Chapter 865: Contention for the Title of World God Paragon

How would the revival of the Duke of Thunder manifest?

Pang Lin pondered with a frown.

With a thought, the towering Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree rooted atop the mountain lifted itself from the web of crackling lightning surrounding it. It floated high above Thunder God Mountain, hovering beneath the barrier of the Thunder Abyss.

Arcs of lightning, imbued with Pang Lin's will, shot from the divine tree, scattering throughout different regions of the Thunder Abyss.

In a shrine devoted to the Duke of Thunder, violent lightning surrounded a massive statue of a Thunder God with white hair and broad shoulders. The materials used to carve the statue were none other than the roots of a Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree.

A silver-white bolt of lightning suddenly appeared, transforming into Pang Lin's delicate figure. Standing silently before the statue of the Duke of Thunder, she observed it closely.

Elsewhere in the Thunder Abyss, a bolt of silver-white lightning also appeared near an altar linked to the starry skies, once used to communicate with the Duke of Thunder. The altar had long been left unused, but now, it absorbed the lightning of the Thunder Abyss on its own.

No other Thunder God besides the Duke of Thunder could wield such influence over the Thunder Abyss.

Her divine soul, dispersed as lightning throughout the Thunder Abyss, sensed the unmistakable signs of the Duke of Thunder's resurrection through various arrays, plaques, statues, and even broken artifacts. There was no doubt in her mind that the Duke of Thunder had indeed returned.

The Divine Court of Thunder is in the Ruin Realm, which has mysteriously become connected to the Thunder Abyss. Brother once mentioned a strange azure Thunder Dragon slumbering in the Thunder Pool, one that seemed to have developed sentience...

It did not take Pang Lin long to connect the pieces.

Returning the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree to its place atop Thunder God Mountain, she turned to the two low-ranking Thunder Gods of the Thunder Race.

"Your race's ancestor, the Duke of Thunder, is likely walking the same path of resurrection I did," she said calmly. "But it's a pity. Even if he returns to the Thunder Abyss, he cannot ascend to Sovereignhood through his old Dao."

"Why not?" Lei Ying asked, confusion marring her initial joy.

Pang Lin gently tapped a bolt of lightning with her toe and rose to the canopy of the Nine Heavens Thunder Divine Tree. From its peak, she looked down at Lei Ying and Lei Fan and declared, "Because I've already claimed that Dao. I can become the Sovereign of any Dao I choose, so long as it's left unclaimed by an existing Sovereign."

Her words were domineering to the extreme.

"Even if the Duke of Thunder had never perished and was still at the height of his power, he still wouldn't be able to seize this Dao from me."

Lei Ying and Lei Fan were left dumbfounded.

"From now on, stay away from this Thunder God Mountain."

Pang Lin could not be bothered to explain further. With a casual flick of her finger, Lei Ying and Lei Fan were swept away, expelled from the Thunder God Mountain.

Once they vanished, Pang Lin rubbed her forehead and muttered, "So the Duke of Thunder has been resurrected in the Ruin Realm and is drawing power from the Divine Court of Thunder.

"But I can't get inside. If only World Gods can enter the Ruin Realm, then..."

Her divine soul in her sea of consciousness transformed into a deep blue sea and quietly established contact with the Soulstream in the Nether Abyss.

***

After the departure of the World Gods in the Darkcloud Realm, Pang Jian's physical body remained by the array with Li Wang, Li Zhaotian, and the others.

"Not yet." Pang Jian stopped Mu Qingya from trying to contact the ancient True Gods scattered throughout the starry skies. "There's been a small complication with my Immortal Divine Soul."

"What happened?" Mu Qingya asked, surprised.

"It seems that the Duke of Thunder has been resurrected inside the Ruin Realm."

Pang Jian's Divine Persona in his sea of consciousness had turned a dim blue, having established a distant link with the Soulstream.

A message had come from Pang Lin in the Thunder Abyss.

The Soulstream, acting as the spiritual bond between the siblings, served as the conduit for her news, relaying what had occurred within the Ruin Realm.

"My Immortal Divine Soul is still in the Ruin Realm. Inside are that ancient ape, the many World Gods, and the resurrecting Duke of Thunder." A hint of concern could be heard in Pang Jian's voice. "Let's hold off for a little while. If my Immortal Divine Soul doesn't return soon, I'll have to enter the Ruin Realm myself.

"Before that, I'll have to send you all back to the Abyss. We can meet those ancient seniors later. No need to risk everyone being wiped out at once."

***

In the Ruin Realm, an azure Thunder Dragon soared above the Divine Court of Thunder, bathing in blinding lightning as it rapidly forged its Divine Persona.

After revealing itself, it had quickly ascended to a Fey God, then to mid-ranking godhood. It all happened in the blink of an eye, and took place in full view of all.

Though Pang Jian no longer had his demonic cloak or the Divine Court of Thunder, he remained outwardly composed.

He had expected a chain of disruptions to occur within the Ruin Realm. The only thing he had not foreseen was the emergence of the Duke of Thunder in the middle of it all.

Heaven and earth, the Heavenly Dao, the laws that govern all things...

Pang Jian hovered in silence, attempting to dissect and comprehend the laws of this strange realm. His divine sense flowed through the World God Pendant once belonging to Huo Ji, seeking to understand the connection between the Ruin Realm and the pendant itself.

"Everyone!" Fa Ji shouted, still wrapped in Sovereign Demonheaven's cloak. "Whoever that thing is, it's not one of us. The Ruin Realm belongs to us, the World Gods. We need to—"

Before Fa Ji could finish, a bronze pendant the size of a palm flashed forth from the cascading lightning, caught neatly in the azure Thunder Dragon's claw.

"Who said I couldn't become a World God?" A smug light gleamed in the Duke of Thunder's eyes. Raising the pendant before the others, he declared, "There's no World God born of the Thunder Abyss. In other words, this World God Pendant is without a wielder.

"I was once the Lord of the Thunder Abyss. If I choose to shoulder the responsibilities of a World God and take ownership of this pendant, the issue could be easily solved."

Arcs of ghostly lightning surged into the pendant, embedding the Duke of Thunder's will onto it, officially turning him into the World God of the Thunder Abyss.

"There. Not only have I been reborn as a Thunder Dragon, but I'm also one of your World Gods. I heard you have something called a World God Paragon among you all?"

The Duke of Thunder, his cultivation realm still advancing, glanced at the ancient ape.

"You want to fight me for the title of the World God Paragon?"

The previously domineering Yuan Yi could only grunt at the Duke of Thunder's question.

"The real World God Paragon is the one holding the World God Pendant of the Abyss, Pang Jian's physical body. The one before you merely wields the World God Pendant of the Fire Abyss.

"If you want to contend for the title of the World God Paragon, you'll have to bring that Pang Jian in here."

The ancient ape let out a cold laugh.

The Duke of Thunder was only at the level of a mid-ranking God, but he still dared to brazenly threaten everyone present, proof of his confidence that no one could stop his rise.

Yuan Yi's opponent, the renowned Duke of Thunder, had also become a Fey God and was poised to ascend into high-ranking godhood. The Duke of Thunder also wielded the Divine Court of Thunder. Even Yuan Yi was not confident he could come out ahead against such an opponent.

Therefore, he intentionally pushed Pang Jian forward, letting the Duke of Thunder direct his attention toward him first.