C1113 Please Take a Seat!
Under the immense impact of Sabonis's psionic power, the massive throne beneath President Lyi crackled and popped.
Golden Divine Thunder, entwining the colossal Golden Throne like serpentine dragons, could not endure the collision with the iron pillars and disintegrated into a fine dust of golden light.
Boom! Boom!
Pillars, infused with the essences of gold, silver, iron, and copper, along with Sabonis's boundless vitality, were masterfully manipulated by the Blood King. His indomitable aura of destruction seemed capable of piercing through space, reducing anything in its path to rubble.
The sight of these robust pillars and the fearsome power within caused every soul in Ionodios to quiver.
Seated high upon his Golden Chariot, the Blood King pointed to the heavens with one hand, then pressed both hands towards the earth before lifting them abruptly.
Accompanied by a thunderous roar, mountains and rivers, as if stacked by divine hands, rose swiftly from the rubble. In an instant, they soared to towering heights.
These peaks, like spears thrusting into the firmament, gleamed with the cold sheen of metal.
Sabonis seemed to clutch the cosmic order in his palm, molding it effortlessly.
President Lyi's meticulous preparations were thrown into disarray by the sudden upheaval of the land.
His Golden Throne, once encircled by Divine Thunder, now rocked violently, propelled ever higher by the relentless strikes of the iron pillars.
As the throne threatened to breach the wall of Ionodios and venture into the Star River beyond, President Lyi's expression grew tense.
"Draw!"
With a voice that could deafen, Jun Chen, manifesting his colossal Divine Visage, uttered a word laden with profound mysteries.
Faraway stars began to quake!
Vein after vein of ore seemed to smelt instantaneously, transforming into the purest streams of Sunsilver. With a power unfathomable even to deities, Jun Chen drew these streams directly into the Golden Throne, which teetered on the brink of shattering the wall.
A sudden glint of starlight appeared beneath the throne.
In the next moment, a surging current of Sunsilver materialized, not only steadying the Throne but also endowing President Lyi with newfound divine strength.
Rising from his seat, President Lyi spread his arms wide, as if to embrace the entire cosmos.
Boundless Sunsilver psionic power flowed into his body from the Golden Throne, transforming him into a figure akin to Blood King Sabonis, as if he were cast in gold.
President Lyi, too, unveiled his imposing Divine Visage.
His Divine Visage was not humanoid but resembled a range of Holy Mountains piercing the Infinite Galaxy!
A vast mountain range unfolded, housing thousands of peaks so high they defied imagination, rich with Sunsilver, copper, silver, and numerous other scarce metals, while nearby stars shone brightly.
It seemed as though the essence of Sunsilver originated from the mountain range rooted deep within the Star River!
Propelled by Sabonis's power, the mountain that had emerged from the Ionodios crumbled, with gigantic boulders tumbling into the darkness below Sabonis.
In that instant, the air was filled with the angry curses of Shura warriors.
"President Lyi and Jun Chen's combined might is truly unmatched. Moreover, they had already prepared everything in the Annihilation Nebula in advance, willing to sacrifice the destruction of numerous stars and worlds within it to stand against Sabonis and Grec," Razses, the Ghost King, mused with a shake of his head.
His eerie eyes flickered towards Hei Xun, the Sky Fiend Indigo Wraith, and the Stormcrowned Emperor.
His gaze then shifted to Tian Zang, standing within the Blood Altar, pondering whether the four titans of Boulderdawn were covertly guarding the Songbird Queen or protecting Yu Yuan, lest he fall victim to an accidental strike in this Divine War.
The darkness continued its relentless assault on the remaining realms of Ionodios.
As Sabonis, the Blood King, launched an attack on President Lyi aboard the Golden Chariot, the halted spread of Absolute Darkness resumed its advance.
Cultivators, archdemons, and Warpbeasts fought on, battling against Ghouls and Warpbeasts in the increasingly constricted rocky valleys.
Those of lesser bloodlines and status were mostly ground down by the Warpbeasts and Ghouls.
Shura from the Dark Realm would occasionally launch surprise attacks on ninth-level leaders like Beru and Mia, not necessarily to kill them outright but to render them helpless.
Gradually, only one-sixth of the territory remained untouched by the encroaching darkness.
President Lyi and Blood King Sabonis were locked in combat, while Jun Chen, master of the celestial dome, engaged in a fierce exchange of spells, blood magic, and cosmic order with one-third of the Demon God Grec.
Jun Chen, drawing upon the power of the Annihilation Nebula, astonishingly held his own against Grec.
At the very least, he wasn't visibly outmatched.
Regardless of the outcome, as the Skyreach Consortium's premier counselor, this battle would surely make him a household name across the vast Star River. Jun Chen's name would become universally recognized among all races.
After all, his adversary was the mighty Demon God Grec. Even if it was only a third of Grec's power, for Jun Chen to withstand it was a feat worthy of pride!
