Trials of the Abyss

"He wasn't all that powerful," remarked Xie Xiwen of the Star River Alliance, beautiful jade-like face twisted in confusion. "Why did he sound so awkward when he spoke in the human language?"

One member of the Star River Alliance commented, "These Ghost Race warriors truly live up to their name. They really do look like ghosts."

"Those from the Celestial Race are much more pleasant to look at!" a young man in his early twenties added. "The Celestial Race looks very similar to us, but the Ghost Race...not at all!"

Elder Liang Ying took a second to consider her words before saying with a hint of uncertainty, "I've never been to the Fifth World, nor do I possess the power to do so. Only the truly powerful cultivators dare to venture there. According to their reports, the Ghost Race and Demon Scale Race are the original inhabitants of the Fifth World."

"Original inhabitants?" Xie Xiwen was astonished.

"Yes, they are the native intelligent beings of the Fifth World." Liang Ying paused in hesitation.

It's necessary to share this knowledge with the disciples now with the foreign races of the Fifth World having invaded the Primordial Wilderness and the Fourth World also in chaos, she thought.

After a moment, she continued, "The Celestial Race and one-eyed giants are said to have lived in the upper worlds in ancient times."

"What?!" The disciples of the Star River Alliance exclaimed in surprise.

"They either left voluntarily or were expelled from the upper worlds and ended up in the eternally dark Fifth World," Liang Ying explained cautiously, careful not to go into the specifics. "Eventually, they abandoned their old ways of living and adapted to the murky energy of the Fifth World.

"The Wood Race can control trees and communicate with plants. They used to live in both the Fifth World and the upper worlds. But after siding with the foreign races of the Fifth World in an ancient war, they were no longer allowed to reside in the upper worlds and were confined to the Fifth World forever.

"Remember, it doesn't matter that they once lived in the upper worlds like us. They've become accustomed to strengthening themselves with the murky energy of the Fifth World and are considered foreign races. The beings of the Fifth World harbor great hatred for the human race and must not be shown any mercy."

Xie Xiwen then curiously asked, "Elder Liang, why have we never heard you mention this before?"

Liang Ying coughed. "I only recently learned about the foreign races of the Fifth World myself. After the higher-ups realized they were losing control of the Fourth World, they anticipated the emergence of these foreign races and decided to share this knowledge.

"In the past, the higher-ups believed the foreign races of the Fifth World would never set foot in our world again, so it wasn't brought up."

Then, glancing at the brilliantly lit First Peak, she added, "Let's head to the Sixth Peak and try to reclaim the Gilded Chariot!"

***

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, three days had passed.

One dawn, while cultivating at the bottom of Emerald Lake, Pang Jian sensed a powerful aura through his enhanced perception.

It was a human cultivator with a powerful aura rivaling that of a Rank Six Vicious Beast!

Pang Jian's eyes shot open. He knew he had been discovered as an overwhelming aura had seeped into the lake and was steadily closing in on his location.

"Who could it be?" Pang Jian's heart tightened as he cautiously sat up.

The invading forces from the Fifth World had emerged from Emerald Lake, so no human cultivator had dared to approach it over the past few days, fearing they would encounter a stronger, more terrifying army of foreign race warriors. This was the first human cultivator to have come close to the lake since then.

Pang Jian had stayed in Emerald Lake not only so he could focus on his cultivation but also to avoid contact with other human cultivators.

His experience with Zhang Bin's group had made him acutely aware that he was a prime target since the information about him possessing one million spirit stones had spread.

In the Primordial Wilderness, his biggest threats were not the foreign race warriors or Vicious Beasts but rather fellow human cultivators like himself.

"Why don't you come out?" Pang Jian heard a familiar voice with his heightened hearing.

"Huang Qi?" Pang Jian was stunned. Realizing he could no longer hide, Pang Jian shot out from Emerald Lake like an arrow.

"Pang Jian!" Huang Qi exclaimed from the lakeshore. He had not expected Pang Jian to be hiding in the same Emerald Lake where the foreign race warriors had emerged!

"You..." Pang Jian was taken aback at the familiar voice coming from a man with a vastly different face and physique. The man before him was tall, with long hair draped over his shoulders and hands as large as palm fans. Rather than Huang Qi's usual sly appearance, this man appeared dignified and imposing.

Pang Jian knitted his brows and channeled his spiritual power into his wrist, ready to summon the Startling Slaughter Spear in a split second should he need it.

Huang Qi knows me. He bought the Scarlet-Eyed Demon Wolf's eyes from me and is undoubtedly aware I possess many spirit stones. His cultivation realm is also higher than mine.

Pang Jian tensed and glanced around vigilantly. He was well aware of the harsh realities of the cultivation world.

Huang Qi rubbed his face and laughed heartily. "Don't I look more handsome than before?"

