Chapter 636: Battling Another Mid-Ranking Outer God!

"Where are they?" You Kui asked with a cold sneer.

As he spoke, a dozen Ghost Rivers suddenly materialized from the caves scattered across the surface of the nameless star.

These Ghost Rivers radiated a dim silver-gray glow as they stretched outward beyond the star's boundaries like ghostly dragons, ready to wreak havoc upon the outside world.

Spectral entities from various races in the starry skies—the Titan Race, the Dark Shadow Race, the Celestial Race, the Demon Races, the Chthonic Race, and even the Ghost Race itself—appeared within the Ghost Rivers, drifting like flocks of butterflies and birds beyond the nameless star.

"Soul Seek!"

Eerie light rippled from the spectral entities, searching for divine souls, divine consciousness, or soul fluctuations nearby.

You Kui was taken aback.

"Nothing? Is it really just you?"

The Ghost Rivers stretching into the starry skies transformed into silver-gray chains, linking the spectral entities together before abruptly retracting back into the depths of the star.

You Kui had been on high alert, assuming that Han Yi and Ying Yue, both mid-ranking Outer Gods like himself, had joined the fray. When he realized neither was present, he visibly relaxed.

Although he did not take Pang Jian seriously, he still remained wary of Han Yi and Ying Yue. After all, those two were bona fide mid-ranking Outer Gods like him.

"Makes sense. Even if they wanted to kill me, they wouldn't dare act recklessly. I share a mental link with Lady Zi Mo. I can transmit everything I experience directly to her in an instant.

"If Lady Zi Mo learns that they acted against me, they'll be doomed regardless of their reasoning.

"The most they'd dare to do is expose my hiding place to you." A smirk tugged at You Kui's lips. "I'm curious. What made them think that a newly ascended True God like you could possibly kill me?

"I know you. Your name is Pang Jian, isn't it? You're a Sword God from the Sword Pavilion. To think, you can actually leave the Abyss..."

You Kui trailed off in contemplation.

"I've heard ancient gods mention that the Abyss has a mysterious World God, a position passed down through generations.

"It's said that this World God can leave the Abyss without passing through the barrier.

"Are you the World God?"

The dozen Ghost Rivers that previously surged from the star rushed toward the underground cavern where You Kui stood, choking the tunnels connecting the cavern to the outside world.

With a flicker of his divine sense, Pang Jian saw the Ghost Rivers flooding the tunnels, sealing off every possible escape route.

The instant his divine sense brushed against the Ghost Rivers, it disintegrated into flecks of golden light.

These golden flecks, infused with the Nether Abyss Spirit Bee's traits and capable of devouring divine consciousness, were swept away in You Kui's Ghost Rivers like withered leaves in a current.

Several fierce spectral entities emerged from the rushing Ghost Rivers and dragged these flecks of Pang Jian's divine sense deeper into the river like laborers hauling heavy cargo.

"A True God of the human race!"

"Heh, what a rare species! We've followed Lord You Kui for many years, but we've never encountered a True God in the starry skies before!"

"Interesting, such fascinating divine power!"

The spectral entities cackled.

You Kui, perched atop a stone platform, commanded, "Soul Restraint!"

A writhing azure ghost sigil emerged from the center of You Kui's brow, drawing forth his blood as it surfaced.

When the azure ghost sigil appeared, You Kui's face paled, and the light in his eyes dimmed.

Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul trembled violently as the ghost sigil danced above You Kui's head.

His connection to his divine sense in the Ghost Rivers, to the Abyssal Demon within the Abyssal Demon Sword, and even to his physical body in the distant Abyss, was abruptly severed.

It was as if he had become a wandering ghost, alone in the world.

You Kui, the spectral entities within the Ghost Rivers, and even the Star-Devourer, all disappeared from Pang Jian's perception. Everything that was once perceptible to him completely vanished.

Terrifyingly, his connection to his five viscera and the acupoints also rapidly weakened.

His body, strength, and artifacts felt infinitely distant. Though they were still under his control, he could neither feel nor manipulate them.

You Kui was only the second mid-ranking Outer God Pang Jian faced in battle outside the Abyss.

His prior experience with Yang Luo gave him a deep understanding of how terrifying a true mid-ranking Outer God could be in their real body.

Pang Jian had mentally prepared himself for the challenges before coming, but You Kui was already teaching him a harsh lesson despite the battle only just starting.

Thankfully, Han Yi was well aware of You Kui's strengths and abilities, which allowed Pang Jian to prepare a contingency plan.

"Rise!"

The divine sense Pang Jian preemptively left on Five Thunder Annihilation triggered the divine artifact.

With a thunderous boom, a glowing white pillar emerged from the sleeve of prismatic radiance on his left arm.

Five lightning vortexes alongside the white pillar, each swirling with suspended lightning spheres.

