Projection of the Heavens: I prove my immortality through slaughter.

The moment the Death Crystal was in his hands, a torrent of energy, chilling to the bone yet vast and boundless, surged into Lin Xuan's body, the Death Knight, like the waters of the River Styx bursting its banks! This was not a gentle nourishment, but an almost violent infusion, as if it wanted to freeze and scatter his soul fire.

The body emitted a teeth-grinding "crack," the mournful cry of bones strained under immense force. But instantly, a more refined essence of death, like the most skillful craftsman, swiftly repaired every crack and forcefully strengthened every inch of its structure. On the back where the terrifying knight's lance had pierced, the rusted armor peeled away under the energy's scouring, revealing newly grown armor plates with a cold, metallic sheen, their death runes faintly visible. On the left arm where the howling banshee had corrupted it, the ashen flesh sloughed off, replaced by new, stronger, darker muscle.

The pale green soul fire in his head, as if fueled by a massive amount of fuel, expanded and solidified wildly, its color visibly shifting towards a deeper, colder, ghostly blue! A pressure far more powerful than before involuntarily emanated from his body.

The Dread Knight's powerful spear, capable of piercing steel, and the Banshee's venomous claw strikes, capable of corroding the soul, appeared so pale and powerless in the face of this sudden surge of power, as if they had crashed into a wall of death that was constantly being reinforced and raised!

"Roar?!" A clear look of astonishment and a hint of instinctive tremor emanated from the Dread Knight's soul, and the skeletal warhorse beneath it pawed restlessly with its bony hooves.

Lin Xuan abruptly turned his head, his soul flames, now a ghostly blue, coldly locking onto the terrifying knight. There was no trace of the undead's rage, only an almost absolute calm and control. His right hand, gripping the Death Crystal, tightened its five fingers sharply!

"Buzz—!"

An even more surging and powerful force of death, like a long-accumulated volcano, erupted from his center! A visible, gray-black shockwave composed of pure death energy, carrying a chilling aura that could annihilate all life, rapidly spread outwards!

"Bang!"

The first of the terrifying knights, along with his horse, was struck as if by an invisible giant hammer. He screamed as he was violently thrown back and crashed heavily onto a pile of bones dozens of feet away, producing a series of chilling sounds of bones shattering.

The wailing banshee that grabbed Lin Xuan's left arm let out a shrill scream that could almost tear the soul apart! Its ghostly claw, formed from countless vengeful spirits, melted and disintegrated rapidly under the purest and most refined source of death, like thin ice exposed to the scorching sun, and even its massive spiritual body became dim and illusory!

Taking advantage of the situation, Lin Xuan shook his left arm, completely breaking free from his restraints, and no longer paid any attention to his two defeated opponents. He focused all his attention on his body, guiding the massive torrent of death within him.

Unlike ordinary undead, he did not merely rely on instinct to greedily devour. Instead, using his own powerful divine consciousness, far surpassing that of the undead in this realm, as a pivot, he carefully guided this death energy, much like refining violent spiritual energy in the cultivation world. He attempted to operate it in an orderly manner within the specific meridians of his body, following certain principles of refining spiritual power from the "Star River Qi Refining Technique" (although the meridians of the undead are very different from those of humans, the flow of energy still has its own channels).

What he needed to do was to sift out the chaotic, violent, and bloodthirsty fragments of will from the source of death, belonging to countless fallen souls, leaving only the purest and most fundamental power of the "death" rules. This process was far more difficult than a brutal absorption, requiring extremely delicate control, but the benefits were also obvious—his understanding and control of the power of death was deepening at an astonishing speed. The energy that he had originally used merely through the instincts of his body and fragmented memories began to take on a trace of his own, Lin Xuan's, refined and orderly characteristics.

Time seemed to lose its meaning in this underground space. After an unknown amount of time, when the last fragment of the head-sized death crystal turned to ash and dissipated into the deathly silence, Lin Xuan slowly… stabilized the pale blue, icy soul fire within his head.

