C1921 Understanding the Heavens

The Evil Temple within the Origin Realm had crumbled, leaving only the Origin Gate teetering on the brink of destruction.

The Evil Gods, whose souls had descended into the Origin Realm, were forced to flee back to the Abyss after Bertain's assault on the Holy Temple, joining the encirclement to retaliate against him.

Jihui remained the sole guardian of the vast Origin Realm.

He had planted the Wraithbanner, forged from the primal source, into the last standing Origin Gate, attempting to converge all the remaining power of the Origin World.

But with Yu Yuan, Kaiya, and the three Gods of Ghosts gone, he could no longer attend to them.

He had detected traces of Primal Vitality within Yu Yuan, a high-level will favoring him, refining Yu Yuan's Spirit of the Dead, and bestowing upon him a magical power surpassing that of Matina and Youyu.

His previous battle with Yu Yuan had been slightly in his favor, thanks to the support of the Evil Temple and its primal source.

Now, that was no longer feasible.

Suddenly, the vibrant, dreamlike deep sea receded as if pulled by the tide.

The Mindscape, shaped by the Mirage of the Mind and sharing many commonalities with the Origin Realm, had been assimilated but was now unexpectedly separating once more.

The area from which the Mindscape receded seemed to conjure the enigmatic Crucible of Rebirth, dispersing Yu Yuan's essence.

Bitterness etched Jihui's features.

"Let it be."

After a moment, he shook his head in resignation and lamented, "On one side stands Bertain, and on the other, you. We both hail from the Abyss. You should have stood with me, exerting pressure on Bertain, yet..."

The peril of the Abyss and Yu Yuan's demands on the Mindscape forced him to make a choice.

He chose to relinquish his claim on the Mindscape.

"If this is how it must be, then the Origin Realm... has no reason to continue existing."

The Wraithbanner in Jihui's grasp fluttered in the last open Origin Gate. The enigmatic land, crafted by the energy of the Evil Temple, surged back through the gate.

In the Genesis Continent, the quaking true Evil Temple solidified abruptly with the collapse of the Origin Realm.

"My lord, I have acquired a primal source. My form within the Abyss will eventually reach its pinnacle of refinement. The Abyssal Gate you protect—I am destined to shatter it one day."

Jihui's voice, magnified as if by intent, echoed through the fading Origin Realm, rising like a dream in the depths of a receding sea.

In the next instant, the primal force enveloped his soul and returned him to his human form within the Abyss.

He materialized suddenly at the center of the Evil Temple.

Dense spatial lightning erupted from his human body, infused with the purest and most violent power of the Abyss, breaking free from the dome of the Holy Temple.

In the darkness, rent asunder by the Demon God Bertain, Jihui's power surged in every direction.

The overwhelming specter of Bertain, as if frozen in space, shattered with a thunderous explosion.

"Push harder, strive to shatter the Abyssal Gate soon. I have great expectations for you."

The Demon God's mocking laughter reverberated through the darkness, prompting all the Evil Gods on the Genesis Continent to scour the land for any sign of his presence.

Alas, their search yielded nothing.

...

Wraithlands.

"Huh?"

Yu Yuan, gripping the Dragon Slaying Stage, gazed up at the soul stone and the ethereal Crucible of Rebirth, furrowing his brow. "The Origin Realm is gone."

"What?"

Wagner exclaimed, peering at the soul stone, yet unable to discern anything.

"The Origin Realm and the Holy Temple that Jihui conjured must be closely related."

Kaiya, with her striking figure, watched Yu Yuan perform his spellcasting, her eyes shimmering with captivating allure. She had been using the Dragon Slaying Stage to draw power from the world connected to the Abyss.

She was the only other person, aside from Yu Yuan, who witnessed the transformation of the Origin Realm. She had even heard Jihui's whispers to himself.

A flicker of dark fire danced within the soul stone.

