One person: Starting with the Snow Drinking Blade

Sunlight, like the most stingy act of charity, struggled to squeeze in, sliver by sliver, from the distant cave entrances and the winding gaps in the mine tunnels, barely illuminating this platform still warm from the recent battle between gods and demons. Within the beams of light, countless tiny dust particles floated and swirled slowly, silently, as if the earth-shaking battle that had purified the evil god was merely a brief, unreal illusion within this ancient darkness.

The platform was a scene of utter chaos, yet strangely clean. Yan Ben's short, stout corpse lay sprawled in a pool of blood, the thin line between his brows no longer bleeding, but congealed into a dark red. Around him lay the remains of his men, most charred in the aftershocks of the battle and the final purifying flames; the few intact were contorted with deathly terror. Broken bone artifacts, fragments of the Yaoxing Society's metal crates, and scattered scraps of paper were mixed in with the scorched earth and ashes. Only the bottomless shaft continued to emit an extremely thin, almost invisible, dark red mist, but the malevolent aura it contained was so faint as to be almost imperceptible, as if the annihilation of the evil god's incarnation had completely severed its connection with the deeper source of evil.

Nie Lingfeng and Chen Duo sat in the center of this platform, a mix of chaos and "cleanliness," near the thickest beam of sunlight. Nie Lingfeng leaned against a crooked stone pillar, its surface runes completely faded, breathing heavily. His face was pale, his hair soaked with sweat and clinging to his forehead. The battle just now, especially the final act of joining forces with Chen Duo to unleash the Purifying Blade with his Qilin True Body, and the burst of energy that resonated with the Phoenix True Fire to burn the evil god's avatar, had almost drained most of his power. Although the fused power was immense, controlling such an explosion that exceeded his current limits was a huge burden on his meridians, spirit, and even the nascent "divine body." He could feel a dull ache in his meridians, and a wave of emptiness and burning fatigue emanating from the core area of ​​his chest where the three divine artifacts had merged.

But more than the physical exhaustion, he was concerned about Chen Duo, who was leaning against him and almost completely nestled in his arms.

Chen Duo was in even worse condition. Her face was deathly pale, her lips slightly purple, and her once clear and bright emerald eyes were now tightly closed, her long eyelashes casting heavy shadows beneath her eyelids, trembling slightly with her weak and rapid breathing. Her clothes were torn in several places, revealing her fair skin beneath, which was bruised and abraded. Most seriously, the warm and pure Phoenix True Fire within her was now like a candle flickering in the wind, so weak it was almost imperceptible, flowing laboriously and intermittently through her meridians, as if it might be extinguished at any moment. Forcibly activating the "Phoenix Nirvana" level purifying True Fire, and enduring the final mental shock and aftershocks of the evil god's avatar's evil energy tide, had taken a toll on her far beyond what Nie Lingfeng had suffered.

Nie Lingfeng gently supported her with one hand to prevent her from slipping, while his other hand remained against her back. He carefully and continuously channeled the last remaining, purest and gentlest portion of his power (primarily the power fused with the characteristics of phoenix blood) into her body like a tiny stream, helping to stabilize her fragile heart meridian, soothe her almost depleted meridians, and nourish her damaged spiritual consciousness. He dared not input too much or too forcefully, fearing that her extremely weak body could not withstand it.

"Duoduo, hold on, don't fall asleep..." Nie Lingfeng whispered in her ear, repeating the words over and over in a voice barely audible to himself, both to tell her and to remind himself to stay awake. He could sense that Chen Duo's life force, though weak, showed no signs of further decline; she had simply fallen into a deep, almost comatose, self-protective dormancy. This was a natural reaction from her body after forcibly unleashing its potential, and also the powerful life force of the Phoenix bloodline repairing itself.

Time, in the deathly silent cave, flowed slowly, measured in heartbeats and breaths.

I don't know how much time passed, maybe an hour, maybe longer.

Chen Duo, nestled in his arms, finally let her long eyelashes tremble slightly. Then, slowly and with great effort, she opened her eyes.

Her emerald eyes, once clear and bright, now appeared somewhat dim and lost, as if veiled by a thin mist. She blinked blankly, her gaze unfocused, before finally settling on Nie Lingfeng's face, who was so close to her.

"...Nie...Lingfeng..." Her voice was extremely weak and hoarse, like a broken bellows, each word seemingly requiring all her strength.

"I'm here," Nie Lingfeng replied immediately, his voice extremely soft and gentle, as if afraid of disturbing her. "Don't speak, take a moment."

Chen Duo seemed to have listened, remaining silent. Her dim eyes, however, remained fixed on Nie Lingfeng, as if confirming his presence and drawing strength and comfort from his gaze. After a long while, she seemed to finally gather a little strength and nodded very slightly, almost imperceptibly. Then, she wearily closed her eyes again, but this time, her breathing seemed a little more even, and her body was no longer as stiff and tense as before; instead, she leaned more relaxed against Nie Lingfeng's chest.

Nie Lingfeng felt somewhat relieved. The fact that she could wake up, recognize him, and respond simply meant that the most dangerous phase was over. What followed was a long period of recovery and recuperation.

He persisted in channeling his inner energy for a while longer, until a wave of emptiness and sharp pain shot through his dantian, at which point he had no choice but to stop. He had to conserve his last bit of strength to deal with any unforeseen circumstances, and... to get Chen Duo out of this hellish place.

