Chapter 680: Breaking All Pretenses!

"Lei Ying! Lei Fan!" The chill in the unicorn's glare was unmistakable.

Streams of icy light, imbued with the Dao of Cold, flashed from the unicorn, seeking to freeze the two Thunder Race powerhouses to their bones.

The unicorn had concluded that Lei Ying and Lei Fan had exposed the Fey Gods' dealings with He Motian.

"Do you realize the disaster you've brought upon the Thunder Race?" the unicorn asked coldly, no longer bothering with its mask of civility. "The Thunder Race has no future left. Many of your people will die because of your foolish decision."

The unicorn threw its head back.

"Now!" it commanded with a piercing howl.

As the leader of the Fey Race in the Thunder Abyss, its howl acted as a supreme command that all the loyal Fey Kings and Great Feys responded to.

Mighty Fey Kings in the first, second, and third layers of the Thunder Abyss revealed their colossal forms.

Long discontented with the Thunder Race and harboring ambitions to seize their territory, the Fey Race charged forth onto the Thunder Race's continents.

Rank Nine Fey Kings such as the Silverhorn King, the Azure Bird King, the Blazing Qilin, the Bloodplain Python, the Divine Vulture King, and the Ice Carp led their forces of Great Feys to invade the Thunder Race's sacred domains.

Following the rise of the Duke of Thunder, the Thunder Race had ruled Thunder Abyss with an iron grip. Even the emergence of the Thunderveil Godbeast could not fully erase the lingering effects of the Duke of Thunder's influence.

𝓯𝓻𝓮𝙚𝙬𝓮𝙗𝒏𝙤𝒗𝙚𝙡.𝒄𝒐𝓶

However, the Thunder Race would be wiped from the Thunder Abyss for good on this day—their former reign becoming nothing more than a fading memory of the past.

The Fey Race would become the sole rulers of Thunder Abyss, and the three Fey Gods would be the ones all the inhabitants revered!

It was only after watching the Fey Race invade the Thunder Race's territories that Lei Fan and Lei Ying realized the three Fey Gods had planned this all along.

The Thunder Race's supremacy in the Thunder Abyss was destined to be overthrown regardless of Pang Jian's arrival.

The Gods of the Ghost Race and the Demon Races had persecuted and suppressed the Thunder Race after the Duke of Thunder fell.

No new Thunder God of the Duke of Thunder's caliber had emerged from their ranks since. Without a Thunder God mighty enough to shake the heavens, the Thunder Race's fate only grew darker under the pressure of Zi Mo and He Motian.

"Lei Fan, do you see it now? This was always their plan! It doesn't matter how much you humble yourself or try to curry favor with He Motian, they were always going to turn their blades on the Thunder Race!" Lei Ying's voice trembled with pain and fury. "Running won't help. Constant compromise will only make them press harder!"

Lei Fan nodded, the last sliver of hope in his heart shattered after seeing the actions of the three Fey Gods.

When Lei Ying brought Li Yuqing to him, openly expressing her intent to join forces with Pang Jian against the Fey Gods, he had firmly refused. Before that, he had even warned her against mentioning the unicorn's dealings with He Motian to Pang Jian.

Lei Fan's reasoning was simple: Avoiding conflict meant no bloodshed for their race.

However, the immediate response of the Fey Kings and Great Feys to the unicorn's howl caused Lei Fan to realize that the Fey Race had long sought to strike at the Thunder Race.

It was clearly premeditated. The Fey Race had merely been awaiting the unicorn's command to invade!

At this harsh realization, Lei Fan closed his eyes and used a secret bloodline technique to connect with several key cities. What he saw made his heart sink. Tens of thousands of powerful Fey Race had already appeared at the fortresses where Thunder Race warriors were stationed.

Fey Kings and Great Feys unleashed waves of slaughter without mercy. Countless youths of the Thunder Race had already fallen.

The Silverhorn King loomed like a mountain, trampling across Thunder Race's territories and devouring dozens of fleeing Thunder Race warriors with his gaping maw.

Strands of sinew from his victims caught between his bloody fangs, muzzle dripping with blood as he gnawed the Thunder Race warriors to pulp.

The savage roar of the brutal Fey King struck terror into the hearts of young Thunder Race warriors, leaving them pale and trembling.

Similar scenes of bloodshed and slaughter unfolded across the continents under Thunder Race's rule.

The other Fey Kings were no less ruthless. They devoured the Thunder Race warriors alive, tearing them limb from limb on their savage charge toward their sacred cities.

Kill! To war! Slaughter the Fey Race!

Lei Fan commanded through a secret technique.

A full-scale war broke out between the Fey Race and the Thunder Race, swelling to a boiling point across territories.

The howls of the Fey Kings, the cries of Thunder Race warriors, and the scenes of fierce combat rushed into Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul's mind.

He was taken aback.

Pang Jian did not think a single howl from the unicorn would ignite such a fierce war between the Thunder Race and the Fey Race, let alone that it would escalate to a fever pitch so quickly.

Previously, he assumed that dealing with the three Fey Gods would also resolve the Fey Race's relentless pressure on the Thunder Race.

He had planned to defuse the Thunder Race's crisis as a way of honoring the Duke of Thunder.

The unicorn's ruthlessness was beyond Pang Jian's expectations. War erupted the instant the order was given, without any other warning.

The Fey Race unleashed a wave of brutal slaughter; flesh torn asunder, victims devoured alive, bones brushed, and blood splattered across entire continents.

The sheer barbarism of the Fey Race left Pang Jian deeply unsettled.

