Chapter 1908: Seed of the Abyss

"Could it be that you've truly discovered something?" Qianye Ying'er's expression also grew solemn.

Yun Che said nothing. He extended his hand, flames burning in his palm. After a brief hesitation, he extinguished the fire, leaving only the purest Heretic God profound energy, which he placed on the stone slab.

With a soft hum, the dim stone slab suddenly glowed faintly. Yun Che felt his profound energy being drawn by an unseen force, rapidly drawing lines across the slab.

These lines, astonishingly, revealed rows of clear text!

"This... is it!?" Qianye Ying'er murmured in surprise. She hadn't expected this stone slab, which she had mostly forgotten about, to actually display such an anomaly.

The text on this slab only appeared when touched by Heretic God profound energy. Undoubtedly, these words were indeed inscribed by the Heretic God himself!

Furthermore, it wasn't the Primeval Divine Script or any other esoteric language, but rather common, easily recognizable characters.

Yun Che focused intently, holding his breath as he read the words left by the ancient Heretic God:

"My soul scorched by myriad tribulations, my life nearing its end. Fortunately, I have succeeded in using my remaining vitality to condense the source power into a single drop of undying blood."

"Future generations, when you bear my power, you will also bear the mission of facing the tribulations of the future alone and safeguarding the world's peace. Whether it is fortune or misfortune, even heaven cannot foretell."

If Yun Che had obtained this stone slab when he first inherited the Heretic God's divine power, he could never have imagined what the "tribulations of the future" would entail, how complex, heavy, and sigh-inducing they would be.

Now, with the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor gone and the devil gods not having descended upon the world, he had, in terms of outcome, perfectly fulfilled the Heretic God's expectations and the "mission" he spoke of.

But he understood deep down that it wasn't he who truly determined this outcome, but the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor.

"The elemental cores are scattered throughout the world. How much the Heretic God of the future can achieve depends entirely on your destiny, your will, and your conviction."

"My secrets, my concerns, the desires my wife and I could not fulfill... Heretic God of the future, how much can you discern? To uphold them, to disregard them, or to reject them, that too is your freedom."

These few words immediately filled Yun Che with endless emotion.

He now knew all the Heretic God's secrets; the Heretic God's concerns had become his own, to be protected by him.

As for the wish the Heretic God and the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor couldn't realize—the seamless, unrepelling coexistence of gods and devils—he wondered if his current efforts to gradually persuade the four regions to cast aside past grievances and prejudices for peaceful coexistence counted as a form of realization.

"My Heretic God Art is bound by seven realms; binding oneself is also protecting oneself. If power is insufficient, forcibly breaking the seals will surely harm oneself."

"Future generations are destined to never possess true gods. The 'Yan Emperor' realm is the limit a mortal body can bear. Forcibly opening the sixth and seventh realm bonds will surely destroy the body and annihilate the self, thus they are eternally sealed."

This seal, however, was undone by the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor.

"My Heretic God Art is derived from forbidden methods, and it is a forbidden power, not subject to the rules of the Heavenly Dao, nor comparable to ordinary profound arts of the mortal world. If all elemental cores are obtained and one cultivates to become a mortal 'Divine Master,' though not a divine realm, one can unleash the power of a divine realm."

"Gods and devils perished, and the world's order crumbled. Now, the dissipation of divine aura has slightly abated, and the nascent order is becoming more peaceful. If divine realm power were to reappear, it would inevitably cause turmoil in this new order, bringing disaster to mortals and all sentient beings. If one's intentions are perverse, it would be an even greater catastrophe for the world."

"Therefore, the core of earth is submerged in the abyss, forever cut off from the world, forever eliminating future troubles."

"Future bearer of my divine power, do not be overly persistent."

Yun Che withdrew his hand, and as his profound energy receded, the text on the stone slab disappeared without a trace.

"The core of earth is submerged in the abyss..." Qianye Ying'er's thoughts focused on the last sentence, and her golden brows suddenly furrowed: "The Abyss of Nothingness!?"

