Chapter 0700: Seal
Bang!
As corruption began to leak from beneath the burning Tree of Resonant Power, the ground collapsed and a ma.s.sive, black hole revealed itself. If one were to look into it, they would see that the s.p.a.ce within was distorted and fragmented.
The corruption had leaked from this separate s.p.a.ce!
The s.p.a.ce that contained the Umbra Cave!
The Umbra Cave had always been suppressed beneath the Tree of Resonant Power, and it was considered a separate world s.p.a.ce that connected the real world and the shadow world. At the same time, it was due to the void tear that it had even formed!
When the Umbra Cave world s.p.a.ce appeared, it attracted the attention of everyone present. Immediately after, a horrifying wave of energy flooded from the depths of the Umbra Cave, causing even the Dukes to have a change of expression. Just a single wave was sufficient to completely eradicate them from existence.
As they peered into the depths of the cave, they could see that the source of the energy wave was the collateral aftershocks emitted by two figures exchanging blows.
"It"s the Princ.i.p.al!" one of the Dukes shouted in surprise.
Indeed, one of them was Pang Qianyuan, whilst the other figure was emitting a terrifying amount of corruption. A simple wave of his hand caused an explosion of formidable might, the entire void trembling before him.
"Is Princ.i.p.al Pang facing off against the Ichythian King?" one of the Violet Vibrance mentors asked.
"Wait, that"s not the Ichythian King!" one of the more astute Violet Vibrance mentors shouted out as his expression turned glum. "It"s another Other King!"
This revelation caused everyone to feel a sense of overwhelming shock. Even Vice Princ.i.p.al Su Xin and Yu Hongxi were taken aback. Another Other King had appeared within the Umbra Cave?
All of their horrified gazes shot over towards the scuffling duo to observe for themselves. The Other King that was challenging Pang Qianyuan was ghastly white with a bony figure. He wielded a tattered soul-calling flag that leaked copious amounts of corruption into his surroundings, completely different to how the Ichythian King fought.
Everyone"s heads quaked in fear and despair arose from the depths of their hearts. It was no surprise now why Princ.i.p.al Pang had not appeared earlier. He was actually being held back by two Other Kings in the depths of the Umbra Cave!
At this moment, a hollow and piercing laugh resounded from the depths of the cave. "Heh. Pang Qianyuan, your Tree of Resonant Power is burning to ashes and the Umbra Cave is no longer sealed. All of your long years of effort have been for naught."
A chill overtook all of the college"s Violet Vibrance mentors, and their eyes shrunk upon hearing that voice.
This was a voice they were familiar with. Whenever they entered the depths of the Umbra Cave for purging missions, they would have a chance to meet the old nemesis of the Princ.i.p.al.
The Ichythian King!
The rushing sound of a flowing river could be heard coming from the Umbra Cave. Countless cries and screams were mixed into the rustling of moving liquid, which made this particularly spine-tingling.
A moment later, black water appeared before them. It surged out of the depths of the Umbra Cave like a t.i.tanic, black serpent, swallowing everything before it.
"The river of evil?!" Their expressions of fear contorted into ones of absolute terror. The river of evil was the condensation of humankind"s depravity and sins. It was rumored that the Others were born from it. Was the Ichythian King planning to spread his cursed waters throughout the real world?
The moment the river of evil was let loose upon the world, it would lead to an inconceivable amount of corruption spreading like a plague.
In other words, the appearance of the river of evil in the real world would transform the environment greatly, turning it into a nest for Others.
At that point in time, not only would the Xia Kingdom be ruined, nothing within tens of thousands of li would be left alive!
In the middle of the air, the Regent took in everything with an unsettled gaze. He couldn"t help but turn his attention towards the youth. He had not been informed of any of this! The other party had only told him that Pang Qianyuan would remain restricted and unable to leave the Umbra Cave... but nothing about the entire river of evil corrupting the Xia Kingdom!
Didn"t that mean that the Xia Kingdom would be completely destroyed?
Although his heart was shaken, he quickly squashed all remnant emotions. The situation had devolved beyond the point of no return, and he was already on the Origin Reversion Inst.i.tute"s side. Even if things got worse, it would not be his concern anymore. Once he revealed that the youth was a fellow conspirator, the Astral Sage College, the Golden Dragon Bank, and the rest of the factions would direct their ire and fury towards him. Even his own supporters might very well turn tail.
