Gou can devour and become a saint in the cultivation world.

Chapter 441 Demonic Contamination

Emperor Qi's expression hardened.

He wanted to see what this fellow Daoist, who had returned from Zhongzhou more than a hundred years later, was really up to.

What does he want to do? Force his way through the Great Qi royal family's protective formation?

That's incredibly disrespectful of them.

Even if this person has profound cultivation, this fourth-order grand formation is not to be underestimated and is enough to withstand the fierce attack of a mid-stage Nascent Soul cultivator.

However, just as Chen Yi was about to crash into that empty array barrier, Emperor Qi's expression suddenly changed drastically.

A blinding golden light suddenly appeared on Chen Yi's hand.

Within that light shone an aura of pure and extreme destruction, the power that could only be generated when a late-stage fourth-tier golden crystal erupted.

That aura was incredibly sharp, like an indestructible divine needle, causing Qi Huang's soul to feel a stinging pain.

He had no doubt that if this attack were to be launched, his fourth-tier Qi Kingdom formation would be pierced with a large hole on the spot, causing irreversible and permanent damage.

Repairing this damage would require resources that would cripple the Great Qi royal family.

"Fellow Daoist, wait a moment, I'll open the door!"

Emperor Qi could no longer care about royal dignity. In his haste, he pulled out a formation plate engraved with intricate dragon patterns from his storage bag and poured his magic power into it.

The array plate emitted a beam of light, which shot into the void in front of Chen Yi.

The once empty space rippled out like water, silently creating a passageway large enough for one person to pass through.

Chen Yi didn't even glance at Emperor Qi behind him before transforming into a streak of light and instantly passing through the passage.

The next moment, he stopped in front of a fourth-order spiritual vein cave where the spiritual energy was almost tangible.

A familiar yet slightly familiar and lively spiritual resonance was faintly emanating from the cave, which was none other than Qin Chengcheng's aura.

Beyond the cave dwelling lies another world.

Nourished by the spiritual energy, exotic flowers and rare herbs exude a refreshing fragrance. A clear stream flows gently by, spanned by a small white jade bridge. The spiritual energy in the air swirls like mist, and every breath is invigorating.

Right there on this grassy field, Qin Chengcheng, dressed in a white dress, knelt on a prayer mat.

In front of her lay a simple and ancient-looking dragon-tail zither.

The strings were being plucked by her slender fingers, and the music produced was not only melodious, but also carried a profound and mysterious charm that resonated with heaven and earth.

More than a hundred years have passed without leaving any trace on her face. Her eyebrows and eyes are still as beautiful as a painting, and her appearance is still as fresh and beautiful as when she was in her twenties. Only her temperament is more ethereal.

Her eyes were closed, and she seemed to have merged with the ancient zither in front of her and with the world around her, comprehending the ethereal way of music.

Chen Yi did not make a sound to disturb them, and stood in the void outside the cave for a long time.

He listened quietly to her piano playing.

Within this music lies her reminiscence of the past, her quest for the Great Dao, and even more so, her inner struggle and confusion at this moment.

Gradually, Chen Yi's brows furrowed slightly.

Qin Chengcheng formed his core earlier than I did back then, and his talent was already outstanding. Now, more than a hundred years later, his cultivation has been honed to the peak of the Golden Core stage, and he is only one step away from breaking through the core and becoming an Infant.

She was using this music to resonate with the heavens and earth, making final preparations for breaking through to the Nascent Soul stage.

However, when her music combined with her spiritual power, attempting to touch the Daoist essence that represented the Nascent Soul realm...

Chen Yi keenly sensed that deep within her soul, there seemed to be a blurry black demonic shadow, hidden and unseen.

The demonic shadow was like a maggot in her bones, silently corrupting her soul. Whenever she tried to communicate with the Dao of Heaven and Earth, the demonic shadow would release wisps of demonic energy, blocking her comprehension and even attempting to distort her Dao heart.

