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

Boom!

The giant sword phantom of Tieshan, driven by the "Mountain Moving Sword Technique", slashed fiercely at the dragon head phantom formed by black demonic energy with the force of splitting mountains and shattering peaks!

There was no earth-shattering explosion, only a muffled, deafening roar, like a giant hammer striking rotten leather. The black dragon head phantom trembled violently, emitting a silent, mournful roar. The viscous demonic energy that made up its body was torn apart and nearly half evaporated by the thick, evil-dispelling sword energy contained in the giant sword! The phantom instantly dimmed, almost dissipating.

However, this illusory dragon head was merely a manifestation of the remnant soul of a demonic dragon combined with demonic energy; it was not a physical entity. Despite this severe injury, it did not immediately perish. Instead, amidst the violent tremors, the two deep, dark red points of evil light between its brows suddenly shone brightly, projecting an extremely condensed, hair-thin, yet emanating a filthy, corrupt, and chaotic aura. Ignoring spatial distance, it instantly shot towards Lu Zhao, who had just regained his footing!

The ray was too fast and too strange, as if it was directly targeting the wisp of dark golden dragon emperor energy within Lu Zhao's body, rather than him as a person! Although Liu Xuanfeng and Tieshan were on guard, the way this ray attacked was too tricky, directly targeting the "energy" rather than the physical body, making it difficult to completely intercept for the time being.

"Watch out!" Liu Xuanfeng shouted sharply, pointing his finger. A condensed sword light arrived first, attempting to cut off the dark red ray.

But it was too late! Just before the dark red ray was about to be struck by the sword light, it suddenly split apart. Most of it was destroyed by the sword light, but there was still an extremely tiny, almost imperceptible wisp, like a bone-deep infection, that pierced through the sword energy barrier hastily set up by Liu Xuanfeng, ignored the blue light of the "Wind-Stabilizing Pearl" and the protective spiritual light on Lu Zhao's body, and even ignored the obstruction of his physical body, directly entering Lu Zhao's brow!

Lu Zhao trembled violently, as if struck by lightning! He felt a cold, viscous will filled with endless resentment and greed burrowing into his sea of ​​consciousness like a venomous snake. It was not meant to destroy his soul, but rather to carry a strange power of assimilation, pollution, and possession, rushing straight towards the swirling dark golden dragon soul phantom deep within his sea of ​​consciousness!

"Not good!" Liu Xuanfeng's expression changed slightly. He did not expect that this remnant soul of the demonic dragon would be so cunning and ruthless. Instead of fighting them head-on, it seized on Lu Zhao as "bait" and used such strange methods to directly attack the source of the dragon energy in Lu Zhao's body! This was no longer a simple erosion of demonic energy, but a higher level of pollution and devouring of power of the same origin!

Within Lu Zhao's sea of ​​consciousness, the world was turned upside down! The will formed by that wisp of dark red ray spread rapidly like a drop of ink falling into clear water, attempting to pollute and assimilate the entire sea of ​​consciousness. Its core target was the dark golden dragon soul phantom that symbolized the imperial way, majesty, and purity!

Sensing the threat, the illusory image of the dark golden dragon soul roared spontaneously, radiating golden light in an attempt to expel the foul power. However, this wisp of dark red will, though subtle, possessed an extremely high essence. The remnant soul imprint of the "Nine Netherworld Demon Dragon" contained within seemed to have an innate corrosive power over dragon energy of the same origin. The golden and dark red light collided and intertwined fiercely in Lu Zhao's sea of ​​consciousness. He felt a splitting headache, as if his soul was being torn apart. His vision blurred, and wisps of black energy seeped from his seven orifices!

"Fortify your spiritual platform, activate the Refining Spirit Technique! Expel the demonic thoughts!" Liu Xuanfeng's fierce shout was like a thunderclap, exploding in Lu Zhao's ears. At the same time, a clear and pure sword intent surged into Lu Zhao's sea of ​​consciousness like a sweet spring, temporarily protecting the clarity of his spiritual platform.

Despite the excruciating pain in his soul, Lu Zhao frantically circulated the spirit-refining method contained within the "Nirvana Heavenly Art"—the Nirvana Visualization Technique. This technique was originally meant to assist in visualizing the true meaning of Nirvana and refining one's divine consciousness. Now, Lu Zhao used it to combat the invasion of demonic thoughts, using the meaning of "Nirvana" to "visualize" the "annihilation" of the filthy demonic thoughts. At the same time, the Nirvana Dragon Qi within his body automatically protected its master, surging into his sea of ​​consciousness and transforming into gray Nirvana Flames, burning and purifying the ever-spreading dark red filth.

