Chapter 836: Chapter 836

Li Xiaofei felt a surging tide of energy rushing through his body, far beyond anything he had ever experienced in previous advancements.

The black hole vortex remained incomparably stable within his dantian. An overwhelming force radiated outward from the rotation of the black hole, coursing through his limbs and bones.

At the same time, aside from the dantian, two additional energy cores began to form, one in his heart and one in his brain. These two cores established a mysterious yet distinct connection with the black hole at his dantian, allowing energy to circulate among all three points.

Three Origin Realm! This was the realm beyond the Black Hole level, the advancement past the Yin-Yang Realm. Li Xiaofei could clearly sense that compared to his dantian core, which had been cultivated and refined for countless years, the new energy cores in his heart and brain were still relatively weak. They would require further cultivation.

Only when the energy cores in his heart and brain grew to match the strength of the dantian core would he reach the peak of the Three Origin Realm.

At last, Li Xiaofei thought, his heart surging with excitement.

This time, he had only succeeded in advancing with the aid of the Heaven and Earth energy from the peach trees. Otherwise, even with countless fortuitous encounters, he would not have been able to break through so swiftly.

A brand-new realm brought with it a brand-new strength. Li Xiaofei unleashed a mighty roar as his body suddenly expanded. Fully unleashing the strength of his physical body, he grew to a thousand meters tall in an instant, resembling a towering giant spirit.

The Soaring Dragon Spear in his hand also grew proportionally larger. Wielding the Zhao Clan’s spear technique, Li Xiaofei thrust forward with a single, devastating strike.

The flame-spewing sub-primal Ruo raised its arm to block, but its arm was pierced clean through. The Soaring Dragon Spear was a divine weapon, yet it had been limited by Li Xiaofei’s previous cultivation level and unable to fully unleash its true might. That was why it had struggled to penetrate the Ruo’s carapace before.

Now, however, with Li Xiaofei’s realm elevated, the strength behind his spear techniques had soared dramatically. The sub-primal Ruo was truly wounded for the first time. It let out a furious roar as its other three arms instantly grew, closing in from all sides to grab at Li Xiaofei.

"Come on, shove that head over here. I'll show you my big treasure!" Li Xiaofei shouted.

With a sweep of his left hand, he summoned the Eight Trigrams Furnace into his grasp. The alchemy furnace swelled to several kilometers in size, turning into a massive crimson-copper hammer that he slammed down without hesitation.

The Ruo's arm shattered like a broken butterfly, flesh and bone bursting apart. Caught off guard, the sub-primal Ruo suffered a devastating blow. Li Xiaofei pressed his advantage, summoning his divine strength to unleash a flurry of spear strikes while wielding the gigantic furnace like a warhammer, smashing down relentlessly.

Watching this from afar, the corner of Little Aunt’s mouth couldn't help but twitch.

The Eight Trigrams Furnace!

It was a supreme treasure of Heaven itself. It had once been treasured like a precious child by the master of Doushuai Palace. Now it was being wielded by Li Xiaofei, this prodigal brat, as a giant hammer to beat enemies senseless.

Yet she had to admit, the results were spectacular. The flame-spewing sub-primal Ruo was being utterly brutalized. Pinned to the ground by the Soaring Dragon Spear and hammered repeatedly by the Eight Trigrams Furnace, half its body was already crushed, its mangled form embedded deep into a massive crater.

"Rooaaar!" The flame-spewing sub-primal Ruo fell into a berserk frenzy, launching a desperate counterattack.

But its resistance was not enough to turn the tables against Li Xiaofei’s divine strength. After advancing into the Three Origin Realm, Li Xiaofei quickly exhibited a power level surpassing even that realm. Moreover, the Soaring Dragon Spear and the Eight Trigrams Furnace had sent his combat ability skyrocketing.

In the end, the flame-spewing sub-primal Ruo had its skull smashed to pieces. Black Emperor, the noob, immediately leaped out once again. Before the flame-spewing Ruo could regenerate, he opened his gluttonous maw and swallowed it whole in one gulp.

Now, only a single Ruo remained on the battlefield. The situation seemed to be turning in their favor. Panting heavily, Li Xiaofei hefted the Eight Trigrams Furnace and began approaching the poisonous water sub-primal Ruo.

But just at that moment, Little Aunt suddenly sensed something and shouted loudly, "No—retreat, quickly!"

Li Xiaofei froze for a split second, and his instincts screamed at him. He instantly vanished from where he stood, dragging the big black dog away with him.

A streak of light instantly pierced through the spot where Li Xiaofei had been standing like a thunderbolt. The light carried such terrifying power that the very void itself was scorched black, and the entire peach forest was split in two. A charred scar, four to five meters wide, appeared down the center of the battlefield.

Li Xiaofei twisted his head to look. There, above the poisonous water Ruo, stood a silver-colored Ruo that had appeared without anyone noticing.

It was only about ten meters tall, looking rather small and delicate compared to the others. Its whole body was clad in a deep, mysterious silver exoskeleton. Unlike the previous Ruos, this one had only two arms, and its slim, tall form had sleek, streamlined proportions that were far more human-like.

The silver Ruo emitted no detectable energy aura at all. Yet, for some unknown reason, the moment Li Xiaofei’s eyes landed on it, a deep, uncontrollable fear welled up from the depths of his heart.

The creature had fired that devastating death ray. Li Xiaofei turned toward the central giant tree. The massive tree, symbolizing the ancestral root of the Peach Garden, had also been sliced cleanly in two. The blackened scar across it was devouring its life force at a terrifying rate.

Tan Qingying was holding Little Aunt, whose face was bleeding freely, and calling out to her loudly. Meanwhile, Luo Ge stood to one side, her face blank with confusion... This battle had already reached a level far beyond anything she could comprehend.

