Chapter 623: The Heaven-Defying Master and Disciple

In the former territories of the Star River Alliance in the Dark Abyss Continent of the Third World, Sha Jia of the Celestial Race sat in quiet meditation atop a white jade platform.

Pairs of pure white wings spread wide behind her, drawing in the radiance of the stars and moon from above, exuding an aura of purity.

"Your father has fallen."

Her words were like a sharp blade in Xuan Ying's chest.

Below the platform, Xuan Ying trembled.

Her eyes, usually sharp as a blade, only held deep sorrow as she lightly clutched her armor-clad chest.

She pressed her lips together and remained silent for a long time. Then, she summoned the demonic blade that had fractured mountains and kingdoms, channeling her divine soul into it to communicate with the Great Demon God.

Desiring Pang Jian's Abyssal Demon Sword, He Motian had sent her father to the northernmost region of the Fourth World, ordering him to retrieve the sword and place it upon the Demon Lair as an offering to the Primordial Demon.

Xuan Ying had every reason to demand an explanation from He Motian after receiving news of her father's death.

My father has fallen. He fought for you. I—

He Motian's colossal projection appeared within the demonic blade, with four heads, four faces, and four arms that held a token, a prayer bead, a lotus, and a water jug.

He's a useless failure.

He Motian said with merciless finality.

A dead person cannot be brought back to life.

What more is there to say? There were four of them in total: Lie Yang of the Radiant Race, Qi Xu of the Flame Race, your father, and Jiu Luo of the Ghost Race. Still, they failed to bring me the Abyssal Demon Sword, with two even perishing.

Xuan Ying, your father has utterly disappointed me. He was never worthy of leaving the Abyss!

I once placed great expectations on your father. Had he fulfilled my decree, I would've ensured his rise into the starry skies and made him a ruler of a mighty demonic realm.

I would've helped him ascend to a low-ranking Demon God, or even a Great Demon God. If he had not failed me, I would've even refined and strengthened his demonic body.

Xuan Ying, you hold the greatest talent and potential among the new generation of the Demon Races in the Abyss. You have to rise swiftly and take your father's place, to lead the Demon Races in the Abyss in his stead. I promise you...

He Motian's bewitching voice echoed through the demonic blade, but Xuan Ying could no longer hear a single word.

Her thoughts were filled with her father. Memories of his voice, teachings, and gentle care flashed through her mind.

Her father had not taken the demonic blade into the bizarre mist.

Xuan Ying knelt in silence, head lowered as she drowned in grief and despair.

***

"Matriarch, who did it?" Yu Xin asked, having descended from the upper worlds. "I heard that there was a group of Fey Race deep within the bizarre mist of the Fourth World.

"Pang Jian seemed to have gone there. Did he join forces with the Fey God there to slay Lord Li Bai?"

At Yu Xin's question, Jing Sha of the Dark Shadow Race also turned to Sha Jia for confirmation.

After the Third World fell to the foreign races, the Radiant Race, the Flame Race, and the Ghost Race had taken control of the Cosmic Skies Continent, while the Celestial Race, the Demon Scale Race, the one-eyed giants, and the Dark Shadow Race roamed the Dark Abyss Continent.

Having arrived not long ago, Jing Sha had assumed Li Bai had traveled to the Fifth World to meet the Sovereign.

Unexpectedly, she now learned that Li Bai had instead followed Jiu Luo into the bizarre mist of the Fourth World at He Motian's command, only for both to perish.

Although she was the Rank Ten powerhouse of the Dark Shadow Race, she did not know much about Pang Jian, but she suspected that there was more to Li Bai and Jiu Luo's deaths than met the eye.

"Pang Jian killed the Nine-Headed Bird, destroying its last surviving head," Sha Jia revealed, expression calm and indifferent. "Long Xiao and that old Rock Bear never left the Sacred Soul Continent, and not a single True God of the human race even descended to the lower worlds.

"The only True God in that bizarre mist was him.

"We sent in four Rank Ten powerhouses only for two of them to die. I don't want to believe it either, but it's the truth."

She then glanced at where Ah Man sat in the distance, his massive figure as towering as the mountains in the territories of the Star River Alliance.

"You've fought him before. Do you think it was his doing?"

"He was not alone. His sword houses a true Demon God," echoed Ah Man's deep, rumbling voice.

The Ancestor of Ten Thousand Mountains then closed his eyes.

"Are the Sword Gods of the Sword Pavilion all this terrifying?" Jing Sha's voice was tinged with disbelief. "Even the barrier itself changed after Li Zhaotian ascended to godhood. He even forced that old dragon back into the Sacred Soul Continent.

"Now his disciple, Pang Jian, is rampaging across the lower worlds, first slaying the Nine-Headed Bird, then killing Jiu Luo and Li Bai.

"This master and disciple are drawing far too much attention. No new Sword God has emerged from the Sword Pavilion for so many years. Why did two appear now of all times? In the final stages of our ascension?" A deep sense of unease flickered in Jing Sha's heart.

"There were several times when the Sword Gods of the Sword Pavilion cut short our ascension to the upper worlds in the past," Sha Jia calmly assured. "The emergence of new Sword Gods at this time isn't surprising. After all, a formidable Sword God always appears when the human race faces catastrophe.

