C2002 Control the Direction!
Jihui's voice was thick with regret and disappointment, so palpable it seemed it couldn't be dissolved.
Atop the Abyss, his expression was one of frustration, as if lamenting the failure to meet expectations. His later words even carried a tinge of desperation.
It appeared that all his new schemes, the elaborate plans he had laid, were once again thwarted by Yu Yuan.
Yuan Le's two blood shadows descended with the Dark Tower into the Abyss. To him, hunting the shadowy demons was merely a trivial act.
Yuan Le couldn't undermine the foundations of the Abyss; thus, his grand ambitions would remain largely unaffected.
It was, in essence, inconsequential.
What he eagerly anticipated was for Yu Yuan to step into the Genesis Continent's depths with his real body and enter the grand, ancient Evil Temple.
If only Yu Yuan would enter, all current issues would be resolved!
Once inside the Abyss, Bertain's devil soul would be doomed. Forget Yuan Le's blood shadows and the Dark Tower; even the Lord of Ruin himself would struggle to escape.
Over in the Everlands, the strongest of humanity, led by Han Miaoyuan and Lin Daoke, would surely rally behind Yu Yuan.
As the Lord of the Abyss, Yu Yuan would command all of humanity. Taishi, Taixu, Tianqi, Xuanli, and the God-Kings of Boulderdawn would, like Lin Daoke and Tan Xiaotian, continue to embrace his new identity.
And the Evil Gods of the Abyss? Once Yu Yuan seized control of the Holy Temple, who would dare not prostrate themselves?
With numerous human powerhouses and Evil Gods as his servants, Yu Yuan would swiftly unify the Abyss and the Origin Realm, then turn his might towards the Wasteland.
By then, Yuan Le would likely be restless in the Wasteland, with no leisure to covet the Origin Realm.
All of Jihui's splendid fantasies were mercilessly crushed as Yu Yuan emerged from the profound darkness, leaving him deeply aggrieved.
Yet, at this moment, Yu Yuan paid him no heed.
Following a resounding "Shatter," the weary Yu Yuan, on the sixth level of the Abyss, felt the soul-nourishing energy gently flood into him.
The force that nourished his soul and fortified his corporeal body worked in reverse within the Abyss. The further he descended, the more concentrated it became. With a whoosh, Yu Yuan plunged from the sixth level of the Abyss to the seventh, arriving in a realm of perpetual darkness. As expected, the Soul Power, now several times more potent, rushed into his sea of consciousness. The overwhelming fatigue and drowsiness he had been experiencing were significantly alleviated.
At the summit of the Abyss, Jihui's eyes sparkled with excitement upon witnessing Yu Yuan's descent. He believed Yu Yuan had come to a realization, awestruck by the display of power and hopelessly drawn to the might wielded by the Lord of the Abyss. "Indeed, who could resist such power?" Jihui whispered to himself. The ability to communicate with the Abyss's deepest rules through the soul, to dictate the fate of its creatures, and to endlessly augment one's own strength must surely be the ambition of the mightiest, mustn't it? Having once savored such power, Yu Yuan would naturally struggle to resist its allure.
Jihui was convinced that Yu Yuan would delve even further into the darkness to draw upon more power to enrich his soul, and he watched intently.
On the seventh level, Yu Yuan abruptly halted and closed his eyes, immersing himself in the sensations around him. He was acutely aware that the darkness below held no means to enhance his physical form, only a more intense form of Soul Power that could benefit his soul. Just one more step, and he could sweep away his weariness even faster, fully rejuvenating himself. Yet, he refrained.
In that moment, he observed that the power nourishing his soul, upon entering his sea of consciousness, matched the hue of the original source—cyan-black! The cyan-black Soul Power vanished into his vast phantom. The surface of the phantom's spirited body sizzled, and a multitude of fly-head runes materialized, identical to those used to bind the Demon God Bertain within the Evil Temple. As the cyan-black Soul Power permeated, the peculiar small characters sealing his dominant soul and memories seemed to fade ever so slightly.
He was suddenly struck by an odd sensation.
Even if he did nothing, merely lingering in the deepest darkness in his real body form, the influx of greenish-black Soul Power into his consciousness would eventually reach a critical mass. At that point, it could dissolve the mystic runes and break his self-imposed seal.
Once the seal was lifted, all the suppressed memories would flood back, allowing him to "awaken" as Jihui had anticipated.
