C1994 The Truth of the Human Race!
The colossal land aglow beneath the shattered Abyss Gate ceased its ascent.
Its rise halted because the Abyss Gate was already broken, eliminating the need for the collision of its radiant power.
Consequently, the brilliance of the land swiftly retracted.
The luminosity it had previously unleashed was exponentially stronger than its usual glow when lighting up the Abyss Gate.
Moreover, it had spread upward, piercing the heavens to shatter the Abyss Gate alongside Cadorath.
Once shattered, it no longer exerted its force.
Nevertheless, the breaking of the Abyss Gate was due to Yu Yuan's Yang God, which had concentrated the residual power of the ancient Titan and the spinosaurus within itself.
It was not shattered by their combined assault.
Now, as the dazzling light receded, allowing onlookers to adapt, everyone could gaze upon it from an elevated perspective.
The expanse of the land, comparable in size to the Tia Main Planet, was not spherical, with valleys stretching for millions of miles, replete with lakes, deep seas, islands, and smaller land masses scattered throughout.
On the periphery of this world, the buildings were of various odd shapes and sizes.
At the very heart, occupying a third of the world, stood palaces reminiscent of ancient human nations that had endured for eons.
Yu Yuan, Taishi, and the Devaputra Pontiff all felt a sense of familiarity.
Yet, eerily, there were no humans to be found.
It seemed as though the humans who once inhabited those edifices had perished long ago for unknown reasons.
Only the exceedingly wise remained, with Divine Kings of flesh, blood, and essence standing upon the green stone square upheld by robust stone pillars.
Additionally, there were dozens of young humans, scantily clad.
They covered only their waists with coarse animal skins and clutched primitive vessels and tools fashioned from animal bones, looking up into the sky with trepidation.
The sky above seemed to be the abyss's forbidden zone, concealing immense dread.
In their lore, only the Evil God could venture into the sky above the abyss's first layer and survive.
They had just embarked on the path of cultivation, learning from the teachings of the supremely wise, each a promising sprout meticulously chosen.
Among them was the burly youth who had addressed the supremely wise as "Pontiff," the same one Yin God Yu had encountered at the abyss's deepest level.
The continent, valleys, forests, and even the subterranean depths seemed to harbor mysterious treasures of spiritual material, awaiting discovery and extraction by those daring enough to seek them out.
The reserves of these natural wonders clearly surpassed those of the vast Taiya Main Planet, not falling short in comparison.
"Human race!"
Taishi inhaled deeply, unable to maintain his composure any longer, and cried out in astonishment.
His gaze swept across the edge of the land below and, after a thorough survey, settled on the figure of Extreme Wisdom. There, he saw a group of human youths.
It was reminiscent of Yin God Yu Yuan's descent into the Abyss World, where he witnessed villages using fences to fend off monsters and the humans who emerged from them.
The revelation struck Taishi powerfully, leaving him momentarily unable to accept what he saw.
Had he not witnessed it himself, he would have never believed it, even if Extreme Wisdom had stood before him, using various spells of illumination to recount the true tales of the Abyss.
He would have dismissed it as a fabrication, refusing to believe that humans could live in the Abyss.
Yet, with the Abyss Gate only just shattered, the massive, dimly lit continent below had not even begun to break free from the Abyss. And there, beside Extreme Wisdom, stood several young humans.
Extreme Wisdom's current form was different from the one Taishi had once known well.
Yet, he was unmistakably human.
The flesh and blood of a human could not traverse the Abyss Gate – that was the gate's purpose, an unbreakable rule!
So how did Extreme Wisdom acquire his human form?
And where did these dozens of human youths come from?
Taishi's thoughts were in disarray.
"Human... humans?"
High Priest Reid and Cadorath of the Bright Clan exchanged bewildered glances, their minds as scrambled as Taishi's.
Beside them floated three Shrouded Towers, and Yuen Bu, who had initially manifested as a colossal ape, had now, almost imperceptibly, assumed the form of an Old Ape.