Chen Yi silently calculated with his fingers.

A moment later, his face darkened.

He discovered that if Qin Chengcheng were to forcefully break through to the Nascent Soul stage in his current state, there would only be two possible outcomes.

Alternatively, when breaking through a bottleneck, one might be triggered by the demonic shadow, causing one's soul and body to collapse together, resulting in death and the dissipation of one's spiritual essence.

Either their soul is completely devoured by that demonic shadow, and their body is possessed by a demon from another world, becoming an incarnation of demonic intent.

At this very moment, beneath that picturesque meadow, within Qin Chengcheng's sea of ​​consciousness, a silent war was raging.

Within her soul, the purple thunderous light transformed from the Soul Thunder Divine Power burst forth.

However, no matter how hard she tried, repeatedly unleashing the Soul Thunder, she was always in vain and could not completely shatter the elusive demonic image in her mind.

She had experienced this act of using the power of soul thunder to fight against the demonic shadow countless times.

But with each effort, the results were almost the same.

She didn't know what rank the demonic shadow in her soul was, or why it was so stubborn.

Her current spiritual power, combined with her Soul Thunder Divine Ability, is no weaker than that of an ordinary early-stage Nascent Soul cultivator, yet she still appears so powerless in the face of this demonic shadow.

At this moment, a sense of despair welled up in Qin Chengcheng's heart.

She felt that she might really have no hope of being able to form a normal nascent soul on her own.

unless----

Unless she follows the constant hints from the demonic shadow within her soul and sacrifices her own soul to a terrifying demon known as the "Immaculate Demon Realm".

With the other party's "help," a so-called demonic infant was formed.

But is that still her?

A monster corrupted by demonic energy and branded with the mark of a demon on its soul, even if it possesses the cultivation of the Nascent Soul stage, is no different from a walking corpse.

If Chen Yi were here, I wonder if he would have a solution.

The thought popped into my head uncontrollably.

Back when she was still in the Foundation Establishment stage, it was Chen Yi who removed the soul restriction that had been planted in her mind.

In the next instant, a familiar aura that made her heart tremble suddenly appeared in her senses, startling her from her deep meditation.

She suddenly opened her eyes and saw a tall, handsome young man, the one she had been longing for, quietly looking at her with a slight smile in the void not far in front of her.

"Chen Lang?"

Her voice trembled slightly, filled with disbelief.

No way, I must be hallucinating again because of some inner demon. She just went through a great battle with her soul, and she's mentally exhausted, making her most prone to hallucinations.

"Chengcheng, it's me."

Chen Yi smiled, and with a swift movement, flew forward.

Qi Huang, who had been left out in the cold for half a day, became anxious when he saw that Chen Yi was actually going to meet up with Qin Chengcheng.

He naturally couldn't let the two of them come into contact like that, so he quickly raised his hand and stepped forward to stop them, steeling himself.

"Fellow Daoist Chen, this is a sacred site of our royal family. The spiritual vein cave dwelling has been entered without permission—"

However, he hadn't finished speaking his blustering but cowardly words.

Chen Yi didn't even turn around to look at him. He simply raised his hand and pointed at the cave area where Qin Chengcheng was.

Purple lightning runes appeared out of thin air, intertwining into a net.

The special formation of the Qi royal family that originally locked Qin Chengcheng within the cave was instantly dissolved without a trace under this lightning net, like ice and snow meeting the blazing sun, emitting a faint "crackling" sound.

Immediately afterwards, the lightning runes did not dissipate, but instead recombine in an even more mysterious way, transforming in the blink of an eye into a brand new, high-grade fourth-order lightning restriction array filled with majestic heavenly power, enveloping the entire cave area.

After doing all this, Chen Yi spoke calmly.

"Fellow Daoist Qi, in order to reunite with your Daoist companion, we will not be able to accommodate you here."

"No need to see me out."