Deep within the fire, her own beautiful specter lingered, as if her devil soul had remained in that world until the disappearance of the Origin Realm.

Kaiya's crystalline finger beckoned the flicker of dark fire, which leapt out and fused into her fingertip.

Yu Yuan glanced at her, then removed the soul stone from the Dragon Slaying Stage and passed it to Youyu.

"We're nearly there. I've retrieved most of your strength. The portion Jihui has refined, I'm afraid, is beyond my reach."

Youyu accepted the soul stone, his expression impassive.

In a flash, a multitude of lost memories and magic arts were once again etched into his Spirit of the Dead.

The rich shadow energy of this world surged toward him, aiding in the healing of his soul wounds.

Yu Yuan gazed at the ancient tree and proposed, "Could you assist in repairing his body and reforge it anew?"

"Why should it be me?"

The second Undead Lord responded reluctantly with a voice of the soul.

"Because you possess the necessary ability."

Yu Yuan let out a light chuckle and tossed the Dragon Slaying Stage, which was caught by his true form.

He soared into the sky, hovering above the fourteen Levi Rivers, as if surveying the entire Wraithlands. He extended his senses to discern the workings of this realm.

"I shall remain in the Wraithlands. With this Demonic Vessel, I intend to unravel the truth behind the Lunar Meridian's control in the Everlands."

He softly closed his eyes, attuning himself to the meridians of this body, and was flooded with vast knowledge.

In the outside world, the souls of the various Otherkin on the Path of Undead could glean fragmented memories as they traversed it.

Nearly a hundred Paths of Undead housed countless souls, yet to arrive in the Wraithlands.

But even from afar, the Paths of Undead served as his informants. The life stories and associated memories of all beings who entered the Paths of Undead were accessible to Yu Yuan.

This was a power exclusive to the First Dominator.

Matina and Wagner, the Gods of Ghosts from the Wraithlands, were once tasked with expanding the Paths of Undead and guiding the souls from the heavens to the Wraithlands.

Nevertheless, they could not access the residual memories of the souls that traveled the Paths they had laid out.

For they were merely Gods of Ghosts.

The souls of the human race from the Everlands had begun to tread the Path of Undead, originally solidified by the Root of the Lunar Meridian. Yu Yuan, still inhabiting the body of a God of Ghosts within the Wraithlands, had gleaned much from the lingering memories of these souls.

Han Miaoyuan was orchestrating the movements of the Everlands' living beings. The Voidfarers they had seized from the Otherkin had become vessels for transporting humans.

The great empires of mortals, whether allied with Han Miaoyuan or not, were granted permission to depart the vast expanse of the Everlands.

Many sects of cultivators, including the Starmoon Sect and the Skyreach Consortium—both known for their ties with the Boulderdawn Sect—were no longer impeded by Han Miaoyuan. The vast wall of the Everlands was diligently guarded by Lin Daoke and Han Miaoyuan, who strictly controlled the flow of traffic: exit was permitted, but entry was not taken lightly. It appeared they were vigilant against the Dark Phoenix and Taishi, as well as their own covert return.

The Paths of Undead, stretching across the cosmos, seemed to have become the very soul veins of his Demonic Vessel. He could now communicate seamlessly with the Solar Spirit guarding the Abyssal Gate. This suggested that once his real body departed, he would still be able to maintain a smooth exchange with the Demonic Vessel within the Wraithlands.

Shortly thereafter, with a whoosh, the polished, flat surface of the Dragon Slaying Stage was occupied by Kaiya and Yu Yiyi, who clutched the Crucible of Evil. They materialized atop the Thornsnare network. Yu Yuan, aboard the Dragon Slaying Stage, thus departed the Wraithlands.

Youyu, along with his Demonic Vessel, chose to remain behind temporarily. In the Wraithlands, he continued to assimilate the memories bequeathed by the Root of the Lunar Meridian, using his Demonic Vessel to unravel the mysteries tied to the Everlands.

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