Metal Thunder, Wood Thunder, Water Thunder, Fire Thunder, and Earth Thunder shot toward the surging Ghost Rivers and sank into their depths.

The powerful spectral entities You Kui had painstakingly collected from across the starry skies over ten millennia were devastated in the blink of an eye.

Thunder Gods were truly the bane of the Ghost Race!

Regardless of how refined or powerful the spectral entities were, their ghostly bodies simply could not withstand their natural counter of thunder and lightning.

The spectral entities were obliterated one after another.

Even the Ghost Rivers were fragmented into disjointed sections under the bombardment of the five lightning vortexes.

Five Thunder Annihilation descended, crashing directly onto the azure sigil used to unleash Soul Restraint.

The white pillar obliterated the azure sigil above You Kui's head like a divine weapon striking down a malevolent wraith.

You Kui let out a muffled grunt as Soul Restraint was dispelled.

"A lightning-attribute divine artifact!" You Kui shrieked, hastily wrapping himself in his massive black cloak as he reeled from the blow.

His face and body vanished beneath the shroud, sealing away his eerie aura.

Lightning bolts and crackling lightning spheres shot from the Ghost Rivers and Five Thunder Annihilation, striking You Kui's body, only for his black cloak to harmlessly deflect them.

"Every God of the Ghost Race like me has prepared for the day we face a Thunder God in battle," You Kui sneered. "We're born with a natural weakness against lightning. It's only natural for us to prepare countermeasures.

"Pang Jian, that divine artifact of yours, its original owner was a Fey God, wasn't it? And not even a high-ranking one at that, a mere low-ranking Fey God!

"A divine artifact belonging to a low-ranking Thunder God can only trouble me if I'm caught off guard. Otherwise, it's nothing more than a minor nuisance."

The blade gripped tightly in his hand suddenly sliced toward Five Thunder Annihilation.

Seven streaks of ghostly blue light slashed out, violently striking the white pillar. The walls of the underground cavern were torn apart, splitting open with jagged rifts, through which strange lights flickered.

The blade's terrifying sharpness had cleaved the very fabric of the star's core apart!

The seven streaks of ghostly blue light shot forth, cutting through the lightning spheres erupting from Five Thunder Annihilation, shattering them into oblivion.

The pillar-shaped divine artifact, which Pang Jian had obtained from the Thunderveil Godbeast and meticulously refined with the five elements, was covered in cracks from You Kui's relentless strikes.

Five Thunder Annihilation wasn't forged from strong enough materials. It can't withstand You Kui's artifact,

the Abyssal Demon said urgently from within the Abyssal Demon Sword.

I'll do whatever I can to disrupt his connection with the other Gods, especially Zi Mo.

However, my demonic body is also vulnerable to this terrifying lightning, so it's best if I remain hidden.

This way, you can focus on the battle without worrying about me.

As the Abyssal Demon spoke, Pang Jian was already drawing out another divine artifact.

A suffocating, primal dread flooded the underground cavern when the Thunder Pool manifested.

The spectral entities that had survived the lightning in the fragmented Ghost Rivers let out piercing screams of terror.

Even just the aura emanating from the Thunder Pool was enough for the surviving spectral entities to succumb to a sense of doom.

"The divine artifact of the Duke of Thunder!" You Kui was shocked. "So, it's in your possession, and you even managed to refine it.

"If this divine artifact were whole and in the hands of the Duke of Thunder, not even Lady Zi Mo nor Lord He Motian would dare to stand in its way.

"But alas, this peerless divine artifact holds only a fraction of its former power.

"Even in the hands of a low-ranking Thunder God, I would at least have reason to be concerned.

"But you?" You Kui sneered. "You are no Thunder God.

"You're just a fool who craves everything yet masters nothing. So what if you have the Duke of Thunder's divine artifact in your hand? How much of its true power can you actually wield?"

You Kui's hands stretched infinitely from beneath his black cloak and yanked in the discarded limbs of the Star Devourer.

Dozens of severed limbs slithered through the air under his precise control, lashing and coiling toward Pang Jian like whips.

The Abyssal Demon Sword slashed through the air, its dazzling sword light infused with exquisite sword techniques, severing the encroaching limbs of the Star Devourer with lethal precision.

The serpentine limbs were cleaved into pieces, their remains scattering across the ground of the cavern.

Though the underground cavern was vast, it was only spacious for beings of human-sized proportions.

Thus, neither Pang Jian nor You Kui transformed into their colossal forms and instead remained human-sized.

Each wielded their mastered techniques in a deadly assault on the other.

Pang Jian relied on his divine artifacts—Five Thunder Annihilation, the Thunder Pool, and the Abyssal Demon Sword—to hold his ground against You Kui in a closely matched battle.