171: Chapter 171 Knight's Awakening and the Slaughter of the Remnants of the Soul Eater

Section 1: Initial Exploration of the Ancient Castle: The Encounter Between Knight Traditional Martial Arts and Ancient Marks

The second stop of the traditional martial arts leyline purification plan was chosen at 'Blackstone Ancient Castle' deep in the European Alps. This Gothic castle built in the Middle Ages is recorded in the 'Ancient traditional martial arts Origin Records' as the core site of ancient European 'Knight Traditional Martial Arts.' It houses the 'Knight Mark Stone,' but it had long been forgotten by the world due to a thousand years of wind and snow erosion and the covetousness of Spirit-Devourer remnants.

When Chen Wu's team arrived at the castle, they were greeted by Eric, the president of the local 'Knight Traditional Martial Arts Association.' He was dressed in silver-gray modern knight martial arts attire, with a cross pattern engraved on the hilt of the sword at his waist. On his left hand, he wore a 'Knight Qi Energy Ring' glowing with faint silver light; this was the core token of Knight Traditional Martial Arts practitioners. 'The entrance to Blackstone Ancient Castle is blocked by Ice-Sealed Qi Energy,' Eric pointed to the castle's towering spires. The tips were covered in thick ice, and black Qi Energy could be seen flowing faintly beneath the ice. 'We tried to break the ice with Knight Qi, but we were struck back by the Spirit-Devourer residue beneath the ice. Three team members have already been injured.'

Xiao Juan leaned closer to the ice. The Spirit Fragrance Grass in her palm suddenly trembled slightly, and pale green light condensed at the tips of the leaves: 'There is a cold and fierce Qi Energy inside, but there's also a trace of warm Qi Energy resisting, as if waiting for us to help.' Granny Yao nodded and took out a 'Qi Energy Temperature Gauge' to place against the ice. The instrument showed the internal temperature was as low as -70°C, yet it detected a faint pale gold Qi Energy deep within the castle—the signal of the ancient mark.

'Act according to plan,' Chen Wu assigned tasks. 'Mu Qing, lead the Five Elements Squad and use Five Elements Fire Qi to melt the surface ice. Be careful to control the temperature to avoid triggering the Spirit-Devourer residue. Master Xuankong and Eric will form the defense team, using Zen Energy and Knight Qi to protect the members and prevent backlash. Grandmaster Yang Mingyuan and I will search for the Knight Mark Stone. After activating the mark, we'll use our dual Qi to purify the Spirit-Devourer residue beneath the ice. Xiao Juan and Karim's New Generation Squad will be responsible for Qi Energy monitoring and will alert us immediately if any abnormalities are found.'

Mu Qing's Five Elements Fire Qi was slowly injected into the ice. A pale red light spread across the surface, and the thick snow melted instantly, the ice thinning at a visible rate. When only half a meter of ice remained, dense black patterns suddenly surfaced—the 'Ice-Sealed Curse Formation' formed by Spirit-Devourer residue. The black patterns spread along the direction of the fire Qi, attempting to entwine Mu Qing's arms. Master Xuankong immediately released Zen Energy, and golden light blocked the patterns like a shield: 'This curse formation can absorb Qi Energy and convert it into Spirit-Devouring Energy. It cannot be melted by force!'

Eric suddenly stepped forward and pressed his Knight Qi Energy Ring against the ice, injecting pale silver Knight Qi: 'The Holy Light Qi of Knight Traditional Martial Arts can suppress dark Qi Energy. Let me try!' The silver light spread through the ice. When the black patterns met the Holy Light Qi, they receded rapidly like melting snow, and the pale gold Qi Energy beneath the ice instantly brightened. 'It works!' Eric shouted in surprise. 'Ancient records state that the Origin of Knight Traditional Martial Arts is to protect the light and dispel the darkness, which is completely consistent with the original intent of ancient traditional martial arts!'

In the global live stream of the 'Ancient Castle Exploration,' viewers watched the silver Holy Light Qi and golden mark Qi Energy intertwine. The bullet chat was filled with exclamations like 'Knight Traditional Martial Arts are so cool! The Holy Light Qi is so dazzling!' 'So Europe has ancient traditional martial arts too!' and 'traditional martial arts from different civilizations can actually resonate!' Data from the Technical Department showed that downloads of the traditional martial arts APP in Europe surged by 5 million at this time, with countless European viewers leaving comments saying they 'want to learn Knight Traditional Martial Arts to protect their homes.'