Submerging into the Abyss of Nothingness meant returning to eternal void. Yun Che would never be able to find the Earth Heretic God Seed again, and the world would never again see Earth-element Heretic God divine power.

"So that's how it is." After reading the Heretic God's words and learning that the Earth Heretic God Seed was forever cut off from the world, he felt a slight sense of loss, followed by understanding.

"You don't seem very surprised?" Qianye Ying'er looked at Yun Che.

Yun Che replied, "Because of the Heretic God's profound veins, whether it was the nine mortal realms or the seven divine realms, my cultivation never encountered bottlenecks. With enough power, I could easily break through."

"However, before the war with the Western Region, during the years Mei Yin and I spent in the Eternal Heaven Divine Realm, my power had clearly reached the peak of the Divine Sovereign Realm, yet I couldn't break through no matter what."

"At that time, I already suspected that the Heretic God had set up some special restriction on the profound veins, preventing his inheritors from ever surpassing the Divine Sovereign Realm... just as he deliberately sealed off the sixth and seventh realms."

"And the reason for it was similar to what I had guessed."

"To prevent powers that transcend worldly limits from appearing and causing the collapse of mortal order?" Qianye Ying'er faintly snorted, seemingly displeased with the restriction set by the Heretic God. "The name 'Heretic God' might as well be changed to 'Holy God'."

Yun Che shot her a sideways glance. "Almost every step the Heretic God took in his remaining life was for the sake of future generations. Without him, whether the current chaotic world would even exist, let alone be peaceful, would be unknown."

"..." Knowing all this, Qianye Ying'er didn't deny it.

"Divine aura dissipation..." Yun Che softly repeated the four words from the stone slab, then mused, "It seems that after the gods and devils were annihilated in the Great Tribulation of Death and Destruction, the Primal Chaos experienced a prolonged and likely significant loss of spiritual energy. Only when the Heretic God's remaining life was nearing its end did the spiritual energy dissipation gradually slow and stop. The laws and order of the Primal Chaos also slowly stabilized in this nascent spiritual environment."

"However, with the demise of all gods and devils and the massive loss of spiritual energy, the law-plane of this nascent world must have significantly declined and become much more fragile. Under such spiritual energy and plane conditions, it's no longer possible for true gods to appear in later generations."

"But the Heretic God knew deep down that the 'Divine Devil Forbidden Tome' he and the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor created was too taboo and powerful. If cultivated to perfection, it could allow a mortal body to unleash power at the divine realm."

"And now, if a person capable of unleashing divine realm power were to appear in this godless world, it would very likely cause turmoil, or even collapse, in the established laws and order of this 'fragile' world."

The global chaos before and after the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor's return, the trembling of most of the Northern Divine Region after he forcibly activated "God's Ember" in the Burning Moon Divine Realm, and the terrifying, unparalleled cosmic phenomena when the Southern Sea Divine Realm deployed the Nethergod Cannon...

All of these undoubtedly proved this point deeply.

"It was precisely due to such considerations that the Heretic God forever severed one Heretic God Seed from the world."

As he spoke these words, Yun Che's heart was filled not with regret, but with an even deeper layer of admiration and reverence.

That was the power that had accompanied the Heretic God throughout his life.

Yet, he was willing to let his power remain eternally incomplete rather than have it bring hidden dangers to the world.

Yun Che raised his arm, looking at his palm. "It seems I'm indeed destined not to achieve the Divine Master Realm. But that's fine; I don't have to worry about searching for that last Heretic God Seed anymore."

Although he could only ever reach the peak of the Divine Sovereign Realm in his lifetime, possessing the Heretic God's divine power at such a level made him unparalleled in the world. The unattainable Divine Master Realm was not important to him.

"Speaking of which, there are two questions I'm very curious about," Qianye Ying'er suddenly said.

"Hm?"

"First, where did all that dissipated spiritual energy go? Is it possible that it could even penetrate the Primal Chaos Wall and disperse into the outer chaos?"