The aura of the Dark Gold Dragon Emperor also retaliated spontaneously, its golden light transforming into dragon-shaped chains, attempting to bind and refine the dark red will.

With the combined power of the three forces (Liu Xuanfeng's external sword intent, his own annihilation visualization, and dragon energy), the invading dark red will was finally barely contained from spreading. However, the core point, the remnant soul imprint of the "Nine Netherworld Demon Dragon," was extremely stubborn, like a maggot clinging to a bone, entangled with Lu Zhao's dark gold dragon soul phantom, constantly trying to erode, pollute, and assimilate it.

"roar--!!!"

Outside, the wounded black dragon head phantom became even more ethereal after emitting that strange ray. However, it did not continue attacking Liu Xuanfeng and Tieshan. Instead, it suddenly changed direction, letting out a silent roar filled with resentment and bitterness. The entire phantom abruptly collapsed inward, transforming into an extremely condensed, jet-black thread. Ignoring the suppression of the dual-elemental magnetic divine light, it "whooshed" into the depths of the slowly rotating black vortex in the center of the demonic swamp below, disappearing without a trace!

"Trying to escape?!" Liu Xuanfeng wouldn't allow it to escape again. He shouted fiercely, and the huge Taiji diagram floating above the swamp suddenly pressed down. The two polar magnetic divine light was like a millstone, crushing the black vortex fiercely!

Tieshan roared repeatedly, and the phantom of the giant sword grew even larger, stabbing fiercely towards the center of the vortex!

Boom! Boom! Boom!

A terrifying surge of spiritual energy erupted within the demonic swamp, blasting the dark red swamp mud hundreds of feet high, causing the entire pit to shake violently. The black vortex was largely obliterated by the bipolar magnetic divine light, and then pierced to its core by the phantom of the giant sword, emitting a tearing sound that made one's teeth ache.

However, the remnant soul of the demonic dragon was clearly prepared, or rather, it had previously condensed a phantom of a dragon head to attract attention, risking injury to pollute Lu Zhao's dragon energy, all for this moment of escape!

Just before the black vortex was completely obliterated, it suddenly collapsed inward and then exploded violently! However, the power of this explosion was far less than the previous self-destruction of the demonic shadow; it was more like a self-destructive spatial disturbance.

Most of the impact of the explosion was blocked by Liu Xuanfeng and Tieshan, but at the center of the explosion, a tiny, twisted spatial rift appeared, leading to the depths of the earth! A purer, more chaotic and violent demonic energy leaked out from the rift, and at the same time, a faint, almost imperceptible evil thought belonging to the remnant soul of the demonic dragon disappeared instantly into the depths of the earth along the rift!

"A rift in the earth's veins! It has disappeared into the depths of the earth's veins!" Liu Xuanfeng's face darkened, and his divine sense instantly probed into the spatial rift, only to find that the demonic energy within the earth's veins was tangled and chaotic. The remnant soul of the demonic dragon, like an eel entering the sea, instantly disappeared into the complex network of earth's veins without a trace.

Enraged, Tieshan slashed wildly with his giant sword at the space rift that was slowly healing, evaporating and purifying large swamps of demonic energy, but to no avail.

"We can't catch up." Liu Xuanfeng withdrew his divine sense, his expression grim. The earth's veins were incredibly complex and severely polluted by demonic energy. Venturing deeper rashly would not only make it difficult to track them but could also lead to getting lost within them, or even triggering a monstrous upheaval in the earth's veins, with unimaginable consequences. The remnant soul of that demonic dragon had clearly planned this all along. At the cost of abandoning its body, which was mostly formed from demonic energy, it sent its core remnant soul, along with a wisp of dragon energy "stolen" or "polluted" from Lu Zhao, into the depths of the earth's veins in search of a sliver of life.

"Damn it! That bastard got away again!" Tieshan roared in anger, slamming his giant sword into the charred rock wall, carving a deep ravine.