Section 2: Crisis Eruption: The Raid of Spirit-Devourer Remnants and Evil Spirits' Remnant Souls

The ice was successfully opened, and everyone entered the castle interior. The dome of the castle hall was covered in cracks, with sunlight spilling through to form mottled shadows on the floor. In the center of the hall stood a knight statue holding a longsword, the blade pointing toward the ceiling, with the same cross pattern as Eric's ring engraved on it. In a hidden compartment in the statue's base, the Knight Mark Stone lay quietly, glowing with pale gold light. However, as everyone approached, the mark stone's light suddenly dimmed. The castle doors slammed shut automatically, and five figures in black martial arts suits suddenly rushed out from the walls—remnants of the Spirit-Devouring Organization!

'I didn't expect you to actually find the Knight Mark Stone,' the leader of the remnants sneered, holding a 'Evil Spirit Soul Crystal' glowing with black light. 'An ancient evil spirit's remnant soul is sealed within this crystal. Once I combine it with the mark stone, I can activate the castle's Dark Protection Formation, polluting the leylines of the entire Alps with Spirit-Devouring Energy. When that happens, your Ancient Protection Formation will also collapse!'

The leader tossed the Evil Spirit Soul Crystal into the air. Black light exploded in the center of the hall, and countless tiny black Qi energies flew like bats toward the Knight Mark Stone. 'Stop it!' Chen Wu shouted, his dual Qi forming a pale gold and pale green shield in front of him to block the impact of the black Qi Energy. Eric's Knight Qi sword was unsheathed, silver Holy Light Qi condensing on the blade as he slashed toward the soul crystal, but he was blocked by a remnant's Spirit-Devouring Energy. The blade collided with the black Qi, producing a piercing metallic grinding sound.

Even more critically, the knight reliefs on the castle walls suddenly 'came to life.' Possessed by the evil spirit's remnant souls, they transformed into 'Dark Knight Puppets' wielding giant axes. The axe blades glowed with black light as they charged toward the New Generation Squad. 'Xiao Juan! Watch out!' Karim reacted extremely quickly, injecting Pyramid Qi Energy into the Qi Energy Staff in his hand. Pale gold light formed a barrier in front of him, blocking the Puppet's giant axe, but the force of the blow knocked him back two steps, leaving his arms slightly numb.

'The core of these Puppets is the cross pattern on their chests!' Eric shouted. His Knight Qi sword accurately pierced the chest of one Puppet. Silver light was injected along the cross pattern, and the Puppet's movements instantly froze before it shattered into pieces. Master Xuankong used Zen Energy to bind the limbs of another Puppet, while Granny Yao took the opportunity to inject the Nature Qi of the Spirit Fragrance Grass into the Puppet's core. The black Qi Energy was quickly purified, and the Puppet dissipated.

In the global live stream of the 'Crisis Eruption,' viewers watched with bated breath. The bullet chat was filled with comments like 'The Spirit-Devourer remnants are so despicable! Using evil spirits' souls!' 'Breaking Puppets with Knight Qi is so cool!' and 'The New Generation Squad must stay safe!' Data from the Technical Department showed that the number of participants in 'Remote Qi Energy Support' worldwide exceeded 200 million. Pale gold glimmers gathered at the castle through the screens, injecting power into the alliance. Nourished by the remote Qi Energy, the Knight Mark Stone in the center of the hall lit up with pale gold light once again.

Section 3: Joining Hands Across Eras: Breaking the Deadlock with the Fusion of Dual Qi and Holy Light Qi

Seeing the Evil Spirit Soul Crystal about to reach the Knight Mark Stone, Chen Wu suddenly thought of the records in the 'Ancient traditional martial arts Origin Records': 'Dual Qi fuses with foreign Qi, Holy Light breaks the darkness, the mark guides the leylines, and evil spirits have nowhere to hide.' He immediately shouted, 'Eric! Inject your Holy Light Qi into my dual Qi! Let's purify the soul crystal together!'

