Chapter 232

The ancient god descendant's soul‑piercing shriek, like an invisible hammer, slammed hard onto everyone's Spiritual Barrier.

Several Star Dust Guards with slightly weaker strength immediately groaned, blood seeping from their mouths and noses, their gazes instantly scattering—clearly their Spirits had suffered heavy damage.

Even experts like Huang Rong and Xingren felt a sudden stabbing pain in their minds, as if countless steel needles were pricking.

Only Li Qingxuan, under the protection of the Life Imprint, saw his Spirit Sea churn violently but did not break.

That verdant light not only shielded him, but with its gentle yet steadfast Life aura, it dispelled the madness and despair contained in the shriek, carving out a small patch of pure ground for his teammates behind him.

"Form the array! Joint Spiritual Power Field Defense!" the Star Speaker Elder shouted hoarsely, enduring the discomfort.

The surviving members immediately huddled, linking their Spiritual Power to construct a fragile yet effective joint barrier, barely withstanding the subsequent spiritual aftershocks.

And at this moment, the ancient god descendant had already moved!

Its massive body displayed astonishing speed disproportionate to its size; countless shadow tendrils on its lower half snapped, and the whole creature darted like a ghost across tens of meters, the claw inserted into the control panel emitting a space‑tearing shriek as it lunged straight for Li Qingxuan's head.

Before the claw wind even arrived, the thick annihilation energy made the air around Li Qingxuan seem to solidify and rot!

Can't take it head‑on!

Li Qingxuan's pupils contracted, his footwork shifted illusorily, and the Space Distortion effect of the Weird Divine Realm instantly activated, creating a subtle fold in the space beside him.

The ancient god descendant's claw grazed his afterimage and swept past, shattering a piece of metal debris behind him into powder.

"Strike its tendons and joints!" Huang Rong shouted sharply, her form scattering like smoke; the next moment she appeared at the ancient god descendant's rear flank, and the wind blades condensed in her hand shot like a downpour at those writhing shadow tendrils.

She had discerned that the creature's movement largely depended on these tendrils.

Xingren was even more direct, turning his whole body into a dark streak of light, his Long Sword brimming with the sharp intent to cleave stars, and thrust straight at the arm joint of the ancient god descendant that was inserted into the control panel.

Attack where they must rescue!

Yan Xin, meanwhile, led a few Rune Masters to quickly lay down simple binding and weakening runes around the area, attempting to restrict the ancient god descendant's movement and energy recovery.

Yet the ancient god descendant's power surpassed imagination!

Facing Huang Rong's assault, it didn't even turn its head; those shadow tendrils, as if possessing independent life, flailed wildly—slapping or coiling—and easily shattered most of the wind blades; the few that struck merely left shallow scars on the tendrils, which instantly healed in the surge of annihilation energy.

As for Xingren's deadly strike, the ancient god descendant merely let out a mocking low growl; at the attacked arm joint, its obsidian‑like carapace suddenly flared with intricate dark‑red patterns, forming an Energy Shield.

"Clang—!"

Xingren's sure‑kill thrust struck the shield, bursting with blinding sparks, yet could not advance an inch!

Instead, the shield's recoil sent his qi and blood surging, hurling him backward.

"Careful! Its defense and recovery are extremely strong!" Xingren steadied his stance in mid‑air, his face solemn as he warned.

The ancient god descendant's head, covered in compound eyes, turned toward Li Qingxuan; its massive jaws opened and closed, uttering meaningless syllables mixed with delirious babble.

It seemed to realize that the individual exuding a Life aura it despised was the greatest threat.

It abandoned further control of the Beacon, retracted its other claw, and both claws struck together, bringing down a barrage of claw shadows like a violent storm upon Li Qingxuan!

Each claw shadow contained annihilating power that erodes everything and mad whispers that disturb the mind!

Li Qingxuan instantly fell into extreme danger! He waved his Changqiang to form an impenetrable barrier; the gray‑green spear light and the dark‑red claw shadows continually collided and annihilated each other.

The Weird Divine Realm unfolded fully, its Fear Aura attempting to strike the opponent's Spirit, its Spatial Shackles straining to slow the foe, and the embryonic Life Praise domain continually purifying the invading annihilation energy and spiritual contamination within his body.

But the gap in strength was simply too vast!

This ancient god descendant's strength absolutely exceeds S‑rank, possibly even higher!

"Pfft!"

A claw shadow broke through the spear‑curtain defense and savagely grabbed Li Qingxuan's shoulder!

Even with the dual weakening of Divine Realm power and Life Energy, that terrifying force still tore through his protective aura, leaving five deep wounds down to the bone, wreathed in black vapor!

