Trials of the Abyss

Eighteen strands of golden divine sense flowed into Pang Jian's eyes, turning them a bright gold.

He did not respond to Zhuang Yuyan and instead focused on observing those pledging their allegiances to the Demon Sect and the Celestial Lagoon Sect.

"I can't see anything," Pang Jian muttered with a frown.

Even with his golden eyes, he could not penetrate these people's seas of consciousness and locate the Divine Guard Dong Tianze had warned him about.

"Sure, I could probably aim for the Immortal Realm, but I'm not confident I can reach its peak." Qi Qingsong's head was bowed as he gently caressed his Blue Dream Sword like one would caress a lover. "In our Sword Pavilion, only the Pavilion Master has reached the pinnacle of the Immortal Realm in recent years.

"Neither my master nor yours have managed that."

Qi Qingsong paused and shook his head.

"It's nearly impossible to reach the peak of the Immortal Realm without immense fortune or extraordinary talent. As for ascending to godhood..." Qi Qingsong trailed off, laughing bitterly.

For Second World sects like the Sword Pavilion, the Demon Sect, the Black Valley Sect, and the Celestial Lagoon Sect, even having one person reach the True God Realm would qualify for their sect to be elevated to the First World!

Reaching the True God Realm was an era-changing achievement capable of reshaping the destiny of a sect.

The Sword Pavilion and the Demon Sect would never have fallen to the Second World if they had consistently produced True Gods.

"I'm just saying," Zhuang Yuyan grumbled with a huff. "Little Junior Brother, if you keep on your current path, you'll undoubtedly reach the pinnacle of the Immortal Realm!

"The Sword Pavilion's future rests on your shoulders. You've got to give it your all! Not only for the Sword Pavilion but also for that girl from the Li Family!"

Pang Jian was dumbfounded.

"I brought Pang Jian into the Sword Pavilion. If he rises to the pinnacle of the Immortal Realm, I'll get to bathe in his glory." Qi Qingsong laughed lazily. "Senior Sister, you don't need to use reverse psychology on me. I'm not that ambitious. I just want to live well and enjoy the grand beauty of this world."

Zhuang Yuyan rolled her eyes. "Ugh, I knew relying on you was useless. I hate your laid-back attitude. You're a member of the Sword Pavilion, you should have some fighting spirit!"

"Fighting is tiresome. Let others handle it." Qi Qingsong shrugged. Noticing newcomers approaching their group, his spirits lifted. "Someone's finally coming to pledge allegiance to us!"

Recognizing the leader, his enthusiasm deflated and he slumped back down.

"We're from the Qiao Clan. I'm Qiao Zhen. Greetings to you both." A broad-shouldered, stout woman with a manly build approached Pang Jian's group and politely cupped her hands in greeting. "We would appreciate your guidance moving forward."

Zhuang Yuyan smiled and gestured toward a nearby tree. "You can rest over there."

"Go on over," Qiao Zhen instructed her seven clan members before remaining behind to recount their experiences.

The Qiao Clan was a vassal of the Sword Pavilion and their clan was based on the Heaven Awakening Continent.

Members of the Qiao Clan with decent cultivation talent were sent to the Sword Pavilion for training, while the rest cultivated their clan's techniques. ⱤαＮỗᛒËs

So, when Qiao Zhen and the others arrived, their first order of business was to pay respect to the representative of the Sword Pavilion.

As a prominent clan, the Qiao Clan had a ship of their own and had made their way into Absolute Heaven while Qi Qingsong had been waiting for Pang Jian and the others in Eternal Crossing.

They had not encountered the same problems in the bizarre mist that troubled Pang Jian and the others, smoothly crossing the thin shrouding layer and reaching the restricted area without any trouble.

"When we first arrived, we were stunned. We didn't expect there to be three additional fragmented lands." Qiao Zhen took large bites of meat to replenish her energy, manners rugged and masculine. "At first, there were no foreign races and only people from the Abyss were exploring Absolute Heaven.

"We planned to map out this fragmented land here before venturing into the others, but soon after, a black warship flew over from the fragmented land filled with volcanoes.

"Then, strange-looking foreign races descended and started to slaughter indiscriminately.

"Our ship was destroyed, and now, only eight of the hundred people on our expedition remain. We lost a full ninety percent!"

Those affiliated with the Celestial Lagoon Sect, the Demon Sect, and the groups of rogue cultivators all shared similar experiences among their circles.

Pang Jian listened in silence.

Suddenly, strands of golden divine sense rushed out of the acupoints in Pang Jian's sea of consciousness.

The sixteen drops of golden honey from the golden bees had transformed into sixteen new strands of golden divine sense.

Pang Jian now had thirty-two strands of golden divine sense, with his total divine sense increasing from one hundred and fifty strands to one hundred and sixty-six strands.

His sea of consciousness shuddered and strands of divine sense shot out toward the edges like lightning.

Every ten strands after a hundred marked the crossing of a threshold and slightly expanded one's sea of consciousness.

The addition of sixteen strands of golden divine sense allowed Pang Jian to break through the fifty-one and sixty-one thresholds.

As a result, his spiritual sea rapidly expanded and his perception heightened significantly.

