Trials of the Abyss

"A Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea?!"

Fan Chen, Hu Yuanfei, Liu Youyu, and Dong Wenjian were visibly shocked at Zhou Yi's revelation.

They could not help but turn to stare at Pang Jian.

Pang Jian had summoned a thick, resilient protective shield to defend against Zhou Yi's spatial compression. Its outer layer was solid ice with stars and moons faintly visible on its surface. Lightning flickered wildly within, and the shield itself exuded the weighty, grounded aura of earth energy.

The infusion of rare energies made Pang Jian's protective shield remarkably unique, allowing it to withstand Zhou Yi's spatial compression.

"It truly is the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea!" Fan Chen exclaimed in amazement.

Hu Yuanfei and Liu Youyu's expressions shifted, eyes flashing a mix of shock and a hint of pity.

They were familiar with the traits of those possessing the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea.

Several cultivators had been born with the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea throughout the history of the human race in the Abyss.

They were all somewhat familiar with the cultivation realms and combat prowesses of such individuals from ancient texts and legends.

Cultivators born with the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea were always exceptionally formidable in battle.

Their expansive spiritual seas vastly exceeded those of cultivators in the same cultivation realm, providing them with a deep reservoir of spiritual power. Their mastery over diverse energies also granted them a wider array of techniques in battle.

For regular cultivators, cultivating multiple energies typically hindered the progress of their cultivation realm.

However, for those with the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea, the advancement of their cultivation realm was intrinsically linked to the variety and abundance of energies they accumulated. This enabled them to break through in rapid succession.

Those with the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea also exhibited far superior combat prowess and were nearly unmatched compared to those in the same cultivation realm.

Unfortunately, such individuals also had a significant disadvantage—their path to godhood was limited.

In contrast to those focusing on a single Dao, every formidable figure with a Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea documented throughout the history of the Abyss hit a barrier at the peak of the Immortal Realm.

While the diversity of energies and techniques granted these individuals immense combat prowess, it also blocked their potential and sealed off their path to godhood.

Godhood was attained through mastering a single energy and comprehending the ultimate truth of a single Dao.

One had to deeply immerse oneself in one profound Dao and fully comprehend it to break the shackles of immortality and ascend to the pinnacle of the human race's power—the True God Realm.

The nature of the Primordial Chaos Spiritual Sea inherently limited this ability.

The age-old wisdom of breadth coming at the cost of depth consistently revealed its truth when they reached the Immortal Realm.

"Master, why would…?" Hu Yuanfei could not help but question Li Zhaotian's choice once again.

Zhou Yi broke out into peels of laughter. "Li Zhaotian won't advance to the True God Realm himself, and yet, he chose a successor who can't become a True God."

He shook his head and slowly brought his hands together in front of him.

It was as if two separate realms existed on his palms, and as Zhou Yi drew his hands together, the realms themselves converged into one.

The lines on his palms resembled the earth's veins as they glowed with radiant runes etched with spatial techniques.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The force locking Pang Jian down was finally revealed—it was none other than Zhou Yi's hands.

The palms of two colossal jade-like hands pressed together in a clasping gesture, crushing Pang Jian's protective shield.

Boom! Crack!

Pang Jian's protective shield dimmed. The stars and moons on its surface burst under the pressure and the lightning within ceased to rage.

"I'll immobilize you first, then shatter your body and divine soul!" Zhou Yi's jade ruler shot out, slicing down through the gap between his enlarged hands like a razor-sharp blade, aiming directly at Pang Jian's head.

Pang Jian appeared trapped between two immense mountains, with the jade ruler descending like an executioner's blade.

Under Ling Yimo's orders, three Rank Eight warriors from the Flame Race, the Ghost Race, and the Demon Bull Race launched full-force attacks on Fan Chen, Hu Yuanfei, and Liu Youyu, ensuring they could not come to Pang Jian's aid.

"Pang Jian!"

Several people called out simultaneously.

Wu Yuan tossed out his Purple Demon Eye.

The radiant Celestial Phoenix above Dong Tianze's head shot toward Pang Jian in a beam of light.

The Divine Origin Pearl protecting Zhou Qingchen sped through the torrential rain, trailing crimson radiance across the sky as it flew toward Pang Jian.

Even Dong Wenjian from the Ancient Law Sect threw out one black and one white talisman which transformed into a pair of roaring black and white Mountain Dragons that charged forward to assist Pang Jian.

"Spatial Mirror." Zhou Yi summoned several crystalline shards of the sky.

It was as if the sky had flipped and the stars had shifted.

Zhou Yi used the Spatial Mirrors to absorb the attacks from Wu Yuan and the others, restraining their powerful artifacts one after another.

He was fully aware the Spatial Mirrors could not hold off their divine artifacts for long, but his goal was merely to delay them.

"Pang Jian!" Dong Tianze roared, ribcage cracking under the strain as he activated a recently comprehended technique from the Celestial Phoenix.

He drew out drops of his blood essence, weakening himself,

The Celestial Phoenix, which had been pulled into a Spatial Mirror, absorbed the blood essence and momentarily became tangible—not unlike the solidity that Ling Yimo's divine soul had gained.

As the Celestial Phoenix from Dong Tianze's brow absorbed his blood essence, it manifested a portion of the formidable power belonging to the strongest Fey Race of the new era.

Crash!

