Chapter 2104: Abyss Ghost Knight

"Stop! Stop!" Yuchi Nanxing shrieked, his voice so sharp and hoarse that it startled even himself. He didn't want to admit it, but a clear voice from the depths of his soul told him his conviction was wavering. In the extreme confusion of that moment, he had actually believed for a few fleeting seconds... and even a single instant of belief was an unforgivable sin to him. The sound he made was not the cold, severe reprimand of a Deep Sea Knight against sin and defilement, but clearly the choked sound of profound panic.

Yuchi Nanxing bit his tongue hard, but the intense pain still couldn't completely suppress the tremors in his heart and soul. He slowly raised his eyes, striving for clarity in his gaze, as if wanting the Mist Sovereign and everyone else to see his unyielding conviction: "Mist Sovereign, how dare you slander the Abyssal Sovereign like this, spreading such deceptive words... You are severing... the last bit of leniency the Pure Land has for you!"

"Slander? Deceptive words? Misleading the world?" Compared to the Deep Sea Knight's clearly emotional outburst, the Mist Sovereign's voice remained low and cold, carrying the disdain of one who looks down from above: "As this Sovereign understands, you Deep Sea Knights pride yourselves on purity and justice. Then, for the questions that follow, respond to this Sovereign and to the world with your so-called pure soul and righteous character!"

"This Sovereign can control the abyssal dust, but the Abyssal Sovereign cannot. Respond to this Sovereign, respond to the world: which words here are slander, which are deceptive?" Yuchi Nanxing's throat worked, but no sound escaped. Even the will that had just reformed in his eyes silently disintegrated amidst the trembling. The Abyssal Sovereign's inability to control abyssal dust was common knowledge. And the Mist Sovereign's ability to control it... he had witnessed it himself.

"This Sovereign can control abyssal beasts, but the Abyssal Sovereign cannot. Respond to this Sovereign, respond to the world: which words here are slander, which are deceptive?" Yuchi Nanxing still couldn't respond. The clarity that had so painstakingly gathered in his eyes once again turned into a chaotic grey mist.

"An Abyssal Sovereign who cannot control abyssal dust or abyssal beasts nevertheless opened up the life-realm of this world. Yet, this Sovereign, who can control this world's abyssal dust and abyssal beasts, has become a sinner requiring punishment from the Pure Land... Hehehehe, hahahaha!" "Deep Sea Knight, respond to this Sovereign, respond to the world: who is truly slandering? Who is spreading deceptive words? Who is misleading the world?!"

Yuchi Nanxing's broken arm slowly lifted, but not to struggle to stand. Instead, he agonizingly clutched his head: "No... no... it's all fake... stop talking... don't say another word..."

However, the Mist Sovereign's voice still clearly echoed in his ears and soul: "This world is the world of the abyss, and abyssal dust is its essence. Yet, a person who cannot control abyssal dust, who even rejects and fears it, dares to call himself Sovereign, dares to call himself the Creator Sovereign of this world—what a ridiculous joke!" "He is the true spreader of deceptive words, the one who misleads the world, as you claim! If creating a realm of life can be called creation, then this Sovereign is the true Creator Sovereign of this world!"

A deathly silence fell between heaven and earth, with only the Mist Sovereign's voice remaining. Not a single profound practitioner in the distance made even the slightest sound; they couldn't even feel the slightest pain from their injuries. This was because they were listening with their own ears to a "truth" that was bound to shock the world. Only the profound image stones, taken out earlier, emitted faint profound light, recording scenes that would surely stir up chaos across the realms.

"And you, Deep Sea Knights, acting as lackeys for the one who misleads the world, come to punish the Creator Sovereign who granted you peace, yet you still claim to be pure and just." The Mist Sovereign's subsequent words delivered an almost fatal blow to Yuchi Nanxing and Bai Yu, the two Deep Sea Knights: "Before today, you might have been called deluded fools. But now, you have personally witnessed this Sovereign's power and heard the truth of this world. Who is the savior, and who is the deceiver? No profound wisdom is needed, nor a pure soul; merely knowing the most basic common sense of this world makes it obvious."

"Stop! Stop!!" The Deep Sea Knight's voice was now a beast-like roar. The Mist Sovereign's words were undoubtedly utterly destroying their lifelong honor and faith... Yet, what he had seen and heard today made his will and conviction waver and tremble ever more violently. How could he accept this... how could he believe it...

