Chapter 163: The First Sound of Tribulation Power

As the Chaos Tribulation Pupils first opened, the time and space within the Star-Fixing Hall seemed to freeze for an instant.

Those eyes, reflecting the whirlpool of the world’s birth and destruction, were initially filled with a trace of bewilderment and emptiness, as if the consciousness that had slumbered for eons had yet to fully find its anchor. But after only a moment, the chaotic halo in the depths of his eyes suddenly contracted and condensed, transforming into two points of cold, indifferent, and profound darkness that seemed capable of perceiving the end of all things.

There was no earth-shattering eruption of momentum, no surging tide of energy. Lin Xuan still lay quietly in the spiritual liquid of the jade pool, the crack-like gray-purple patterns on his body slowly smoothing out and fading, leaving only an extremely faint, flowing chaotic halo on the surface of his skin. At his heart, the rotation of the Chaos Tribulation Crystal had stabilized; with every pulse, it drew the surrounding heaven and earth spiritual energy to circulate, return to nothingness, and regenerate in an arcane rhythm.

His awakening was not a violent release of power, but rather a redefinition and mastery of the "tribulations" and "anomalies" in his surroundings by his very existence.

His gaze turned slowly, first falling upon Zhao Yuan, who lay unconscious by the pool, his aura weak yet carrying a strange resonance. The chaotic whirlpool in Lin Xuan’s eyes accelerated slightly, as if analyzing something. He saw the nascent soul within Zhao Yuan—newborn yet covered in fine cracks and stained with a trace of stubborn, dark purple aura—he saw the "Demon Seed" deep within his sea of consciousness, sealed by heavy sword intent and star power yet still emitting ominous fluctuations, and he saw the "Silent Shadow" clutched in his hand, its blade shimmering with faint gray, blue, and gold light.

"Silent... star... and a trace of... my tribulation power?" A low, hoarse voice, as if it had not spoken for a long time, rose from Lin Xuan’s throat, carrying a strange, metallic, grinding texture. He raised a hand, and a wisp of gray, misty chaotic energy separated from his fingertip, probing gently toward Zhao Yuan as if it possessed a life of its own.

The moment the chaotic energy touched Zhao Yuan’s body, the nascent soul within him, which had been on the verge of collapse, shuddered violently; the cracks on its surface actually began to mend at an extremely slow speed under the nourishment of the chaotic aura! That stubborn dark purple aura, as if encountering its nemesis, let out a silent shriek and rapidly retreated and faded. The "Demon Seed" in his sea of consciousness trembled frantically, the sealing chains clattering as it curled into the deepest depths, desperately trying to hide its existence.

"Demon Abyss... Rebirth Sect... information toxin... parasitic Dao foundation..." Lin Xuan’s Chaos Tribulation Pupils seemed capable of directly reading the fragments of information remaining in Zhao Yuan’s body and soul, instantly understanding many things. His brow furrowed imperceptibly, and he withdrew the chaotic energy from his fingertip. "The foundation is damaged, the Demon Seed is deeply planted; this must be treated gradually."

His gaze then turned toward the outside of the hall. His sight seemed to pierce through the thick hall walls and layers of arrays, directly "seeing" the hideous spatial rift on the southeast sea surface, the filthy summoning altar, and the fierce, bloody battlefield; he also "saw" the fires of war ignited across the island, the broken arrays, and the fallen cultivators.

The Chaos Tribulation Dao Dharma Body has a perception of "tribulations" far exceeding the ordinary.

"The disaster of the Return-to-Nothingness Sea Eye remains, and the Demon Abyss rift has opened again... The tribulation aura of this realm grows ever heavier." Lin Xuan whispered to himself and slowly sat up from the jade pool. The spiritual liquid slid off his simple green robe and dripped into the pool, producing a strange echo, as if water droplets were falling into an empty valley.

His movements were not fast, even somewhat sluggish, as if a rusted precision instrument were restarting. But as he sat up, the faint chaotic halo around his body suddenly became clear and dense, and an invisible "field," one that seemed capable of driving all things toward their predetermined end, slowly expanded with him at its center.

