Chapter 586: Su Wanrou's Embrace of Darkness

The sword light Li Zhaotian stirred no ripples in the space that the Mirage Dragon Pearl had enshrouded.

A single roar from Long Xiao destroyed the sword light before it could land, preventing Pang Jian and Su Wanrou from hearing the message within.

However, that did not stop Pang Jian, Su Wanrou, and Long Xiao from sensing when Mu Wentao died.

A True God had just perished nearby.

The shift in the world's forces, the dissipating soul fluctuation, and the surge of new Fortune simply could not be concealed.

A numb, tingling sensation coursed through the gaping wound in Pang Jian's chest as the Fortune sought to mend his injuries.

Then, just as quickly as the sensation appeared, it vanished, signifying that the Fortune had been seized.

Mu Wentao's killer had directly fused the emerging Fortune into their divine soul!

Even though none of them had left the illusory realm of the Mirage Dragon Pearl, all three were certain that Li Zhaotian had been the one to slay Mu Wentao.

Pang Jian had never once doubted his master's strength. His Chaos Sword Technique and the many insights from Li Zhaotian made it clear that his master stood peerless when it came to the Dao of Sword.

The only reason his master had yet to play a significant role during this upheaval was simply because he had yet to ascend to godhood.

Pang Jian had always believed that his master would be the most powerful being in the Abyss once he ascended to godhood.

"Mu Wentao turned out to be so worthless. To think I once considered him an asset," Long Xiao growled before letting out a resonant draconic roar.

That draconic roar condensed into a massive bolt of lightning that streaked the lower worlds.

At that moment, Pang Jian received a warning from the Abyssal Demon.

Although Long Xiao had long known that True Gods like Zhu Ji, Pei Yishan, Su Wanrou, and Li Wang were coming, he remained indifferent.

This suggested that Long Xiao had his own support to fall back on.

His master had already known about the imminent arrival of those True Gods, yet still chose to kill Mu Wentao and seize his divine seat.

Even though Long Xiao was present, Li Zhaotian had still chosen to recklessly break through to the True God Realm!

His master would not have gone to such extremes if the situation were not dire.

There was only one enemy and circumstance that would drive him to try to ascend to godhood at such an ill-suited place and time.

"Senior Su, that ancient dragon has allied with the foreign race powerhouses of the Fifth World. Zhu Ji, Li Wang, and Pei Yishan likely won't make it here in time." Pang Jian said. "The two of us will have to serve as my master's protectors in his ascent to the True God Realm."

Su Wanrou knitted her brows but showed no other sign of panic or uncertainty.

"I understand," she replied calmly, as if discussing something trivial.

The Dharma Idol she had summoned was grand and majestic, its flesh as flawless as white jade, radiating a faint glow.

The instant she uttered those words, her Dharma Idol's skin darkened to a deep violet-green, as if the most terrifying poison in existence had invaded it.

Su Wanrou's characteristic gentle serenity vanished completely.

"Long Xiao, you have never truly understood my Poison Scourge."

Her voice dripped with venom, as frigid as the waters beneath an eternal glacier and as sinister as the wailing specters from the depths of hell.

The change in her Dharma Idol's skin color was also reflected in her presence as a whole. Her once divine aura had been replaced with a monstrously demonic one.

"My Poison Scourge can be triggered through the hearts of your Fey Race on the Sacred Soul Continent. As long as I think of a Fey King, I can implant poison within them from afar.

"I'm close enough to the Sacred Soul Continent for my technique to take hold.

"Long Xiao, know that you forced my hand. You forced me to unleash this Poison Scourge. The Sacred Soul Continent's Fey Race stands at the brink of annihilation today because of your blind arrogance.

"Poison Scourge!"

Su Wanrou embraced the darkness in response to Long Xiao's betrayal.

"Pang Jian, protect your master! Do not, under any circumstances, try to approach me until I regain my sanity! Now, leave immediately!"

Su Wanrou let out a piercing, inhuman shriek.

She was no longer the benevolent True God but a malignant force poised to lay ruin on the Abyss.

Even Outer God Yang Luo, with her corrosive divine power, could not compare to the sheer terror that Su Wanrou had become.

When a True God walked the path of madness, they could surpass even the most fearsome of the heretical gods.

"Understood!" Pang Jian called back as he swiftly withdrew,

He finally understood why Su Wanrou was ranked among the top three True Gods.

Her true power only awakened when she willingly embraced the darkness, unshackling her suppressed malice and casting aside all regard for life.

"Su Wanrou, you dare?!" Long Xiao let out a terrified roar.

He had not shown such emotion even when Li Zhaotian seized his descendants as hostages and killed a Rank Nine Ice Dragon.

The idea that Su Wanrou could summon a catastrophe with nothing more than a thought terrified Long Xiao to his core.

Unfortunately, it was too late. Su Wanrou could no longer hear his roars.

She had already erased the last trace of her reason.

***

On the Sacred Soul Continent, a Rank Nine Fey King known as the Blood Rhinoceros King, infamous for his savagery and bloodlust, lurked in a valley littered with corpses.

For years, rogue cultivator factions had smuggled and delivered young men and women into this valley aboard Cloud Sails.

The Blood Rhinoceros King had a well-known appetite. He favored human youths below fifteen or sixteen. This was no secret among the Fey Kings and Great Feys of the Sacred Soul Continent.

He was loyal to the Dragon Lair Sect and deeply revered the ancient Thunder Dragon, yet the Dragon Lair Sect had never truly acknowledged him.

The True Dragon Hall had never summoned him.

All because Long Xiao had once given him a single evaluation: "Though he's become a Fey King, his beastly nature remains."

Rather than feel insulted, the Blood Rhinoceros King took pride in his savagery.

Many fellow Fey Kings avoided associating with him, believing he was not quite right in the head. As a result, he had few subordinates among the Rank Eight Great Feys.

On this day, after yet another feast, he let out a satisfied burp while idly gnawing on a blood-soaked arm.

The Poison Scourge will start from you.

A voice echoed from deep within his heart.

The Blood Rhinoceros King froze, then instinctively glanced down. His heart had split into pieces and was releasing a wispy violet-green mist.

This poisonous mist drifted outward, seeping into the nearby caves and slithering into the depths of his territories.

There were no screams of agony nor cries of terror.

His loyal Rank Eight Great Feys, as well as the Rank Six and Rank Seven Lesser Feys, all perished in silence.

A fresh wave of violet-green poisonous mist seeped from the depths of those caves and spread to the nearby territories of other Fey Kings.

The Blood Rhinoceros King felt himself floating weightlessly upward. Gazing down from above, he watched the mesmerizing mist unfurl, its tendrils weaving through the land like a living entity.

His soul dissolved in the poisonous mist not long after.