The sight caused the stone that had settled in the hearts of Lan Shang, Liu Heming, and the others to immediately leap back into their throats. Bai Yuqing stared, unblinking, at the dark green figure within the body of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm" and the still rapidly spinning vortex, his right hand gripping the sword hilt, fingers tightening and loosening.

Nie Fenghua had never witnessed the bizarre "Spirit Skill" Nie Kong employed. Her delicate brows furrowed deeper, a noticeable gravity settling upon her peerlessly beautiful features. The fiery crimson glow emanating from the longsword in her palm waxed and waned unpredictably, making it unclear whether Yuan Kong was currently in danger or safe.

"Junior Sister Fenghua." A soft voice sounded behind her; it was the melon-seed-faced girl and the other disciples of the Ink Snow Sect, who had quietly returned to the spot.

"Why are you all back?" Nie Fenghua sounded slightly surprised.

"The disciples of Spirit Control City refused to abandon their companions. If we truly left you here alone, what face would we have to meet the Grand Elder, even if we escaped?" the melon-seed-faced girl chuckled ruefully.

Hearing this, the Ink Snow Sect disciples beside her fell silent, though a trace of shame flickered across every one of their faces.

"..."

Nie Fenghua said nothing, but the tight knot in her brow eased slightly. Her gaze then fell once more upon the massive body of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm."

The eyes of the others followed hers. From a distance, they had already witnessed the commotion here, but the close-up view was far more shocking than what they had observed from afar.

Gazing at the dark green vortex, the melon-seed-faced girl made no attempt to hide her astonishment and admiration. "Junior Sister Fenghua, I never expected one of your kin to be so formidable, single-handedly restraining the 'Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm.' From the look of it, the 'Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm' can't get the better of him for the time being."

"Indeed. I also hadn't expected that two years ago he was merely at the first level of Spirit Gathering, and now he has advanced to the ninth level of Spirit Transformation!" Nie Fenghua said faintly. "However, under normal circumstances, it is extremely difficult for a ninth-level Spirit Transformation Master to resist the devouring power of the 'Soul Condensing Jade Belt Worm.' I wonder how he managed it... Could it be due to the Spirit Art and Spirit Skills he cultivates?" As she spoke the last part, a shadow of doubt crossed Nie Fenghua's beautiful eyes.

When Nie Fenghua finished speaking, a profound silence fell over the surroundings. The Ink Snow Sect disciples were filled with disbelief, their minds completely consumed by the phrases "Spirit Gathering First Level" and "Spirit Transformation Ninth Level." They hadn't registered anything Nie Fenghua had said after that.

"Rumble!"

A loud crash erupted again from within the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm," sounding like an enraged roar. As the creature squeezed more fiercely, it seemed intent on crushing Nie Kong, trapped inside, into a pulp.

It was only that whenever the transparent bubble pressed in, the stems and leaves of the "Violet Luo Illusionary Spirit Incense" covering Nie Kong's body would gently undulate, dissolving the crushing force into nothingness. Meanwhile, the speed of the dark green vortex showed no sign of slowing; on the contrary, the blood-red aura being fed into it continued to increase.

"Crash!"

Moments later, a restless sound rose again from inside the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm," and the blood-red essence at both ends rapidly flowed toward the center. Gradually, the height of the creature's body reached forty to fifty meters. The pressure descending from that height forced Bai Yuqing, Nie Fenghua, and the others to constantly retreat.

"Boom!"

At that instant, it was as if thousands of pounds of explosives detonated simultaneously. The stems and leaves of the "Violet Luo Illusionary Spirit Incense" wrapping Nie Kong’s body suddenly burst apart, countless dark green glints shooting out like sharp steel needles, embedding themselves into the transparent flesh of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm" in all directions.

"Crack!" This sound resembled a pained, sorrowful cry.

The "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm’s" body thrashed violently, shrinking back dozens of meters instantly, like a receding tide. Its massive form flattened by a substantial layer, while Nie Kong, Wu Dongliu, and the dark green vortex were once again visible to everyone, seemingly unharmed.

"Take this!" Nie Kong roared, shaking his right hand. Wu Dongliu, still held fast by the vortex, was instantly sent flying backward, landing in the direction where Nie Fenghua and the Ink Snow Sect disciples stood. Nie Fenghua, swift of eye and hand, lightly tapped Wu Dongliu's body, setting him down gently. After sending Wu Dongliu away, Nie Kong discarded all restraint, his spiritual power surging within him. The roar produced by the rapidly spinning dark green vortex was deafening.

"Hush..."

Suddenly, a massive indentation appeared in the body of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm." Immediately, Nie Kong felt an immensely powerful suction emanating from that depression. Even the rapidly spinning dark green vortex began to show signs of loosening, appearing as if it could be torn to shreds at any moment.

Qing Yue reminded him, "This fellow is going all out!"

Seeing the movement from the opposing "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm," Nie Kong was not surprised. This peculiar maneuver had been executed once before when it had absorbed Wu Dongliu’s body, but the suction force generated by the indentation then was vastly different from what it was now.

