Chapter 846: Demanding Answers

In the Seventh World of the Abyss, Pang Jian's thoughts surged like a tide.

There are twelve World God Pendants.

Mu Duo, Xing Huan, and Yuan Yi each held World God Pendants that were tied to a destroyed abyss, and the onset of the grand event gave them the opportunity to restore said abysses.

Those wielding World God Pendants stood to reap immense rewards—Sovereignhood!

If they successfully rebuilt a destroyed abyss, they gained the chance to ascend as the Sovereigns of these new abysses. No World God could resist such temptation.

What kind of being could leave a message within the World God Pendants and inject it into the mind of every World God?

Who would dare make such a promise?

Pang Jian was struck with a realization.

The will of the bizarre mist!

Only that level of supreme will could have the authority and the power to uphold that promise of Sovereignhood.

The grand event only occurs once in a hundred millennia. This is a rare opportunity for the Outer Gods to enter the abysses. At the same time, it also marks a pivotal chance for the beings dwelling within the abysses, especially the World Gods.

Pang Jian gazed at the opened "gates," quietly attuning himself to the movements of the other World Gods and the events unfolding within each abyss.

Suddenly, the "gate" linked to Huo Ji's World God Pendant vanished with a muffled boom.

Pang Jian's connection with his Immortal Divine Soul was also abruptly severed!

His Immortal Divine Soul had just escaped from the God of Wisdom and entered the nearest abyss it could find. Unexpectedly, the connection between it and Pang Jian's physical body was cut off the moment it stepped inside.

That defied everything he knew about the laws at play.

With the World God Pendant in hand, he was supposed to be able to sense all the abysses and their World Gods. It did not matter which abyss his Immortal Divine Soul entered; there was simply no reason for its connection with his physical body to break.

Did Fu Ya seal off my Immortal Divine Soul again?

Pang Jian wondered, focusing his attention on the World God Pendant once more.

He peered into the whereabouts of the God of Wisdom, wanting to know whether that Sovereign was still in the bizarre mist, clashing against Sovereign Luo.

A vast sea of light came into view!

Razor-sharp beams tore his probing divine sense to shreds, rendering him unable to perceive the events unfolding within.

He could only faintly sense two terrifying auras pitting their Daos and divine domains against one another in that dreadful sea of light.

The Heavenly Daos appeared to be collapsing, the fabric of space shattering into fragments, and the existing laws twisted into chaos.

Even the faintest perception of the sea of light dragged his mind and will to the brink of ruin, one he could barely claw his way out of.

The battle is still ongoing!

Pang Jian hastily withdrew his probing divine sense, certain that the God of Wisdom could not possibly escape under that kind of overwhelming pressure.

Let's see...which abyss did my Immortal Divine Soul enter?

There's the Nether Abyss, the Shadow Abyss, the Thunder Abyss, the Flame Abyss, the Ghost Abyss, the Demon Abyss, the Celestial Abyss, and the Abyss...

Of the twelve abysses in the bizarre mist, eight remained intact. Pang Jian locked onto them with his divine sense one by one, confirming their location and cross-referencing it with the last known position of his Immortal Divine Soul.

The abyss his Immortal Divine Soul entered was not among the eight!

Is there a thirteenth abyss?

***

Pang Jian's physical body crossed through a spatial rift and arrived beside Bai Zi in the Nether Abyss.

"Pang Jian!"

Bai Zi and Long Di stood on either side of the spatial rift, staring at him in shock.

They could both tell that this Pang Jian was different from the one earlier. His aura and his presence were completely distinct.

This is Pang Jian's physical body!

they realized.

Pang Jian had used Bai Zi and her World God Pendant as coordinates to teleport over from the Seventh World of the Abyss.

Glancing at Bai Zi, Pang Jian said, "My Immortal Divine Soul entered a strange world, and I've completely lost contact with it. Bai Zi, to your knowledge, how many abysses are there in the bizarre mist?"

"Twelve," Bai Zi answered without hesitation. "The ones that remain intact are the Nether Abyss, the Abyss, the Shadow Abyss, the Thunder Abyss, the Ghost Abyss, the Demon Abyss, the Celestial Abyss, and the Flame Abyss—eight in total.

"The four destroyed abysses are the Fey Abyss, the Wood Abyss, the Star Abyss, and the Spirit Abyss."

