Chapter 176: The Endpoint

As he appeared, several figures stepped forward, blocking the way between the gathered crowd and the already distant Miss Vilyric.

Who else could it be if not the disciples of the Enlightened Spirit Sect?

Standing at the front, Shangguan Hong squeezed his fist the size of a sandbag, a cold light flickering in his heavy-set eyes, but he grinned with delight.

“Heh heh, it’s been a while since I got to seriously fight with a ‘person.’ Daoist of the Xuanmen, Iron Fist King, Swordsman of Calligraphy and Painting… what a luxurious lineup! Let’s see if your skills are truly as great as your reputation claims.”

Two sleeve swords shot out from his hands, and Shangguan Yao coolly reminded her elder brother.

“Don’t be cocky; those are all renowned experts on the Top 100 list. Be careful not to get your teeth knocked out.”

The tall and solid Liu Quan summoned the Hongmen Golden Bell Shield, only smiling foolishly as he stood at the forefront. The remaining disciples of the Enlightened Spirit Sect also took fighting stances, each solidifying their position.

The girl with a twin-tailed braid raised her head to glance at Hen, whose hidden smile and peculiar gaze left Hen slightly surprised, as if she understood something and nodded slightly.

She shifted her gaze to the few dark-haired, white-clad figures, who bore some resemblance to Someone Priestess but were merely acquaintances of little time, and found that the place was now utterly empty, leaving no clue as to their whereabouts.

“…”

Ignoring the suddenly vanished figures, she shook her head and refocused her attention on the noise-makers in front who were loudly instigating the crowd, which sounded to her like the cawing of crows.

“Forward, Miss Vilyric! This time it’s no mere skirmish; may you find that… satisfactory answer for everyone.”

……

“Zzzzzzzz…”

A pitch-black rift in space suddenly appeared without warning, erupting an ear-splitting buzz from the dark-haired girl’s feather-patterned white robe, like a high-speed cutting machine colliding with refined steel, sending visible sparks flying.

However, nothing happened.

Glancing at the still untouched and unstained Feather Robe of Glareia, Vilyric turned to look at Miss Xiao Kong, who was strolling through the forbidden zone, seemingly as if those space rifts were purposefully avoiding her, and expressed her surprise.

“Hey, hey, are you playing a little dirty? Why can you do this?”

The Cat Daughter smiled at her slightly.

“Vilyric, I’m a ‘Demon,’ after all. A few passive abilities to secure my existence aren’t unusual.”

“Rather, I’d say my dodging is just cleverness; you relying solely on your physical body to withstand endless spatial rifts seems absurd to me. Is this outfit some kind of defensive Origin Artifact?”

“Maybe? I’m not really clear on the specifics… but it is definitely one of my most important companions.”

“A companion…”

Glancing at the slightly glowing white robe that seemed to respond to its owner, Miss Xiao Kong didn’t stick to the current topic but pointed toward the far-off area, now completely blocked by dark rifts, making it impossible to see what lay ahead.

“Let’s go this way; we’re very close now. The core of this ruinous space is just ahead, and I can sense its astounding spatial density.”

“Okay.”

As they quickened their pace, Miss Vilyric couldn’t help but express her curiosity.

“Speaking of which, you have a keen sense of space, Xiao Kong. In this environment where the energy fluctuations are extremely chaotic and the space is frequently collapsing and reassembling, I can’t find the specific direction without some special means. I’d probably be fumbling around here for ages.”

Saying this, the black-haired girl brought up a question she had been pondering for a long time.

“I once heard a friend mention that in the very distant past, there was a main god who mastered spatial laws, known as the God of Space. However, for some unknown reason, they vanished without a trace. As a deity in that time, is your power related to ‘space’?”

“You even know about the God of Space? That’s quite an ancient entity you’re referring to; who exactly is your friend?”

Though surprised, the Cat Daughter’s attitude toward this topic seemed somewhat ambiguous, neither confirming nor denying it.

“My power is indeed related to ‘space,’ but that doesn’t mean we’re equivalent. If you think I’m the God of Space, then you’re gravely mistaken. For now, better not to overthink things and focus on what’s in front of us.”

“Oh, we’re here!”

With another shout from the Cat Daughter, the odd stretching of the conversation came to an end as she hurried forward, raising her hand as if to part the clouds, dispersing the myriad of densely packed black rifts ahead, revealing what lay within to her and the Priestess.

“This is…?”

Suspended in this forbidden domain, at the center of the ruinous space and ancient town, was a form held and protected by countless spatial rifts—a round, dark mass that resembled a hazy sun, both tangible and intangible.

Its contours were vague, presenting a roughly flattened shape about ten feet in diameter, bright on the outside but dark inside, and even at the most prominent bright edges, the glow remained dim.

If one had to describe it, the only term that came to Miss Vilyric’s mind was “colorful black.”

And this strange color… she couldn’t shake off an odd sense of familiarity, but couldn’t recall where she’d seen it before—it felt truly bizarre.

That object was like a source, hovering in the air, yet emanating faint ripples like an active sun, scattering light to every corner around it.

Without a doubt, the key core maintaining this ruin’s existence was this thing.

Also gazing up at the dark sphere above, Miss Xiao Kong seemed to come to a realization and nodded in succession, muttering to herself.

“So that’s what it is… No wonder she insisted you come see it in person. Heh… Now I finally understand why this sect was wiped out before.

Before the Priestess could ask, she tilted her head to continue.

“Vilyric, you should already know the terrifying disaster known as ‘Evil Demon’ that nearly destroyed the Ancient Spirit Realm, right? Do you understand the reason for its initial emergence?”

“Um, because of the war between the Ancestor Dragon and Destruction?”

“That’s about right… But do you know how the main force of the Evil Demon was destroyed?”

“The main force of the Evil Demon?”

This question was one that Vilyric had indeed pondered carefully.

According to the records in the Ancient Spirit Realm, the Evil Demon Chaos was quelled due to the descent of the Four Saints, along with the support from Lingyin Fairy Island, enduring countless hardships before finally stabilizing it, thus establishing the present four-country structure of the world.

But Vilyric felt there were apparent flaws in this explanation.

Of the original Four Saints and Four Sacred Beasts, she’s already met Ling Saint Yuan Qianqiu and the West Sacred Beast Qilin; they were indeed powerful, possessing strength above level 70, enough to be called ‘Transcendental’ in this world, or perhaps ‘Pseudo-Gods’ or ‘Mature Mythical Species’ in the primordial land.

If we extend the assumed strength of the other three Saints and Sacred Beasts, then that makes nearly ten Pseudo-Gods, along with the other spirit beasts that cooperated at the time—it was indeed a huge force, even considerably sizable before the mythical species disappeared in the primordial land.

But could that alone really stand against the then fully flourishing Evil Demon force?

One question remained unanswered.

Among the Evil Demons, just how many strong individuals had reached above the Pseudo-God realm?

   

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