An invasion from the Abyss? I, a demonic cultivator, laughed.

Chapter 406 Failure
Chu Xiu looked down at his lower abdomen in disbelief.

The tribulation lightning incarnation did not throw out the Chiwen sword, nor was he attacked in any way, but the golden core in his dantian shattered without warning!

No, it wasn't shattered. His golden core wasn't subjected to any external force; instead, it directly transformed into fragments! It was as if the flawless golden core had always been shattered!
"Is this what they mean by 'transcending cause and effect'?"

A bitter smile appeared on Chu Xiu's face.

"How the hell can someone have such a freakish ability?"

It's not that Chu Xiu was careless; it's just that this ability is too outrageous. It ignores cause and effect and directly achieves reality. What's the difference between this and cheating?
"Brother Chen!"

Tuoba Shou leaped up and used the rules of life to try to reshape Chu Xiu's golden core.

He had only used the Tribulation Transformation Artifact once before, which had caused him to consume too much energy; it wasn't that he couldn't use it again at all.

However, even under the influence of the rules of life, the shattered golden core in Chu Xiu's dantian showed no signs of recovery!
Even the most oblivious person could see that Chu Xiu was completely different from before.

His body remained as clear and lustrous as jade, but his aura had suddenly plummeted by several levels. Not to mention his previous power, which was close to that of a Heavenly King, he could barely maintain even the power of a Heroic Spirit! And it was still rapidly declining!
His face was also pale, but his eyes were still fierce. The moment his body recovered, he reached out and grabbed, and his huge divine sense instantly gathered the demonic energy in the ghost realm and turned it into a sharp sword to stab at the tribulation lightning incarnation!

After the prophecy was fulfilled, the tribulation lightning incarnation lost all its special abilities. Its already exhausted soul body was powerless to dodge, and this time it was pierced straight through.

But it still chuckled softly: "Chu Xiu, have you ever thought about why I predicted not your death, but the shattering of your golden core?"

"Because your death will be negated by the Freedom of the Deep Scroll! Only by shattering your golden core can you completely eliminate your threat to the Abyss!"

"My sole purpose in being was to prevent you from affecting the Abyss. Now that my mission is complete, what good is it for you to have passed the trial?"

Its words made Chu Xiu's face turn extremely ugly. It stared intently at its lower abdomen, where the golden core, shattered into countless pieces, lay quietly.

The power of the Law of Life surged around him. These golden cores still contained immense power, but Chu Xiu felt that all connections between himself and these golden cores had been severed. These were no longer the flawless golden cores he had painstakingly cultivated, but merely energy stones filled with energy.

Chu Xiu now felt that his magic power had dropped to the level of a heroic spirit, and this was just the energy remaining in his meridians. As time went by, he would lose all his magic power!
"The game is over." The body of the lightning avatar began to disintegrate, but it still smiled at Chu Xiu with its face that was exactly the same as Chu Xiu's.

"Congratulations on clearing the level."

As soon as he finished speaking, the body of the tribulation lightning completely dissipated, leaving only Chu Xiu standing silently in place.

[Trial mission complete!]

[Task rewards are being settled]

The notification sound rang in Chu Xiu's ears, but this time there was no joy as usual; instead, it was unusually jarring.

He tried desperately to mobilize the magical power within his body, but the shattered golden core showed no reaction whatsoever.

This made his face grow increasingly pale, and he also seemed somewhat incredulous.

My golden core has really shattered?

It just broke like that?
Is my path forward, my future, just like that?

The Golden Core is not flesh and blood that can regenerate, but is formed from Chu Xiu's Dao Foundation. The shattering of the Golden Core also means the end of his Dao path!
Realizing this, Chu Xiu stood there, momentarily stunned.

The other civilizations watched Chu Xiu in silence, none of them expecting such an ending.

“Brother Chen.” Xie Xuanzhao showed a look of reluctance and hesitated, “Brother Chen, you don’t need to be discouraged. If the energy core is shattered, you can start over. Even if the foundation is damaged, you can just switch to a different sequence.”

