The Purgatory Calamity
Chapter 492 - 468 Meeting an Old Friend_1

Chapter 492: Chapter 468 Meeting an Old Friend_1

Inside the Demon Abyss.

The dark blue sky, like a curtain replacing the original sky, made it feel oppressively heavy.

Looking up, Pang Jian could no longer see the suspended Fierce Sun, having a bizarre feeling of suddenly falling into another space and time.

Standing at the edge of the Demon Abyss below, he sensed the faint Spiritual Power and released his Divine Sense to probe his surroundings, only to discover that his range of perception had become extremely limited.

An invisible Magic Power rippled out from the center of the Demon Abyss, restricting the reach of his Divine Sense.

That Magic Power also had the ability to provoke evil thoughts in people’s hearts, amplifying all sorts of Demon Thoughts.

Wu Yuan stopped and asked, "How do you feel?"

"My perception is restricted, and there’s a force beguiling the heart, as if it wants to persuade one to do evil," Pang Jian answered truthfully.

"Hmm, this is still the part of the realm farthest from the Demon Stone. The deeper you go, the closer it is to it, the greater the pressure you will endure. No rush, we’ll walk slowly, I’ll familiarize you with the Demon Abyss."

A relieved expression appeared on Wu Yuan’s usually impassive face.

Pang Jian followed slowly, asking, "From where does your sudden relief come?"

Wu Yuan, deliberately slowing his steps and not flying, spoke as he walked, "I was worried that upon entering the bottom of the Demon Abyss, your heart would harbor a sliver of evil thought against me."

"This evil thought might just be because of the opposition between the Demon Sect and Sword Tower, making you wary of me."

"It’s also possible that after being influenced by the Source Demon, you might think that I will inevitably be overcome by the image of the Sky God He Motian within the Purple Demon Eye, and thus you harbor a trace of the thought to kill me to eliminate future troubles."

"As long as there is even a tiny bit, any evil thought directed at me, no matter how small, it will grow as you approach the Demon Stone."

"There is, there is, it will grow bit by bit, beyond human power to change."

"If there isn’t, then there isn’t. That Demon Stone will not make one fabricate evil thoughts out of thin air."

"..."

Wu Yuan, with his back to Pang Jian, had a bit of a smile at the corner of his mouth.

He was the lucky one who had been acknowledged by the Demon Stone and permitted to practice the Demon Stone Spell; in the mysterious Demon Abyss, he could perceive the evil thoughts in the hearts of those around him.

Especially regarding evil thoughts towards him, his senses were the sharpest.

Having carefully sensed Pang Jian, he was sure that Pang Jian currently didn’t harbor the slightest evil thought against him.

This fully explained that Pang Jian’s attitude towards him was the same as his towards Pang Jian.

An hour later.

Pang Jian, who had ventured deeper from the boundary of the Demon Abyss towards the central Demon Stone, felt that the aura of the Source Demon within the miniature world of his sword was becoming more active.

As he went further, he increasingly realized that the pressure released from the alien Demon Stone was gradually intensifying.

Soon, the ruins of an ancient city and palace with traces of the years appeared before him and Wu Yuan.

The architectural style of the palace complex, which differed significantly from the Human Race’s construction, had collapsed and broken down beyond recognition. Not a single Stone Hall seemed remotely intact.

Yet, Pang Jian felt a sense of familiarity.

In the Demon God Lamp-induced six great Secret Realms, there was one with floating palaces, where the Demon Gods seemed to be worshipped by Demons of all worlds.

The crumbling palaces before him had the same architectural style as those presented in the Secret Realms.

"They belonged to the Devil Scale Tribe."

Seeing him stop and gaze at the ancient, shattered city, Wu Yuan said, "Three thousand years ago, people from the Devil Scale Tribe and some other branches of the Demon Clan built the city around that Demon Stone. The most noble members of the Devil Scale Tribe lived within the inner city of the Demon Abyss."

"After the Human Race triumphed, Human True Gods and Demon Race Demon Gods joined forces to destroy everything here. Since the Demon Stone continuously released Magic Power and constantly tested people’s hearts, our Human Race Cultivators would not stay long in the Demon Abyss."

"Only those who want to temper themselves, who want to forge their hearts, would venture into the Demon Abyss to try and approach the Demon Stone."

Wu Yuan continued forward, suddenly quickening his pace as if he had made some discovery.

Pang Jian didn’t linger and hurried after him.

On the grayish-green land, a group of well-dressed scions was dismembered and arranged on the ground.

The pungent smell of blood pervaded the air, with limbs and broken bodies scattered everywhere; the scene was extremely cruel.

"These are members of the Zhao family who were attached to our Demon Sect."

Wu Yuan’s expression was unchanged, not surprised at all, and he calmly explained, "The Demon Abyss spans a wide area. Even though our Demon Sect has built many defensive Arrays, it’s hard to cover every aspect. It’s impossible to prevent everyone from stepping into the Abyss."

"There are families attached to us who, after obtaining our permission, are allowed into the Demon Abyss to try approaching the Demon Stone. There are also Individual Cultivators and disciples of other Sects who, despite our warnings, sneak in."

"They chose this path for cultivating their minds; we can’t control everything, and they should be prepared for death."

"As for those who died..."

Wu Yuan frowned, adding, "When a team has mixed members, if someone has evil thoughts that are difficult to suppress, these thoughts may intensify uncontrollably as they approach the Demon Stone, leading to consequences like this."