Pang Jian could now keenly sense a unified soul fluctuation coming from Zhuang Yuyan.

Surprisingly, Qiao Zhen also had a unified soul fluctuation.

On the other hand, the soul fluctuations of Profound Abode Realm cultivators like Qi Qingsong, Fang Boxuan, and Zhao Yuanqi were scattered and disorganized.

Refining one's divine soul to advance to the Spirit Condensation Realm causes one's divine sense to merge, forming a unified soul fluctuation, Pang Jian realized.

Turning to Qiao Zhen, Pang Jian abruptly asked, "Are you in the Spirit Condensation Realm too?"

"The Spirit Condensation Realm?" Qi Qingsong and the others were shocked.

Only Zhuang Yuyan remained calm, smiling as she asked, "Little Junior Brother, you're not even in the Spirit Condensation Realm yourself—how did you sense that?"

"Something just felt different about her," Pang Jian replied offhandedly.

"Before coming here, I was already in the late stage of the Profound Abode Realm and was on the brink of entering the Spirit Condensation Realm." Qiao Zhen gazed at Pang Jian with surprise in her eyes. "Fortunately, I managed to break through to the Spirit Condensation Realm when the Ghost Race attacked. It's the only reason seven of my Qiao Clan members survived."

Then, looking Pang Jian up and down, she curiously asked, "You have a sword token, so why aren't you wearing the Sword Pavilion's robes?"

"They got damaged so I just threw on whatever I had," Pang Jian replied casually.

Taking advantage of his expanded sea of consciousness, Pang Jian extended his perception to the newcomers and soon noticed a rogue cultivator quietly dozing off against a tree.

The man stood out among those paying their respects to Chen Lushi of the Demon Sect or Jiang Chao of the Celestial Lagoon Sect.

He did not interact with anyone and wore tattered clothes with a spatial pouch hanging on his waist. His appearance was so plain that he would easily disappear in a crowd.

"You've got a sharp eye. He's in the Spirit Condensation Realm too." Zhuang Yuyan chuckled. "Over a thousand people have entered Absolute Heaven, all in the Profound Abode Realm. It's not surprising that a few have broken through."

"True." Pang Jian nodded.

Whoosh!

A massive skeleton of a mystical bird slowly descended from the sky and halted just above the forest.

The enormous Heavenly Roc Warship, crafted from the remains of a Rank Nine Golden-Winged Giant Roc, exuded an imposing aura that instantly drew the attention of everyone below.

Fu Wangchen stood on the mystical bird's skull and peered down at the crowd, like a god overseeing his subjects.

"Pang Jian, come up and absorb the divine consciousness of the Skull Crusher," he called.

"He's our hope for survival!" Chen Lushi's eyes brightened.

Someone muttered quietly in the forest, "He's just relying on his privileged background. What's so great about that?"

"Qi Qingsong, Senior Sister Zhuang, don't let strangers approach. Dong Tianze and Zhou Qingchen came here with us on the Sword Boat and I don't want anything happening to them," Pang Jian said as he glanced at Zhuang Yuyan.

"What could happen?" Zhuang Yuyan waved her hand with a smile. "Go on, Fu Wangchen isn't a petty man. I'm sure he'll honor his promise."

"Be careful," Pang Jian warned Dong Tianze one last time before taking off into the sky.

As soon as Pang Jian landed on the massive mystical bird's skeleton, radiant strands of golden light shot out from the mystical bird's crystalline bones, binding him like golden ropes.

"Pang Jian!" Zhuang Yuyan, Qi Qingsong, Dong Tianze, and Zhou Qingchen shouted in alarm as they rushed toward the Heavenly Roc Warship.

A wave of golden light rippled from the mystical bird's wings, forming an insurmountable barrier that separated it from the crowd below.

Bang! Bang! Bang!

Zhuang Yuyan and the others crashed into what felt like a thick golden wall, heads ringing as they tumbled back to the forest floor.

The golden light penetrated Dong Tianze's Black Iron Mountain, and in the blink of an eye, he lost more than half of the Spirit Devils and beast souls he had painstakingly refined.

"Fu Wangchen!" Zhuang Yuyan summoned her two spirit swords, her expression as cold as frost. "How dare you betray us? We're all from the Abyss! How could you choose to strike my Little Junior Brother in this time of crisis? What could you possibly be thinking?"

Fiery flames ignited around Zhuang Yuyan, forming a miniature world as a Vermillion Bird and a Fiery Qilin appeared.

Everyone in the forest was stunned at the scene unfolding before them.

Fu Wangchen's expression remained calm as he pointed at the bound Pang Jian. "An Outer God has corrupted him. He's the master of those golden bees. The golden bees that appeared in the bizarre mist are mentally connected to him.

"Those golden bees are called Nether Abyss Spirit Bees and are one of the most terrifying creatures from the outer worlds.

"They're not native to our Abyss and only obey the most powerful Outer God from the Nether Abyss.

"The fact that he can command these Nether Abyss Spirit Bees means either his soul has been corrupted or he's become a follower of the Nether Abyss Outer God.

"Either way, he's no longer one of us. He must be captured," Fu Wangchen declared righteously.

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