Inside the hall, the dust scattered by the previous battle, the shattered stone fragments, and the residual ripples of minute energy, under the shroud of this chaotic field, silently turned into the most basic particles and then completely "disappeared," as if they had never existed. The air became incomparably "clean," clean to the point of near "nothingness."

The several Star Palace array masters and medical cultivators guarding the hall only now recovered from the shock of Lin Xuan’s awakening. Feeling that chaotic field that made even their Dao foundations tremble slightly, they all turned pale with fright, yet filled with indescribable excitement, they bowed in succession: "Respectfully welcome the awakening of Consultant Lin!"

Lin Xuan nodded slightly, acknowledging them. His gaze finally fell upon the corner of the hall, on the jade box strictly protected by several layers of purification and sealing arrays—inside it lay that very fragment of "Star Essence."

He reached out his hand and made a phantom grasp.

The heavy arrays around the jade box, under the influence of the chaotic field, melted silently like snow under the sun, without causing the slightest energy backlash. The jade box flew up automatically and landed in Lin Xuan’s hand.

Opening the jade box, the dark blue star core fragment lay quietly within, its light slightly dim, clearly having had much of its power consumed by previous research. But under the gaze of Lin Xuan’s Chaos Tribulation Pupils, the purest star origin and the intent of "hope" deep within the fragment were still as clear as a lighthouse in the dark night.

"Legacy of the falling stars, pure star fire... just right." Lin Xuan muttered to himself, injecting a more condensed wisp of chaotic energy from his fingertip into the fragment.

A miracle occurred.

The originally dim "Star Essence" fragment, the moment it touched the chaotic energy, was like parched earth receiving sweet rain; the dark blue starlight suddenly became brilliant and dazzling! The miniature star sea sealed within spun and expanded frantically, emitting a majestic and gentle star vitality! Even more, a trace of pure intent, carrying the unyielding will of a civilization’s dying embers, was ignited!

Chaos is not only about destruction and endings. It can also encompass, nourish, and catalyze all things, leading them toward their most "essential" or "proper" state. At this moment, Lin Xuan was using his own newly awakened, incomplete Chaos Tribulation power to temporarily "catalyze" the dormant origin within the "Star Essence" fragment, causing it to briefly return to a state approaching its peak!

Holding the brilliantly glowing "Star Essence" fragment, Lin Xuan stepped out of the jade pool, his figure appearing at the entrance of the Star-Fixing Hall.

Outside the hall, the plaza was a mess, with residual evil energy still corroding the ground. True Person Beichen and the others were guarding the surroundings while treating the wounded; seeing Lin Xuan appear, their spirits were greatly lifted.

"Fellow Daoist Lin! You have finally awakened!" True Person Beichen stepped forward excitedly, but upon feeling the chaotic aura on Lin Xuan—so different from before, deeper and more vast—he could not help but pause.

Lin Xuan nodded, his gaze sweeping over the crowd and finally landing on the battlefield and spatial rift in the southeast that dyed half the sky red. His voice was calm and waveless, yet carried a sense of absolute power that brought peace of mind: "I am aware of the situation. General Wei and the others are pinning them down at the front; the rift and the altar are the keys."

He held up the brilliantly glowing "Star Essence" fragment: "This object can temporarily purify and stabilize the array nodes disturbed by the filthy star power, and it has a restraining effect on that summoning altar. Fellow Daoist Beichen, you are proficient in star arrays; take this fragment and lead men to the core of the great array and several critical nodes to assist in stabilizing the array and delaying its collapse."

As he spoke, he handed the "Star Essence" fragment to True Person Beichen. As the fragment entered his hand, True Person Beichen immediately felt a pure and vast star power surge into his body; the fatigue from the continuous bitter fighting diminished, and he even felt the connection between himself and the Star-Shattering Island array become clearer and sharper. "Understood!"

