Dark Throne

The cold wind of the Star Dou Great Forest had yet to fade when the three of them arrived beneath Spirit Hall's towering black spires. The grand hall crouched like a gigantic beast, its nine spires piercing the cloud-choked sky. The Angel Statues atop them had hollow eyes, as if their souls had been devoured by the abyss. Whispers drifted through the wind—the wails of countless corrupted Soul Masters, winding around the towers.

Yu Xiaogang's Blue-Silver Pattern glimmered faintly in the cold wind. He held the Hoe-Sickle across his chest, and the broken section still retained the blue radiance his mother had left behind. He raised his head toward the Pope's Palace at the highest point—once Qian Xunji's throne, now permeated by an even denser Abyssal aura.

"He isn't dead yet." Yang Jun spoke softly, the Ice Soul Heart slowly rotating in his chest as frost condensed around him. "I can sense it... Qian Xunji's soul is still wandering within this hall."

Bibi Dong's Violet Eyes were as cold as the abyss. The Eight Spider Lances slowly unfolded, and spider silk wove a dark-purple net through the air. "He stopped being human long ago. He is merely the host of an Abyssal Parasite. But as long as he lives, Spirit Hall will forever remain the abyss's puppet."

Yu Xiaogang tightened his grip on the Hoe-Sickle, determination gleaming in his blue eyes. "Mother's seal has been undone, but the darkness within Spirit Hall must end. Otherwise, the purification of the Star Dou Great Forest will have been in vain."

The three stepped forward. The ground split open, and Blue Silver Grass erupted wildly from the cracks, coiling around the hall doors. With a thunderous boom, Spirit Hall's gates slowly opened—revealing a sea of blood-red light beyond them.

There were no lamps within the hall. Only Soul Crystals embedded in the floor gave off a bloody glow, outlining an enormous Angel Array. At the center of the array, Qian Xunji sat cross-legged upon the throne. His body was withered like dead wood, yet black insect-like shadows writhed beneath his skin, as though countless Abyssal Parasites were crawling through his flesh.

His eyes had turned completely black, yet an eerie light flashed through them the instant he saw Yu Xiaogang. "Xiaogang... my son... you've finally returned."

"I am not your son." Yu Xiaogang pointed his Hoe-Sickle at him, lightning dancing along the blade. "You are the murderer of my mother, the chief culprit behind Spirit Hall's corruption."

"Murdered?" Qian Xunji let out a hoarse laugh, his voice seeming to rise from beneath the earth. "I was reviving her! I preserved her soul with Abyssal Power and nourished her consciousness with the Soul Power of Thousand Soul Masters... I loved her more than anyone!"

"Love?" Bibi Dong sneered. "You turned love into madness and protection into slaughter. Under the name of the Angel Spirit, you turned all of Spirit Hall into an abyssal breeding ground."

Qian Xunji slowly rose to his feet. The throne shattered, and black mist surged from his body, forming the phantom of a colossal Abyssal Demon Spider. Its eight legs held up the sky, while corrosive black fluid dripped from its mandibles.

"You don't understand..." he growled. "Only by completely controlling the abyss can one surpass the gods! I have already fused with the remnant soul of the Abyssal Mother God. I only lack the final step—sacrifice the Child of the Earth, and the true God's Gate will open!"

"God's Gate?" Yang Jun snorted. "Your so-called god is nothing but a sealed monster."

"And you." Qian Xunji's black eyes locked onto Yu Xiaogang. "You are the sacrifice."

Before his words had faded, Qian Xunji flung out a hand. The bloody array suddenly lit up, and countless Soul Master phantoms rose from the ground. They had once been Spirit Hall's elders, deacons, and Red Cardinals, but now they had been parasitized by the abyss and turned into walking corpses. They charged at the three of them as one.

"Purify them!" Yu Xiaogang shouted. His Hoe-Sickle swept out, and Blue Silver Grass transformed into whips of lightning that lashed into the crowd of Soul Masters. Every strike of lightning purified a portion of black mist. The Soul Master phantoms briefly regained clarity, tears flashing in their eyes before they dissipated.

Yang Jun's Ice Soul Heart erupted with extreme cold. Ice Blades fell like rain, freezing the Abyssal Soul Masters in place. He guarded Yu Xiaogang's side and said coldly, "These Soul Masters... still have traces of consciousness left. We can't kill them."

"Then seal them." Bibi Dong's voice was icy. Her Eight Spider Lances pierced the ground, and spider silk formed a barrier that trapped the purified Soul Master phantoms within. "After this battle, we'll find a way to save them."

Qian Xunji roared as the Abyssal Demon Spider phantom pounced down. Its eight legs tore through the air like blades. Bibi Dong leaped up to meet it, her spider silk tangling with the demon spider's venom in midair and erupting in blinding purple-black light.

"Yu Xiaogang!" Yang Jun suddenly shouted. "His heart—it isn't in his chest!"

Yu Xiaogang's blue eyes narrowed. The Thunder Eye pierced through Qian Xunji's body—and he saw that Qian Xunji's heart was floating above his head, wrapped in a mass of black mist. It was the Abyssal Parasite's Host Core.

"So that's it..." Yu Xiaogang murmured. "He stopped being human long ago. He is only a vessel for the parasites."

"Then destroy it!" Yang Jun fiercely compressed the Ice Soul Heart. Frost condensed into an ice spear that shot straight toward Qian Xunji's head.