Words spilled from Yuchi Nanxing's blood-stained teeth, one after another: "No matter how you try to delude us... don't think you can... shake our absolute loyalty to the Pure Land and the Abyssal Sovereign..."

The Mist Sovereign's voice was faint: "Deep Sea Knight, your words have already admitted that even knowing the truth of the world, you still choose to be a wretched lackey bred by a despicable individual." "This is what the Deep Sea Knights of the Pure Land are. Your very existence contaminates purity and justice, turning them into the dirtiest, most ridiculous words in this world! Your names, your presence, are in this Sovereign's eyes, the most hypocritical, pathetic, and contemptible spirits in this world!"

This was the most extreme humiliation Yuchi Nanxing and Bai Yu had ever heard since becoming Deep Sea Knights. And far more terrifying than the humiliation was the "truth" they had seen and learned today.

"You are unworthy of the blessings this Sovereign bestowed, for which I slumbered for a million years!" As the Mist Sovereign's voice faded, the Qilin's claw hovering above Yuchi Nanxing descended once more.

*Boom—* Having endured dozens of stomps before, sustaining injuries all over his body without losing consciousness, Yuchi Nanxing's vision went black. But this time, his soul didn't struggle; instead, he simply let himself sink into the darkness... falling into a coma. This was undoubtedly a tragic escape. If he had a choice, he would never have come here today. Before losing consciousness, his most intense desire was for someone to strip away all his memories of this day... even if it meant carving out a part of his soul.

Bai Yu roared, the will of a Deep Sea Knight forbidding him from retreating or abandoning a comrade. Instinctively, he lunged towards Yuchi Nanxing. But as soon as he neared, the Abyssal Qilin God's other Qilin claw slammed down from above... His pupils contracted sharply, and the light in his vision rapidly dimmed. Before consciousness faded, he felt as if ten thousand mountains were crashing down on his head, and vaguely heard the terrified shouts of the accompanying knights...

Bai Yu, with almost no power to resist, was trampled underfoot by the Abyssal Qilin God, falling silent alongside Yuchi Nanxing.

*Roar—* The Abyssal Qilin God let out a roar, and all the profound practitioners observing from afar were swept away by a terrifying storm. Then, the abyssal mist rolled, obscuring everyone's vision and blocking their senses.

From within the abyssal mist, Yun Che's figure slowly emerged, walking until he reached the Abyssal Qilin God's claws. As the two front claws moved away, the two unconscious Deep Sea Knights appeared before him.

Yuchi Nanxing's condition was utterly tragic; his bones, flesh, and internal organs were all shattered by the Abyssal Qilin God's terrifying power. However, protected by the powerful Divine Master realm, even with such severe injuries, he would not lose his life. Furthermore, with the resources available in the Pure Land, if he returned, he could gradually recover to his peak condition in not too long. Therefore, if one wished to diminish the Pure Land's strength, now was the perfect time to eliminate this knight commander.

Yun Che stepped forward, extended his palm, and held it above Yuchi Nanxing's brow, his expression slowly turning cold.

"I advise against it." Li Sa's voice echoed in his soul sea at the opportune moment: "If it were an ordinary Deep Sea Knight, even one at the late stage of the Divine Extinction Realm, you would likely succeed. But... you should know, he is a Divine Master Realm practitioner." "Even though his condition is so deteriorated, his body and soul's instincts are still formidable. You have almost no chance of success, and... it might even backfire on you."

Yun Che's palm, however, did not move away.

Li Sa continued to persuade him: "You have already mobilized so many abyssal beasts and abyssal dust all at once today, completely reaching your limit. Do not take further risks by force. Change your target; 'abyssalizing' another Deep Sea Knight would be enough."

Yun Che's palm still did not leave, and he responded softly in his soul: "With the Abyssal Qilin God shattering his body, and the Mist Sovereign's words shattering his soul, his spirit and soul are both broken now; he's not as formidable as you think. I... might just succeed!"

His finger landed on Yuchi Nanxing's brow, and his soul surged directly into the other's soul sea. Although Yuchi Nanxing was in a deep coma, the instinctive defense of his powerful divine soul still completely repelled Yun Che's soul power... But at the very instant Yuchi Nanxing's soul rippled, a cluster of silvery-white abnormal light suddenly appeared deep within Yun Che's pupils.

It seemed to be a blooming white flower, its petals pure as snow, its edges shimmering with silver light, overflowing with dream-like brilliance as it layered open. Yun Che's lips moved slightly, uttering a soul-stirring whisper: "Otherworldly... Dream... Epiphyllum..."