At the end of the day, the Origin Reversion Inst.i.tute"s actions went against humanity. When the time came, he would lose everything if he was on the wrong side.
The Regent was a ruthless and ambitious character. He knew how to make decisions swiftly, and so he made his choice after a short internal struggle.
Frankly speaking, the Origin Reversion Inst.i.tute was a great backer. Relying on them would allow him to gain so much more. It wouldn"t even be impossible for him to break into the King Stage with their a.s.sistance, ensuring that all his efforts were worth it. "Pang Qianyuan, just leave. Abandon the Xia Kingdom! It is a quagmire that restrains the mighty dragon that you are. I"m helping you break these shackles and leave you unfettered! Why not take this chance to leave?" The Ichythian King cackled with an entrancing voice as he floated above the river of evil.
Pang Qianyuan"s expression remained cold as the ma.s.sive Triple Resonance Saintly Ring behind him continued to shine resplendently whilst he struck at the Cadaverous King. The Other could only retreat when faced with the tyrannical might of the triple resonance blade light.
Still, that was as far as he could go.
He had no way to truly defeat the Cadaverous King, and the Ichythian King was taking advantage of this opportunity to guide the river of evil towards the real world.
The Tree of Resonant Power was aflame and had lost its ability to suppress the Umbra cave, allowing the river of evil to flow unimpeded.
It seemed as though the situation couldn"t get any worse.
Pang Qianyuan snorted coldly. "Ichythian King, do you really think that such superfluous words would work on me? Someone who managed to step into the realm of Kings? You belittle me."
"Heh. I"m not trying to entice you. It"s just a cold, hard fact! Do you think you can actually reverse the situation? You lost the moment the show started," the Ichythian King mocked.
"The Academic Federation will not sit idly as you conspire!" Pang Qianyuan retorted.
"The Academic Federation has no time to bother with this faraway land."
"Although I don"t know what your aim is, I can tell that you have placed a lot of importance in allowing the river of evil to escape into the real world. In this case, I won"t let you do so today!" A glint flashed through Pang Qianyuan"s eyes before he slowly closed them.
"Oh? Do you really think you can stop us? You and what army?" the Ichythian King sarcastically pointed out.
Pang Qianyuan took a deep breath as he raised his palm. The Dragon Bone Holy Grail reappeared in his hand, and the traces of time were evident in its mottled surface.
"The Dragon Bone Holy Grail?" The Ichythian King"s laughter resounded in every direction. "That supposedly peerless treasure that has been pa.s.sed down through the Academic Federation might be formidable, but I"m afraid it doesn"t have the capability to change the situation."
Pang Qianyuan ignored the taunts, only forming a hand seal with both hands. All of the resonant power within him poured out endlessly into the grail as he channeled all his strength within. A moment later, the Dragon Bone Holy Grail began to bloom with scintillating beams of radiant light, and an ancient draconic roar could be heard from it.
The gigantic shadow of a dragon began to descend from the sky.
The shadow covered everything, the Cadaverous King and the entirety of the Ichythian King"s river of evil included.
"Dragon Bone Holy Grail, Dragon Bone World Seal." Pang Qianyuan"s indifferent words echoed throughout the cave.
The Cadaverous King and the Ichythian King both raised their heads when they saw the shadow of the dragon descend upon them. An indomitable, coercive force enveloped them, and they seemed to lose control of their bodies.
At the same time, the flowing river of evil was forced to a halt, no longer moving.
A white smoke then permeated the entire world. It possessed a special sort of curse that ossified anything it pa.s.sed through within the range of the shadow.
This included Pang Qianyuan, the Other Kings, and the river of evil.
A dull, grayish-white color began to spread throughout Pang Qianyuan"s body, as though he was turning into a sculpture made of bone.
This was a sealing art.
An absolute sealing art without any comparison.
"Pang Qianyuan, how bold of you! You actually chose to accompany us and be sealed together? Is this worth it?" The Ichythian King"s tone finally turned glum.
"How naive. Even though it"s a peerless treasured artifact, it cannot possibly seal the river of evil," the Cadaverous King stated.
Pang Qianyuan lowered his head as he briefly observed his ossifying body, his expression completely unfazed. "Indeed, this alone will not be enough." He then turned his head, and his gaze pierced through the Umbra Cave, focusing on a certain individual.
At the same time, the observing Li Luo heard a voice ring out by his ear.
"Li Luo, I"ll need a hand from you."