Above the First Continent in the Fifth World of the Abyss, the characters on the World God Pendant redirected the light in Pang Jian's body into distant abysses. Pang Jian drew a deep breath, feeling as if a mountain had been lifted from his shoulders. A wave of indescribable levity flooded his entire being. The ever-present murky energy of the Fifth World rushed into him through the seven fragmented lands within his dantian, purging Luo Hongyan's lingering divine consciousness from his body. Eventually, his body no longer emitted any light. Standing in the vast expanse of the Thunder Pool, Pang Jian channeled its violent lightning with steady control, fixing his darkened gaze on Luo Hongyan. Strangely, Luo Hongyan had fallen silent as well. Her slender brows knitted ever so slightly, as if deep in thought. A sharp buzzing suddenly filled the air. Yuan Qi has ascended as a Fey God! Pang Jian, the laws of this world are unraveling faster than anyone expected! the Bee Sovereign shouted as Yuan Qi's ferocious ape form entered the view of a golden bee. Pang Jian nodded. Something feels off. Why? The Bee Sovereign asked. It's all happening too fast. Pang Jian frowned. Yuan Qi and the black turtle's ascensions are happening far too quickly. When the black turtle descended into the Sixth World and started pushing toward mid-ranking godhood, Yuan Qi's strength also surged dramatically. The entire Fey Race, from their Fey Gods to their Fey Kings and Great Feys, is undergoing a rapid and unprecedented surge in power. At that moment, Pang Jian sensed another powerful surge erupting, this time from the Primordial Wilderness in the Third World. The Ice Armor Eel Dragon! That Ice Armor Eel Dragon was also pushing for a breakthrough in its bloodline rank, clearly intent on ascending as a Fey God as soon as possible. If the Fey Race were to produce so many Fey Gods in such a short window, with some even advancing to mid-ranking godhood, their collective power in the Abyss would undoubtedly become terrifying. The Fey Race would likely not have been as powerful even during the era when the Celestial Phoenix, the black turtle, the Thunder Dragon, and the Primordial Serpent were alive. Who? Who has the power to alter the laws of the Abyss itself? The Black Empyrean Phoenix! Pang Jian carefully thought over the cause for this particular battle. It started with Luo Hongyan targeting the cluster of Fortune meant for Pang Lin. Dong Tianze had acted on his own, assassinating Jiang Fan for Pang Lin, hoping to free up a divine seat for her. That act allowed Jiang Fan's Fortune to return to the barrier. Then, because Pang Jian had torn down Sovereign Demonheaven's cloak, the barrier between the Fifth World and the upper worlds was gone, allowing Luo Hongyan to seize the Fortune. Seeing this, Pang Jian descended to the Fifth World, attempting to prevent her from absorbing it. Yan Lie, Sha Jia, and the others had then emerged from below. The black turtle and Yuan Qi also ascended as Fey Gods. A tremor ran through Pang Jian's heart as a dreadful suspicion took root in his mind. Do you know where my sister is now? he asked the Bee Sovereign. She first went to the Sacred Soul Continent to witness the battle between Fey Kings, the Bee Sovereign hastily replied. After that, she left the Abyss, claiming she was going to cultivate. She departed from the bizarre mist near the Second World. Pang Jian was left in shock. He had long suspected that the Celestial Phoenix's legacy was subtly influencing his sister, but this all but confirmed that his sister had fallen under the influence of the Celestial Phoenix, becoming its vessel. Moreover, the Celestial Phoenix was none other than the Black Empyrean Phoenix! Luo Hongyan, having ceased her attacks, wore a rare expression of shock on her breathtaking face. Rich wood energy and unclaimed blood essence had been steadily flowing into her body since her arrival in the sky above the First Continent, fueling her recovery and the forging of her fourth Divine Persona, the Divine Persona of Life. Now, without warning, she ceased the forging process. She turned her gaze toward the barrier enshrouding the First World, sensing something strange in the fourth cluster of Fortune. A storm of complex emotions flickered in her eyes. She's not as strong as you think. She's already expended a lot of power in the Seventh World. You could kill her, the black turtle in the Sixth World urged Pang Jian. Noticing the strange change in Luo Hongyan, Pang Jian wasted no time. Gathering his strength, he charged toward Luo Hongyan with the vast Thunder Pool, raising Ghostflare and swinging down. This divine artifact, once belonging to You Kui, was perfectly attuned to the soul-related techniques drawn from the Soulstream of the Nether Abyss. Pang Jian locked onto Luo Hongyan with his divine sense. "Soul Ferry! Nether River! Soul Rend!" Three techniques, all comprehended from the Soulstream, were unleashed through Ghostflare. A spectral ferry emerged atop a murky gray river, with waters that flowed with a sorrowful gloom. Petals drifted across its surface, each imbued with a deathly stillness, haunting and beautiful. As the ferry passed, the petals were torn apart like souls being ripped in two. The river and its petals stretched between Pang Jian and Luo Hongyan. More precisely, they existed between their seas of consciousness. The ferry forced its way along the gray river, shredding petal after petal along its path into Luo Hongyan's sea of consciousness. There, four colossal glaciers stood within a sea of radiance, their crystalline depths etched with flickers of shadowed lightning. Four immense auras of Light, Cold, Death, and Life emanated from within them. These towering glaciers were the Divine Personas that Luo Hongyan had forged within the Abyss. The black-sailed ferry silently appeared within Luo Hongyan's sea of consciousness. All around it, the ruined petals drifted together, reforming within this sea of radiance. Luo Hongyan's sea of consciousness splintered with every petal that became whole again. The fractures spread rapidly. It was as though the foundation of her mind had come undone. This was Pang Jian's first time using this technique from the Soulstream of the Nether Abyss, but the result was startlingly effective. "Something's not right with the fourth cluster of Fortune." Luo Hongyan's ethereal voice rang out across her sea of consciousness. The glacier representing her yet-unfinished Divine Persona of Life suddenly exploded. Deadly shards of ice from this shattered Divine Persona shot toward her remaining three Divine Personas of Light, Cold, and Death. Her already fracturing sea of consciousness was pierced through, striking deep into its core. Her Divine Personas of Light, Cold, and Death were caught in the shockwave of the Divine Persona of Life's explosion. "Black Empyrean Phoenix!" Luo Hongyan screamed, voice echoing fiercely through her and Pang Jian's sea of consciousness. She had schemed for years to claim the Black Empyrean Phoenix's insights into the Dao of Darkness, only to suffer a loss deep enough to leave her reeling. Worse still, it came right when she believed victory was already in her grasp.