Pang Jian nodded but remained on guard. He was prepared for Huang Qi to make a move at any moment.

Huang Qi was extremely pleased with himself. "Ha ha! Once you cultivate the Grand Providence Sacred Body to my level, you'll be able to change your appearance and physique at will. Tall, short, fat, thin, handsome, or ugly—it's all up to me!"

Pointing to his face, Huang Qi then said with a serious expression, "To be honest, this is my true appearance. I deliberately made myself look ugly at the trading hall just to disgust Lady Hua!"

Pang Jian was shocked. Although Huang Qi appeared to show no malice, Pang Jian could not gauge his intentions.

For some reason, he could not shake the feeling that this handsome version of Huang Qi was not the real him. The sly, weasel-like Huang Qi just seemed to fit the man better.

"Tell me, why are you here at Emerald Lake?" the handsome-looking Huang Qi asked. He took out a smoking pipe, lit it, and casually squatted on a rock by the lakeshore. Taking a deep drag that revealed a set of yellow teeth through the swirling smoke, he continued, "The Primordial Wilderness is quite vast. Why are you here, of all places?"

"The most dangerous place is often the safest." Pang Jian had prepared an excuse beforehand and so went on to explain, "Since the foreign race warriors and Vicious Beasts emerged from Emerald Lake, no one dared to come near. I came to investigate and found nobody here, so I decided it was safer to hide in the lake."

"Smart kid!" Huang Qi slapped his thigh in approval. "You have no idea how many have died in these three days! Not just the human cultivators, but the invading foreign race warriors and Vicious Beasts too."

Huang Qi smoked his pipe while squatting on the rock as he discussed the situation in the Primordial Wilderness with Pang Jian. He was tall, handsome, and had fair skin, but his rough demeanor clashed with his outwardly refined appearance, causing Pang Jian to find him increasingly odd.

However, when Pang Jian imagined Huang Qi squatting and smoking with his previous sly appearance, the scene felt unexpectedly harmonious.

Pang Jian was certain the handsome-looking Huang Qi was a facade, and the one in the trading hall was his true appearance!

"Cao Mang, that old dog, has some tricks up his sleeve. He fortified the First Peak to be impregnable. Those foreign race warriors and Vicious Beasts he invited over couldn't gain any advantage," Huang Qi criticized, going on to describe the happening in the Primordial Wilderness over the past three days.

Cao Mang and Lady Hua had led a group of powerful rogue cultivators to protect the First Peak, using the arrays within the mountain to force a stalemate with the foreign race warriors, chiefly the Celestial Race and Demon Scale Race.

Another group of foreign race warriors had figured out how to control the Fire Cloud Ship, the Formless Sailboat, the Divine Spirit Pagoda, and the Gilded Chariot. These advanced flying vessels of the four major sects were now in the hands of the foreign race warriors, which they used to fly into the sky of the Primordial Wilderness.

Now, the escaping Cloud Sails were no longer destroyed by the one-eyed giants and Demon Scale Race warriors riding black wyverns but rather these advanced flying vessels controlled by the foreign race warriors.

"So far, only the Scarlet Dawn Boat of Red Mountain Sect and a single Cloud Sail escaped on the first day." Huang Qi smacked his lips and cast Pang Jian a sidelong glance. "On that escaped Cloud Sail were Qi Qingsong from the Sword Pavilion, the red-clothed woman you care about, and two other rogue cultivators. They got lucky and somehow escaped without any trouble."

"It seems they were indeed extremely lucky." Pang Jian feigned surprise.

Huang Qi shook his head. "I don't think it was luck."

He had puzzled over this matter for the past couple of days but could not figure it out, so he ultimately decided not to dwell on it any further.

"The invading forces from the Fifth World seem to value spirit materials. I've observed them for a while and found that they kill primarily in pursuit of spirit materials. But they won't escape! Once news spreads and reinforcements from the five major sects arrive, they won't be able to leave here unscathed."

Glancing at the sky, Huang Qi added, "Moreover, there are two more worlds above us. With their limited numbers and strength, how much trouble can they cause?"

Pang Jian nodded silently.

He was well aware of Yu Xin's plan. These forces would do their utmost with their limited strength to gather the spirit materials they desperately need, then use flying vessels like the Fire Cloud Ship and Formless Sailboat to descend from the Third World to the Fourth World.

Their chance of survival in the contaminated Fourth World would increase significantly. At the very least, the cultivators of the five major sects in the Third World could not enter the Fourth World in large numbers to deal with them.

For the major powers in the Second and First Worlds to send people into the Fourth World would also require considerable time.

The foreign race warriors could then transport the vital spirit materials from the Fourth World to the Fifth World to aid their kin in sending more powerful warriors in the future.

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