Even though Yuchi Nanxing was unconscious, his tightly clenched teeth slowly relaxed. He had a dream... no, to him, it wasn't a dream. He had woken up, and though severely injured, he was safely brought back to the Pure Land by Bai Yu. The supreme Abyssal Sovereign personally visited him, healing his wounds with his unparalleled divine power. The Grand Divine Official entered, informing the Abyssal Sovereign that the Mist Sovereign had been punished, and its true form was merely a special abyssal ghost with lingering consciousness, skilled at hiding in the shadows and deluding people with false words. He even tossed out the "corpse" of the Mist Sovereign; indeed, it was just a small abyssal ghost, black all over and ugly-faced. As expected, all the slanders against the Pure Land and the Abyssal Sovereign were false. As expected, his faith remained supreme, and his honor, brilliant and flawless. He closed his eyes contentedly, his will sinking into sleep within sleep...

The epiphyllum in Yun Che's eyes vanished, replaced by a pitch-black dragon shadow. His raging dragon soul easily broke through Yuchi Nanxing's dormant soul sea... encountering almost no resistance. He succeeded!

Yun Che's spirit stirred greatly. He raised his hand, and the abyssal dust in the surrounding space instantly swirled as if caught in a storm, converging towards his hand. Then, between his fingers, a rapidly deepening mist of abyssal dust condensed. One breath, two breaths... five breaths... thirty breaths... Sweat poured down Yun Che's forehead like rain, and his expression gradually became one of pain. Finally, the swirling of the abyssal mist slowly ceased, and a black gleam appeared in his palm. The black gleam, half a foot long, was more profound than the deepest night in the world. It was a narrow thread formed by the vast abyssal dust from the surrounding space. Its concentration of abyssal dust was beyond what any ordinary person could imagine.

Yun Che flipped his palm, dropping the extremely profound thread of abyssal dust onto Yuchi Nanxing's brow, directly into his wide-open soul sea. Facing Yun Che's series of almost insane actions, Li Sa made no further sound, to avoid even the slightest disturbance to him. As the last trace of black gleam vanished into Yuchi Nanxing's brow, Yun Che took a step back, his entire body finally went limp, and he collapsed heavily onto the ground.

"Gasp... gasp..." He gasped for air, but when he looked up, his eyes were savage, and he let out a wild, unrestrained laugh: "Hahahaha... hahahaha..." Slowly raising his arm, which trembled slightly from exhaustion, he pointed at the silent Yuchi Nanxing and uttered the Mist Sovereign's low chant: "Welcome to the Mist Sea, distinguished..." "Abyssal... Ghost... Knight!" No one responded, nor did he need a response.

Beside Yun Che, a translucent white figure slowly materialized. She extended her snow-white hand, wreathed in holy white light, and placed ancient divine power upon him: "You've pushed yourself too hard." "No," Yun Che replied with a smile, "I just believed in myself enough." Under Li Sa's divine power, Yun Che's greatly depleted profound energy quickly recovered. But this respite didn't last long, and Yun Che stood up again. With a sweep of his arm, the rolling abyssal mist instantly surged forward.

"You..." Li Sa started, intending to dissuade him. "Don't stop me. Since I've 'revealed myself,' this final step must be completed." As Yun Che moved, his body was enveloped by the abyssal mist: "I am the successor of the Heretic God, the Yun Emperor of the God Realm, the Mist Sovereign of the Mist Sea... how could I be as frail as you fear!" Li Sa said no more, only letting out a faint sigh.

Profound Desert City was in utter chaos. Both Deep Sea Knights had been dragged into the abyssal mist, surely perishing beneath the terrifying claws of the Ancestral Qilin God. The profound practitioners of Profound Desert City were either bewildered with fear, wailing in agony, or desperately trying to flee. A large portion remained ensnared by the Mist Sovereign's words, not yet fully recovering their senses.

Just then, widespread shouts of alarm erupted. People looked to the west, only to find an immense grey mist rolling towards them, carrying the increasingly close aura of death from the Mist Sea. "This... this is..." Mo Xifeng stared blankly at the sky. For him, every moment of this day had been an absurd nightmare.

