C2178 Destroyed!
"What is that?"
Astral Tiger stared in bewilderment at the Death Vortex swirling on Ape's chest, sensing a potent death intent. He exclaimed in outrage, "The Secular Bird Queen may have departed, yet her power continues to erode Lord Untamed's flesh and blood!"
It was evident that Astral Tiger harbored strong resentment toward the Secular Bird Queen.
A gaping chasm had formed in Ape's chest, where a tiny Death Vortex, birthed from the shattered Life Keychain, was rapidly expanding.
Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!
In the star-filled expanse, saturated with the essence of death, a vast death aura was drawn to the minuscule Death Vortex, converging from all directions.
The vortex's growth accelerated even further.
Ape gasped for air, his Demonic Eyes ablaze with a fervent desire for death.
His massive arms flailed chaotically at the void around him, as if trying to retrieve his cast-away Heaven-Shattering Hammer to bring about his own demise and embrace the euphoria of death.
"Death is the ultimate destination."
His words were slurred, a garbled plea for death, his expression twisted with madness.
He was unmistakably afflicted by the death force.
"Lord Untamed? Lord Untamed! Can you awaken and explain what's transpired?"
Astral Tiger scratched his head, the candid Dark Deity befuddled by Ape's condition. He surveyed the rest of the Astral Domain, suspecting the Secular Bird Queen was lurking, infecting Ape with her malevolent death whispers.
Ape's bizarre state and actions were unfamiliar to him, leaving him uncertain of how to proceed.
Yu Yuan observed closely and noticed Ape's flesh decaying progressively. The nearer it was to the Death Vortex, the more rapidly it disintegrated.
Thud! Thud!
Ape's colossal Demon Heart, encircled by a pallid deathly glow, was besieged by slender strands of the law of mortality, forging into gleaming sickles that sliced through the organ's tissue.
The Demon Heart was the bedrock of his strength, the nucleus of his savage power, and it also harbored the might granted by the Lord of Ruin, Yuan Le.
The flesh cleaved by the death sickles exposed a network of severed, dense bloodline chains.
These entwined bloodline chains concealed the mysteries of blood, embodying Ape's insights into the law of mortality, his lifelong indomitable spirit, and his relentless will.
The Demon Heart's bloodline chains and its inherent power were staunchly resisting the expanding maelstrom of death. As the flesh was torn and the bloodline chains ruptured, the strength within the Demon Heart waned.
Outside the Demon Heart, a mysterious symbol of death had emerged on the bones within his chest. He had been marked by an entity from the Otherworld, and the death symbol within his skeleton was spreading through his veins, corrupting his life force and decaying his flesh.
The symbol that had granted the Secular Bird Queen a more potent and arcane death force was now a harbinger of doom for the Ape. The vital energy of the giant ape was ebbing away, and his once towering form was slowly diminishing.
In this region of the Astral Domain, where cosmic energy should have been abundant, the rich and powerful vital energy had morphed from life-giving to lethal following the departure of the Secular Bird Queen. It had become a death aura that the Ape could not assimilate, instead causing him harm and being drawn toward the death vortex.
"What in the world is that?"
The Moonfang Tiger's Demonic Eyes widened in horror. This formidable and battle-hungry white tiger was unaware of the thirty-six energy vortices in the Ashlands, nor did it know of the Spring of Death that was emanating a deadly presence.
He was completely oblivious.
Loyal to Shadow's Keep and Zhiya, and the Ape, who had sided with Lord of Ruin, Yuan Le, they were on opposing sides. Yet, when he witnessed the Ape's broad chest being ripped open by the death vortex, growing larger and larger, the Astral Tiger let out a low growl and revealed its true form.
The colossal Moonfang Tiger, towering ten thousand feet high, shook its steel-like fur, and its Demonic Eyes suddenly glinted with a thirst for blood. A billowing cloud of white mist reappeared, lifting the immense body of the Astral Tiger, which then hurtled toward the Ape without a moment's hesitation.
Roar!
With the Astral Tiger's roar, the white cloud, brimming with the Way of Heaven, collided with the splitting Death Vortex. The formidable and imperious Astral Tiger subtly shrank as the white cloud detached from its body.
"Unleash the Heaven-Shattering Hammer!"
