Chapter 2100: Star Destroyer
Stepping into the edge of the Mist Sea, Bai Yu and his attendant knight stopped. The gradually thickening Abyss Dust swept against their faces, devouring their life force and spiritual senses.
"Begin," Bai Yu said coldly, looking ahead.
With no turning back at this point, Mo Xifeng grabbed the Abyss Stone from the Mist Emperor, gritted his teeth, and crushed it forcefully.
With a light crack, fragments scattered in his hand, releasing a thin gray mist.
Bai Yu frowned slightly. His expression was calm and resolute, but in truth, his spiritual sense was already stretched to its maximum. Yet, as the Abyss Stone in Mo Xifeng's hand shattered, he sensed no trace of a soul aura.
As if it were nothing more than an ordinary piece of Abyss Stone.
(And in truth, that was indeed the case.)
Mo Xifeng, however, had already knelt on the ground and called out in a pained voice: "Mo Xifeng, Realm King of Xuan Mo, seeks an audience with the Mist Emperor."
His voice radiated into the distance but was blocked layer by layer by the Abyss Dust until it faded away completely, receiving no response.
Bai Yu glanced sideways at the Abyss Stone fragments scattered on the ground and suddenly let out a cold laugh: "Heh! Realm King of Xuan Mo, it seems you've been fooled. That was nothing more than an ordinary Abyss Stone, containing not a single shred of soul information. How could it possibly..."
Before he could finish, the sky abruptly darkened, and a series of shocked cries erupted around him.
Bai Yu whipped his head forward. In his pupils, which were quickly contracting and gradually being tinged gray, he saw a vast, rolling gray mist stretching to the heavens.
The gray mist was rapidly spreading and tumbling forward, drawing closer and closer, gradually occupying nearly all of their vision and devouring the already dim light of the world.
"..." Bai Yu's resolute and cold expression cracked piece by piece... This was a spectacle he, a high-ranking Abyss Knight, had never witnessed before.
What truly shocked him, almost to the point of terror, was that...
This scene before him was exactly as described in the clearly absurd rumors... identical!
Mist... Emperor?
The Mist Sea was so vast that no one in history had ever traversed it entirely. How did that Abyss Stone, which clearly contained no soul aura, allow him to sense his location within this boundless sea of mist? And how did he appear before them in just a few short breaths?
Rolling gray mist was upon them in an instant, covering hundreds of miles at a glance. The unique oppressive pressure, which could only be the dense Abyss Dust, completely shattered the firm belief of onlookers that it "must be an illusion of dark smoke."
Fine cracks rapidly spread in Bai Yu's pupils. He had not yet seen the Mist Emperor, yet this rolling dust mist alone had destroyed all his certainty and arrogance, as well as the basic understanding he had held all his life.
A pair of gray pupils slowly opened above the Abyss Mist. The Mist Emperor's voice filled the heavens and the earth: "Mo Xifeng, what matter brings you to seek an audience with this Emperor?"
Mo Xifeng's entire body went limp as he replied in a trembling voice: "It is not this minor king who intentionally disturbs the Mist Emperor's slumber, but... a knight from the Pure Land who has a matter to discuss with the Mist Emperor."
In just a few words, he had exhausted nearly all his willpower. On both sides were terrifying existences he could not afford to provoke. Trapped in the middle, he felt his courage shatter and his soul crack.
"..." Bai Yu did not speak immediately, his pupils trembling endlessly.
"Pure Land? Hehehe..." These two words, the most supreme and sacred in the Abyss World, were spoken by the Mist Emperor with unmistakable contempt: "That place is clearly the filthiest and dirtiest in this world, yet it dares to call itself the Pure Land. How pitiful! How laughable!"
This shocking statement stunned all nearby Xuan adepts and deeply pierced the heart of the Abyss Knight. The doubt in his heart instantly transformed into boundless fury, for this was an offense against the Pure Land, a desecration of his faith!
"Silence!"
Bai Yu roared. White light flashed in his hand, and a pale white sword appeared in his palm. Its blade shimmered with icy radiance, pointing straight at the gray pupils above the Abyss Mist: "Under the Abyss Emperor, no one deserves the title of 'Emperor'! Calling yourself the Mist Emperor is already an offense! Defiling the Pure Land with words is a crime beyond redemption even by death!"
