Chapter 488: Snatching Food from the Tiger's Mouth

Pang Jian appeared quietly within the barrier of condensed demonic energy, eyes shut in an expression of serenity. He seemed entirely unaware that he was submerged in a sea of demonic energy.

He gripped a sword scabbard in one hand and a black-gold sword in the other. He seemed to be in a meditative state, comprehending the profound mysteries of a Dao.

His body was like a black hole as he voraciously absorbed the sea of demonic energy around him.

The human race could not withstand demonic energy, and only Demon Races such as the Demon Scale Race could use it to refine their bones and bloodlines.

Despite this, he was unmistakably absorbing the demonic energy around him.

Waves of demonic energy rippled from his body like tides.

"He's fallen onto the demonic path and is even willingly becoming one of them." Dong Shangqing of the Ancient Law Sect sighed deeply.

Moving closer with his compass, he carefully analyzed the fluctuations around Pang Jian.

"This Demon is no ordinary being!" he exclaimed in shock.

The demonic energy barrier surrounding Pang Jian was etched with intricate demonic patterns corresponding to the secret techniques and divine abilities of the Demon Gods in the outer worlds.

It bore a striking resemblance to the structure of the Heaven-Encompassing Demonic Array which encased the continent.

This anomaly indicated that many Demon Gods and Great Demon Gods had imprinted their profound insights into the Dao of Demons onto the barrier shielding Pang Jian, channeling their will through the demonic stone known as the Demon Lair.

They would only do this if Pang Jian was critically important to them!

Li Zhaotian, still recovering from his injuries, hovered in the air with his Tempest Fiend Sword on his back.

"Fallen onto the demonic path?

"Dong Shangqing, don't jump to conclusions! At least wait until he wakes up and does something harmful to the human race in the Abyss to accuse him!"

His plump face brimmed with anger, and every word from his mouth seethed with palpable fury.

"Li Wang, were you the one who allowed him to bring the Demon Subjugating Shrine into the Demon Abyss Continent? You knew he was only in the Nirvana Realm, knew he was this generation's World God, and yet—!"

"Fatty Li, don't misunderstand. We didn't know he was the new World God until he returned to the Demon Abyss Continent," Li Wang placated.

"But you knew he was my disciple, right?" Li Zhaotian growled. "You pushed me to advance to the True God Realm, to become the sharpest sword at your disposal.

"I did as you wished. But now my disciple, the one I chose to inherit my position as the Pavilion Master of the Sword Pavilion, is being used as a pawn in your schemes!

"I fell unconscious after I failed to ascend to the True God Realm, so you sent my disciple to risk his life for you?

"What's next? Do you plan to send all my talented disciples to their deaths one by one? Do you wish for them to die before their master does?"

Li Zhaotian looked as though he was prepared to devour the True Gods present in a fit of rage.

After awakening from his failed breakthrough, Li Zhaotian learned that the Third World had fallen.

The foreign races took over the Red Mountain Sect, and his beloved companion, Liu Lingyun, perished in the battles.

Many Sword Pavilion disciples also faced insurmountable obstacles while trying to return to the Second World. Several inner disciples were killed, and numerous Nirvana Realm protectors died in battle.

The Sword Pavilion disciples with Zhou Wenhao likely would not have escaped unscathed if Pang Jian had not appeared on the Cosmic Skies Continent, confronting Xuan Ying and resisting the fierce attacks of Lie Yi, the Divine Son of the Radiant Race,

Li Zhaotian was immensely proud of Pang Jian, his final disciple, and genuinely admired him.

This was going to be his first true meeting with Pang Jian.

Li Zhaotian had failed in his breakthrough. As if that was not enough, Li Wang and the other True Gods had taken the opportunity to treat Pang Jian as a pawn.

As Pang Jian's master, there was simply no way Li Zhaotian could accept this.

"Even if Pang Jian has fallen onto the demonic path, I will awaken him and help him regain himself!" Li Zhaotian declared, glaring at Li Wang and the other True Gods. "If you dare to harm him, I will consider you the enemy of not only me but also the entire Sword Pavilion!

"If he attacks you, it's because you deserve it!

"After everything he went through to escape, you sent him back down with the Demon Subjugating Shrine. Who gave you the right to decide that?

"The destruction of the Demon Abyss Continent and the deaths of its inhabitants are not the Sword Pavilion's concern!

"In my eyes, Pang Jian's life is worth more than all the lives on this continent combined!

"Don't give me that nonsense about sacrificing the few for the greater good! Save your bullshit!" Li Zhaotian snarled.

Li Wang, Dong Shangqing, and Li Yuanli exchanged bitter smiles as they faced Li Zhaotian.

They were all familiar with his unreasonable nature and unwillingness to consider the bigger picture.

His notoriously volatile temper was why they had been reluctant to allow such a loose cannon to ascend to the True God Realm before the human race faced any major crises.

They were convinced that Li Zhaotian would be uncontrollable as a True God, especially with his tendency to explode in a fit of rage at the slightest provocation.

An emotionally unstable, impulsive, and willful True God with unmatched strength was the last thing they wanted.

"Fatty Li, I promise I'll give you time to try and awaken Pang Jian, even if he truly has fallen onto the demonic path," Li Wang reluctantly conceded. "But you have to ensure that he doesn't go around slaughtering innocents while in this state."

