17: Whispers of the Underworld and the Oneness of All Beings
Although the filthy dark seed was removed, it rang the most jarring alarm bell for Liu Qingtian.
The Myriad Heavens and Myriad Realms were not a treasure trove for him to take as he pleased; every act of theft was accompanied by unknown risks.
That sticky, malicious mark was so high-level and bizarre that it far exceeded his current understanding. If it weren't for the fortuitous existence of a method to restrain it and the unexpected assistance of the burying netherworld, the consequences would have been unimaginable.
He became more cautious. When absorbing energy and stealing Law, he diverted more focus to filtering and screening, and the rotation of the "Spiritual Ripple" vortex took on a more scrutinizing quality.
That newly formed willow leaf grotto-heaven was given priority protection, with the Qi of Life and Death flowing slowly to guard it firmly, allowing no external evil to contaminate it.
After this battle, the relationship between that zang youming great halberd and Liu Qingtian underwent a subtle change. The newborn Halberd Spirit seemed to have gained some recognition for its "protecting the master" act, and its connection with Liu Qingtian became increasingly tight. The thoughts it transmitted became less ignorant and possessed more clear dependence and... filial affection?
It even began to try imitating Liu Qingtian's Cultivate. No longer just passively absorbing energy, it would actively adjust the posture of the halberd body, aiming the coiled Vicious Beast carving toward Liu Qingtian, seemingly feeling that this angle was most efficient for absorbing the Dao charm of life and death.
Occasionally, it would clumsily vibrate its halberd body, emitting an extremely faint hum with a specific rhythm, attempting to resonate with the rotation frequency of Liu Qingtian's "Spiritual Ripple" vortex.
Liu Qingtian did not stop it, nor did he deliberately guide it. He was happy to see it grow; a powerful "neighbor" who was close to him was ultimately not a bad thing.
He would even occasionally deliberately disperse some pure dual-Realm energy, refined by "Spiritual Ripple," for it to absorb, which was a return of the favor.
Under such interaction, the growth speed of the Zang Youming Halberd Spirit accelerated. Although its sentience remained simple, it became increasingly agile.
And the sense of deadly ferocity belonging to the alien world that it fed back, though extremely weak, gave Liu Qingtian some new inspiration, allowing him to have a deeper fear and understanding of "absolute ending."
This day, when Liu Qingtian once again sank his consciousness into the Void Imprints of the "Bone Abyss" to conduct his daily Law theft, an unprecedented experience occurred.
Perhaps it was because his understanding of the Law of death was deeper, perhaps because the Bone Abyss itself was in a certain special state, or perhaps... the residual influence of those terrifying "alien objects" that had fallen under the halberd had not yet completely dissipated.
This time, his consciousness did not merely stay at the level of analyzing the Law structure, but seemed to... sink.
Penetrating that endless layer of deathly silent energy, penetrating that cold and pure sea of Law, his perception continued to go down, and down, as if to touch the true, eternal "foundation" of the Bone Abyss.
Then, he heard it. Or rather, he "perceived" it.
It was not a sound, but a "whisper" that acted directly on the tree soul Origin—grand, ancient, cold, and containing no emotion.
That whisper was not a language, but an "information turbulence" naturally generated when countless Laws of death intertwined and collided. It was the sigh of the end of all things, the echo of the extinction of stars, the tranquility of the place where the undead return... it was death itself "speaking"!
This whisper was vast and boundless, containing endless mysteries of death.
But the vast majority of the information within it was far beyond the scope of what Liu Qingtian could currently understand. Forcibly receiving it would only cause his tree soul to be assimilated and frozen.
He could only cautiously capture those relatively shallow fragments on the edge of this endless death whisper that matched his own "Wither" Concept.
"...Existence... is the process of moving towards the end..."
"...Time... loses meaning before the dead..."
"...Extinction... is not nothingness... but another form of... Eternity..."
"...Devouring... transformation... returning to deathly silence... is Perfection..."
These fragmented pieces of information surged into his tree soul, verifying and merging with his previous realizations, allowing his understanding of death to deepen at an astonishing speed.
The patterns on the branches representing the "Wither" Realm became increasingly deep and complex, emitting a heart-palpitating, eerie light.
However, within this grand whisper, he also vaguely captured some... discordant "noises."
