177: Reverse Blade Fragments, Causal Restriction

After dealing with the Ghost King blocking his path, Liu Qingtian did not linger. His figure transformed into an afterimage, swiftly delving deeper into the canyon. Along the way, the leaderless ghosts had long since scattered like birds and beasts, no longer daring to obstruct him in the slightest.

The deeper he went, the more horrifying the surrounding scenery became. Demonic Qi and resentment almost solidified, dripping from the rock walls as black dewdrops, corroding and producing sizzling white smoke. More relatively well-preserved giant demonic corpses began to appear on the ground, some even lifelike, as if merely in a deep slumber. Only the completely dissipated life force proved that they had perished countless ages ago.

A subtle yet Soul-piercing sharpness began to permeate the air. It wasn't a physical sharpness, but a bizarre sensation as if it could sever fate and cut off connections.

Liu Qingtian knew he was very close to his target. He slowed down, and the ebb and flow of Karma in his Demonic Pupils became clearer as he carefully sensed the invisible, intangible, yet truly existing Karma Restriction in the surrounding Void Realm.

According to the Immortal King, this Restriction targeted those with too deep a Karma entanglement with her. Although Liu Qingtian was entangled with her Karma because of No Return, his own Karma was monstrous, and he cultivated the Dao of plunder and annihilation. This partially aligned with the Restriction's attributes, like the relationship between a venomous snake and its venom, perhaps allowing him to bypass the most lethal targeting.

He proceeded cautiously, his Divine Sense like the finest tendrils, probing every inch of space ahead. Sure enough, after passing through a natural archway formed by giant demonic Dragon skulls, he saw his target.

It was a relatively open depression, in the center of which stood a broken, dark-purple stone pillar resembling a monstrous horn of some creature. At the top of the pillar, a metallic fragment, about the size of a palm, irregularly shaped, and with faint serrated cold glints at its edges, quietly floated.

The fragment was entirely a chaotic dark silver, its surface covered with countless fine, profound patterns that seemed naturally woven from threads of fate. It emitted no energy fluctuations, yet it naturally became the center of this world. Gaze upon it, and one would even experience the illusion of one's own Karma threads being pulled, seemingly liable to be severed by it at any moment!

karma reversal blade fragment!

And surrounding the fragment, invisible to the naked eye but present in Liu Qingtian's Karma perception, was an extremely complex, precise spherical Restriction woven from countless tiny Karma threads! These threads emitted dangerous light; any existence with an

Liu Qingtian stopped, not daring to advance rashly. He carefully observed the structure of the Restriction, while also sensing the Karma threads between himself and the Palace-Attired Woman. That thread, due to No Return's presence, was exceptionally tough, but under his deliberate suppression and the interference of his own Karma, it appeared somewhat dim and indistinct.

"I can only try." Liu Qingtian took a deep breath, adjusting his state to the optimal. The Wither and Flourish Star Annihilation Domain was restrained to the extreme, maintaining only the most basic defense. He mobilized his Demonic Essence, which had fused with Karma and the intent of annihilation, especially focusing on activating the nascent form of the Space-Time Karma Dao principle that had initially taken shape, attempting to make his aura more attuned to the "frequency" of this Restriction.

He moved like a Mortal walking a tightrope over a cliff, every step cautious, minimizing his presence as he slowly approached the dark-purple stone pillar.

Ten zhang, five zhang, three zhang... The closer he got, the stronger the invisible Karma oppressive force became. It was as if countless eyes were watching him from the shadows, scrutinizing whether his Karma entanglement with the Immortal King was sufficiently "clean."

He felt his Karma thread with the Immortal King begin to tremble slightly, seemingly triggering some reaction from the Restriction. The invisible Karma threads around him began to glow faintly, like a disturbed spiderweb.

Liu Qingtian's heart tightened. He immediately stopped advancing, fully using his own Karma and the intent of annihilation to "pollute" and "blur" that Karma thread, while simultaneously simulating himself as an existence of the same Origin as the Demonic Qi and resentment of this place.

The Restriction's light flickered a few times, seeming to hesitate, then slowly subsided.

It worked!

Liu Qingtian's heart settled slightly, and he continued to approach slowly. One zhang, half a zhang... Finally, he arrived beneath the stone pillar, able to reach out and touch the floating fragment.

However, just as he was about to reach out and retrieve it—

An unexpected change occurred!

The karma reversal blade fragment, which had been dormant, seemed to sense the unique Origin within him, which had fused various paradoxical powers, especially the nascent form of Space-Time Karma. It suddenly trembled slightly!