"Yu Yuan."
Tian Zang chuckled softly.
Yu Yuan, who had been observing the situation within the realm from the edge of the Dissolving Fortress for quite some time, turned to look at him, his brow furrowed. "What's on your mind now?"
At that moment, Chen Qinghuang also cast her gaze toward Hei Xun, the Sky Fiend Indigo Wraith, and the Stormcrowned Emperor, pondering their motives.
She realized that the four powerhouses from Boulderdawn had come near the Dissolving Fortress either for her or for Yu Yuan.
And yet, she had shown no hostility toward Boulderdawn or the Consortium thus far...
"Have you still not sensed the presence of the Divine Sword?" Tian Zang asked, his smile easygoing. He gestured toward the shadowy depths of the Deathwing Lair, "Given that Ionodios and the Dark Realm are connected, and the ice energy from the Dark Realm can flow in, shouldn't you attempt to locate the Divine Sword?"
Yu Yuan paused, taken aback.
He then covertly reached out to the sword spirit within his arm bone, trying to detect the Divine Sword's location as Tian Zang suggested.
After a short while, he shook his head and admitted, "The boundless darkness swallows everything. My senses and remnant soul, including the sword spirit, can't pierce through the darkness."
"That makes sense," Tian Zang said, nodding with a smile. "Your current level is indeed somewhat insufficient. Plus, you've abandoned that shortcut, so..."
He glanced down at the throng of Otherkin and cultivators below, locked in fierce combat with Ghouls and Warpbeasts in a shadowy valley.
"That's why someone has already prepared something for you in advance."
No sooner had he spoken than a series of crackling noises erupted from deep within the valley, as if an ancient, bound object had been released from its chains.
Yu Yuan was rocked to his core.
Gazing into the secluded valley, his eyes sparked with disbelief, and his lips quivered slightly. "How... How can this be?"
The Soulforge Pool, exuding dark Soul Power, emerged from beneath the valley, heading straight for Yu Yuan without any need for guidance.
The sword scars, once wiped from the walls of the Soulforge Pool, were now vividly visible once more.
"Please take a seat!"
Tian Zang, Hei Xun, Indigo Wraith, and the Stormcrowned Emperor called out in unison.
The four mighty figures from Boulderdawn Sect positioned themselves at the four corners of the Soulforge Pool. Tian Zang, along with the Blood Altar, shrank and, like the others, bowed slightly in a gesture of welcome.
At that moment, not only were Chen Qinghuang, Ann Ziqing, Luo Yue, and their companions taken aback.
The people of various tribes below, including Zhongli Dapan, Shen Feiqing, the Death Crane, Xi Quan, as well as Beru, Leo, Canli, and others, looked up in astonishment at the disturbance in the void.
Their exclamations had already filled the air as the Soulforge Pool broke free, their gazes locked onto it.
Many had seen the wonders of the Soulforge Pool firsthand in the Moonfall Sanctuary.
They had watched as it entered the Domain Channel and vanished, noting that the pool's walls had become mirror-smooth, the deep sword scars no longer visible.
The sudden reappearance of the Soulforge Pool in Ionodios, with its sword scars so pronounced, had already taken them by surprise.
As the Soulforge Pool made its beeline for Yu Yuan and the four Boulderdawn powerhouses took their positions, the shock intensified.
They all speculated about what would come next.
Then, they witnessed the four Boulderdawn experts simultaneously beckoning Yu Yuan to take his place.
Every sentient being in Ionodios was shaken, their eyes fixed on the Soulforge Pool and Yu Yuan.
Even the Blood King Sabonis, the Demon God Grec, and the leaders of the Divine War, President Lyi and Jun Chen, tempered their clashes. These four formidable forces of the Star River, amidst their battle, also spared their attention for the Soulforge Pool.
Yu Yuan, the focus of all eyes, was momentarily dumbfounded, staring at the familiar pool, unsure of what to do next.
Hei Xun, the Stormcrowned Emperor, and the Indigo Wraith bowed their heads in silence.
Tian Zang dropped his playful demeanor and spoke earnestly, "With the sword scar on the wall, along with the sword sheath and sword spirit, bolstered by your own strength, you should be able to locate the Divine Sword. You can summon it from the depths of the Dark Realm and bring it into Ionodios."
"The Titanblade!"
"Nie Qingtian's Divine Sword!"
"Boulderdawn is scheming to seize that lost Divine Sword! The Titanblade is hidden in the Dark Realm!"
This revelation sent shockwaves through the crowd. Survivors from various races, numerous Shura from the Dark Realm, and even figures like Zhongli Dapan and Green Willow, were visibly shaken.
In that moment, Yu Yuan gave a subtle nod and strode forward, descending into the Soulforge Pool like a God-King assuming his throne.
