The mountain was now in chaos. The tremors had ceased, but the frenzy of the spiritual beasts had only just begun, spreading toward the exit of the Clearwater Mountainss. The creatures trampled everything in their path, leaving behind a trail of destruction and death.
The irony was that the depths of the mountains were nearly empty—and so, what followed the tremors would go unnoticed by all, becoming just another intriguing mystery…
But if any curious eyes had witnessed the process…
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At the destroyed bottom of the valley, where Tang Chun Xi and Lin Xu should have been, there was now a massive glowing sphere rapidly alternating between shimmering silver and blazing gold.
The silver radiated a bone-chilling cold, freezing everything around it—only to be replaced by the gold, searing and scorching. Over time, the alternation grew faster, and the gold became increasingly dominant.
Meanwhile, the condition of both worsened.
At first, the plan seemed to work. The golden flames entered Tang Chun Xi's body, intertwining with the lunar energy flowing from Lin Xu. Swift and brutal, they spread through her, consuming the remnants of the dark aura.
But unfortunately, their arrogance pushed the further. In that same instant, they began targeting and consuming Tang Chun Xi's body directly.
Of course, the lunar energy and the shimmering energy would not allow this. Both acted to protect their mistress's body—which only seemed to infuriate the golden flames further. Arrogantly, they launched an all-out assault.
Flesh, blood, and organs became battlegrounds. The shimmering and silver energies were, at this point, insignificant—mere supplements before the golden energy's greed.
The energies clashed, one by one devoured by the golden flames, which only grew hungrier. As it consumed the dark aura, it tightened its siege around the lunar current flowing from the connection between their bodies, advancing toward its origin: the Dantian!
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At the same time, Lin Xu's heartbeat slowed, and his breathing grew unstable. With each passing moment, the lunar energy coursing through him weakened. Soon, the energy entwined by the flames, now deprived of freedom, began failing in its task of healing and protection.
Then, one of his organs—his spleen—lost the silver layer that had kept it "alive."
"ZZZZzzzz..."
In the failed sections, the spleen began melting into a golden liquid, thick and radiant like molten gold.
The substance seemed to be pure condensed golden flame, hot enough to boil entire rivers!
But this was only the beginning.
With the lunar energy growing weaker and suppressed, other parts of Lin Xu's body lost nourishment and protection. His organs, bones, and fluids began dissolving.
Within moments, only his golden heart remained, encased in a thin silver film barely keeping it beating. The film flickered. There was no doubt—the heart would soon meet the same fate, ending Lin Xu's life!
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Inside Tang Chun Xi's body, the golden flame followed the thread of lunar energy through the complex energy channels. With each passing moment, it covered new areas, leaving behind only a scorching golden layer. After consuming the last traces of the dark aura, the flame settled over the silver aura, severing the flow that had been gathering toward the Dantian.
Indifferent to its origin, the flames sought only the point of highest concentration—and soon, they reached the Dantian!
Now, only Tang Chun Xi's mind and Dantian remained untouched.
The silver and shimmering auras seemed to prepare for a final stand. Both enveloped the Dantian with their last reserves of energy. And just as conflict seemed inevitable, something unexpected happened.
The three energies froze.
The next instant, the shimmering and lunar energies merged like a drill and began spinning, consuming themselves with precision to breach the weakest point of the blockade—then raced toward Tang Chun Xi's mind!
The flames, caught off guard, quickly recovered and launched a full assault, swarming from all directions to devour the escaping energies. At several points, they nearly succeeded, but the fleeing energies always found the weakest spot!
Still, it was only a matter of time before the furious golden flames caught them. Along the way, they consumed two-thirds of the energy—leaving only the portion that seemed to abandon the fight, focused solely on reaching its destination.
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Inside Tang Chun Xi's mind, everything was gray. The dark aura slowly consumed her, having already covered the outer layers. Yet, something was strange.
Despite appearances, the black aura had almost no presence. It was sluggish, silent, and even when the silver and shimmering energies entered, it did not react!
That changed the moment the golden flames arrived.
The instant they entered, both the black aura and the flames froze. And for a moment that seemed to last millennia… they moved.