"Perhaps Pang Jian could help us dismantle the Heaven-Encompassing Demonic Array without bloodshed," Liu Fu said suddenly.

Li Wang raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean?"

"Pang Jian has descended deep into the demonic path and is continuously drawing in demonic energy. If you observe closely, you'll notice that the demonic energy sustaining the Heaven-Encompassing Demonic Array has already started to thin."

Liu Fu shared a close friendship with Li Zhaotian and had been quietly observing the barrier below throughout their dispute.

"Unbelievable, truly unbelievable!" he exclaimed softly.

Li Wang and the others focused their senses and were equally astonished at what they saw.

The greenish-black barrier enveloping the continent contained an unimaginably vast amount of demonic energy.

They had initially assumed that Pang Jian could only absorb a minuscule fraction of the demonic energy within the barrier, likely no more than a drop in the ocean or one-millionth of the demonic energy within the array.

Unexpectedly, the demonic energy around him had thinned significantly in the short time they had been arguing.

The demonic patterns in that section of the array had also started to destabilize.

"Perhaps he truly is the key to our entry onto the Demon Abyss Continent!" exclaimed Dong Shangqing.

***

Inside the Abyssal Demon Sword in Pang Jian's hand, the six mysterious realms, originally from the Demon God Lamp, had transformed into six chaotic demonic realms.

In one of the realms, a fiery realm of apocalyptic proportions, a fetus with greenish-black skin circulated a demonic technique within the bubbling lava.

It was unmistakably the Primeval Demon Fusion Art.

Pang Jian's divine soul contemplated the profound Primeval Demon Fusion Art on his fragmented land in his dantian under the Abyssal Demon's guidance.

Meanwhile, the Demon Fetus in the fiery realm within the Abyssal Demon Sword had instinctively activated the same technique.

Under normal circumstances, the Demon Fetus would absorb most of the demonic energy using the Primeval Demon Fusion Art.

The Abyssal Demon was powerless to stop the Demon Fetus from activating the Primeval Demon Fusion Art.

He could only watch helplessly as the Demon Fetus cleansed its soul and body with endless demonic energy, growing stronger with every passing moment.

After reaching a certain level of growth, the Demon Fetus would inevitably devour the first secondary soul it had released—the Abyssal Demon himself.

Then something unexpected occurred.

The demonic energy flowing to the Demon Fetus was instead overwhelmingly diverted toward Pang Jian.

Pang Jian absorbed ninety percent, leaving only about ten percent for the Demon Fetus.

After failing to seize Li Zhaotian's True God Realm body, the Demon Fetus was weakened. It desperately needed this chance to refine demonic energy and regain its strength.

A being like the Demon Fetus required an astronomical amount of demonic energy to grow, and it had meticulously prepared for this with the Demon Lair.

No demonic cultivator in the Abyss—including the Abyssal Demon—could snatch nourishment from its grasp.

However, Pang Jian was doing the impossible. He was snatching food straight from the tiger's mouth!

At times, the Demon Fetus would briefly awaken, allowing it to transmit its will to the loyal Great Demon Gods.

Initially, its will was simple—it had taken a liking to Pang Jian and wanted him to survive.

Later, the Demon Fetus realized something was amiss, and it abruptly changed its mind.

This was the reason Xuan Ying had attacked Pang Jian.

When it awakened again, the Demon Fetus noticed that both it and Pang Jian were inside the barrier.

The barrier was a place where living beings could not linger.

Not even beings like Xuan Ying or the two Immortal Realm elders of the Demon Sect could enter the barrier.

Pang Jian, however, remained brazenly present in the forbidden space as he continued greedily absorbing demonic energy.

Most of the demonic energy vanished into Pang Jian's body, throwing the Demon Fetus's growth into chaos.

The meticulously crafted plans of the Demon Gods teetered on the brink of collapse.

It contemplated the situation, then in a brief state of clarity, uttered in a deep voice,

The Fifth Source

.

The Abyssal Demon trembled.

The Fifth Source.

These three words were the origins of the Abyssal Demon, and hearing the words spoken with the Demon Fetus's resonant voice gave the Abyssal Demon an inexplicable sense of intimacy and belonging.

The Abyssal Demon instinctively desired to merge into the Demon Fetus and become one with it.

After all, they were one and the same.

The Abyssal Demon acted the moment the thought arose, flying straight toward the Demon Fetus.

The joy on his face was like a wanderer returning home after millennia adrift.

The Abyssal Demon did not realize that he actually could not resist the Demon Fetus when it expressed its desires. He could never defy a higher version of himself unless an external force intervened.

"Abyssal Demon!" Pang Jian called, keenly sensing the Abyssal Demon's abnormal behavior. "What are you doing?"

Boom!

Pang Jian's divine soul manifested in the world within the Abyssal Demon Sword.

His towering golden divine soul was millions of zhang tall, radiating a blinding golden light. The invasive properties of the Nether Abyss Spirit Bees, capable of eroding divine consciousness, were unleashed through the light.

The invisible tether connecting the Demon Fetus and the Abyssal Demon dissipated under the golden radiance.

As the Abyssal Demon was about to merge with the Demon Fetus, he shuddered violently and fled in terror at full speed.