C1977 Waste

"Dark Phoenix is the one who killed Mo Baichuan."

Han Miaoyuan's expression grew somber.

Deep within the Frozen Hellscape, the Wintermaw portals that connected to the Frozen World of the extraterrestrial realm had been sealed for a long time. Not even Zhong Chichen could step through them.

Yet, two primal auras made their way through one of the Wintermaw portals, one of them tinged with demon energy.

The demon energy was unmistakable, and Han Miaoyuan immediately recognized that the other presence was Dark Phoenix. He also realized that one of the primal auras belonged to Mo Baichuan, who had not successfully returned since his death.

The Will of the Deep, capable of disregarding the seals on the Wintermaw, acted like a pair of eyes, silently surveying the Everlands.

"Has Dark Phoenix imprisoned two primal sources?" Tan Xiaotian, sensing the disturbance, asked in astonishment, "The source that elevates us to the highest ranks usually returns without issue. Only the Great Demon God Bertain possesses the power to destroy one. Does Dark Phoenix now have that kind of power?"

"She's quite unique, having distanced herself from us in recent years. Her efforts to unite the alien beasts from the extraterrestrial realms were a clear sign of her diverging path," Han Miaoyuan mused, his face marked by hesitation. "Those Wintermaw portals..."

He had only sealed them temporarily, clinging to a sliver of hope.

He fantasized that the upcoming battle with Boulderdawn might allow the Everlands to be preserved.

As long as the Everlands remained intact, the Wintermaw portals leading to the Frostfell could one day be reopened and serve their purpose once more.

They could continue to draw upon the ice energy from the various frigid Astral Domains to counterbalance the Earthfire, keeping the Everlands as vibrant as ever.

What he hadn't anticipated was Dark Phoenix using a primal source as her eyes to peer into the state of the Everlands through a Wintermaw portal.

Unfortunately, the two primal sources that sought to return were ensnared by Dark Phoenix's constraints.

"Why would Dark Phoenix want to kill Mo Baichuan?"

Upon learning of Mo Baichuan's death, Qin Luo of the Ruby Hand had secretly instructed those who practiced the earthfire path to redouble their efforts.

His intention was for the members of the Ruby Hand to claim this sacred way and gain the favor of the Earthfire.

Since Mo Baichuan's demise, the viable path of earthfire has been forged, offering practitioners of the Ruby Hand's Cosmic Order the opportunity to test their mettle.

The ideal candidate in his mind was Yuan Lianyao, yet due to Yu Yuan's involvement, he refrained from expressing his preference.

Han Miaoyuan furrowed his brow, sidestepping the question posed to him, and instead voiced his concern, "I've got a bad feeling. I suspect... the Dark Phoenix might be planning to join the fray."

His words cast a shadow of solemnity over everyone present, save for Lin Daoke.

The prospect of Shadow's Keep allying with Boulderdawn and descending upon the Everlands together raised questions about the impending state of affairs.

The formidable Dark Phoenix was a force to be reckoned with, one that required the combined efforts of Lin Daoke and Tan Xiaotian to manage.

Moreover, Shadow's Keep boasted the Astral Tiger and Yu Zhu among its ranks.

The alliance of this long-standing power in the Everlands with the resurgent Boulderdawn would undoubtedly exert immense pressure on those who lacked the support of the Most High.

"Could it really happen?" Tan Xiaotian inhaled sharply, massaging his temples as he pondered, "The Taiyin is merely a myth. I've never witnessed her true strength. But that insufferable purple phoenix..."

"The power at her command now surpasses what it was before she left the Everlands. Jihui and I saw firsthand that she's accompanied by several tenth-level alien beasts."

A headache began to form for Tan Xiaotian.

"The Dark Phoenix and that individual had an ambiguous past, but..." Han Miaoyuan's mood took a nosedive, "His death and the fall of Boulderdawn—she was directly involved. It's not secure enough. I need to devise a strategy to provoke a confrontation between Boulderdawn and the Dark Phoenix first!"

Lin Daoke's eyes snapped open, giving Han Miaoyuan a peculiar look.

