Chapter 556: Nothing Extraordinary

"A True God of the human race!" The Dark Bat was both shocked and furious.

Raising its head for a closer look, it finally confirmed that the awe-inspiring figure before it was indeed a True God born from the Abyss.

The Dark Bat was a newly ascended low-ranking Outer God and had never encountered a True God before.

The puppet vessel it had sent its divine consciousness into in the Abyss had been too frail to bear much of his divine power, leaving it weak and unworthy of the True Gods' notice.

Thus, despite having descended into the Abyss before, it still found itself unfamiliar with the nature of the True Gods.

Still, even though the True Gods of the Abyss were an enigma to it, their legendary reputation across the starry skies was enough for it to heighten its vigilance to its peak.

When the Dark Bat saw the waves of sword light rushing toward him, it let out a piercing screech and hastily transmitted a message to its two three-headed, six-armed companions.

At the same time, it also unleashed the full force of its divine power.

Its massive bat wings unfurled, releasing a sea of black clouds on either side of its body. As its claws gripped a black staff, it felt a sense of renewed courage, divine power coursing through it.

"Witness the power of a God of Darkness!"

Scenes of ominous and surreal phenomena appeared in the sea of black clouds.

Massive ebony gravestones floated up and down as though mourning the departed souls. Splintered crosses, snapped eons ago, exuded a deathly aura as they lingered in the black clouds.

Black crows and vultures circled endlessly, their haunting cries echoing over decaying corpses. Adding to the eerie spectacle were the blooming dark roses with obsidian petals scattered across the vast darkness.

These gravestones, broken crosses, crows, vultures, and black roses were all manifestations of the God of Darkness's insights over the Dao of Darkness.

The enormous Dark Bat melted into the shadows, blending seamlessly with the sea of black clouds.

Rivers of sword light shot forth, their radiant glow piercing the expansive sea of black clouds and illuminating the ominous manifestations that embodied the Dao of Darkness.

The crows and vultures let out mournful cries. The floating black gravestones and shattered crosses radiated intense dark brilliance, emanating a malevolent energy that severed the rivers of sword light the instant they plunged into the darkness.

Some of the sword light struck the decayed corpses, only for their iron-hard bodies to absorb the impact, halting their advance entirely.

The withering black roses shed their petals, allowing them to drift through the black clouds alongside the decayed leaves. These petals erased the divine consciousness imbued in Pang Jian's sword light.

This strange sea of black clouds nullified Pang Jian's attack completely. Even the divine consciousness he had infused into the sword light was obliterated, leaving him with a faint trace of discomfort, a minor injury to his divine soul.

The Dark Bat, a mere low-ranking God of Darkness, held its ground with sheer tenacity. Its strength was on par with the True Gods of the human race and was comparable to someone like Li Chu.

Desperately harnessing its insights over the Dao of Darkness, it managed to fend off Pang Jian's first wave of attacks.

After observing the limited impact of his initial strikes, Pang Jian decisively altered his sword techniques. He swiftly abandoned his usual reliance on the Dao of Lightning and the Dao of Cold for a more targeted approach.

Pang Jian unleashed the explosive Cosmic Fission!

The colossal black-gold Abyssal Demon Sword carved forth a radiant cosmic tapestry above the boundless sea of black clouds. Even within the mysterious bizarre mist, the cosmos shimmered with a captivating brilliance.

Each star in this cosmic tapestry was as large as a millstone and gleamed like a crystal.

The blazing sun emitted waves of light and heat, hanging over the sea of black clouds and flooding it with searing rays.

The serene moon cast its immaculate light in deceptively gentle beams.

This interplay of the sun, moon, and stars—celestial bodies of illumination—became the perfect counter to dispel the oppressive darkness.

The resplendent cosmic expanse, unleashed through the Abyssal Demon Sword and infused with Pang Jian's insights over the myriad Heavenly Daos, radiated a blinding brilliance as he unleashed his full power.

In the gray of the bizarre mist, the cosmic expanse appeared enchantingly resplendent, its magnificence unmatched.

From afar, it looked as though a transcendent god had ripped a piece out of the starry skies and transplanted them into the bizarre mist. Pang Jian's insights over various Heavenly Daos perfectly mirrored the starry skies, with every detail harmoniously aligned.

The profound mysteries contained within the conjured cosmos were simply astonishing.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Sunlight, moonlight, and starlight cascaded down, riddling the vast sea of black clouds with holes. Then, in an awe-inspiring transformation, the celestial bodies all transformed into swords!

The massive sun morphed into a broad, blazing sword, the moon into a shimmering sword of silver, and the stars into gleaming blades scattered across the conjured skies.

Fiery meteors resembling colossal dragons then appeared alongside the celestial bodies. The fire energy and insights into the Dao of Fire within these meteors came from Long Yan, the Flame Dragon.

The sea of black clouds was torn apart, and a piercing wail echoed from within.

Pang Jian observed the cascading sword-shaped stars, sun, and moons with narrowed eyes. They each tore through the black clouds, grievously wounding the God of Darkness.