He slightly moved his new body, a deep, powerful grinding sound emanating from his joints, as if containing explosive power. The death energy within him flowed like a tamed Styx River through his strengthened meridians, moving with the ease with which he controlled his thoughts. This body had firmly stepped into the level of a high-ranking death knight, and in some aspects, it was even more special due to its extremely condensed energy.

The increase in power did not lead him astray; his consciousness remained as calm as the starry sky. His gaze swept over the ravaged altar. The terrifying knight and the howling banshee had already taken advantage of the chaos during the previous energy burst to escape, and the other low-level undead had long since been reduced to dust in the melee and energy impact.

The objective has been achieved; this matter is now concluded.

He turned and took steady steps, preparing to leave this mountain of bones, which had nurtured the crystallization of death, along the bone path he had come from.

However, just as he stepped out of the altar's perimeter, the sole of his foot landing on the cartilage powder—

"boom!!!"

A deafening roar, seemingly from the heavens above, suddenly came from overhead! The entire massive mountain of bones shook and collapsed violently, as if struck by an invisible hammer of the gods!

Countless white bones that make up the mountain melted and vaporized rapidly, like snowflakes under the sun, under the impact of an overwhelming and irresistible force filled with holiness and purification! The dazzling holy light even penetrated the layers of bone walls, illuminating this perpetually dark underground space in a ghastly white light!

"In the name of the Holy Light, purify all defilement and darkness!" "Let the glory of the Lord cleanse all the sins of this world!" "For the sake of the Supreme Light!"

Loud, orderly chants and shouts, filled with fervent faith and a chilling atmosphere, surged in from outside the Bone Mountain like a tide!

Immediately afterwards, several figures exuding an aura that made even the souls of the dead tremble with fear, extreme disgust, and oppression, surrounded by a dazzling shield of holy light, pierced through the collapsing bone mountain dome like sharp swords tearing through the darkness, and descended upon this core area!

Their attire was distinctive, falling into two distinct styles. One group wore full-body armor of gleaming silver, inscribed with sacred runes, and adorned with a sun emblem symbolizing light on their chests. They wielded longswords or warhammers burning with milky-white holy flames, their eyes sharp as eagles—they were the Templar Knights of the Church of Light. The other group wore white robes embroidered with intricate gold trim, holding staffs or holy scriptures inlaid with large, pure gems. They emanated a powerful aura of holiness—they were the revered divine sorcerers.

The leader was an elderly man with white hair and beard, holding a heavy golden holy book, and a solemn face. His white robes seemed to be woven from light, and the holy light emanating from him was like the most intense midday sun—scorching, pure, and dazzling, carrying an undeniable sense of judgment! Just sensing this aura, Lin Xuan's newly enhanced high-level death knight body still felt an instinctive, deep-seated tremor and intense discomfort! It was as if he had encountered his natural nemesis!

Church of Light!

From the fragmented memories within this body, Lin Xuan immediately recognized the identities of these uninvited guests. They were the mainstream forces in this world of the living, mortal enemies who had fought against the undead calamity for countless years! The holy light power they wielded originated from their faith in a supreme being of light, and it possessed a near-law-like restraining effect on the undead, aggregates of negative energy!

"As expected! Such a dense aura of death energy indicates the gathering of a powerful undead!" The white-robed elder's gaze, like a blazing torch, instantly pierced through the pervasive bone dust, locking onto Lin Xuan, the only one still standing in the arena, radiating a chillingly blue soul flame and overwhelming deathly aura. His voice carried an ancient majesty and chilling killing intent: "Those sinful beings who desecrate life and violate the natural order will ultimately be reduced to eternal ashes under the supreme holy light!"

The golden tome in his hand moved without wind, its pages rustling as it finally settled on a page covered in profound divine runes. Blinding holy light burst forth from the page, rapidly coalescing before him!

