"I was planning to do just that."
The Abyssal Sage King murmured to himself.
He looked towards the spatial passage, weighing the current situation.
Taking a step back, even if the God Realm still existed, and the God Kings like Tang San were secretly lying in wait, the fact that they hadn't intervened directly now meant they lacked certainty. In other words, the Abyss hadn't fallen into the deepest predicament yet and could still withdraw at any time.
"I just need to verify my suspicions. Once I confirm the God Realm truly still exists, I'll sever the passage immediately and maneuver the Abyss to escape."
And verifying whether the God Realm had left was also simple.
All it took was letting a cultivator from a lower plane ascend to godhood.
The God Realm exercised extremely strict control over its directly affiliated lower planes. For the sake of its own ruling stability, it absolutely forbade the cultivation systems of lower planes from having a path to the god-level.
Once a lower plane's cultivation system could produce gods, two distinct groups would form between the ascendants from the lower plane and the deities of the God Realm. These two groups would inevitably plant the seeds for the God Realm's demise.
It wouldn't even take that long.
Imagine a deity cultivating in the God Realm for thirty years—merely a normal period of secluded cultivation—while ten thousand years pass in the lower plane. Ten thousand years is enough for a plane to give birth to over a dozen ascendants.
Yet, how would these ascendants feel?
Generation after generation of ascendants from the lower planes would exhaust their lifespans waiting, unable to secure a single vacant godhood position.
The God Realm's godhood inheritance system seemed perfect. Deities, after enjoying their long lives, would grow bored, feel imprisoned, pass on their godhoods, and then leave the God Realm.
But how long would it take for a deity, from inheriting a godhood to feeling bored?
Thirty years was definitely not enough.
A hundred years would even be short.
After all, under the God Realm's system, these deities had directly achieved godhood from a limit state similar to a Spirit Master's ninety-ninth rank. Even the lowest Third-Class Deity should correspond to a level above 110 in the Douluo Spirit Master world.
How long would it take to cultivate from level 100 to 110?
Even with a godhood in hand, it would take at least ten years to start with, right?
After reaching the realm corresponding to the godhood, how long would it take to cultivate to level 119?
How long could seeking a breakthrough consume?
How long to enjoy life?
Added together, this time was far, far too long.
"Demon Empress, after wrestling with me for so long, it's time to give her a taste of sweetness. As long as she can ascend to godhood, then the God Realm must have already vanished."
"Not only must she ascend, but she must do so in the most orthodox form, through the path of a Spirit Master."
The latter point didn't worry the Abyssal Sage King.
Through his temptations, the Demon Empress had already taken human form and was in secluded cultivation recovering her strength.
Over these many years, borrowing the power of the Holy Spirit Cult, she had recovered most of her cultivation. The key now was breaking through to the god-level.
Su Ming was unaware of the Abyssal Sage King's thoughts.
He only sensed the Abyssal Sage King's fury. The seal on the spatial passage connecting the two planes began to loosen, and abyssal energy surged against the seal like a tidal wave. The sky above the entire mountain range was engulfed by dark energy.
"Disaster! An Abyssal Tide!"
"How is this possible? An Abyssal Tide without any warning?"
Cao Dezhi rushed out from the Blood God Camp in shock, his face paling. Exchanging a glance with Legion Commander Zhang Huanyun, he immediately mobilized the Spirit Masters of the legion.
"Su Ming, it must be something he did," Cao Dezhi thought to himself.
His gaze locked onto Su Ming's dormitory, spotting Su Ming, who had also been drawn out by the Abyssal Tide.
"What did you do?"
Cao Dezhi didn't accuse, merely asking calmly.
"I absorbed a bit of abyssal energy. I seemed to have succeeded, so the Abyssal Sage King over there probably noticed and got furious."
Su Ming didn't hide it.
"What?"
Cao Dezhi's face changed dramatically.
He had originally thought it was a minor issue, that they just needed to endure this tide. He never expected Su Ming to have done something so earth-shattering.