Crackling lightning and gleaming, saw-toothed blades burst forth amidst the surging white cloud.
Yu Yuan could just make out the enormous skeletons and beast bones, strung with iron rings and golden daggers, manipulated by diminutive Moonfang Tigers. They moved with the force of an army, their cries of battle echoing through the depths of the white clouds.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
The so-called "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud" was a bloodline mystery of the Otherkin from the Origin Realm, a secret that struck fear into the hearts of other formidable beings. It was the manifestation of his bloody path, the Way of Heaven.
The foes who perished at the hands of the Astral Tiger were sacrificed by him after he stripped their bones, their essence merged into this world-shaking cloud of murderous intent.
It signified that even the Great Way of Heaven could be shrouded by this tribulation cloud.
Puff!
The Ape's chest cavity bloomed with an eerily beautiful Death Blossom as the vortex of death expanded.
The vortex consumed the flesh and bones of his chest, enlarging the gaping wound and silently draining his vitality.
"Get back!"
The Astral Tiger bellowed.
The death force surging towards the Ape's chest was dissipated into mist by the overwhelming killing aura of the white cloud, the death force obliterated by the power to slaughter the heavens.
The "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud," having consumed a portion of the Astral Tiger's strength, was so potent that even Yu Yuan was taken aback.
The Astral Tiger, lured by the peculiar flesh and blood, rushed towards the Wellspring of Creation. But due to the warping of its sentient self, it failed to unleash the "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud."
Had it not been for this, the blood wall Yu Yuan had refined might not have been able to hold back the bloodthirsty Astral Tiger so effortlessly.
Boom!
The "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud" descended upon the Ape's broad chest, sealing the ruptured cavity and the whirlpool of death within it.
The "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud" completely enveloped the Ape's chest. Under the demon soul's command, the Astral Tiger's immense killing power within the cloud clashed with the forces swirling in the vortex of death.
Having completed this, the Astral Tiger breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Lord Untamed looked after me when I was younger. He didn't see eye to eye with the Hall Master and chose not to align with Shadow's Keep. By all accounts, he had no reason to spare me a second glance."
The Astral Tiger's eyes shone with appreciation as he recounted, "Before I had broken through to become a Dark Deity, when my bloodline power was insufficient, I faced many life-and-death crises in the Everlands and the Star River due to my love for battle. On several occasions, when I couldn't overcome the calamities with my own strength, it was he who came to my aid and resolved them."
Yu Yuan gave a slight nod, indicating he understood.
"He always looked out for the young of our evilkind, especially before they could preserve their own spiritual essence. Green Willow, the Golden Elephant, and I have all been beneficiaries of his generosity."
Observing the Ape's irrational obsession with death, the Astral Tiger huffed, "Yu Yuan, regardless of your connection to the Secular Bird Queen, I cannot condone her unrestrained scattering of death force in this world inhabited by alien beasts."
"Our kinds are different. You may grieve for the alien beasts of this realm, but I do not share that sentiment."
Yu Yuan's expression remained impassive as he replied icily, "I've witnessed the Beast God's massacre of life across the Wasteland and Aihoyari. Before I was drawn to the Peak of Creation, I saw the cosmic energy of the Origin Realm being drained and countless lives erased. Where were you when all this happened?"
He smirked before continuing, "Beast God, since you could wreak such havoc in the Origin Realm, destroying its inhabitants, why does it bother you that Chen Qinghuang has done the same upon entering the Wasteland?"
The Astral Tiger was taken aback, lapsing into silence.
Yu Yuan turned his attention to the unusually tranquil Wellspring of Creation and the bizarre mass of flesh within it, murmuring to himself, "The Ape's current form, brimming with such fierce and abundant vital energy, has yet to provoke a reaction from you. The three Beast Gods that pursued me were not as formidable as the Ape, yet you hastily unleashed distortions and tremors..."
He contemplated the differences between the Ape and the three Beast Gods.
It wasn't long before he understood, saying, "The bones and flesh within the Ape are saturated with death force. Life and death are inherently conflicting forces. You disdain the Ape, deeming his flesh polluted and sullied, don't you?"
Fully aware that the bizarre mass of flesh and blood possessed only pure primal instincts and had long been devoid of spiritual wisdom, Yu Yuan nevertheless continued to question it.
