The spiritually infused tile shards remained tightly gripped within Clayne’s fingers, while his eyes stayed fixed on the thing lying inside the melted remains of the cocoon.

It was so eye-catching.

The acidic flesh had already dissolved almost everything around it, the toilet seat was half melted and the tiles near the ground looked warped and blackened.

Even the metal hinges nearby showed signs of corrosion.

Yet somehow...

That strange object remained completely untouched.

Slowly, Clayne crouched lower.

His senses sharpened immediately while he observed it carefully.

The object was small and curled. At first glance, it resembled a worm. But absolutely not a normal one.

Its surface looked smooth and strangely translucent beneath the bathroom light. Traces of red liquid still covered parts of it, and whenever the sharpened spiritual metal in Clayne’s hand touched the object lightly—

Clink.

A metallic sound echoed softly.

Clayne frowned immediately.

"...Hard?"

He carefully poked it again.

Clink.

The thing didn’t squish, didn’t bleed, and didn’t react at all. For short, it isn’t flesh.

The red "blood" covering it slowly slid downward before touching the melted tiles below.

And the moment the blood made contact—

Sizzle.

The tiles immediately began dissolving further.

Clayne’s eyes narrowed.

The blood itself was acidic.

But strangely, after several seconds, the red glow covering the worm like object gradually faded away.

The blood completely disappeared.

And what remained behind looked even stranger.

A crystal. No... more like a worm shaped crystal.

Its previous bloody red appearance slowly turned into a transparent white color, almost like polished glass.

The thing reflected light faintly while remaining curled in a circular shape.

Clink.

Clayne lightly tapped it again using the metal weapon.

Still hard.

Still crystal like.

Then suddenly...

An idea appeared in his head.

Without touching it directly, Clayne carefully nudged the object toward the nearby sink using the metal rod. Carried it between the tiles and the metal rod.

Once it reached the sink basin, he dropped it and slowly opened the faucet.

Cold water rushed downward.

The crystal worm rolled slightly beneath the flowing water.

Then suddenly—

CRACK!

A loud sound erupted behind him.

Clayne immediately spun around.

The destroyed toilet seat inside the cocoon cubicle suddenly split apart completely.

The melted structure could no longer support itself.

And through his heightened senses, Clayne instantly realized what was happening.

The entire floor section beneath the cubicle was collapsing downward.

Then—

Crash!

Part of the bathroom floor gave way.

A small hole opened beneath the cubicle.

Immediately afterward—

"Aaagh!"

A scream of pain echoed from below.

Clayne froze slightly.

A human voice, alive, sent his senses sharpening instantly.

But instead of rushing closer recklessly, Clayne stepped backward quietly and listened carefully.

Through the hole below, he could hear panicked voices.

"My hand!"

"My hand is melting!"

The voice trembled in agony.

Then immediately—

"Shut up!"

"Shut up, idiot!"

More voices followed.

The sound of movement echoed below, desks scraping and furniture pushing.

Someone clearly covered the injured person’s mouth because the screaming became muffled afterward.

Clayne listened silently for several moments.

Alive humans.

Probably survivors hiding beneath this floor.

Still...

He did not feel relieved.

If anything, he became even more cautious.

Earlier, he might have instinctively wanted to approach other survivors.

But he had a secret.

Clayne would no way share it.

Especially during an apocalypse.

He slowly nodded to himself.

"...Definitely humans."

Then immediately ignored them. Instead, Clayne carefully returned toward the sink.

The crystal worm remained beneath the flowing water quietly.

Now that the blood completely washed away, the object became much clearer.

It truly looked crystalline, transparent white, and smooth, with a surface almost resembling carved spiritual jade, and somehow it felt dangerous.

Not actively but because it looked valuable, like something important remained hidden inside it.

Clayne narrowed his eyes thoughtfully.

"Should I put this in the tiny world...?"

For a moment, he genuinely considered it.

But eventually, he shook his head.

"No."

Until he understood what it was, throwing random dangerous objects into the miniature cultivation world sounded reckless.

Instead, he carefully placed the crystal worm aside near the sink corner.

Then immediately moved toward another faucet.

His water bottle was still nearly empty.

And right now, water has become one of the most valuable resources he possesses.

Especially spiritualized water.

Carefully, Clayne opened his backpack and prepared the tiny cultivation world again near the sink.

He was just about to refill the bottle using the miniature spiritual river when suddenly, his movements stopped.

