.

A few minutes earlier.

Inside Liang Yuexin's spacious but dimly lit room, a figure appeared out of nowhere.

It was Zhu Rong.

Upon his arrival, he turned his gaze toward the fragile yet still beautiful figure of Liang Yuexin, lying motionless on the bed, her expression neutral, peaceful, as if she were quietly resting, undisturbed by the world.

But he could tell at a glance that the situation was far from good.

He had already received a few reports about what had happened a month earlier, when everyone had come out, or rather, been expelled from the secret realm, and he soon learned that Liang Yuexin, though alive, had fallen into a coma.

As far as anyone knew, she had not yet awakened.

The moment he heard that, several thoughts ran through his mind, and it didn't take long for him to understand what had happened.

He could only shake his head and murmur softly, words that, in the silence of that room, seemed louder than they should have been.

"Haa, just as I feared… it happened earlier than it should have. Her body won't be able to handle it," he said, his gaze penetrating deep into Liang Yuexin's soul to get a better sense of her condition.

And what he saw confirmed his suspicions.

Soon after, another figure materialized beside him, it was, of course, Yuan Lan.

After glancing at Liang Yuexin, she shook her head and said,

"Her soul is slowly destroying her body from the inside.

At this rate, she'll likely die within a few months, and when her soul collapses, it will annihilate the entire province at the very least."

Her tone was calm, as if she were stating the most obvious thing in the world.

Hearing that, Zhu Rong didn't know whether to laugh or cry, but he decided to put that thought aside for now and focus on Liang Yuexin.

It was exactly as she had said, he could immediately see that the soul in her dantian had already changed since the last time he saw her.

It had become something else entirely, and it was far too powerful to be contained within such a fragile body.

It was exactly as Yuan Lan had said, at this rate, her soul would eventually destroy the body from within and free itself, but in doing so, it would lose the anchor that bound it to its existence in this world, leading to its self destruction and bringing catastrophic consequences upon the entire province.

He let out a tired sigh, then stepped forward to the bedside.

Glancing toward Yuan Lan, who had taken position on the opposite side, he said,

"With my current strength, I won't be able to handle it all. I'll need you to take care of the rest once I begin."

Hearing this, she nodded, as if she had already expected it.

Zhu Rong wasted no more time. He infused a bit of his spiritual Qi into the ring on his finger.

A yellowish beam of light emerged, quickly deepening into a violet glow.

The light twisted like a living stream before gathering into a single point in front of him, until the shape of a heart slowly materialized in the air above his hand.

It was no ordinary heart.

Its surface seemed to be made of organic crystal, crossed by veins of black and purple light that flowed like tiny lightning bolts beneath its translucent skin.

The energy it released was overwhelming, a fusion of majesty and power, yet wild and untamed.

Around it, a violet, iridescent aura formed and dissolved repeatedly, like mist streaked with lightning, and Zhu Rong's Qi reacted instinctively, fluctuating as if recognizing that presence.

Even though it had taken on a size suitable for a human body, the feeling it gave off was titanic, as though it contained the will of an entire storm within it.

And what made it all the more unsettling was that it was still beating,

Thud. Thud. Thud.

Slow, steady, unstoppable, as if even death itself had given up on claiming it.

Each beat made the air around it quiver, producing a low, resonant sound, like the distant rumble of thunder before a storm.

A crackle of energy rippled through the air, and the violet glow reflected in Zhu Rong's eyes.

He, however, didn't seem surprised by it.

In fact, a faint, fleeting emotion appeared in his gaze before vanishing again.

But while he remained calm, the same could not be said for the manor itself.

The heart emanated a powerful, oppressive aura that grew stronger by the second, so much so that, in an instant, the entire manor fell into chaos, as everyone inside felt an instinctive fear crawl into their bones.

As if that weren't enough, the skies, which had been turbulent yet calm sice this morning, began to roar again, as dark clouds started to gather above the Liang family manor.

That chaos quickly spread from the manor to the surrounding territories, and the brief peace that had returned to the city after that morning's incident was swept away once again, replaced by Fear and panic.

But Zhu Rong and Yuan Lan seemed completely indifferent.

In fact, the latter cast a sharp glance upward, and her cross shaped pupils shone with an ethereal light.

As if provoked by her, the heavens grew even darker and heavier.

Soon, lightning flickered more intensely, as though the skies themselves were warning the sinners below to stop whatever they were doing,

Yet what they received in return was the utter inability to act.

The heavens roared, yet nothing happened.

It was as if an invisible barrier had cut off the heavens from the earth below.

Most people didn't notice such a phenomenon, but a few beings did.

Two in particular realized at once who was responsible, and by noticing that, they also understood that it was likely the cause of everything happening.

The Headmaster, who had appeared on the roof of the academy, looked at the sight with a defeated expression, as if he no longer wished to be involved in such matters.

Huo Lian, who had also appeared atop the pavilion building, watched it all with an impassive expression, as though she had expected something like this to happen.

"Haa… I knew something like this would happen with her around," she murmured, as her master's image surfaced in her mind.

There was no doubt that her master was behind all this, and that invisible barrier holding back the heavens once more left little to the imagination.

It was clear that she was involved.

She didn't know what her master was doing, but she could only shake her head tiredly, hoping it wouldn't bring ruin to the city.

And so, while the rest of the city plunged once again into panic, the two individuals inside Liang Yuexin's room ignored it all and continued their work.

Zhu Rong looked toward Yuan Lan, and seeing her nod at him, he exhaled softly.

With a wave of his hand, both of them, and the sleeping figure of Liang Yuexin, vanished from the room.

If you find any errors ( broken links, non-standard content, etc.. ), Please let us know < report chapter > so we can fix it as soon as possible.