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

Faced with terrifying attacks coming from all directions—the blood-red bone claws of the Blood Bone Demon's clone, Liu Jingyun's sharp Demon-Slaying Sword Qi, the Li surname scholar's Rain of Light, General Zhao's Blood Fiend Spear, and the insidious spells of that Soul-Devouring Demon Sect squad—Lu Zhao was plunged into an unprecedented predicament.

Above his head, the Blood Fiend Dragon roared and struggled even more frantically, stirring up the entire blood pool into turbulent waves, and the blood fiend energy crashed against his protective spiritual light like a raging torrent.

Beneath their feet, the "Wraith Dragon Soul Crystal" on the altar shone with unparalleled brilliance, radiating a deadly allure and destructive energy, like a star about to explode.

Even in dire straits, Lu Zhao's eyes remained as cold as ice, terrifyingly calm. He didn't try to dodge all the attacks—that was impossible. Nor did he attempt to withstand any attack head-on; that would only hasten his death.

His gaze was fixed on the "Vengeful Dragon Soul Crystal"!

The legacy of the "Jin" senior's will flowed rapidly through his mind. Information about the connection between the "Reverse Scale Pact" and the seal of this place, and the connection with this soul crystal, about how to activate the source of annihilation to purify the resentment, about that dangerous, self-destructive method... all kinds of information were understood, dismantled, and reassembled at an unprecedented speed under his powerful divine sense and the pressure of life and death.

"Since we can't avoid it, we can't stop it... then let's use offense as defense! Let's fight with our lives!"

An extremely crazy idea instantly took shape in his mind!

"By my covenant, I summon your soul! With annihilation as the guide, all things return to nothingness!"

Lu Zhao let out a long howl that was not human, and his hands formed an ancient hand seal that was extremely complex, seemingly containing the ultimate truth of heaven and earth, and filled with an aura of destruction! The "Reverse Scale Pact" between his eyebrows shone brightly, and actually detached from his forehead, transforming into a phantom, gray-gold dragon-shaped light and shadow, which let out a desolate and majestic dragon roar, and pounced on the "Vengeful Dragon Soul Crystal"!

At the same time, the Dao Foundation of the "Silent Demon Dragon" within Lu Zhao's body spun wildly at an unprecedented speed, and the gray-black spiritual energy vortex in his dantian seemed to be burning. All the power—the power of the Silent Dragon Qi, the power of devouring, the power of blood and qi, and even his tenacious divine soul power—was poured into the dragon-shaped light and shadow formed by the "Reverse Scale Pact" in a way that was almost self-destructive!

"roar--!"

"Buzz—!"

"Snap!"

Three distinct voices rang out almost simultaneously!

The Blood Fiend Dragon let out a terrified and painful roar. It felt that the connection between itself and the "Fiend Dragon Soul Crystal" was being forcibly invaded, torn apart, and fought over by a more ancient, purer, and more domineering force of the same origin!

The Wraith Dragon Soul Crystal trembled violently, with the gray-black and dark red light inside intertwining and clashing wildly, emitting an unbearable "humming" sound, and even fine cracks began to appear on its surface!

The gray-gold dragon shadow formed by the "Pact of Reverse Scale" crashed into the Soul Crystal like a prodigal son returning to his origin! In an instant, the massive, corrupted, and distorted energy inside the Soul Crystal was as if a red-hot iron had been thrown into it, causing a violent and chain reaction!

A portion of the purest, yet most violent, resentment and bloodlust, stirred by this sudden, pure, annihilating dragon's might, seemed to have found an outlet, and frantically counterattacked and eroded the gray-gold dragon shadow, as well as surging towards Lu Zhao through some unseen connection!

Meanwhile, at the very core of the Soul Crystal, the most primordial Annihilation Dragon Power, which originated from the remains of an ancient war general and was enveloped in layers of filth, seemed to be awakened and resonated with. It began to resist the filth and attempted to merge with the Gray Gold Dragon Shadow to purify itself!

