vstars Chapter 543: All the mechanisms are exhausted
Chapter 543: All the mechanisms are exhausted
Below the temple, in a man-made cave, lies a pool of primordial energy that radiates a soft, moonlit glow.
The pool water is formed from pure primordial energy, flowing slowly and silently.
There are no ornate decorations here, only cold, hard jade floors and walls with veins of faint light flowing across them.
In the center of the spirit pool stood a woman—Qu Lan.
At this moment, she was wearing a plain white dress, her long hair was tied up, and her figure was as slender as a plum blossom in the snow.
But her eyes were filled with confusion, struggle, and a hint of barely perceptible fear.
On her wrist was a red bracelet of peculiar material, neither gold nor jade.
The ring was emitting an eerie red light, forming wisps of chain-like light that wrapped around her, sealing off her power and movement, and imprisoning her mind and will.
"Please, please let me out! Brother Shen is still waiting for me!" Qu Lan looked at the handsome young man in front of her with pleading eyes.
"What's your name?" Song Han's voice was as gentle as a spring breeze, yet it carried an undeniable power.
He kept approaching Qu Lan, then reached out and gently lifted Qu Lan's chin.
The fingertips were icy cold. The moment they touched, Qu Lan's body trembled slightly, and the struggle in her eyes intensified. But then the red light from the bracelet on her wrist suddenly shone brightly.
The struggle in her eyes was quickly covered by a fog of obedience.
"Do not be afraid. Everything is for the return of the Goddess. It is our mission and our destiny."
His words were like a spell, pointing directly to the deepest, most fundamental faith in the goddess in Qu Lan's heart, based on her bloodline.
Qu Lan's eyes were filled with a hollow piety and meekness as she murmured, "For the Goddess..."
Inside the Hundred Flowers Hall, the icy white energy at the center of the lotus platform gradually disappeared, and a ball of emerald green light gradually rose from within the lotus platform.
The vast divine power within the ball of light was fully activated.
"It has begun! Guide the spirits back to their source!" Master Yanyang shouted.
The bloodline power of the four major families flowed like four torrents into the white jade lotus platform along their respective directions.
Instantly, the lotus platform shone brightly, and their bloodlines began to rotate and merge, eventually forming a huge beam of azure light that shot straight into the sky.
At the same time, a special fluctuation, originating from the same source as the cyan beam of light, erupted from Qu Lan within the secret chamber.
An intricate flower pattern appeared on her forehead. Under the influence of the ritual, the pure bloodline of the Ji family within her was forcibly activated to its extreme, becoming a perfect anchor point of divine power.
The energy pillar at the center of the lotus platform immediately sensed this incredibly compatible, bloodline-like attraction, like a pure vessel.
The immense energy began to vibrate violently, and a portion of the core divine power, as if finding an outlet, poured wildly into the secret chamber below along the energy node!
"Ugh... Ah!" Qu Lan suddenly let out a shrill scream.
That immense divine power, carrying a bone-chilling cold and a tearing impact, forcefully poured into her limbs, bones, consciousness, and soul!
Her body trembled violently, the veins under her skin bulged, faintly glowing with a bluish light, and intricate patterns kept climbing up her skin.
The mark on her forehead flickered violently, and a faint trace of pain and confusion struggled to emerge from her empty eyes.
Seeing this, Song Han immediately increased his control over the gold bracelet, and the ring's red light shone brightly!
Then he drew his longsword, cut his wrist, and let the blood flow into the Yuan Pool below, where it was absorbed by Qu Lan.
He hissed, "For the Goddess!"
Qu Lan shuddered, the nascent sense of self that had just emerged was once again swallowed up by the red light, returning her to utter numbness and "devoutness".
The spirit of the palace remained calm and undisturbed, his gaze sweeping over the elders of the four major families who were exerting their full strength, his eyes showing no emotion.
When her gaze pierced through the many obstacles and fell upon Qu Lan, who was suffering immense pain in the secret chamber below, a faint, extremely subtle chill flashed deep within her eyes.
At the moment the spirit looked at Qu Lan, a tiny, pure white light, as fine as a grain of sand, quietly settled in the core of Qu Lan's consciousness, radiating a faint yet resilient power.
Like a candle in a storm, it protected her shattered soul.
At that moment, Guan Shouzheng silently formed a hand seal within his wide sleeves and swiftly threw a sky-blue flower into the ball of light at the center of the lotus platform.
Instantly, the entire lotus platform trembled, and the ball of light within it seemed to be greatly disturbed. Most of the divine power pouring towards Qu Lan was abruptly drawn back and flowed back into the ball of light.
Sensing this, Master Yanyang looked at Guan Shouzheng with the gaze one would give a dead man, "Do you know what you're doing?"
"Of course I know, and I have no intention of going back alive," Guan Shouzheng replied calmly.
"Shouzheng, why did you do this? Isn't the return of the goddess our long-cherished wish for thousands of years? What good will this do you?" The old man surnamed Deng clutched his violently heaving chest, and his body staggered.
"I believe what Fairy Yao said back then, the goddess can never return!"
The Song family harbors wolfish ambitions. It's not that I've ruined our millennia-old aspirations, but rather that they've been using us to blaspheme the goddess.
If the ceremony is allowed to continue, all that will return are puppets of the Song family!
Upon hearing Guan Shouzheng's words, everyone's expressions changed drastically, and they looked at Master Yanyang with inquiring eyes.
"Hahaha..." Master Yanyang burst into laughter.
"Guo Yao, you're really something! Even in death, you still bring me so much trouble," Master Yanyang said through gritted teeth.
He glanced at everyone in the hall and said, "Since things have come to this point, it's no harm to tell you the truth."
Guo Yao was right; the goddess's return was nothing but a hoax, but the goddess did not truly not exist.
If you cooperate with me to channel the goddess's power into the vessel, we can have a brand new goddess, a goddess under our control.
Given that the goddess cannot return, the Song family's method is the optimal solution.
Today, whether you agree or disagree, you must cooperate with me unconditionally, or you'll end up like him!
Yan Yang Shangren instantly appeared in front of Guan Shouzheng, grabbed him by the neck and lifted him up, letting Guan Shouzheng struggle in his hands until he fell silent.
"You are also a member of the Guan family, so you will take his place!" Master Yanyang said coldly as he threw Guan Shouzhen's corpse in front of Guan Bi.
Guan Bi gripped the Dragon-Slaying Thorn tightly and nodded slightly.
"I didn't want to force you, but unfortunately some people are looking for death. Is there anyone else here who wants to die?" Master Yanyang coldly swept his gaze over the crowd.
Seeing the silent crowd, he couldn't help but burst into laughter.
"Guo Yao, no matter how much you scheme and plot, in the end, it still comes down to strength."
“You are a spirit born from the temple. If you do not wish for your true spirit to dissipate, you must have a way to solve the problem I am currently facing!” Venerable Yanyang looked at the temple spirit.
“Of course. If all you want is a container to hold the remnants of the goddess’s power, I happen to have one here.” A slight, unnoticed smile appeared on the corner of the temple spirit’s lips.