"If Brother Chen needs it, my daughter can apply to her teacher for an advanced sequence."

Xie Xuanzhao meant that Chu Xiu should choose a path to godhood, so that his profession would be replaced with the profession contained in the path, and he could start over.

But what she didn't know was that Chu Xiu's profession was that of a [MAX] level successor of the demonic path! How could he possibly give that up?

"Brother Chen, do not be discouraged. There is a senior in my clan who failed three times in the Trial of Heroes. Each time he suffered heavy losses, but he persevered and eventually achieved godhood."

"As long as you're alive, anything is possible. At worst, you can start over," Zhu Jiu said, offering words of comfort.

Others also stepped forward.

Chu Xiu stood silently in place for a long time before letting out a bitter smile and cupping his hands in a gesture of respect to the crowd: "Everyone, there's no need to worry. This time, I, Chen, have lost, and I didn't lose unjustly!"

Although he had been constantly reminding himself to be cautious since entering the abyss, the smooth sailing he had experienced had made him subconsciously lower his guard.

Every formidable foe he encountered was defeated by the endless methods of the demonic inheritance, and every seemingly unsolvable trial was safely overcome by his power far exceeding that of his peers.

Especially after acquiring the [Freedom Diving Scroll], he felt as if he had a second life, and his actions became increasingly radical.

Even though he knew the terror of the Tribulation beforehand, and that it was a trial that required special training from a God-King level expert to overcome, he still felt that he was well prepared. Because of the pressure from Astrid, he was eager to start challenging the Abyss.

Of course, this cannot be blamed on Chu Xiu. He is indeed strong enough, strong enough to possess the power of a strong demigod, or even stronger, at the King level!

If even this person isn't qualified to challenge the tribulation, then who is?

It can only be said that this is the limitation of living in a lower civilization; no one informed him about the calamity, so he was unable to make targeted preparations.

Who would have thought that Zed would create a clone of himself that is exactly the same as him to serve as the gatekeeper boss?

This means that the more prepared he is, the stronger the enemy will be! Even if he were to cultivate in seclusion for another hundred years, he still wouldn't be able to overcome it!
The seven additional rules, along with the divine body, are all incredibly powerful, each one presenting a near-certain death situation. This trial has brought them all together!
To be honest, if Chu Xiu hadn't had an extra opportunity in the [Hundred Ghosts Furnace] to undergo tribulation in advance and have a certain resistance to the rules, the tribulation lightning incarnation might not have even needed to make a move to kill him!

Thinking about it this way, it's true that only disciples specially trained by the God-King could possibly pass through safely, because they could be granted [divine artifacts] far exceeding their own power at an early age.

Knowing the difficulty of Zed in advance, suppressing one's own strength, and preparing more "external forces" such as items and equipment are the correct ways to deal with Zed.

If his hasty attempt to undergo the tribulation was due to his carelessness in the early stages of preparation, then his lack of vigilance even after knowing that the tribulation lightning was himself was due to the subconscious carelessness caused by the guarantee of the [Free Deep Dive Scroll].

He did indeed regard the tribulation lightning incarnation as a cunning and formidable enemy, but he did not fully realize that the other party had made comprehensive plans to hunt him down.

Looking back now, when the tribulation lightning avatar activated the first line of the Law of Fate—"Cause and effect have been determined; you were ultimately a step too late"—he had already begun his deception, intending to mislead Chu Xiu into believing that the key to breaking the rules lay in cause and effect.

"This is a lesson I should learn from underestimating the Abyss," Chu Xiu sighed softly.

Of course, these are only part of the reasons. Even if Chu Xiu is fully prepared, he may not necessarily pass.

After all, the difficulty of Zed is simply too abnormal, with an identical copy and the power of rules above Sequence 3.

How could Chu Xiu, without sufficient information, possibly have conceived of a destiny that transcends cause and effect? ​​Even if the tribulation lightning avatar did not mislead him, he would probably still find it difficult to unravel its mysteries.