The terrifying energy of internal and external attacks and the conflict between the old and the new collided violently inside the tiny soul crystal, forming a devastating energy storm!

At that very instant, attacks from all directions arrived!

Blood-red bone claws, demon-slaying sword energy, rain-like clear light, blood-fiend spears, and insidious spells... like a multicolored torrent of death, they slammed into Lu Zhao's location, also affecting the "Vengeful Dragon Soul Crystal" that was flashing wildly and extremely unstable!

"boom--!!!!!!"

An indescribable, terrifying explosion, as if the world had just begun, erupted above the altar! It was the release of destructive energy from the "Wraith Dragon Soul Crystal," its internal energy conflict reaching its peak and then ignited by an external attack! It was Lu Zhao's all-out effort, using the "Reverse Scale Pact" as a catalyst to forcefully detonate a clash between annihilation and resentment!

A sphere of destructive light, over thirty feet in diameter and a mixture of gray-gold, dark red, and various offensive energies, suddenly expanded! A terrifying energy shockwave, like the most violent tsunami, swept wildly from the altar towards the entire cavern and even the entire underground palace!

"Pfft!" "Ah!" "No—!"

The closest cultivators, both in the early and middle stages of Foundation Establishment, whether from the Demonic Sect or the Righteous Path, didn't even have time to scream before their protective spiritual light shattered like paper. Their bodies were instantly torn to pieces by the destructive energy, and their souls were annihilated!

Liu Jingyun, the scholar surnamed Li, General Zhao, the Blood Bone Demon's clone, and the leader of the Soul Devouring Demon Sect squad—all these late-stage Foundation Establishment experts—had their expressions change drastically. They all coughed up blood and flew backward, exerting all their strength to use defensive techniques to barely avoid being swallowed by the core energy of the explosion. However, each of them had torn clothes, weak aura, and were severely injured!

The phantom of the Blood Fiend Dragon let out an extremely mournful howl. Its massive body was violently twisted and dimmed by the impact of the explosion, and more than a dozen of the blood-red chains binding it snapped one after another! It seemed to have suffered a severe injury, but at the same time, because of the partial breakage of the chains, it gained more "freedom". The madness and savagery in its eyes once again overwhelmed the pain, making it even more dangerous!

As the epicenter of the explosion and the instigator of it all, Lu Zhao was the first to bear the brunt of the most terrifying impact!

The grey-gold aura surrounding his body shattered instantly, and the black robe he had stripped from the demonic sect guard turned to ashes in a fraction of a second, revealing his skin underneath, which was also riddled with cracks and charred black. Countless bones in his body were broken, his internal organs shattered, his meridians severed, and blood gushed from his seven orifices. He was thrown back like a rag doll by the energy storm from the explosion, tracing a tragic arc before crashing heavily into the stone wall of a distant cave, embedding himself there, his fate unknown.

However, in this desperate situation on the verge of death, Lu Zhao's consciousness entered a strange "inner vision" state, seemingly transcending the physical body.

He "saw" that the gray-gold dragon shadow formed by the "Reverse Scale Pact" did not completely dissipate at the moment the Soul Crystal exploded. Instead, it carried with it a portion of the purest gray-gold annihilation dragon energy source that had been forcibly extracted and purified from the very core of the Soul Crystal, as well as... the massive amount of energy that, although violent, was of extremely high quality, which was released when the Soul Crystal exploded. This energy forcibly returned, surged into his brow, rushed into his sea of ​​consciousness, and poured into his dantian!

"boom!"

It was as if the world had been created! In his dantian, the gray-black "Silent Demon Dragon" Dao Foundation vortex, which had already reached its limit and was on the verge of collapse, suddenly expanded and grew under the injection of this unimaginably powerful and indescribably pure energy, and then... abruptly collapsed and condensed inward!

