Stone Fairy!

At this moment, the stone statue was emitting a cold, eerie light.

Li Qing stood in front of the stone statue.

His figure appeared tiny in front of the enormous stone statue, but his back was ramrod straight.

Li Qing's eyes were closed, her body trembling slightly, as if she were enduring some immense, invisible pressure. Fine beads of sweat seeped from her forehead, sliding down her pale cheeks and dripping onto the ground.

The heart hovered in front of him, slowly rotating, its dark red light intertwining with the blue-white glow of the stone statue.

Li Qing was surrounded by countless Gu worms.

But those Gu worms were dying at a speed visible to the naked eye, as if their life force had been drained away by something.

The old turtle lay in Xie Ning's hair, its emerald green eyes gazing at the huge stone statue, its gaze gleaming.

It looked at it for a long time, very carefully, and then revealed a smile with a hint of disdain.

"I thought it was some kind of Gu God." The old turtle's voice was not loud, as if he was talking to himself.

"So he's just an old guy who survives by relying on his bloodline power."

"Senior," Xie Ning asked in a low voice, "what should we do now?"

The old turtle perched on her shoulder, its emerald eyes slightly narrowed, gazing in the direction where the swarm of insects had disappeared, and remained silent for a moment.

"No rush," the old turtle's voice was calm and slow, carrying a sense of certainty that everything was under control.

"It's not time yet."

It sensed that inexplicable feeling again and confirmed that it was related to the young man in front of it.

Li Qing's consciousness sank into a strange space, surrounded by an endless expanse of gray and white.

In front of him was a huge sphere of light, floating above and slowly rotating.

Faces appeared on the surface of the sphere of light.

The faces were men and women, old and young, some dignified, some sorrowful... densely covering the surface of the sphere of light.

At the very center of these faces, in the most prominent position, there is one face that occupies a quarter of the total area.

It was a man's face, square-faced, with deep-set eyes, exuding an aura of authority that commanded respect without anger.

Those eyes were as black as ink, unfathomable.

At this moment, those eyes were looking down at Li Qing, their gaze thoughtful and chillingly indifferent.

This is the ancestor of the Li people – Li.

That legendary figure who established the Gu Village a thousand years ago, paving a path of cultivation with insects for future generations.

Looking at that face, Li Qing felt no fear, no awe, not even the slightest ripple of emotion.

"Do you really intend to defy the ancestor's will?" Li spoke, his voice booming and echoing in the void, lingering for a long time.

The voice contained a certain power, pressing down on Li Qing's consciousness like an invisible giant hand trying to force him down and make him submit and kneel.

Li Qing's back was straight, and his head was held high, like a sturdy pine tree that refused to bend in the storm.

His lips parted slightly, and his voice was soft but clear.

"Are the wishes of our ancestors always correct?"

A cold glint flashed in Li's eyes.

Are you questioning me?

"What I'm questioning is this rule." Li Qing's voice was flat, as if she were stating a fact.

"For thousands of years, the Li people have offered their bloodline to you. The best descendants of each generation are sacrificed at this altar to become a part of you."

"They should have their own lives, their own paths, and their own choices."

Li Qing paused for a moment: "What did you give them?"

Li's face remained unchanged, but the sphere of light seemed to be spinning faster.

"I gave them strength." Li's voice remained steady, carrying an undeniable certainty: "What has enabled the Li people to survive for a thousand years in the Moyun Mountains, untouched by external enemies and undecimated by time?"

"It is the strength I have given you. Without me, the Li people would have been wiped out hundreds of years ago."

"Power?" Li Qing sneered.

His gaze swept over the faces with their eyes closed, over those who were once his ancestors, once the hope of the Li people, but were ultimately sacrificed here.

"They were devoured by you, became a part of you, lost themselves, lost their freedom. Is this what you call power?"

"You are my descendants, my blood flows in your veins."

"It is only natural that you serve me." His voice was calm and unhurried, as if he were explaining a very simple truth to an ignorant child.

"I will give strength to others so that they may be powerful while they are alive, and your lineage will share in the incense offerings of the entire clan with me."

Li Qing remained silent for a long time before laughing, with a hint of mockery.

"You are not a god," Li Qing said. "You are just a greedy, unwilling-to-die wandering soul."

Li's pupils suddenly contracted, the rotation of the sphere of light accelerated abruptly, and the closed faces simultaneously opened their eyes.

Hundreds of eyes were fixed on Li Qing.

