The Quintessence shattered, and a tempest of demonic energy erupted from the ancient demon, Taga. This surge, amplified by the fractured power of the fallen Three Stars, ascended to a level that nearly mirrored the dread might of a Nine Star Ancient Devil! Yet, within this realm, the domain of Qing Lin’s consciousness, Taga had already conceded. He was no longer worthy of Qing Lin’s physical form; only oblivion awaited.

But Taga’s spirit refused to yield. Even in death, he would drag this Wang Lin down with him! Even in destruction, he would unleash the most potent arts of the Ancient Demon Clan.

Wang Lin could have intervened, stifling Taga’s eruption of power before it reached its zenith. However, whether for the sake of his own ascendance or out of respect for the ancient lineage, he chose to grant the Ancient Demon Taga the time to manifest his ultimate technique – a spectacle that even filled Wang Lin with a mixture of trepidation and anticipation.

Taga’s roars echoed as his form solidified once more, shrinking to the size of a mortal. Yet, his nearly tangible body pulsed with raw power. His obsidian skin, demonic horns, and blood-red eyes radiated an aura of earth-shattering dread.

“Violet Essence!” Taga bellowed, his black demonic energy instantly shifting, a vast portion transforming into a swirling violet hue. As he raised his hands, intertwining his fingers to form a diamond pattern, the violet essence surged forth, coursing through his limbs and into the crystalline shape. A violet diamond blazed between his palms. “Demonic Tribulation!” he roared, a vortex opening on his brow, ejecting his demonic soul into the diamond, causing it to erupt with blinding light. “Die!” Taga lunged forward, thrusting his hands toward Wang Lin, unleashing the violet diamond in a lightning-fast strike.

The diamond, initially the size of a hand, swelled as it hurtled forward, until it blotted out the heavens, descending upon Wang Lin.

Wang Lin’s expression turned grave. He slowly closed his eyes, feeling the diamond’s force, keenly aware that it was cleaving the very fabric of reality, isolating him from the world around him.

The diamond constricted, shattering all that lay in its path, drawing ever closer to Wang Lin. “Alas… the Violet Essence lacks density,” he murmured.

Wang Lin opened his eyes, the demonic tribulation a mere three inches away. To an outside observer, Wang Lin was obscured, only a colossal violet diamond, leaving ethereal afterimages, remained, seemingly poised to shatter him and the world with him.

“Mountainfall,” Wang Lin whispered. Instantly, a mountain erupted from his being, its peak piercing the heavens. It was not alone, but a chain of mountains following, rising after, and in a blink, nine towering peaks encircled Wang Lin. The violet diamond faltered, its contraction arrested, pushed back by the sheer force of the mountains.

Yet, the power of this Violet Demon Tribulation dwarfed all of Taga’s previous techniques. It strained against the Nine Mountains, threatening to shatter them. Wang Lin, his face serene, intoned, “Shatter!” The nine peaks exploded in unison, erupting like volcanoes, colliding with the violet diamond, creating an earth-shattering shockwave that swept outward.

Amidst the collapsing chaos, Wang Lin emerged unscathed, gazing upon the Ancient Demon, his eyes filled with despair and seething defiance.

“None of this is your power. It is merely Qing Lin’s will, enacted through you within his consciousness, bestowing upon you this borrowed strength! Were we outside this realm, without Qing Lin’s aid, I would crush you like an insect!

I refuse! I cannot accept this!” Taga roared to the heavens, a chilling realization dawning upon him. He had never imagined that Qing Lin’s plan was not to find a stronger being to destroy him, but to lure a rescuer into his own mind!

Within Qing Lin’s consciousness, though largely consumed by the Ancient Demon, the landscape remained under Qing Lin’s control, subject to his will. However, with the Ancient Demon’s corruption, Qing Lin’s spirit was weakened, and unable to directly attack Taga.

But by offering his own soul as a vessel, sacrificing control of his own mind, and entrusting it to Wang Lin, he was essentially surrendering his very existence. In doing so, Qing Lin’s consciousness could shift, allowing him to reshape the world, mimic its rules, and granting Wang Lin temporary access to the power of the Third Step!

Taga knew this was temporary. With a different soul and a forcibly manipulated consciousness, it could not last. Wang Lin would weaken outside of Qing Lin’s mind, reverting back to the power he had previously been. But such knowledge was useless in the present. He would not last that long. “Qing Lin… you have won!” Taga said, a shadow passing over his face, which quickly morphed into a rage-filled expression.