In the span of a thought, the mental image of the "Violet Luo Illusionary Spirit Incense" rushed out from between his brows once more. The stems and leaves instantly adhered to the outer layer of the vortex. Immediately, Nie Kong’s blood vessels pulsed violently, his blood boiling like water brought to a furious heat. Soon, wisps of dark green aura seeped from his palm, injecting themselves into the mental image covering the vortex's surface.

Having left the Yin Ruins for so many days, this was the first time Nie Kong had activated his bloodline power.

"Hum!"

With an earth-shattering tremor, the speed of the dark green vortex suddenly accelerated. The "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm," caught completely off guard, had its indented body instantly bounce outward several meters. Vast swathes of blood-red aura separated from it, flashing like lightning back into the dark green vortex.

A sharp "crack" erupted. The "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm's" body violently twisted, snapping back into its original shape, but not for long. Under the vortex's incessant pulling, it bounced outward again. The two strong opposing suction forces became locked in a back-and-forth struggle, resulting in a stalemate between Nie Kong and the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm."

Watching the indented section of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm's" body alternately retract and spring out, those behind knew their fierce entanglement had reached a deadlock. However, faced with such a bizarre spiritual beast and the strange fighting style between the two, they truly did not know how to intervene.

Everyone had witnessed the ability of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm." If they rashly interfered, there was a high chance they would not only fail to help but would actually complicate things for Nie Kong.

Nevertheless, while secretly wringing their hands for Nie Kong, Lan Shang and Liu Heming quietly mobilized the entirety of their internal power and moved to Bai Yuqing's side. The moment Nie Kong, just meters away, showed any sign of being unable to hold on, they planned to unleash their full power simultaneously to forcibly drag him away.

"Crack!" Several minutes later, the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm" suddenly let out a piercing howl, a note of exasperation tinged in its sound. And at the very instant that sound occurred, the repetitive cycle finally ended. The indented section of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm's" body kept bouncing outward, its speed increasing, and in less than a minute, it had completely returned to its flat, original state. The blood-red aura detaching from its body grew even more pronounced.

At this moment, the taut nerves of the onlookers finally relaxed slightly.

However, the dark green vortex did not dissipate. The fierce suction generated by its rapid spinning was still being exerted upon the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm’s" body. Its massive, water-bubble-like form suddenly bulged toward the vortex, and a great mass of solidified, tangible blood-red soul power was instantly swallowed by the vortex.

Just as everyone began to secretly rejoice, the dozens-of-meters-long body of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm" began to shift violently from west to east. In the blink of an eye, only a few short meters of its western section remained, while the eastern section had stretched out to nearly a hundred meters long, becoming increasingly slender.

"Screech!" A piercing shriek cut through metal and stone. The "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm's" body suddenly snapped apart. The twenty-plus meters of its western section enveloped by the dark green vortex were left behind, while the eastern section twisted and writhed with the speed of a nimble serpent, fleeing rapidly—in an instant, it was over a hundred meters away.

The mental image retreated, condensing into a small ball and sinking back into Nie Kong’s brow. The dark green vortex extending from his right palm also began to shrink. The section of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm" body left on the ground, its soul power instantly sucked dry, resembled a large, hard blood scab.

"Nie Kong!"

The sound of rushing water faded rapidly into the distance. Lan Shang and Liu Heming, along with the other Spirit Ornament City disciples, finally let down their guard completely and gathered around Nie Kong. Bai Yuqing let out a long breath, the tip of his broadsword hanging suspended in the air "clanking" as it touched the ground, but he did not approach immediately.

Before the vortex in front of Nie Kong had fully retracted into his palm, Gu Ruofei couldn't wait to ask, "Nie Kong, are you alright?" Although Lan Shang, Liu Heming, and Jing Lan did not speak, concern shone in their eyes.

"I'm fine!"

Nie Kong let out a long sigh of relief, fatigue coloring his expression. Although his Spirit Art and spiritual power allowed him to absorb the soul power of this "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm," the beast possessed at least the strength of a peak Fifth Rank. The entanglement, though it seemed simple, had severely depleted his spiritual power. Fortunately, the soul power of the "Blood Soul Jade Belt Worm" contained a large amount of vitality and a small portion of death energy, which allowed Nie Kong to recover quite a bit.

Swallowing a spirit medicine to restore his power, Nie Kong paused. "Senior Brothers and Sisters, Flame Mountain is not far now. Let's hurry on our way."

Lan Shang, Liu Heming, and the others were also anxious that lingering in this spot might invite unforeseen trouble, so they naturally raised no objections. All eyes then turned toward the disciples of the Ink Snow Sect opposite them. Nie Fenghua cast a faint glance at Nie Kong without speaking, merely waving a hand to signal two male disciples to lift the unconscious Wu Dongliu.

The twenty individuals continued their trek toward Flame Mountain. No one spoke along the way; only the rustling of their footsteps could be heard.

Although the immediate crisis had been resolved by Nie Kong, both Lan Shang’s group and the Ink Snow Sect disciples had realized the sheer danger of this "Abyssal Fire Dark Spring," proceeding with much greater caution. Especially the Ink Snow Sect disciples; the gazes they directed toward Nie Kong were now mixed with complex emotions—gratitude, admiration, shame, and astonishment...