Eric understood instantly. Silver Holy Light Qi flowed along Chen Wu's arm, intertwining with the pale gold and pale green dual Qi to form a 'Three-Colored Qi Energy Arrow.' Chen Wu aimed the arrow at the Evil Spirit Soul Crystal. The arrow glowed as bright as the sun as it shot toward the crystal. With a 'bang,' the Qi Energy arrow hit the soul crystal. Black light exploded instantly but was firmly trapped by the three-colored light, unable to spread.

'Now! Activate the Knight Mark Stone!' Yang Mingyuan pressed the fusion jade against the mark stone, injecting pale gold and pale green Qi Energy into it. All the cross patterns on the mark stone lit up, and pale gold light spread across the floor of the hall, intertwining with the three-colored light to form an 'Ancient and Modern Traditional Martial Arts Protection Formation.' The light of the protection formation covered the entire hall. Under the influence of the light, the black Qi Energy was purified like a receding tide. The black light of the Evil Spirit Soul Crystal grew dimmer and dimmer, finally turning into tiny particles of light and dissipating into the air.

Seeing that things were going poorly, the remaining Spirit-Devourer remnants tried to break through the doors to escape, but they were blocked by Mu Qing's Five Elements Formation. Pale five-colored Qi Energy formed a barrier in front of the doors. The remnants crashed into the barrier and were bounced back by the Qi Energy. Eric's Knight Qi sword and Lu Feng's Qi Energy Armor-Piercing Gun were pointed at them simultaneously: 'Your plot has failed. Surrender!' The leader of the remnants still wanted to resist, but he was struck in the chest by Chen Wu's dual Qi. The black Qi Energy was forced out of his body, and he finally collapsed, only to be arrested by the special department members who arrived shortly after.

After clearing out the remnants, the group discovered the 'Ancient Manual of Knight Traditional Martial Arts' hidden in the castle's basement. The manual, written on parchment, recorded the complete practice methods of Knight Qi. Among them, the Holy Light Purification Technique shared similarities with Master Xuankong's Zen Energy, and the 'Knight Defense Formation' could be perfectly combined with the Five Elements Formation to form an even stronger defensive system. 'This manual is a treasure of European traditional martial arts!' Eric held the manual, his hands trembling with excitement. 'With it, Knight Traditional Martial Arts can fuse with global traditional martial arts and contribute more power to the protection formation!'

In the global live stream of the 'Moment of Breaking the Deadlock,' viewers watched the brilliance of the Ancient and Modern Traditional Martial Arts Protection Formation. The bullet chat was full of cheers like 'This is so shocking! Dual Qi and Holy Light Qi can actually fuse!' 'The evil spirits are finally purified!' and 'traditional martial arts from different civilizations joining hands is so epic!' Data from the Technical Department showed that the stability of the global leyline protection formation had increased to 99.5%, and the concentration of Spirit-Devourer residue in the Alps had dropped to zero. The traditional martial arts leyline purification plan had achieved another success.

Section 4: New Generation Highlight: Little Guardians of Cross-Civilization traditional martial arts

After the crisis was resolved, Xiao Juan and Karim's New Generation Squad started a 'Cross-Civilization traditional martial arts Mini-Class' at the castle's knight training ground. Xiao Juan taught the young European Knight Traditional Martial Arts practitioners 'Nature Qi Sensing.' She had the children close their eyes and feel the Qi Energy of the castle's leylines with their palms: 'Imagine yourselves as the little knights of the castle. Qi Energy is your armor; it can protect you and others.' The children practiced according to her guidance, and the Knight Qi Energy Rings on their palms gradually lit up with pale silver light. One little girl named Lily could even sense a withered patch of grass in the corner of the training ground and used Nature Qi to make the grass sprout new buds.

Karim taught the children to use 'Pyramid Qi Energy' to strengthen their Knight Qi. He injected Pyramid Qi Energy into the children's swords, and the pale gold light intertwined with the silver Holy Light Qi, making the blades glow even more brightly: 'My ancestors used Pyramid Qi Energy to protect our home, and your ancestors used Knight Qi to protect the light. Now that we've joined hands, we can protect an even wider world.' Holding their strengthened swords, the children practiced basic knight Moves on the training ground. The wind from their swords carried Qi Energy, carving faint trails of light on the ground, a scene full of innocence and power.