Yuen Bu, now diminished to a fraction of his original size, fumbled with the traditional pipe of the Desolate God, seemingly unsure of its use, and eventually tucked it at his waist.
He appeared increasingly unhurried among the Shrouded Towers.
For the Abyss Gate had already been shattered, and Yu Yuan, along with others, had seized the energy fragments.
Although his gains were modest, he had indeed reaped some rewards. Moreover, there was an even greater treasure and a precious Light Origin Spirit waiting below for him to harvest.
Scratching his head, he peered down at the motionless land below, observing the young humans from the Human Race with a sense of puzzlement and bewilderment.
The Human Race, in the Abyss?
"This world is truly wondrous, brimming with secrets waiting to be uncovered. Fascinating, truly fascinating!" Yuen Bu exclaimed in amazement, peering down with the curiosity and astonishment of an onlooker, eagerly anticipating the unfolding events.
"Uh."
Cadorath's eyes flickered with excitement, her face lighting up with surprise and delight as she plunged into a secluded valley below.
In that valley, every rock, mountain, and plant glowed, and strange Light Origin Spirits emerged, as if greeting her arrival.
As she touched down, the light sources and Light Origin Spirits converged into her, just as Yu Yuan's Yang God absorbed the essence of a Titan's bloodline. In the glowing valley, she embraced the enlightenment of the Light Origin Spirit, the very understanding of light she had long been missing.
Cadorath's face was a portrait of reverence, nearly overwhelmed with tears of joy.
She had searched for countless years, longing to find the Light Origin Spirit, to obtain an origin spirit that matched her own, like Beilstein and the ancient spinosaurus, to grant her deeper insights into the mysteries of light.
Her journey had been fruitless, her hope fading into despair.
But just as she was on the verge of giving up, believing hope was forever out of reach, the shattering of the Abyss Gate revealed to her this luminous land.
She had found the Light Origin Spirit!
She suddenly realized that her corresponding Light Origin Spirit, like the Origin Soul in the vast expanse and the Origin Blood on the Origin Blood Continent, was right beneath her feet in this magical world.
And this world, astonishingly, had always stood high above the Abyss World, on the very first level of the Abyss World.
It was this world that became the beacon of the Abyss, shining light upon the dark Abyss World and bringing hope to its inhabitants.
"The Abyss was devoid of light, an expanse of eternal darkness," Extreme Wisdom told the young initiates embarking on their path of cultivation. "Your forebears emerged from the blood-soaked battlefields at the very bottom of the Abyss, growing stronger with each step, enduring untold trials to reach the pinnacle and rule over the Abyss."
"Moreover, they brought an unprecedented light to the entire Abyss World!"
Extreme Wisdom exclaimed suddenly.
"From the moment they introduced light to the Abyss, all its creatures revered them as the Protoss! And from that day forward, humans in the Abyss were regarded as the Protoss, with their mightiest... known as the Divine King!"
Extreme Wisdom looked up sharply, locking eyes with the Divine King Taishi, who had been listening intently with his head bowed. He smiled and asked, "Do you understand now?"
Taishi's brow furrowed in silence.
After a moment, Taishi reluctantly averted his gaze, searching for the two figures of Yu Yuan.
Eventually, he turned to Yu Yuan's true form and inquired, "You're already aware?"
Andrea was well aware that Yu Yuan had traversed the Abyss as the Yin God, and Taishi was also privy to this knowledge.
Yet, since Yu Yuan's return, their conversations had skirted around his experiences in the Abyss, as if the topic was taboo.
Trusting Yu Yuan as he had for millennia, Taishi refrained from probing further.
Unexpectedly, after the Abyss Gate crumbled, the first to emerge on the illuminated continent were members of the human race.
Could it be that the Abyss Gate had been repressing the human race since its inception?