Outer Gods are nothing special after all.

The lips of Pang Jian's towering Immortal Divine Soul curled into a cold smirk as he stepped into the sea of black clouds and slashed repeatedly at the God of Darkness with the Abyssal Demon Sword.

The Abyssal Demon Sword truly lived up to its reputation as a divine artifact of unparalleled sharpness. The relentless strikes left the massive Dark Bat bloodied and dismembered.

Use the Primeval Demon Fusion Art to refine it into your body and seize its insight over the Dao of Darkness!

the Abyssal Demon advised.

The boundless darkness beneath the Fifth World of the Abyss hides mysteries yet untold.

You will only have the potential to explore its secrets after you comprehend the Dao of Darkness! Other divine beings can only absorb the Heavenly Daos of beings with similar attributes to their own, but your unique divine path means you can actually obtain new ones.

The Primeval Demon Fusion Art is a formidable technique that enables the plundering of another's Heavenly Dao! Don't kill it outright. Employ the technique while it's still alive!

The Abyssal Demon hastily gave Pang Jian instructions while tossing out a greenish-black demonic orb. The orb expanded into the Heaven-Encompassing Demonic Array, veiling the darkness below.

Pang Jian instantly activated the Primeval Demon Fusion Art through his Immortal Divine Soul.

The demonic energy within Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul surged around a massive fiery pool under the activation of the Primeval Demon Fusion Art. The demonic energy and the fiery pool within Pang Jian's physical body resonated in unison.

His towering Immortal Divine Soul turned a sinister black-red. A terrifying vortex formed at his waist, slowly rotating with a devouring force powerful enough to consume the heavens and earth.

The Dark Bat's sea of black clouds, the manifestations of its Dao of Darkness, and even its severed limbs from the Abyssal Demon Sword's strikes were all irresistibly drawn toward the swirling vortex.

The Abyssal Demon then conjured six massive demonic realms to surround the Dark Bat, pinning it down with immense suppressive force.

It did not matter how the Dark Bat struggled or shrieked. Any attempt at escape was futile against the overwhelming power of the six demonic realms.

A mere low-ranking God of Darkness,

Pang Jian mused, mind surging with emotions.

His thoughts drifted back to the harrowing experience of entering the Heaven-Earth Cosmos Chest, where he experienced the fear of being in the desolate eternity within.

The darkness beneath the Fifth World of the Abyss had always been a forbidden zone for all beings. No living being that ventured into that darkness had ever returned alive, from the era of the Fey Race's dominion over the Abyss, the age of the foreign races' supremacy, to the human race's rule.

Even True Gods, Fey Gods, and foreign races with Rank Ten bloodlines were no exceptions to this unyielding fate.

The Frost Dragon's corpse on the Fey Spirit Continent concealed a phrase in ancient demonic script, a line Pang Jian could still recall vividly:

The true path for all beings in this world lies beneath the Fifth World, in the darkness beneath the darkness!

Fan Chen had accurately deciphered this phrase after Zi Mo's deliberate misinterpretation.

The Heaven-Earth Cosmos Chest was linked to both the starry skies above and the extreme darkness below. When connected to the starry skies, Pang Jian could roam the outer worlds and glimpse the marvels beyond, but when venturing into the darkness, it was all he could do not to let despair overwhelm him.

What lies beneath that darkness? Does life exist within its depths? Why do the ancient demons claim that the true path for the inhabitants of the Abyss resides in that darkness below?

Gaining insights into the Dao of Darkness became imperative to uncover these mysteries. This low-ranking God of Darkness presented an ideal opportunity for Pang Jian to prepare himself for exploring the enigmatic darkness below.

***

Meanwhile, the three-headed, six-armed Outer Gods of the Titan Race—whose bloodline traced back to the one-eyed giants—held enchanted mirrors in their hands.

They observed Pang Jian's battle against the Dark Bat through the mirrors and watched the Thunder God Pan Di facing off against Naga and Naji.

The siblings appeared to be anxiously awaiting reinforcements.

Meanwhile, the towering True Gods had already slain the Dark Bat and used a terrifying secret technique to absorb its body and soul.

The two could not help but hesitate.

They did not know whether to assist the Naga and Naji siblings, unsure if their combined efforts would even stand a chance against an ancient Thunder God and the formidable True God of the human race.

"The wisest course of action would be to report the appearance of a True God in the bizarre mist," one said.

The other agreed, "The Great Demon God above and the Ghost Race's high-ranking God will surely find this information intriguing."

"The battle is already lost. If we interfere now, we risk entangling ourselves in this mess."

"Those three gods aren't even from our Titan Race. We only came here to observe. Why risk our lives fighting alongside them?"

The two Titan Race Outer Gods quickly reached a consensus.

Seizing the moment while Pang Jian was still occupied with using the Primeval Demon Fusion Art to absorb the Dark Bat, the pair fled at lightning speed.

As they retreated, they left a parting message.

Naji, the God of Darkness has fallen. You and your brother are on your own.

The pair kindly made sure to clarify the situation even while they escaped.