Bai Zi's answer matched perfectly with what Pang Jian knew.

"There's no thirteenth abyss?" Pang Jian asked.

Bai Zi searched her memories, then shook her head. "Not to my knowledge."

"Pang Jian, could the strange world your Immortal Divine Soul entered be perceived through the World God Pendant?" Long Di asked. "Are there any traces on the pendant to indicate its existence?"

"No," Pang Jian replied, grasping his World God Pendant. Only eight small characters were engraved on its surface—Nether, Abyss, Shadow, Thunder, Flame, Ghost, Demon, and Celestial. Beneath them, four larger characters stood out clearly: Gate of the Abyss.

The four destroyed abysses did not show up on the pendant at all.

"I can always sense the location of my Immortal Divine Soul, whether it's in the bizarre mist or one of the abysses, unless someone like Fu Ya uses the River of Wisdom to isolate it.

"But Sovereign Luo and Fu Ya were preoccupied with each other after I broke free from the River of Wisdom. She doesn't have the time or focus to interfere with me right now."

Pang Jian then recounted the events his Immortal Divine Soul experienced after leaving the Nether Abyss, including the encounter with the Rock Devourer.

Long Di and Bai Zi's expressions grew grim as they listened.

"The Rock Devourer first appeared here in the Nether Abyss and gradually ascended as a Rank Twelve Aberrant Spirit," Long Di said, his tone heavy. "Ling Jia entrusted me to look after it, but I never expected it to catch Fu Ya's attention.

"I only regret not having broken through in time. If I had, I'd have gone after Fu Ya myself to demand justice for Ling Jia!"

Frustration was evident on Long Di's face.

𝓯𝙧𝙚𝒆𝙬𝙚𝒃𝙣𝙤𝒗𝓮𝓵.𝙘𝙤𝙢

"Could Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul have stumbled upon one of the four destroyed abysses?" Bai Zi asked, uncertain.

"Hard to say," Long Di replied, his face clouded with worry. After some thought, he added, "Pang Jian, there are countless mysteries in the bizarre mist. Even after all these years, my understanding of it remains limited. There are many things I still don't know.

"Perhaps your Immortal Divine Soul has strayed into a world unknown even to us. Are you able to sense its exact location now?"

Long Di had been stunned when Bai Zi told him that Pang Jian had become the World God Paragon, capable of restraining all the other World Gods.

With the arrival of the once-in-a-hundred-millennia grand event, Long Di had a gut feeling that many other occurrences beyond his comprehension would be unfolding.

Perhaps, another opportunity to advance further on his path could yet await him, even without the support of the Nether Abyss's will.

"I can't sense it. I've completely lost track of my Immortal Divine Soul. It's likely I will only be able to reestablish a connection with it after it emerges from that place."

With that said, Pang Jian narrowed his eyes, gazing deeply into the Soulstream. A deep-blue sea quietly surfaced in the depths of his golden pupils.

Pang Jian's divine sense rippled through the Soulstream in the Nether Abyss.

I need answers.

My sister's divine soul manifests as a deep-blue sea like you. I know she can sense you.

Is Pang Lin still my sister? Or has another soul taken over her completely, turning her into someone else entirely?

Please, answer me.

These thoughts and questions echoed through the Soulstream.

This was the one knot in his heart he could not untangle.

The wonders Pang Lin had manifested in the Abyss had been extraordinary to the point that Pang Jian found it hard to believe she was still truly his sister.

No matter how convincing her explanations had seemed, a seed of doubt remained rooted in his heart.

In his eyes, the only one capable of offering him a definite answer to his questions was the mysterious Soulstream. After all, the origin of his and his sister's souls, with the traces of their Undying Soul Flames that they left within the Soulstream, meant they shared an inseparable connection to it.

The Dao Source of Soul was intelligent and was said to be the most spiritually aware of all the Dao Sources.

The Soulstream had shown him favor time and time again, so Pang Jian sincerely hoped it would answer his questions.

I beg you. Please give me an answer.

Pang Jian's divine sense lingered above the Soulstream, resonating endlessly, unwilling to fade.

A long time passed in silence.

Finally, a vague will rose reluctantly from the depths of the Soulstream. Though cryptic, Pang Jian immediately grasped its meaning.

It's an awakening, not a possession.