Chapter 170

The Chaos maze, like a layer of thin gauze, covered the periphery of the ferocious dark purple demonic seed deep in the consciousness sea. It was not a physical entity, but a strange existence between virtual and real, woven from countless fine and changing Chaos law threads. The maze flowed slowly, sometimes like light smoke and mist, sometimes like rippling water, constantly refracting, distorting, and scattering the evil fluctuations emitted by the demonic seed, making the signal it transmitted outward become blurred and unclear, as if peeking through a layer of constantly shaking frosted glass.

The core of the second treatment was to continue purifying those dark purple "tentacles" entrenched on the edge of the Nascent Soul origin and inherited memory fragments under the cover of this "Chaos maze."

With the buffer of the maze, the demonic seed's backlash was no longer as concentrated and sharp as the first time, as if a furious beast had been locked in a soundproof room; although the roaring and crashing were still fierce, the destructive power and mental impact transmitted were greatly weakened and dispersed. However, the pain of the treatment process had not diminished in the slightest; every "cutting" and "burning" of the "foreign object" deep in the origin was still like scraping bone with a blunt knife and pouring boiling oil on the heart.

Zhao Yuan gritted his teeth, the veins on his forehead bulging, sweat already soaking his clothes, leaving a dark trace on the jade bed beneath him. His body trembled slightly uncontrollably due to the extreme pain, but his mind was like a reef in a storm, fixed dead. The Nirvana Sword Intent transformed into the most tenacious barrier, guarding the inextinguishable light at the Nascent Soul core; the star power was like the most dexterous assistant, cooperating with the Chaos Tribulation Power and "Star Essence" purification light injected by Lin Xuan, performing precise and slow "stripping" in the "surgical areas" that were relatively safe and marked by the "Chaos maze."

One, and another.

The dark purple "tentacles" melted and evaporated like ice crystals exposed to the scorching sun under the interwoven washing of gray, blue, and gold light, turning into wisps of black smoke carrying a fishy smell, and were then absorbed and decomposed by the Chaos maze, dissipating as the most basic vitality. Every time one was stripped, a violent tremor and burning pain would come from the cracks in Zhao Yuan's Nascent Soul, as if his soul had been forcibly gouged out, but the following nourishment of the "Star Essence" purification power and Chaos Tribulation Power would bring a strange, cool, and vital soothing feeling, slowly filling the "void" and repairing the damage.

Pain and repair, destruction and rebirth, repeatedly staged on this small battlefield of the consciousness sea.

Zhao Yuan's spirit was repeatedly forged and tempered in this extreme torture. He felt as if he had been divided into two parts: one part was enduring endless pain, struggling and sinking in the waves of illusions and evil thoughts; the other part was like a high-ranking observer, coldly and clearly "watching" all this, firmly controlling the flow of Nirvana Sword Intent and star power, cooperating with Lin Xuan's guidance, and executing this "purification surgery" that was precise to the extreme.

This strange sense of division allowed his control over his own power and his stripping of pain and emotions to reach an unprecedented realm. The true meaning of the Nirvana Sword Intent to "cut off vanity" was brought into full play in this state—he could not only cut off external illusions and evil thoughts, but even began to try to "cut off" his own perception of part of the pain, driving his body and soul, which were on the verge of collapse, with absolute reason.

And the "purification" and "guidance" characteristics contained in the star power also underwent subtle changes in the fusion with Chaos Tribulation Power. It was no longer just gentle washing and nourishment, but began to actively "identify" those polluted origins and memory fragments, like the most precise sieve, distinguishing "toxins" from "nutrients," guiding the purification power to strike the former precisely, while carefully protecting the latter.

Time passed slowly in silent confrontation and difficult progress.

Lin Xuan sat cross-legged in front of the bed, his face calm as water, only the fine sweat slightly seeping from his temples and the Chaos vortex accelerating in the depths of his eyes revealed the huge consumption of his mind at this moment. Maintaining the stable operation of the "Chaos maze," manipulating Chaos Tribulation Power to cooperate with purification, and monitoring Zhao Yuan's state at all times to prevent accidents—this kind of multi-threaded fine operation was a huge burden even for someone like him who controlled the Great Dao of Chaos.

