books44 Chapter 307 - 306: Beast God! Divine Venerable Realm?
Chapter 307 - 306: Beast God! Divine Venerable Realm?
Before the altar in the deep valley.
Following the Ninth Celestial Venerable’s reply, a tremendous change began to take place.
The red lines spreading across the altar’s surface expanded, swelling grotesquely like blood vessels. They grew larger and larger, gradually forming a bizarre, heart-like structure.
A deafening roar thundered across the sky!
A sudden gloom fell over the canyon.
"Ah, so it’s Xiaojiu..."
Amid the booming, the voice from within the altar spoke. Its tone had softened slightly, but it still radiated an undeniable authority.
A terrifying pressure descended, enveloping the entire canyon.
"Lord Beast God, Xiaojiu has been awaiting your arrival."
Nangong Li prostrated himself, his body pressed so low it nearly sank into the earth. "May Lord Beast God be immortal and eternal!" he declared with immense piety.
’It’s really the Beast God...’
Beside them, Meng Tianxuan was completely dumbfounded. He managed to push himself up from the ground, but the pressure from the altar was so immense that he didn’t dare move, forced to simply watch from the sidelines.
His instincts kicked in, and he immediately recognized the Realm emanating from the altar.
’The aura of the Divine Venerable Realm!’
This was precisely the realm above the Celestial Venerable Realm!
Now that Meng Tianxuan had confirmed it, his body began to tremble instinctively. A pressure that transcended Realms washed over him, its divine power as inescapable as a prison.
He couldn’t even muster the will to resist, frozen in place like a wooden statue.
’Terrifying! How could I possibly escape from an existence like this?’
Just then, the Beast God’s voice rang out again.
"Xiaojiu, for what purpose have you awakened me?"
Dark thunder rumbled.
Hearing the voice, Nangong Li slowly raised his head. He rose to his feet, cupped his hands respectfully, and said,
"Lord Beast God, you once said that to fully awaken you, the soul of a Celestial Venerable is required as a catalyst, supplemented by a large number of souls from the Earth Venerable Realm..."
"And now, everything is prepared. Xiaojiu has finally gathered all the necessary components..."
With that said, Nangong Li flipped his hand over and retrieved a gray pearl from his Star Ring.
It was entirely gray, suffused with an aura of the Netherworld and a baleful energy that seemed to pierce the heavens. Peering closely inside, one could make out countless blurry human figures and the flow of Yin River Paper Treasures. In a daze, one could even hear the faint wailing of ghosts.
The moment he produced the Secret Treasure, bewitching Manjushaka flowers bloomed throughout the canyon.
A sea of scarlet blossoms spread across the mountainside, creating a fantastical scene beneath the moon. A chilling wind swept in from the distance, whistling past stark white bones, which only made the vista more terrifying and grotesque.
This was the Soul Capturing Pearl.
It could extract the Three Souls and Seven Spirits of a Star Martial Artist. Contained within it now were the souls of those who had died during the Heaven-Blasting Gang’s self-detonation incident.
Vermilion Bird Earth Venerable, White Tiger, Qi Qingshan... and the Venerables who had died in the Da Li Mountain Range a few days prior—all of them were contained within.
However, the one thing that puzzled Nangong Li was that despite containing so many souls, the pearl was conspicuously missing one particular group’s share—
The Venerables of the Heaven-Blasting Gang!
’The members of the Heaven-Blasting Gang don’t seem to have souls... It looks like there’s a huge secret behind this.’
Nangong Li respectfully extended his hands and presented the Soul Capturing Pearl to the altar. As he did, he mulled over what felt wrong, his brow furrowing slightly.
The more he thought about it, the stranger it felt.
After all, anyone who undertook Cultivation in this world was simultaneously tempering both body and soul. As a Star Martial Artist used Star Force to forge their physical form, their soul would be strengthened in equal measure.
And yet, strangely, every time a Venerable from the Heaven-Blasting Gang had fallen, he had been waiting right there, not moving an inch, ready to use the Soul Capturing Pearl to seize their soul at the first possible moment!
’Even if they blew themselves to bits, there should have been some trace left, right?’
