Trials of the Abyss-Chapter 459: Secluded Cultivation

Ice Rock City, located on the Three Immortals Island of the Third World, was once the territory of the one-eyed giants.

Now, after so many years, its rightful owners finally reclaimed it.

The one-eyed giants roamed the three fragmented lands, gaping in awe at the ancient city their ancestors built.

Many things had changed in the time that had passed.

Even so, the sacrificial murals in the ruins of the once-glorious city spoke of the one-eyed giants' existence in days of old.

After being driven to the Fifth World, the one-eyed giants had teetered on the brink of extinction and likely would have gone extinct if not for their ancestor, Ah Man.

He had survived against all odds, gradually evolving their bloodline in the harsh Fifth World and paving a new path for the one-eyed giants—a path that used murky energy to strengthen their bloodline and bodies.

Whoosh!

A fiery crystal drifted through the air.

Ah Man sat motionlessly at the rear of Ice Rock City like a towering gray stone mountain. A massive censer was placed before him, though it did not emit any smoke.

This Rank Ten powerhouse from the Fifth Continent of the Fifth World sat with his single eye shut as if his soul were wandering beyond the mortal realm.

The fire crystal descended and stopped mid-air before Ah Man. As it hovered in the air, scene after scene could be seen flickering across its surface.

The ancestor of the one-eyed giants suddenly snapped open his eye.

He watched the scenes of Pang Jian standing atop the Heart of Winter, a cold mist streaming from the heart-shaped artifact to envelop the mountains in the Radiant Sun Sect.

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Surprise flashed in Ah Man's eye. "The divine artifact of the Ice Demon..."

Not long after, the leader of the one-eyed giants materialized a sacrificial altar designed for communicating with the Outer Gods.

Black smoke poured forth from the censer and Ah Man's bloodline stirred, adhering to the ancient ritual of connecting to an object associated with the altar.

A chilling will and a frosty object surfaced in Ah Man's mind.

The frigid will belonged to a God of the Dao of Cold residing somewhere in the outer worlds while the frosty object lay within the Abyss.

This object was none other than the Heart of Winter, the divine artifact of the Ice Demon in Pang Jian's possession.

Back then, my father communicated with the now-deceased Ice Demon, offering many rare treasures to extend my life.

An Outer God emerged victorious in a war against the Ice Demon and claimed the Ice Demon's territories.

Pang Jian of the Sword Pavilion has the Ice Demon's divine artifact…

Ah Man quickly discerned the truth.

He did not converse with the Moon God in his mind, severing his connection with the Ice Demon's divine artifact as he gazed at the sky, lost in thought.

Several hours later, he uttered a low command.

Soon, two one-eyed giants, each a hundred zhang tall, knelt before him.

"Relay my orders: our kin have to prioritize our own survival. Do not risk your lives in battle," he instructed. "Avoid the fiercest battlefields wherever possible. Surviving is our foremost priority."

The two Rank Nine one-eyed giants stared at him in confusion.

"Our true enemies are not the human race but the ancient Thunder Dragon in the Dragon Lair Sect.

"I only agreed to fight alongside the Celestial Maiden to lead our kin to the Dragon Lair Sect," Ah Man explained. "My ultimate goal is to kill that ancient Thunder Dragon.

"The Dragon Lair Sect has sided with the human race for years. That's the only reason I allowed our people to ally with other races.

"The Fey Race has been acting strangely recently and the situation in the Dragon Lair Sect is unclear.

"Hold back for now. There's no need to rush into action," Ah Man assured.

"As you command."

***

In the Fifth World of the Abyss, an unparalleled beauty shrouded in blood-colored mist stood at the edge of the First Continent, gazing downward at the darkness below.

As she stood there, she released a profound divine consciousness far surpassing that of an ordinary Outer God. She seemed to be searching for something within the darkness.

Even as the foreign races and the human race clashed in deadly battles on the Cosmic Skies and Dark Abyss Continents, her attention remained resolutely fixed on the depths beneath the Fifth World.

Whoosh!

A fire crystal descended from above and stopped behind the figure, replaying the battle between Pang Jian and Lie Yi.

In the scenes, Pang Jian could be seen relentlessly wielding his sword to strike down his opponent.

The figure shrouded in blood-colored mist showed neither joy nor sorrow. Her tranquil, impassive gaze betrayed no emotion. Even the collapse of the worlds and the destruction of the cosmos could not disturb her inner peace.

The humanity of the other consciousness within the figure grew increasingly faint, and almost no memories related to Pang Jian remained.

As she gazed into the darkness, divine consciousness delving deeper into the desolate void below, it became evident that a God like her was destined to discard her humanity.

The Dao she pursued would isolate her humanity and ultimately erase it.

At that moment, the Flame God, Yan Lie, appeared behind her in his human form.

"My Lord," Yan Lie greeted respectfully. "When will the murky energy start rising into the Second World?"

Although he was fully aware of Pang Jian's battle with Lie Yi in the Cosmic Skies Continent from Qi Xu's reports, he did not mention Pang Jian's name or Lie Yi's death, deeming it unnecessary.

Yan Lie sensed that the Lord Sovereign before him had shifted her focus and did not care about the experiences a consciousness had while in the Abyss.

This was a good sign in Yan Lie's eyes.

Even if Pang Jian was the new World God of this era, he did not warrant excessive effort or undue attention from Luo Hongyan.