But he did not waver in the slightest. The Chaos Tribulation Pupils penetrated layers of obstacles, clearly reflecting every change in Zhao Yuan's consciousness sea. He could see that under the cover of the "Chaos maze" and the cooperation of Zhao Yuan's own will, the purification efficiency was even better than anticipated. Nearly 30% of those relatively peripheral tentacles with shallower erosion had been cleared. Although the Nascent Soul was still cracked, the gray-blue light at its core was becoming purer and more solid under this cruel tempering, even faintly revealing a "non-perishable" charm that had survived the catastrophe.

"The firmness of this child's character and the resilience of his will are indeed rare." Lin Xuan praised in his heart. "If he can survive this tribulation, the prospects of his Dao path will be limitless."

Just as the second relatively thick "tentacle" was successfully purified, and Zhao Yuan paused to catch his breath, preparing to face the next round of pain—

A sudden change occurred!

It did not come from within Zhao Yuan's body, nor from external interference.

It came from... the "Chaos maze" itself!

On the maze, a Chaos thread that was originally flowing steadily shrank inward without warning, forming a tiny, rapidly rotating vortex! In the center of the vortex, a point of deep darkness that seemed to be able to devour all light suddenly emerged!

Immediately after, a dark purple aura, extremely subtle but carrying an indescribable intent of "hunger" and "chaos," actually protruded from the darkness in the center of the vortex like a snake spitting its tongue! This aura was homologous to the demonic seed, but purer, older, and... closer to a certain "source"!

It did not attack Zhao Yuan's soul or Nascent Soul, but... lunged directly at the "Chaos maze" and the Chaos Tribulation Power continuously injected by Lin Xuan behind the maze!

This aura seemed to possess some strange "spirituality" or "instinct." It sensed the "shielding" and "interference" of the "Chaos maze" against it, and even "smelled" the high-level power of "order" and "ending" coexisting in the Chaos Tribulation Power, which made it both hateful and covetous! It wanted to... devour? Assimilate? Or... pollute this layer of obstruction and, following the connection of the Chaos Tribulation Power, inversely erode Lin Xuan?!

"Hmph! Evil obstacle, how dare you!"

Chaos light exploded in Lin Xuan's eyes! He reacted extremely quickly, noticing it the moment the dark purple aura protruded. He did not cut off the connection with the "Chaos maze" and Zhao Yuan (which might cause the maze to collapse and all previous efforts to be wasted), but his mind turned rapidly, manipulating the part of the Chaos Tribulation Power and maze structure that was being "targeted," and it changed abruptly!

The originally flowing Chaos threads tightened and intertwined, transforming into a fine and tenacious "net," covering the protruding dark purple aura! At the same time, countless finer Chaos mill-lights containing the true meaning of "Return-to-Ruins" erupted in the mesh, like countless micro-millstones, crazily grinding and decomposing the dark purple aura!

Sss-sss-sss—!

Silent energy annihilation took place fiercely at the micro-level. The dark purple aura struggled and twisted crazily, attempting to corrode the Chaos thread net, but was rapidly dissolved and disintegrated by the pure "Return-to-Ruins" power! In the end, only a trace of an imperceptible "hissing" intent full of resentment and unwillingness remained, and it completely dissipated.

However, this sudden change, although quickly suppressed by Lin Xuan, inevitably had an impact on the entire treatment process!

The "Chaos maze" appeared disordered due to the violent change in the local structure, and a loophole appeared in the shielding effect of the demonic seed signal!

Almost simultaneously!

"Pfft—!"

Zhao Yuan spat out a large mouthful of dark red blood mixed with fine golden light spots! His body was hit as if by a heavy blow, and he fell backward! In his consciousness sea, the demonic seed erupted with blinding light the moment the loophole appeared! Countless more violent and chaotic evil thoughts and illusions, like a burst of flood, surged out through the short-lived loophole, fiercely impacting Zhao Yuan's soul, which was already on the verge of its limit!

"Hold fast!" Lin Xuan shouted in a low voice, the light of the "Star Essence" fragment in his left hand soaring, the pure star purification power like a torrent, forcibly filling the loophole and suppressing the demonic seed's abnormality. At the same time, his right hand's Chaos Tribulation Power also outputted with all his might, helping Zhao Yuan stabilize his consciousness sea and repair the Nascent Soul cracks that had widened again due to the violent impact.

Zhao Yuan's eyes went black, his ears buzzed, and his consciousness was like a small boat in a storm, which could capsize at any time. The evil thoughts and illusions that surged in instantly were more violent and real than any previous time! He seemed to see a pair of huge, cold, greedy, and infinitely resentful "eyes" in the deepest part of the Return-to-Ruins Sea Eye, staring "fixedly" at him through layers of space! There was even a grand and strange "pulling force," as if to drag him, along with his soul, into the eternal dark abyss!

