In the exposed cultivation chamber, everyone had sharp enough senses that they could make out Cao Yun's appearance as though he were standing right in front of them. Yong Ke was now shivering with tears flowing down her cheeks. Ironically, she was the only one who didn't understand why she was in such a state. On the other hand, Jian Zhenli wanted to take her away as far as possible. Even though she couldn't remember her brother or her family, as her memories had been completely erased, he was afraid that something might happen to her. At the same time, he was also aware that he was surrounded by enemies.
Unfortunately for Jian Zhenli, the guards simply couldn't help. The array formations all around the Everlasting Earth Palace were active. Not only were they cut off from the rest of the capital, but even the guards within the palace were all trapped in array formations. Although they couldn't hold them all for very long, he had no idea how long that would actually last. Additionally, Sun Liao himself could control the array formations if necessary. He had been the best chance for Jian Zhenli to deactivate the array formations, but he now knew that he would never do so. As such, Jian Zhenli was isolated. Even if his opponents were alchemists, he wasn't stupid enough to start a fight with Yong Ke present.
Except for Yong Ke and three of the alchemists who were oblivious to the reality of the situation, everyone was in a form of stalemate.
In fact, the three alchemists, Wei Tonghe, Han Ziyu, and Qin Rui, were finally beginning to understand. Indeed, they obviously recognized the face of the man who had made the refinement of the Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill possible. Looking at the two spirit masters and Jian Zhenli, they could tell that something was off. Ultimately, Yong Ke's state was the final nail in the coffin. Although they couldn't understand everything, they had a vague idea of what was actually going on. Obviously, their understanding was shallow, but they didn't want to distract the two spirit masters. In fact, all three of them were implicitly on the side of Director Hua and Spirit Master Xiao, even if they didn't know everything. They trusted them with their lives, and this was enough.
Within the pseudo-Domain, Cao Yun's mind and soul were still fighting against the immense pressure of the gigantic jade emperor. It was as if he were being judged by all the emperors of mankind at once. He was the heretic who was threatening the Hongchen Kingdom. The sensation was absolutely crushing, and the young man could barely circulate his own cultivation.
Inside his sea of consciousness, Dian Mo was trying to analyze the pseudo-Domain as fast as he could. Although he couldn't understand it all, he might still be able to find a weakness. With each passing moment, he increased the probability of finding a way out. However, with each passing moment, Cao Yun was growing weaker and weaker. If Emperor Weide had wanted to, Cao Yun would probably be dead already. Thankfully, or not, Emperor Weide had no other plans for the young man. He desired the secrets contained within Cao Yun's body and soul. He wanted to know how he could have cultivated the asura method.
That being said, Cao Yun was convinced that this pseudo-Domain was exerting a heavy toll on the Emperor. Otherwise, he would have used it earlier. Or maybe it was something else. Since it wasn't his actual soul, he might not have as much control over it. Or there might be some limitations Cao Yun was oblivious to. Unfortunately, Cao Yun was in no position to actively look for it or even think about it. All of his mind was focused on resisting. It wasn't easy at all.
Then Cao Yun felt an intruding presence. The jade emperor's eyes pierced his skin and his flesh. Two vibrant orbs were looking through his body as if it were transparent. Despite all the power and authority of the Emperor, he couldn't see the Drop of Wrath. He analyzed Cao Yun's body over and over again and simply couldn't understand a thing. He was able to see the consequences of the Drop of Wrath, but he couldn't pry into the drop of blood itself.
Cao Yun felt as if his body was being cut apart layer by layer as Emperor Weide was examining him. As the process was going on, Dian Mo finally saw something interesting. Or rather, he felt it. Emperor Weide's piercing eyes faltered for only an instant. With that in mind, Dian Mo realized that the entire pseudo-Domain was faltering here and there. Unfortunately, those weaknesses were extremely fleeting and moving, so they couldn't be exploited. Although it was manifested, the pseudo-Domain wasn't perfect. One with enough strength could break it apart. In fact, the more time passed, the more likely it was for a powerful cultivator to break it. Moreover, it was also being consumed.