The churning of the abyssal mist slowly ceased, and the Mist Sovereign's eyes gradually appeared in the sky, uttering a cold and imposing voice: "Mo Xifeng, this Sovereign saved your son's life, granted you favor, and even bestowed protection upon the entire Profound Desert Realm. Yet you repaid kindness with enmity, using this Sovereign's boon to help the Pure Land ambush this Sovereign!" Mo Xifeng lost all strength and fell to his knees with a thud, wailing: "The Pure Land's decree is one no one in this world dares to disobey..." At this point, he stopped trying to justify himself and bowed his head weakly: "Never mind. Whatever the reason, this act was indeed repaying kindness with enmity. Whatever punishment the Mist Sovereign inflicts, I... deserve it, and will have no complaints."

The Mist Sovereign's voice descended amidst everyone's trembling fear: "This Sovereign never wishes to needlessly kill living beings, but neither shall I be betrayed by them!" "This Sovereign grants you ten breaths of time to leave this Profound Desert Realm." "After ten breaths, this world shall no longer have a Profound Desert Realm!" "...!?" Mo Xifeng looked up in terror.

At that moment, two figures were violently flung out from the abyssal mist: Yuchi Nanxing and Bai Yu, both gravely wounded and appearing almost dead. "Commander! Sir Knight!" The seven escorting knights, lost in disarray, rushed forward, catching the falling Yuchi Nanxing and Bai Yu. Mo Xifeng also realized something then. He suddenly stood up and roared, turning around: "Retreat quickly! Everyone evacuate to the east! Hurry!!"

One breath... Two breaths... Five breaths... Ten breaths! The abyssal mist descended, directly engulfing the Profound Desert Realm, rapidly transforming this small life-realm into a death-ridden land swirling with abyssal dust. Soon, a world-shaking piece of news would spread throughout the Abyss... A section of the Mist Sea had suddenly expanded by a full five hundred miles, swallowing the Profound Desert Realm and turning the former dwelling place of cultivators into a new border of the Mist Sea.

This time, Yun Che was utterly exhausted. Yet, he did not take any time to recuperate. Instead, he dropped into the Abyssal Qilin God's scales and rapidly returned with it to the depths of the Mist Sea.

Li Sa reappeared, restoring his excessively depleted profound energy with divine light: "Why such haste?" Yun Che took several deep breaths before replying softly: "The Mist Sovereign's appearance today will be entirely different from any previous time. As the images recorded by those profound practitioners on their profound image stones spread, the entire Abyss, including the Pure Land and the God Realm, will surely be violently shaken." "I must return to the God Realm of Weaving Dreams as quickly as possible at this time, to cut off any possibility of associating me with the Mist Sovereign."

Li Sa said: "One is the unpredictable Mist Sovereign, wandering the Mist Sea, and the other is the son of a revered deity, residing long in Weaving Dreams. There is absolutely no way anyone could associate the two of you, for any reason. Your actions are quite unnecessary." "You are right, but doing something is always better than doing nothing," Yun Che said, panting. "Moreover, with this action, I am guarding against Hua Qingying, since both the 'Mist Sovereign' and the Qilin God first appeared before her eyes." "Thus, with the Mist Sovereign's sure-to-be-shocking appearance this time... and my clear presence in the God Realm of Weaving Dreams, even if she were ten thousand times more perceptive, with a million conjectures, she would never again be able to link me with the Mist Sovereign."

Li Sa said no more... He was alone and unaided in this world, and what he had to do was to be an enemy of the entire Abyss, with absolutely no room for failure. Therefore, he was incredibly cautious, overly cautious.

"Will the 'Abyssal Core' planted in the Deep Sea Knights truly not be detected?" she asked another question. "No," Yun Che replied with absolute certainty. "Abyssal dust, to the people of this world, is fundamentally a super-dimensional existence. It can never be perceived by divine sense. People's perception of abyssal dust comes from the feedback generated when life aura and soul aura are obstructed and eroded." "So, as long as the 'Abyssal Core' hidden within his soul doesn't go out of control, it will be almost impossible for either the Deep Sea Knight himself or anyone else to detect it."

Li Sa softened her voice: "But you pushed yourself too hard today. Why didn't you wait a few more years? By then, your control over abyssal dust and abyssal beasts would surely be more skilled and powerful, and you wouldn't be in this state now."

Yun Che slowly shook his head: "I've been building momentum for a year, and this timing is just right to make the Pure Land somewhat suspicious and alert, but only slightly so, which means they would only send Deep Sea Knights." "The appearance of this knight commander was already slightly unexpected." "If I had waited a few more years, allowing suspicion and vigilance to accumulate and intensify until they took it seriously... it might have attracted divine officials themselves." "If that were the case, I would have no chance of coping."