Eric watched this scene and said to Chen Wu with a smile, 'I used to think Knight Traditional Martial Arts were unique to Europe, but now I understand that traditional martial arts have no borders. These children are the best proof—they can easily fuse traditional martial arts from different civilizations. In the future, they will surely allow the protective power of traditional martial arts to cross even more boundaries.' Chen Wu nodded and took out 'Origin Qi Energy Cores' derived from the fusion jade to give to Xiao Juan and Karim: 'This is your reward. From now on, you are Global Traditional Martial Arts New Generation Envoys. You must take traditional martial arts from different civilizations to more places and help more children fall in love with traditional martial arts.'

In the global live stream of the 'New Generation Highlight,' viewers were moved by the sight of the children practicing their Qi Energy so seriously. The bullet chat was full of comments like 'Xiao Juan and Karim look so much like teachers!' 'The children are so cute; there's hope for the Legacy of traditional martial arts!' and 'Starting cross-civilization traditional martial arts from childhood is so meaningful!' The Traditional Martial Arts Protection Bureau subsequently announced that it would establish a 'European Traditional Martial Arts New Generation Base' at Blackstone Ancient Castle, with Eric serving as the base director, to regularly organize exchange activities for young traditional martial arts practitioners worldwide and promote the Fusion of cross-civilization traditional martial arts.

Section 5: New Life for the Ancient Castle: The Ancient and Modern Legacy of Knight Traditional Martial Arts

The purification and Awakening of Blackstone Ancient Castle brought new life to European traditional martial arts. Eric led the Knight Traditional Martial Arts Association to perform an 'Ancient and Modern Fusion Upgrade' on Knight Qi based on the manual found in the castle. By integrating the 'Unity of Heart and Qi' from Zen Energy into the Holy Light Purification Technique, purification efficiency increased by 50%. By combining the 'Knight Defense Formation' with the Five Elements Formation, they developed the 'Holy Light Five Elements Formation,' which could both resist Spirit-Devouring Energy and nourish Leyline Qi Energy.

The castle's knight training ground was transformed into the 'Global Traditional Martial Arts Exchange Center.' In front of the knight statue in the center of the hall, the Knight Mark Stone and the fusion jade derivation core were placed. The intertwining pale gold, pale silver, and pale green light became the protection core of the castle. Every day, traditional martial arts practitioners from all over Europe came to the castle to learn the fused ancient and modern Knight Qi. There were even martial arts fans from Egypt and China who traveled thousands of miles to exchange ideas. On the castle's spires, a three-colored flag symbolizing Global traditional martial arts Unity fluttered, looking exceptionally dazzling in the sunlight of the Alps.

Before leaving the castle, Chen Wu's team, Eric, and the young European traditional martial arts practitioners together carved eight large characters on the stone wall of the castle: 'traditional martial arts Without Borders, Protecting with One Heart.' Each character was injected with traditional martial arts Qi Energy from different civilizations—the pale gold dual Qi, the pale silver Knight Qi, and the pale green Nature Qi intertwined, making the characters glow permanently as witnesses to the cross-civilization Fusion of global traditional martial arts.

The final scene of the global live stream lingered on Blackstone Ancient Castle at sunset. The afterglow spilled over the castle's spires, and the light from the Knight Mark Stone intertwined with the sunset glow to form a golden pillar of light. Children practiced cross-civilization traditional martial arts Moves on the training ground, their laughter intertwining with Qi Energy fluctuations. In the distance, the Leyline Qi Energy of the Alps, nourished by the Ancient Protection Formation, glowed faintly like a silver ribbon wrapping around the mountains, protecting this land.

In the bullet chat, 380 billion viewers simultaneously sent 'New life for the ancient castle, traditional martial arts without borders!' and 'Cross-civilization protection, walking together with one heart!', forming a River of Civilization Light that covered the globe, intertwining with the castle's pillar of light to illuminate the new journey of Ancient and Modern Fusion, Intercontinental Collaboration for traditional martial arts. Chen Wu knew that the story of Blackstone Ancient Castle was just the beginning of cross-civilization Fusion. In the future, there would be more traditional martial arts sites from different civilizations waiting to be unlocked and more intercontinental collaboration protection tasks waiting to be completed. But as long as traditional martial arts practitioners worldwide held onto their original intent to protect, and as long as the new generation continued to grow, traditional martial arts would surely become a bond that crosses civilizations and connects the world, allowing the faith of peace and protection to flow forever.