Trials of the Abyss

"The sacred artifact, the Ascension Flute, was destroyed just like that?" Zhou Qingchen's face was filled with disbelief.

Ye Fei, Lu Lianchen, and Guo Hongyuan were also shocked.

Lu Lingchan had been defeated and her sacred artifact shattered into pieces. This was a stark contrast to what they had imagined.

"Luo Yuan's" methods and combat prowess caused everybody to suspect something was amiss.

Pang Jian said softly, "Big Brother Zhou, be careful."

"Got it!" Zhou Qingchen focused his mind and activated the Divine Origin Pearl to form an additional sturdy barrier within his body.

Qi Qingsong's expression was grave. "Who are you?"

"Didn't I tell you already?" The man replied calmly. "I'm Luo Yuan, an outer disciple of the Sword Pavilion."

He cupped his hands at Qi Qingsong with a relaxed air.

"Senior Brother Qi, just because you haven't seen me doesn't mean I don't exist. There are so many outer disciples in our Sword Pavilion. It's normal for you not to know me."

Whoosh!

The man vanished from the third-floor balcony.

"Ah!" Lu Lingchan's scream echoed from a room on the third floor of the Sword Boat before abruptly stopping.

The man reappeared on the third-floor balcony with Lu Lingchan's spatial bracelet in hand, nodding in satisfaction. "Seventy or eighty thousand spirit jades, not bad."

Lu Lingchan, the cherished personal disciple of the Black Valley Sect's Valley Master, had met a tragic end.

The peerless genius had died so suddenly and in such an undignified manner.

"Junior Sister Lu!"

"Junior Sister Lu!"

Ye Fei and Lu Lianchen screamed in horror.

As a personal disciple of the Black Valley Sect's Valley Master, Lu Lingchan held supreme status in the Black Valley Sect. She did not even give face to some elders.

She had refined one hundred and twenty-four strands of divine sense while in the Profound Abode Realm, indicating her limitless potential.

Most expected her to at least reach the Immortal Realm at the end of her cultivation journey, provided she did not meet an untimely end.

She even had the potential to reach godhood!

Her talent and potential vastly overshadowed Qi Qingsong, Zhuang Yuyan, Wu Yuan of the Demon Sect, and Jiang Chao of the Celestial Lagoon Sect.

Unfortunately, she had been killed in the bizarre mist before even reaching Absolute Heaven.

As fellow members of the Black Valley Sect, Ye Fei and Lu Lianchen could not accept what had just happened.

"Who would have thought..." Fang Boxuan's expression became unreadable.

His nominal fiancée had been killed so casually. Everything about her surpassed Fang Boxuan—her status, position, talent, and even the sacred artifact in her possession—but she still died in such an undignified way. ꞦåΝ𝘰ʙΕș

Fang Boxuan was filled with emotion. "The struggles between clans and the favor of sects are all insignificant."

Personal strength was the true determinant of one's fate and allowed one to survive in the brutal cultivation world.

"Junior Brother Qi, this person is not going to be easy to deal with!" Zhuang Yuyan warned, no longer daring to be careless.

Although she had successfully reached the Spirit Condensation Realm, she could not discern the cultivation realm of "Luo Yuan," nor understand his power.

Lu Lingchan had been in the late-stage Profound Abode Realm and wielded the Black Valley Sect's sacred artifact, the Ascension Flute.

However, this man had killed her in a single move. Lu Lingchanhad not even been able to put up a decent fight.

Zhuang Yuyan was instantly cautious.

"Don't worry, I know what to do!" Qi Qingsong slowed his breathing, gradually calming his mind until he felt like he could drift into a dream at any moment.

"The only reason I have for killing all of you is to seize your spirit jades," the man said offhandedly. "If you're willing to put down your spirit jades, throw your spirit artifacts on the deck, and leave this Sword Boat, I'm more than happy to let you go."

The imposter raised the spirit sword he had taken from a Sword Pavilion disciple, pointed it at Zhuang Yuyan, and smiled.

"Let's start with you. You have the most spirit jades, so you're up first."

Zhuang Yuyan's face turned cold. "Why are you so confident that you can defeat all of us here?"

The man's smile did not falter. "I'll give you an incense stick's time to think it over. You can attack me or you can leave. Of course, I would advise you to put down your belongings and set an example by leaving."

He then took out an incense stick, lit it, and placed it on the third-floor balcony.

Wisps of blue smoke rose from the incense stick, winding around his sallow face, giving him a somewhat ethereal look.

Dong Tianze shot a puzzled look at Pang Jian. "What's going on with him?"

At that moment, Pang Jian abruptly recalled how he had traded with Dong Tianze using the Ghost Alter while in Misty Swamp under the guise of a sallow-faced youth.

Dong Tianze had also seen his disguised appearance.

"He's not Luo Yuan," Pang Jian said simply. The long spear in Pang Jian's hand emitted a sharp crimson sword light as he called out, "Senior Sister Zhuang!"