Ignoring Tieshan's rage, Liu Xuanfeng flashed to Lu Zhao's side. At this moment, Lu Zhao's face was as pale as paper, with a faint wisp of dark red energy lingering between his brows. His aura fluctuated, sometimes revealing a dark golden light, and sometimes suppressed by a trace of gray and desolate intent, but more than anything, it was a state of chaos and pain.

Liu Xuanfeng placed his hand on Lu Zhao's wrist, and a pure and peaceful sword energy probed into his body, examining him carefully. After a moment, he frowned and said in a deep voice, "This is troublesome. That remnant soul of the demonic dragon is indeed cunning. Despite being injured, it separated a wisp of its will containing its original imprint, invading your sea of ​​consciousness and intertwining with the dragon energy within you. This is not simple demonic energy, but a source of pollution containing its remnant soul's mark, intending to corrupt and assimilate your dragon energy, and may even transform you into its puppet or clone!"

Upon hearing this, Tieshan disregarded his anger and leaned closer to ask, "Senior brother, is there any way to exorcise it?"

Liu Xuanfeng pondered, "This thing is too deeply entangled with the dragon energy of young friend Lu, and its nature is special. Forcibly expelling it with magic power or sword intent may damage the foundation of his dragon energy, or even harm his soul. Unless there is a rare treasure of heaven and earth that is extremely yang and pure, or that specifically restrains the pollution of the soul and has a gentle nature, to slowly refine it, or to use the supreme meditation and demon-refining secrets of Buddhism and Taoism, combined with a powerful divine sense, to erase it on its own."

"Then wouldn't that mean..." Tieshan hesitated, looking at Lu Zhao's pained expression. Pure and yang treasures are rare enough, but those with gentle properties that don't harm the dragon's foundation are even harder to find. The supreme secret techniques of Buddhism and Taoism are not easily obtained. This boy is probably in danger.

Lu Zhao barely maintained a sliver of clarity at this moment, and his heart sank upon hearing Liu Xuanfeng's words. He knew better than anyone how troublesome that dark red will was; it was not merely an energy pollution, but more like a vicious curse, a devouring desire of the same origin, constantly eroding his dark gold dragon soul, attempting to transform it into a corrupt existence of the same origin as that demonic dragon's remnant soul.

"Master Liu...Master Liu..." Lu Zhao spoke with difficulty, his voice hoarse, "Is there...a way to temporarily suppress...this?"

Liu Xuanfeng looked at him, a complex emotion flashing in his eyes. This young man possessed exceptional character, perseverance, and talent, and had made great contributions in this operation. If he hadn't used himself as bait, they wouldn't have been able to so easily pinpoint the location of the remnant soul and force it to abandon its physical body and escape into the earth's veins once more. Now, however, he was afflicted with such a strange and insidious corruption, his future uncertain…

"Yes," Liu Xuanfeng said in a deep voice, "I can temporarily use the 'Taiyi Dividing Light Sword Intent' to set up a seal for you, temporarily sealing this erosion in a corner of your sea of ​​consciousness to prevent it from spreading. However, this seal is not a long-term solution. As the remnant soul of the demonic dragon recovers in the earth veins, or when your own cultivation breaks through and your divine sense fluctuates violently, the seal may loosen, or you may even be devoured by it. You need to find a solution as soon as possible, or improve the strength of your divine soul and the grade of your dragon energy, so as to suppress evil with righteousness and refine and expel it yourself."

After a pause, Liu Xuanfeng continued, "The 'Ten-Thousand-Year-Old Stalactite' I promised you earlier has the effect of stabilizing your foundation, nourishing your soul, and purifying your spiritual energy. It might be helpful in suppressing this erosion. I will give it to you once this matter is resolved. As for the opportunity in the Xuantian Sword Sect's Scripture Pavilion, it still stands. In addition, I observe that your cultivation technique contains the True Meaning of Annihilation. This state of mind is also remarkably effective in dispelling and suppressing evil spirits and demonic thoughts. You might want to put more effort into this path."

"Thank you... Master..." Lu Zhao felt somewhat relieved. Having a temporary way to suppress it was better than being immediately corrupted into a demon. The ten-thousand-year-old stalactite and the opportunity in the Scripture Pavilion were even more unexpected joys. As for the ability of the True Meaning of Annihilation to suppress demonic thoughts, he had already experienced that earlier.

