Chapter 729: Inner Demons

The Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree on the Resolute Expanse had grown to nearly four thousand zhang in height from the nourishment of the ancient Thunder Dragon's lightning, emanating a powerful magnetic field beneath the deep veil of night.

Beyond the barrier of the Abyss, stray bolts of lightning, unstable and untethered, were drawn to the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree. They pierced through the barrier of the Abyss one after another, surging downward, converging on the tree wreathed in lightning.

Long Xiao, suspended above the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree, had already long accepted his fate. The lightning struck him, his body acting as a conduit to nurture the formation of brand-new Dao Fruit.

The cultivators living in the Resolute Expanse, including members of the Ice Race in the Frozen Land, could all see the towering Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree from afar.

"What a magnificent sight."

"That girl, Pang Lin, is bound to ascend to godhood with the ancient Thunder Dragon serving as nourishment for that remarkable divine tree."

"It's only a matter of time before she ascends, especially with the support of her formidable elder brother."

The inhabitants of the Resolute Expanse looked forward to seeing Pang Lin break through her bottleneck and become a True God like Pang Jian. After all, the stronger the siblings became, the more secure the fragmented land would be within the Abyss, and the less likely anyone would dare provoke them.

A beam of sword light, carrying the power to rend heaven and earth, shot through to the Forbidden Land of the Thunder God, stopping before the secluded valley where the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree stood.

"Senior black turtle," Li Yuqing called softly, jumping off her sword.

"I'm here." The black turtle appeared in the form of a middle-aged man with a grounded aura, wearing a dark ochre robe. "What brings you here?"

"I know you can communicate with Pang Jian. Since he's in the Fifth World, he probably knows whether the two missing clusters of Fortune have successfully returned to the barrier," Li Yuqing explained, briefly glancing up at the shrunken Thunder Dragon. "I'm at a critical point in my breakthrough, yet there's no Fortune available to me. Could I trouble you to ask him?"

"Alright, I'll ask him for you," the black turtle readily agreed. After briefly communicating with Pang Jian, he continued, "You were right. That Sovereign seized the clusters of Fortune belonging to your father and Wanderer Tian Du. They never returned to the barrier."

Li Yuqing had already anticipated these answers, but she could not help the wave of disappointment that washed over her. A hint of helplessness surfaced on her delicate face as she sighed. "Pang Lin will also be able to break through soon."

"What are you planning to do, girl?" the black turtle asked with a frown, a coldness in his eyes. "Are you hoping that the remaining True Gods will perish to make room for you?"

"No, senior, you've misunderstood," Li Yuqing quickly explained. "I just don't think it's right for that Sovereign to seize the clusters of Fortune that rightfully belong to us.

"My father is gone, and all I wish is to draw the cluster of Fortune that once belonged to him, so that I can carry on his legacy."

She lowered her head, tone softening with regret.

"He gave so much for me and my brother, but we were unruly and ungrateful. We constantly fell short of the love he showed us."

The coldness in the black turtle's eyes faded. Leaning back against a boulder, he rubbed his chin in silent thought.

"This crisis is far from over," he finally said. "True Gods will inevitably fall. There's no need to rush. Just wait a little longer."

The black turtle could tell that the girl before him truly wished to inherit her father's Fortune and use it to become a new True God, completing a unique continuation of both bloodline and legacy. Unfortunately, Luo Hongyan had already seized that cluster of Fortune.

A Sovereign from the starry skies chose to craft a human body within the Abyss, then used Fortune and the Dao of Death to ascend to godhood. How strange. Why not use the Corruption of the Fifth World instead?

the black turtle wondered.

Long-buried memories stirred within him once more, but they remained locked away as he was yet to reclaim his position as a Fey God.

"Senior, your human form seems to have changed," Li Yuqing said after observing the black turtle for a while. "When I first met you, your appearance reminded me of Pang Jian, but you look less like him now. Did you do that on purpose?"

The black turtle froze, then fell into a daze.

He had not consciously altered his human form to look different from Pang Jian. In other words, this change was subconscious. Still, he could not fathom the reason behind it.

"Perhaps I've seen Pang Jian lately," he speculated with a shake of his head. "I can only communicate with him through our connection. Maybe that's why."

***

On a nameless fragmented land in the Fifth World, the words exchanged between Li Yuqing and the black turtle reached Pang Jian through his connection with the latter.

A sense of unease welled up within him.

Pang Jian could not help but recall the Rock Devourer's words. The black turtle and the Bee Sovereign were both members of the ancient Fey Race, born from the Bloodline Repository of the Black Empyrean Phoenix.

