Trials of the Abyss
Chapter 740: The Divine Artifact of Sovereign Demonheaven

Chapter 740: The Divine Artifact of Sovereign Demonheaven

The war in the Nether Abyss raged on, the flames of battle heating up with every passing second.

Pang Jian remained a mere observer of the conflict, neither aiding Bai Zi nor handing the Thunder Pool over to Yuan Yi. He also did not join the Outer Gods in their siege against the Nether Race. All he wanted was to see how it would end.

Meanwhile, in the Fifth World of the Abyss, his physical body was still contemplating how to break through the sea of demonic energy.

Although the evil thoughts and malicious intentions could no longer shake his mind, he still could not escape the Fifth World.

If even he could not break free, the other True Gods stood even less of a chance.

After the death of Sovereign Demonheaven, his insights into the Dao of Demon, or even his lingering divine power, gave rise to this unusual sea of demonic energy. But outsiders could freely pass through the Fifth World before.

My master, Li Wang, and the others were all able to descend. So why did a barrier suddenly appear?

Who or what caused the sea of demonic energy to become impassable? Was it Luo Hongyan?" Or is it the Primordial Demon? Pang Jian wondered.

The presence of the barrier and the spread of the aura of death prevented Wanderer Tian Du Tian Du and Li Yuanli from escaping. Their deaths released two clusters of Fortune, which fell into Luo Hongyan's hands, allowing her to forge the Divine Personas of Light and Cold.

Based on the benefits, it seemed logical to assume that the one pulling the strings was Luo Hongyan. Either with her power or through commanding the Primordial Demon, she had conjured a barrier within Sovereign Demonheaven's sea of demonic energy, preventing all passage through it.

While within the sea of demonic energy, Pang Jian noticed that even the rise of murky energy from the Fifth World was completely blocked. It could no longer reach the Fourth World anymore.

If this barrier remains in place, more than half of the human race's crisis will be resolved.

The source of the murky energy was the Black Empyrean Phoenix in the Seventh World. Its will and influence seemed to permeate all of the Abyss through the flow of murky energy.

The sea of demonic energy cuts off that flow, stopping the murky energy from rising further. Could this also be a means of weakening the Black Empyrean Phoenix?

Pang Jian quickly concluded that the transformation of the Fifth World's sky was the work of Luo Hongyan and the Primordial Demon.

After a while, Pang Jian once again suppressed the Duke of Thunder's Dao of Lightning and approached the sky of the Fifth World. He circulated his comprehension of demonic techniques and reached a hand out to the barrier.

"Hmm?" To his surprise, the barrier felt smooth to his hand, like fine, silken cloth.

When he curled his fingers and gripped it, it was as if he had seized the corner of an enormous curtain, one that he could even tug downward slightly. The barrier had taken on the qualities of a fabric-like object.

The discovery left Pang Jian deeply astonished.

Demonic sky, Sovereign Demonheaven. This really does feel like a sky formed entirely from condensed demonic energy! [1]

An image of a colossal Demon God, draped in a greenish-black cloak and soaring across vast stretches of the starry skies, formed in his mind.

The Demon God stood with his back to Pang Jian, his strange cloak billowing through the cold starry skies, drawing celestial bodies beneath the cloak of demonic energy and reducing them to ash and dust.

Demon Gods and Great Demon Gods, each bearing terrifying visages, followed in the wake of that cloak as it swept across the starry skies. They slaughtered Gods unlike themselves, compelled the masses to worship the Demon Gods, and raised temples in their image.

Among these divine beings were Fa Ji and He Motian.

This was the golden age of the Demon Race. All the Demon Gods of that era, regardless of whether they were from the abysses of the starry skies, had united under one banner, rallying behind a single leader—Sovereign Demonheaven.

Demonheaven! This demonic sky that separates the Fifth and Fourth Worlds is Sovereign Demonheaven's divine artifact! Pang Jian realized. It's his cloak!

Demonheaven had perished in a fight against the Black Empyrean Phoenix, and his cloak naturally also fell into its hands. In the end, it had become the sky of the Fifth World!

When Demonheaven wore this cloak, it appeared capable of drawing in the wicked thoughts of all living beings across the territories under his rule, as well as those of his Demon God subordinates. It was nothing short of a perpetual engine, an endless reservoir of demonic energy.

Through it, Demonheaven could endlessly replenish his demonic energy during battle, never needing to fear depletion. It could also sever the connection between two worlds, preventing even True Gods like the Li Wang or Zhu Ji from crossing, and even halting the spread of murky energy.

This cloak was a higher grade and of greater value than even the Duke of Thunder's Thunder Pool.

Pang Jian's heartbeat quickened. This artifact...

If this high-grade treasure of the Dao of Demon was not with the Primordial Demon, it could only mean that Sovereign Demonheaven had never acknowledged him. Otherwise, the Primordial Demon would have long since asserted his dominance over the Abyss!

With this cloak in hand, the Primordial Demon would be more than qualified to contend in the battle between the two Sovereigns. There would be no need for him to hold back.

If this cloak is ownerless, even temporarily... A glint flashed through Pang Jian's eyes.