Liu Xuanfeng said no more, his fingers forming a sword shape, a clear, autumn-water-like light shining from his fingertips, yet containing unparalleled sharpness. His expression was solemn as he pointed a finger at Lu Zhao's brow.

"seal up!"

Lu Zhao felt a chill between his brows. A clear, pure, yet incredibly sharp sword intent, like the most exquisite carving knife, forcefully cut and peeled away the dark red will that was entangled with the dark gold dragon soul, along with a small area around it, in his sea of ​​consciousness. Then, with countless fine sword intent threads, it wove a sword intent cage, sealing it tightly inside!

The crimson will struggled within the cage, emitting silent shrieks, yet it could not break through the seemingly delicate but incredibly resilient threads of sword intent. Lu Zhao's intense pain in his soul was greatly relieved. Although he could still feel a slight ache and coldness between his brows, the feeling of being constantly eroded and assimilated finally disappeared.

"I have temporarily sealed this erosion with the 'Taiyi Dividing Light Sword Intent.' However, this sword intent is fierce, and since it is sealed in your sea of ​​consciousness, you need to constantly nourish and adapt to it with your divine sense. Otherwise, over time, it may damage your own soul. This is like drinking poison to quench thirst; you need to find a way to cure it as soon as possible." Liu Xuanfeng withdrew his fingers, and there was a fine sweat on his forehead. It was clear that performing such a sophisticated seal had taken a considerable toll on him.

"This junior understands, thank you for your help, Master." Lu Zhao felt much more relaxed. Although the hidden danger was still there, it was at least temporarily suppressed. He struggled to get up and bow.

"No need for formalities." Liu Xuanfeng waved his hand, his expression still grave as he looked down at the swamp below, which was gradually calming down but still teeming with demonic energy, and at the spatial rift that was slowly healing. "Although the remnant soul of the demonic dragon was injured and fled again, the hidden danger has not been eliminated, and it has become even more deeply integrated with the demonic energy of the earth's veins, making it more difficult to deal with in the future. Although we were unable to achieve complete success this time, we severely injured it, forcing it to abandon the demonic lair it had cultivated for so long and to flee into the depths of the earth's veins. For the time being, it should be unable to cause any more trouble."

He looked at Lu Zhao, his tone serious: "Young friend Lu, the hidden danger within you is closely related to the remnant soul of that demonic dragon. This demon is extremely obsessed with the dragon energy within you. Although it has been sealed this time, there is no guarantee that it won't make a comeback, or sense your location through this wisp of erosion. You must be extremely careful in your future travels, especially beware of the Netherworld Sect. This place is no longer suitable for you to stay. Once your injuries have stabilized, I will send you away."

Lu Zhao's heart tightened, and he nodded solemnly. The remnant soul of the demonic dragon, as well as the escaped Blood Bone Demon, had become major concerns for him.

"Tieshan, you stay here and oversee things. I will use the 'Dual-Pole Primordial Magnetic Divine Light' to set up a seal, temporarily sealing this rift in the earth's veins to prevent more demonic energy from surging out. Afterwards, you must return to the sect as soon as possible and ask the Nascent Soul Ancestor to decide how to completely purify the demonic energy here and hunt down the remnant soul of the demonic dragon that has fled into the earth's veins," Liu Xuanfeng instructed Tieshan. He then looked at Lu Zhao, "Young friend Lu, you should come back to the city with me as soon as possible to refine the 'Ten-Thousand-Year-Old Stalactite' to stabilize your cultivation and suppress your demonic thoughts. Three days later, I will open the Scripture Pavilion and allow you to enter for three days."

"Yes!" Tieshan and Lu Zhao replied simultaneously.

Liu Xuanfeng said no more, made hand seals, and his body once again lit up with black and white interwoven magnetic divine light, and began to set up a complex sealing restriction around the spatial rift.

Lu Zhao gazed at the sealed crack below, feeling the cold and sharp sword intent sealing between his brows, and the faintly fluctuating dark red demonic thoughts beneath the seal, his heart heavy.

The remnant soul of the demonic dragon remains, posing a deep threat. The road ahead seems even more perilous. However, it is not entirely hopeless. The ten-thousand-year-old stalactite, the Xuan Tian Sword Sect's scripture pavilion, and that "Soul-Nourishing and Spirit-Refining Pill"... we must quickly increase our strength and eliminate this formidable enemy!

He clenched his fist, and a determined light rekindled in his eyes.