"Show your true form! No matter what kind of existence you are, the judgment of the Pure Land has arrived. There will be no place for you in this world! Submit willingly, and the Abyss Emperor, in His holy mercy, may yet grant grace even for unforgivable crimes!"
The pressure of an Abyss Knight could make all beings bow their heads, but beneath the rolling Abyss Mist covering hundreds of miles, it was pitifully weak. The gray pupils twisted slightly, and then the Mist Emperor burst into laughter: "Hahahaha! Without this Emperor, where would there be a land of birth? Without this Emperor, where would there be a Pure Land?"
"And now, you dare to turn things upside down and judge this Emperor! How pitiful! How laughable! Hahahaha!"
Every word was filled with contempt and mockery.
Without this Emperor, where would there be a land of birth? Without this Emperor, where would there be a Pure Land? Bai Yu frowned deeply. This was, without a doubt, the most absurd statement he had ever heard in his life.
The distant Xuan adepts also exchanged glances, all feeling bewildered.
Mo Xifeng looked up slightly. He recalled the words the Mist Emperor had shouted when granting him grace a few days ago: "This entire Abyss World was saved by this Emperor! How have you repaid it? How will you repay it?" — so similar to what was just said.
"Utter nonsense!" Bai Yu was furious inside, but the composure of an Abyss Knight prevented him from speaking too crudely: "Such madness leaves no room for further words!"
"I will tear away your disguise and deliver the judgment of the Pure Land!"
The Mist Emperor spoke with pity: "A pitiful knight from a filthy land, how dare you act recklessly before this Emperor!"
Clang!
The pale sword shone with a sudden burst of cold light, emitting a harsh clang. The plummeting chill forced Mo Xifeng back. Without another word, Bai Yu's body blazed with profound light. He and the white sword transformed into a dazzling icy ray, too blinding to look at, charging straight into the massive Abyss Mist ahead.
But at that moment, Bai Yu's body suddenly sank, and even the icy light on his sword vanished in an instant. The world fell into an eerie silence, all sounds completely wiped away.
Bai Yu's heart trembled violently... This aura... could it be...?
In countless horrified pupils, a star descended from the distant high sky, bringing with it a terrifying pressure that made everyone hold their breath and sealed all sound between heaven and earth.
Within the star was clearly a human figure. He was clad in silver armor, his eyes shining like brilliant stars. One of his snow-white hands was surrounded by a dazzling and strange star formation, pushing aside layers of Abyss Mist, reaching straight for the gray pupils within the mist.
Com...mander!?
The moment that familiar pressure descended, Bai Yu quickly withdrew his power, switching from attack to defense, firmly protecting himself while shouting to his attendant knight: "Fall back!"
The star-formation-wreathed hand plunged into the Abyss Mist, instantly transforming into a thousand-zhang giant palm. The terrifying power unleashed in that instant annihilated the space where the Mist Emperor stood.
Boom!
The earth for a hundred miles cracked with countless star marks. Ten thousand beams of starlight shot upward, piercing the sky.
"Waaaaaah!"
Amid the violent starlight, countless screams rang out. The nearby Xuan adepts were swept away like a hurricane, blasted far off. Those with weaker cultivation were instantly severely wounded.
When they finally managed to stop in the storm, the starlight in their vision was still too dazzling to look at directly.
"That star formation... could it be...?"
"One of the thirty-six Abyss Knight commanders, Yuchi Nanxing!"
The name "Yuchi Nanxing" struck everyone with shock bordering on dizziness.
Abyss Knights were already considered supremely noble in the eyes of the world, for they were the sword of order and the blade of judgment of the Pure Land.
Among the Abyss Knights, there were thirty-six special existences known as the thirty-six commanders. They rarely appeared before people because they never needed to personally enforce order or judgment. Instead, each commanded a group of Abyss Knights, transcending ordinary Abyss Knights. Their status in the Pure Land was second only to the Abyss Emperor and the four divine officials.
It was said that all thirty-six Abyss Knight commanders possessed the Divine Extreme Realm.
Even setting aside the identity of a knight commander, the mere words "Divine Extreme Realm" made them a secondary myth in the eyes of the world, second only to the supreme true gods.
Now, such a legendary existence appeared here, personally judging this Mist Emperor who was stirring bizarre waves in the Abyss.
