Survival for All: I can deconstruct projections and synthesize everything.

He saw it.

Deep within the Soul Lord's Palace lies a colossal altar.

On the altar, there was a gray statue.

The statue's face was blurred, as if shrouded in an eternal mist.

But on the surface of the statue, a gray light was slowly flowing, like the breath of a sleeping person.

That is a statue of the god of mist.

It is exactly the same as the statue in the headquarters of the Dark Erosion Order.

Beneath the statue, countless soul chains extend from it, connecting to the Soul Master's body.

Those chains are continuously drawing soul power from the main body of the spirit and injecting it into the statue.

The Soul Master's body trembled slightly under the restraint of those chains.

His face was full of pain.

But his eyes were utterly calm.

Lin Xiao's heart sank completely.

He finally understood.

The Soul Clan had long been subdued by the Misty World.

No, it wasn't subjugation—it was control.

The Soul Master's ninth rank was not achieved through his own breakthrough, but rather by a ninth-rank member under the God of Mist who used some kind of secret technique to forcibly elevate him to that level.

The price he paid was that his soul was bound by the statue of the God of Mist, making him a puppet of the Mist World.

Those stories of resistance, those histories of suffering, may all be true.

But the current Soul Master is no longer the leader who never gave up the fight.

At this moment, he was more like a puppet.

He is a puppet controlled by the misty world.

And his purpose in inviting Lin Xiao to the Soul Clan—

From the very beginning, it was all about dealing with Lin Xiao.

Lin Xiao took a deep breath and suppressed the anger in her heart.

He did not rush to act, but quietly withdrew from the palace.

He needs time to develop a plan to deal with the situation.

But in that instant when he turned around—

The Soul Master's voice rang out behind him.

"Alliance Leader Lin Xiao, since you're here, why don't you come in and have a seat?"

The voice was incredibly calm, yet it carried a chilling killing intent.

Lin Xiao paused slightly.

He knew he had been exposed.

Lin Xiao turned around and looked at the Soul Master.

The enormous soul entity hovered in front of the altar, gray light flowing around it, echoing the statue of the god of mist behind it.

His face no longer held the previous respect and enthusiasm; instead, it was filled with a cold calm.

That calmness was like that of someone who had accepted their fate, no longer struggling, no longer pretending.

"You saw everything?" the Soul Master asked, his voice hoarse and low.

Lin Xiao nodded: "I saw it all."

The Soul Master was silent for a moment, then smiled.

That smile carried a hint of bitterness, a hint of helplessness, and a hint of relief.

"In that case, I don't need to pretend anymore."

He raised his right hand, and gray light condensed in his palm, transforming into a huge gray longsword.

Countless fine runes flowed across the longsword, each rune containing the power of a soul attack.

"Lin Xiao, you are very smart. Smarter than any other creature I've ever seen."

His voice was calm, yet carried a hint of genuine admiration.

"But you're too confident. Do you think you can take on the entire Mist World all by yourself?"

"Do you think that destroying the Dark Corruption Cult will change anything?"

You're wrong.

He raised his longsword and pointed it at Lin Xiao.

"The power of the misty world far exceeds your imagination. You can never defeat it."

Lin Xiao looked at him, the Omniscient Rule operating at full power, capturing every subtle change in the Soul Master.

He could sense that although the Soul Master's aura was powerful, it was not stable.

The power that was forcibly elevated to the ninth rank was not fully integrated with his soul.

With each breath he took, his soul power would fluctuate, and those fluctuations were as clear as black dots on white paper in the perception of the miniature universe.

"Perhaps you're right," Lin Xiao said softly, "Perhaps I can't defeat the Misty World."

"But I can beat you."

As soon as he finished speaking, the miniature universe unfolded.

Seven-colored light surged from Lin Xiao's body, condensing into a complete universe in the void.

The power of the five elements was running wildly in the depths of the universe. The five rules of metal, wood, water, fire and earth intertwined to form a huge seven-colored halo.

Wherever the halo passed, the gray mist dissipated and the soul power shattered.

The Soul Master's expression changed slightly.

He sensed that Lin Xiao's miniature universe was even more terrifying than described in the intelligence reports.

It's not just a little stronger, it's much stronger.

After the battle with the High Priest, Lin Xiao's miniature universe was honed in that battle, becoming more solid, more stable, and more powerful.

"No wonder you dared to come alone," the Soul Master said in a deep voice. "So you really do have the confidence."

He took a deep breath, and gray soul power surged wildly around him.

"But do you think you can beat me like this?"

His figure disappeared from the spot.

In the next instant, he appeared in front of Lin Xiao, his gray longsword slashing down towards Lin Xiao's head.

The speed of that sword strike was so fast that even Lin Xiao's omniscient rules could barely catch its trajectory.

But Lin Xiao did not dodge.

He raised his right hand, and seven-colored light condensed in his palm, transforming into a lightsaber that clashed head-on with the gray longsword.

boom--!

The moment the two swords clashed, the entire void trembled violently.

The members of the Soul Clan were thrown away by the shockwave, and countless souls tumbled in the air, letting out mournful screams.

The Soul Master was shaken back several steps, and his hands were trembling slightly.

Lin Xiao also retreated dozens of feet, but his eyes remained firm.

"Not bad," he said softly, "but not enough."

A flash of anger crossed the Soul Master's eyes.

He roared, and his soul power suddenly erupted.

This time, he no longer used physical attacks, but instead employed the Soul Clan's most proficient ability—

Soul attack.

A gray beam of light shot out from between his eyebrows and blasted directly toward Lin Xiao's consciousness.

That pillar of light contained the Soul Master's entire soul power, enough to tear the soul of any eighth-tier being to shreds.

Lin Xiao's pupils contracted slightly.

He could feel the gray beam of light piercing through his body and striking his soul.

The feeling was like countless needles piercing his consciousness at the same time, so painful that he could hardly think.

But his universal true self rule was operating at full capacity at this moment.

A burst of seven-colored light erupted from the depths of his soul, dispelling the gray pillars of light inch by inch.

Although his consciousness was impacted, it did not collapse.

"This is a soul attack?" He gritted his teeth, a cold smile playing on his lips. "Nothing special."

Seeing that Lin Xiao was not greatly affected, the Soul Master's heart sank.