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Chapter 474, Section 482: The Rise and Fall of the Cosmic Era!

Section 482 The Rise and Fall of the Cosmic Era
The golden-black flame barrier surrounding Xu Qinghan emitted ear-piercing screeching sounds as it was sliced ​​by the void storm. Her inner flame power was being rapidly depleted, but she gritted her teeth, her eyes flashing with unwavering determination. She no longer simply resisted; instead, she actively expanded her golden-black Tai Chi vortex, beginning to devour the void storm. The void energy carrying the laws of cutting was decomposed and purified within the golden-black Tai Chi vortex, ultimately transforming into the purest energy to nourish her flame.

She even attempted to "reshape" those phantoms with the power of the Eternal Flame. The golden-black flame, like the chaotic light at the beginning of the universe, enveloped the blurry phantoms. Under the penetration of the flame, those phantoms were no longer simply nothingness, but began to show their former outlines, and even a faint fluctuation of consciousness could be felt.

"We... are unwilling..." A faint thought, like a sigh that has traversed billions of years, entered Xu Qinghan's soul. It was the remnant soul of an ancient civilization that had been obliterated by the Lord of Nothingness. They were twisted by the power of nothingness and stripped of their vitality, but under the illumination of the eternal fire, they briefly regained a sliver of clarity.

Xu Qinghan was deeply shaken. She could feel the endless sorrow and resentment contained within these remnant souls. She knew that this was the "eternity" that the Lord of Nothingness sought—a complete stillness, a tragedy of all things returning to nothingness.

"The eternity of the flame is not an eternity of death, but an eternity of endless life!" she roared in a low voice, and the golden-black flame suddenly erupted, completely enveloping the remnant souls. She did not forcibly "reshape" them into complete beings, because that was impossible. She simply used the flame as a guide to completely integrate their last thoughts, their memories, and their fragments of laws into her own divine soul.

At that moment, she seemed to witness the rise and fall of countless cosmic eras, the birth and demise of numerous civilizations, and the various efforts and sacrifices made by living beings to perpetuate the flame and pursue eternity. These memories became the nourishment for her flame of power and a deeper understanding of the "Tao."

Deep within her soul, the eternal mark shone ever brighter. It was no longer a simple rune, but seemed to have transformed into an ancient altar, upon which burned a golden-black eternal fire, worshipping the endless cycle of life in the universe and the transformation of existence and non-existence of all things.

As she continued to devour and transform the power of nothingness, Xu Qinghan discovered that her connection with the Flame Network was becoming increasingly close. Those faint flames scattered throughout the universe, like countless dancing stars, began to resonate with her under the guidance of the Eternal Flame. She could feel that those who ignited those flames, though residing in different star systems and different civilizations, all harbored a steadfast pursuit of hope and a yearning for life.

"The Fire Network is not merely a transmission of power, but a resonance of wills, a connection of hope!" Xu Qinghan realized this in her heart. She knew that she was no longer alone. Behind her were all the beings in the entire universe who held onto the belief in life and hope.

She continued onward, the pressure growing ever stronger deep within the Void Origin Land. Here, the laws of space had utterly collapsed, and time had lost its meaning. Everything had returned to chaos, to nothingness. Occasionally, she could see some floating debris, once powerful stars or ancient cosmic wonders, now reduced to blurry outlines, on the verge of vanishing completely.

She even sensed an ancient and obsessive "will of nothingness" permeating the place. That will was formless and intangible, yet it could directly erode the soul and extinguish life. It attempted to reduce all existence to nothingness and all thoughts of life to annihilation.

"Lord of Nothingness, are you finally going to show yourself?" Xu Qinghan whispered, her eyes filled with no fear, only boundless determination and fighting spirit.

Suddenly, an anomaly appeared in the deathly silence ahead. It was neither matter nor energy, but an ultimate "order," an "order" forcibly constructed by the power of nothingness. It was like a huge, invisible vortex, sucking in all the surrounding nothingness, and then, in a bizarre way, "nihilating" it, making it disappear completely.

"The Eye of Nothingness!" Xu Qinghan's heart skipped a beat. She had seen records of the Eye of Nothingness in the ancient memories of the Firelink Network. It was one of the ultimate killing formations laid down by the Lord of Nothingness deep within the Origin of Nothingness in order to completely obliterate all existence. It was not a physical entity, but rather woven from countless void laws, capable of turning all existence into "nothingness," and even completely obliterating laws and concepts.