Unperturbed, Han Miaoyuan instructed Tan Xiaotian, "Head to the Frozen Hellscape and shroud the entrance with darkness. We can't allow the Dark Phoenix to keep her eyes on us."

"And one more thing!"

After a moment's thought, he added, "If isolation fails, shatter the portal that connects to the extraterrestrial realm and obliterate it!"

"Have you really thought this through?" Tan Xiaotian asked, astonished.

"I have. Now that we have Jihui, even if Wintermaw shatters, we can hope to rebuild it in the future!"

Han Miaoyuan's face was grave as he added, "Regardless of Dark Phoenix's intentions, we must do everything in our power to thwart her. Jihui should return before the battle begins. Once he's back, his combat prowess will reach an incredibly fearsome level."

Tan Xiaotian rose gracefully and flew toward the Frozen Hellscape, leaving a parting thought. "Actually, if I were to venture into the Abyss, I could resolve any issue."

...

At the Abyssal Gate, Yu Yuan finally lifted the lid of the jade box holding a drop of the Lord of Ruin's lifeblood. He peered at the blood crystal, noticing the myriad of tiny lightning bolts intricately intertwined within.

Each strand of lightning represented a Bloodline Revelation of the Lord of Ruin, the essence of the blood magic he had mastered.

"So this is what the life dew looks like when refined," Yu Yuan murmured to himself.

This solid drop of blood crystal was a portion of the Lord of Ruin's life dew, the essential ingredient for crafting the Life Keychain.

For him, as for the Lord of Ruin, each portion of life dew was exceedingly precious, concealing the profound mysteries of their bloodline.

The life dew that Cardo had entrusted to him would likely cause a frenzy among the Beast Gods of the Wasteland, all willing to fight desperately for a chance to merge with it. Because once merged, forming the Life Keychain, a Beast God could attain immortality.

"I'm curious to see if I can refine this life dew and assimilate it into my being!"

He reached out with a finger to touch the life dew, and suddenly, countless fine bloodline beams transformed into myriad resplendent lightning bolts, coursing through his finger and into his body.

Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!

The bloodline chains within his Solar Spirit Body flared to life.

The structure of his Solar Spirit Body, now resembling stalactites, saw the blood magic he had deciphered and the Secrets of Life branded by the Primal Blood turn into millions of dazzling lightning bolts, colliding with the life dew's blood lightning.

An excruciating pain that defied description radiated from every "battlefield" within his Solar Spirit Body, so intense that he wished for death to escape it.

He found himself unable to directly absorb the life dew!

It seemed that he had to completely deplete the Bloodline Revelations comprehended by the Lord of Ruin within the life dew before he could assimilate it.

Thousands of bloodline beams densely intertwined, kneading together like the most intricate lock in the cosmos.

Without fully grasping the intertwined Bloodline Revelations, he couldn't unlock this lock, nor could he absorb and refine the life dew.

Only a handful of bloodline beams made sense to him.

Upon reflection, he realized that the Life Seeds he had acquired from the belt stolen from the Rat God Panot corresponded to those few beams.

Yet, these accounted for merely a fraction of the life dew.

Moreover, he couldn't directly utilize the life dew to unravel and strip away the mysteries of the bloodline beams; it would take time to intuit each one.

This life dew originated from the Lord of Ruin, who was not only at the same level as his Solar Spirit but also slightly surpassed him.

There seemed to be a fundamental rule in place, preventing him from absorbing the bloodline mysteries of other races as effortlessly as he could with a single drop of their lifeblood.

To assimilate this life dew, he had to painstakingly collect the blood of all beings from the Wasteland, drop by drop.

Only after refining and merging it with his Solar Spirit and fully comprehending it, might he unlock "this lock" and take in the life dew of the Lord of Ruin.

After struggling for some time, Yu Yuan had no choice but to forcibly expel the life dew from his Solar Spirit.

He then watched as all the bloodline beams reverted to interwoven strands of delicate lightning, coalescing back into a solid blood crystal.

"It's actually worthless."

​