C478 Traitor
The dark blue veil of light shattered, and the seawater turned to steam, creating a spectacle in the sky. The stars in the deep night sky suddenly shone with a dazzling brilliance. It seemed as though the heavens of the Embers Sea had been obscured by a somber canopy until now. The turbulent waves of the Abyssal Leviathan broke through this shroud, tearing open the sky and revealing the true form of the little world hidden by the Blood Altar.
The Fallen Star Eyes, suspended in the air, hummed as the rune circle within activated, drawing in cosmic energy that multiplied in an instant. After Python Queen Xu Zixi overcame her astonishment, her figure vanished from sight. When she reappeared, she was atop the Fallen Star Eyes, standing before Liu Ying, and demanded, "What exactly is happening at the bottom of the sea?"
Liu Ying's complexion was ashen, her expression weary. With a bitter smile, she replied, "Ms. Xu, it's quite a complex situation beneath the sea."
Su Yan, Kong Banbi, Du Huang, and the others, who should have been elated to see daylight again, grew increasingly anxious upon realizing that the Abyssal Leviathan was turning the Embers Sea upside down, like a giant earthworm upheaving the ground.
"Huff! Huff!" From tens of thousands of miles away, an endless procession of ghosts and spirits emerged, traversing the void and surging toward the sea's depths.
Amidst the throng of dense alien souls and ghosts stood a seven-tiered pagoda, exuding an eerie ghostly aura. Each level was occupied by powerful soul spirits.
On the seventh floor, a man in white robes stood with his hands behind his back, his garment billowing as if it contained no flesh or bone.
The white-robed man appeared to command the legions of ghosts and spirits, using the pagoda to marshal the countless spectres as they descended like an invading army toward the sea floor.
From a great distance, Xu Zixi caught a glimpse and cried out in alarm, "Land of Terror, Pale Reaper!"
Elsewhere in the sky, a cluster of colorful clouds drifted by serenely. Hidden within the clouds was a magnificent peach tree, its blossoms vibrant and beautiful.
Beneath the tree, a woman leaned back, engrossed in an ancient scroll. Her figure was delicate and graceful, but her face remained unseen, obscured by her absorption in the text and the vast distance.
As the vibrant clouds drifted by, they swept past the crystalline blue Soul Altar. The woman engrossed in her book, her back to the onlookers, glanced up at the Soul Altar and gave a subtle nod.
From the altar, a beam of pure soul light reached out and touched down upon the peach tree nestled within the colorful clouds.
The blossoms on the tree burst into a crystalline brilliance, radiating a glow reminiscent of polished jade.
With a soft chuckle, the woman plucked a peach blossom, placed it between her lips, and savored it with evident delight.
With a contented sigh, she steered the prismatic clouds downward, plunging into the ocean alongside the colossal peach tree.
The ancient tome she held, as massive as a mountain of gold bricks, was tossed aside casually.
Golden characters, shimmering as if endowed with divine might, formed a dazzling array as they descended into the ocean's abyss.
"Rainbow Ocean, Peach Madam," Xu Zixi muttered, her tone strained and her face contorted with displeasure.
Then, a white crane gracefully approached.
Atop the crane sat a white-haired man playing the flute, his music lingering in the air. Surrounded by a thick spiritual mist, he seemed lost in his melody, oblivious to the passage of time.
Xu Zixi, known as the Python Queen, didn't recognize the flutist with the white hair, but her mood soured at the sight of the crane.
Despite the distance, as if responding to her stare, the crane glanced back.
Its eyes were a void of stillness.
Xu Zixi gazed into the crane's eyes as if peering into an expanse of graves and a sea of bones.
Suddenly, she coughed up blood, yet remained unaware of her own condition.
"Ms. Xu, Ms. Xu?" Liu Ying called out, supporting her, alarmed by her sudden pallor and the blood she had coughed up without warning.
Liu Ying's eyes, now devoid of cosmic energy, were no longer capable of perceiving the Fallen Star Eyes. Her spiritual level was too low to witness the distant spectacle.
Unseen by her, Xu Zixi had seen it all.
"The crane marked for death by Shadow's Keep, the nemesis of Lord Dusk Raven, has appeared. And someone is riding it. Perhaps, the one mounted upon it is not even human..."
Xu Zixi whispered to herself and slumped to the ground, her mind in turmoil.
The Pale Reaper, Peach Madam, White Crane, and the man playing the flute—how could it be that they all appeared in the Embers Sea at the same time, and precisely now?
Who had summoned them, drawing them to this place?
Liu Ying, Kong Banbi, Du Huang, and the rest were young cultivators from Euwrea, blissfully unaware of the numerous formidable figures lurking in the Land of Quiescence.
There were many unique and ferocious creatures that roamed alone, causing even the Devil Palace and Shadow's Keep to be troubled.
The Pale Reaper from the Land of Terror and Peach Madam from the Rainbow Ocean were such beings, fused with the little worlds of the Otherworld, reigning supreme in their realms, unbound by any rules.