The Eye of Nothingness slowly rotated. It had no pupil, no whites, only a deep, dark expanse, seemingly capable of devouring all light. When it "gazes" upon Xu Qinghan, an unimaginable power of annihilation descends instantly.

The golden-black flames surrounding Xu Qinghan suddenly contracted, transforming into a solidified golden-black rune that enveloped her. The rune resembled the chaotic imprint of the beginning of the universe, possessing both vitality and annihilation, both "existence" and "non-existence."

The annihilating power of the Eye of Nothingness, like an invisible blade, cut into the gold and black runes, producing a piercing scraping sound. Xu Qinghan could feel her nascent power being rapidly consumed; the annihilating power could even directly erode her soul, attempting to obliterate her will.

"The flame burns eternally, life never ends!" Xu Qinghan roared, and the eternal fire within her body suddenly erupted, golden-black light soaring into the sky, making the runes around her even more dazzling.

Instead of resisting head-on, she actively expanded the gold and black runes outward, attempting to envelop the Eye of Nothingness. At this moment, her tinder was no longer a simple defense, but transformed into a power of "devouring" and "transformation."

The Eye of Nothingness seemed to sense the threat, its rotation suddenly accelerating, releasing an even more terrifying power of annihilation. Countless pitch-black chains of nothingness surged forth from the Eye of Nothingness, coiling around Xu Qinghan like living creatures, attempting to completely bind her and then obliterate her.

"The flame of knowledge extinguishes chaos and reshapes the universe!" A flash of understanding crossed Xu Qinghan's eyes. She knew that although the Eye of Nothingness was powerful, it was not perfect. Its pursuit of the ultimate "nothingness" was itself a kind of obsession, an incomplete "Tao".

She abruptly activated the Chaos Fire within her body, and the Eternal Mark between her brows shone brightly. The golden-black flames surrounding her were no longer simply burning, but began to flow in a mysterious trajectory, sometimes transforming into extreme blackness, sometimes into blazing gold, and sometimes into mysterious runes, as if deciphering the secrets of the Eye of Nothingness.

She stretched out her hand, and ethereal, transparent golden-black flames danced in her palm. Instead of directly attacking the Eye of Nothingness, she channeled the power of the flames into the void, simulating the fluctuations of the Eye of Nothingness's laws. Her body became even more ethereal at that moment, as if merging with the Eye of Nothingness.

She could sense that the essence of the Eye of Nothingness was "annihilation" and "return to nothingness," but within it also contained a faint sense of "reconstruction," which was a kind of "order" that the Lord of Nothingness forcibly maintained in the midst of annihilation in order to achieve his goal of "eternity."

"The extinguishing of the flame is not mere destruction, but rather using annihilation as a catalyst to reshape new life!" Xu Qinghan murmured to herself, her voice carrying an inexplicable majesty. She abruptly channeled the power of the golden-black flame into the Eye of Nothingness. Those laws of annihilation that originally obliterated everything began to undergo a peculiar transformation under the permeation of the golden-black flame. A portion of the power of nothingness was devoured and purified by the flame, transforming into the purest energy to nourish it; while another portion, guided by the Chaos Flame, was forcibly "reconstructed," extracting the secrets of "life" from the laws of annihilation, and forcibly "creating" the rudiments of "something" from "nothingness."

The Eye of Nothingness trembled violently, emitting a silent wave filled with anger and bewilderment. It could not comprehend why its power had been reversed and transformed into "life force."

"Tai Chi of the Flame, Reverse the Void!" Xu Qinghan roared, and the golden-black Tai Chi vortex suddenly expanded, completely enveloping the Eye of Void.

The Eye of Nothingness struggled violently within the Tai Chi vortex, unleashing an even more terrifying power of annihilation in an attempt to obliterate it. However, the golden-black Tai Chi vortex was like a bottomless pit, not only devouring the power of the Eye of Nothingness but also decomposing and purifying it in the process, ultimately transforming it into the purest energy to nourish Xu Qinghan's flame.

Even more terrifying, within the golden-black tai chi vortex, the golden portion representing "life force," after devouring the power of the Eye of Nothingness, began to generate new "existence," new "life force." Weak yet incredibly resilient chains of law extended from the golden-black tai chi vortex, attempting to re-"bind" and redefine the Eye of Nothingness.