“But I, Taga, have one final technique, unleashed in the final moments of my existence! I shall wield the Ancient Demon Clan’s ultimate art, and even in death, I shall know no regret!” Taga cackled, rising to the heavens, spreading his arms wide. His body was engulfed in demonic energy, and under Wang Lin’s watchful eyes, it exploded.
The First Bloom, the rise of Demonic Paths! Even as Taga’s form shattered, his voice echoed from the heavens, and the sky above roiled. Swirling clouds of malevolent energy engulfed the sun, plunging the world into an instant, suffocating darkness.

Upon that inky canvas, a pair of baleful eyes slowly materialized. In a heartbeat, the black fog churned, revealing countless identical eyes, each burning with an unholy light.

Their gaze, an unnerving convergence of power, fixed upon Wang Lin. The sheer strangeness of the spectacle defied description. For the first time, a flicker of unease crossed Wang Lin’s face as he met the endless gaze of the multitude.

“You are named Wang Lin!” A voice ancient as time itself resonated through the world. As it spoke, a look of profound confusion flickered within the countless eyes… but Wang Lin, remained clear-eyed.

“You embraced the Path at fifteen, and have walked it for millennia… yet a curse is woven into your fate. The path you tread brings ruin to those you cherish. Your parents perished, your kin extinguished, those who remain are but fleeting embers soon to be swallowed by the encroaching tide of calamity!” With each pronouncement, the eyes in the sky stirred from their bewilderment, a nascent pain brewing within their depths. Wang Lin’s body trembled, but his eyes remained unwavering.

“Your parents died because of you! Your clan perished for your sake!” The voice reverberated, and a crimson rage consumed the eyes above, as if they wept tears of blood. Some burst asunder, raining gore upon the land. A crimson mist clouded Wang Lin’s own vision, and his tremors intensified. “Your wife ascended to heaven, your child became a fleeting soul. No loved one remains at your side!” With a cacophony of cracking sounds, the eyes in the sky shattered one by one, their ichor descending like a morbid rain.

Wang Lin’s eyes were pools of crimson, his face ashen. He staggered backward, clutching at his chest. Though a spirit, he felt a profound pain emanating from within, a venom coursing through his soul, threatening to consume all he held dear.

“Duntian owed you his life, yet he was destroyed. The Vermillion Bird Emperor gave you his grace, yet his lineage met its end. Even Zhou Yi, after crossing your path, could not protect the body of his beloved. And Yun Xian, only now, by chance, has a flicker of hope arisen to save Qing Lin.” The ancient voice continued, each syllable imbued with an alien power, a fundamental rule of the universe striking Wang Lin like a spell, drawing the color from his face.

“Enough…” Wang Lin whispered, retreating. Were these words spoken under ordinary circumstances, they would have held no sway. But now, they pierced his heart like shards of ice, the pain intensifying with each pronouncement.

“You…” The voice began again, but Wang Lin, with sudden ferocity, raised his head, his face calm, yet radiating a chilling, utter coldness.

“I ask you, have you said enough?!” The words, devoid of emotion, cut through the oppressive atmosphere. Wang Lin surged forward, his right hand rending the air. The countless eyes in the sky shattered with a deafening roar, their ichor cascading upon him. “I, Wang Lin, stand tall, my conscience clear! I may err, but my heart remains true to the Dao!” He formed a hand seal, pointing skyward, his voice like a winter wind.

“Celestial Art: Meteor Fall!” He intoned, and a single ray of starlight pierced the layers of darkness, descending into the ocean below. Then, like swords of divine light, star after star fell from an unseen realm, piercing the veil. And from the depths below, other stars erupted skyward, as if the heavens were turned inside out.

In an instant, the world was awash in starlight. With a sweep of his arms, Wang Lin inverted the celestial flow. The stars, with a thunderous cataclysm, surged back toward the darkness above, meeting it with a force that shattered the very fabric of reality.

Even Wang Lin’s spirit began to fray, fleeting visions of Wang Wei, Hu Juan, Zhou Yi, Qing Shuang, and Qing Lin – the latter clad in verdant robes but wearing a look of profound regret. As the Sea of Consciousness collapsed, these spectral figures faded into the unraveling tapestry of his mind, vanishing one by one.

In the Rain Immortal Realm, within a cyan palace drifting through the pitch-black void, Situ Nan watched the gates with growing trepidation, glancing back at the array holding his companions. The silver-clad corpse shared his concern, her gaze fixed eternally upon Wang Lin.

Suddenly, Wang Lin stirred from his meditative posture, his eyes slowly opening. He rose and walked to the doors of the palace, gazing silently into the void beyond.