The black aura stirred, revealing its true nature. The golden flames appeared enraged, exuding disgust, and launched a direct assault on Tang Chun Xi's mind, completely ignoring the silver and shimmering energies.
The black aura hissed and fled without hesitation, racing toward the center—where the shimmering energy had taken refuge.
"Shiiiii!"
The sound echoed as the flames touched the black aura encasing her mind like an egg. In the blink of an eye, they invaded it completely, advancing faster than the dark aura could react.
The black aura seemed… genuinely afraid. Unfortunately (or fortunately), its struggle was futile.
"Shiiiii!"
The sound repeated endlessly. The flames covered the dark aura, but curiously, it did not vanish as it had elsewhere—instead, it lightened, turning translucent and… uncontrolled, surging toward its initial escape route.
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Deep within Tang Chun Xi's consciousness, there was—surprisingly—an endless, strangely active nebula, proving that even in total unconsciousness, a single thought echoed:
'Hold on just a little longer… please…'
It was hard to tell if it was meant for herself, Lin Xu, or both…
But with each repetition, something glowed and shimmered—a jade book: The Harmonic Matrix of Chaos!
The book was active, symbols blazing on its cover and flickering like illusions. The glow intensified until the shimmering and lunar energies approached and entered it.
The technique shone brilliantly and released a cascade of symbols toward the darkest part of the nebula!
And there, astonishingly, was the Lunar Umbrella, riddled with cracks!
The umbrella seemed to respond to the connection. And then—
"BOOOM!"
The night sky within the canopy resonated as the nebula released a wave of energy, replaced by a blinding light. As it faded, the nebula gave way to a shimmering sea, filled with multicolored symbols that spread outward—just as:
The golden flames completely enveloped the black aura, transforming it into something transparent yet brimming with energy, erasing the dark aura entirely. And just as they were about to devour this new transparent energy, they suddenly stopped. Something held them back!
At that moment, the transparent energy began expanding exponentially.
Then, the silver sea arrived—
Pooom!
Like waves crashing against the flames. This time, they were completely submerged. Despite their resistance, they were powerless.
The multicolored wave spread from Tang Chun Xi's body to Lin Xu's. The flames seemed to sense something, but it was too late. They were helpless, even at their origin and source of power. The silver sea followed the lunar energy's path until it reached Lin Xu's heart.
Ironically, had the golden flames not been so greedy—had they severed the connection—the process would not have been so smooth. But their greed cost them dearly: their freedom!
As the symbols touched Lin Xu's flickering golden heart, barely beating, they spread across it and the molten gold that had once been his organs!
Within seconds, the symbols covered the entire golden sea, and the flames were wrapped in the same patterns.
Thus, the phenomenon seemed to calm, leaving only the two embraced bodies, wrapped in their original "seas," their energy connection now strengthened and thicker…
And after all the turmoil, silence followed…
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Outside, the sphere split into two opposing halves—gold and shimmering silver—both covered in the same mysterious symbols.
But the calm did not last.
The symbols, which had pulsed at different frequencies, now began flashing faster and faster. They seemed to communicate—or command—and under their order, the two energies began intertwining, spinning around each other at increasing speed.
Until the transparent energy was drawn into the center of their bodies.
Then, the energies began rotating harmoniously, and for a moment, two fish—one white, one black—seemed to appear before vanishing, dispersing into Tang Chun Xi and Lin Xu…
Outside, the cocoon also spun until a gray hue emerged, growing stronger until it covered it entirely. In the same instant, the cocoon solidified.
But it didn't stop there.
From the solidified cocoon, a torrent of transparent energy erupted!
The energy expanded and expanded, crashing against the surrounding walls like ocean waves, making the earth tremble! That single impact cracked the tunnel that had withstood flames, collapse, and earthquakes!
This potent, transparent sea continued its uncontrollable spread, surging through the only available path—through the tunnel, passing straight through the nearly collapsed formation barrier as if it weren't there, and colliding with the tons of debris and remnants of the passages.
Yet neither the rubble nor the surrounding magma could stop its advance.
Rushing toward the surface…