I transmigrated to a chaotic world and became the sole player.

The dark gold metal gate was cold and heavy, exuding an aura of ageless vicissitudes and desolation. The carving of the gray dragon on the gate was lifelike, especially its tightly closed eyes, which seemed to contain the power to freeze time and annihilate all things, making it impossible to look directly at.

Standing before the door, Lu Zhao could clearly sense a strong resonance between the Nether Dragon's Reverse Scale in his hand and the groove in the center of the doorway. The Reverse Scale felt slightly warm, and the dark golden light at its center flickered continuously.

"It seems this is the key," Lu Zhao muttered to himself. Without hesitation, he aligned the Nether Dragon's Reverse Scale in his hand with the groove and gently pressed it down.

A soft "click" sounded, as if a mechanism dormant for countless years had been activated.

The reverse scale fit perfectly into the groove, and in an instant, the entire dark gold door suddenly lit up! The gray dragon carving on the door seemed to come alive, and the scales on the dragon's body lit up with gray-gold light one by one, finally converging into the pair of tightly closed dragon eyes!

A deep, resonant dragon's roar seemed to emanate from the depths of the portal.

"Rumble..." The heavy portal slowly and silently opened inward, revealing a passage leading to darkness and the unknown. A dragon's might of annihilation, purer, more ancient, and more... desolate than that outside, surged from the depths of the passage, rushing towards us.

Lu Zhao took a deep breath and stepped into the passage.

The passage wasn't long, and soon the space opened up before him. To his surprise, behind the door wasn't the tomb or coffin he had imagined, but an extremely spacious, circular hall. The hall's dome soared hundreds of feet high, inlaid with countless strange gems emitting a faint gray light, like a miniature starry sky. The four walls of the hall were covered with enormous, incredibly mysterious murals depicting the process of a gray dragon's birth, conquests, and eventual demise, transforming into this "Silent Dragon Tomb."

In the center of the main hall, there were no remains, only a tall, black stone platform. Two things floated atop the platform.

On the left is a fist-sized, constantly rotating gray-gold sphere of light. Within the sphere, countless tiny runes flow like living things, radiating a heart-palpitating Daoist aura.

To the right was a roughly three-foot-long, dark gray-black spearhead, its tip narrow and sharp, its shaft covered in fine cracks, seemingly on the verge of shattering... a broken spearhead? Even in its broken state, this spearhead still exuded a chilling sharpness and a sense of annihilation, as if it had drunk the blood of countless powerful beings and witnessed endless destruction.

"The successor..." An aged, peaceful, yet supremely majestic voice echoed in the hall, seemingly coming from all directions, and resonating directly within Lu Zhao's soul.

"Your ability to come here means that you have refined your reverse scale, borne a portion of my annihilation origin, and... successfully fused with the 'alien power' within you, forging a path that belongs to you."

"My name is 'Jin,' the last guardian of the Nine Nether Dragon Clan. This place is not my final resting place, but rather... my final test and gift for those who follow."

"The sphere of light on the left contains the complete inheritance of the Golden Core chapter of the *Nine Netherworld Annihilation Scripture*, as well as my partial understanding of the Dao of 'Annihilation.' On the right is the spearhead of my weapon from my previous life—the 'Annihilation Dragon Spear.' This spear accompanied me in countless battles, drinking countless lives, before shattering in the final battle, leaving only this broken spearhead, which contains a trace of the 'Annihilation Dragon Spear's' original spear intent and destructive power."

"However, to obtain them, you must pass the final test." The voice turned solemn. "The test is both simple and difficult."

"Step onto the stone platform and touch both of these things simultaneously with your 'Dao'. If your 'Dao' is firm enough to bear this power and responsibility, you will obtain them. If not... your will will be assimilated by 'annihilation' or torn apart by the killing intent of the 'Dragon Spear,' turning into another wisp of dust in this place."

The choice is yours.

The sound faded, and the hall returned to silence. Only the gray-gold orb and the broken spearhead floated silently, awaiting Lu Zhao's decision.

Looking at the two items, Lu Zhao felt no fear, only a strong desire. The complete Golden Core Chapter inheritance! This was crucial to his future cultivation! And the spearhead of the "Silent Dragon Spear," though broken, contained a spear intent and power that was absolutely a terrifying weapon, possibly even a fragment of a spiritual treasure! For him, who lacked powerful offensive magic weapons, the temptation was immense.

But the danger is equally immense. "Jin's" words are by no means an exaggeration. This kind of test left behind by ancient powerful beings is no child's play.

"My path..." Lu Zhao murmured, "Nirvana is its essence, devouring is its application, and my fate is in my own hands."

"If one cannot even pass this test, how can one talk about controlling one's own power, how can one talk about fighting the 'Soul-Devouring Demon Lord,' how can one talk about...climbing to a higher path?"

Without further hesitation, he stepped onto the black stone platform. As he approached, the oppressive aura emanating from the gray-gold orb and the broken spearhead grew stronger, like two heavy mountains pressing down on his heart and soul.

Standing in the center of the stone platform, Lu Zhao took a deep breath and stretched out his hands.

With his left hand, he slowly reached out towards the gray-gold orb.

His right hand, however, firmly grasped the broken, grayish-black spearhead!

"boom!"

The instant his hands touched the sphere of light and the spearhead, two terrifying torrents of will surged into his body and consciousness!