He could not help but wonder,

Would the Fey Race of the Abyss be as cruel and merciless if they ever grew strong enough to launch an all-out assault on the human race?

While the True Gods' mistrust and repeated broken promises had indeed cost them their credibility, it also undeniably restrained the Fey Race's growth.

Right and wrong were hard to define. It often depended on perspective.

"You brought this upon yourselves." The Vermilion Bird chuckled softly. "We hoped to keep things easy, to trick you into leaving and hand you over to the Gods outside, but you refused to take the bait. You gave us no choice but to take action ourselves."

"Lord He Motian wants to see the Thunder Race crushed. We're simply acting on his commands," the Water Serpent said coldly. "This could've been delayed, but you two just couldn't stay quiet. You just had to reveal the truth to an outsider. For that, you two will have to die."

With that, the Fey God opened its maw and flicked out its forked tongue.

Several greenish-black beads shrouded in dense water vapor floated above its tongue.

These beads, the Netherwater Profound Pearls, were a recent gift from He Motian. A terrifying power emanated from them after the Water Serpent refined them.

The Water Serpent brimmed with confidence, convinced that the Netherwater Profound Pearls in its mouth would be more than enough to kill both Lei Fan and Lei Ying.

"Mystic Water Domain. Nether Sky, Jade Sea!"

With a flick of his tongue, seven Netherwater Profound Pearls shot forward, transforming into seven vast seas of greenish-black water.

These seas spread out to cover the sky above Thunder God Mountain. They hovered above the group, sprawled like land beneath, and even formed shimmering barrier-like walls around them.

The silver-white Thunder God Mountain towered at thirty thousand zhang high, standing close to the sky of the Thunder Abyss.

As the seven seas converged into the Mystic Water Domain, the majestic Thunder God Mountain and the sky above it became completely engulfed in otherworldly tides. Even the barrier of the Thunder Abyss appeared to take on a murky greenish-black hue.

The unicorn simply smiled, then slowly retreated into the outer reaches of Thunder God Mountain, slipping beyond the edges of the encroaching seas.

The Vermilion Bird followed, retreating as well.

"Pang Jian, leave that bird to me," Li Yuqing said, eyes bright with confidence.

Gently grasping the Heaven-Splitting Sword, her sword intent surged forth, permeating the Water Serpent's Mystic Water Domain.

Her sword intent instantly threw the Water Serpent's Dao of Water and the demonic arrays embedded within the Netherwater Profound Pearls into disarray.

Li Yuqing had not even called upon her Dao of Fate yet.

Just the sword intent of the Heaven-Splitting Sword was enough to disrupt the Mystic Water Domain, preventing it from fully unleashing its power.

Li Yuqing and the Heaven-Splitting Sword passed cleanly through one of the greenish-black seas and appeared before the Vermilion Bird outside.

A cold smirk tugged at the corner of her lips. "I don't know why, but I can't help but feel like you're weaker than the Fey Gods of my Abyss.

"I sense no Fortune or Corruption in this world. The Thunder Abyss evidently ranks far below my Abyss in power.

"The Fey Gods here naturally are inferior as well," she mocked. Then, raising her left hand to reveal the stone pearl she named the Pearl of Fate, she asked coolly, "Would you care to see your past and future?"

The Vermilion Bird had no idea what Fortune or Corruption was.

However, it could still hear the insult in Li Yuqing's voice, the ridicule she leveled at the Fey Gods of the Thunder Abyss. A blaze of fury ignited in its chest, and without a second thought, it stared straight into the stone pearl in Li Yuqing's hand.

With just a single glance, the Vermilion Bird was ensnared. Its soul, spirit, and will all sank into the depths of the Pearl of Fate.

Everything it had ever experienced was etched into the stone pearl, unfolding like a gentle stream flowing through time, each memory laid bare along its shimmering current.

***

"Meng Wa is ours!" Lei Ying cried, releasing hundreds of lightning spheres with a flick of her sleeve.

Each lightning sphere exploded within the greenish-black Nether Sky, Jade Sea, tearing open the depths of the Mystic Water Domain.

Meng Wa was the Water Serpent's name.

In the past, Lei Ying dared not speak her name aloud, but there was nothing left to fear anymore. Her people were already facing annihilation, and the Thunder Race's legacy teetered on the brink of destruction at the hands of the Fey Race.

Pang Jian hovered in the lightning-wreathed sky atop Thunder God Mountain, the swirling tides of the Nether Sky, Jade Sea surrounding him.

"Lei Fan, the Fey Race is invading your race's territories. Things down there would go far better with a powerhouse like you holding the line," Pang Jian said offhandedly, making a grasping motion with his hand.

The Thunder Pool rose smoothly into his palm.

A grand silver-white palace rose steadily from the center of the Thunder Pool, emanating a terrifying aura of destruction. Its mere presence shattered Meng Wa's Nether Sky, Jade Sea into fragments.

The vaunted Mystic Water Domain and the prized Netherwater Profound Pearls cracked, breaking apart and exploding into nothing.

In the span of a single breath, the divine artifacts that the Great Demon God He Motian bestowed upon Meng Wa were reduced to dust.

Though the awakened Divine Court of Thunder had yet to regain the full might of its prime, it had no issue obliterating lesser divine artifacts like the Netherwater Profound Pearls.

"Lei Fan, go," Pang Jian said calmly.

With that, he stepped forward into the resplendent palace with unhurried grace, like a divine being ruling the heavens with unchallenged dominance.