If Emperor Weide used it for too long, the pseudo-Domain would simply consume itself and cease to be, as there was nothing to sustain it apart from itself. Indeed, this pseudo-Domain was quite literally a patchwork of souls pieced together around Cao Shui's sea of consciousness. Those souls were meant to stabilize and also nourish the sea of consciousness itself. But it couldn't last forever.
What Dian Mo didn't realize, because he had no other point of comparison, was that the pseudo-Domain was much more fragile than usual. Emperor Weide was painfully aware of it. Unlike previous times, he felt much weaker. He was able to hide it, but it was frightening. Anyway, he was ready to risk his pseudo-Domain if it meant he could find the secret of cultivating the asura method. He could imagine how powerful he might become. Deep down, the pseudo-Domain was clearly reacting to Cao Yun's presence. Although Emperor Weide had crushed Cao Shui's mind, some remnant of her emotions remained, just like in Cao Huiying. One way or another, he had to end this soon. However, he wasn't ready to kill Cao Yun and lose this great opportunity.
Within Cao Yun's sea of consciousness, Dian Mo told his friend everything he had found out. Despite his efforts to resist the pseudo-Domain, Cao Yun listened to the spirit. He couldn't rely on the graciousness of Emperor Weide not to kill him. He might do so at any moment. In fact, if Emperor Weide killed him, it would be easier to find the Drop of Wrath. Thankfully, the Emperor didn't even know of its existence. Since he wanted Cao Yun's secrets, he was hesitating to kill him or even destroy his cultivation. But Emperor Weide wasn't an idiot. As soon as Cao Yun showed signs of rebellion against the pseudo-Domain, Emperor Weide would deal with him in a very efficient manner. Just cutting off his limbs would be a good start...
As such, Cao Yun had to find a way to break down the pseudo-Domain around him in an instant. The very first thought in his mind was to use his own Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill. Indeed, it could push his soul to the limit and help him force his way out. However, it wasn't strong enough. Then his mind went to something else. Inside his spatial ring, he still had the black orb in which Da Mo had put a part of his soul. Maybe he could use it. Yes, it wouldn't be strong enough to destroy the entire pseudo-Domain, but it would weaken it for sure.
Unfortunately, Cao Yun feared that it was now too weak for even that. As such, he had to find another way. The only other way Cao Yun thought of was so risky that it was suicidal. Try as he might, he couldn't come up with a better plan. Under normal circumstances, he might have. But, to be fair, he was being crushed by Emperor Weide's most powerful technique. Dian Mo didn't know about Cao Yun's idea or he would have advised against it with all of his being. Painfully aware of the folly of this act, Cao Yun ended up resigning himself. In order to fight off one disaster, he would throw himself into another one, maybe even worse. In the end, the only thing that mattered right now was to slay Emperor Weide and save his sister. As such, Cao Yun was ready to not only throw away his life if need be, but he was absolutely prepared to annihilate his own soul.
Now that he steeled his resolve, Cao Yun focused. It would be ironic, and not in a good way, if Emperor Weide stopped Cao Yun at the last moment, even after taking such a difficult decision. The young man focused most of his spiritual senses around his spatial ring. He needed to retrieve the Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill inside it and quickly swallow it before Emperor Weide could do a thing.
When he felt ready, Cao Yun muttered something to Dian Mo within his sea of consciousness.
"Sorry. Brace yourself."
Suddenly, all his spiritual senses coalesced around his spatial ring and retrieved the Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill. Emperor Weide was surprised. Within those spiritual senses, he could sense most of Cao Yun's Soul Embryo. In fact, Cao Yun felt his Soul Embryo cry in agony. The next instant, the pill was already floating in his mouth before anyone could react. The toll had been heavy on his Soul Embryo, but he had succeeded. Anyway, he knew that his Soul Embryo would suffer some more.