"A divine judgment!"

The old man chanted solemnly, and a spear of holy light, condensed to its extreme, seemingly composed of liquid light and carrying the meaning of absolute purification and divine judgment, tore through the air, emitting a shriek like cloth being torn apart, and shot straight at Lin Xuan's head at a speed beyond visual perception! This strike contained not only energy, but also a rule-based annihilation targeting the essence of the undead!

If it were an ordinary high-ranking death knight, or even a lich or terror knight with some intelligence, facing this attack containing divine rules, their will to resist would probably be shattered by the "justice" and "purification" contained in the holy light, and they would be instantly evaporated in despair.

But Lin Xuan's core consciousness is that of a cultivator who has experienced the cycle of life and death, crossed the barrier between the two realms, and witnessed the vastness of the stars and the origin of the world! His resilience, his calmness, and his insight far surpass any undead in this world!

The instant that "divine judgment" touched his body, his powerful divine sense frantically calculated and deduced at an unprecedented speed! In his mind, the profound principles of Yin and Yang, mutual generation and restraint, and the reversal of extremes, which he knew from his previous life, suddenly became clear! Death and light, destruction and life, seem to be two extremely opposing camps, but under the laws of Heaven, is there anything absolute? Isolated Yin cannot produce, and solitary Yang cannot grow! Absolute light may be able to purify the appearance of death, but what if this "death" contains a profound understanding of "life" and a keen insight into the laws governing the operation of "light"?

In a flash, he neither chose to meet its edge head-on nor attempted to completely dodge (the spear of holy light carried a powerful mental lock). Instead, he made a move that caused the pupils of all church members to shrink in disbelief—

He raised his pale yet powerful bony hands, covered in newly formed armor, not to block, nor to attack, but to slowly trace a path in the air before him, imbued with the rhythm of the Dao. The pure, icy power of death within him flowed effortlessly with the movement of his hands, not forming a thick defensive barrier, but rather outlining and coalescing into a slowly rotating yin-yang phantom—a fusion of extreme gray-black and a barely perceptible yet undeniably real, luminous white!

This phantom appears fragile, as if it could crumble at the slightest touch, but as it rotates, it seems to contain some fundamental law of the beginning of heaven and earth and the differentiation of yin and yang, a supreme realm of balance and transformation!

"laugh--!"

The Holy Light Spear of "Divine Judgment," powerful enough to purify high-ranking undead, did not produce the expected earth-shattering explosion and burst of holy light the moment it pierced the slowly rotating yin-yang fish phantom! Instead, it seemed to sink into an invisible swamp and whirlpool, its forward speed suddenly slowing down. The violent holy power and purifying intent attached to it were constantly decomposed, neutralized, and transformed by the ever-flowing, interdependent force field of yin and yang!

A portion of the holy light was neutralized and annihilated by the purest and most yin death power; while another portion was forcibly stripped away and captured by Lin Xuan's supreme divine sense, which reversed the composition of its energy and the frequency of its rules!

"Light... is not merely about pure destruction and purification... At its extreme, it also contains the attribute of 'life,' which nourishes all things, brings hope, and establishes order... Its essence is also a kind of energy, a manifestation of a rule, and may have something in common with the spiritual power of stars and the power of death..."

Lin Xuan's soul fire pulsed at an unprecedented frequency, fully deducing this completely different power system. He felt that the holy light resonated faintly with the nourishing and vast qualities of stellar spiritual power, yet it was more extreme and exclusive.

"Impossible! This...this is absolutely impossible!!" The white-robed elder at the head of the group exclaimed in shock for the first time, his face filled with astonishment and horror as if he had witnessed a miracle collapse. "This undead...it...it's actually resisting...no, it's analyzing the holy light?! What is it?! Is it an incarnation of some ancient evil god?!"

