Chapter 519: Determined to Stay Behind

Tiny blood runes flickered in the depths of Dong Tianze's eyes, rising and sinking like crimson stars.

He glanced at Huang Qi and, with that single look, disrupted the blood flow within Huang Qi's body.

Terrified, Huang Qi cautiously stepped back.

Dong Tianze's eyes returned to normal just a moment later.

Ignoring Huang Qi, Dong Tianze instead shifted his focus to Pang Jian and said, "I'm fine."

After a brief hesitation, he then gestured for Huang Qi to leave.

Huang Qi wasted no time. Despite the swirling doubts in his mind, he followed Lin Miaojin's lead and swiftly distanced himself from the area without another word.

"I'm not in a hurry to return to the Resolute Expanse," Dong Tianze said calmly.

With a thought, his divine soul, floating within the sea of his consciousness, shifted between the forms of a river of blood-colored light and a heavy, dark crimson tome.

Every character of the Blood God Technique was etched deeply into his divine soul, becoming part of his very being.

"Pang Jian, this Blood God Technique is extraordinary. It holds the power to help me ascend to the True God Realm."

A faint blood-colored mist seeped from Dong Tianze's body as he activated a secret technique.

The blood-colored mist spread quietly outward, similar to the blood mist that once shrouded Luo Hongyan before him.

"The Blood God Technique integrates seamlessly with the bloodline techniques I inherited from the Celestial Phoenix. I don't know if a god that the Blood Spirit Sect worshiped will attempt to possess me in the future.

"All I know is that I can rapidly advance my cultivation realm and reach the Nirvana Realm with this Blood God Technique.

"This grand gathering of the heretical cultivators in the Imperial Dominion is something I want to take part in as well."

Dong Tianze paused briefly.

"Pang Jian, you don't need to watch over me in the Imperial Dominion from now on. The moment the Blood God Technique was imparted to me, I became one of the heretical cultivators. I've joined their ranks. They won't target me as an enemy."

Lowering his head, Dong Tianze hid the twisted, conflicted expression on his face from Pang Jian.

"I'm sure you've already realized that two peak Immortal Realm heretical cultivators are attempting to ascend to the True God Realm on this fragmented land.

"I have fallen onto the path of heresy after cultivating the Blood Spirit Sect's highest grade cultivation method. I am now one of them.

"But you aren't!" Dong Tianze said sharply, head snapping up to meet Pang Jian's eyes with wild, burning intensity. "Leave the Imperial Dominion by whatever means you have. Don't get caught in this storm!

"If I survive this and retain even a sliver of my sanity, I will find you."

Whoosh!

Dong Tianze vanished in a streak of blood-colored light, activating a newly mastered blood escape technique to travel a thousand li in the blink of an eye.

***

Six rogue cultivators, ranging from the Soul Wandering Realm to the Spirit Condensation Realm, were hiding away in a swamp shrouded in toxic miasma.

Suddenly, a streak of blood-colored light flashed, and Dong Tianze appeared.

"Who's there?"

Their faces paled as they immediately surrounded Dong Tianze.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The faint blood-colored mist surrounding Dong Tianze surged violently outward, swallowing the six rogue cultivators in an instant.

The blood-colored mist churned like a tide of blood, forming terrifying creatures that tore into the rogue cultivators with eerie wails and ghostly howls.

Moments later, the blood-colored mist receded back into Dong Tianze's body.

𝕗𝗿𝕖𝐞𝐰𝗲𝕓𝐧𝕠𝕧𝗲𝐥.𝚌𝐨𝚖

Only six glistening white skeletons remained around him, entirely stripped of flesh and blood.

Dong Tianze had ruthlessly devoured the divine souls, flesh, organs, and blood of the six rogue cultivators using the Blood God Technique, refining them into sustenance that nourished and empowered him.

A fleeting sense of satisfaction bloomed within him after his "meal," but even then, he could barely suppress the bloodthirst and craving for slaughter that swelled within him.

"I'm sorry, but I have to stay away from you," he muttered.

Pang Jian and Huang Qi would never know the amount of willpower it took to resist them when Dong Tianze first opened his eyes. He teetered on the brink of collapse and madness, narrowly suppressing the overwhelming urge to devour them both.

Both Pang Jian and Huang Qi cultivated the Grand Providence Sacred Body and had Providence Mystic Reservoir Acupoints within them. Their blood essence also far exceeded that of ordinary rogue cultivators.

Dong Tianze was still in the early stages of the Blood God Technique. For him, Pang Jian and Huang Qi were akin to potent spiritual elixirs. The blood runes fused with his divine soul carried an insatiable hunger that could consume his reasoning at any moment.

Waving Huang Qi away and urging Pang Jian to leave the Imperial Dominion had exercised the last of his restraint. That was his limit.

If he had delayed any longer, he would have either lost control and attacked Pang Jian or suppressed the urge so fiercely that his body ruptured internally.

Thus, he had no choice but to flee, no choice but to distance himself from the only friend he ever had in his life.

***

The night was pitch black.

Pang Jian sat alone in the cold, barren wasteland.

The Gate of the Abyss hung from his chest. He could activate it and return to the Resolute Expanse whenever he wished.

