The aftereffects of the eighth Chaotic Heaven-Annihilating Thunder had not yet completely dissipated. The air was filled with the burnt scent of chaos and destruction. Xiao Qi barely supported his nearly falling-apart body, leaning on his knees and gasping intensely. Every breath tugged at the severe pain in his internal organs. The Four Symbols Jade Pendant's light was dim, the Purification Origin had consumed enormous energy, and his physical body was covered in cracks. He was barely holding together by sheer unyielding will.
However, the tribulation clouds in the sky showed no slightest mercy for this nearly miraculous tribulation process. That interweaving of dark gold and chaos rapidly rotated and contracted, eventually transforming into a blackness so profound it seemed able to swallow all light! An aura far more strange, cold, and directly pointing to the soul's origin than any previous Thunder Tribulation, like an invisible tide, instantly covered the entire valley!
There was no earth-shaking thunder, no world-destroying thunder light.
The ninth tribulation had arrived!
But this ninth tribulation was not a physical energy attack but formless and immaterial, directly attacking the Dao Heart and triggering inner demons—the Inner Demon Tribulation!
Just as that jet-black tribulation clouds completely took shape, Xiao Qi felt his vision go black. The sacred valley around him, Zhao Tiezhu and the Witch Tribe crowd in the distance, even the tribulation clouds overhead, all instantly vanished! His five senses were completely stripped away. His mind was forcibly dragged into a of illusion constructed from his deepest fears and obsessions!
Illusion One: Sect Destruction
He "saw" himself standing outside the gate of Qingxu Temple. However, before his eyes was not the familiar misty, immortal-spirit-filled scenery but and rolling thick smoke! The once solemn main hall had become ruins, the familiar training square covered with sect disciples' corpses! Senior Brother Mu Qingfeng, covered in blood, his sword broken, still fiercely blocking the sect gate, was struck through the chest by a Shadow Snake Pavilion elder with demonic energy. His eyes dimming, he still looked toward Xiao Qi's direction, full of unwillingness and worry. Third Senior Sister Liu Yun lay in a pool of blood, her beautiful hair disheveled, her former spiritedness gone forever. The Master's figure flickered in the demonic fire, letting out a mournful sigh. The entire Qingxu Temple, the place he considered home, completely collapsed and was destroyed before his eyes!
"No—!" Xiao Qi let out a heart-wrenching cry. He wanted to rush forward, but his body was as if nailed to the ground, unable to move. Endless grief, anger, and helplessness like venomous serpents gnawed at his heart. Protection? He couldn't even protect his own sect, his own teachers and relatives!
Illusion Two: Close Friend's Horrible Death
The scene suddenly switched. Zhao Tiezhu's iron tower-like figure appeared before him, showing Xiao Qi his honest smile. However, the next second, a sword light flashed. Zhao Tiezhu's smile froze on his face. His sturdy body was cleaved in two, blood and organs splattering everywhere! His eyes remained wide open even in death, as if asking, "Seven Brother, why. didn't you save me?"
The Rabbit Spirit let out a scream, crushed into minced meat by a demonic-ized giant hand!
Xiao Qi's entire body went cold, as if falling into an icy abyss. Brother's horrible death, companion's destruction, while he could only watch helplessly! That bone-deep despair and self-blame nearly crushed his Dao Heart completely!
Illusion Three: Falling into the Demonic Path
The scene changed again. He "saw" himself holding the Red Flame Sword, standing atop mountains of corpses and seas of blood. Beneath his feet lay countless cultivators—some from the Mysterious Ice Pavilion, some from the Shadow Snake Pavilion, and even. sect disciples from Qingxu Temple! His eyes were completely crimson red, filled with and killing. Demonic energy coiled around his body. Where was there any trace of his usual clarity? The World-Purifying Ling Yan in his hand had twisted into pitch-black demonic fire, and the Purification Origin had transformed into darkness that devoured everything!
A seductive voice in his heart: "See? This is power! Absolute power! What protection? What righteous path? All nonsense! Only power is eternal! Kill them all! Kill everyone who stands in your way! You are the only Demon Lord in this world!"
A powerful sense of strength filled his body. That feeling of doing whatever one wished, of life and death under one's control, like the sweetest poison, eroded his will.
Illusion Four: Reincarnation Despair
Countless versions of him repeated failures and losses in different time periods and scenes. Again and again watching loved ones die horribly, again and again watching everything he wanted to protect collapse before his eyes, again and again falling into the demonic path in despair. as if falling into an eternal reincarnation. No matter how he struggled, the ending had long been destined—protection would fail, loneliness and darkness were the eternal destination.
Grief, anger, despair, self-doubt. all kinds of extreme negative emotions like waves, one after another, madly impacted Xiao Qi's already exhausted heart and mind from consecutive tribulations.
His Dao Heart shook violently. The will to protect seemed so pale and laughable in the endless cycle of despair, while the readily available demonic path power was so tempting. His consciousness swayed madly between light and darkness, as if about to completely fall into, devoured by inner demons, never to return!
From outside, Zhao Tiezhu and Chieftain Mu Yan only saw Xiao Qi sitting cross-legged, his body trembling intensely. His face alternatively showed extreme sorrow, grimace, and despair. His surrounding aura was chaotic to the extreme, sometimes upright and righteous, sometimes demonic and sinister, clearly at the edge of!
"Seven Brother! Guard your heart!" Zhao Tiezhu was anxious, his eyes crimson red, but dared not approach forward, fearing that interference would cause more serious consequences.
The ninth tribulation, Inner Demon Tribulation, was the most dangerous and unpredictable stage of the Golden Core Heavenly Tribulation! How many extraordinarily talented individuals had fallen before their own inner demons!
Xiao Qi's Dao Heart was experiencing the most severe test since its birth! Would he stick to that seemingly futile protection, embracing endless suffering? Or fall to the demonic path, exchanging seemingly powerful strength for liberation?
His consciousness, in the abyss of illusion, continuously falling toward the bottomless darkness.