"You fool!"
"Even if you were confident in absorbing it, you shouldn't have acted so recklessly!"
Cao Dezhi anxiously paced in place.
He glanced at the seal entrance, where Abyssal creatures were already beginning to emerge. Grabbing Su Ming, he hurried towards the front lines.
"Abyssal energy has strict ownership properties. Once you absorb it, even if there's no problem now, you'll be influenced by the Abyssal Sage King later."
Why is the structure within the Abyss so stable?
Precisely because the one controlling everything is the Abyssal Sage King.
He can grant you everything, and he can strip you of everything.
"Don't worry, my absorption was quite perfect. I won't be influenced by the Abyssal Sage King."
"Don't be overconfident."
"If the Abyssal Sage King could influence me, he wouldn't be so anxious."
Cao Dezhi was stunned.
He felt what Su Ming said made some sense.
If the Abyssal Sage King wasn't anxious, why would he launch an Abyssal Tide?
Moreover, this Abyssal Tide was unprecedented.
"Disaster, the Abyssal Tide. Come with me to the front lines quickly."
He then remembered the immediate task was resisting the Abyssal Tide.
At the very front lines, when Su Ming and Cao Dezhi arrived, the seal was already badly damaged. Three Abyssal Emperors had even descended, all of them Emperor-level existences at the limit.
"That's the Ba Emperor!"
"The Charm Emperor!"
"And the Black Emperor!"
Cao Dezhi's knowledge of the 108 Abyssal Emperors was deep; he actually recognized the corresponding three emperors at a glance.
Aside from the top-ranked Abyssal Sage King, and the Spirit Emperor and Blaze Emperor, he could probably recognize them all.
Su Ming's gaze fixed on the Ba Emperor.
The energy within this Ba Emperor was the most abundant, aligning with the path of Qi and blood. Half of the ninth-rank powerhouses he had slain in the Abyss were Ba'ans.
The Charm Emperor was the ruler of the Charm Demon tribe, skilled in the path of charm.
As for the Black Emperor, he was the patriarch of the Black Emperor tribe, adept at devouring all kinds of energy. The Abyssal Sage King sending him here was clearly intended to reclaim the power that had just been absorbed.
After a quick scan of the three Emperors, Su Ming spoke up: "Leave the Charm Emperor and the Ba Emperor to me. You handle the Black Emperor."
The Black Emperor was the strongest among the three, possessing quasi-god power. Dealing with him would be troublesome for Su Ming, so he could only leave it to Cao Dezhi.
Cao Dezhi was quite surprised.
"Are you sure you can handle two? If it's too much, we can have Zhang Huanyun fight one above his level."
As the commander of the Blood God Legion, Zhang Huanyun was only at the ninety-eighth rank, but he was a Four-Word Battle Armor Master, a rare powerhouse in the Spirit Master world who possessed Four-Word Battle Armor without being at the limit rank.
It was only through his will to guard the Abyss that he had arduously fused with his set of Four-Word Battle Armor.
With the Four-Word Battle Armor, he, at ninety-eighth rank, also possessed limit-tier combat power.
"No need. Let him share the pressure in the battles below," Su Ming said.
Hearing this, Zhang Huanyun's expression turned somewhat grim.
"This is a battlefield. Don't try to be a hero."
"I caused this Abyssal Tide, so naturally, I should bear the pressure. Your job is just to minimize casualties." Su Ming's expression was indifferent, his attitude resolute.
"Don't throw your life away! You're still young!"
Zhang Huanyun realized what Su Ming intended to do and his face immediately changed drastically.
He had seen that look in people's eyes far too many times.
"I know. I'm still young, and there will be many opportunities for self-destruction. But I also know that a self-destruction that truly makes a difference will only occur once or twice among them."
After saying this, Su Ming charged straight into the rear of the battlefield, paying no heed to Zhang Huanyun's pleas.
***
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