Yet, that was the very outcome he had been resisting.
From the moment he learned of his Taiyin existence, the thoughts and instincts from his dominant soul urged him to transcend his former self with the reborn Yu Yuan.
He was determined to unlock the seal with his own strength, to assimilate the former "him" into oblivion. Yu Yuan was his destiny!
"If the Primal Anima, shrouded in utter darkness, partly merges with my dominant soul... And if my dominant soul has already been tainted like the Primal Soul, the Blazing Fire, and the Root of the Lunar Meridian..."
"When the seal breaks, if my other two souls aren't strong enough, they will be overwhelmed and tainted as well."
"I would then lose my will to resist forever, becoming eternally enslaved, utterly losing my sense of self."
Yu Yuan suddenly found a sense of direction.
His condition improved slightly on the seventh level of the Abyss. As he clearly saw the greenish-black Soul Power trying to erode the tiny runes, he made a decisive move upward.
Upon reaching the sixth level, he established a mental link with the Solar Spirit. The Dragon Slaying Stage burst forth with a spectrum of light, and he vanished from the Abyss.
When they reemerged, they were atop the Abyss, alongside his Solar Spirit, Taishi, and Reid.
"We're leaving."
The Dragon Slaying Stage expanded, laying out before Taishi and Reid, signaling them to step down.
Below, on the land shielded by a sheer, transparent wall, Jihui's face was rigid with thick disappointment and a deeply concealed ferocity.
Clearly enraged and on the brink of reckless action, Jihui managed to suppress the urge.
He dared not act.
He refrained from showing his extreme anger and irritability in Yu Yuan's presence, seemingly fearful that Yu Yuan would later awaken and hold him accountable, punishing him for his actions.
He was steadfast in his belief that Yu Yuan would eventually return, whether it be a day sooner or a day later.
Jihui was always mindful of his own status and that of Yu Yuan, careful never to overstep his bounds.
"You will come back. I'm certain of it. You'll return sooner or later. I can wait a little longer. After all, what's a bit more time when I've already waited tens of thousands of years?"
He managed to muster an awkward smile in Yu Yuan's direction and gave a wave, as if bidding him farewell.
"You must be exhausted."
Yu Yuan couldn't help but feel a twinge of sympathy for him, sensing that his life had been far too constrained.
With a whoosh, the Dragon Slaying Stage vanished into thin air.
...
In the Origin Realm's Dark Realm, a world of chilling cold and pervasive darkness, Yuan Le's third Dark Tower came to rest upon an icy peak.
The Rat God Panot and the ice phoenix Alex had been waiting for quite some time.
With a whoosh, a surge of vital energy was drawn from the Ape's chest, merging with the blood shadow inside the Dark Tower, swiftly forming bones and sinews to create a corporeal body.
Yuan Le, now in human form and bearing a slight resemblance to the Ape, stood tall and broad-shouldered, his features chiseled and his presence commanding and icy.
"Patriarch," the old ape bowed in respect.
"Your Majesty!" Panot and Alex exclaimed in unison.
They were well aware that this Yuan Le was merely a clone of the Lord of Ruin, yet they dared not show any disrespect.
"The two Blood Clones I sent into the Abyss did not yield the expected results," Yuan Le said, taking the smoke tube from the old ape and inquiring about its use. With the ape's assistance, he lit it and inhaled deeply.
Exhaling the smoke and its sharp scent, he spoke with a calm resolve, "Yu Yuan has ties to the Abyss."
The three Beast Gods were taken aback.
The old ape, having been possessed and witnessed everything firsthand, spoke gravely, "The Human Race originated from the Abyss; it's no wonder they dwell in the Everlands. Just like the evilkind, they too are outsiders! It's preposterous. The vast world of the Everlands, shaped by both Humans and evilkind, has been expanding its territory within the Origin Realm."
"Yu Yuan is quite peculiar, and Jihui is shrouded in mystery. I must refrain from delving into the Abyss until my real body has arrived," Yuan Le said, a trace of fear still evident in his voice. After a brief pause, he added, "The second group of Beast Gods is ready. I'll make sure to clarify things with them before they enter; we should hold off on exploring the Abyss for now."
"We need to deal with Yu Yuan first."
"Particularly his real body. I have a premonition that it will become our greatest challenge when we attempt to venture into the Abyss in the future."
