Chapter 164
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Chapter 164: Title
Sacrifice? Jiang Nan’s mind reeled, though he had no time to ponder. The approaching silhouettes of legendary figures he’d only heard in stories left him no choice—hesitation meant defeat amidst their triumphant cheers.
His teeth clenched as he rasped, “Can it be free?”
【Apologies, Master. Skills cannot be gifted.】
Of course. With this miserly system’s obsession with points, true generosity was unthinkable. Jiang Nan’s face contorted before he growled:
“Activate it.”
【Abyssal Malice Collective Sacrifice initiated. Offering all corrupted entities… Sacrifice complete. Power escalation underway… Reached peak tier ten capacity.】
【External aid activated. One million points deducted.】
The surge of world-topping strength initially reassured him—until the system’s declaration shattered his calm.
“—A million points?! I should’ve surrendered!”
【Standard pricing. Direct complaints to the system’s creator: the former Champion.】
Jiang Nan stomped in frustration, forgetting his transformed state. To onlookers, the Abyssal Malice Collective appeared to frenzy wildly, its aura spiking to tier ten’s apex.
Had the extraordinary individuals glimpsed Jiang Nan’s private health bar, they’d have witnessed it swelling tenfold. Yet even without such visuals, the demon lords and other tier seven-to-nine practitioners sensed the looming threat intensify.
Madness fueling him, Jiang Nan crashed into the advancing crowd. One thought burned: defeat meant ruin.
“This debt will destroy me if I lose.”
“Points… all these points. They’ll never know it’s me. When the Illusionary Battlefield fades, they’ll blame the Abyssal Collective—just another mindless foe.”
“Why hesitate?”
Roaring, he surged forward. Tier ten power thrummed through him, divine and merciless. A mere brush of his force annihilated lesser beings.
【Since when do monsters evolve?!】
【It almost looks human now. Since when do abyssal creatures shapeshift?】
【Sword Immortal’s elegance never wanes! Why won’t she take disciples?】
【Dragon Lord’s majesty overwhelms.】
【Elf priests shimmer like starlight.】
【If this were real… Blue Star would fall.】
【Are the fallen truly gone?】
【Unlikely. These must be projections—Blue Star’s forces can’t be halved.】
【Doesn’t the Collective’s form remind you of someone?】
【Now I grasp the chasm between tiers. No wonder they’re called inhuman.】
【Tier seven rivals deities, tier nine bends reality—yet they’re struggling! Wait… did the elf priests just—】
【Dissolving into stardust… Surely that’s not true death?】
……
Ye Linlang gripped her sword, her brow arching faintly. This marked her first direct confrontation with power surpassing tier ten. Though the system normally handled strength calculations for her to casually review, reality now demanded her full attention.
Her true form barely reached Tier One Pinnacle. Without expending massive amounts of Fantasy Points or divine power crystals, tier ten power remained beyond her grasp.
But Jiang Nan differed. This place differed.
The Heavenly Law Battleground bore its name with purpose—to invoke the Heavenly Law’s oversight. The arena thrummed with rules she’d established yet governed by the Heavenly Law itself, creating a domain where principles diverged from Blue Star’s natural order.
Only through their symbiotic relationship could Ye Linlang orchestrate this. Others would struggle even to earn audience with the Heavenly Law, let alone bargain.
Though this vessel could manifest tier seven strength within the Illusionary Battlefield, it remained inadequate against the tier ten Abyssal Malice Collective.
Months prior when the system first revealed the Abyssal-tainted world fragment, its assessment as tier two beginner had concealed crucial truths. Now, with mere months until fusion with Blue Star, her deeper investigation unveiled the paradox—a tier two fragment teeming with high-tier monsters.
Shattered worlds sometimes preserved fragments of their former glory, but entropy inevitably corroded these remnants. Survivors in such eroded realms were never ordinary.
Where common beings perished, Abyssal-twisted creatures thrived. When mythic high-tier spirit cultivators, giant dragons, and elves clashed with the Abyssal Malice Collective, low-tier extraordinary individuals maintained wary distance—interference risked catastrophe over aid.
Leng Xingwen, the eternal image of a refined gentleman of the world, now stood dust-streaked and blood-smeared in ruined white robes. Yet his poise remained unshaken as he regarded his companion.