Before the pill could dissolve in his mouth, Cao Yun gulped it down. He didn't really care about the medicinal essence within. For a moment, Dian Mo thought that Cao Yun had swallowed his own Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill, but he realized his mistake. It was the Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill meant for Emperor Weide, with the Shattered Soul Hellbloom. Dian Mo failed to understand Cao Yun's logic until he felt a terrifying presence. At that moment, Dian Mo realized what had been Cao Yun's ultimate trap. The Palace of Supreme Wisdom suddenly closed. A large door was shut with a loud crash. Dian Mo barricaded himself within, hoping to withstand the upcoming storm.
Inside the Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill, Cao Yun had laid one final trap apart from the poison itself. No one had been aware of it, and for good reasons. Cao Yun had infused the pill with a very peculiar seal. After studying the black orb, Cao Yun had extracted a large part of Da Mo's soul. In secret, he had crafted a powerful seal with it, similar to the seals within the box holding said black orb. In other words, Cao Yun had put a huge chunk of the fragment of Da Mo's soul inside the Nine-Souls Calamity Ascension Pill.
Originally, Cao Yun had planned to use it in order to annihilate Emperor Weide from within, in case the poison wasn't enough. But now, he was setting it free within himself. The irony wasn't lost on the young man, but he had no time to contemplate or appreciate it. Before Emperor Weide could act, Cao Yun unleashed all of Da Mo's soul. It spread throughout his body and even entered the young man's sea of consciousness as he was making himself transparent to it, not trying to hinder or obstruct it at all.
The sudden explosion of this oppressive and tyrannical soul clashed with the pseudo-Domain around Cao Yun. A crack appeared in the fabric of reality. Although it wasn't enough to break apart the entire pseudo-Domain, cracks did appear both in the clouds and in the giant imperial palace in the heavens. In fact, even the monumental statue of the jade emperor suffered a backlash.
Taking advantage of Emperor Weide's surprise and the weakness of his pseudo-Domain, Cao Yun mobilized all of his cultivation to fly away as far and as fast as possible. He collided with a steel wall. As he reached the boundary of the pseudo-Domain, Cao Yun felt as though space itself was a steel wall pressing against his flesh and soul. From the outside, the pressure was enough to crush his flesh and grind his bones. From the inside, the soul of Da Mo was wreaking havoc. Dian Mo was still hiding, but he could feel the presence of his former master. The pain was unimaginable. However, it was working. Even a small fragment of Da Mo's soul was enough to corrode the very foundation of this pseudo-Domain.
Cao Yun only focused on getting out. Once outside, he would try to contain the evil soul once more. Hopefully, the damage wouldn't be too extensive, and he would succeed in controlling the evil soul. After all, he had already suppressed it once. But he felt his Nine Soul Peaks being assaulted. His sea of consciousness was now in total darkness. The only remnant of light came from the very center of his sea of consciousness, surrounded by these peaks. Even the golden Insight Writings had found shelter there. The stars in the sky were so dim that no one could see them anymore. The pain was even spiritual at this moment. Cao Yun's seven Turbid Demons were being attacked and perverted, so Cao Yun turned most of his Po into Death Energy in an attempt to resist a bit longer.
With all of his strength, Cao Yun pushed against the boundary of the pseudo-Domain. From the outside, people could see the jade emperor above a celestial palace starting to crack while the clouds themselves were shattering and breaking apart like glass. On the other hand, a black ominous shadow was exuding from Cao Yun's body while he was crashing against the walls of reality.
Several of Cao Yun's bones cracked, but they did not break. Pushing further and further, the young man consumed his own vitality, but he finally broke through. His broken body crashed through the steel wall opposing him. With this violent exit, the pseudo-Domain collapsed. Emperor Weide suffered a terrifying backlash and couldn't sustain his pseudo-Domain anymore. Before it could actually be destroyed, Emperor Weide quickly took it back into himself. The pain was also immense, but he couldn't lose his pseudo-Domain.
Cao Yun's momentum had taken him far away from Emperor Weide, who was also immobile. Both men were recovering. However, Spirit Master Xiao could tell that Cao Yun was in a terrible state. Her deep understanding of the soul made her see how precarious his current situation actually was.