Trials of the Abyss

Within the Demon Abyss, Li Jie's round face gleamed with enthusiasm as he described his attacker.

His expression became enraptured as he recalled the young woman's stunning appearance, alluring figure, and graceful movements. It was as though he had forgotten how disheveled and terrified he had been moments earlier.

"She was truly a captivating woman," he said admiringly.

Casually tossing aside his now-empty juice bottle, he descended gracefully from atop the Qilin Bell like a great roc spreading its wings before vanishing the bell into his spatial ring with a backward swipe of his hand.

"I feel safe now that you're here," he added cheerfully.

Despite the years since they had last met, Li Jie was utterly at ease around Pang Jian. He walked over to Pang Jian with a bright smile and glanced at the Abyssal Demon Sword slung across Pang Jian's back.

"This sword without a scabbard—is it the Abyssal Demon Sword that was once sealed on the first floor of the Sword Pavilion?

"Wait, wasn't it supposed to be a broken sword? I remember my sister mentioning that it intrigued her but ultimately dismissed it because it was incomplete," Li Jie rambled, seemingly forgetting all about his captivating assailant now that his attention was on the Abyssal Demon Sword.

"I found the other half of the sword while traversing the bizarre mist shrouding Absolute Heaven," Pang Jian explained.

Pang Jian was unsure if it was the kindness Li Jie had shown him back in Eight Trigrams City or his connection with Li Yuqing, but he could not help but feel a strong sense of familiarity and trustworthiness from Li Jie.

"A sword without a scabbard is dangerous—it could harm others or even its wielder," Li Jie remarked cryptically as he examined the black-gold sword.

Running his hand along his chin, Li Jie studied the sword closely. Its dimensions—the length, width, thickness, and even the edge's sharpness—were all recorded in his mind.

An intricate model of the Abyssal Demon Sword rotated within his sea of consciousness, revealing an understanding of the sword's external structure beyond even Pang Jian's comprehension.

Li Jie clapped his hands as inspiration struck. "Hold on, I'll craft a scabbard for you right now so you can properly store this sword!"

Whoosh!

The Qilin Bell reappeared.

The engravings on the bell turned fiery and the Qilin on its surface seemed to ignite into a sacred beast of blazing fire, transforming into a blazing furnace before Pang Jian and Wu Yuan's eyes.

Li Jie performed a series of hand seals before leaping inside. Soon, the sound of metalwork filled the air—clang after clang echoing through the Demon Abyss.

"He's the finest artifact refiner of his generation in the Li Family," Wu Yuan explained. "Every item he crafts is highly sought after. His renown in the field of artifact refining is comparable to Li Yuqing's in the cultivation world."

Pang Jian nodded in understanding.

Many had suggested he visit the Divine Treasure Sect to commission a scabbard after pulling out the Abyssal Demon Sword from the Sword Pavilion.

The presence of the Abyssal Demon meant that the sword could not be stored inside a spatial storage artifact.

Without a scabbard, the sword's distinctive features were easily recognizable. Not to mention, the Abyssal Demon within could also stir malice in people's hearts, as it drew strength from the evil intentions of living beings.

Su Li and others had exploited this trait to frame him back in the Sword Pavilion.

A scabbard capable of masking the sword's aura and suppressing its malevolent influence would indeed be invaluable.

Tempting others toward evil…

Pang Jian gazed thoughtfully toward the center of the Demon Abyss. There was a striking similarity between the mysterious power of the demonic stone and the Abyssal Demon.

He voiced his musings to Wu Yuan.

"It's not just the Abyssal Demon. All the Demon Gods are adept at manipulating hearts and corrupting souls.

"After years of studying the Purple Demon Eye, I've come to understand that the power of these entities is proportional to the malicious thoughts and evil deeds happening across the different worlds.

"Take the Abyss for example. Entities like the Abyssal Demon in your sword or He Motian within my Purple Demon Eye can draw immense strength from the evil in people's hearts, especially during tumultuous eras.

"This is a universal trait of all the Demon Gods," Wu Yuan explained.

A terrified cry suddenly echoed from several dozen li away, "Help! Someone help me!"

Wu Yuan frowned. "She's on a killing spree again!"

"Li Jie is crafting a scabbard for me here, so I won't go investigate," Pang Jian said after a brief pause, tone tinged with concern. "Like you, Li Jie is also in the Soul Wandering Realm and has plenty of life-saving treasures.

"It's likely why he's managed to survive.

"Others in the Demon Abyss don't have that. It seems unlikely they'll survive an encounter with that attacker."

The implication was clear. It was likely already too late, even if Wu Yuan rushed over now.

"I still need to go and take a look. Pang Jian, the Demon Abyss is an isolated and sealed realm. Sword tokens are useless here, and I can't communicate with the elders outside. Just wait for me here. Don't move."

"But you're also in the Soul Wandering Realm—" Pang Jian began, but before he could finish his sentence, Wu Yuan had already vanished in a streak of violet ghostly light.

He was worried that Wu Yuan would struggle to defend himself against such a dangerous opponent.

Even so, Pang Jian could not go after him either—Li Jie's safety depended on him.

Li Jie was still hard at work inside the Qilin Bell. After some contemplation, Pang Jian decided to sit down and use this rare moment of respite to study the wonders of the Demon Abyss.