In that instant, Chu Xiu realized something.

So what if it's perfectly crafted? So what if it's a maxed-out profession?
Before the abyss, we are still ants!
In the billions of years of this universe, how many geniuses have emerged? How many heroes have appeared? And how many experiments have the god-kings conducted with their almost inexhaustible resources over the long course of time?

But the abyss remains.

I was invincible in a small level six civilization, so I thought I was the one who could challenge the abyss. Now that I think about it, how ridiculous that was.

The other civilizations looked at Chu Xiu and sighed silently.

Even though this matter had nothing to do with them, and even though they had successfully obtained the reward of ten million karma points, witnessing the terror of the abyss now felt like a mountain was pressing down on their hearts. Illusory light rose from their bodies, a sign that the mission was over and they were preparing to leave.

"We're leaving now, Brother Chen. These are the coordinates of my civilization in the abyss. You can come find me in the Realm of Life when you have time."

As Zhu Jiu spoke, he cast a spell, and a message flooded into Chu Xiu's mind.

"This contains the coordinates of the [Guiding Lighthouses] of all the Life Domains. However, Brother Chen, if you are from another Divine Domain, you need to teleport through the [Domain Wall] first, and then you need to find a [Location Lighthouse], otherwise you will not be able to determine the coordinates."

“These things are available in civilizations at level seven and above.”

Coordinates are relative; without a known origin, even the most precise coordinates are worthless.

Chu Xiu took the message, cupped his hands in greeting, and Zhu Jiu, seeing that he was not very interested, did not say much, but simply returned the greeting with a fist salute. Then, his figure became ethereal and he left this space.

Next, the other civilization envoys also provided their civilization's coordinates, especially Cat Seven. She didn't seem to look down on Chu Xiu because his Golden Core was shattered. In addition to the coordinates, she also left behind a strange disc.

"This is a positioning star chart. Senior Chen, you can place it in any of the lighthouses and the information within will be uploaded to this divine realm."

"As soon as I receive the message, I will come to find you, senior."

"And this is some self-defense items bestowed upon us by our elders. Please accept them."

Cat Seven then handed over a few more talismans.

"This is a spirit summoning talisman, which can summon the phantom of the ferocious beast contained within to fight enemies. Its power is naturally not comparable to that of the senior, but it is no problem to deal with some petty thieves on ordinary days."

She spoke casually, but Chu Xiu could sense the astonishing power contained within these talismans; they were definitely not ordinary items!
Moreover, she seemed to have taken care of Chu Xiu's broken golden core, as these talismans all possessed their own magical power and could be activated with blood.

Chu Xiu did not have a good impression of this woman, but she was willing to help him when he was down on his luck. Whether it was for investment or some other purpose, Chu Xiu should remember this kindness.

I just don't know if the other party's investment will fall through.

He was in no mood for formalities at the moment, and simply clasped his hands in thanks, saying, "Thank you, young lady."

Cat Seven nodded, said nothing more, and drifted away.

In the end, only Xie Xuanzhao remained.

After giving her contact information like the others, she earnestly said, "Brother Chen, don't be discouraged. Your energy core was broken down by the power of fate, not shattered directly. There may be a chance to recover."

"At least the laws of time can allow Brother Chen to go back in time."

"Let me go back and ask the teacher first."

Chu Xiu grunted in response, not holding out much hope at all.

Leaving aside the fact that the Time Law can even reverse the timeline of a shattered Golden Core, it would at least have to be at the level of a Servant God. Just finding Xie Xuanzhao would take who knows when.

Xie Xuanzhao looked Chu Xiu up and down with her beautiful eyes for a while, and after a slight hesitation, she said, "Brother Chen, please allow my daughter to protect you."

After saying that, she stretched out her fair hand and waved it gently in front of Chu Xiu, saying, "I hereby prophesy that a hundred years from now, I will meet you in the Heavenly Evolution Divine Realm."

Chu Xiu was slightly taken aback: "This is the blessing?"

