Chapter 615: The Divine Artifact, Five Thunder Annihilation

A surge of cold energy engulfed the Thunder Pool like a storm and exploded within its maw.

The cold energy Pang Jian had hidden within the Thunder Pool abruptly condensed into razor-sharp ice shards, ice crystals, and ice arrows.

A world of bitter, merciless cold was born from the storm, appearing deep within the closed maw of the Thunderveil Godbeast and expanding with a thunderous roar.

The initial wave of icy mist had already frozen the Thunderveil Godbeast's tongue, gums, and inner walls of its mouth.

As the frigid storm had erupted from within, the Thunderveil Godbeast had no way to evade it.

Razor-sharp ice shards stabbed into the insides of its mouth, causing the Thunderveil Godbeast to let out a muffled, bloody groan.

Its fangs, sharp as rows of sword blades, snapped open and shut with each movement of its jaw.

The Thunder Pool and the frigid storm swirling around it alternated between brilliant light and absolute darkness as the Thunderveil Godbeast repeatedly opened and closed its maw.

Throughout it all, no new lightning emerged, and no existing lightning under its control produced any light.

Its tongue, holding the Thunder Pool shrouded in a frigid storm, abruptly curled inward, wiping away all cold energy.

A vast surge of blood essence, interwoven with nearly imperceptible traces of bloodline mysteries, erased every fragment of divine sense that Pang Jian had left within the Thunder Pool.

The Thunderveil Godbeast was a Fey God, inherently stronger than other divine beings.

The Fey Gods of the ancient Fey Race were known throughout the starry skies for their nearly indestructible bodies and astounding regenerative capabilities.

Even the sheer strength of its body alone, with its boundless blood essence, was enough to crush most low-ranking Outer Gods.

In a similar vein, the Thunderveil Godbeast did not draw on its lightning to erase the imprints Pang Jian had left within the Thunder Pool, instead relying solely on physical strength.

"You claim I have no personal comprehension of the Heavenly Dao despite being a Thunder God. You say I lack my own insights into the Dao of Lightning, and that I do not have the profound insights characteristic of a Thunder God.

"I admit to all of it."

Its blood essence around the Thunder Pool transformed into several miniature Thunderveil Godbeasts.

Nine manifestations of the Thunderveil Godbeast crouched around the Thunder Pool, each opening its mouth to let out a crimson radiance that eroded Pang Jian's imprints in the pool.

Pang Jian had left these unique imprints on the Thunder Pool while studying its mysteries in the Shadow Abyss.

If others attempted to seize the Thunder Pool, the cold energy he had imbued into these imprints would be unleashed.

The Thunderveil Godbeast's familiarity with the Thunder Pool led it to believe the divine artifact was under its control.

After all, it had been the wielder of the Thunder Pool for many years and had left its own imprints within while studying the Dao Seals inside.

This was its advantage.

Despite its ferocity, Pang Jian's cold energy failed to inflict severe injuries upon the Thunderveil Godbeast.

"I am a Thunderveil Beast. My bloodline is inherently imbued with the mysteries of lightning, but the truth is, I have never had any real interest in the power of lightning.

"You will never understand the helplessness and sorrow of a race like mine, one born without a choice.

"My body is small and agile. I love to bound freely and move unrestrained like the wind. I adore majestic mountains, great rivers, lush forests, and flowing streams, but the raging lightning within me only destroys everything I cherish.

"The human race is born without predetermined attributes, unshackled by fate. Do you realize how fortunate that is?

"I despise this brutal, crude force of lightning. This power obliterates all that is beautiful, but I cannot change my affinity with it!

"How could I possibly devote all my time and effort to studying the Dao of Lightning?"

The Thunderveil Godbeast's voice echoed from all of its manifestations—the dragons, pythons, serpents, unicorns, phoenixes, and other ancient Fey Race conjured to battle Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul outside of its body.

"I have no desire to delve into the Dao of Lightning. I only want to take what is already there, to refine and integrate the Duke of Thunder's Dao of Lightning! That alone is enough for me!

"I want to free my time and energy to study the profound mysteries of blood. Ignoring my innate lightning-attribute crystal bloodline chain, the only other path left for me is the mysteries of blood.

"One day, I will break free from my lightning-attribute bloodline so that the Thunderveil Beast Race can have the liberty to choose a different path!"

Pang Jian destroyed the dragons, pythons, serpents, unicorns, and phoenixes, only for them to reform once more, forged anew from surging lightning bolts..

One unicorn did not continue its attack after reforming, watching motionlessly as Pang Jian repeatedly swung his sword.

"I envy you," the Thunderveil Godbeast said through the unicorn. "A multitude of energies flow within your body, each representing a different pursuit of the Dao.

"You have many choices. You can immerse yourself deeply in the one you prefer, while abandoning those you dislike.

"I've never had such a choice. Whether I like it or not, my lightning-attribute bloodline means my only path is to become a Thunder God."

A massive lightning bolt suddenly emerged from the bizarre mist above, with a pristine white stone pillar at its core.

