Trials of the Abyss

It was a gray and gloomy day on Ice Rock Island.

Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan stood among the gathering rogue cultivators near the Giant Stone Palace to observe the unfolding spectacle.

The rogue cultivators were gaping at the sky in shock as they clutched their wooden tokens.

A Divine Spirit Pagoda from the Sinister Soul Temple hovered brazenly in the air, blatantly disregarding Maverick Ling Yun’s rules.

"The Sinister Soul Temple!"

"Dong Tianze!"

Angry mutterings filled the crowd.

"Rules mean nothing in the face of absolute power."

"Members of the Sinister Soul Temple or the Radiant Sun Sect never care about his rules."

The rogue cultivators sneered in resentment.

The Blood Moon Sect was the only major sect in the Third World to dock their sailboats outside the city out of respect for Maverick Ling Yun’s connection with Jiu Yuan. The other sects blatantly ignored his rules and defiantly flew their vessels above the Giant Stone Palace.

Pang Jian looked up and saw a familiar figure standing at the entrance of the white pagoda.

Dong Tianze looked arrogantly down at the Giant Stone Palace with a grim expression on his face and a cruel glint in his eyes. A person sat behind him in silent support.

Maverick Ling Yun and his trusted aide hovered above the stone hall where the trade fair was set to take place. Zhu Yuanxi from the Blood Moon Sect also accompanied him.

"He dares to show himself so openly?"

"The Sinister Soul Temple’s actions are becoming more and more brazen. They’re even robbing us now!"

"People from the lower world don’t follow any rules, do they?"

Many rogue cultivators present had been robbed and were glaring at Dong Tianze as they whispered among themselves. Although they were indignant, Dong Tianze still had the Sinister Soul Temple’s backing. The other person sitting inside the white pagoda further deterred them from acting rashly.

"He’s advanced to the Innate Realm," Luo Hongyan whispered, leaning against a cracked boulder near a stone pillar.

Pang Jian was surprised. "You can tell with just a glance?"

"Of course," Luo Hongyan replied coolly. "He harmonizes perfectly with the dense spiritual qi at the entrance of the Divine Spirit Pagoda. His spiritual power and vigorous blood essence are well-contained.

"Only those in the Innate Realm can return to one’s true self and exercise exquisite control over their bodies. After reaching the Innate Realm, the body can sustain itself for long periods without breathing as one gains control over every pore in their body. Only extremely potent poisons can harm someone in this realm," Luo Hongyan explained.

Pang Jian nodded earnestly. "I’m close to my own breakthrough."

"I know. When we left Divine Fortune, you were already at the peak of the Marrow Cleansing Realm. It won’t be long before you advance to the Innate Realm." Luo Hongyan smiled. Pausing to glance around, she shook her head and said, "I’ve overestimated these rogue cultivators."

After everything she had done while disguised as Dong Tianze, she had thought the rogue cultivators would unite against him.

However, now that Dong Tianze had shown himself, they only dared to whisper their complaints.

No one dared to confront him.

"I’ve come specifically to tell you all that the one who had been robbing the Cloud Sails was someone else," Dong Tianze declared coldly. "I came from the lower world, so you might not be familiar with me. In the coming days, members of the seven major clans will arrive. When they do, you’ll understand that the person robbing you wasn’t me.

"Because if it were me, Dong Tianze, who robbed you, I wouldn’t have left any survivors!"

At these words, the rogue cultivators fell silent in fear. They sensed that Dong Tianze’s murderous nature differed from the person who had robbed them.

Dong Tianze seemed like a madman who killed indiscriminately. If he had been the one to rob them, they would not have survived. His menacing appearance and violent demeanor intimidated them and made them even more reluctant to act rashly.

"The Blood Moon Sect has secret methods to alter bone structure and appearance, transforming someone into another person," Dong Tianze said coldly.

From the Divine Spirit Pagoda, he could see a man in the attire of the Blood Moon Sect hovering above the domeless stone hall.

He turned to this man and asked coldly, "Are you Zhu Yuanxi? Did you and Maverick Ling Yun conspire to rob the rogue cultivators under my name?"

Zhu Yuanxi laughed heartily. "Dong Tianze, are you still trying to deny it? You must’ve seen the corpses in the rubble outside, right? While others might not know about the relationship between the Sinister Soul Temple and the Shadow Specter Sect, do you think we, the Blood Moon Sect, are unaware?

"You incited the hall masters of the Shadow Specter Sect to rob our beast-hunting sailboat in Divine Fortune, stealing our beast blood and meat, and killing many of our members. Did you think we wouldn’t find out?

"Dong Tianze, we’ve investigated it thoroughly. Your foster father, Dong Qianfeng, is a member of the Shadow Specter Sect!" Zhu Yuanxi revealed with a cold smile.

Wang Yisen sat behind Dong Tianze. Hearing Zhu Yuanxi’s accusations, he said sternly, "Don’t make baseless accusations without concrete evidence to try and frame us!"

Maverick Ling Yun was startled.

"That’s Wang Yisen," he whispered to Zhu Yuanxi. "He’s an Elder of the Sinister Soul Temple and is in the same realm as me, the late stage of the Profound Abode Realm. I suggest we avoid a confrontation."