The gate, crafted by the ancient Titan spinosaurus, which fell in the vast expanse, was designed to suppress the human race. Was Yu Yuan's recent guardianship and suppression actually directed at his own kin?
A tide of doubts flooded Taishi's mind, leading him to question Yu Yuan and his past guidance for the first time.
"I've accompanied him to the depths of the Abyss and encountered many mysteries that I've yet to unravel."
While the Yang God continued to refine the Bloodline Secret Technique of the colossal beast, Yu Yuan's true form, under Taishi's scrutinizing gaze, offered an explanation. "There are humans, just like us, dwelling in the darkest depths of the Abyss, living without light. They lack the knowledge of cultivation and cannot harness the Abyss's power within themselves. It's said to be due to the loss of a unique treasure."
"Extreme Wisdom claims that the Spinosaurus took that object from the Abyss and brought it to our world, where it now resides in the heart of the vast expanse. That is all I know."
Yu Yuan spoke with grave solemnity.
"An Abyss treasure? Abandoned in the vast expanse?"
Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!
Three figures, each a convergence of blood energy, materialized at the base of the Shrouded Tower, atop the black jade altar, as Yuan Li finished his sentence.
These three blood shadows were manifestations of Yuan Li's energy.
As they took their place at the heart of the black jade altar, the three artifacts he had crafted seemed to spring to life.
The blood shadows, too, appeared to suddenly take on physical form.
Two of the Shrouded Towers, along with their corresponding blood shadows, immediately began to sink.
Rather than emerging on the illuminated land, the towers bypassed it, descending into the deeper realms of the Abyss World, vanishing from sight.
The third Shrouded Tower came to rest at Yuan Li's feet. Standing shoulder to shoulder with his blood shadow, Yuan Li, embodied by the Old Ape, faced Yu Yuan.
"Yu Yuan, is it?"
He didn't look at Yu Yuan's physical form but instead at his Yang God. "You know, I've already gathered some of your world's living beings' blood seeds. The warriors torn asunder by the Beast God and myself during the first outbreak of war in the Perish Starfield—I took their Life Seeds with me."
"As for the Abyss and its creatures, both my patron and I are entirely unfamiliar with them."
"Now that the Abyss Gate has shattered, I've allocated a portion of my power to venture into the Abyss and collect the Life Seeds we both covet."
Yuan Li said, his tone light and untroubled.
He seemed undaunted by Yu Yuan, having ascended to the Eleventh Level through the remnants of the giant beast's bloodline, equal to his own rank.
Even among those at the Eleventh Level, there are disparities in strength, and he was confident in his superiority.
It was a regret that he hadn't managed to traverse the Time Secret Area to fulfill his plans or to deceive Yu Yuan's Yang God into a hasty departure, missing out on the bloodline secrets of the Titan spinosaurus.
Nevertheless, the fragmentation of the Abyss Gate had still allowed him to accomplish his objective.
"Now that the gate lies in ruins, I'm quite eager to see how you'll navigate the dynamics of your relationships."
While two Shrouded Towers had descended into the Abyss, this tower began to ascend slowly, as if eager to withdraw and leave the ensuing chaos for the denizens of this world to resolve.
"Do you think you can escape?"
Yu Yuan's Yang God opened his eyes, and a Demon Blade known as 'Blood Prison' materialized in his grasp.
The blood-red patterns within the Demon Blade began to glow, pulsating with a radiant light. A hidden world of blood, unseen by outsiders, coursed with streams of blood-red lightning.
The void around the Shrouded Tower was abruptly saturated with a crimson hue.
"Without revealing your true form, you won't leave here unscathed today."
No sooner had his words echoed than Yu Yuan's Yang God emerged within the bloody world. His Yang God, along with Yuen Bu and the Shrouded Tower, was engulfed by the bloody world born of his power.
Those watching from below could only discern a massive, churning blood cloud that shrouded his Yang God and Yuen Bu, obscuring everything else from view.