It had been a long time since he felt any real greed for an artifact, especially after obtaining divine artifacts like the Thunder Pool, Five Thunder Annihilation, and Ghostflare.

However, this cloak was different. If he could seize it, it would resolve the issue of Li Wang, his master, and the others trapped within the Fifth World.

More importantly, he would no longer be powerless in the battle between Sovereigns unfolding within the Abyss. A divine artifact that once belonged to a Sovereign could change everything. It could even reshape the future of the human race itself!

Having come to that realization, Pang Jian devoted himself to studying how he could claim this "demonic sky" for himself.

***

In the Nether Abyss, the sea lion caused the World God Hai Wei to plummet from the sky, all with a single pearl resting upon its tongue.

The sea lion then swallowed Hai Wei whole and vanished beneath the waves, retreating into the depths of the sea.

Despite being a mid-ranking God, the World God of the Sea Abyss, that sea lion had defeated her with nothing more than a pearl on its tongue.

Pang Jian was visibly surprised.

Hai Wei had once mentioned that the Nether Race powerhouses had taken the Sea Race's life seeds and precious treasures when they conquered the Sea Abyss. As a result, the sea-dwellers living in the depths of the Nether Abyss no longer knew their true origins.

That remarkable sea lion was likely one of those stolen life seeds, and the pearl in its mouth could have been one of the Sea Abyss's ancient treasures, one that naturally held power over someone like Hai Wei.

"Kill them!"

"Kill!"

"Kill!"

The Nether Race across the continents and fragmented lands in the lower layer of the Nether Abyss surged with explosive strength, as if some divine force was giving them a boost.

Each warrior would receive a burst of power at critical moments in battle, divine might flaring within them, allowing them to unleash strength far beyond their limits and crush their enemies with ease.

With his divine sense, Pang Jian quickly figured out the source. The strange, invisible sea connecting all the Nether Race warriors and Nether Gods was the collective force that granted them those bursts of power.

It acted strikingly similar to the barrier of the Abyss. Back when his master initially merged with the barrier of the Abyss, every True God of the human race had been granted a surge of power in battle, gaining a clear advantage over their opponents.

This invisible sea, forged from the combined soul essence of the members of the Nether Race and their Nether Gods, functioned in much the same way.

Is this the mysterious Soulstream of the Nether Abyss? But the soul essence within it clearly belongs to the Nether Race's warriors and their Nether Gods. Narrowing his eyes, Pang Jian continued to observe in silence, probing deeper into its nature.

He quickly realized even those not taking part in the battle were actively channeling their soul essence into the sea.

The Nether Race warriors could draw upon power surpassing their limits during battle, unleashing strikes capable of killing their opponents in a single blow. After killing their opponents, they would channel the soul essence and most of their strength back into the sea until they encountered a new opponent.

In this way, others could draw upon the stored power during their battles as well, gaining the strength to claim swift victories. It was a remarkably unique method of combat, one that only the Nether Race could employ.

***

Yuan Yi, the World God of the Fey Race, hovered high above the continent where Long Di lay hidden.

"Lightning!"

Lightning burst from his broad wings and spread rapidly across the air. Each bolt carried the profound truth of the Heavenly Dao capable of annihilating souls.

This cascade of lightning tore apart the Nether Race's invisible sea, causing it to instantly lose its effectiveness.

Several Nether Gods had been sustaining it from the shadows, and at this attack, they stumbled forward, faces bloodied and severely injured.

"Fa Ji! Take this!" Yuan Yi flicked one of his wings, and a second enormous Fey Race corpse soared out. "I've already refined its soul. It won't resist your possession. I've also enhanced the strength of the body and reshaped its bloodline. It now carries the strength of a mid-ranking God.

"Fa Ji, use this body. Possess it and ensure Bai Zi dies here in the Nether Abyss."

The cold-hearted World God of the Fey Race had prepared none other than the body of the Thunderveil Godbeast!

Though the Thunderveil Godbeast held little interest in the power of lightning itself, it had been born with a bloodline steeped in it. It had long yearned to defy its fate, seeking to alter its bloodline and comprehend the Heavenly Dao of other elements.

It once clashed with Pan Di and even fought Pang Jian outside the Abyss's boundary wall, though in the end, they parted on peaceful terms.

Pang Jian never imagined it would meet its end at Yuan Yi's hands.

Pan Di was a member of the Fey Race from the starry skies, so it still made some sense for him to be at odds with Yuan Yi. The Thunderveil Godbeast, however, was a true native of the abysses!

"Don't blame me for being ruthless," Yuan Yi said coldly. "The Thunderveil Godbeast was a divine being of the Thunder Abyss, and of ancient Fey Race lineage. By all rights, he would have normally served under me. It possessed considerable lightning, yet refused to lend it to my cause, so I had no choice but to kill it."

These words were directed at both the ancient Fey Race of the Nether Abyss and Pang Jian.

"Elder Yuan, always prepared." Fa Ji cackled.

Demonic energy emerged from his forehead and poured into the body of the Thunderveil Godbeast. In an instant, he gained a new vessel, one bearing the power of a mid-ranking Thunder God.

1. The Chinese characters for demonic sky and Demonheaven are the same. ☜