The thing deep within the Fengshen Hall?
Luo Luo had seen it.
The successive generations of divine lords claid to sacrifice themselves in the Fengshen Hall for the sake of the world, but in truth, they were all devoured by that thing. Li Zhaoye’s birth father had been torn into several pieces before being swallowed by it.
It was a terrifying existence, reeking of death. Even Luo Luo couldn’t quite explain what it truly was.
If the Heavenly Dao represented the natural order, the vitality of all things, then this thing was its exact opposite.
In short, it was utterly horrifying.
“When did you see it?” Luo Luo asked.
Walking ahead of her, Taiyi Jun and Tianyin Jun turned their heads in confusion.
Taiyi Jun frowned. “What did you say?”
Luo Luo: “…”
She had forgotten she was now Hongng Jun.
Waving her hand dismissively, she brushed it off. “I was asking where the Sage has reached.”
The scene seamlessly resud. Tianyin Jun’s eyes shimred with starlight as he gazed into the distance, tracking the Sage’s movents. “He’s almost here. Let’s prepare.”
In Luo Luo’s mind, Hongng Jun—also known as Qing Xu—spoke with even greater urgency.
‘Run! Run now!’ His voice trembled faintly. ‘There’s still ti to escape. If you leave now, I’ll tell you everything you want to know!’
Luo Luo was astonished. ‘Seems like this mory is truly a deep-seated nightmare for you. Even in death, Master maintained his dignity, yet you’re so terrified you can barely speak. Hongng Jun.’
He fell silent for a mont.
Then, in an extrely low voice, he uttered a few words: ‘You’ve never been eaten.’
‘Oh,’ Luo Luo smirked maliciously. ‘But I’m just a little pheasant, aren’t I? Roasted chicken—delicious.’
He went quiet again.
He realized death didn’t frighten her.
She wasn’t afraid of dying. It wouldn’t work on her.
‘I just want what’s rightfully mine.’ He shifted tactics, appealing to her emotions, patiently explaining, ‘Li Zhaoye was picked up and raised by . He owes his life.’
‘Without , Li Ermiao would never have cultivated immortality. Li Zhaoye would have died in the Divine Water River, and you would have perished at the age of seven.’
‘Luo Luo, the reason you’re alive today is because of . You can’t repay kindness with betrayal.’
‘Ask yourself—have I ever wronged you in any way?’
Luo Luo also fell silent for a while.
“No one thinks of themselves as the villain. Every antagonist is the protagonist of their own story,” she said slowly before continuing, ‘If you truly believe you’ve done nothing wrong, why did you deceive Li Ermiao? Why did you trick him into thinking you were another version of himself instead of admitting you’re Hongng Jun?’
‘…’
She didn’t wait for his answer, pressing on: ‘Because you killed his parents. That’s an irreconcilable blood feud!’
Though the exchange was silent, her words seed to reverberate through the narrow, pitch-black hall.
After a long pause:
‘You’re wrong,’ he said coldly. ‘Li Ermiao is rely my reincarnated self. At the brink of death, I awakened my mories as Hongng Jun and helped this incarnation survive—if Li Ermiao and I weren’t one and the sa, I would have possessed and devoured him long ago. I wouldn’t have had to endure his sentintal, wishy-washy nature.’
Since things had co this far, he saw no point in hiding anything.
‘That day at Nanfeng Tower, I refused to follow Chen Xuanyi because he had slaughtered the entire city. As a soul cultivator, all those fresh, lingering spirits were a feast I couldn’t bear to leave behind.’
‘Devouring the souls of an entire city gave enough power to protect myself. Li Ermiao and I share the sa body—my strength benefits him.’
‘Without , with his diocre spiritual roots, how could he ever have stepped onto the path of cultivation?’
Luo Luo couldn’t help but recall the “dream” Li Zhaoye had crafted for Li Ermiao.
She murmured, ‘Without you, he would have lived an ordinary life, like every other common person.’
‘Hah!’ He scoffed in disdain. ‘A life like that is aningless—diocre and insignificant!’
‘You’re wrong,’ Luo Luo sighed.
He sounded exasperated. ‘Don’t start spouting empty, hypocritical platitudes at —I never used that nonsense to deceive you in the past.’
‘Oh, I won’t,’ Luo Luo said earnestly. ‘I was just going to say, when Li Zhaoye and I go out to slay demons, if they’re weaker than us, we cut through them like vegetables. If they’re stronger, we end up covered in blood.’
He didn’t understand her point.
Luo Luo added, ‘From Golden Core to Nascent Soul to God Transformation—it’s all the sa.’
When he still didn’t grasp it, she patiently explained, ‘So whether it’s cutting vegetables or getting drenched in blood has nothing to do with cultivation level. The difference lies in the comparison—it depends on whether the demon is stronger or weaker.’
If his soul had a form, he would have frowned at this mont.
‘You think Li Ermiao’s life as a mortal was diocre?’ Luo Luo laughed. ‘His father was the finest carpenter in Dongling Prefecture, earning the highest wages. Their family ate at with every al, had so much fried pork fat that he carried it around as snacks to share with others. The kids from several alleys would swarm around him, calling him “big brother.” Even being the center of attention couldn’t compare.’
‘He excelled in his studies, wrote beautiful calligraphy. During New Year’s, the whole neighborhood would co to his house asking for his inkwork—entire streets were adorned with his writing. Even as a child, he was respected by everyone.’
‘If he wanted to marry, matchmakers would’ve worn out his doorstep.’
‘In the world he lived in, he was undoubtedly the protagonist. And you?’ Luo Luo struck where it hurt. ‘What aning does your life have? In cultivation, you couldn’t surpass Master Uncle Lingxue. In character and deeds, you fell short of Master Yuan. In ancient tis, you were just a shadow trailing behind Taiyi and Tianyin—do you really think you lived with more fulfillnt than him?’