Clayne’s eyes widened slightly.

"...Zi Yue?"

Inside the miniature world...

Zi Yue had returned.

But something was wrong. Absolutely amiss.

Her eyes remained closed while her body floated midair above a rocky platform surrounded by crimson formations.

Red strings wrapped tightly around her limbs like restraints.

And surrounding her...

Three cultivators wearing dark red robes stood in triangular positions while forming strange hand seals continuously.

Blood-colored spiritual Qi flowed between them and Zi Yue endlessly.

Watching the scene, Clayne’s expression darkened immediately.

His first instinct was to interfere, but he stopped himself, and instead he carefully observed.

...

Meanwhile...

Inside the miniature cultivation world...

The three demonic cultivators looked ecstatic.

Their eyes glowed with excitement while spiritual Qi surged continuously through the crimson formation beneath Zi Yue.

One of the demonic cultivators laughed loudly.

"Hahaha! Success!"

"I knew it!"

"The vessel survived the possession perfectly!"

His face twisted with excitement while looking toward Zi Yue’s floating body.

Another demonic cultivator nodded rapidly.

"Our Blood Soul Sect truly has not been abandoned by heaven!"

His voice trembled emotionally.

"For thousands of years we searched endlessly for a suitable vessel capable of supporting Master’s soul completely, yet all previous hosts collapsed before awakening!"

The third cultivator laughed darkly.

"But this one is different!"

His eyes stared greedily toward Zi Yue.

"She possessed natural sword talent, strong spirit roots, stable meridians, strange natural spiritual Qi Gathering body and now even Core Formation cultivation!"

He inhaled deeply.

"With this perfect vessel, Master will surely rise again completely!"

The three became more and more excited while speaking.

"Our Blood Soul Sect will finally return to glory!"

"The righteous sects that hunted us down will regret everything!"

"Once Master fully recovers, even Nascent Soul sects will bow before us!"

The first cultivator laughed crazily.

"Hahaha! Those hypocritical righteous cultivators thought they exterminated our inheritance completely!"

"But now..."

He looked toward Zi Yue reverently.

"Our Blood Soul Sovereign returns!"

The surrounding blood formations glowed brighter.

The crimson strings binding Zi Yue pulsed repeatedly.

Then suddenly, Zi Yue slowly opened her eyes.

The three demonic cultivators instantly trembled.

Excitement flooded their faces immediately and they hurriedly knelt down.

"Congratulations, Master!"

"Congratulations on successfully seizing the perfect vessel!"

"Our Blood Soul Sect welcomes Master’s return!"

The three lowered their heads deeply.

One cultivator even trembled emotionally while speaking.

"With Master’s return, the Blood Soul Sect shall dominate once more!"

"We will gather disciples again!"

"We will rebuild our mountain!"

"No..."

The second cultivator raised his head fanatically.

"We will surpass our former glory!"

The third cultivator laughed excitedly.

"With Master’s talent and this vessel, even Ascendant Realm may no longer remain impossible!"

Their excitement became almost uncontrollable.

None of them noticed...

Zi Yue’s expression was cold, silent, and emotionless, then slowly...

She raised one finger.

The three cultivators immediately froze slightly.

At first, they assumed their Master prepared some instruction.

But then—

A sword appeared.

A blood colored sword instantly formed from spiritual Qi beside Zi Yue.

The demonic cultivators’ expressions immediately changed.

"Master?"

Confusion appeared briefly.

Then suddenly, Zi Yue moved, fast, too fast.

The sword flashed through the air instantly.

One cultivator’s head flew upward before he even understood what happened.

Blood erupted everywhere.

The second cultivator widened his eyes in horror.

"Wha—"

Before he finished speaking—

Slash!

The sword pierced directly through his chest.

His body exploded apart into pieces.

Only the final cultivator survived long enough to react.

His face instantly turned pale.

"Impossible!"

He immediately activated a defensive talisman desperately.

Boom!

The talisman exploded with light just as the sword reached him.

Even then, one of his arms flew apart while blood sprayed violently across the ground. 𝗳𝗿𝐞𝕖𝘄𝗲𝕓𝗻𝚘𝚟𝕖𝐥.𝚌𝕠𝕞

The surviving cultivator screamed in terror while retreating desperately.

But his expression remained completely horrified.

Because now...

He finally realized something.

The person inside Zi Yue’s body...

Was still Zi Yue.