C1872 The Great Fusion of the Illusory World

"No!"

Jihui flicked the Wraithbanner, and the distinct green phantom halted abruptly before Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit.

As he watched clusters of clouds, rich with the arcane of giant beast bloodlines, converge towards Yu Yuan's miraculous flesh, he urgently implored, "Hear me out first!"

"Fine."

Yu Yuan's smile shone brightly, and the strange disturbances on the colorful sea's surface ceased.

Suspended midair, the three cosmic giant beasts, including the little spinosaurus, heaved a collective sigh of relief.

The Lizard, known as "Abyss," couldn't conceal the anxiety in his eyes, fearing that the resplendent Abyssal Gate would crumble any moment.

He dreaded the possibility of mountainous Evil Gods of the Abyss swarming into this realm, wreaking havoc alongside the Dark Phoenix.

With the onslaught of the Beast God from the Otherworld, the Dark Phoenix's malice, and the impending arrival of the Evil Gods of the Abyss, could a world without the Great Demon God Bertain endure?

The Lizard was fraught with concern.

He had contemplated the destruction of the Abyssal Gate and the notion of venturing into the Abyss, but the time was not now.

"Why are you stopping him?"

Tan Xiaotian was clearly displeased. His dark prayer mat glided gracefully over, nearly brushing against Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit before he came to a halt, frowning, "If the Abyssal Gate remains intact, my real body cannot reach the Abyss. How then can I refine and assimilate the source energy that embodies darkness?"

The Origin Realm and the Abyss were two distinct places.

His devil soul had entered the Origin Realm, a Mysterious Realm akin to Youyu's Mindscape, where only souls could traverse.

In the Origin Realm, he could only meet the Darklord in a soul form, devoid of any physical body.

He was even uncertain about the true appearance of those Darklords who revered him back in the Abyss.

Based on the information from the Darklord and Jihui's explanations, only by descending into the Abyss with his real body to refine its myriad dark origin energies could he ascend to Dark Overlord.

Such a transformation would allow him to unify the Evil Gods of the Abyss and command their allegiance.

Yet his devil soul had not been guided into the Abyss by Jihui; it had merely entered the Origin Realm to interact with other Abyssal beings, all in their spectral soul forms.

Jihui was willing to lead Yu Yuan's soul directly into the Abyss.

This was a privilege previously afforded only to the great Demon God, Bertain.

In the true Abyss, Yu Yuan's soul would be able to witness the true nature of the Abyssal world, observe the flesh and blood forms of its inhabitants, and even move freely within its realms.

The genuine Abyss and the illusory Origin Realm are worlds apart.

His alliance with Jihui served a dual purpose: to join forces in defeating the Dark Phoenix and to shatter the "Abyssal Gate"!

Yu Yuan was ready to act on their plan, and it seemed he might actually succeed, but Jihui abruptly called for a halt.

Tan Xiaotian was perplexed.

"Firstly, I still have a passage left in the Darkpinion Astral Domain, and the Dark Phoenix can trace her way there."

Draped in the Wraithbanner as his cloak, Jihui, with a hand of refined spirit, pointed towards the Origin Gate and explained, "Once she arrives, if her demonic form touches the Abyssal Gate, the bloodline mysteries hidden by the Old Titan Spinosaurus will strip her of her lifeblood."

Tan Xiaotian spoke gravely, "In that case, the Abyssal Gate would become impenetrable once more due to her arrival!"

Before Jihui could respond, the Demon Lord interjected, "Of course, if we can truly kill her, I'm willing to wait. However, I suspect that if the Abyssal Gate consumes all her power, any vital energy entering the gate might be assimilated by Yu Yuan anew."

Tan Xiaotian stroked his chin, his eyes brimming with skepticism. "Jihui, could it be that you still intend to aid Boulderdawn? To assist this... God-King you once revered?"

The Demon Lord was well aware that Yu Yuan was Taiyin, the dragon slayer.

He harbored doubts, suspecting that Jihui, even after her fall into the Abyss, still considered herself a part of Boulderdawn, and that all her actions were for the sect's benefit.

Otherwise, why would she prevent Yu Yuan from destroying the Abyssal Gate?

Why did she remove the Origin Gate when threatened by Yu Yuan in the Everlands?

"Please excuse me for withholding information for now."

