Yun Che was slammed into the rock wall by his own sword energy, causing cracks to form in his battle armor. Xiao Qingli's Fumo Qinxian wrapped around his waist, and with a sweep of her Sound Blade, she cleared away the pursuing fire dragon. "Fool! The Subduing Demon Formation is fueled by Starfall Blood; your sword energy will only make it stronger!"
"Then let blood break blood!" Yun Che sliced open his palm, blood splattering onto Xing Wen. The cracks in his armor erupted with dazzling light, devouring the flames within the formation entirely!
Xing Wen moved like a living creature, and Yun Che's pupils turned dark gold. Mo Qianshan's eyes narrowed in shock. "You dare to forcibly activate the Starfall Ruins? Are you trying to get yourself killed?"
"My life is not for you to judge!"
Yun Che stepped onto the flames, leaving marks of Xing Wen on the molten ground with each stride. The crimson flames of the Subduing Demon Formation were swallowed by his armor, transforming into immense spiritual power.
The Wugou Sword transformed into a hundred-foot Light Blade, striking at the heart of the formation just as nine pillars shattered simultaneously!
Mo Qianshan retreated a hundred feet, tossing out twelve pitch-black talismans from his sleeve. "Do you think breaking the formation will save you? This is the Heavenly Emperor's personally bestowed Locking Star Talisman!"
The talismans transformed into a prison, each rune inscribed with the true name of the Starfall Clan. When Yun Che's Xing Wen touched the talismans, it wilted as if facing a natural enemy!
"Three Hundred Years Ago, your kin's Soul Blood was refined into these talismans," Mo Qianshan sneered. "How does it feel to taste the pain of fratricide?"
The chains of the talismans wrapped around Yun Che's limbs, each mark searing with a foul odor. In his Sea of Consciousness, he could hear the wails of his kin—his father beheaded, his mother self-destructing her golden core, an infant crying in the flames...
"Fake..." Blood seeped from his teeth as his Star Pattern Battle Armor began to crumble. "These are all illusions!"
"Illusions?" Mo Qianshan's fingertips ignited with Soul Fire. "Their souls are indeed within these talismans—if you destroy them, you will be committing fratricide yourself!"
Yun Che's sword trembled when Xiao Qingli suddenly laughed while playing her zither. "Old dog, you've overlooked something."
She cut her wrist, staining the zither strings with blood. "The true name of Fu Mo Qin... is 'Zang Xing'!"
All seven strings snapped simultaneously, and the zither body split open to reveal a section of a Bone Flute from the Starfall Clan's rituals. The mournful sound of the flute caused the souls within the Locking Star Talisman to suddenly revolt, turning against Mo Qianshan!
"Impossible!" Blood seeped from all seven orifices on his face. "How do you know the Starfall Clan's Soul Summoning Spell?!"
Xiao Qingli's white dress was stained with blood as she brought the Bone Flute to her lips. "Because Three Hundred Years Ago, I was the last priestess of the Starfall Clan."
The flute's sound wept as the chains of talismans broke apart inch by inch. Yun Che's Xing Wen reignited; the cracks in his armor were filled by Xing Sui, and the Wugou Sword let out a thunderous clang—
"This sword is for Xing Yun!"
The sword light pierced through Mo Qianshan's chest, and the souls of his kin within the talismans transformed into Liu Guang, merging into the blade. As Mo Qianshan fell into the sea of flames, he roared: "The Heavenly Emperor... will not let you go..."
The Subduing Demon Formation completely collapsed, and Burial Valley's Geothermal Energy fractured. Yun Che knelt on the ground with his sword propped up beside him; his battle armor faded away to reveal a bloodied and mangled body.
Xiao Qingli's Bone Flute shattered as she coughed up ice-blue clots of blood. "Xing Sui backfired... You won't survive three days."
A rumble echoed from deep within, and as the lava receded, a bronze altar emerged. Suspended above it was a fractured Astrolabe, its central groove perfectly matching Yun Che's Xing Wen.
"This is the 'Gui Xu Star Mirror,' the last gift Bai Ruoyou left for you," Xiao Qingli said, her fingertip brushing over the cracks in the Astrolabe. "By fitting it with Xing Wen, you can glimpse the past and future—but each use will cost you ten years of your life."
Yun Che pressed the Astrolabe against his heart, dark golden patterns spreading across his body. The Sea of Consciousness erupted with countless images:
—Bai Ruoyou knelt at the feet of the Heavenly Emperor, her forehead's Xing Wen brutally gouged out;
—Tears of blood streamed down her face as she sealed Xing Sui within Gui Jiao;
—In the final image, she stood at the edge of the Observatory, smiling gently at the childhood Yun Che: "Live on, even if you become a demon..."
Suddenly, the Astrolabe burst forth with blinding light, and Yun Che's gaze pierced through the void—high above in the Nine Heavens, the true form of the Heavenly Emperor was revealed to be a swirling Chaos Shadow entwined with Stellar Remains!
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