C2141 Extinguishing the Hidden Danger

"It was an unexpected boon."

He grasped the flagpole, engraved with the symbol of death, and a rare smile played at the corners of his mouth. "This is quite the intriguing artifact. I am very pleased. As for Arthurs, his fate is of no consequence to me."

The Guardian maintained a posture of deep reverence, not daring to lift his head or meet his gaze.

Yet, the Guardian found it peculiar because... he was a deity, the creator of the Abyss.

The Guardian had encountered him numerous times in the distant past.

The him of before differed greatly from the him now present in the Holy Temple.

"He's becoming increasingly human-like."

The Guardian dared only whisper this to himself.

"With these symbols, I can explore with confidence."

His strength had increased manifold after assimilating countless souls and ghosts on the Path of Undead within the Origin Realm.

The enigmatic symbols also sparked in him thoughts of new quarry.

As he chuckled, the once-unknown symbols on the flagpole, sensing danger, began to rapidly fade.

The symbols seemed desperate to escape his scrutiny, to flee from his sight.

"Heh."

His laughter grew even more joyous.

"Wake up soon. I have been waiting for you for quite some time."

After casting a final glance at the Great Demon God Bertain and leaving these words behind, he vanished from the hall without a word to the Guardian.

Once assured of his departure, the Guardian finally dared to lift his head and slowly rise to his feet.

"Such symbols have never existed in the Abyss, of that I am certain. But he... He is an all-knowing, all-powerful deity. It's only natural that he would recognize them," the Guardian mused silently.

...

Upon reappearing, he found himself just outside the Everlands, beside the High Priest Reid.

Meanwhile, Reid's cloak, which had flown from the Evil Temple, had not yet managed to escape the Everlands.

Reid offered a respectful bow in the void.

The Great Demon God Youqian, Yu Yiyi, and the nearby human experts, along with the Evil Gods and a host of Sky Fiends, all paid homage to him from afar with the utmost reverence.

Clearly, they all recognized him as their creator, the origin of their collective souls.

He neither nodded nor acknowledged Youqian and the Evil Gods, as if he didn't even see them.

He simply gazed at the "spring" exuding a thick death aura.

Suddenly, he, with his back to the crowd, seemed to perceive something.

He swiftly turned around, locking eyes with the Sky Fiend Indigo Wraith, and smiled, saying, "This is futile."

He lifted his arm and with a flick of his finger, lightly touched the Indigo Wraith's devil soul.

Sizzle!

It was as though a strand of consciousness had been erased from the depths of Indigo Wraith's devil soul.

Indigo Wraith jolted back to awareness, looking at him in confusion.

"This doesn't concern you."

He furrowed his brow, pondering for a moment, then added, "If it's been done, there should be more than one consciousness involved."

Whoosh!

Centered on him, his Soul Power field expanded, swiftly engulfing the surrounding void and reaching out infinitely towards the Everlands and Tyria.

His all-encompassing Soul Power field tore through the heavens and earth like a tempest, scouring for anomalies within the souls of all beings.

Many had the anomalies within the depths of their minds obliterated by the expansion of his Soul Power.

Others, who harbored disrespect or ill thoughts towards him, had their souls burst like bubbles upon his detection.

They perished instantly.

Buzz! Buzz!

On a distant star, Liu Ying bled from her mouth and nose, clutching her head as she cried.

A horrific storm raged within her Mindscape, her thoughts and ideas twisted and rewritten by an overwhelming will.

Her level of cultivation was not significant enough to warrant his attention, as she had not yet reached the ultimate heights.

Yet, her boundless potential and unique nature meant she received special attention.

First her mouth and nose, then her eyes and ears – Liu Ying bled profusely.

After a while, she calmly wiped the blood from her face with a handkerchief, without uttering a single complaint, as if nothing had transpired.

But Duan Yisheng, standing nearby, let out a soft sigh, aware that the girl's perceptions had been forcibly overturned.

Young prodigies like Liu Ying, whether in Tyria, the Everlands, or even farther realms, underwent the same ordeal, their souls tainted prematurely.