The flesh at the wound instantly turned ashen, and the corrosion began to spread outward!

The intense pain and the corrosion of annihilation energy caused Li Qingxuan's movements to falter.

Seizing the opportunity, the ancient god descendant flung open its massive jaws, spewing a tightly condensed, near‑light‑devouring dark‑red energy breath—like a death ray—straight at Li Qingxuan!

"Qingxuan!" Huang Rong's eyes nearly burst; she charged forward heedless of danger, trying to block it.

"Lord!" the Star Dust Guards roared in unison, launching desperate attacks to draw the ancient god descendant's attention.

But all of this was far too slow! The speed of that breath exceeded their reaction limits!

Between life and death!

A flash of ruthlessness crossed Li Qingxuan's eyes; he chose neither to dodge nor to defend, but to undertake a mad act!

He actually rushed forward to meet that breath, channeling all his strength—including the vast vitality stored in the Life Imprint crystal and the core essence of the Weird Divine Realm—into his Changqiang!

"The end of Life is annihilation, and the ruins of annihilation shall sprout Life… With this body, I enact balance!"

He seemed to have an epiphany, and an ancient proverb from the Ancestral Observation Station about Life and annihilation being mutually generative and destructive rose in his mind.

He fused his understanding of the Law of Life with the Weird Divine Realm's characteristic of embracing and evolving all phenomena, forcing them together at this moment!

Upon his Changqiang, it was no longer a single gray‑green or verdant hue, but transformed into a chaotic, ashen mist that seemed to contain the notions of creation and ending!

{Life Praise·Scythe of Extinction}!

This was, in desperation, the first step of his own path—forcibly melding all his power!

"Boom——!!!"

The ashen mist spear tip and the dark‑red breath slammed together!

There was no earth‑shaking explosion, only a mutual erosion and annihilation on the level of law!

The dark‑red breath, like meeting its nemesis, was rapidly decomposed, purified, and consumed by that ashen light!

And the ashen spear light faded at a speed visible to the naked eye!

Finally, before everyone's stunned eyes, Li Qingxuan's Changqiang actually pierced through that deadly breath head‑on, its momentum undiminished, carrying an unstoppable resolve as it ruthlessly stabbed into the ancient god descendant's gaping maw!

"Pfft!"

The spear tip pierced through from behind its brain!

The ancient god descendant's massive body stiffened abruptly, its countless compound eyes filled with incredulous shock… and a hint of instinctive fear!

Its overwhelming annihilating energy and frenzied will, under the spear-light that held both birth and destruction, actually met its nemesis and swiftly dissipated like melting ice.

「Howl……no……possible……」

It let out a final, intermittent spiritual wave filled with unwillingness, then its massive body crashed to the ground, dark-red blood gushing from its mouth, nose, and the back of its head like a fountain, while the terrifying aura surrounding it receded like a tide.

Li Qingxuan knelt on one knee, propping himself up with his Changqiang, gasping heavily.

His face was as pale as paper, the wound on his shoulder still shocking, that blow had nearly drained all his strength and spirit, and it also imposed a certain burden on his Life Imprint and the Weird Divine Realm.

But he won!

In desperation, the weak overcame the strong, he slew a mighty Ancient God Descendant!

「Qingxuan! 」 Huang Rong rushed to his side, quickly taking out a Spirit Secret Elixir to treat his wound.

Xingren, Yan Xin and the others also gathered around, gazing at the fallen Ancient God Descendant, then at the exhausted Li Qingxuan, their eyes filled with shock and lingering fear.

「Quick! Beacon! 」 Li Qingxuan, straining, pointed at the still-operating dark-gold prism.

Yan Xin immediately led the people toward the control console.

After the Ancient God Descendant died, the Beacon's protection seemed to have weakened considerably.

They quickly located the Energy Core and the Signal Transmission Module.

「We need time to break and shut it down! At least ten minutes! 」 Yan Xin quickly judged.

「We'll buy you time! 」 Xingren immediately led the Star Dust Guard in constructing a defense line at the chamber entrance.

The previous battle's commotion was too great; it likely alerted other enemies inside the ramparts.

Li Qingxuan rose with Huang Rong's support, gazing at the Beacon continually spreading its Death Coordinate, then at the corpse of the Ancient God Descendant on the ground, feeling no ease at all.

This was merely the first level.

After shutting down the Beacon, how to break out of this living, hostile Blood and Flesh Furnace and face the terrifying entities of the possibly fully enraged Pseudo-Emperor Legion and the Exile Land becomes the greater challenge.

The expedition, far from over.

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