The Forbidden Moon Library trembled.
Ancient pillars groaned as if burdened by an invisible weight. The countless floating scrolls that once drifted peacefully now shook violently, their faint glows flickering like dying stars.
Darkness seeped through the space.
Not natural darkness.
Something heavier.
Something that ate light itself.
Lin Xuan stood at the center of it all, facing the newly arrived enemies.
Dozens of masked figures surrounded the area.
And at their center—
The Elite.
The Elite assassin stepped forward slowly.
Unlike the others, their presence wasn't hidden.
It was deliberate.
Overwhelming.
Their black robes were lined with faint silver threads that pulsed like veins. The mask they wore bore three vertical lines carved across the hollow circle.
A higher rank.
A higher threat.
Yue Qing's voice dropped slightly.
"…Void Severing Elite."
Luo Meiyue's expression hardened.
"How strong?"
Yue Qing didn't hesitate.
"Above Spirit Sovereign."
Lin Xuan smiled.
"Finally."
The Elite tilted their head slightly.
"You're… calm."
Lin Xuan rolled his shoulders.
"I've been waiting."
The assassin's voice was cold.
"You won't be after this."
Without warning—
The Elite raised their hand.
The ground beneath them cracked.
Dark symbols spread rapidly across the floor, forming a massive array.
The air twisted.
Reality itself felt… cut.
Lin Xuan's pupils shrank slightly.
The Devourer Star reacted immediately.
Not just resistance—
Interference.
Stronger than before.
Luo Meiyue clenched her fist.
"It's a higher-level severing formation…"
Yue Qing stepped forward.
"Fall back."
Luo Meiyue shook her head.
"No."
Lin Xuan didn't move.
His eyes remained locked on the Elite.
"So this is your real method."
The Elite nodded.
"We don't fight devourers."
Their voice echoed coldly.
"We erase them."
The Elite vanished.
No movement.
No transition.
Just—
Gone.
Lin Xuan's body reacted instantly.
He twisted sideways.
A black blade appeared where his neck had been a fraction of a second earlier.
The strike cut through the air—
And left a visible fracture in space.
Lin Xuan's eyes widened slightly.
"That's new."
The Elite appeared behind him again.
Faster.
Sharper.
Stronger.
Lin Xuan blocked.
Their arms collided—
But this time—
The Devourer Star didn't absorb anything.
The energy slipped past it.
Untouched.
Lin Xuan jumped back.
"So you cut off the flow completely."
The Elite nodded.
"Devouring requires connection."
Their blade rose again.
"We remove it."
The Elite moved again.
This time—
Not one strike.
But dozens.
Each slash carved through space itself, leaving thin cracks that lingered in the air.
Lin Xuan dodged, blocked, redirected—
But every impact carried a strange sensation.
Not just force.
Separation.
As if his body was being cut away from the world around it.
The Devourer Star pulsed violently.
Trying to adapt.
Trying to understand.
But the interference was too strong.
Luo Meiyue stepped in.
Her hand swept forward.
The lake beneath the library—an illusionary extension of the sect's main formation—surged upward.
Hundreds of mirrored blades formed instantly.
They shot toward the Elite.
The assassin didn't dodge.
They raised their hand.
And sliced once.
The entire wave—
Split in half.
Perfectly.
Cleanly.
Luo Meiyue's eyes widened.
"That… shouldn't be possible."
The Elite stepped forward slowly.
"You rely on laws."
Their voice was emotionless.
"We cut them."
They pointed their blade at Lin Xuan.
"You rely on devouring."
The blade shifted slightly.
"We remove your ability to do so."
Lin Xuan exhaled slowly.
Then—
He smiled.
"You talk too much."
Lin Xuan stopped dodging.
Stopped blocking.
He stood still.
The Elite moved instantly.
The blade pierced toward his chest.
This time—
Lin Xuan didn't resist.
The blade struck him.
Luo Meiyue's voice cut through the air.
"Are you insane?!"
But the moment the blade made contact—
The Devourer Star exploded.
Not outward.
Not aggressively.
But inward.
Condensing.
Compressing.
The energy didn't try to devour the blade.
Instead—
It devoured itself.
Lin Xuan's aura changed.
Again.
Darker.
