Yuanhuang. The former son of the Creation God.
Yun Che had initially believed this person to be Mo Su—the Heaven-Slaying Crown Prince from the Heretic God's memories. But now, seeing him in person, he was startled to realize there was a vast discrepancy between the image in his mind and the one before him.
Though the man onstage radiated an otherworldly handsomeness, he was clearly not Mo Su, the son of the Heaven Emperor.
No.
The only person capable of wielding both the Panming Voidshatter Mirror and the Nirvana Reversal Pearl was none other than Crown Prince Zhutian.
And only Mo Su... would eternally carve Xiaodie's name into his soul.
Could it be that this "Emperor Yuan" wasn't his real body at all—but merely a vessel? A flesh puppet?
That chilling possibility caused Yun Che's heart to roil like a stormy sea.
If this was the form Yuanhuang had always shown the world... then where was his true body hidden?
Despite the turmoil in his heart, Yun Che's face remained calm, betraying no hint of emotion or fear.
Yuanhuang's gaze swept over the gathered crowd, pausing on Yun Che for only a few breaths—as though silently confirming something.
"My fellow gods," Yuanhuang said with an air of serene authority, "it has been a long time. I'm sure you already know why I've called you together."
His voice was tranquil, imbued with a natural charm that put even the most guarded listener at ease.
"The Abyss has become increasingly unstable. The black tides of time grow more violent with each passing cycle. It is no longer a place where we can survive for long. At the current rate of corruption, the Abyss will collapse—within a hundred years at the earliest, and no more than a thousand years at most."
There was no sorrow in his tone—as if he were simply narrating a mundane fact.
Yet his words struck the crowd like thunder, leaving them in stunned silence.
Even though the gods—residing at the pinnacle of this world—could sense the black tide of time more clearly than ordinary beings, none had known the exact timeline of their world's demise.
Now that Emperor Yuan had spoken, they understood: the Abyss was running out of time.
To a Shinto-level existence with a lifespan spanning tens of thousands of years, a century—or even a millennium—was nothing more than the blink of an eye.
The Abyss was nearing its end.
"You've all surely noticed that this generation of gods and goddesses from across the realms possesses power and talent unlike anything before," Yuanhuang continued. "Not only are they peerless in cultivation, but there are even several with perfect godhood."
"Take, for example, Hua Caili, Meng Jianyuan, Shen Wuyi... and Pan Buwang."
Swish—!
A collective gasp swept through the room.
Hua Caili and Meng Jianyuan had long been acknowledged as beings of perfect godhood. Shen Wuyi's potential had always suggested the same.
But to hear Pan Buwang's name spoken in the same breath as these legendary figures?
Even the hand of God Qi Heng trembled as he gripped his wine cup.
Pan Yusheng, ruler of the Xiaodie Divine Kingdom, was in utter disbelief.
That discarded former Son of God... had awakened perfect godhood?
No wonder no one had tried to stop Pan Buwang from entering the inner sanctum—Emperor Yuan had already seen through everything.
Standing to the side, Pan Buzhuo felt a cold sweat creeping over his spine.
He recalled the bold words he had uttered earlier and felt a rising dread.
To challenge a perfect godhead with his own flawed one... was no different from trying to smash a boulder with an egg.
He looked at Pan Buwang, this peerless prodigy reborn from disgrace.
Had Yuanhuang not spoken it himself, he would never have believed it.
Pan Buwang himself was stunned.
His perfect godhood had been bestowed by the Mist Emperor and kept secret. Yet the Abyss Emperor had seen through it instantly...
But then again, this was the ruler of the Abyss.
What did it matter if his secret had been revealed?
It only meant that the battles to come... would be that much more thrilling.
Pan Buwang's eyes never even glanced at Pan Buzhuo.
From the start, he had never seen the current Son of Xiaodie as a worthy rival.
His gaze was locked solely on Shen Wuyi of the Eternal Night Divine Kingdom.
Yun Che's expression had also become increasingly complex.