One day, the Black Empyrean Phoenix could also influence them, especially if they ended up ascending through its essence, also known as Corruption. If that came to pass, they would inevitably drift away from him.

With a sharp exhale, Pang Jian shot into the sky, determined to search for a way to disrupt the demonic energy trapping them in the Fifth World.

Li Wang, Li Zhaotian, Jiang Fan, Yin Ji, and Su Wanrou watched him leave. Zhu Ji remained immersed in absorbing energies, while Gui Mu stood silent, head lowered.

After witnessing the power of the Rock Devourer and Luo Hongyan's terrifying response on the Fifth Continent, the group found themselves divided once again.

Li Wang, Jiang Fan, and Gui Mu advocated against venturing further into the Seventh World. Instead, they proposed withdrawing from the Fifth World and returning to the First and Second Worlds.

After all, Zhu Ji appeared capable of breaking through the old constraints and advancing while still within the Abyss. This meant they could potentially do the same. The battle between Sovereigns would be drawn out, and they believed they had time to raise their cultivation realms before confronting such beings.

Li Zhaotian, on the other hand, disagreed. While the battle between the Sovereigns would be undeniably long, their strength would likewise grow with time. Moreover, if the battle in the Seventh World reached its conclusion sooner than expected, they could lose the opportunity to act altogether.

In his opinion, it was best to investigate the situation while they still could. Thus, he wanted the group to descend to the Seventh World and assess the situation firsthand after Zhu Ji completed his breakthrough. At least then they could make a more informed decision.

Neither side could convince the other, and so the matter remained unresolved.

Pang Jian, meanwhile, soared into the sky of the Fifth World, silently suspending himself in the sea of demonic energy.

Dark thoughts surged uncontrollably in Pang Jian's mind.

Kill Jiang Fan and Gui Mu. Release their clusters of Fortune. Find a way to return them to the First World so Li Yuqing and Pang Lin can use them to ascend.

Li Yuqing holds mastery over the Dao of Fate. If she becomes a True God, it could change the tides of the Abyss.

If my sister becomes a Thunder God, she'll certainly surpass Long Xiao and become a dominant force within the Abyss, especially with the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree, and the Thunder Pool I plan to give her.

The black turtle, the Black Dragon King, and the Bee Sovereign were born from the Black Empyrean Phoenix's Bloodline Repository. They're bound to walk a different path. It's better to sever ties sooner rather than later.

A poisonous gleam flickered in Pang Jian's eyes. Had anyone witnessed his expression, they would have found it hard to believe this was truly Pang Jian.

Turbulent demonic energy, tainted with malice and corruption, had seeped into his body unnoticed. It slipped quietly into his dantian, infiltrating the region steeped in demonic energy. Faint greenish-black specks formed within his glimmering Divine Persona.

The lives of those within the Abyss have nothing to do with me. I'm already the strongest in this world. Why do I have to let sentiment bind me? It would be better if I cast them aside and strengthened myself with the darkness in their hearts.

It doesn't matter if they belong to the human race or the Fey Race. All of them can serve as my sustenance.

More twisted thoughts raced unbidden through Pang Jian's mind, twisting his expression with each passing second.

He had ascended to the sky of the Fifth World with the simple intent of investigating the barrier of demonic energy. If he could destroy it, the True Gods could return to the upper worlds once more.

However, the veil of demonic energy was already corrupting him without his realizing it.

Deep within the bizarre mist, Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul, already nearing the boundary wall of the Nether Abyss, sensed something amiss.

"Wait!" he called. "My physical body in the Abyss has run into some trouble."

The World God in Pan Di's skeleton paused before the boundary wall. "What kind of trouble?"

"It's nothing I can't handle," Pang Jian replied, offering no further details.

The other party never even revealed which abyss he came from or showed his true form. Pang Jian did not even know the other's name. Meanwhile, the other World God had learned quite a bit about him throughout their journey.

Sensing his physical body teetering on the brink of corruption, Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul sent a jolt through their connection, snapping him back to awareness, just enough for his physical body to summon the Thunder Pool.

When the Thunder Pool appeared, Pang Jian's physical body, hovering in the sky of the Fifth World, was instantly pulled into its depths. Arcs of lightning surged from the palaces within the Thunder Pool, erupting in crackling bursts that engulfed his entire body.

Pang Jian let out a long breath as he regained clarity of mind within the Thunder Pool's embrace. As lightning coiled around his body and mind, he looked at the churning demonic energy, carefully examining its mysteries.

Countless threads of wicked thoughts were woven throughout the vast reservoir of demonic energy. These malicious thoughts were the product of the Fifth World's foreign races, the awakened Vicious Beasts, and even the vile desires of the previous inhabitants of the Fourth World.