Buzz!

With an almost inaudible hum, the profound patterns on the fragment's surface suddenly lit up with a faint glow!

This faint glow, like a stone cast into a calm lake, instantly shattered the fragile balance!

Boom!!!

The previously calm Karma Restriction, like a ignited powder keg, instantly erupted! Countless Karma threads materialized, like billions of incomparably sharp light blades, frantically lashing out at Liu Qingtian! An invisible Karma storm also formed, threatening to drag him into the turbulent flow of fate and tear him to shreds!

"Not good!" Liu Qingtian's face drastically changed. He hadn't expected the fragment itself to "actively" trigger the Restriction!

It was too late to retreat! He could only endure!

"Wither and Flourish Star, Annihilation Body Protection!"

"Myriad Skeleton Demonic Body, activate!"

"vengeful spirit willow, Myriad Soul Barrier!"

He instantly raised his defenses to the extreme! The gloomy Annihilation Domain fiercely resisted the cutting of the Karma threads, emitting a grating friction sound! The Myriad Skeleton Demonic Body's radiant light shone brightly, directly resisting the tearing of the Karma storm! The vengeful spirit willow's phantom enveloped his body, and billions of vengeful spirits burned their Soul Power to construct a Soul defense line!

But the power of this Karma Restriction far exceeded his imagination! The Karma threads ignored most physical and energy defenses, directly affecting his Karma threads, attempting to sever his past and future and erase all traces of his existence! The Karma storm was even more bizarre, as if it wanted to drag him into the gaps of countless parallel time-spaces, to be eternally lost!

Liu Qingtian let out a muffled groan, feeling his Karma threads violently vibrate, and his Demonic Soul suffered tearing pain. Even the Karma thread connected to No Return became precarious!

"I cannot fall! Devour for me!"

A trace of madness flashed in his eyes. He no longer purely defended but instead activated the Heaven Devouring Earth Devouring Demonic Art, combined with the Myriad World Roots, attempting to forcibly devour the attacking Karma threads and the power of the storm!

This was undoubtedly an extremely risky move! The power of Karma was profound and unpredictable. Forcibly devouring it, even with a slight misstep, could lead to self-destruction, causing his own Karma to become utterly chaotic, or even directly annihilated!

But Liu Qingtian had no choice!

The devouring power violently collided and intertwined with the Karma Restriction! He felt as if his Demonic Soul had been thrown into a furnace; countless chaotic Karma fragments belonging to others surged into his consciousness, attempting to assimilate him! Demonic blood began to seep from his seven orifices, and invisible cracks appeared on his body—these were manifestations of Karma backlash!

Just as he was about to collapse, the paradoxical power within him, derived from Mortal Transformation and fused with Karma, Demonic Essence, and Space-Time Karma, seemed to be stimulated by this extreme external pressure and suddenly began to operate on its own!

This power was inherently contradictory and peculiar. Under the impact of the Karma storm, it surprisingly produced a strange "neutralizing" and "inclusive" effect! It was like a chaotic vortex, forcibly grinding away some of the invading chaotic Karma power, while temporarily "storing" others, alleviating Liu Qingtian's direct pressure!

Seizing this opportunity! A bloody glint flashed in Liu Qingtian's eyes. He recklessly stretched out his hand and grabbed the karma reversal blade fragment, which was still faintly trembling!

The moment his fingers touched the fragment—

Time seemed to stand still.

All attacks, Karma threads, Karma storm, suddenly froze.

The fragment quieted in his hand, its surface patterns retracting their light. It seemed to... acknowledge Liu Qingtian's "qualification" to withstand the Restriction's test.

The surrounding Karma Restriction slowly receded like a tide, once again vanishing into the Void Realm.

Thump!

Liu Qingtian knelt on one knee, coughing up foul blood imbued with Karma power, trembling as if completely drained. That brief confrontation was no less perilous than facing Luo Jiuxuan's finger! Had it not been for the paradoxical power acting at the last moment, he might have been utterly annihilated in body and Soul.

He looked down at the cold fragment in his hand, which now seemed to have a faint connection to him. A trace of lingering fear and relief flashed in his Demonic Pupils.

Finally... it's mine.

Not daring to linger, he forced himself to stand up, swiftly placing the karma reversal blade fragment into the jade box specially prepared by the Immortal King, which could isolate auras. Then, he turned and staggered towards the outside of Demon Burial Mountain.

He had to leave the Nether Ghost Realm as soon as possible, find a safe place to heal, and digest the valuable insights into Karma power gained from this near-death experience.