“Indeed,” Xie Xuanzhao chuckled, “The prediction that we would meet again in a hundred years is to ensure Brother Chen’s safety for the next hundred years, isn’t it?”

Chu Xiu chuckled to himself; he hadn't expected the principle behind the protection to be so simple.

"Thank you, Miss Xuanzhao."

"My daughter awaits you in the heart of the divine realm, fellow Daoist."

Xie Xuanzhao gave a slight bow, and then his figure disappeared into the void.

For a moment, only Chu Xiu remained in the same spot.

[Rewards settled!]

[Item Obtained: 70000000 Causality Points]

[Items obtained: 7 Seeds of Rules (Fate, Change, Destruction, Lust, Life, Cancer, Imitation)]

[The difficulty of the trial has increased significantly! Bonus rewards are being distributed.]

If Chu Xiu, whose Golden Core hadn't shattered, saw this reward, he would probably jump for joy!

A reward of a whopping 70 million Karma Points!!!
This number is a fortune, even for a superstar!

more importantly.
Seeds of Rules! Seven in total!
The Seed of Rules is an opportunity that only awakened beings of high-level civilizations have the chance to possess. Even the Heavenly Kings on Blue Star can only obtain the Godhood Sequence, not the Seed of Rules!
All their power over rules can only be achieved by collecting fragments of rules and comprehending them from scratch!
If the Seed of Rules were to appear in the world, I'm afraid the Heavenly Kings would go bankrupt in pursuit of it!
And the Abyss actually gave out seven of these divine items at once!
Furthermore, each of these rule seeds is an extremely powerful high-level rule! The weakest is at the [God] level! And there are even supreme rules!

"The Seed of Rules contains the relevant sequence of ascension to godhood."

"In other words, as long as I refine a Seed of Rules, my successor in the demonic path will immediately become a corresponding profession and embark on a completely new path, and the predicament of the Golden Core shattering will be easily solved."

"After using 70 million karma points, my lost cultivation will be quickly recovered, and I may even become stronger than I am now!"

With the addition of the Destruction Rule and 70 million Karma Points, it wouldn't be surprising if he suddenly possessed combat power comparable to a Heavenly King!
"This is truly a case of slapping someone and then giving them a treat."

Looking at the prompt before him and sensing the shattered golden core within his dantian, Chu Xiu couldn't help but feel a bitter smile.

Even after his golden core shattered, Chu Xiu still possessed opportunities that others coveted, and he could still stand very high based on his talent.

But he also knew that once he refined the Seed of Rules, he would be returning to the Abyss's system, and would have no chance to resist the Abyss again.

This could probably be considered a kind of arrogant way of persuading someone to surrender.

I'll break your legs, then I'll give you a job as a doorman.

Actually, this isn't a big deal. Dignity? Who can have dignity in the face of something as colossal as the abyss?
On the contrary, it would be arrogant and delusional for a mere hero to attempt to rebel against the abyss.

But for some reason, Chu Xiu was just unwilling to accept it!
After standing there for a long time, his face suddenly twitched, revealing a ferocious expression!
The next moment, Chu Xiu sat down cross-legged, his consciousness connecting to the [Inheritance Hall], and began searching for a way to rebuild his shattered core.

He is not a person who harbors illusions; if there is truly no way to change things, he will accept the facts.

But if you admit defeat now, you'll spend the rest of your life competing with others within the rules set by the abyss, with no chance of ever reaching the top again.

Of course, with Chu Xiu's current cultivation level, talking about the highest level is an understatement; to say he's aiming too high would be an understatement, and it would be utterly presumptuous.

But he knew one thing: he wanted to win back what he couldn't bear to be forced to kneel and admit defeat! Even if his opponent was an abyss that had been unshakable for billions of years!
The abyss has erected almost insurmountable barriers to intercept all beings who wish to cultivate and break through on their own.

Chu Xiu was very curious. What exactly was the Abyss worried about? What kind of scenery and possibilities lay on the other path that He was desperately trying to stop?

(End of this chapter)