He took out the last half-full of water from his backpack (thankfully, the backpack had been left on the edge of the platform during the battle, and although it was covered in dust, it was basically intact), took a small sip to moisten his almost parched throat, and then carefully fed it to Chen Duo little by little. Chen Duo cooperated by swallowing small sips, although most of it dribbled out of the corners of her mouth, but at least she managed to drink some.

After completing these tasks, Nie Lingfeng felt a wave of dizziness and exhaustion wash over him. He forced himself to stay alert and surveyed his surroundings. The platform was deathly silent, save for the occasional wisp of almost invisible red mist rising from the shaft. Yan Ben and his men were all dead; no one else would likely descend anytime soon. This was the deepest part of Mengla Town's underground, and having just experienced such a terrifying battle and purification, the evil aura had dissipated, but the residual energy field remained chaotic. Ordinary townspeople and the remnants of Yan Ben's forces would probably not dare approach for some time.

This place is, for the time being, the safest "refuge".

Nie Lingfeng made up his mind. He and Chen Duo were both extremely weak and desperately needed rest and recovery. Forcing their way out and traversing the treacherous rainforest and the ambiguous town of Mengla was too risky. It would be better to stay here and take advantage of this brief "safe period" to recover some of their strength.

He carefully moved Chen Duo to the warmest spot in the sunlight, where the ground was relatively dry and flat, and helped her lie down, using his coat to cushion her head. Then, he sat cross-legged beside her, closed his eyes, and began to circulate the "Wuqiu Yijue" (a technique for cultivating simplicity and ease), while simultaneously mobilizing the newly formed core of power within his body, which had fused with the three divine artifacts, attempting to draw upon, transform, and restore himself from the surrounding天地元气 (heaven and earth energy), and... from the extremely thin but essentially pure "earth vein energy" that still remained in the vertical shaft.

He discovered that although the source of evil in the shaft had been purified, the well seemed to be connected to some ancient, primal, and vibrant energy vein deep within this land. It had only become that way because it had been corrupted and distorted by evil forces. Now that the corruption was purified, this earth vein energy, though weak, was exceptionally pure and gentle, carrying a sense of Mother Earth's weight and nourishment. For someone like him, who had merged with the bloodline of the auspicious beast Qilin of the "Earth," it was actually an excellent tonic.

He carefully guided wisps of this pure earth vein energy, mixing it with the sparse spiritual energy of heaven and earth, into his body, slowly refining and absorbing it according to the "Easy Refinement Technique." Although the process was slow, with each cycle, he could feel a warm, moist current flowing through his empty meridians, and his weary spirit was nourished. More importantly, this pure earth vein energy seemed to have a peculiar "soothing" and "consolidating" effect on the fusion core in his chest, significantly reducing the instability and burning pain caused by the forced outburst.

Time, in the quiet stillness of the breath, slowly passed once more.

This time, it might be half a day, or it might be a whole night.

When Nie Lingfeng opened his eyes again, the light in the cave had changed. The few beams of sunlight had disappeared, replaced by a colder, thinner, grayish-white light, typical of dawn or dusk, filtering in from the cave entrance. The cave was dimly lit, with only a wisp of pale red mist occasionally drifting from the shaft, emitting an extremely faint, firefly-like glow that barely outlined the platform.

He assessed his own condition. His strength had recovered to about 30%, the stinging sensation in his meridians had largely disappeared, and the fusion with his core had stabilized. Although he was still far from his peak condition, he at least had basic self-defense and mobility. More importantly, his mental fatigue had been greatly alleviated, and his mind had become clear and calm again.

He immediately looked at Chen Duo beside him.

Chen Duo lay quietly, her breathing much more even and deep. A faint trace of color returned to her face, no longer as deathly pale as before. She seemed to still be asleep, but her brows were relaxed, her expression serene, no longer the pain of unconsciousness. Nie Lingfeng gently grasped her wrist, a wisp of his inner energy probing into it. The Phoenix True Fire within her body, though still weak, had begun to circulate slowly and on its own again, repairing her damaged meridians and body. What surprised him most was that the core of the Phoenix True Fire, which had almost been extinguished, was now like a tiny spark rekindled in the ashes. Though small, it was exceptionally resilient and pure, carrying a unique, more restrained, and profound vitality characteristic of someone who had undergone "rebirth."

It seems that her phoenix bloodline is exerting a powerful self-healing ability. This overexertion and trauma may also be a tempering and transformation for her.

Nie Lingfeng felt relieved. He stood up, stretched his stiff limbs, and walked to the edge of the platform to examine Yan Ben's body and the scattered items. From Yan Ben, he found a bulging wallet (containing a considerable amount of cash and several bank cards), a set of keys, and a satellite phone. The satellite phone was out of power. He then examined the fragments of the Yaoxing Society's metal boxes; most were severely damaged, but on a half-burnt piece of paper, he saw some blurry words—"Holy Blood Sample Extraction Log…Batch Seven…Contamination Level 37%…Sent to the 'Parliament' Third Transfer Station…" and a fragment of coordinates, seemingly pointing to a region in northern Myanmar.

As expected, it's the "Council"! The Yaoxing Society, Yanben, and even this "Nanmu Cave" are all part of the "Council's" grand plan! They collect, cultivate, and purify the so-called "holy blood samples" (which are likely those dark green crystals or their derivatives) here, and then send them to some "transfer station." The ultimate goal is probably to obtain the "key" to "go home," or to create more "divine bodies" and "seeds"!