He had already regarded Emperor Yuan with the utmost caution—yet even then, it hadn't been enough. He had still underestimated him.
This forced Yun Che to reevaluate his entire strategy.
"In addition to the resurgence of perfect godhood," Yuanhuang added, "even the legendary Great Wilderness Power, lost since the primordial era of gods and demons, has returned. Dian Jiuzhi of the Senluo Divine Kingdom was born with the Divine Veins of the Great Wilderness. This too is a harbinger of the world-ending catastrophe to come."
The Star-Moon Divine Kingdom and the Dragon Clan—who had not yet been mentioned—quietly lowered their eyes.
The former's two Sons of God were of average quality, and the latter had fallen even lower: the last descendant of the Ancestral Dragon hadn't even reached the demigod realm...
"Nature's laws have grown more volatile in recent years," Yuanhuang said. "All the prosperity and beauty we see today... are nothing more than illusions summoned to meet the coming calamity."
He fell silent then, giving the gods time to digest his words.
What should have been a joyous, celebratory Pure Land Assembly was now soaked in an oppressive tension.
No one spoke—but their hearts churned.
"Moreover," Yuanhuang continued, "the ancient afflictions each of you bear... are worsening."
"Take, for example, the elemental backlash suffered by the Immortal Priestess."
He turned toward the divine priesthood.
The Immortal Priestess gripped her sleeves tightly, her face pale and strained.
Were it not for the gift Yun Che had given her, she might not have been able to attend this meeting at all.
The elemental energy that once sustained her was now devouring her from within. Her body was hollowed out. If not for her iron will and divine faith, she would have perished long ago.
The other priests looked at her with worry—they had fought side by side for eons. Their bond had long transcended time.
"Or the emotional backlash plaguing Wuming Shenzun."
Yuanhuang gestured toward the Eternal Night Divine Kingdom.
Shen Wuyan Ye closed her eyes, her expression wracked with strain. Beads of sweat dotted her brow as she fought to contain the storm within. She had become increasingly unstable and irritable of late. Even Shen Wuyi's perfect performance could not soothe her twisted heart.
Shen Wuyi, though wanting to offer comfort, was met with cold rejection. He could only withdraw silently.
"Or the soul backlash afflicting the Dreamless God."
Yuanhuang's gaze now turned toward the Dreamweaver Divine Kingdom.
Meng Kongchan let out a long sigh.
Nothing could escape Emperor Yuan's eyes.
He had long cultivated soul arts, never showing signs of abnormality.
But after personally using the Falling Dream technique to retrieve Meng Jianyuan, the toll on his soul had intensified—and now he was barely holding on.
Meng Jianyuan and Yun Che both stepped forward to offer support, but Meng Kongchan waved them off.
He looked at his two greatest disciples with deep affection—feeling no regret.
"Or the life backlash of the god Hua Fuchen."
Finally, Yuanhuang turned toward the Zhetian Divine Kingdom.
Hua Fuchen remained calm.
He had sacrificed his own life essence to empower Hua Caili. Though he looked no different from other gods, his life fire was fading.
But to spend his remaining years by his daughter's side—that alone made his sacrifice worthwhile.
Hua Caili's eyes welled with tears as she leaned close to him.
She knew his condition... was all because of her.
"Ten thousand years ago, when the black tide of time first intensified, I enacted the Pioneer Plan," Yuanhuang said at last.
"Every fifty years, the Pure Land would dispatch a thousand pioneer knights into the eternal darkness, hoping to find coordinates to a new world—the Eternal Pure Land."
"But the abyssal passage was like a graveyard for life. Every pioneer was swallowed by the endless dark. Not a single one returned."
His voice stopped abruptly—mourning those lost souls who gave everything for the Abyss.
Even without visible grief, everyone could feel it—the courage of the pioneers, the price they had paid.
"But three years ago," Yuanhuang said at last, "a team finally succeeded.
They reached the place I once called home...
The Eternal Pure Land!"
(End of Chapter)
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