"Elder Ling Shuang," Lin Xuan looked again at Ling Shuang, who had just retreated from the perimeter, her body stained with blood and cold air, "lead the elites of the Profound Ice Pavilion to clear out the remaining demons and rebels within the island, especially several potentially hidden sabotage nodes. You must ensure the stability of the Star-Fixing Hall and the rear."

"Yes!" Ling Shuang accepted concisely, the ice-blue light in her eyes sharp.

Lin Xuan finally looked into the hall: "Zhao Yuan is unconscious, but there is no immediate danger to his life; leave two people to look after him. The rest of you, return to your posts, treat the wounded, and consolidate the defensive lines."

The orders were clear and decisive, instantly clearing up the chaotic situation around the Star-Fixing Hall. The crowd took their orders and acted quickly.

As for Lin Xuan himself, he looked up again toward the southeast sea, the center of the most intense battlefield. In his Chaos Tribulation Pupils, the massive spatial rift, the filthy summoning altar, and the several demonic shadows with exceptionally powerful auras looming around the altar were reflected.

"Using the power of the Demon Abyss to forcibly tear and anchor space to maintain a channel of this scale consumes a massive amount of energy. That altar is both the summoning array eye and the stabilizer and energy source for the channel." Lin Xuan realized in his heart, "To close the rift, one must first destroy the altar."

His figure flickered; he did not employ any flashy escape light, but with chaotic energy circulating around him, he seemed to merge with space itself, disappearing silently from where he stood. The next moment, he had already appeared a hundred feet above the Star-Fixing Hall.

From here, the full extent of the battlefield’s tragedy could be seen at a glance.

The light screen of the Star-Shattering Island’s "All-Heaven Star Array" was already like a candle in the wind, flickering unsteadily. On the sea, demons and demon cultivators were like a black tide, constantly crashing against the defensive line built by the alliance cultivators with flesh and blood. High in the sky, General Wei fought alone against three Demon Abyss Soul Transformation demon commanders (avatars or projections descended through the altar) with monstrous auras; though he did not fall behind, he could not break free. Ling Shuang, Yan Gang, and other late-stage and peak Nascent Soul powerhouses were also tightly entangled by an equal number of Demon Abyss Nascent Soul demon commanders.

The battle was deadlocked and extremely unfavorable for the alliance. The great array could collapse completely at any moment; once the main force of the demons landed, Star-Shattering Island would fall into even more brutal street fighting and slaughter.

Lin Xuan’s gaze pierced through the heavy battle groups and locked firmly onto the massive dark purple altar in the center of the spatial rift. Around the altar circled eight twisted energy pillars that constantly extracted void demonic energy and the blood-evil resentment from the seawater below; at the top of each pillar floated a skull burning with dark red demonic fire. At the top of the altar was a pitch-black whirlpool that constantly rotated and seemed capable of swallowing light—this was the most violent exit point for the spatial rift’s energy.

Below the altar, on the sea surface, three figures stood in a triangular formation. The one in the center was a hulking demonic shadow, ten feet tall, clad in heavy bone armor, with curved horns on its head and holding a giant axe like a door panel; its aura was savage and violent—it was clearly at the early stage of Soul Transformation! To the left was a dark shadow that constantly changed shape and emitted buzzing whispers, as if compressed from countless resentful souls; to the right was a knight-like demonic shadow riding a skeletal dragon, clad in gorgeous but dilapidated armor and holding a long spear. The latter two were both at the peak of Nascent Soul!

These three great demon commanders were clearly the core force guarding the altar.

Lin Xuan’s appearance did not attract much attention. His aura was restrained, and the chaotic field shrouded his body, making him inconspicuous amidst the chaotic energy flow of the battlefield.

But the gaze of his Chaos Tribulation Pupils caused the Soul Transformation demon commander in the center holding the axe (temporarily called "Giant Axe Demon Commander") to feel a sense of warning. He looked up abruptly, a pair of giant eyes burning with dark red flames scanning the direction where Lin Xuan was.