To the left is an endless expanse of gray, deathly silence, a "deathly stillness" where everything returns to nothingness, as if to reduce all his emotions, memories, and even his very existence to nothingness!

On the right, the "Dragon Spear" intent, filled with endless slaughter, destruction, and the annihilation of all obstacles, is imbued with the brutal scenes and overwhelming murderous aura of "Jin" during his lifetime, as he conquered all sides and slew countless powerful enemies, aiming to utterly tear apart and conquer his will!

"Ugh..." Lu Zhao groaned, blood seeping from his seven orifices once more. His body trembled violently, as if he would be crushed into dust by these two terrifying wills at any moment.

"Hold fast to your true self! My path... is annihilation, it is also devouring! And above all... it is myself!"

Under this devastating impact, the Daoist thought of "My fate is in my own hands" deep within Lu Zhao's soul once again erupted with brilliant light! In his dantian, the gray-black "Silent Demon Dragon" Dao Foundation vortex suddenly accelerated its rotation, emitting an indomitable power of devouring and assimilating!

He neither chose to confront it head-on nor to run away. Instead, he proactively merged his will and his "Tao" into the two torrents of will that surged into his body!

He uses "annihilation" to fight against "annihilation," and "devouring" to digest "slaughter"!

He sensed "Jin's" profound understanding of the Dao of "Extinction," and at the same time, he used his own new Dao of "Extinction," which incorporated the characteristics of "Devouring," to verify, question, and even... surpass certain parts of it!

He experienced countless brutal battles contained within the "Dragon Spear," but his will, after enduring the life-or-death ordeal of refining the demonic seed, had become as tempered as steel! He regarded those images of slaughter as whetstones to hone his will, slowly guiding and refining the malevolent energy and destructive intent within them, integrating them into his own "devouring" path, transforming them into an even more formidable offensive will!

This is a silent, yet far more dangerous, clash and fusion.

Time, in this clash and fusion of wills, once again loses its meaning.

After an unknown amount of time, the terrifying torrent of will gradually subsided. It didn't disappear, but rather… it was successfully “accepted,” “understood,” and partially “integrated” by Lu Zhao's will and “Dao.”

The gray-gold orb in his left hand had disappeared, transforming into countless profound runes and information, deeply imprinted in the depths of his soul. It contained the complete Golden Core chapter of the Nine Netherworld Extinction Scripture, as well as some of "Jin's" core understanding of the Great Dao of "Extinction," enough to allow him to progress smoothly in his Golden Core cultivation and even glimpse the path to the Nascent Soul stage.

His right hand gripped the broken, gray-black spearhead tightly. Now, the spearhead no longer repelled him; instead, it emanated a familiar, almost visceral connection. A cold, sharp spear intent, filled with the will of destruction and annihilation, resonated perfectly with the "Annihilation Demon Dragon" Dao Foundation within his body. He could sense that although the spearhead was broken, its essence was extremely high, definitely reaching the level of a spiritual treasure; it was only severely damaged, its power reduced to less than one-tenth. Even so, for him now, it was a terrifying weapon, a veritable trump card! More importantly, the "Annihilation Dragon Spear" intent contained within it would provide immeasurable guidance for his future offensive strategies.

"You, the latecomer...you've passed." The aged voice of "Jin" rang out again, this time with a hint of relief and acceptance. "Your 'path' is unique, and also...resilient. Perhaps, you truly can forge a different path."

"These two things are yours. I hope you will use them wisely and not tarnish the name of 'Nirvana'."

"Furthermore..." the voice trailed off, "In the southwest corner of this 'Silent Dragon Tomb,' there's a highly unstable spatial weak point formed during the great war of yesteryear. Every so often (roughly several years in the outside world), the space there experiences brief disturbances, with a very small probability of leading to the outside world. However, the destination is uncertain; it could be where you came from, or it could be some other dangerous world."

"This is the only clue I can provide to leave the 'Nine Netherworlds'."

"Take care of yourself..."

The last lingering echo of the sound dissipated into the air. The entire hall seemed to grow even more empty and deathly silent with the fading of "Jin's" final will.

Lu Zhao stood quietly on the stone platform, holding the broken spearhead, receiving a massive amount of information in his mind. After a long while, he bowed deeply to the empty hall.

"Thank you for your kind words and guidance, senior. I, Lu Zhao, will keep them in mind."

He knew that this Netherworld Dragon named "Jin" was a true senior master, whose gifts and guidance were akin to a second life for him.

After carefully storing the broken spearhead (which couldn't be refined for the time being and could only be placed deep inside the [Human Skin Pouch]), Lu Zhao left the main hall. Instead of immediately heading to the weak point in the southwest corner of the space, he found a relatively safe place within the "Silent Dragon Tomb" and began his secluded cultivation.

He needed time to digest this astonishing gain, solidify his mid-Foundation Establishment cultivation, familiarize himself with his new power, and begin to comprehend the Golden Core chapter of the Nine Netherworld Extinction Scripture and the spear intent of the "Extinction Dragon Spear".

At the same time, he also needed to wait, wait for the moment when the weak point in that space would become disordered.

"Elder Yun, Elder Xuanjizi... and the people from the 'Soul Devouring Demon Lord'..." Lu Zhao closed his eyes and entered a deep meditative state.

"Wait for me to come out of seclusion...wait for me to go back..."

A new storm may be brewing in the not-too-distant future.