"..."

"For now, remain in the Everlands. Do not leave the Holy Temple."

After a short moment, he gave instructions to Yu Yiyi, his words penetrating deep into the core of her primordial spirit.

He had already discerned that someone had tampered with Yu Yiyi's recent memories.

Without uttering a single word, Yu Yiyi silently steered the Crucible of Evil directly toward the Everlands.

He waited in silence.

Eventually, under the escort of Lu Hongpeng, Qin Luo, Van Heqing, and Tan Junshan, the cultivators from the Colddeath, who practiced blood magic and hailed from the lineage of the Gods, were brought forth.

To him, these individuals were all informants for Yu Yuan, susceptible to his influence at any moment.

Included among them was Lin Yue and several elders from the Colddeath.

He gave a nod of approval.

These individuals, once spies for Yu Yuan, might become vessels for his consciousness in the future, driven to the 'fountain' where the death aura pervaded.

Upon entering the death magnetic field, they didn't need any external force to compel them; the Colddeath disciples willingly embraced their demise.

In a macabre ritual of sacrifice, as they stepped into the 'fountain,' their blood and souls shattered.

They vanished without a trace.

Throughout the entire process, not a word was spoken; everyone understood his intentions and what he intended to do.

He was the creator of the Sky Fiend, the Evil God, and the Gods. He embodied the ultimate truth of the Heavenly Dao; he was the embodiment of the law itself.

His survival was the foundation for all others, and thus, his actions were inherently correct.

Doubt was not permitted.

"Bertain is on the verge of awakening."

Observing the 'fountain's' accelerated rotation, he spoke suddenly, invigorating Youqian and Reid with a sense of anticipation.

"Death..."

His gaze intensified sharply.

Having gained immense strength and noticing the death symbol on the empty pole, he surmised certain truths and resolved to delve deeper.

With a swift motion, he followed Arthurs, grasping an empty pole and plunging into the 'fountain.'

Of course, his flesh and blood did not burst upon entry.

He lingered at the brink of the 'fountain' momentarily, radiance swirling around him as he neutralized the forces that sought to disintegrate him.

Then, he descended calmly into its depths.

The swirling of the 'fountain' and the absorption of cosmic energy from the Ashlands ceased abruptly with his entrance.

No longer did the death aura seep from within the 'fountain'.

All disturbances settled with his deep investigation. The "spring" that Reid scrutinized appeared indistinguishable from the other thirty-five "springs."

The Great Demon God Youqian, along with the highest echelons of the Gods, breathed a sigh of relief at his departure.

People began to converse and speculate about the true nature of the "spring."

With his leaving, everyone felt as though a weight had been lifted from their chests, speaking more freely and without the previous dread.

...

Straikepera.

After Yu Yuan shattered the void and departed via the Dragon Slaying Stage, the Secular Bird Queen, who had deliberately kept her distance from the others, paused on a desolate star.

Deep within her soul, mysterious symbols glowed intensely.

The symbols grew increasingly ravenous and animated.

Countless voices seduced her, coaxing her to venture into the starry expanse teeming with life, to unleash her true might.

A voice assured her that she was the Death God, destined for far greater power!

On the brink of losing her spiritual wisdom, she sensed that succumbing now might wreak havoc far worse than the catastrophe of a hundred thousand years prior.

Unwilling to trouble Yu Yuan or the Straikepera, she set off alone.

"The Secular Bird Queen has left on her own!"

"Where could she be headed?"

The little spinosaurus and Starpierced watched her departure from a distance, seeking guidance from Zhong Chichen.

"Why do I sense that her departure, fraught with danger, is a boon for us all?"

The Abyssal Leviathan coughed, having sensed the anomaly earlier.

Partially versed in the Secrets of Life, he was particularly attuned to the death aura emanating from Chen Qinghuang. He feared the secular bird was on the cusp of another frenzied transformation, a rebirth of death.

"Regardless, I must inform Yu Yuan at once!" Zhong Chichen declared.

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