"You actually came," he remarked to the jade-crowned figure in pristine daoist robes, his smile retaining its customary ease. After scrutinizing their contrasting states, he added wryly, "I’ve never appeared more disheveled beside you. My thanks for last time remain overdue."
Xiao Tianji’s response came clipped: "Unnecessary."
"Shall I deduce your purpose?" Leng Xingwen’s eyes glinted with amusement. "When have you ever cared for trivialities? Your obsessions number few. The divination, then?"
Having shared more time with the inscrutable seer than most, Leng Xingwen recognized patterns beneath Xiao Tianji’s reticence. "What exactly is this ‘Ancient Stone Tablet’ you’ve been charting?"
Silence lingered until the final question. Xiao Tianji’s head inclined fractionally. "Unknown."
"You? Ignorant?" Leng Xingwen chuckled as earth-shaking roars echoed distantly, ignored by both. "The tablet… an intuition compelled my presence here."
"Then your hunch points to this battleground." Leng Xingwen’s tone shifted. "One last query."
Xiao Tianji turned, moonlight glinting off his crown. "Speak."
"Are they truly gone?" The perpetual smile faded from Leng Xingwen’s eyes. "Is any of this real?"
Xiao Tianji seemed to peer through Leng Xingwen’s thoughts, stating calmly, "You’ve already drawn your conclusion, haven’t you?"
Leng Xingwen nodded in understanding. "I merely sought confirmation for my lingering doubts."
A maniacal laugh suddenly tore through the air, drowning out the fading clamor from the nearby Battleground.
The battle’s resolution… What outcome awaited…
This simultaneous thought flashed through every low-tier extraordinary individual’s mind before darkness swallowed their consciousness.
"Dragons? Mythical beings?" Jiang Nan snorted, eyeing his fifteen percent health bar. "Pathetic." He roared with laughter at the scattered foes. "Not a single tier ten among you could even scratch my armor!"
"Worthless trash! Now taste true power—"
【Casualty assessment: Abyssal camp – 1 survivor. Extraordinary camp – 0. Objective complete. Issuing 3,000,000 points (interest prioritized). Commencing Illusionary Battlefield shutdown…】
Jiang Nan’s eye twitched as the system’s voice faded. "Bloody hell! System, I’ll bet your creator’s name was Zhou the Skinner!"
【Illusionary Battlefield disengaged.】
【Initiate teleportation?】
Grinding his molars, Jiang Nan hissed, "Now."
In the Heavenly Law Battleground’s surface realm, bodies littered the central platform like fallen leaves. As reality reasserted itself, groans filled the air.
Yang Xingyu patted himself down frantically. "What madness is this?" he breathed, relief flooding him as intact limbs responded.
Hu Mei emerged from the stirring crowd, rushing toward Bai Ye. "You’re unharmed!"
Lin Jing stared at his original formation position. "But we regrouped…" His gaze swept across familiar starting positions. "Did death… reset us?"
Murmurs rippled through the crowd – countless warriors sharing the same revelation. Had their grand battle been mere phantoms? A shared hallucination?
Jiang Nan observed the awakening fighters from his vantage point, allowing the confusion to simmer.
"Di Yan!" Kirin’s eyes flew open, memory flashing of his companion shielding him. "Your injuries—"
"Superficial." The fire cultivator grimaced, eyeing their surroundings. "This Battleground… it defies all records."
Kirin nodded grimly. Human cultivators might dismiss the anomalies, but spirit cultivators remembered. Through generations, the Heavenly Law Battleground’s true nature had become legend, its original form lost to time.
Their demonic speech flowed around uncomprehending human ears, while lower-tier spirit cultivators deliberately deafened themselves – none dared risk overhearing demon lords’ discourse.
"Kirin! Di Yan!" A silver-haired youth materialized through the crowd, white robes fluttering like moonlit clouds. "By the Nine Peaks, it is you!"
"Bai Ze!" Kirin’s eyes lit with sudden hope. The walking encyclopedia of secrets might hold answers.
The mythical beast inclined his head before the unspoken question. "The Awakening of Spiritual Energy rewrites reality," he murmured, gaze distant. "This new era wears the Ancient Era’s name like ill-fitting armor."
His finger traced invisible patterns in the air. "Who’s to say this isn’t the Battleground’s primordial truth? Perhaps we’re the ones who forgot."