Zhuang Yuyan turned to face Pang Jian.

"I'll attack first. Cover me."

Whoosh!

Pang Jian transformed into a streak of crimson sword light as he rushed toward the man on the third-floor balcony.

"Junior Brother Pang, be careful!" Zhuang Yuyan shouted, eyes lighting up.

While she had been hesitating, Pang Jian had been preparing to make his move!

Pang Jian still dared to attack "Luo Yuan" even after Lu Lingchan's death,

His tremendous courage truly moved Zhuang Yuyan!

Even she had felt hesitant and had considered leaving the Sword Boat.

The man produced a square seal to counter the incoming spear.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

Glittering icebergs appeared before Pang Jian one after another. His Startling Slaughter Spear shattered the icebergs as it pushed forward, but its speed slowed.

The icebergs were not formed from spiritual power but were tangible entities that exuded frosty auras and contained extremely cold beams of light!

When the icebergs shattered and fell to the ground, they would fuse back together to form a new iceberg.

Pang Jian's attack was stopped with the destruction of six icebergs and he found himself surrounded by more bright icebergs in mid-air.

It was as if he had been transported to a frigid ice field.

"Pang Jian!" Qi Qingsong shot toward the balcony.

Whoosh!

A brilliant, kaleidoscopic river of stars trailed behind a spirit sword radiating a dazzling azure light.

Those gazing upon this dreamlike starry river felt like they were floating in clouds of dreams.

Qi Qingsong joined forces with Pang Jian.

"Senior Sister Zhuang, this man can teleport short distances. Protect everyone on the deck!" Qi Qingsong warned from within the dreamy river of stars.

"Understood." A pair of long and short spirit swords flew out from Zhuang Yuyan's sleeves to hover above the deck of the Sword Boat.

The short sword paused before also shooting toward the balcony.

"Heh!" The imposter snickered, shaking his head.

The incense stick burning in front of him released a grayish-blue smoke that seemed to merge with the bizarre mist. The mix of bizarre mist and grayish-blue smoke enveloped his body, making him look like he was fading in and out of reality.

Whoosh!

Three shadows appeared within the smoke.

One swung a spirit sword, casually slicing through the air to create a burst of explosive lightning vortices.

The second shook the square seal in his hand and created even more chilling icebergs.

The third stood unmoving within the smoke, with dense grayish-blue mist continuously flowing from his eyes, nostrils, and ears.

It was as though "Luo Yuan" had split into three.

Crackle!

The one wielding the spirit sword and creating lightning vortices shattered Qi Qingsong's dreamy river of stars.

The one with the square seal created a range of solid ice mountains to intercept Zhuang Yuyan's short sword.

Finally, the one within the grayish-blue smoke had his hands grow hundreds of times in size.

He rubbed his hands in circular motions, conjuring a swirling vortex of smoke that spread outward and swallowed the still-surrounded Pang Jian.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The icebergs surrounding Pang Jian shot out one after another and rushed toward Zhuang Yuyan's incoming short sword from deep within the smoke.

Pang Jian was left disoriented in the grayish-blue smoke. He could neither sense the imposter nor the Sword Boat.

To those on the Sword Boat, it looked as though Pang Jian had vanished into the depths of the grayish-blue smoke and completely disappeared.

The man impersonating Luo Yuan appeared, his appearance subtly shifting in the swirling smoke. It was like he could barely keep his true appearance from being revealed.

"Pang Jian, your spiritual sea is rather peculiar. You've also cultivated the powers of lightning and cold," the man remarked.

"I cultivate the Dao of Lightning and the Dao of Cold because these two are compatible.

"I can take either the Dao of Lightning or the Dao of Cold as my path to godhood, but that old Thunder Dragon has monopolized the Dao of Lightning, so my chances with that are slim.

"Therefore, my true focus is on the Dao of Cold." Pang Jian coldly replied.

"You're cultivating so many different types of energy. Have you given up on ascending to godhood through a single Dao? You're Li Zhaotian's disciple, so it's quite surprising you aren't aiming for a single Dao on your path to godhood."

Pang Jian was surprised. "You know Li Zhaotian?"

"How dare you address your master by name?" The man snapped. "You're his disciple, yet you show your master such disrespect. You have no manners at all.

"Li Zhaotian is the number one Immortal Realm cultivator in the entire Abyss and is feared by even True Gods. They dread the day he'll pierce the heavens when he ascends to godhood.

"It seems you don't realize how amazing your master is. When your master ascends to godhood, he'll already be able to suppress some of the ancient True Gods," the imposter said reverently.

"I just want to know who you are," Pang Jian said, summoning the Star Crushing Umbrella and the Nine Suns Cauldron. "It's true the energies I cultivate are quite diverse. I'd appreciate any guidance you can offer."

"There's no need to rush things. You're not an easy opponent, so I'll kill the others first."

With that, the man vanished.

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