Maverick Ling Yun wore luxurious light yellow brocade robes and a conspicuous spatial bracelet on his wrist. His tall, imposing figure, and the feathered crown on his head, exuded an aura of ethereal grace.

He had always been one to bully the weak and fear the strong. Thus, he made no complaints when he saw the Divine Spirit Pagoda suspended high above the Giant Stone Palace in blatant disregard of his rules.

When Dong Tianze shouted from his Divine Spirit Pagoda, Maverick Ling Yun pretended not to hear.

Wang Yisen’s intervention allowed him to confirm the man’s identity, and he went out of his way to warn Zhu Yuanxi in fear that a confrontation would force him into action.

Although he and Wang Yisen were both in the Profound Abode Realm, Maverick Ling Yun had advanced to the late stage relatively recently in comparison to Wang Yisen. While he had some confidence in his abilities in a fight, he was unwilling to make enemies with the Sinister Soul Temple.

Furthermore, Zhu Yuanxi had come to the Three Immortal Islands on his friend, Jiu Yuan’s, orders. If Zhu Yuanxi were to die on his territory while he did nothing, he would find it difficult to explain himself to him.

Once the Blood Moon Sect found out, they would retract their support for him in the future, and his esteemed position on the Three Immortal Islands would be jeopardized.

He was caught between a rock and a hard place as he struggled to find a way to mediate between the two.

"I’ve had no contact with my foster father since he was expelled from the Radiant Sun Sect. Don’t spout nonsense," Dong Tianze said coldly.

After stabilizing his cultivation realm on Gold Stone Island, he arrived at the Giant Stone Palace and saw the bodies of Meng Qiulan and Zhao Ling in the rubble.

He had seen these two Shadow Specter Sect’s hall masters before through the Ghost Altar.

Though he found the situation peculiar and was puzzled about how they managed to come to the Third World, he would never voice these questions nor admit any connection to them.

Before coming to the Three Immortal Islands, Han Zhiyuan had repeatedly instructed him to deny any ties to the Shadow Specter Sect. Therefore, Dong Tianze did not address their corpses and steadfastly claimed the Blood Moon Sect and Maverick Ling Yun had impersonated him to rob the rogue cultivators.

In response, Zhu Yuanxi righteously proclaimed that Dong Tianze had conspired with the Shadow Specter Sect, orchestrating the robbery of their beast-hunting sailboat and the murder of their people in the lower world.

Both sides argued incessantly, and even after a long time, no conclusion was reached.

Inside the Divine Spirit Pagoda, Wang Yisen advised, "Junior Brother, I think our purpose has been achieved. The rogue cultivators should now know you weren’t the one who attacked them.

"Maverick Ling Yun and the Blood Moon Sect are in cahoots. His cultivation realm is on par with mine, and fighting him won’t benefit us. The Divine Spirit Pagoda has been here for half a day. You’ve already intimidated him. I think it’s enough."

Dong Tianze stayed silent.

Meanwhile, Maverick Ling Yun also urged Zhu Yuanxi to hold back and exercise restraint.

From below, Pang Jian saw Maverick Ling Yun quietly persuading Zhu Yuanxi at the edge of the stone hall.

Neither Zhu Yuanxi nor Maverick Ling Yun hovered at the center of the domeless hall but rather at its edge. This was intentional as Maverick Ling Yun could see all the rogue cultivators below from that vantage point and observe their reactions toward him.

Similarly, those standing below could also see him.

Maverick Ling Yun. Zhu Yuanxi.

The images of Bai Wei tightly clutching the torn scrap of the spatial pouch and Zhao Ling being tortured to death flashed through Pang Jian’s mind.

Luo Hongyan watched as Pang Jian stared wordlessly at Maverick Ling Yun and Zhu Yuanxi. Even though she knew an intense rage burned inside him, his outward expression remained calm.

"You’ve become more rational than before. That makes me very happy," she praised.

A calm face hiding the storm in one’s heart. [1] This was Pang Jian now. Her careful guidance over the past few months had truly sunk in.

The once innocent young man from the Solitary Mountain Range was growing and adapting to this cruel world.

Pang Jian was no longer as impulsive as he had been in the City Lord’s Mansion. Back then, he had attacked without understanding the situation or calculating the difference in power between him and the disciples of the Sword Pavilion, the Demon Sect, and the Black Valley Sect.

In contrast, despite Maverick Ling Yun and Zhu Yuanxi now hovering right above him, he still maintained a calm mind. Luo Hongyan also sensed that Pang Jian’s heartbeat, breathing, and other subtle aspects were well-controlled.

Pang Jian quietly retreated, moving next to a stone pillar below the stone hall as he searched for a spot where no one could see him.

"Help me adjust my appearance to how I looked when I met Dong Tianze with the Ghost Altar."

Luo Hongyan was taken aback.

"If they don’t start fighting, our chances will be slim. I’ll take on Hong Jian’s appearance and expose Dong Tianze as the Sect Leader of the Shadow Specter Sect. We must force them into a confrontation." Pang Jian said, moving behind the pillar.

After a moment of stunned silence, a smile slowly spread across Luo Hongyan’s face as she followed after him.

1. This is a Chinese idiom. It describes someone who remains calm and composed on the surface despite having intense emotions or turmoil inside. ☜

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