He could easily walk away as though he was unaware of the crisis unfolding in the Imperial Dominion.

This was a problem for the True Gods to handle.

But...

Only two divine seats remain in the Abyss. If the two heretical cultivators succeed, how will my master ascend once he recovers?

Dong Tianze's eyes were filled with struggle when he left. What is he so afraid of?

Will the Sword Pavilion elders really stay away from the Imperial Dominion?

Pang Jian's mind raced.

The Abyssal Demon interrupted his spiraling thoughts.

Pang Jian, when Dong Tianze opened his eyes, an overwhelming darkness erupted within him. The malice was so intense and fierce that it nearly shattered his mind and soul.

That malice was directed at you and the rogue cultivator beside you.

It sought to devour both of your blood and your souls to complete his first feeding,

the Abyssal Demon informed.

Pang Jian finally realized that Dong Tianze had fallen under the Blood God Technique's corrupting influence during the assimilation process.

Dong Tianze's abrupt departure had been his desperate attempt to avoid a confrontation with Pang Jian.

He could slaughter anyone else in the world, be it the human race, the foreign races, the Fey Races, or even spectral entities. Anyone unconnected to him was fair prey.

However, in Pang Jian's presence, Dong Tianze fought desperately to suppress the overwhelming urge to kill. He fled only after leaving behind a few hurried words, even at the cost of injuring himself to keep that bloodlust in check.

Dong Tianze placed thousands of li between them as soon as possible so that he did not lose control and attack Pang Jian.

Abyssal Demon, is staying in the Imperial Dominion too reckless?

Pang Jian asked.

The Abyssal Demon chuckled darkly.

Just change your face, take on a new identity, and let the demonic energy within you flow freely. You'll become another demon among many. After all, what does a demonic cultivator have to fear in the Imperial Dominion?

Pang Jian's eyes flickered.

A demonic cultivator!

Adjusting the bones in his face, he altered his features and replaced his blue Sword Pavilion robes with black ones.

He then sheathed his divine sword to hide its distinct black-and-blade.

Taking a deep breath, he attempted to harness the swirling greenish-black sea of demonic energy beneath the fragmented land in his dantian, allowing it to surge through his body and fill every corner of his being.

Surprisingly, the demonic energy flowed through his meridians without obstruction.

His aura shifted dramatically, exuding an enigmatic and profound darkness, making him appear like the embodiment of a demonic cultivator.

***

The golden bee on the Resolute Expanse asked, "The elders haven't recklessly entered the Imperial Dominion, have they?"

"Elder Jiang Ran is determined to kill the White Bone Saint Lu Qinghe once more." Qi Qingsong gripped his Blue Dream Sword tightly. "He's heading to the Imperial Dominion, ready to face death!

"Pang Jian, where are you? Your sister, Pang Lin, arrived two days ago through the teleportation array. Wu Sujin sent her to the Thunderclap Paradise.

"Pang Jian, you and your sister have been apart for years. Why aren't you coming back yet?"

Qi Qingsong glared at the golden bee.

Knowing Pang Jian's fondness for risk, he deliberately mentioned Pang Lin in hopes of pulling him away from the dangers in the Imperial Dominion.

Two heretical cultivators were attempting to ascend to the True God Realm. It was clearly something far beyond what Pang Jian could handle alone.

Qi Qingsong had no desire to see Pang Jian perish in the Imperial Dominion.

"Pang Lin has already arrived?" The golden bee's voice brimmed with joy. "What a shame...I'm not at the Resolute Expanse right now. If I were, I'd take just one look at her—just one glance would be enough."

"Come back now! You'll see her when she leaves the Thunderclap Paradise!" Zhou Qingchen growled, gruff and impatient.

"Mm, I will. I'll be back soon."

With that, the golden bee fell silent.

***

Pang Jian sat in contemplation in the barren wasteland.

The bone-white city behind the White Bone Gate had stirred a sense of familiarity within him.

White Bone Sect, Blood Prison Sect, and Blackwood Sect.

White Bone City, Blood Prison Village, Blackwood Village, Dead Spirit Town, Sinister Soul Town, Ghost Spirit Town, and Eight Trigrams City.

After careful recollection and comparison, he realized that the bone-forged city was identical to the White Bone City atop the Heaven Ascension Tribulation Pillars in the Fifth World.

The Blood Prison Sect matched with the Blood Prison Village, while the Blackwood Sect corresponded to the Blackwood Village.

The seven towns and villages atop the Heaven Ascension Tribulation Pillars were consistent with seven infamous factions that once terrorized the Abyss.

Whoosh!

The mysterious Sanctum of Godly and Demonic Genesis shifted in the sky of the southern region of the fragmented land and transformed into three eerie towns.

The three towns drifted from the sky toward the desolate wasteland.

Dead Spirit Town, Sinister Soul Town, Ghost Spirit Town!

Spectral entities and ghostly wraiths flickered into existence within the towns as they descended upon three corners of the wasteland.

Boom! Boom! Boom!

The heavy thud of falling structures echoed clearly, causing the wasteland to tremble.

Moments later, Pang Jian sensed a surge of heretical cultivators emerging from the areas where the three towns had landed.