employing the newly grasped power!

The Return to Ruin Sword Essence surged, the Primordial Star Core in his dantian flared suddenly, drawing the power of the Celestial Sphere Stars! He swung his sword, and the blade was not merely gray-white but transformed into a chaotic river flowing with countless tiny starlight threads! Within that river, stars were born and died, space folded, completely sealing and compressing the space around the opponent!

This sword incorporated the insight of the Wordless Star Stele and the mastery of the Primordial Star Core!

The gray-robed figure's eyes beneath the mask finally changed, showing a hint of solemnity. He let out a fierce howl, thrusting the two spikes outward; two extreme gray-dark death lights erupted, attempting to tear the chaotic star river. Those death lights were exceedingly poisonous, annihilating life and spiritual energy, a method that completely suppresses cultivation.

Boom—!

The chaotic star river and the gray-dark death lights clashed violently, yet there was no earth‑shaking explosion; they merely eroded and annihilated each other! The surrounding space collapsed in patches, turning into void!

The gray-robed figure let out a muted hum, his form recoiling violently; the arm holding the spikes trembled slightly, clearly having taken a minor setback. Though his annihilation force was domineering, Han Wuxian's Return to Ruin Sword Path, merged with the true meaning of stellar birth and death and bolstered by the Primordial Star Core, subtly suppressed him on a higher level!

"Impossible! What is this power you wield?!" the gray-robed figure exclaimed, bewildered.

Han Wuxian, pressing his advantage, sent the Star Patrol Torch from his brow to hover above his head; the azure‑blue purification beam no longer spread, but condensed into an ultra‑sharp light needle. Following his sword's motion, it silently pierced the gray-robed figure's brow! Within the needle, the power of the Primordial Star Core was also blended, exerting a strong counter to that gray-dark deathly silence aura!

The gray-robed figure sensed the mortal threat, let out a strange howl, and his body explosively shattered, turning into dozens of gray phantasmal streams that fled in all directions—a remarkably advanced evasion technique.

"Trying to run? Leave something behind!"

Han Wuxian altered his sword stance, the chaotic star river reversed, instantly enveloping most of the phantasmal streams; the Return to Ruin Sword Intent raged in destruction. Simultaneously, the Star Patrol Torch's light needle surged in speed, precisely piercing the most solid of those streams!

"Puff—!"

A wail sounded, and that stream reconstituted into the gray-robed figure's body, staggering out; his left shoulder was pierced by the light needle, leaving a bowl‑sized wound. No blood flowed; instead, gray death aura was continuously purified and dissipated, rendering the wound unhealable no matter how much mana he summoned!

"Primordial Star Power?! You've mastered it to this degree?!" the gray-robed figure shouted, both shocked and angry, losing any desire to fight, he gritted his teeth and slapped a gray talisman onto his body.