Chapter 461: The Moon God Descends

Crumbling stone towers and dilapidated houses were scattered across Star Moon Valley, remnants of the once-glorious Star Moon Sect.

Over two hundred rogue cultivators had gathered in the valley, all practitioners of cultivation methods centered around stellar and lunar energies.

They sat on the ground, bathing in the radiance of stars and moon while gazing at the unusually brilliant night sky. Their eyes were filled not with admiration but unease.

Stellar and lunar radiance cascaded down from the starry skies, gathering in a disproportionately greater concentration in Star Moon Valley.

This was because the valley housed arrays capable of absorbing stellar and lunar radiance, with unique veins hidden deep underground.

A white jade altar shaped like a crescent moon stood at the center of the valley, with several stone pillars crafted from the same material surrounding it.

The surfaces of the pillars were engraved with the lunar phases. Under the moonlight, these carvings came to life, shimmering brilliantly as they writhed on the pillars' surface.

A beautiful woman with flowing hair draped over her shoulders sat atop the altar. Her slender figure and striking features belied the cold malice in her eyes.

"I've prepared for so long to obtain the lunar divine arts. Don't you dare ruin my plans!" she exclaimed, biting her lip as she gestured toward one of the stone pillars.

The rogue cultivators under her command mercilessly killed the young boys and girls—all practitioners of moon-based cultivation methods—at the base of the stone pillar.

The lunar carvings on the pillar absorbed their blood, causing the patterns to appear even more vivid and lifelike than before.

An elder clad in moon-white robes bowed respectfully to the woman.

"Divine Daughter, everything is ready!"

The cultivators scattered throughout the valley were all practitioners of the Star Moon Sect's surviving techniques and were recently attuned to the presence of Outer Gods beyond the Abyss.

They gazed at the malicious woman on the altar with eyes full of reverence and awe.

These cultivators, labeled as heretical cultivators for practicing forbidden arts and secretly connecting with Outer Gods through such altars, had gathered under her call.

The woman claimed to receive decrees from the Moon God and had rallied those seeking to advance their cultivation realms through stellar and lunar energies.

This vicious woman killed dissenters and rogue cultivators who practiced similar techniques but refused her command.

She had prepared abundant offerings, constructed the altar in Star Moon Valley according to the Moon God's instructions, and even sacrificed several young boys and girls—all in the hope of earning the Moon God's favor.

Her ultimate desire was to obtain divine arts that would propel her cultivation realm to unprecedented heights.

"I, Ling Yue'e, survivor of the Star Moon Sect, humbly beseech the Moon God to bestow us with her divine grace!" she proclaimed, lowering her head while raising her hands high in reverence.

Streams of pure lunar energy shot from the white jade pillars, carrying the souls and blood of the sacrificed children into the sky.

The mountains and cliffs surrounding Star Moon Valley radiated a brilliant light as the crescent moon altar beneath Ling Yue'e rose slowly into the air.

Once the altar ascended to a certain height, the full moon beyond the Abyss suddenly became dazzlingly luminous. A mysterious divine consciousness, wrapped in a beam of moonlight, shot down and struck Ling Yue'e's crown.

Ling Yue'e's self-awareness was erased the instant the moonlight entered her. In the blink of an eye, her memories, thoughts, and all other irrelevant aspects of her being were stripped away, leaving only the imprints connected to the Star Moon Sect.

Boom!

The crescent moon altar plummeted to the ground, and the original Ling Yue'e was no more.

As the Moon God lacked worshipers in the Abyss, she had been forced to work tirelessly behind the scenes to orchestrate her descent into the Abyss through Ling Yue'e.

She had not used her entire soul to descend into the vessel, merely a fragment of her divine consciousness with a significant infusion of divine power.

The Moon God's divine power immediately refined the body of Ling Yue'e.

Her bones became crystalline and her skin as smooth and white as jade. The transformation of her soul caused her aura and appearance to undergo a complete change, exuding a newfound otherworldly elegance.

"I—[1]" the Moon God started, then realized she could no longer refer to herself in her usual dignified manner while pretending to be Ling Yue'e

Adjusting her tone, she declared, "I've received the divine oracle and acquired the Moon God's divine arts. I now require time to comprehend them.

"All of you, leave Star Moon Valley at once. You may only return when I summon you."

Many of the heretical cultivators feared and hated Ling Yue'e.

However, although she still had the same appearance and voice as before, they could not help but feel convinced.

Not a single person voiced any objection as they all willingly left Star Moon Valley.

The Moon God was accustomed to commanding her followers from a position of supreme authority. Her voice, demeanor, and gestures all carried an innate, awe-inspiring aura unique to divine beings.

This profound influence on the souls of her followers made the heretical cultivators, practitioners of lunar-based techniques, completely submit to her will.

As the heretical cultivators rose to leave the valley, she cleared her throat and added, "Keep an eye out for someone named Pang Jian. Find out where he is."

"Pang Jian? The one from the Sword Pavilion?"

"Divine Daughter, he's been missing for some time. According to rumors, he entered secluded cultivation after killing Lie Yi, the Divine Son of the Radiant Race."

"Divine Daughter, we can't afford to provoke the Sword Pavilion, and you...you can't match Pang Jian either!"

The cultivators voiced their concerns nervously.

The Moon God's expression remained unperturbed, though a flicker of icy malice flashed in her eyes. "You can leave now."

Their scattered remarks and piecemeal information were enough to tell her that finding Pang Jian would be no easy task.

"This vessel is too fragile, a mere human in the Soul Wandering Realm with a flawed and impure divine soul."

Frowning, she resolved to refine the body further before making any moves.

Once the valley was empty, her eyes changed—one became a full moon and the other a crescent. Strange moon glyphs appeared on her forehead, and her body seemed to turn into a deep abyss that greedily absorbed the moonlight around her.

Moonlight from the sky and the lunar energy within the valley poured into her like iron filings to a magnet.

Several hours later, she muttered, "It's still too weak. Alas, I do not have worshipers in this Abyss and my options for vessels are limited.

"Though...the underground veins formed from lunar and stellar energies are quite useful."

With a point of her finger, the ground split open, opening up a deep and shadowy pit.

The Moon God gracefully floated down into the pit and soon descended to a depth of a hundred zhang.

She beheld the radiant stellar and lunar energies shimmering deep within the ground from the Stellar-Lunar Veins.

"Millennia of accumulated stellar and lunar energies, crystallized beneath the ground—this is quite satisfactory," she remarked.

Using her profound mastery of the lunar divine arts, she extracted pure lunar energy from the veins while simultaneously drawing in a golden radiance capable of tempering bones from the rare lunar gemstones nearby.

Unbeknownst to her, five hundred zhang below her sat another figure—Pang Jian.

Using the Qi Nurturing Divine Cauldron Art, Pang Jian quietly absorbed the stellar and lunar energies to strengthen the celestial bodies above his dantian.

The Moon God occupied the upper reaches of the veins, while Pang Jian resided in the lower depths. Neither extended their divine senses far enough to detect the other.

Thus, the two remained unaware of each other, each silently drawing energies from the veins beneath Star Moon Valley.

1. The pronoun "I" here corresponds to the classical Chinese term 吾, commonly used in formal, poetic, or ancient contexts. It often conveys a sense of authority, dignity, or grandeur, particularly when spoken by deities, monarchs, or figures of noble stature. ☜