"Arrogant." Li's voice was like the screams of hundreds of people at the same time. The sound exploded, shaking Li Qing's consciousness violently.

"You are nothing but a junior, an ant, a mere mortal who survives only because of my bloodline!"

"What right do you have to question me? What right do you have to defy me?"

Li Qing's body swayed in the sound, but he did not retreat.

"My lineage has worshipped you for over a thousand years; it's time to settle things with me."

Li Qing's body transformed into a streak of azure light, rushing towards the enormous sphere of light.

Li looked at the blue light rushing towards him and couldn't help but laugh, with a contemptuous and mocking air.

He opened his mouth, his grin stretching to his ears, his deep throat like a bottomless pit, radiating a suction force.

The azure light was drawn by the suction force and flew towards the gaping maw.

Li Qing struggled desperately, trying to break free from the suction force, but in the end, the blue light still entered Li's mouth.

Li closed his mouth, his Adam's apple bobbing as if he were swallowing something. A satisfied expression appeared on his face, as if he had enjoyed a delicious feast.

On the surface of the sphere of light, amidst the hundreds of faces, a new face emerged.

"It tastes good."

But the next second, Li's expression changed.

Li Qing opened his eyes, his dark red pupils slowly rotating on the surface of the light sphere, as if adapting to the new field of vision, or as if confirming his own existence.

His lips curved slightly, revealing a faint smile.

"So this is the power of the progenitor."

A hint of surprise flashed in Li's eyes. He hadn't expected that this junior, after being devoured by him, would not disappear but instead occupy a place in his body.

Without hesitation, Li took action, intending to erase Li Qing's consciousness, just as he would erase everyone else.

Li Qing's consciousness trembled violently under Li's attack, like a candle flame teetering in a storm.

Li Qing resisted with all her might.

Just when he thought he couldn't hold on any longer,

An inexplicable power descended, surging from nothingness and flowing into Li Qing's consciousness.

Li Qing froze abruptly.

"This is... demonic power?"

Moreover, Li Qing sensed that it contained two different demonic powers.

Li's expression changed: "What's going on?"

He roared, and for the first time, fear appeared in his voice.

"Is this the demonic power of a great demon?"

His gaze fell upon the old turtle and the green snake standing in the canyon, and he saw the demonic power surging from their bodies, which was continuously flowing into Li Qing's body.

"Is this what you're relying on?" Li's voice was filled with anger and disbelief.

"Why do you rely on a great demon instead of your ancestors?"

Li Qing did not speak.

He didn't know why a powerful demon would help him, but he knew this was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity that might never come again.

Li Qing's consciousness, aided by demonic power, suddenly expanded, reversing the tide and even gradually gaining the upper hand.

Li resisted desperately, mobilizing all his strength in an attempt to suppress this rebellious junior once again.

But Li Qing's power grew too fast. Those two demonic energies were like an inexhaustible source, constantly pouring into his body, making him stronger and stronger.

What terrified Li even more was that strange changes began to appear inside the sphere of light.

The consciousnesses of those descendants who had been devoured by him and were sleeping within him began to stir.

Li Qing felt strands of consciousness, almost fading away, emerging from every corner of the sphere of light, bestowing their last strength upon her.

Although those forces were weak, their sheer number was overwhelming. Hundreds and thousands of tiny streams of light converged together, transforming into a torrent that, along with the two demonic energies, flowed into Li Qing's body.

Accompanying these forces are also intense emotions: resentment, anger, sorrow, and despair.

Li Qing seized the opportunity, and his consciousness transformed into a huge cyan light blade, slashing fiercely towards Li's core.

The sphere of light trembled violently.

Then, everything fell silent.

outside world,

The old turtle and the green snake stared at the young man whose aura was constantly changing in front of the stone statue.

Just now, it was they who injected their demonic power into Li Qing's body.

They could all sense that the young man's consciousness was undergoing a fierce battle.

His aura fluctuated, sometimes strong, sometimes weak, sometimes bright, sometimes dim, and could be extinguished at any moment.

Time passed little by little.

Suddenly, Li Qing frowned, and her dark red eyes slowly opened.

But those eyes revealed an immense sense of vicissitude.

The old turtle's emerald green eyes narrowed suddenly, and the runes on its carapace lit up. The green snake's body tensed, and a hint of alertness flashed in its blood-red vertical pupils.

Just as they were about to make their move, the weariness in their eyes gradually faded, replaced by clarity.

The old turtle and the green snake relaxed.

"It's done."