The Spatial Mirror imprisoning the Celestial Phoenix shattered.

Blinding radiance rippled from the wings of the resplendent Celestial Phoenix, illuminating the dark sky with boundless divine light that obliterated all of Zhou Yi's Spatial Mirrors.

The Virtuous Celestial Phoenix, once the de facto leader of the Fey Race before its death, briefly displayed a hint of its former power.

Zhou Yi immediately suffered from the backlash of his Spatial Mirrors being destroyed.

Tears streamed from the eyes of the Demon Bull Race warrior riding the Rank Seven Ice Sculpture Beast.

The searing light overwhelmed his vision, leaving him momentarily blinded.

Ling Yimo's brows knitted as she observed the situation from the black clouds above.

"The Virtuous Celestial Phoenix." Turning to the You Kui behind her, she said, "If the Celestial Phoenix were still alive, I'd have no confidence in prevailing, even if I were to descend in my true body."

"A being of such formidable power within the Abyss…it's truly awe-inspiring." You Kui sighed as he bowed his head in respect.

Although the Celestial Phoenix could only wield a fraction of its former might with Dong Tianze's blood essence empowering it, it was still enough to destroy all of Zhou Yi's Spatial Mirrors in an instant.

Even the veins on Zhou Yi's palms split open, oozing streams of fresh blood.

The Spatial Lockdown technique on Pang Jian unraveled under the immense backlash.

Free at last, Pang Jian did not hesitate to summon the Heart of Winter to counter the jade ruler aimed at his head.

Sizzle!

Blinding icy rays, imbued with the Ice Demon's Dao of Cold, struck the jade ruler, leaving it in a web of cracks.

Zhou Yi was injured further.

Pang Jian and Dong Tianze's combined efforts had left the prodigy of the Nine Tribes Sect, second on the Soul Wandering Realm leaderboard, bloodied and beaten.

As the Virtuous Celestial Phoenix faded, Zhou Yi hastily recalled his jade ruler and downed a few pills.

After retrieving their Purple Demon Eye and Divine Origin Pearl respectively, Wu Yuan and Zhou Qingchen flew to the top of the Divine Spirit Pagoda and cried in horror, "Dong Tianze!"

Pang Jian's face darkened.

Using his divine sense, he saw that Dong Tianze's already emaciated figure had become as gaunt as a withered reed. His skin was as pale as paper, drained of vitality.

After the Celestial Phoenix returned to Dong Tianze, the imprint between his brows dimmed, radiance seemingly exhausted.

Dong Tianze had only recently advanced to the Soul Wandering Realm and had just started to temper his physical body. His hasty invocation of the Celestial Phoenix's abilities had clearly exhausted him.

Whoosh!

Pang Jian flew over and shoved a Great Blood Enhancing Pill, a Soul Enriching Pill, and the pill for restoring spiritual power that Liu Youyu had gifted him earlier into Dong Tianze's mouth.

With Zhou Qingchen's help, Dong Tianze managed to sit up and swallow the pills alongside the blood pooling in his mouth.

When he saw Pang Jian's anxious and worried expression, the seriously injured Dong Tianze let out a pained, mocking smile and asked, "Why did you come here? Why didn't you kill Zhou Yi first if you have strength left?"

Fresh blood flowed uncontrollably from his mouth, trickling straight down his chin.

"Zhou Yi is adept at the Spatial Mirror Technique—he's not so easily killed," Zhou Qingchen said, frowning as he supported Dong Tianze from behind to keep him steady. "Pang Jian, Wu Yuan, I...I have the lowest cultivation realm here, and I don't have any divine artifacts. Let me take care of him. Don't waste any more time here!"

Wu Yuan said nothing back. Gripping the Purple Demon Eye tightly, he flew off and glanced up with knitted brows.

The white pagoda had been motionless for some time, and the spatial barrier holding it back was still in place.

Wu Yuan silently gathered his strength and activated the Purple Demon Eye to destroy the barrier blocking the white pagoda.

Dong Tianze stubbornly tried to speak.

"I—Ugh…"

Blood stuck in his throat, causing his face to twist in agony.

"Stop talking," Pang Jian scolded.

Dong Tianze's emaciated figure, with his sunken cheekbones and twisted expression, made him look like something straight out of a nightmare.

However, to Pang Jian, he was not frightening in the least.

Without his desperate, reckless release of the Virtuous Celestial Phoenix, Pang Jian would still be trapped in the spatial compression, immobilized as the jade ruler struck down upon him.

There would have been only one way out—using the bronze pendant to teleport to the little tree in Misty Swamp in front of everyone.

"Remember this: I always have a way to escape, no matter how close you think I am to dying," Pang Jian said firmly. "I don't need you to sacrifice your life for me!"

With that, Pang Jian flew off.

"I—"

As Dong Tianze tried to speak again, his blood foamed up, forcing him into a fit of coughs.

"He's just stubborn, don't bother with him. Focus on your recovery," Zhou Qingchen said, patting Dong Tianze's back to help regulate the flow of his blood and energy. "Pang Jian and the rest of us are still in danger. We may need your help again."

Despite his rough exterior, Zhou Qingchen was attentive and knew the best way to motivate Dong Tianze was to remind him that Pang Jian still needed him.

As expected, Dong Tianze did not argue further; instead closing his eyes and regulating his breathing.

Zhou Qingchen could not help but nod in quiet approval, a strange gleam in his eyes.