The White Crane was once a great archdemon of the Shadow's Keep, but after wreaking havoc on the Aetherius Continent and destabilizing the mortal realm, it was gravely wounded by the Songbird Queen of the Songbird Empire and nearly killed.
The Shadow's Keep tacitly accepted the outcome, failing to deliver justice, which led to his defection and further transgressions. This incited the Shadow's Keep's wrath, resulting in a death sentence for him.
Yet, hundreds of years later, he still surfaced from time to time, very much alive.
He had become more cautious and discreet, rarely revealing himself, and whenever he did, it was but a fleeting glimpse, never daring to be so brazen.
But now, he brazenly made his presence known above the Embers Sea.
And to allow someone to ride upon his back while playing the flute?
Xu Zixi's thoughts were in disarray, finding the current events inexplicably odd and unable to untangle her thoughts. She had no idea what was truly happening in the Embers Sea.
"Phew!"
Hou Tianzhao, gripping the Phoenix Feather Fan in both hands, suddenly burst forth from the sea, the first to emerge.
From a hundred miles away, he caught sight of Xu Zixi and waved vigorously, overcome with excitement.
Following Hou Tianzhao's emergence, a stream of Evil Demon disciples, one after another, broke free from the waters no longer bound by the Azure Veil.
Deep beneath the sea, Qi Nandou of the Skyblight Cult circulated his spiritual energy. After the Azure Veil had been breached, he began to ascend slowly. Accompanying him were Chi Yin, Fei Yi, and others from the Devil Palace.
Mo Yan and Lin Yue from the Devil Palace, who had not yet hurried to the surface after the seal was lifted, suddenly found themselves alone. Mo Yan, wielding the Shadowblade, watched as the Blood Altar surged towards the Spawn of Chaos. Abruptly, his expression darkened.
Far in the distance, a horde of ghosts and spirits, carrying a seven-story pagoda, plummeted towards the Blood Altar and the Spawn of Chaos like a deluge from the heavens.
Atop the pagoda, a man in white robes called out, "Hei Xun?" His voice, soft and mellow, resonated through every corner of the Embers Sea.
"Hei, Hei Xun?" Mo Yan and Lin Yue, still at the ocean's floor, were taken aback, utterly bewildered.
"I'm here." The voice that Mo Yan knew all too well suddenly filled the space.
At the sound, Mo Yan and Lin Yue were petrified, as if they had encountered a ghost in the light of day. The voice of Hei Xun, the Guardian of Devil Palace, was emanating from the Blood Altar!
"Hei Xun!" Yu Yuan, who had managed to escape the Starborne Ritual of Primeval Demons while inside the Crucible of Evil, peered through the translucent Spawn of Chaos at the Blood Altar.
The Guardian of Devil Palace was within the altar. Yu Yuan had never imagined that Hei Xun, who had been covertly communicating with him through the Crucible of Evil with a remnant soul, was not above the sea but beneath it, right at the Blood Altar!
A colossal specter emerged from the depths of the Blood Altar, a fusion of twisted light and shadow. Lin Zhuyun, ablaze with green flames, maintained a clear distance as the figure materialized.
"Hei Xun!" Mo Yan, gripping the Shadowblade, glared at the Blood Altar. "The upheaval of the Blood Altar, the chaos unleashed above and below the sea—were they all your doing? You dare to betray the Devil Palace!" He had been taught by the Shadowblade, by Hei Xun himself, how to act in concert with Yu Yuan to quell the Abyssal Leviathan.
Lin Yue's expression changed abruptly.
Yu Yuan, situated within the "Crucible of Evil," was visibly shaken and taken aback.
From the moment Hei Xun had begun transmitting through the Soul Voice, he had warned Yu Yuan to be wary of the Abyssal Leviathan, claiming it was the greatest threat lurking in the ocean depths. He had explained that all the preparations were aimed at sealing the Abyssal Leviathan and urged Yu Yuan to join forces with Mo Yan to confront the Abyssal Leviathan, regardless of the cost.
However, upon Hei Xun's arrival, Yu Yuan couldn't shake the feeling that all the information he had received might be a fabrication.
"It's a relief that you're here. But why has it taken you so long to stabilize the situation?" The Pale Reaper, standing atop the seventh tier of the pagoda, his robes billowing, expressed his astonishment. "You even allowed the Abyssal Leviathan to slip from the Blood Altar's grasp and reveal its true form?"
"There have been numerous unforeseen complications."
Hei Xun offered an apologetic explanation, "The ferry remains intact. Anyone wishing to board simply needs to assist in subduing the Abyssal Leviathan and keep it from wreaking havoc."
As he spoke, islands within the Embers Sea erupted with surges of spiritual energy and crimson light.
Two more figures, identical to Hei Xun, soared in and descended onto the Blood Altar.
With just one look, Yu Yuan discerned that the first to materialize on the Blood Altar was merely Hei Xun's Lunar Spirit, while the latter two were his real body and the cultivated Solar Spirit.