The pillar descended with an earth-shattering roar, unleashing five massive lightning bolts, each forming into spheres.

The clanging of blades, spears, and various metal artifacts reverberated from a golden lightning sphere.

Rivers and lakes emerged alongside a white lightning sphere.

A green lightning sphere emanated the vitality of forests and towering trees.

Flames, meteors, and pools of molten lava engulfed a crimson lightning sphere as it blazed forth.

A yellow lightning sphere rumbled with the essence of rocks, mountains, and the vast earth.

These five lightning spheres embodied the rudimentary principles of the five elements, manifesting as Metal Thunder, Wood Thunder, Water Thunder, Fire Thunder, and Earth Thunder.

This was the Thunderveil Godbeast's divine artifact, Five Thunder Annihilation.

Shackled to the path of lightning since birth, the Thunderveil Godbeast stubbornly sought another path.

Unexpectedly, through its study of the mysteries of blood, it discovered a way to infuse lightning with the essence of the five elements.

With this knowledge, it crafted the divine artifact known as Five Thunder Annihilation.

"This..."

Pang Jian stared at the five descending bolts of lightning, a rare glimmer of admiration flashing across his face.

"I'll gladly accept your gift."

Grinning, Pang Jian used his five divine viscera to unleash his insights into the five elements.

Five radiant starry rivers materialized in the bizarre mist around Pang Jian.

Each radiant starry river corresponded to one of his five viscera, resonating with the five elements he had comprehended.

These radiant rivers generated a powerful pulling force.

The Thunderveil Godbeast's Metal Thunder descended into Pang Jian's Metal Domain, with Wood Thunder, Water Thunder, Fire Thunder, and Earth Thunder each following suit, falling into their corresponding elemental domains.

Pang Jian's Five-Element Starry River had effortlessly devoured the Thunderveil Godbeast's five elemental thunders.

Unfortunately for the Thunderveil Godbeast, its rudimentary attempt at wielding the five elements was nothing more than a petty trick in Pang Jian's eyes.

With the Heavenly Daos stripped from the lightning bolts, the lightning spheres lacked any guiding principles and were left as nothing but raw, violent energy.

Pang Jian grinned.

Without hesitation, he absorbed the surging lightning from the lightning spheres, channeling it into the lightning vortex within his Immortal Divine Soul. Then, he soared upward, lightning crackling around him.

Pang Jian landed atop the pillar that was the Thunderveil Godbeast's Five Thunder Annihilation. The five elements within him surged forth, transforming into five-colored radiance that poured directly into the pillar.

"Did you prepare this divine artifact just for me? Were you looking to trade it for the Thunder Pool?"

Pang Jian was in high spirits.

The five elements, manifested as Five-Element Starry Rivers, hovered around Five Thunder Annihilation, assisting him in refining this peculiar divine artifact.

The Thunderveil Godbeast was truly an eccentric genius. It resented the bloodline it was born with and stubbornly pursued a different path.

Lacking the inherent bloodline corresponding to the five elements, it instead simulated and cultivated it through its study of blood, forging a divine artifact from its superficial grasp of the five elements.

It was too bad the Thunderveil Godbeast had no true foundation in the five elements.

Lightning overwhelmingly dominated the unleashed power of Five Thunder Annihilation, making up ninety-nine percent of its true might. The five elements within it were pitifully insignificant.

Five Thunder Annihilation was nothing more than an empty facade. At its core, the Thunderveil Godbeast remained proficient only in lightning-attribute techniques.

This half-baked, shallow infusion of five elements did not enhance Five Thunder Annihilation, conversely restricting its true potential.

The Thunderveil Godbeast's insights into the five elements were simply too rudimentary. In contrast, its lightning-attribute techniques came from Duke of Thunder, one of the strongest Thunder Gods in history.

This massive gap made them fundamentally incompatible. Forcibly merging them without a solid foundation of the five elements only resulted in something that looked superficially impressive but was ultimately a flashy mess.

"This artifact..." Pang Jian lowered his gaze, his eyes filled with astonishment.

The pillar-shaped Five Thunder Annihilation was an extraordinary creation.

It was truly infused with the essence of the five elements!

Rare insights into the five elements—ones Pang Jian had never encountered before—were subtly imbued within the pristine white pillar.

The craftsmanship of Five Thunder Annihilation was exceptional, and its materials were of the highest grade. The Thunderveil Godbeast had evidently poured immense effort into its forging.

Unfortunately, Five Thunder Annihilation was completely unsuited for it.

Using such a divine artifact in battle only limited the Thunderveil Godbeast's true strength.

The Thunderveil Godbeast had always rejected its innate lightning-attribute bloodline and had created this ornate yet impractical divine artifact in a futile attempt to seek an alternate path, hoping to prove that it could succeed in the pursuit of something beyond its bloodline.

Its efforts were nothing short of a tragedy.

"I'll be taking this artifact," Pang Jian said, reaching out.

Under the guidance of his Five-Element Starry Rivers, Five Thunder Annihilation gradually shrank, transforming into a stone pillar small enough to be held in one hand.