Chapter 679: Laying Everything Bare

The hasty arrival of the three Fey Gods made one thing clear. The Outer Gods had completed their preparations.

It was easy to imagine numerous low and mid-ranking Outer Gods assembled in the bizarre mist outside the Thunder Abyss, with divine techniques and divine artifacts used to construct a comprehensive perimeter.

If Pang Jian left the Thunder Abyss, an army of Outer Gods would hunt him down. It was highly likely that Zi Mo personally oversaw the operation as well.

Pang Jian was not arrogant enough to believe he could charge headfirst through such a blockade and still make it back to the Abyss. This was why he had no intention of leaving the Thunder Abyss anytime soon.

"Honored one, here's the matter," said the unicorn, stamping its crystalline hooves, sending ripples of lightning surging beneath it. Its eyes glimmered with a pleading light. "Since you can pass freely in and out of the Thunder Abyss, we'd like to entrust you with a task."

"Let's hear it first," Pang Jian replied coolly.

"We used a search artifact, and we're certain that two divine artifacts that originally belonged to the Fey Race of the Thunder Abyss have resurfaced in the bizarre mist beyond," the unicorn said solemnly. "But though the divine artifacts have emerged, we can't leave the Thunder Abyss to retrieve them. Which is why—"

"Honored one, we're willing to offer compensation!" the Vermilion Bird interrupted.

The Water Serpent's eyes were also filled with hope.

Seeing the clear intentions behind the request, Pang Jian put on a troubled expression and replied, "Unfortunately, I seem to have lost the ability to leave the Thunder Abyss."

All three Fey Gods were stunned.

"How could that be?" the Water Serpent asked.

"I placed the divine artifact of the Duke of Thunder at the base of Thunder God Mountain," Pang Jian explained with a long sigh. "That caused abnormal lightning surges at the summit. A divine power I couldn't resist seeped into my bones and organs, leaving my body in a strange condition.

"By my estimation, I'll need roughly ten years to stabilize my injuries. If my injuries remain untreated, I won't be able to break through the boundary wall of the Thunder Abyss.

"I'm truly sorry." Pang Jian shook his head with a look of genuine regret. "It's not that I'm unwilling to help, but that I simply can't."

With that, he turned and flew back toward Thunder God Mountain.

The searing lightning that filled the three Fey Gods with fear, keeping them from setting foot on Thunder God Mountain, willingly parted for Pang Jian.

Pang Jian passed through effortlessly, even though the Thunder Pool was not with him.

The passage only opened briefly before sealing shut once more. In that instant, the three Fey Gods caught a glimpse of the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree, with its glistening Dao Fruits, as well as the Thunder Pool resting within the sea of lightning atop the mountain peak.

The Thunder Pool had grown vast. Several smaller palaces had taken shape, each slightly shorter than the central palace.

Clearly, the divine artifact of the Duke of Thunder was in the midst of restoring itself.

That overwhelming pressure and feeling of unity between the Thunder Pool and Thunder God Mountain left the three Fey Gods dazed.

After a long silence, the Vermilion Bird murmured, "He doesn't look like he's seriously injured."

"If you ask me, that injury was nothing but a pretext," the Water Serpent said coldly,

The two turned to look at the unicorn.

A growing migraine bloomed in the unicorn's head. Orders had come from He Motian, urging them to expel Pang Jian from the Thunder Abyss as quickly as possible. It seemed the Outer Gods outside were already in position.

Zi Mo intended to capture Pang Jian alive, planning to use soul-searching techniques to uncover all his secrets.

The unicorn had assumed it would be a simple matter, that Pang Jian would willingly leave the Thunder Abyss with a few persuasive words.

𝙧𝙚𝙚𝔀𝒆𝓫𝓷𝙤𝓿𝒆𝙡.𝒄𝙤𝓶

However, reality turned out to be far different from what he had envisioned.

Do you think he discovered something?

the Vermilion Bird asked through secret sound transmission.

The unicorn's eyes flickered with doubt.

If he did, it would have had to have come from Lei Ying. It is suspicious, though. It's unlike Lei Ying to be absent from Thunder God Mountain.

If only other beings besides the Thunder Race could freely enter and leave that mountain. If only—

the Water Serpent grumbled coldly.

At that moment, two bolts of lightning and a streak of sword light came hurtling through the sky together.

"Lei Fan, Lei Ying, and..." The unicorn activated its bloodline ability, its eyes rotating like icy spheres as it caught sight of an unfamiliar girl next to the two Thunder Race powerhouses.

The unfamiliar girl was clearly of the same race as Pang Jian and rode a massive silver-white sword.

The moon hanging above Thunder Abyss suddenly flared brilliantly, shining brighter than it ever had before.

At the lightning-filled summit of Thunder God Mountain, Pang Jian knitted his brows and glanced up at the moon.

The small, luminous moon in his Immortal Divine Soul shimmered with an unusual light.

A will from beyond the Thunder Abyss had found him and was using the moonlight to establish a connection with the moon inside him.

Of course, he immediately knew who it was.

Relaxing his defenses, he allowed that sliver of will to descend, though his tone was less than pleased as he muttered,

So, you can still track me down even when I'm in another abyss in the bizarre mist?

I could only do so after obtaining the Star Devourer,

Moon God Ying Yue replied.

With it, I succeeded in forging my dream divine artifact. Combined with the moon already manifested within your body, it allowed me to sense your presence.

Besides, I already knew you were in the Thunder Abyss, so that just made you even easier to find.

Pang Jian, the three Fey Gods in the Thunder Abyss have pledged themselves to He Motian. They're trying to trick you into leaving.

The high-ranking God of the Ghost Race, Zi Mo, is leading a group of Gods outside the Thunder Abyss. They're lying in wait for you.

Han Yi is among them!

Pang Jian, you need to keep hiding. Stay hidden until they lose patience and leave. Only then can you safely escape the Thunder Abyss!

I don't want to see Han Yi do something reckless again. I don't want her to die at Zi Mo's hands for your sake. Now that we've secured the Star Devourer, we finally have a chance to free Han Yi from that high-ranking God's control!

Pang Jian gazed up through the shrouding lightning at the brilliant moon above. He had not expected the Moon God to risk warning him at a time like this.

The moon's radiance was incredibly bright, and its light cascaded down across a wide area. Ying Yue was not being particularly discreet.

Everything you told me, I already knew. Your warning was unnecessary.

With those cold words, Pang Jian emerged from Thunder God Mountain once more.

By that time, Lei Fan and Lei Ying, the two Rank Ten powerhouses of the Thunder Race, had also arrived, floating in the sky near the summit. Hovering alongside them was Li Yuqing.

Pang Jian froze when he saw her.

Li Yuqing's appearance, aura, and even the way she wielded the Heaven-Splitting Sword had not changed.

However, her eyes now brimmed with confidence. There was a light there that spoke of a person in control of her fate, someone capable of shaping her own future.

The self-assurance and defiant pride she carried when she stood above every prodigy in the Abyss had returned.

Pang Jian did not know what had happened to her, but he could tell one thing for certain. She had undergone a complete transformation, and that change would make future events far easier.

"He Motian and Zi Mo are both high-ranking Gods, but even they suffered repeated setbacks in the Abyss," Li Yuqing said coldly. "Why do you, as members of the ancient Fey Race, still bend your knees to Gods like that? How disgraceful."

She unhesitatingly exposed the loyalties of the Fey Gods, laying everything bare with a few biting words.