The more time Hao Xuan spent in the cocoon, the stronger the side effects in the outside world got. The dark clouds in the upper atmosphere had formed a whirlpool with different rings rotating in opposite direction to the preceding one.
The first ring was located right above the cocoon about five thousand meters in the air. It was barely a few meters in diameter, rotating clockwise. The second ring was rotating anti-clockwise and it was more than a hundred meters in diameter.
The size kept increasing while the rotation reversed every time. Each ring was also a little higher than the previous one.
Since the first one was at the height of five thousand meters, the second was at fifty-two thousand meters, the third at fifty-nine thousand, the fourth at seventy thousand, etc. The sixth ring had already reached the highest point this world could handle so it could not be determined how many there were in total.
It looked like each ring was connected to the one above. Their inverted, grinding motions creating arcs of electricity that traveled up and down the rings. From afar, it looked like an absolutely massive engine of sorts, slowly building up to something.
Violent white and blue lighting bolts struck each ring, chaining them together in hopes of bringing them closer to one another while they pushed against it with an invisible yet tangible force that could be felt by most spiritually sensitive beings.
It made for a marvelously breathtaking view. Unfortunately, no one other than Hao Xuan could see it, and he himself was preoccupied at the moment.
Down on the ground, the cocoon continuously rumbled with each booming thunderstrike from the cloud rings. It already looked like it was made from solidified tar but threads of electricity that ran along its length created even more tree-like lesions, a unique characteristic of lightning burns.
Inside the cocoon, Hao Xuan's body was undergoing its own changes. The Chaos Qi had formed a whirlpool, mirroring the one in the sky above. The meridians that were used for housing the various Qi's were being torn apart by the movement of the whirlpool, and their contents incorporated within the whirlpool.
Only the largest and sturdiest five were still left intact, barely holding on for dear life while trying to fight against the battering forces of the whirlpool. They were on the verge of being destroyed, full of the same tree-like burns that enveloped the cocoon outside.
But due to Hao Xuan's superhuman regeneration ability, every time they got close to shattering, the healing factor would kick in at full force. But this endless cycle of near-annihilation followed by a short period of convalescence required a large amount of blood energy.
It was only a matter of time before the blood energy would run out, at which point they would be destroyed completely, turning Hao Xuan into a cripple.
For normal individuals, the meridians were formed by a network of vessels and arteries physically located within their bodies. That's why it was quite easy to measure their quantity, quality, and numerous other factors given there were appropriate tools available.
But at this moment, Hao Xuan had greatly deviated from this path of normalcy that was followed by most others. His meridian network was completely destroyed, leaving only the main meridians that were also in a perilous state.
Arcs of electricity struck the meridians over and over again as if they were mortal enemies.
Soon the whirlpool expanded to every single part of Hao Xuan's body, covering everything within the bubbling chaos that was its essence. Although strangely enough, they didn't damage any of the other organs other than the meridian system.
All the nanites that got even close to this continuously expanding whirlpool were instantly destroyed, rendered into their most basic components before being absorbed by the whirlpool.
All Baracus could do was watch on from the sidelines and record this appalling turn of events in detail.
Meanwhile, Hao Xuan's mind was still in the inner space that he had created for understanding the Chaos Laws.. His feet that had previously been one with the mountain below now had large cracks on them.