C1999 Please Don't Block the Way!

In the deepest shadows, Yu Yuan's eyes shone like blazing torches, illuminating everything below with crystal clarity.

Descending beyond the seventh layer was forbidden territory for most beings of the Abyss. Only those who had ascended to become Evil Gods could withstand the oppressive darkness of this realm and discern objects up close.

Any other Abyssal creature bold enough to venture here would find themselves blind and bereft of their senses.

Yet as Yu Yuan made his slow descent, his vision pierced the gloom as though he were surveying the Everlands. He could make out mountains, lakes, the nations of humans, and the various cultivator sects with ease.

His sight remained sharp, and his spiritual sense seemed to stretch endlessly, reaching out in all directions within the World of Darkness—a feat not even the Evil Gods could accomplish.

Moreover, upon his arrival from the seventh floor into this pitch-black domain, he found himself increasingly at ease.

His soul exuded tranquility, akin to a wanderer returning to their place of origin after eons abroad. It was the unmistakable sensation of coming home.

In the vast expanse of darkness, his corporeal body was spared the violent, tumultuous forces of the Abyss.

This realm of unknown shadows appeared devoid of the power that spawned Abyssal life. No force invaded his being to further temper his organs and bones.

However, the Soul Power within his Mindscape was being nurtured by the Soul Power in the darkness.

His dominant soul, in its ethereal form, took on the appearance of a green-black spirited body, breathing naturally within the depths of his consciousness.

Inhaling the Soul Power from the darkness, he felt invigorated, his dominant soul seemingly growing stronger with each breath.

"Hmm!"

Yu Yuan was jolted by a startling revelation.

The chaotic and ferocious energy of the Abyss's seventh layer grew more concentrated the higher one climbed.

This energy, vital for nourishing the corporeal body, endowed the humans who once lived on the highest lands with innate divine strength. Their very flesh could rend the heavens and shatter the earth, cleave through mountains and rivers.

This was the legacy of those ancient humans, born with the capacity to harness such power before the Abyssal Treasures were lost.

Yet, as one descended from the first layer down to the seventh, the wild and disordered energy of the Abyss thinned, while a different force, one that nurtured the soul, intensified.

Upon reaching the seventh level, he had already perceived that his dominant soul was drawing in an unusual form of energy.

This energy was likely a form of the exceedingly rare Soul Power. His soul could detect and absorb it, though it wasn't particularly concentrated.

In the profound darkness of the Abyss, there was no energy to temper the flesh, but the energy that sustained the soul was palpable, invigorating his spirit.

This indicated that the nurturing energy at the seventh level emanated upwards from the shadowy depths where he found himself!

Truly, the Abyss was filled with wonders!

From the lowest depths, the power to nourish the soul became progressively more rarefied as one ascended.

This was in stark contrast to the wild and chaotic energy that fortified the muscles and bones.

He, having descended in his real body, could harness both types of energy—whether for his corporeal body or his soul.

"Perhaps Jihui is correct. Humans may indeed be the favored children of the Abyss, the true sovereigns of this realm."

After reflecting on this, he continued his descent.

Suddenly, he beheld a land far more expansive than the hidden Land of Light Spirit above, situated in the boundless darkness below!

The land was a pale gray, shrouded in the deepest darkness, with an enormous palace rising at its heart.

Numerous mountains dotted the landscape, yet there were no signs of civilization—no cities, castles, buildings, or streets.

Only that one palace, towering above all the peaks, stood out.

The palace in the wilderness exuded an air of solemnity and majesty, as if it had stood for eons, constructed from massive bones as if it were the dwelling of a deity.

Genesis Continent.

Evil Temple.

These two names surfaced unbidden in the depths of his soul. Without much thought, he recognized the name of the continent and the origins of the Evil Temple.

Evil Gods born in the Abyss would have their flesh and viscera consumed by foes, their skeletons cast downward upon death.

Each Evil God's remains would fall upon the Genesis Continent, contributing to the construction of the Evil Temple.

Millennia had passed, and countless new Evil Gods had emerged, only to perish in the upper seven levels of the Abyss, adhering to the ancient tradition of casting down their skeletal remains.

Newly born Evil Gods would undergo a baptism within this temple, and upon their death, they would return here.

It was a place they all must visit, in life and in death.

Whoosh!

Yu Yuan plummeted from the heavens, landing squarely before the grand Evil Temple on the Genesis Continent.

As his feet touched the ground, his eyebrows quivered, and he sharply gazed beneath him.

He was absolutely certain that the Dark Anima Tan Xiaotian coveted was buried deep within this land.

For some reason, as soon as he set foot on the Genesis Continent, the dominant soul within his mindscape conjured an image of profound darkness swirling in the land's depths.

It was akin to the Primal Soul in the Everlands, the Primal Blood in the land named for it, and the Light Spirit at the uppermost tier of the Abyss.

These enigmatic Primal Animas seemed to prefer dwelling at the core of a celestial land, like the heart of a world.

Yet, he could see it so clearly.

Not with his eyes, but with his soul!

His dominant soul, within his spiritual sense, glimpsed the intense darkness the moment he landed on the Genesis Continent and stepped upon the cool stones.

And that profound darkness seemed to sense him, almost as if... it was welcoming his arrival.

"It should be welcoming me, but why? Shouldn't it be Tan Xiaotian?"

Yu Yuan was dumbfounded.

