Chapter 944: Counteroffensive

Never in the history of the human race had anyone been able to suppress the sheer number of Outer Gods that Pang Jian had mere moments after breaking through the barrier and stepping into the starry skies.

Even during the golden age of the human race, in the True Gods' campaign against the Hall of Gods, had any ever wielded such overwhelming might!

None had ever single-handedly slaughtered so many Outer Gods at once!

Unexpectedly, during this once-in-a-hundred-millennia grand event, when the human race appeared weak and waning, the anomaly that was Pang Jian had risen!

Lin Baixiang stared at the image on the leaf, tears of excitement streaming down his aged face as he repeatedly exclaimed, "Heaven has opened its eyes! Heaven has opened its eyes!"

Pang Jian was the glimmer of hope for the entire human race.

Wu Yuan, Dong Tianze, Su Wanrou, Li Zhaotian, and Li Yuqing were all utterly shaken by the images on the leaf.

Li Zhaotian even rubbed his eyes to confirm that what he saw was no illusion. Then, slapping his thigh, he burst into laughter. "These siblings are truly the foundation of our resurgence!"

"Maybe, just maybe, they can rewrite our fate and lead the human race to soar across the starry skies!" Su Wanrou said, her voice trembling with hope.

***

"What?" Tian Yu stepped out from a spatial rift, his cold eyes fixed on that leaf. "Black Empyrean Phoenix, you weren't the one to slay the Outer Gods of that starry region?!"

When he had learned of the mass casualties of the Outer Gods through the Void Temple and its many prismatic crystals, he had mistakenly assumed it to be the handiwork of the Black Empyrean Phoenix. After all, she had once been a Sovereign, an ancient existence with unfathomable strength.

The revelation that Pang Jian, and not her, had been the cause of the catastrophic events above the bizarre mist left him at a loss.

"The Hall of Gods, Fu Ya, and Sovereign Luo are all barely holding on. You'd best pray for your own survival as well," Pang Lin said with a calm wave of her hand.

Lightning and soul essence poured forth, gradually merging with the surrounding darkness.

Silvery bolts of lightning roamed within the darkness before slipping quietly into Tian Yu's spatial rifts and Void Singularities.

Pang Lin's darkness slowly overtook Tian Yu's divine domain, the Shattered Void. Many of the brilliant, blade-like fissures were soon severed from his perception.

Despite being the master of this divine domain and the Sovereign of Space, Tian Yu nonetheless felt an unbearable suppression as he was forcibly stifled.

"All hail the Divine Saint!"

"Heaven bless the Divine Saint!"

The Fey Gods in the shattered starry region were all ablaze with excitement.

Though the Black Empyrean Phoenix had been reborn as a human, the divine powers she displayed were unmistakably those of their revered Divine Saint. With every clash, she grew stronger, showing clear signs of overwhelming Tian Yu.

Pang Lin was already fearsome as she was, and the Fey Gods could only imagine the heights she—and by extension the Fey Race as a whole—would reach once she advanced further.

"The Fey Race will rule the starry skies!" the Fey Gods roared in unison.

***

A magnificent palace, wreathed in resplendent light, drifted through absolute darkness in the starry region above the Abyss.

In the palace, at the pyramid-shaped recess representing the Demon Gods, the gaunt Luan Ji was on the brink of death, unaware of the situation outside. He Motian, Qi Ling, and Tian Wei were also each in worse shape than the last.

The Hall of Gods had almost completely drained these four Great Demon Gods. Their divine power had nearly been depleted, and death seemed imminent.

At that moment, a gentle breeze seemed to drift in from the darkness outside, sweeping across Luan Ji's face.

"Luan Ji," whispered a familiar voice.

"What..." Luan Ji forced his eyes open. Seeing nobody around, he asked hesitantly, "Pang Jian?"

"Who? Pang Jian?" The shriveled He Motian used the last vestiges of his power to search his surroundings.

Though he could not see Pang Jian, he suddenly noticed that many imprints in the Hall of Gods, including those representing Yan Lie, Cang Feng, Mu Ya, and others, had vanished from their designated recesses. Their disappearance could only mean that they were dead.

"Many Outer Gods have fallen!" He Motian rasped out in shock.

Tian Wei also stirred awake, glancing around in confusion. "Someone has slaughtered many Outer Gods! All of them were like us, lurking in this starry region and pledging allegiance to Fu Ya and Sovereign Luo!"

"Pang Jian?" Luan Ji asked again in a faint whisper.

"Pang Jian?!" exclaimed the other Great Demon Gods.

"Impossible! No one besides the Sovereigns can so easily set foot inside the Hall of Gods! Pang Jian doesn't have that kind of ability!" Tian Wei sighed. "Luan Ji, you're better off placing your hopes in the merging of the Abyssal Demon and the Primordial Demon. That's the only way we can have our own Sovereign."

"I heard Pang Jian's voice," Luan Ji said firmly. Then, he softly asked again, "Pang Jian, is it really you?"

"It's me," Pang Jian confirmed. "I can use my connection with the starry region to bypass the Hall of Gods and channel demonic energy to you."

His voice sounded as though it echoed from within the Hall of Gods itself, but when the four Great Demon Gods tried to trace it, they realized it actually came from the depths of their souls!

A vast torrent of demonic energy and wicked thoughts poured directly into the souls of the four Great Demon Gods.

Their withered bodies became filled with vitality once more.

"Pang Jian!" the four Great Demon Gods cried out in roused exultation.

***

Fu Ya hovered outside the Hall of Gods, her River of Wisdom curling around her as she wielded her Blade of Wisdom.

"Luo Hongyan, the Hall of Gods can no longer keep out Pang Jian's Immortal Divine Soul," she said, expression darkening.

She shifted her gaze to the nine blazing suns streaking through the starry region, releasing waves of blinding light and searing heat as they raced toward the darkness. A myriad of stars followed close behind, trailing a towering figure of prismatic light.

After gaining firm control of this starry region and silencing the Outer Gods, Pang Jian was finally turning his focus on them and the Hall of Gods under her command.

The God King's skull that had charged out of the bizarre mist also flew skyward.

Both Pang Jians moved as one.

Boundless aura surged into both Pang Jians, granting them the power to command the stars and the Ruin Realm, hurling them toward the Hall of Gods within the darkness.

***

𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂

"Pang Jian is joining the battle between the Black Empyrean Phoenix and the two Sovereigns!"

All the Gods and powerhouses in the various abysses stared up at the unprecedented spectacle in the sky.

One Pang Jian commanded the nine suns and countless stars, while the other wielded the God King's skull. He was officially launching a challenge against the two Sovereigns alongside the Black Empyrean Phoenix.