Pang Jian asked in surprise, "Are you saying that this slaughter was caused by infighting among their own ranks?"

"Mostly so."

Wu Yuan crossed the bloody ground, leading Pang Jian further in, saying, "There are also powerful lone individuals whose evil thoughts suddenly erupt, resulting in the killing of everyone they encounter."

Following his journey, Pang Jian found himself passing through even more shattered cities, witnessing countless horrific scenes of death.

He also noticed people who couldn’t withstand the dark thoughts within themselves, fearing they might become possessed by demons and lose control, promptly turning back to leave.

"These are the smart ones,"

Wu Yuan watched someone weeping and fleeing and said, "Starting from the outermost edges and moving towards the central Demon Stone, very few can actually reach it and stand to gaze upon it from below."

"Many will die along the way, some will wisely leave, and others will stand rooted to the spot."

"The fortune of beholding the Demon Stone bears no relation to one’s cultivation level, but rather to what lies in their heart."

"Back then, of the hundreds from our group who advanced toward the Demon Stone from different fringes, in the end, only five stood beneath the Demon Stone."

"I was one of them."

"The other four, just like me, sat under the Demon Stone in silence—three died quietly. The last one, knowing he couldn’t last, smartly left."

Wu Yuan spoke expressionlessly of the brutal past.

Several hours later, the two encountered an increasing number of corpses, many of which had been cleaved in half by sharp blades.

It was then that Wu Yuan slightly furrowed his brow and said, "Something’s not right; they don’t seem to have died fighting each other, but more like they were hunted down by the same person."

"Clang!"

The sound of a heavy object being struck echoed from the ruins of a distant city.

The two exchanged a look.

With their Divine Sense limited, they instantly took to the air and flew toward the broken ancient Demon City.

A colossal ash-gray bell, turned upside down upon the land within the city, glowed with a soft divine light.

On the bell’s surface, a Kylin seemed to come to life, moving about and forming various defensive arrays with the patterns of the bell.

"The Kirin Bell!"

Pang Jian exclaimed in shock.

"You recognize it?" Wu Yuan asked in surprise.

Pang Jian shouted, "Li Jie, are you inside?"

From within the familiar Kirin Bell came a voice, "Who is that?"

"Pang Jian, Pang Jian from Bagua City!"

"Wow, wow, wow! It’s really you who came to the Demon Abyss, haha!"

The one who had been striking the bell had long since left, and upon hearing Pang Jian’s name, the person inside hurriedly used a spell to make the Kirin Bell levitate.

The one curled up at the bottom of the bell was Li Jie from the Heaven Treasure Li Family, and also Li Yuqing’s younger brother.

Different from his extravagant and luxurious past, Li Jie, honed by the Demon Abyss, wore only a Storage Ring.

His tall figure was still somewhat chubby, but his eyes were clear and shining.

His face was filled with an expression of extreme joy as he energetically waved and shouted, "Pang Jian, I’ve heard about you! I’ve seen the battle between you and that female warrior from the Devil Scale Tribe in the Mysterious Heavenly Divine Mirror. I can’t believe you’ve become Pu Zhaotian’s disciple!"

"Back when we were undergoing trials in Bagua City, you were only at the Marrow Cleansing Realm."

"Right, I even gave you plenty of Body Refining Green Fruit Juice. Oh, right, I almost forgot about my sister. The person in that dark alley, that’s my sister, isn’t it?"

Li Jie, who had not seen them in a long time, jumped up and landed on the newly reforged Kirin Bell.

He was stamping his feet and waving his arms, recounting old tales from their past, saying, "I knew you were extraordinary, but I never imagined you’d be so outstanding. Your cultivation level is even higher than mine now."

"Alas, I am only at the Soul Wandering Realm, and you’re already in the Extinction Realm."

He pulled out a bottle of Green Fruit Juice, inserted a straw out of habit, and sucked down a big gulp, seemingly finally recovering his composure.

"You must be Wu Yuan, right?" His expression darkened as he glared at Wu Yuan with dissatisfaction, "I entered the Demon Abyss to temper my spirit with the permission of your Demon Sect. Why would a disciple of the Demon Sect try to kill me?"

Wu Yuan said, "Any who enter the Demon Abyss will find the dark thoughts and evil desires within their hearts magnified. Approaching that Demon Stone is like confronting the most evil part of oneself."

"The one who attacked you might simply dislike you and wanted to kill you purely for that reason."

"Or perhaps, there’s something on you that he desires, and he couldn’t control his greed."

He was telling the truth.

"No! It’s not what you said! The person who wanted to kill me was definitely not influenced by the Demon Stone! I could tell, she was very lucid and rational, without a trace of demonic possession or losing control," said Li Jie, a chill seizing his heart. "She just wanted to kill me, to kill all those like me!"

Speaking of that person, the talented artifact refiner from the Heaven Treasure Li Family trembled, "If it weren’t for the plethora of treasures I possess, most of which are for defense, with life-saving Divine Skills that are invincible under the sky, I would’ve probably died long ago."

"Phew!"

While speaking, he threw a bottle of Green Fruit Juice to Pang Jian, "It’s been a long time, please have a drink."

Pang Jian took a sip and then asked, "What does the person who wanted to kill you look like, what weapon did she use, and how do you know she’s a disciple of the Demon Sect?"

"She’s a very beautiful woman who wields a long blade with saw-like teeth. When she strikes, her body seems able to resonate with Magic Power—naturally, she’s a Disciple of the Demon Sect."

...