The undulating darkness appeared woven from countless strands of pitch-black lightning, each bolt representing a dark rule of the universe.

It unleashed an infinite darkness from the deepest layer of the seven-tiered Abyss.

To Yu Yuan, it felt even mightier than the Light Spirit, as if this magical land was bearing the weight of the entire Abyss, much like its very roots.

Yu Yuan even believed that the land housing the Light Spirit, including the Light Spirit itself, was held in the Abyss's depths by its power, casting an eternal glow over the seven worlds below.

In the clash of light and dark, it was evidently the victor.

"Why have you come as well?"

This thought barely formed when he suddenly heard Tan Xiaotian's voice.

Tan Xiaotian, who had descended into the Abyss before him, hadn't sought an audience with the Darklord as Jihui had claimed. Instead, he had headed directly for the dark source he had detected.

Tan Xiaotian was concealed behind the Evil Temple, having deliberately minimized his presence, reducing himself to a mere particle of darkness.

Yu Yuan didn't notice him upon his descent.

Tan Xiaotian, upon descending, caught sight of the Evil Temple and felt a moment's hesitation. The temple's tightly shut doors piqued his curiosity.

He pondered whether this hall had any connection to the dark source.

Should he enter, or should he first reach out to the Dark Anima below?

While he was indecisive, Yu Yuan descended from the heavens, and he appeared to be quite at ease in the darkness.

Yu Yuan's demeanor and gestures exuded a nonchalance as if he had visited this place countless times before. This left Tan Xiaotian astonished, and he watched covertly for some time.

Suddenly, the skeleton that formed part of the Evil Temple began to shimmer with runes, and a slender human phantom emerged from within.

"An Origin Deity? No, it's Arthurs!"

Yu Yuan exclaimed.

Knowing that both the Abyss and the Wasteland referred to his world as the Origin Realm, Yu Yuan realized that Arthurs's version of the Origin Realm was nothing more than his own fanciful desire.

If there truly were a deity of the Origin Realm, it would be the Great Demon God Bertain, not Arthurs.

Arthurs fancied himself the Origin Deity, but it was merely a façade.

"Your survival is unexpected," Yu Yuan observed, noting that Arthurs had only his soul and no corporeal body. "Could it be that you've died?"

Bertain had come through the Maw of Oblivion into the Ashlands with the intent to eliminate Arthurs.

Since then, Arthurs had not been seen, and Jihui had taken his place.

Yu Yuan had assumed that the Great Demon God had obliterated him in the Abyss, which allowed Jihui to emerge and rally the Evil Gods under his new leadership in the Abyss.

"My soul has not perished."

As Arthurs began to speak, Tan Xiaotian, who had been on the sidelines, drifted closer.

He positioned himself next to Yu Yuan, both of them gazing at the individual who had wreaked havoc in their world for years and had established the Origin Realm.

"I'm curious, Yu Yuan, why you..."

Arthurs was about to continue when his voice abruptly cut off.

His phantom seemed to be forcibly pressed into the bones, sinking directly into the interior of the temple.

The moment Arthurs vanished, a dark jade-like sheen emanated from the massive Gate of Bones at the entrance of the Evil Temple. It was as if invisible eyes, filled with deep emotion, were silently observing the scene. Their gaze was not fixed on Tan Xiaotian, but rather on Yu Yuan.

"Please enter."

A voice echoed forth as the towering Gate of Bones slowly swung open, seemingly in anticipation of his arrival.

Whoosh!

Tan Xiaotian made a beeline for the Gate of Bones. There was a loud thud as the figure of Demon Lord Tan Xiaotian slammed against a layer of greenish-black wall. He was repelled, unable to slip through in a swift motion.

"Didn't you invite me in?" Tan Xiaotian, with a sidelong glance at the Gate of Bones, voiced his discontent: "I've traveled from the Everlands in the Origin Realm to refine the dark source. As the Dark Overlord, I shall command all the Evil Gods of the Abyss!"

"It's not you I invited."

The voice, unapologetically cold, rang out again, "You're meant to descend below, not linger above."

Tan Xiaotian's expression tensed, and with a huff, he retorted, "I intend to explore this hall."

In his mind, setting foot in the Abyss and acquiring the Dark Anima promised by Jihui would elevate him to the status of a Dark Overlord on par with the likes of the Titan Spinosaurus and Demon God Bertain.

The Abyss respects the powerful. Upon ascending to the eleventh level and claiming the title of Dark Overlord, wouldn't he become the Lord of the Abyss?

Shouldn't the denizens of the Evil Temple, including the voice within, show him deference?

With these thoughts, the Demon Lord attempted another assault on the Evil Temple, determined to breach the open Gate of Bones, but... he was once again thwarted by the greenish-black wall and repelled.

"Be wise. Your path of darkness awaits you below. Do not delay any further; go forth and embrace its favor."

"I am the guardian of the Holy Temple. Once you have mastered all the dark magic it imparts, and you've progressed further, we can have a more extensive conversation."

"But for now, please do not obstruct the path."

Crack!

The ground beneath Tan Xiaotian's feet suddenly split open, as if the earth itself had yawned wide, swallowing the Demon Lord from the Everlands whole.

In a fleeting moment, Yu Yuan's dominant soul materialized within the swirling pitch-black darkness. There, Tan Xiaotian's figure emerged as a minuscule speck, engulfed by the intertwining jet-black lightning that relentlessly assaulted his corporeal body, branding his soul with the profound truths of darkness.

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