Closing his eyes, Pang Jian used his golden divine soul to probe his surroundings.

A faint greenish-black demonic light, invisible to the naked eye, rippled outward like water from the depths of the Demon Abyss.

For cultivators like him, advancing deeper into the Demon Abyss was like wading against the current of these greenish-black waves.

The further one ventured, the more turbulent the demonic light became. Moreover, the stronger the cultivator, the more oppressive the pressure they faced.

The demonic light emanating from the mysterious demonic stone exerted a pressure that varied based on distance and the individual strength of the cultivator.

As Pang Jian studied his surroundings with his divine soul, he noticed his divine sense could expand in range.

Unfortunately, this rapidly depleted his soul essence.

He consumed a Soul Enriching Pill to replenish his lost soul essence and silently attempted to establish connections with the black turtle and the World Eater Vine, but as Wu Yuan mentioned, there was no response from either.

Calming his mind once more, he attuned himself to his surroundings and expanded his perception range outward. Before long, he noticed someone else sitting quietly, much like himself.

Several dozen li to his left, a Demon Sect disciple was struggling desperately to maintain clarity against his intensifying inner demons and malicious thoughts.

The disciple was likely a Soul Wandering Realm cultivator from one of the branches of the Demon Sect.

Whoosh!

Brilliant silver blade light slashed through the air like lightning.

The blade light cleaved the disciple into two. His body and divine soul were annihilated in a flash.

The young woman Li Jie had described abruptly appeared, eyes filled with casual disdain as she gripped a familiar serrated blade.

A silver robe accentuated her curvaceous figure, and her long legs only added to her striking presence. Piercing eyes glimmered with chilling intensity on her stunning face.

Her gaze was like a sharp blade.

There were no silvery scales on her body, and she looked exactly like a tall, athletic human woman.

Despite this, Pang Jian immediately recognized her as Xuan Ying of the Demon Scale Race, the most dazzling prodigy of the Fifth World's new generation.

The now-smaller serrated blade in her hand and her distinctive eyes had given her away.

"Xuan Ying!" Pang Jian exclaimed, shooting up to his feet.

The instant he stood up, his perception through his divine soul vanished.

A chill ran down Pang Jian's spine.

He could not help but grow worried for Wu Yuan. After all, Xuan Ying was an opponent that even Pang Jian himself struggled to face.

Xuan Ying had unexpectedly dared to infiltrate the Demon Abyss alone, even before the murky energy spread and her kin launched their invasion!

Such audacity could only stem from absolute confidence in her own strength.

Wu Yuan was only in the Soul Wandering Realm, and Pang Jian feared for his chances if he encountered her.

Whoosh!

A streak of flame shot through the air just as Pang Jian was about to sit down to track Xuan Ying's movements.

Squinting at the fiery streak, his expression darkened.

The flame was a Flame Dragon—it was the Rank Eight Long Yan!

If Long Yan from the Dragon Lair Sect had secretly infiltrated the Demon Abyss, there was little doubt he had come for Pang Jian.

Qi Xu of the Flame Race had recorded Pang Jian killing Lie Yi on the Cosmic Skies Continent on the fire crystals and distributed them widely. It would not be surprising if the Dragon Lair Sect had obtained a copy.

The keen-eyed ancient dragons in the Dragon Lair Sect had undoubtedly noticed the Abyssal Demon Sword's transformation into its black-gold form.

There was no way Pang Jian could avoid being implicated in Long Zhan's death. It was a connection he could not deny or escape.

The Rank Eight Flame Dragon sneered within the crimson flame, "The Qilin Bell, and the genius artifact refiner of the Divine Treasure Sect's Li Family, Li Jie.

"The Li Family of the Divine Treasure Sect dared to secretly support the Four-Eyed Spirit Fox and interfere in the struggle for the position of Fey God. For that, they have to face the wrath of the Dragon Lair Sect.

"Li Jie, you—

"Wait, Pang Jian?" Long Yan's mouth curled into a sinister grin. "Well, well, what a pleasant surprise—two for the price of one!"

Long Yan had been hiding in the depths of the Demon Abyss after learning that Li Jie would be entering it to temper his heart.

What he did not know, however, was that Pang Jian had also descended into the Demon Abyss after accepting Wu Yuan's invitation two days prior.

Long Yan, caught off guard at Pang Jian's unexpected presence, burst into laughter at the fortunate turn of events.

He was a Rank Eight dragon from the Dragon Lair Sect, meaning his bloodline and innate abilities were fully intact. Moreover, he had lingered in Rank Eight for a considerable amount of time.

Dragons with a pure bloodline naturally surpassed human cultivators and foreign race warriors of the same level.

Long Yan had long been confident in this knowledge, and he knew that even a group of mid-to-late-stage Nirvana Realm cultivators could not pose a threat to him.

No matter how impressive Pang Jian's battle with Lie Yi had been in the lower world, it was still a duel between a human Nirvana Realm cultivator and a Rank Eight foreign race warrior.

The legacy of the Dragon Lair Sect shaped dragons like Long Yan, fostering an innate sense of superiority due to their pure bloodlines.

They were also well aware that they had far surpassed other beings of the same level during the legendary era of the Fey Race.