"Hmm? A human Soul Transformation who just woke up with a strange aura?" The Giant Axe Demon Commander spoke in a muffled voice, like grinding rocks, "Want to sneak attack the altar? You’re courting death!"

He swung his giant axe, and a dark red axe-light that tore through space slashed toward Lin Xuan from afar! At the same time, he shouted sharply: "Soul-Erosion, Bone-Dragon, stop him! Don't let him get near the altar!"

The shifting shadow of resentful souls (Soul-Erosion) let out a harsh, shrill laugh, transforming into countless invisible mental spikes that covered Lin Xuan’s soul like a rainstorm! The knight riding the skeletal dragon (Bone-Dragon) silently urged his mount; the skeletal dragon let out a silent roar, carrying him as he transformed into a gray-white stream of light, thrusting his spear straight at Lin Xuan’s heart!

The three great demon commanders, joining forces in a combined attack! The momentum was earth-shattering!

Lin Xuan’s expression did not change. Facing this offensive, which would have sent an ordinary early-stage Soul Transformation cultivator into a panic, he only slowly raised his right hand.

His five fingers spread, palm facing upward.

There were no complex incantations, no arcane chanting.

Only a calm whisper, as if stating some predetermined fact:

"The demonic energy, blood-evil, resentful souls, and skeletons here... are all tribulation ash, and shall... return to nothingness."

The words fell.

With his palm as the center, a tiny, slowly rotating gray-misty chaotic whirlpool suddenly appeared!

The moment the whirlpool appeared, the dark red axe-light that had torn through space, the invisible mental spikes, and the thrusting skeletal dragon spear all seemed to crash into an invisible, absolutely viscous "quagmire" at the same time!

The axe-light quickly dimmed and disintegrated; the mental spikes dissipated silently; the speed of the skeletal dragon spear’s thrust decreased sharply, and gray, stone-like weathering patterns began to appear on the spear tip and even on the bodies of the skeletal dragon and the knight!

Not only that, within a radius of a thousand feet, all the pervasive demonic energy, blood-evil, resentment, and even some residual spiritual power of the cultivators seemed to have received an invisible summons, frantically surging toward the chaotic whirlpool in Lin Xuan’s palm! The whirlpool turned nothing away; like a bottomless abyss, it swallowed, crushed, and turned all these "impurities" and "anomalies" into the most basic chaotic energy, and then... returned them to nothingness!

This was not an attack, but a higher-level... "purification" and "definition"! Using Chaos Tribulation power to forcibly push the energy and matter in this area toward the finality of "returning to nothingness"!

"What is this power?!" The Giant Axe Demon Commander cried out in horror; he felt the axe-light he had swung was like a clay ox entering the sea. Even more terrifying was that his connection to the demonic energy of this world was being rapidly weakened! The mental spikes emitted by Soul-Erosion were like crashing into an invisible "Wall of Ending," backfiring on himself and emitting painful hisses. The skeletal knight’s charge was forcibly delayed, and the skeletal bodies of him and his mount were accelerating in decay!

Lin Xuan took a step, his figure appearing in front of the skeletal knight, his right hand still held high, the chaotic whirlpool in his palm slowly pressing toward the knight’s chest.

The soul fire in the skeletal knight’s eyes jumped frantically; he wanted to block, he wanted to dodge, but the time and space around him seemed to be frozen by that chaotic field, his movements slow as a snail.

*Puff.*

A soft sound.

The chaotic whirlpool pressed onto the skeletal knight’s gorgeous breastplate.

There was no explosion, no loud noise.

That sturdy demonized breastplate, capable of withstanding a full-force blow from a peak Nascent Soul cultivator, along with the skeletal body behind it and the knight’s soul fire core, were like pencil marks gently erased by an eraser; starting from the point of contact, they "disappeared" silently! It was not shattering, not melting, but the most thorough—the existence itself was "returned to nothingness"!

In a mere breath, the majestic skeletal knight and his mount were completely reduced to nothingness, not even leaving a trace of dust behind.