Suddenly, a shrill scream erupted from deep within the Ape's chest cavity.
The scream was enigmatic, filled with malevolent thoughts that drove one to desire death, transforming the essence of life into a sinister death force.
The Ape's ribcage shattered, and the blood bones, each marked with symbols of death, flew towards the cloud released by the Astral Tiger.
A series of loud snaps followed as the "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud," refined by the Astral Tiger, unleashed the formidable power of divine retribution.
Within the cloud's depths, numerous towering giant apes, shrouded in an aura of death, clashed with a white tiger formed from the Astral Tiger's blood, plunging the heavens into chaos.
The deathly wail persisted, and the Astral Tiger began to bleed from its nose and mouth, unaware.
Some of its bones were fractured by the deathly screech, and the fissures seemed to morph into enigmatic symbols of death.
Once the transformation was complete, it would succumb to the same fate as the Ape, tormented by the demon soul and driven to seek death.
"Damn it."
Realizing the gravity of the situation, Yu Yuan recognized that the Astral Tiger lacked the strength to liberate the Ape. He had no desire to witness the emergence of a new Spring of Death in the Wasteland.
He was also uncertain of the consequences that would follow the Spring of Death's manifestation.
The deathly screech grew increasingly piercing and intense.
The soulspark within the Demonic Eyes of the Astral Tiger was on the verge of extinguishing, much like the Ape's had.
Yu Yuan knew he couldn't delay any longer. He abruptly departed the Wellspring of Creation and dove towards the white cloud at the Ape's chest.
Inside the "Heavenly Tribulation Cloud," within the Otherworld, ferocious gray giant apes and voracious Moonfang Tigers burst apart due to his arrival.
Yu Yuan, not assuming the form of a colossal deity, navigated through the lethal bone blades and the white tiger's murderous rule.
He arrived directly at the vortex of death, where he observed the significantly diminished Demon Heart and the fractured bloodline chains.
Humming resonated through the space. Upon entering, the dissonant sounds that muddled spiritual wisdom seemed to transform into the Voice of the Heavens.
In the swirling depths, a deathly stillness was disturbed by the proximity of the Solar Spirit.
This nascent deathly aura emitted an enigmatic and ineffable vibration that defied description.
Hiss! Hiss!
A barely perceptible white gleam shot out from the death aura, as if an otherworldly consciousness sought to discern the level and extent of Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit.
In a flash, the white gleam vanished.
Boom!
Behind Yu Yuan's Solar Spirit, a crimson Wheel of Life burst into view, its blood-hued halo deepening as if harboring thousands of worlds in flux.
The Secrets of Life he had comprehended, along with the essence of the cosmic giant beast, the beings of the Origin Realm, and the Bloodline Revelation of certain Beast Gods from the Wasteland, manifested within the light of the wheel.
Immense power surged from the Wheel of Life, obliterating all malevolent deathly thoughts.
The grating deathly wails ceased abruptly.
Terrifying rings of deep red light radiated from him, shredding the evolving whirlpool of death and advancing towards the will of the spirit within.
A resentful growl, laden with an ultimate intent of annihilation, echoed from the fading whirlpool.
The growl was soul-shaking, yet Yu Yuan stood resolute.
The growl persisted briefly before quieting with the dissipation of the death whirlpool. The Ape's Demon Heart had shrunk to half its size, numerous crystal chains on his heart's walls had shattered, and his heartbeat had significantly softened.
Yet, his fractured breastbone and other skeletal remains, previously etched with symbols of death, were now gradually fading.
As he healed, the re-forging bones erased the symbols that had emerged from the cracks, as though they had never existed.
"Yu Yuan!"
His Demonic Eyes flashed with intelligence as he bellowed at Yu Yuan, reaching for the Heaven-Shattering Hammer amidst the falling stars.
The gaping wound in his chest closed with the death whirlpool's demise. From the ancient blood-patterned bracelet on his thick giant ape wrist, vital energy surged, swiftly mending his wounds without the need for cosmic energy.
"My offspring, the new generation nurtured by our Patriarch, have all perished at the hands of the Death Bird!" The Ape's rage was boundless.
"Lord Untamed, please, take a moment to cool off! He has just saved both your life and mine."
Astral Tiger implored with urgency.