But the Heaven-Blasting Gang was a different story...
Forget their souls; he couldn’t even detect a single wisp of dissipating spiritual energy!
It went against the natural order.
’I’ll look into it later.’
Putting the thought aside, Nangong Li lifted the Soul Taker high into the air and returned his attention to the matter at hand. "Lord Beast God, the Soul Capturing Pearl is now ready. We only await for you to slowly savor its contents, and for the day you will reopen the Celestial Gate."
The moment his voice fell,
"Very good, Xiaojiu, you have done well."
An echo returned from the altar, the buzzing within growing louder until it reverberated off the canyon walls.
The gray Soul Capturing Pearl floated into mid-air, quietly hovering above the altar.
The next moment.
CRACK!
The Soul Capturing Pearl split open!
An endless black mist seemed to pour out. Inside the Soul Capturing Pearl were not just the souls of Venerable Realm Grandmasters, but also many experts from the Innate Realm—appetizers that the Ninth Celestial Venerable had specifically gathered for this occasion.
After suffering the utmost torture, they were sealed inside the Soul Pearl, suffused with the most venomous hatred.
At this moment, it was as if the endless hell of vengeful ghosts had descended upon the world.
Billowing black smoke rose!
"Nangong Li, let us out!!"
"No... no..."
"Alliance Leader, save me!"
"We’ll haunt you even in death!"
Hoarse screams and miserable, unwilling roars echoed, mixed with insidious, bizarre curses. Myriad dead souls swam forth, forming a great river of the Netherworld.
They flowed into the altar.
The writing on it erupted with a brilliance like the blazing sun.
A burst of life force erupted from the altar. The sound of a heartbeat, loud as a war drum, echoed as a profound and powerful aura enveloped the entire canyon.
’The Beast God... is awakening...’
To the side, Meng Tianxuan murmured as he looked up, his scalp tingling with dread as he gazed upon the terrifying spectacle. He was already scared witless.
It was only then that he finally understood—
There’s no such thing as a free lunch. The reason Nangong Li had offered to heal him, even showing him the secrets of the Beast God Sect without reservation—it was all part of the plan!
And he was the main course for this sacrificial ritual!
’No wonder Nangong Li wasn’t afraid of me leaking his secrets...’
Meng Tianxuan’s mind raced, his expression dazed as he stared at Nangong Li’s back. The man was currently facing away from him, respectfully bowing toward the altar.
A fierce glint flashed in Meng Tianxuan’s eyes.
’This is my only chance!’
’I have to strike first!’
In an instant, he raised his hand and struck at Nangong Li’s back, unleashing a torrent of Star Force!
His attack was like a thunderbolt!
A flash of lightning momentarily illuminated the canyon. But just as the attack was about to hit Nangong Li’s back, a layer of fractured space appeared and simply swallowed it whole.
"Meng Tianxuan, you really underestimate me, don’t you?"
Nangong Li turned around slowly, a hint of mockery in his eyes.
"Did you really think I would invite you here without taking precautions? This is the territory of our Beast God Sect! Would I let an outsider like you act so freely?"
As he spoke, he flipped his hand to activate a Seal. Instantly, the space within the canyon fractured. Under the influence of the Law, the area in which Meng Tianxuan could move shrank to a mere three paces wide!
"So you planned this all along."
Seeing this, Meng Tianxuan glanced at the spatial blockade around him, and his heart instantly filled with despair.
Space Law was inherently profound, capable of containing anything. Having fallen into this trap with his strength only seventy or eighty percent recovered, escape was simply impossible.
"Hmph."
Nangong Li snorted, ignoring him. He turned back to the altar and said with the utmost reverence,
"Lord, this is the current Alliance Leader of the Venerable Alliance. He is also the Celestial Venerable soul I wish to offer you. The main course is now ready."
"From the Venerable Alliance? Then he dies!"
The deep voice from the altar boomed again, now tinged with anger, as if the name had stirred some unpleasant memory within the Beast God. It attacked at once, and the void itself trembled violently.
The next moment, a giant claw emerged from the void. It carried with it an unstoppable power, as if backed by ten thousand armies, and shot directly toward Meng Tianxuan.