"..." Yun Che didn't respond.

Because this was also a question left by the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor.

"Second, has the dissipation of spiritual energy truly stopped?" Qianye Ying'er narrowed her eyes. "Putting everything else aside, the Northern Divine Region's territory has never stopped shrinking."

"Who knows," Yun Che said casually, as if unconcerned.

Yet, in his mind, the strange sensation he felt every time he entered or exited the God Realm of Absolute Beginning, a sensation whose origin he couldn't pinpoint or describe, resurfaced.

Leaving the Brahma Monarch God Realm, Yun Che officially began touring the Eastern Divine Region with Yun Wuxin.

The razed Eternal Heaven Realm... the fractured Star God Realm... the Glazed Light Realm where Shui Meiyin resided... the Sky Veil Realm half-covered by desert... the Black Soul Realm where he first met Caizhi...

Heading north, they drew closer and closer to the Snow Song Realm.

Upon reaching the northern border of the Eastern Region, instead of immediately entering the Snow Song Realm with Yun Wuxin, he first went to the neighboring Blazing Heaven Realm.

Yun Wuxin primarily cultivated the Phoenix World Ode. As the star realm carrying the Phoenix's legacy in the God Realm, he naturally had to bring Yun Wuxin to see it... especially the God Burying Inferno, where the residual spirit of the Phoenix once resided.

When the million-mile-wide God Burying Inferno appeared in their sight, Yun Wuxin let out a long cry of surprise... and Yun Che also stared in a daze for a long time.

This place held profound significance for him as well.

It was where his relationship with Mu Xuanyin (Chi Wuyao) had undergone a subtle qualitative change. Recalling it now, he couldn't help but chuckle... chuckling at his past self, and savoring the dreamlike beauty of that moment.

"Father, your smile is so..." Yun Wuxin pondered for a while before choosing the mildest word: "Peculiar."

"Uh, cough cough." Yun Che quickly composed his features, making his expression serious. "I was just recalling the time I, with mere Divine Origin Realm cultivation, saved your Aunt Xuanyin from that Divine Master Dragon's claws. That was my first great achievement after entering the divine path."

"..." Connecting this to his father's previous lewd smile, Yun Wuxin was highly skeptical but still played along, "Is that why Aunt Xuanyin developed feelings for Father?"

"Of course!" Yun Che nodded proudly.

Hmm... probably?

Just then, he suddenly sensed something and his gaze sharply shifted.

Using Vanishing Shadow Thunder to conceal his and Yun Wuxin's aura, Yun Che flew with Yun Wuxin towards the west. "I'll take you to see... an old acquaintance."

West of the God Burying Inferno, in front of a massive crimson barrier.

Yan Wancang, Yan Juehai, Huo Rulie... the three Flame God Sect Masters were all present, and in front of them stood the Blazing Heaven Realm King, Huo Poyun.

The four most central figures of the Blazing Heaven Realm were gathered here, indicating that it was clearly no small matter.

Huo Poyun stood before the barrier. As he approached, the barrier seemed to react, its fiery glow gradually becoming more turbulent.

An incredibly violent flame aura... this barrier was forged with Golden Crow Divine Flames.

"For this period, I'll trouble you three with the large and small matters of the Blazing Heaven Realm."

After Huo Poyun finished speaking, his palm reached out to touch the barrier.

"Great Realm King, please reconsider... please reconsider," Yan Wancang's voice was heavy with pain and powerlessness. Clearly, they had attempted countless dissuasions before this, all to no avail.

"Great Realm King, we have no right, nor the ability, to stop you, but... please wait three more months," Yan Juehai's face was full of pleading. "If you are still determined after three months, we will not stop you."

"My mind is made up," Huo Poyun's long hair fluttered in the scorching wind. Compared to the bleak expressions of the three Sect Masters, his own was calm and resolute. "You don't need to persuade me further."

As he finished speaking, his palm touched the barrier.

"Hm?" From high in the sky, Yun Che watched below... What was Huo Poyun doing?