Chapter 997 - 447: The Final Bastion! (Part 2)
He seems to be fighting against some terrifying power!
It is an instinctual resistance from the depths of his soul!
His consciousness struggles painfully between wakefulness and downfall!
He seems to see a Corpse Mountain Blood Sea, hear the wails of countless living beings, witness the collapse of the cosmos, and behold a massive, indescribable dark shadow.
It is descending slowly, carrying endless malice!
"No!"
"I am not a tool!"
"I am not a ’seed’!"
"I am me!"
The youth shouted in his heart, his soul roaring!
He is a prodigy!
He was once the most dazzling star of a powerful sect!
With unparalleled talent, bearing the hope of reviving the sect!
However, a sudden incident made him lose everything.
The sect is destroyed.
Friends and family brutally killed.
He himself severely injured.
In despair, an ancient and cold voice echoed in his mind.
It promised to give him power, a chance for revenge.
The price was to accept the "gift" and become "a part" of a great existence.
Devoured by hatred and despair, the youth agreed.
Thus, a gray mark was deeply branded on his forehead, becoming the source of his power.
Also becoming his eternal curse!
He acquired the power he longed for, even beyond his imagination!
He slaughtered his enemies, destroyed those who once stood high above.
But he gradually realized he was losing himself; the gray mark, like a parasite, was constantly eroding his reason, his emotions, his memories.
Trying to turn him completely into a puppet knowing only slaughter and submission!
Especially recently, as the will of a certain being in the distant void began to awaken.
The mark on his forehead became increasingly active, the erosion from the depths of his soul growing stronger!
He could feel himself slipping step by step towards the abyss.
He was unwilling!
He did not want to become such a monster!
He wants to resist!
Even if hope is slim!
"Blood Burning Secret Technique!"
The youth suddenly opened his eyes!
His eyes were filled with blood threads!
Carrying a kind of mad determination!
He formed hand seals, chanting ancient and obscure spells!
Boom!
In an instant.
The thick blood in the pool boiled instantly as if ignited!
Transformed into scarlet flames!
Madly surging into the youth’s body!
This was a forbidden secret technique he acquired by chance!
It can burn one’s essence blood and even the soul to unleash unimaginable power in a short time!
But the price is extremely enormous!
In minor cases, cultivation regresses and the foundation is damaged, in severe cases, the divine soul is completely annihilated!
At this moment, however, the youth unleashed it without hesitation!
Not to kill the enemy, but to fight against the erosion from the mark on his forehead!
He used this almost self-destructive method to burn away the gray aura trying to control him!
To guard the last trace of his clarity!
Sizzle sizzle sizzle!
The scarlet flames burned wildly within the youth’s body, fiercely clashing with the gray aura!
The youth’s body trembled violently, his skin cracking inch by inch, blood constantly oozing, only to be instantly evaporated by the scarlet flames!
His aura surged madly yet declined even faster!
The flame of life, like a candle in the wind, seemed ready to extinguish at any moment!
But his eyes grew increasingly bright!
The light belonging to "self," amidst this brutal burn, shone even more brilliantly!
"Heh heh."
"Trying to control me?"
"Not that easy."
The youth grinned, the smile fierce and defiant!
He did not know how long he could last; he only knew that as long as he had a trace of consciousness, he would never give up resisting!
He is a prodigy!
He has his pride!
He will never allow himself to become someone else’s puppet!
The scarlet flames continued to burn.
The gray aura seemed to be indeed suppressed slightly by this mad burn.
Though faint, it gave the youth a sliver of hope!.
However, at this moment, in the distant dark void, that giant shadow composed of countless twisted limbs and faces, within it, the gray "face" gradually becoming clear.
In the hollow eye sockets, a ghostly light flickered slightly, as if noticing something.
"Oh?"
"An interesting struggle."
"Attempting to resist the ’gift’?"
An ancient, hoarse voice, carrying a trace of icy mockery.
"What a pity."
"The will of ants."
"In the presence of greatness."
"Ultimately, it’s futile."
As the words fell, an indescribable horrifying will, transcending endless time and space, descended instantly!
Boom!
In the depths of the core of the Withered Star in the Abandoned Star Domain, the boy who was frantically burning himself to resist erosion suddenly froze!
The blood-red in his eyes instantly solidified!
The dazzling light of "self," as if gripped harshly by an invisible hand!
The gray mark on his brow
suddenly burst forth with unprecedented gray light!
That gray light, like a tide
instantly engulfed the blood-red flames!
Engulfed the boy’s body!
Engulfed his consciousness!
"No!"
The boy let out one last desperate, unwilling howl!
But the sound abruptly stopped!
The light in his eyes completely extinguished!
Replaced by a dead silence of gray!
Empty.
Cold.
Without any emotion.
As if a shell that has lost its soul!
The gray mark on his brow slowly rotated, emitting a thicker, more evil aura.
The blood pool continued to churn.
The array continued to operate.
The core of the Withered Star was being endlessly extracted, pouring into this shell that had lost itself.
His aura no longer declined.
Instead, it began to ascend at an eerie speed!
Breakthrough!
Another breakthrough!
As if without any bottleneck!
In just a short moment.
His cultivation.
Leapt across multiple small realms!
Reached an unbelievable height!
But he was no longer that unruly young prodigy; he had become a thoroughly controlled "seed."
A more perfect, more powerful, more dangerous dark vessel!
Southern Celestial Star Cosmos.
Ruins of Kao Mountain Sect.
Deep within the Earth Vein.
Lake of Deathly Silence.
The lake water remained as black as ink, exuding a heart-palpitating aura of death.
In the center of the lake, the figure stood still like a reef.
Xu Ran, with his eyes still tightly shut, as if unchanged for eternity.
However, if someone with a celestial-level cultivation were present, they might detect an extremely slight change.
The deathly silence of the lake seemed deeper than before.
Such deathly silence was no longer mere lifelessness but contained a terrifying "activity" that could devour all life!
Deep at the bottom of the lake, the faint signs of "awakening" seemed more pronounced.
Occasionally, one or two pitch-black bubbles silently emerged from the lakebed and burst.
Emitting a trace of nearly indistinguishable gray aura that merged into the lake water.
And the gray mark on Xu Ran’s brow that was nearly invisible.
At this moment, its flashing frequency seemed slightly faster than before.
Though still faint, it appeared to establish a closer connection with some grander will.
Within his body, it seemed that some force was slowly accumulating and growing stronger with the mark’s flicker.
All of this happened quietly and silently.
No one knew.
No one noticed.
Only the ancient deathly silence witnessed this slow and irreversible change.
Time flows.
Years pass.
To the vast cosmos.
A few years pass like a flick of a finger.
But to beings struggling to survive, it might be a monumental change.
Yu Kong had long left the core area of the Celestial Fall Battlefield, relying on caution and a trace of insight gained from the core area’s resonance.
He traveled through numerous dangers without incident, returning to a relatively safe outer region.
He did not rush to leave the Celestial Fall Battlefield but chose a secluded ruin to continue his cultivation.
The core area’s experience opened a new door for him, offering an unprecedented perspective.
The "guardian" will contained within the dark gold armor.
The fragmented information revealing words like "key," "seed," and "darkness."
Were like stones cast into his mind’s lake, stirring ripples.