The other church members were even more horrified, their faces turning pale, their hands gripping their weapons trembling slightly. The holy light they had believed in their entire lives, the light they relied on, the light they thought could purify all darkness, had actually been "caught" by a spirit in such a bizarre and illogical way, and was even being "learned" from by it? This completely shattered their understanding!

"Attack together! At all costs! We cannot let it live! It is the greatest blasphemy against the Holy Light and against the Lord!" The white-robed elder recovered from his shock, replaced by overwhelming killing intent and a hint of hidden fear. He roared sharply, his voice becoming shrill with excitement!

All the Templar Knights raised their weapons, which were engulfed in holy flames, and the sorcerers began to chant longer and more powerful divine spells. A more magnificent and terrifying holy light energy began to gather wildly in this space, like a holy storm about to erupt!

However, at this critical moment, the dark blue soul fire in Lin Xuan's eyes suddenly burst out with a dazzling light!

Through that brief but thrilling contact and analysis, although he failed to fully grasp the mysteries of the Holy Light, he had already glimpsed certain specific frequencies of its power operation and weak points in its energy structure!

He decisively abandoned maintaining the extremely mentally taxing Yin-Yang fish phantom (after all, this was simulated with the power of death, not the true way of Tai Chi), and incorporated the valuable insights he had just analyzed about the "resonance frequency" and "structural weakness" of holy light energy into his most skillful attack method at this moment!

With fingers pointing straight out like a sword, the highly compressed power of death condensed at the fingertips into a single, extremely refined gray-black fingertip. But this time, the edge of that fingertip faintly rippled with a faint, shimmering white light, oscillating in a strange, synchronized state with the holy light energy! This was not holy light, but rather an imitation and utilization of the rules of holy light!

"break!"

With a low shout (soul fluctuation), he pointed out that the target was not any of the church members who were on high alert, but the ground beneath their feet, which was made up of countless bones and still contained the holy energy that had seeped in when the holy light bombarded the bone mountain. The two extreme forces intertwined and clashed, forming an extremely unstable energy node!

"BOOM!!!!!"

The condensed finger beam, like a spark igniting a powder keg, instantly plunged into that energy node! The death energy and the remaining holy light energies clashed like fire and water, resulting in a violent, chain-reaction-like conflict and annihilation explosion that far exceeded expectations! The terrifying energy turbulence, like a runaway beast, instantly swept through the entire core area of ​​the collapsed bone mountain! Holy light and death energy intertwined, tore apart, and roared, engulfing everything in a raging tide of destruction!

"Watch out! It's an energy backlash!" "Stabilize the Holy Shield! Protect the Divine Mage!"

Caught off guard, the church members were thrown into disarray by the precise and insidious explosion that came from beneath their feet before they could even unleash their powerful attack! They were forced to roar in anger and raise their holy light shields with all their might to withstand the indiscriminate and violent energy surge.

As the aftershocks of the explosion, orchestrated by Lin Xuan, finally subsided, the scattered bone dust and fragments of holy light slowly settled, leaving only a huge crater and a scene of utter devastation. The members of the Church of Light, though spared thanks to their strength and timely protection, were all covered in dust and their holy light shields flickered erratically, appearing quite disheveled.

Lin Xuan's figure had already vanished without a trace, like a ghost disappearing into the shadows.

The white-robed elder's face was ashen, his chest heaving violently. He stared intently at the direction Lin Xuan had disappeared in, as if he wanted to scorch through that void. He gripped the slightly dimmed holy book tightly in his hand, his withered fingers trembling slightly from the excessive force. Each word seemed to be squeezed out from between his teeth, filled with solemnity and unprecedented apprehension:

"Immediately... report to the regional cardinal with the highest priority! No, report directly to the Holy City! An unprecedented 'anomaly' has appeared in the Scourge, capable of analyzing and even utilizing the rules of Holy Light! This may... be a harbinger of a catastrophe that will sweep across the entire continent!"