Soul-Erosion let out a shriek of extreme terror and dared not attack again; the dark shadow shrank frantically, about to flee into the seawater below or the spatial rift.

"The tribulation has arrived, where can you flee?"

Lin Xuan’s left hand formed a finger-seal, pointing vaguely at the shrinking dark shadow.

A gray-misty, hair-thin wisp of Chaos Tribulation power, as if traversing the distance of space, instantly pierced into the core of the dark shadow.

The dark shadow stiffened violently, then, like a wax figure thrown into a fire, began to melt, evaporate, and dissipate from within, finally leaving only a shrill, abruptly cut-off echo before disappearing completely.

In the snap of a finger, two great peak Nascent Soul demon commanders were wiped out!

The Giant Axe Demon Commander was terrified to the core! What kind of monster is this?! What kind of power is this?! He had never seen such a bizarre, such domineering, such an attack method that seemed to transcend conventional laws! He couldn't even understand the essence of the opponent’s power!

Escape! Must escape! The altar can be rebuilt, the master’s mission can be figured out again, but one only has one life!

He dared not linger in the battle, nor even leave behind any harsh words; he let out a wild roar, and his bone armor erupted with blinding blood light; he was going to spare no cost, burning the origin of his demonic body to perform a blood-escape secret technique to flee back into the spatial rift!

However, Lin Xuan’s gaze had already turned toward him.

Those Chaos Tribulation Pupils coldly reflected the figure of the Giant Axe Demon Commander fleeing in terror.

Lin Xuan did not pursue, but slowly... spread his arms toward the direction of the Giant Axe Demon Commander’s flight and the dark purple summoning altar further behind.

As if to embrace this filthy sky and ocean.

A low, ancient Dao sound, as if originating from the beginning of chaos, was slowly uttered from his mouth; every syllable caused the surrounding heaven and earth to tremble slightly:

"Chaos... Return to Nothingness... Tribulation!"

In an instant!

With Lin Xuan as the center, the sky and sea for several thousand feet suddenly became "turbid"! Not a turbidity of matter, but a "chaoticization" at the level of laws! All colors, light, sound, energy flow... lost their original order and boundaries, becoming blurred, chaotic, and intertwined!

And at the core of this "Chaos Domain," the dark purple summoning altar and the Giant Axe Demon Commander fleeing toward it bore the brunt!

The eight energy pillars around the altar trembled violently, and the demonic fire skulls at their tops exploded one after another! The altar itself emitted a groan of being unable to bear the burden, and the blasphemous runes on its surface extinguished and disintegrated in large swaths! The pitch-black whirlpool rotating at the top began to twist and deform, becoming extremely unstable!

The Giant Axe Demon Commander’s blood-escape radiance, the moment it broke into this "Chaos Domain," flickered and dimmed like a candle in the wind, his speed dropping sharply! He discovered in horror that the demonic energy within his body was flowing away frantically, being assimilated and returned to nothingness by the pervasive chaotic power around him! Even his demon soul and consciousness began to become blurred and sluggish, as if they too were about to be dragged into that eternal "ending"!

"No—!! Master, save me!!!"

He let out a desperate roar, struggling frantically, but like a fly caught in a spider web, the more he struggled, the deeper he sank.

Lin Xuan’s expression was calm, his arms slowly closing inward.

Following his movements, the "Chaos Domain" shrouding the sky and sea began to contract and squeeze inward! The target was the spatial rift and the summoning altar!

He was going to use this newly awakened, incomplete power of Chaos Return-to-Nothingness to forcibly... close this wound torn by the Demon Abyss! To bury this filthy altar, along with its guardians, into the return to nothingness!

In the distance, General Wei, Ling Shuang, and the others who were in the midst of fierce fighting, and even countless Demon Abyss demons and cultivators, could not help but stop their actions, looking in horror at this scene that was like a miracle (or a demonic miracle)!

Chaos descends again, the tribulation power sounds for the first time. The scales of fate for Star-Shattering Island seemed, at this moment, to begin their slow and firm... tilt.