"It'll still require a few more years of preparation," Luo Hongyan said emotionlessly. After a brief pause, she added, "A new divine seat will open up in three months. Have Qi Xu claim it."

Yan Lie nodded gently.

"Another divine seat will become available before the murky energy surges into the Second World. Tell those Rank Nine warriors to put in their best effort," Luo Hongyan said, eyes still fixed on the darkness below as her divine consciousness continued to delve deeper.

Yan Lie's eyes lit up. "In that case, our highest levels of combat prowess will not lag far behind that of the human race."

"You may leave," Luo Hongyan dismissed with a wave.

The fire crystal that had descended from above silently turned to ash.

Still, Luo Hongyan's gaze remained fixed on the darkness.

She had schemed and planned for a long time after creating a vessel capable of bearing her divine power.

Beyond fulfilling the mission that the Outer Gods had entrusted to her, she also aimed to delve into the Fifth World of the Abyss and uncover the secrets of the mysterious void before her.

***

Pang Jian sat atop a large sacrificial altar in the Ice Race's Frozen Land on the Resolute Expanse, with the Heart of Winter hovering above him.

A group of Ice Race warriors stood on high alert, gazes fixed on Pang Jian and the Heart of Winter.

An unshakable tension filled the air.

Pang Jian dispelled their concerns with a shake of his head.

"It wasn't the Frost Crystal God. It wasn't her divine consciousness," he assured. "A Rank Ten one-eyed giant named Ah Man used an altar below to try and communicate with the Ice Demon, only to somehow connect to the Heart of Winter.

"Strangely, he didn't maintain the connection or show any intention of communicating with me."

Seven days had passed since Pang Jian returned to the Resolute Expanse.

In those seven days, his name had echoed throughout the Fifth World and the rest of the Abyss.

Messages from Hu Yuanfei and Chen Weihuang poured in from his sword token like scattered snowflakes.

The sword-shaped symbol within his sword token that Xu Yu used to update the inner disciples of the Sword Pavilion was mostly filled with news centering around him.

His act of killing the Divine Son of the Radiant Race on the Cosmic Skies Continent had caused an even greater sensation than the stalemate between Li Zhaotian and the Patriarch of the Demon Scale Race, Li Bai.

His senior brother and sister inquired about his whereabouts and urged him to return to the Sword Pavilion, but Pang Jian chose to remain in the Resolute Expanse.

Chen Weihuang and Hu Yuanfei were not like Li Zhaotian, and they could not pinpoint Pang Jian's exact location through the sword token.

Thus, using sword enlightenment as an excuse, Pang Jian stayed in the Resolute Expanse.

An hour ago, he had rushed to the Frozen Land after sensing the disturbance with the Heart of Winter.

Like the Ice Race, he had also mistakenly assumed that the Frost Crystal God had arrived above the Abyss and was trying to manipulate the Ice Race to activate their sacrificial altar.

"What should we do now?" Second Elder Bing Yuan asked, staring at Pang Jian expectantly. "We're isolated here on this fragmented land. Simply advancing our bloodline rank will eventually lead to bottlenecks.

"Sir, we need to interact with others and trade for special items to boost our strength."

The xenophobic human race did not welcome them as they were one of the foreign races.

While the foreign races would likely accept them, the ongoing conflict meant that contact with the foreign races would inevitably pull them into the fight against the human race.

However, Pang Jian was part of the human race.

The Ice Race had lived on this isolated fragmented land since stepping into the Abyss and they had only grown increasingly restless as time passed.

"Soon, the Ice Armor Eel Dragon will come here.

"I'll secure a way out for you once my status among the human race rises and my cultivation realm reaches a new height," Pang Jian promised.

At that moment, a golden bee flew out from the bizarre mist and established a connection with Pang Jian.

The Rank Nine Ice Armor Eel Dragon had fully absorbed Long Zhan's heart and flesh, elevating its bloodline and significantly enhancing its combat prowess.

The Ice Armor Eel Dragon inquired about whether it could join the competition for the position of Fey God.

Meanwhile, the Fey King White Lynx asked about the current state of the Abyss and wondered if it was time for her return.

"Just wait a while longer," Pang Jian said, addressing both the Bee Sovereign and the Ice Race.

***

Time flew by and Pang Jian continued to stay on the Resolute Expanse.

He immersed himself in sword enlightenment, exploring the mysteries of the Nirvana Realm while repeatedly tempering his body and enhancing his strength.

The next clash between the human and foreign races would inevitably involve the Immortal Realm cultivators and Rank Nine powerhouses.

Not to mention, the battlefield would likely be in the Second World, where the Sword Pavilion was situated.

Foreign race powerhouses would undoubtedly target the Sword Pavilion out of caution for the future.

The massive continents in the Second World had spirit veins of significantly higher rank than those of the Third World, meaning they could also withstand battles between Immortal Realm cultivators and Rank Nine foreign race powerhouses.

When the time came, the assault on the Sword Pavilion would likely involve numerous Rank Nine foreign races powerhouses, with some Fey Kings possibly joining the fray.

I hope that day comes as late as possible so I have more time to prepare, Pang Jian thought as he diligently cultivated.

Soon after, he received news from the black turtle.

The Fey King Rock Bear had slain the Ice Crystal Beast and was devouring its heart in hopes of becoming a Fey God.