“You…you dare…” The Eye of Nothingness roared silently. Its “will” trembled violently in the Tai Chi vortex. It could feel that its origin was being forcibly “reversed” by the Tai Chi vortex of the Fire, transforming from “nothing” to “something”.

Xu Qinghan ignored the roar of the Eye of Nothingness and suddenly activated the Golden-Black Tai Chi Vortex to completely disintegrate the Eye of Nothingness.

"Rumble--"

A deafening roar exploded in the silent void, shattering the Eye of Nothingness into countless fragments, which were then completely swallowed up by the golden-black tai chi vortex.

When all was calm, the Eye of Nothingness had completely vanished, leaving only a chaotic region woven from golden and black embers. At the center of this chaotic region, a faint yet incredibly tenacious fluctuation of "life force" slowly spread out.

Xu Qinghan felt the surging power within her body, and her primordial energy was greatly enhanced once again. She could sense that the power of the Eye of Nothingness had been completely absorbed by her, becoming part of her primordial energy. Her abilities of "analysis" and "reconstruction" had also reached an unprecedented level. She could even reconstruct some simple matter from nothingness, although it was only a fleeting moment, it was enough to prove her ability to control nothingness.

"Lord of Nothingness, the killing formation you have laid out will ultimately be unable to stop the eternity of the flame!" Xu Qinghan's gaze was firm as she continued to advance deeper into the land of nothingness's origin.

The deeper one goes, the more bizarre the environment of the Void becomes. There are no stars, no light, only endless darkness and deathly silence. Occasionally, one can see some floating "Void Crystals," formed from the condensation of ultimate void power, capable of obliterating all life. But at this moment, under Xu Qinghan's sensing power, she can perceive that these crystals contain a faint fragment of "order" and "law," traces forcibly left by the Lord of Void to maintain its "eternity."

She even saw some "shadows of nothingness," which were not void creatures, but "conceptual entities" forcibly condensed by the Lord of Nothingness with his powerful will. They had no physical form, no life, only a cold "will of nothingness," and they were like patrolling guards, protecting the core of the land of nothingness.

Each of these ethereal shadows possesses the power to obliterate laws and devour concepts. They are formless and intangible, yet they can directly attack the soul, attempting to reduce all thoughts of "existence" to "nothingness."

The golden-black fire barrier surrounding Xu Qinghan hummed under the attack of the Void Shadows. She could sense that the power of these Void Shadows was purer and more difficult to deal with than the previous Void Storm and Void Eye. They were the manifestation of the will of the Lord of Nothingness, the embodiment of ultimate "nothingness".

"The flame burns eternally, encompassing all things!" Xu Qinghan roared in a deep voice. Instead of resisting head-on, she actively expanded the golden-black tai chi vortex, attempting to envelop these ethereal shadows.

The ethereal shadows emitted a silent shriek as they tried to break free from the shackles of the Tai Chi vortex, but the golden-black Tai Chi vortex was like a bottomless pit, holding them tightly within it.

Within the Tai Chi vortex, Xu Qinghan's power of the Flame and the Void Shadow's will of nothingness engaged in a fierce battle. The Void Shadow attempted to extinguish the Flame, turning it into nothingness; while the Flame sought to purify the Void Shadow, transforming it into vitality.

This is a contest between concepts, a confrontation between "being" and "non-being," and a battle between "vitality" and "extinction."

At this moment, Xu Qinghan's soul reached an unprecedented level of solidity. She could sense that within the will of the Shadow of Nothingness lay the Lord of Nothingness's obsessive understanding of "eternity," as well as its fear of "entropy increase" and "decay." It believed that only complete "nothingness" could prevent the decay of the universe and achieve true eternity.

"Lord of Nothingness, you are wrong! True eternity is not the eternity of death and silence, but the eternity of endless life!" Xu Qinghan whispered in her heart. Although her voice did not come out, it carried a firmness that could shake the void.

She abruptly activated the Eternal Flame, causing the golden-black tai chi vortex to spin at an alarming speed. The ethereal shadows trembled violently within the vortex, and cracks began to appear in their "will," from which faint fluctuations of "life force" seeped.

(End of this chapter)