Denser.
More controlled.
The Elite's blade stopped.
Not blocked.
Not absorbed.
Stopped.
As if it had hit something that didn't exist within normal laws.
The Elite's voice shifted slightly.
"…What did you do?"
Lin Xuan's smile widened.
"You cut my connection to external laws."
He grabbed the blade.
"So I removed the need for them."
The Devourer Star pulsed.
But this time—
It wasn't reaching outward.
It was feeding on its own energy.
Refining it.
Strengthening it.
Lin Xuan moved.
Faster than before.
Stronger than before.
His fist struck the Elite directly.
BOOM.
The impact shattered the ground beneath them.
The Elite was forced back several meters.
For the first time—
They had been pushed.
Luo Meiyue stared in shock.
"He's fighting without external energy…"
Yue Qing nodded slowly.
"He turned the Devourer inward…"
The Elite adjusted instantly.
Their aura surged.
The severing formation intensified.
The space around Lin Xuan distorted further.
But this time—
It didn't matter as much.
Lin Xuan stepped forward again.
Each movement carried immense pressure.
His attacks no longer relied on devouring external power.
They were fueled entirely by the Devourer Star's internal cycle.
The Elite attacked again.
Their blade moved faster than before.
Sharper.
More precise.
Lin Xuan met them head-on.
Fist against blade.
Impact after impact.
Each collision sent shockwaves through the library.
Ancient scrolls shattered.
Stone pillars cracked.
The battlefield was collapsing.
Luo Meiyue stepped forward again.
This time—
She didn't hold back.
Her aura surged to its peak.
The entire library responded.
Every reflective surface—
Every shard of broken crystal—
Every fragment of light—
Became part of her domain.
"Enough," she said.
Her voice echoed across the space.
The reflections rose.
Thousands of them.
Each carrying her full power.
The Elite turned toward her.
"Another threat."
Luo Meiyue's eyes were cold.
"You're in my sect."
She raised her hand.
"Die here."
The reflections attacked.
At the same time—
Lin Xuan moved.
The Devourer Star roared.
Internal power surged through his body.
The Elite was forced to defend.
For the first time—
They were on the defensive.
Their blade cut through dozens of reflections.
But more came.
Endless.
Relentless.
Lin Xuan's fist struck again.
Cracking the Elite's defensive aura.
The mask shifted slightly.
A crack appeared.
The Elite stepped back.
Their voice finally carried emotion.
"…Impossible."
The remaining assassins moved instantly.
They formed a new formation.
Dark energy surged.
The space behind them tore open.
A void rift.
The Elite stepped back toward it.
Their gaze locked onto Lin Xuan.
"This isn't over."
Lin Xuan smirked.
"I hope not."
The Elite's voice dropped.
"You've forced us to escalate."
The rift expanded.
"We will send someone stronger."
Lin Xuan's eyes gleamed.
"I'll be waiting."
The assassins vanished into the void.
The rift closed.
Silence returned.
The library was in ruins.
Broken pillars.
Shattered scrolls.
Distorted space slowly repairing itself.
Luo Meiyue exhaled slowly.
"That was…"
She shook her head.
"…not normal."
Yue Qing stepped forward.
Her expression was serious.
"They sent an Elite already."
She looked at Lin Xuan.
"That means you're considered a high-priority target."
Lin Xuan stretched his shoulders.
"Good."
Luo Meiyue stared at him.
"You're insane."
Lin Xuan smiled.
"Maybe."
The Devourer Star pulsed.
Stronger than ever.
More refined.
More dangerous.
Far beyond the sect—
In a hidden domain—
The Elite assassin knelt before a shadowed figure.
"We failed."
The figure remained silent.
Then—
A voice echoed.
Deep.
Ancient.
Cold.
"Then we proceed to Phase Two."
The Elite lowered their head.
"Yes."
The voice continued.
"Send the Severing Apostle."
Even the Elite's body stiffened slightly.
"As you command."
Back in the ruins of the library—
Lin Xuan stood among the broken stones.
His gaze lifted toward the unseen sky above.
The Devourer Star burned steadily.
Evolving.
Adapting.
Becoming something new.
"Stronger enemies…" he murmured.
A faint smile appeared on his lips.
"Good."