Confronted with Tan Xiaotian's skepticism, Jihui remained silent for a moment before finally saying, "Let's address the issue with the Everlands first, then we can focus on shattering the Abyssal Gate! Believe me, it's in everyone's best interest."

He locked eyes with Yu Yuan.

"Even if we can't resolve the Everlands' troubles, at the very least, we should wait for it to fall back into slumber! We both know it's not easy for it to awaken, and it can't maintain that state for long."

Yu Yuan demanded, "What do you know about it?"

"What do I know?" Jihui shook his head sorrowfully and sighed, "Even the Great Demon God Bertain lost his connection with it after leaving the Everlands. Weren't you the only one it favored last time?"

Upon hearing this, the three giant beasts in the sky, including Tan Xiaotian, turned their gaze to Yu Yuan.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

As if drawn by Jihui's presence, the massive creature beneath the colorful sea began to converge once again.

Yet, they refrained from assaulting the Abyssal Gate, showing no urgency to shatter it.

Wrapped in the Wraithbanner, Jihui peered into the darkness below and murmured, "Something's off. I instructed them to remain calm and avoid frequent collisions."

Whoosh!

His phantom slipped through the open Origin Gate, swiftly reaching the Origin Realm to establish communication with the Evil Gods of the Abyss.

Moments later, Jihui, still enshrouded by the Wraithbanner, looked grim as he announced, "Youyu has connected the Mindscape within the soul stone to the Origin Realm!"

"The Origin Deity has long aspired to do this, yet it's Youyu who has taken the initiative!"

"What exactly is he up to?"

Jihui was visibly agitated.

"The Mindscape is merging with the Origin Realm? What will happen?" Tan Xiaotian was astonished.

"The souls of both realms are intermingling?"

The Lizard was mildly exhilarated. Having followed the Origin Deity for some time, he was aware of the deity's desire to make this happen.

He also knew of the Origin Deity's long-standing yearning for the soul stone, aiming to enable free passage for the souls between the two realms.

Now, with no word from the Origin Deity and the Origin Realm in Jihui's possession, the very ambition the deity harbored has been inadvertently realized by Youyu's actions.

"There's no need to go through the Origin Gate I control. Someone like Youyu can reach the Origin Realm and communicate with the Evil God of the Abyss. No, wait, there's even the Soul-Capturing God-King!" Jihui exclaimed in astonishment. "Weren't those two confined to the Wraithlands? I understand now; they must have managed it from within the Wraithlands!"

Tan Xiaotian was utterly bewildered.

"Mindscape, Origin Realm, Wraithlands, God of Ghosts..."

Yu Yuan whispered to himself, sensing that he was on the verge of grasping something. As he pondered the Solar Spirit of the Abyssal Gate, he experienced the same doubts and thoughts, perfectly in sync with his real body.

In the Ashlands, he felt a deep-seated pain in his Mindscape, a pain originating from his dominant soul. It was as though memories sealed for tens of thousands of years were being forced to the surface.

"Void Soul Shift!"

The Dragon Slaying Stage burst into a spectacle of seven-colored divine light as the Eiwrone descended, shimmering brightly.

Whoosh!

Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit soared from his forehead and came to rest upon the Dragon Slaying Stage. Beams of rainbow-colored spatial light shot from both the stage and Eiwrone's cavity, gently encircling his Lunar Spirit. The spatial light swiftly wove together, forming a mysterious array.

In an instant, Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit vanished from sight. When it reappeared, it was right at the Abyssal Gate, precisely where Jihui was refining the Origin Gate.

"Thanks to your Origin Gate, I've been shown a set of spatial coordinates that allowed my Lunar Spirit to come here," Yu Yuan said, standing on the kaleidoscopic sea, addressing the agitated Jihui. "I think I'll take you up on your offer and accompany you to the Origin Realm. I'm curious to see the current state of affairs now that the Origin Realm and Mindscape have merged. Perhaps, I might even get a glimpse of the Wraithlands."

"You're planning to... use your Lunar Spirit to travel to the Origin Realm and the Wraithlands?" Jihui pondered, quickly deciding it was a sound plan. "If it's just the Lunar Spirit, there should be no issue! Since you're interested, follow me."

Jihui's Wraithbanner began to flutter abruptly.

Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit, arriving from the Ashlands, was drawn by the psionic power within the banner. Suddenly, it was pulled into the Origin Gate, traversing numerous shadowy and uncharted corridors, drifting past a multitude of space nodes.

He was carried toward the Origin Realm.

...