The Evil Spirit Skeleton roared furiously, trapped for the moment inside Su Lingshuang's Ice Lotus.
Pale-blue ghostfire hissed and burned against the icy petals, melting them away bit by bit.
Even from a distance, Lin Feng could feel his senior sister's aura flicker—she was reaching her limit.
There was no time to hesitate.
In that instant of chaos, Lin Feng's eyes hardened.
He dashed forward, snatching the black vial and the jade slip of Chaos True Scripture from the stone altar, then grabbed the fallen Lei Yan Token from the ground.
Everything he did pointed to one goal—the black vial sealed with ancient runes.
He remembered the notes left by Venerable Lei Yan:
"Within this bottle lies a wisp of Pure Heaven Gang Thunder—the most violent essence of lightning, found in a land of absolute yang. I once intended to use it to complete the Myriad Transformation Seal, yet even I could not tame it. To open it is to wager one's life."
And now, Lin Feng was ready to make that bet.
"Senior Sister, fall back!" he shouted.
The lightning seal in his body spun wildly, his entire reservoir of thunder-spirit energy flooding into the black vial as he tried to force the rune seal open.
Su Lingshuang didn't question him.
Trusting his words, she retreated swiftly, forming layer after layer of icy barriers around herself.
"Insects! Futile struggle!" the Evil Spirit Skeleton sneered. With a swing of its bony arm, the last shards of ice lotus shattered, and a ghostly claw—cold enough to freeze the soul—swiped toward Lin Feng.
At that very moment—
CRACK!
The runes sealing the bottle burst apart under the surge of Lin Feng's lightning power.
BOOM!
A thunderous explosion erupted.
A golden light blazed through the cavern, so bright it drowned out everything else.
From within that light came a power ancient and divine—as if a primordial Thunder God had awakened from slumber.
The golden lightning tore through the darkness, pure and sacred, radiating the might of destruction and creation intertwined.
For the first time, even the air seemed to tremble.
"No! The Pure Heaven Gang Thunder—how can you possibly awaken it?!"
The skeleton's voice rose in a desperate, high-pitched scream. The golden light struck its bones like molten metal against snow—its blue ghostfire sizzled and died. Cracks spread across its skeletal frame.
It tried to flee back into the pool—but the golden lightning coiled after it like serpents alive with intent.
"Aaaahhh—!"
With one last agonized wail, the evil spirit was reduced to nothing—
not even ash remained.
The golden lightning did not fade.
Instead, it drew together, compressing into a thin golden thread that shot straight into Lin Feng's dantian.
Pain struck instantly.
Lin Feng's body convulsed as an ocean of power—vast, domineering—flooded through his veins. It was lightning in its purest, most savage form. His meridians screamed under the pressure; his dantian threatened to burst apart.
He coughed blood, staggering. His skin glowed red-hot, blood seeping through his pores. His vision blurred.
"Lin Feng!" Su Lingshuang rushed to him, catching his collapsing body. Cold energy flowed from her palms into his, trying to steady the violent surge—but the moment her spiritual power touched that thunder, it was instantly devoured, even rebounding to wound her.
"Such… terrifying lightning power…" she gasped, face pale with helplessness.
Just as Lin Feng's body was about to rupture—
The dormant Thunder Seal in his dantian suddenly blazed to life.
A vortex of power formed, devouring the rampaging Gang Thunder with unstoppable hunger.
Purple light deepened to royal gold. The lightning lines across the seal grew intricate, divine. The seal itself expanded—
and then, a soothing wave of energy spread through Lin Feng's body, mending his shattered meridians, knitting flesh and spirit together.
His aura began to surge upward—
Body Refinement, Sixth Layer!
Seventh Layer!
—And still rising!
By the time the light dimmed, Lin Feng stood reborn. The Thunder Seal pulsed faintly within him, exuding a new, sacred power.
When he opened his eyes, twin arcs of violet-gold lightning flashed across his pupils.
Su Lingshuang's voice was soft, yet tinged with subtle relief.
"You're awake? How do you feel?"
Lin Feng flexed his limbs. A faint crackling sound echoed as his bones and muscles stretched. Every fiber of his being surged with power.
He met her gaze and smiled faintly, gratitude shining through.
"Thank you, Senior Sister, for protecting me. I'm fine."
Had she not held him, the aftermath of the Gang Thunder might have shattered him completely.
He reached for the Chaos True Scripture jade slip, the Lei Yan Token, and the black vial, holding them carefully.
"These are the treasures we recovered," he said, extending them to her.
Su Lingshuang shook her head gently. Her gaze was complex, unreadable.
"They are your destiny, not mine. The Chaos True Scripture is meant for someone with multiple spirit roots. The Lei Yan Token resonates with you alone. I only need a small portion of the Frozen Spirit Essence in this vial for healing."
Lin Feng nodded, understanding immediately. He handed her the vial.
She poured about a third of its milky, frigid contents into a jade bottle, consuming it directly.
Even the faint chill that lingered on her face eased slightly.
"We cannot stay here any longer. Our battle caused too much disturbance. Others may come."
She glanced at the cavern, her voice firm and steady despite her pale complexion.
"Let's leave before it's too late."
Lin Feng carefully gathered the jade slip, Lei Yan Token, and remaining vial.
He turned to the skeletal remains of Venerable Lei Yan and bowed deeply, paying respect.
Though the venerable had not completed his path, his spirit and teachings offered guidance beyond measure.
The path back was tense, but the weakened cavern seal allowed them to escape more easily this time.
Lin Feng's strengthened thunder force, combined with Su Lingshuang's ice power, tore open a small gap, and they slipped into the first light of dawn.
The outside world was quiet, the early morning mist casting a soft glow over the mountain.
Su Lingshuang paused, turning to Lin Feng. Her gaze was sharp and serious.
"What happened today concerns more than you realize. Your spirit roots and the inheritance you received… never speak of them to anyone else. If the wrong person knows, it will mean death. To the outside world, simply say we discovered an old ancestor's resting cavern and collected some ordinary elixirs and stones."
She paused, eyes narrowing slightly.
"As for Zhao Gan, I will handle him. You should keep a low profile and focus on consolidating your cultivation."
Lin Feng nodded solemnly, understanding the weight of her words.
"Understood, Senior Sister. Thank you."
Su Lingshuang inclined her head once more, then became a streak of silver light, vanishing back to Xueyue Peak.
Alone, Lin Feng held the Lei Yan Token and the jade slip containing Chaos True Scripture. His heart was filled with a mix of exhilaration and pressure.
This expedition had nearly cost them their lives—but the gains were immense:
• He had unraveled part of the Chaos True Scripture.
• The Thunder Seal in his body had grown immensely, his cultivation breaking through two levels to peak Seventh Layer.
• And he now possessed a direct link to the lost legacy of Venerable Lei Yan.
Yet questions lingered like storm clouds:
• What was the true connection between his Thunder Seal and the Myriad Transformation Seal?
• Where was the rest of Venerable Lei Yan's secret inheritance hidden?
• And who—or what—was the spirit that had tried to possess him?
Lin Feng's gaze hardened.
This was only the beginning. The real challenges, the true dangers, and the ultimate path to power were still ahead.
With the first light of dawn painting the mountains, he clenched his fists, lightning crackling faintly around him, his determination as sharp as the thunder in his veins.
The future was wide open—and he would carve his path through it, no matter the storm.