A brand new, more powerful, more solid, faster rotating, and more clearly emanating will of annihilation and devouring vortex of gray-black Dao foundation has reformed! Its volume is one-third smaller than before, but the pressure it emits is several times stronger!

Late stage of Foundation Establishment! A natural progression, a breakthrough achieved!

Not only that, his physical body, under the cleansing and repairing influence of the pure, extinguishing dragon energy and massive amounts of energy, was also being reorganized and strengthened at an astonishing speed! The True Dragon Body Forging Technique operated on its own, and faintly, a layer of gray-gold dragon scale phantoms appeared beneath his skin, then quickly disappeared. His bones also developed a faint metallic luster.

Under the dual impact of the "Reverse Scale Pact" and the Soul Crystal Origin, his divine soul spontaneously broke through a bottleneck in the [Divine Refinement Technique]. The strength and refinement of his divine sense surged once more, leading to an unprecedentedly profound understanding of "annihilation" and "devouring," and of the profound mysteries of the *Nine Nether Annihilation Scripture* left by "Jin."

Most importantly, after this frenzied action, the "Pact of Reverse Scale" underwent an unprecedented, profound fusion with his soul and his "Silent Demon Dragon" Dao Foundation. It was no longer an external, potentially dangerous mark, but had truly become a part of his power, a testament and proof of his "Dao." The potential threat of being remotely sensed and controlled by the "Soul Devouring Demon Lord" was greatly weakened, even... temporarily severed, in this collision and fusion at the fundamental level!

"puff!"

Lu Zhao suddenly coughed up a mouthful of foul blood mixed with fragments of internal organs. His consciousness returned from that strange state, and a violent, soul-tearing pain instantly swept through his body. But he could clearly feel the newly generated, even more powerful force within him rapidly repairing his damaged body and dispelling the invading resentful aura.

He struggled to break free from the embedded stone wall, staggered to the ground, covered in blood. Although his breath was weak, his eyes were as bright as stars, with a gray-gold flame burning deep within them.

Looking up, the altar had vanished, leaving only a huge, bottomless, charred crater, its edges still radiating terrifying heat and chaotic energy remnants. The "Wraith Dragon Soul Crystal" was nowhere to be found, only a few dim, cracked crystal fragments remained at the bottom of the crater, along with... a small, fist-sized ball of liquid, ethereal dragon energy essence, emitting a faint but pure gray-gold light, silently suspended.

The entire cave was in ruins, the ground was shaking, huge cracks spread like a spider web, and huge rocks mixed with blood kept falling from the ceiling, as if it would collapse completely at any moment.

With its chains partially broken, the Blood Fiend Dragon gained more freedom and is attacking the remaining blood-red chains and all living things with even greater frenzy, indiscriminately spewing out its Blood Fiend Dragon Breath.

Liu Jingyun, the scholar surnamed Li, General Zhao, and the others, all wounded and still in shock, stared at the epicenter of the explosion, at the charred crater, and then at Lu Zhao, who was covered in blood but whose aura was rising strangely. Their faces were filled with shock, fear, and deep apprehension.

The Blood Bone Demon's main body suffered a severe backlash due to the destruction of his clone and the collapse of his soul crystal. His aura plummeted, and he was currently clutching his chest, staring at Lu Zhao with intense resentment and madness in his eyes. However, he seemed to have been affected by the explosion as well, and for a moment he did not dare to step forward.

"A madman... he's a madman..." someone murmured, expressing the sentiments of everyone present.

Lu Zhao wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, his gaze sweeping over the essence of the annihilated dragon energy, over the frenzied blood demon dragon, over the remaining forces of various factions, and finally, over the collapsing dome and the violently shaking earth.

"This place... is going to collapse." He said in a hoarse voice, stating the obvious fact.

He has already obtained the opportunity and digested most of it. Danger still lurks everywhere, and has become even more deadly due to the Blood Fiend Dragon's loss of control and the collapse of the underground palace.

It's time to leave.

But he knew that leaving would probably not bring peace either.