"But this time, our ascension is certain to be successful because we have the Sovereign on our side. She's the key to our victory!"

Sha Jia's expression revealed a genuine reverence when she brought up the Sovereign.

Although the Sovereign now held a human form, her true body in the starry skies was actually of Celestial Race lineage, like her and Yu Xin.

Her existence was the reason the Celestial Race maintained such honor and supremacy in the starry skies.

***

On a dull yellow star in the starry skies, He Motian stood in his true demonic body, his colossal figure towering like a mountain.

Demon Gods of varying forms hovered around him, each exuding an earth-shattering presence.

The final wisp of light from the prayer beads in his hands flickered out like a candle's dying flame.

His connection to Xuan Ying's divine soul, established through the ancestral demonic blade of the Demon Scale Race, had been severed.

Afterward, he attempted to reach out to the demonic stone known as the Demon Lair, as well as to the demonic eye on Wu Yuan's forehead. He even tried to connect with the many altars he had attuned to in his early years.

To his horror, the barrier of the Abyss was completely blocking his divine consciousness from entering.

"The barrier has changed. Li Zhaotian's will has fully harmonized with the barrier, sealing it shut.

𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

The four heads of He Motian each displayed a different emotion: solemnity, cold fury, agitation, and seething rage.

***

On the moon, Ying Yue listened as one of the Bright Moon Race reported the latest news.

"The barrier has changed. Pang Jian's master, Li Zhaotian, has completely harmonized with the barrier.

"All communication between the Abyss and the outside world has been severed.

"Outer Gods can no longer convey their decrees to their followers through altars or artifacts. Likewise, the foreign races in the Fifth World can no longer communicate with the Outer Gods they worshiped beyond the Abyss.

"From now on, there is no way of knowing what happens within the abyss without physically entering it,” the Bright Moon Race informed.

After hearing the report, Ying Yue turned to the slightly pale Han Yi and said, "Pang Jian's body was in the Shadow Abyss. If he's still there, you need to find him. Going forward, he'll be our only window into the Abyss."

Han Yi nodded. "He's there."

***

Many foreign race powerhouses in the Third, Fourth, and Fifth Worlds of the Abyss sensed that something was terribly wrong.

Their connection to the Outer Gods had been completely severed.

No Outer Gods could send their divine consciousness down, nor could the foreign races use altars, artifacts, or other mediums to communicate with the Outer Gods.

Only now did they truly realize how monumental Li Zhaotian's ascension to godhood was.

From this moment on, they could no longer place their faith in the Outer Gods. They could only turn to the Sovereign in the hopes that she would lead them to final victory.

***

A blazing meteor streaked across the sky, dragging a long tail of fire as it descended from the Cosmic Skies Continent to the far north of the Fourth World.

Fire God Yan Lie could not restrain himself after hearing of Li Bai's death, immediately setting out for the bizarre mist in the Fourth World.

The fiery fragmented land, dragged from Absolute Heaven and left in the Fifth World, responded to his summons, soaring skyward with a deafening roar.

Yan Lie and the fiery fragmented land surged toward the bizarre mist in the Fourth World together.

***

I didn't expect them to be so evenly matched. This old man of the Radiant Race is far stronger than I anticipated. I wonder if the Sun God above ever imagined that such a formidable opponent could exist within the Abyss.

The Abyssal Demon, ever composed, observed the battle between Pang Jian and Lie Yang from the sidelines.

He made no move against Qi Xu, for she possessed neither treasures nor value worth his attention.

Qi Xu remained silent, her mind replaying the moment of Li Bai's death, still pondering when the battle between Pang Jian and Lie Yang would finally end.

Qi Xu, I'm on my way.

Fire God Yan Lie's voice resonated in Qi Xu's mind.

At that moment, the Abyssal Demon stopped his idle spectatorship, silently returning to the black-gold divine sword.

The sword shot upward, aiming directly at Lie Yang, still shrouded in the Primordial Sun Diagram.

The six demonic realms locked onto Lie Yang, causing his body to freeze and his divine soul to become momentarily dazed.

In that fleeting instant, the Thunder Pool and Five Thunder Annihilation crashed down with overwhelming force. The golden toad and the four Three-Legged Golden Crows surrounding Lie Yang's body were left barely alive.

As Lie Yang's body swayed, the Abyssal Demon Sword pierced through his waist, running him through completely.

Pang Jian, the Fire God is coming! Stop wasting time with this guy! We need to leave! That Fire God has recovered a great deal of his former strength. We won't be able to handle him!

Look, I was originally part of the Abyssal Demon Sword. I count as one of your artifacts, so this isn't breaking any rules! Now, hurry up and go!

The Abyssal Demon had been secretly keeping an ear on Qi Xu's thoughts since Li Bai's death, fearing another foreign race powerhouse would arrive.

He had considered the possibility that the Ancestor of Ten Thousand Mountains or even Sha Jia of the Celestial Race would come.

For Fire God Yan Lie himself to descend was far beyond the Abyssal Demon's expectations.