"Eight Trigrams Furnace!" A series of obscure, guttural syllables came from within the silver Ruo’s abdomen.

A vast and irresistible power descended upon Li Xiaofei, enveloping him completely. The Eight Trigrams Furnace in his hand let out a resonant clang, as if roaring in defiance.

The incomplete Eight Trigrams pattern carved upon it flared to life, releasing threads of Dao laws that spun around Li Xiaofei, forming a phantom of a giant Eight Trigrams diagram.

It was precisely this phantom that desperately shielded Li Xiaofei from being crushed outright by the silver Ruo’s oppressive might. However, the Eight Trigrams Furnace itself began to emit faint cracking sounds. Still incomplete, the furnace clearly could not withstand the silver Ruo’s terrifying pressure and was on the verge of fracturing once again.

In that instant, Li Xiaofei realized the time had come. He activated the jade stone and summoned the soul of one of the ancestors. He had no idea which ancient spirit he might summon. But at this moment, the last sliver of hope rested with the battle souls entombed within the Cemetery of the Ancestors.

A sudden gust of wind swept across the heavens and earth. Then, a single figure, unmatched in beauty and grace, materialized above the Peach Garden, as if condensed from the very Dao laws of the universe.

She wore an imperial white gown, and was radiantly elegant, exuding a noble and dignified air like that of a Celestial Maiden descending to the mortal world. A faint purple aura of the Great Dao flowed gently around her, making her appear all the more mysterious and exalted.

Li Xiaofei immediately recognized the figure. He had seen this mysterious and noble woman before within the Cemetery of the Ancestors. As a soul, she had always carried herself with a gentle elegance, rarely speaking as if serenely detached from the world. Yet every other soul in the cemetery, including Li Lan, had shown her the utmost respect.

Although he had not expected that the soul he summoned would be Hua Xiangrong, Li Xiaofei couldn't help but feel a surge of anticipation. The moment Hua Xiangrong’s apparition appeared, the terrifying pressure that had been crushing him instantly vanished.

The silver Ruo clearly sensed the threat as well. Wasting no time, it brought its two hands together before its chest and thrust them outward. A silver light burst forth from its palms. The devastating death beam was the same terrifying light that had ambushed Li Xiaofei earlier and split the entire Peach Garden in two.

Li Xiaofei’s heart leaped into his throat, Can Hua Xiangrong avoid such an attack?

But in the next instant, before his wide eyes, Hua Xiangrong merely lifted her sleeve with a light, graceful motion. The silver death ray dissolved midair, and was completely disintegrated.

Gone, just like that!

That effortless, almost casual flick of her sleeve left Li Xiaofei utterly stunned.

Good heavens! He couldn't help but mutter internally, Good heavens, what a monster!

Although Li Xiaofei had anticipated that Hua Xiangrong would be powerful, he had never imagined she would be this powerful. He had even worried earlier that she might not be able to dodge the silver Ruo's devastating strike, only to realize she hadn't needed to dodge it at all.

The silver Ruo was clearly terrified. It growled as it transformed into a stream of silver light, shooting straight toward Hua Xiangrong.

Hua Xiangrong simply raised her hand, her jade-white fingers grasping lightly at the air. A pale violet, circular light prison materialized, imprisoning the silver Ruo within.

The silver Ruo struggled frantically inside the light prison, slamming its silver bone spikes wildly against the shimmering walls in an attempt to break free. But as Hua Xiangrong’s slender fingers gently pinched at the light core of the prison—

The silver Ruo immediately exploded into a mass of blood and pulp within the cage. The light prison vanished and the blood pulp plummeted toward the ground.

"Woof!" Black Emperor reacted instantly, leaping forward and opening his gluttonous maw to swallow the entire mass of blood and flesh in one gulp.

Li Xiaofei couldn't help but feel a flicker of worry.

That stupid dog just consumed matter tens of thousands of times larger than itself. Will it suffer indigestion, or worse, end up feverish from overeating?

Meanwhile, Hua Xiangrong gently twirled her delicate fingers and swept her hand over the ruined Peach Garden below. Her energy was like spring rain nourishing all living things, or the breath of new life itself.

A soft purple light swept across the devastated and blackened grove. It was as if time itself had reversed. Countless scorched peach trees sprouted anew, turning lush green once again, their branches unfurling in full bloom. Even the polluted, overturned land restored itself to its original pristine state.

In the blink of an eye, the entire Peach Garden had been revived. Even the massive central ancestral root had fully recovered.

At that moment, Little Aunt slowly opened her eyes. At first, she looked around in confusion. But when her gaze finally settled on Hua Xiangrong's figure, she froze. Her expression changed rapidly and uncontrollably. She had a look of grief, shock, disbelief... And finally, an uncontrollable burst of overwhelming joy.

It was the first time Li Xiaofei had ever seen Little Aunt lose her composure so completely. She rushed forward without any hesitation, fell to her knees before Hua Xiangrong’s phantom, and prostrated herself deeply.

"My Lady!" exclaimed Little Aunt as tears streamed down her face like rain.

Hua Xiangrong lowered her gaze, looking gently at the familiar woman before her. Her eyes brimmed with a profound kindness and affection.

"Child, you’ve suffered greatly," Hua Xiangrong said softly.

She reached out her hand. An invisible force surged forth, lifting Little Aunt gently to her feet. But Little Aunt couldn’t hold it in anymore. The moment she stood up, she broke into loud, heart-wrenching sobs.

"My Lady, I thought... I thought I would never see you again... It's so wonderful that you're still alive..." she cried uncontrollably, like a long-lost orphan who had finally found her true family again. She was unable to suppress the flood of emotions bursting from her heart.