"Nirvana... stars... I... cannot... fall!"

The final will erupted on the verge of collapse! Zhao Yuan roared like a beast in his throat, his eyes instantly covered with bloodshot, but he stared fixedly, refusing to faint! His remaining Nirvana Sword Intent and star power, at this critical moment of life and death, actually produced a mysterious resonance and fusion! The gray-blue brilliance was no longer distinct, but intertwined into a brand-new Chaos starlight carrying the artistic conception of "cleansing the universe" and "sweeping away evil spirits," like the final dam, dead-set against the terrifying illusion impact and soul pulling!

The stalemate lasted less than three breaths.

The "Chaos maze" was quickly repaired under Lin Xuan's full effort, and the shielding effect was restored. The external evil thought impact and illusions stopped abruptly. The grand "pulling force" also disappeared abruptly like a severed rope.

Zhao Yuan's body went soft, and he collapsed completely on the jade bed, gasping for breath, the bloodshot in his eyes slowly receding, leaving only endless fatigue and lingering fear. The light of his Nascent Soul was dim to the extreme, and the cracks seemed to have widened by a circle, but the Chaos starlight at the core, which fused Nirvana and the stars, flickered exceptionally tenaciously.

"Just now... what was that?" Zhao Yuan's voice was hoarse, carrying palpitations.

Lin Xuan's expression was grave, and he slowly withdrew most of the Chaos Tribulation Power, leaving only the part that maintained basic nourishment. "It is the 'Distortion Core'... It seems to have sensed the existence of the 'Chaos maze' and attempted some kind of... 'reverse erosion' or 'information theft.' Although it was stopped in time, this proves that the monster's perception and reaction ability to homologous power far exceed expectations. And... it seems to have developed some kind of... 'interest' in your and my power."

Zhao Yuan's heart sank. Being "stared at" by such a terrifying existence was definitely not a good thing.

"Today's treatment ends here." Lin Xuan said decisively. "You have reached your limit and need a long recovery. The 'Chaos maze' needs to be re-strengthened and adjusted to prevent similar situations from happening again. And... the fusion change of Nirvana and star power you produced at the last moment just now is very interesting. Perhaps, that is the key for you to resist the demonic seed and even deal with the Sea Eye crisis in the future. Comprehend it well and consolidate this realm."

Zhao Yuan nodded with difficulty, immediately sinking into inward look, carefully savoring the brand-new power artistic conception that erupted in the desperate situation. Although weak, it allowed him to see a completely different path.

Lin Xuan stood up and walked toward the outside of the hall. He needed to immediately inform Wei Gong of the change just now and re-evaluate the danger of the "Distortion Core" and the response strategy. That thing not only possessed primitive will and growth, but could even attempt such exquisite "reverse operation," and its thorniness had upgraded again.

However, just as Lin Xuan was about to step out of the side hall.

In the deepest part of the Return-to-Ruins Sea Eye, covered by heavy monitoring formations.

In that "void of existence," the viscous "fluid" flickering with dark gold and dark purple starlight slowly calmed down the tiny ripples caused by the failure of the "reverse erosion."

That cold primitive will seemed to have become more "focused" and... "active" because of this failed "probe."

It was no longer satisfied with just slowly "moving" and passively absorbing "nutrients."

In the deepest part of its huge "fluid," that thing like an "embryo" wrapped in layers of filthy star evil and blood resentment, inside it, a point of extremely weak, yet real, dark purple "light," gently... flickered.

Immediately after, with this point of "light" as the center, a trace of an extremely subtle, yet carrying a clear "purposefulness," brand-new energy "vein," like a newborn root, quietly protruded from the surface of the "embryo," slowly piercing into the viscous "fluid" around it, attempting to establish a more direct, more efficient... internal "connection" and "circulation."

And with the appearance of this newborn "vein," the energy fluctuation emitted by the entire "Distortion Core" seemed to have undergone some kind of indescribable, extremely tiny "qualitative change."

If it was like a sleeping, slowly growing tumor before, then at this moment, it seemed to have taken a tiny but key step toward some kind of more "orderly," more "active"... life form.

On the deep-sea monitoring formation, the value representing its energy level quietly jumped up a tiny scale that was almost impossible to detect on the originally stable curve.

Fetal movement, beginning in the deepest darkness.