Some residual thoughts filled with pain, resentment, unwillingness, and crazy struggles, like drowning people, floated and roared in this ocean of the Law of death, trying to resist that eternal tranquility. It seemed to be the residual obsession of countless powerful existences that had fallen but failed to completely return to extinction.
Liu Qingtian cautiously avoided these dangerous noises, focusing on absorbing the pure Law of death.
I don't know how long had passed, but when he felt his tree soul had reached its limit and was preparing to exit this state, a seemingly extremely weak yet exceptionally clear "syllable," or rather, "Law imprint," within the endless death whisper, actively detached itself and gently touched his consciousness.
The Concept contained in that imprint was highly compatible with his understanding of "Wither," yet it was purer and more absolute—it was a terrifying Concept that pushed the Concept of "demise" to the extreme, even negating "existence" itself, causing all things and all Laws to return to "nothingness"!
Myriad Selves Return to One!
It was not Fusion, but completely "returning to one" all Concepts of "self" and traces of existence into nothingness and extinction!
This imprint was like the most dangerous poison, yet also like the sweetest nectar, tempting Liu Qingtian to understand and master it.
Liu Qingtian's tree soul shook violently; he instinctively felt immense danger, but deep within, an uncontrollable desire surged up.
He had a premonition that if he could comprehend a sliver of the true meaning of this "Myriad Selves Return to One," the power of his "Wither and Flourish Finger" would be elevated to an unimaginable Realm, and he might even touch the edge of that extinction halberd intent!
Fortune is sought in danger!
He no longer hesitated, concentrated all his focus, and cautiously guided this sliver of the "Myriad Selves Return to One" Law imprint, merging it into his own "Wither" Concept.
Boom!!!
Just like dropping cold water into boiling oil, his tree soul instantly boiled!
That extreme Concept of demise violently impacted his consciousness, wanting to "return to one" his own existence into nothingness as well! The death patterns on his branches flashed frantically, almost completely devouring the parts representing vitality!
The "Spiritual Ripple" vortex spun frantically at an unprecedented speed, the emerald green vitality side shining brightly, desperately balancing this sudden, overly powerful impact of the death Concept!
Pain! Pain at the Soul level, even worse than the previous impact of the energy tide!
His tree body trembled violently, countless leaves instantly withered and fell, but new buds immediately sprouted stubbornly amidst the conflict between life and death.
The Wither and Flourish Domain around him became extremely unstable, with the Qi of Life and Death clashing madly, as if it would completely collapse at any moment.
Just at the moment when this dangerous balance was about to be broken—
Through the imprint connected to the "Jade Dream Realm," a gentle yet majestic stream of natural spirit essence seemed to sense his crisis, surged over autonomously, merged into the "Spiritual Ripple," and helped stabilize the balance.
At the same time, the zang youming great halberd nearby hummed again; the Halberd Spirit transmitted thoughts of anxiety and worry, even attempting to mobilize power again to help him, but it was firmly suppressed by that Original Owner imprint, and could only vibrate in vain.
Liu Qingtian gritted his teeth, relying on his powerful willpower and the balancing characteristics of "Spiritual Ripple," and forcibly withstood this wave of impact, suppressing, decomposing, and slowly merging that sliver of the "Myriad Selves Return to One" imprint into his own death Law system.
The process was slow and painful, but his "Wither" Concept was undergoing a qualitative leap!
When he finally completely subdued this sliver of imprint and made it his own, a realization surged into his heart.
He slowly extended a willow branch; the tip of the branch was gray and white, without any luster, without any aura, as if the existence of that piece of space itself had been completely "returned to one."
He pointed gently at a hard boulder in the distance.
There was no sound, no light or shadow effect.
That boulder, along with a small piece of space around it, disappeared completely, as if erased by an eraser. It was not shattered, not annihilated, but from the level of "existence," it was completely "returned to one" into nothingness, leaving no trace behind.
Liu Qingtian quietly "watched" the empty ground, his tree soul without waves.
This finger, named—Return to Void.
The cost was huge, the consumption was astonishing, and the range was currently extremely small. But its power could be called terrifying.
He slowly retracted the willow branch and once again sank his consciousness into Cultivate, digesting this huge harvest, and calming the agitation of his tree soul.
And he did not notice that when he triggered that sliver of the "Myriad Selves Return to One" Concept and performed the "Return to Void" finger, the zang youming great halberd nearby, that Original Owner imprint, flickered extremely faintly, as if... it had been touched a little?