"Yuchi Nanxing, the legendary 'South Abyss Imperial Star'! Today, I not only saw the Mist Emperor but also witnessed the divine extreme might of such a figure!" one Xuan adept said, his voice trembling with excitement.
"Sigh... Such momentum is unimaginable. Could the Mist Emperor... have been torn apart already?"
"So, is the Mist Emperor real or fake? Is it someone using some secret method to deceive? Or... as some legends say, is it actually the Abyss Dust of the Mist Sea itself?"
Bai Yu was not thrown far. He floated at the edge of the Mist Sea, looked up ahead, and the corner of his mouth lifted slightly: "As expected, you came personally."
The might of the Divine Extreme Realm was terrifying, but none of the Xuan adepts left. Even those severely wounded held on to watch from a distance. They all wanted to see what kind of person or existence the true form of the Mist Emperor was.
Starlight pierced through the Abyss Mist. The gray pupils of the Mist Emperor had vanished.
But what they received was not the Mist Emperor held in Yuchi Nanxing's grasp, but instead... a dull groan of pain.
Bai Yu's expression changed drastically.
Because the dull groan clearly sounded like... Yuchi Nanxing?
Boom!
Boom!!
Boom!!!
Terrible footsteps echoed like the earth splitting and the sky collapsing.
The starlight faded, but the Abyss Mist continued to roll. From within the mist, a huge shadow slowly stepped out.
The moment this giant shadow emerged from the Abyss Mist, a terrifying pressure beyond comprehension and beyond the limits of will descended. Everyone felt as if ten thousand mountains were pressing down on them. Their limbs, internal organs, even every drop of blood were frozen solid. Only their pupils and souls trembled uncontrollably.
Primordial Qilin God!
Its massive tail swung forward, entwined around a human figure with eyes split wide open.
Bai Yu's face turned ashen as he screamed: "Commander!!"
The vast space fell silent. Pairs of eyes, nearly bursting with shock, stared ahead... The knight commander, who had descended like a god and struck at the Mist Emperor just moments ago, did not emerge from the Abyss Mist holding the Mist Emperor's true form. Instead, he was tightly bound, his face, which should have been full of divine might, a ghastly white of terror.
"Primordial... Qilin God!" Yuchi Nanxing hissed through gritted teeth.
According to rumors, the first appearance of the Mist Emperor was accompanied by the Primordial Qilin God. Legends said that the Primordial Qilin God was controlled by the Mist Emperor.
This was the most ridiculous joke he had ever heard in his life... Even after the later rumors about the Mist Emperor became increasingly absurd, none were as ridiculous as the rumor of "controlling the Primordial Qilin God."
But at this moment, he, a commander of the Abyss Knights, was shocked nearly to the point of heart and soul splitting... And what was more terrifying than shock was the complete overturning of his understanding, even the collapse of his beliefs...
The Primordial Qilin God, one of the most terrifying Abyss Beasts deep within the Mist Sea.
Once a profound beast was eroded by the Abyss, no matter its original level, it would completely degenerate into an Abyss Beast with only the instinct to destroy... How could it be controlled? How was that possible!
Moreover, the Primordial Qilin God should only appear deep in the Mist Sea. Under no circumstances should it appear at the edge of the Mist Sea...
He had just been sensing for a long time, but until he descended with his divine extreme might, he had not sensed the existence of the Primordial Qilin God at all.
It was the overly dense Abyss Dust that prevented even his spiritual sense, strong as it was in the Divine Extreme Realm, from reaching the Mist Emperor and the Primordial Qilin God within the Abyss Mist.
"Urgh... Hah!"
His eyes were bloodshot. With a roar, the terrifying power of the Divine Extreme Realm, enough to destroy the world, erupted violently.
Amid the earth-shattering roar of power, the ground was shaken and overturned. Bai Yu was knocked back hard, nearly vomiting blood. The Xuan adepts behind him were thrown into chaos, with many dead and wounded.
But the tail of the Primordial Qilin God was not shaken off at all. His divine extreme power slammed into its body, producing a deafening clang like metal striking metal.
Boom!
Boom!
He struggled desperately, his power erupting time and again. Cracks appeared on the scales beside him, but the crushing force binding him never loosened in the slightest, terrifying him to the point of gradual despair.