‘You don’t understand,’ his voice turned icy. ‘The Great Dao I pursue is beyond the comprehension of ordinary mortals. To attain the Dao is to ascend—transcending the Three Realms, escaping the Five Elents. How could you grasp such grand aspirations with your narrow perspective?’
‘Oh dear,’ Luo Luo chuckled. ‘You’re getting defensive. Now you’re the one spouting empty, lofty ideals.’
‘…’
A long, heavy silence followed.
Villains didn’t just die from talking too much—they could also be out-talked by the protagonist.
After Luo Luo’s relentless chatter, the Sage finally arrived.
The scheming and treachery within the hall played out once more—
Ambush. Deception. Betrayal.
As Hongng Jun attempted to seize Luo Luo’s body, Taiyi and Tianyin struck without hesitation.
But Hongng Jun wasn’t about to wait for death. He imdiately retaliated with the Great Nightmare Art.
To Luo Luo’s surprise, the illusions he cast for these two weren’t nightmares—they were beautiful dreams.
In their dreams, Taiyi Jun and Tianyin Jun believed they had successfully devoured the Sage. Excited, they left one after another, seeking a safe place to absorb the Sage’s imnse, pure power.
In reality, they hadn’t moved an inch—trapped in their fantasies, standing motionless in the hall.
"Quick, go." The voice of Hongng Jun gritted out from the depths of Luo Luo's mind, as if forced through clenched teeth. "It’s coming."
Luo Luo asked, "Where is it coming from?"
"I don’t know, but if you don’t leave now, it’ll be too—" His voice cut off abruptly.
Hongng Jun, having successfully seized the body, stirred to life. He lowered his head, flexed his fingers, twisted his wrists, and let out a series of muffled chuckles from his chest.
He had successfully taken over the Sage’s body!
"It’s already too late," he gasped, his voice ragged. "End the nightmare now! Hurry! Hurry, damn it—!"
This was the first ti Luo Luo had heard "Qing Xu" make such an undignified sound.
She had no intention of ending it.
She was far too curious about what was happening.
Excitent thrumd through her as she watched Hongng Jun, now in possession of the Sage’s body, dart toward the palace gates.
His eyes were wide, the whites nearly swallowing the pupils, his lips twisting into a grotesque grin. "I did it… I succeeded… From now on, I am… invincible! Invincible!"
"With the Sage’s power, ascension is within reach… It’s only a matter of ti! A matter of ti!"
Luo Luo knew his celebration was premature.
The logic was simple—possession only took over the flesh, but the Sage’s true vessel was not this mortal shell. It was the Divine Sealing Hall.
If the possession was a lie, then…
She could almost see the Sage smiling faintly, unbothered.
In the mory’s vision, Hongng Jun streaked through layer after layer of pitch-black halls, the flickering lights of wall lanterns blurring into streaks on either side of him.
The soul in Luo Luo’s mind had fallen deathly silent.
Was it coming soon?
Luo Luo held her breath, bracing herself.
Even the thought of that thing was enough to make her scalp crawl. Her heart pounded as she prepared for the inevitable horror.
"Whoosh—"
Suddenly, light flooded her vision.
They were out!
Luo Luo blinked in surprise. "We’re out? But I thought—"
Hongng Jun, as if compelled by so unseen force, turned to look back.
That single glance froze him in place. Luo Luo felt her entire spirit bristle in terror.
She saw it.
Where the colossal Divine Sealing Hall should have stood, there was only that thing.
The terror of that mont was earth-shattering.
Dark, sinister, ancient, impossibly vast—like the abyss of the Yellow Springs itself.
Luo Luo’s scalp prickled, her mind ringing with both her own and Hongng Jun’s screams—Don’t look! Don’t look! You’ll die! You’ll die! You’ll really die!
Her thoughts sank like mud.
"You," Luo Luo murmured, her consciousness sluggish, "took the True Breath… to release… this thing?"
At this point, running was aningless.
Hongng Jun’s voice sounded as if he were already buried up to his neck. "Do you think the True Breath of the three of us could ever seal sothing like this?"
Luo Luo answered honestly, "No, I don’t think so."
"If it hadn’t appeared, I would have succeeded!" His voice trembled with fear and fury. "I seized the Sage’s body, outplayed those two—just a little more ti, and I would have ascended! I was so close! I just wanted what was rightfully mine!"
Luo Luo sighed in pity.
Looking up, she saw the thing descending with apocalyptic force.
The world turned the color of death.
This was the ultimate horror recorded in the ancient texts—the abomination sealed in the deepest depths of the Divine Sealing Hall.
It let out a roar beyond human hearing.
In an instant, rivers reversed, mountains crumbled.
Every living thing in sight—humans, beasts, demons—collapsed where they stood, souls fleeing their bodies, necks bared as if awaiting slaughter.
"Are you going to be eaten?" Luo Luo asked.
"If you don’t end this nightmare, you’ll die too," he replied in a corpse-like whisper.
Luo Luo pressed, "Aren’t you curious how you ended up as one of the Three Ancient Sovereigns who saved the world?"
Hongng Jun: "…"
At a ti like this, who in their right mind would care about that?!
"I’m curious," Luo Luo said earnestly. "I’ll wait for it to eat you, then try casting the Great Nightmare Art on it."
Hongng Jun nearly choked.
"Don’t worry," she reassured him. "I’ll take you with ."
Hongng Jun: "…"
Closer, closer.
Souls trembled. Matter unraveled.
The maw of the abyss opened wide—devouring heaven and earth!
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