"Don't even think about it!" Qian Xunji roared. The Abyssal Demon Spider phantom abruptly withdrew to defend him. Its venom corroded the ice spear, turning it into vapor. But in that instant, Yu Xiaogang had already leaped into the air, raising his Hoe-Sickle high. Blue Silver Grass and lightning intertwined, forming an enormous lightning blade.

"Blue Silver: Thunder Burial: God-Shattering Slash!"

The lightning blade came crashing down, instantly shattering Qian Xunji's shield and exposing the black mist core. Just as the blade was about to strike, a beam of golden light shot in from outside the hall and hit Yu Xiaogang in the shoulder, blasting him away.

"Who?!" Yang Jun roared, turning the Ice Soul Heart toward the hall entrance.

As the golden light faded, an elderly man in golden robes slowly approached, a scepter in hand and an imposing expression on his face—it was Qian Daoliu, Spirit Hall's former Pope.

"Father..." Qian Xunji's voice actually trembled. "You... returned?"

Qian Daoliu's gaze was ice-cold as it swept over Qian Xunji, then Yu Xiaogang, before finally settling on Bibi Dong. "You actually allowed a woman corrupted by the abyss to take the Pope's throne?"

Bibi Dong sneered. "I am far cleaner than your son. At least I didn't use Soul Masters as experiments or turn all of Spirit Hall into an abyssal graveyard."

Qian Daoliu snorted. "Spirit Hall's order will not be defiled by a monster like you." He swung his scepter, and golden light transformed into angel wings that enveloped the entire hall. "Today, I will use Angel's Judgment to purify all filth."

Qian Daoliu's golden light collided with Qian Xunji's black mist, erupting in a blinding flash. An angel phantom and the Abyssal Demon Spider tore into each other in the air, and all of Spirit Hall began to collapse.

Yang Jun helped Yu Xiaogang to his feet. The wound on his shoulder slowly healed beneath the restorative power of Blue Silver Grass. "He... came for us," Yu Xiaogang murmured. "Qian Daoliu doesn't want anyone to control Spirit Hall, not even Qian Xunji."

"So he intends to destroy everything himself." The Ice Soul Heart floated above Yang Jun's head. "But we cannot retreat."

Bibi Dong battled Qian Daoliu in the air, spider silk and golden light intertwining. She said coldly, "You two, go destroy Qian Xunji's core! I'll hold Qian Daoliu back!"

"By yourself?" Yu Xiaogang frowned.

"Enough nonsense!" Bibi Dong shouted. "I hate those two more than you do! One imprisoned me, and the other wants to kill me! Today, I'll send them both to hell!"

Yu Xiaogang gritted his teeth and exchanged a glance with Yang Jun. Then the two charged at Qian Xunji together.

Qian Xunji laughed wildly. "Come! Let Mother's soul return to my embrace!"

Yu Xiaogang's Hoe-Sickle stabbed toward the black mist core above Qian Xunji's head. Lightning erupted, and within the black mist appeared the phantom of his mother—her face twisted in pain, her soul torn into two halves. One was the guardian's blue radiance, and the other was the abyss's black mist.

"Mother..." Yu Xiaogang's voice trembled.

"Xiaogang..." His mother's phantom wept. "Quick... destroy the core... I can't hold on any longer..."

"No!" Qian Xunji howled. "You can't take her from me! She is mine!"

"She was never yours." An unprecedented light burst from Yu Xiaogang's blue eyes. "She is my mother, the Guardian of the Blue Electric Tyrant Dragon Clan, and the light of Spirit Hall!"

Lightning and Blue Silver Grass intertwined, forming an enormous sealing array that wrapped around the black mist core. Yu Xiaogang murmured, "Mother, I'm sending you home."

The sealing array contracted, and the black mist core began to collapse. Qian Xunji let out a miserable scream. His body split apart inch by inch, and the Abyssal Demon Spider phantom completely vanished.

Just as the core was about to be fully purified, Qian Daoliu suddenly turned, pointing his scepter straight at Yu Xiaogang. "Angel's Judgment: Final Light!"

Golden light became a sword, stabbing straight toward Yu Xiaogang's heart.

At the critical moment, Yang Jun leaped in front of Yu Xiaogang. The Ice Soul Heart erupted with all its strength, and frost formed an ice shield. The golden light shattered the shield, and the remaining shockwave still sent Yang Jun flying, blood spilling from his mouth.

"Yang Jun!" Yu Xiaogang roared. Blue Silver Grass grew wildly, winding around Yang Jun's body and pulling him back to his side.

Bibi Dong seized the opportunity, driving a strand of spider silk through Qian Daoliu's shoulder blade. She sneered, "Old bastard, your judgment ends here."

Qian Daoliu snorted. The golden light receded, and his figure slowly faded away. "Today's humiliation will be repaid someday. Spirit Hall... will not perish."

The grand hall collapsed as daylight broke through the clouds.

Holding the badly wounded Yang Jun, Yu Xiaogang looked toward Bibi Dong. "Did we... win?"

Bibi Dong stood atop the ruins, her Violet Eyes watching the rising sun. "No. This is only the beginning."

She looked into the distance—toward the Star Dou Great Forest. That black rift had yet to close, and the abyss's whispers still echoed.

"Qian Xunji is dead, Qian Daoliu has fled, but the abyss... remains."

Yu Xiaogang lowered his head and looked at the Hoe-Sickle in his hand. The blue light at its broken section was slowly healing. He said softly, "Mother, I did it."

At the tip of the Hoe-Sickle, his mother's smile appeared. "Xiaogang... from now on, it is your turn to protect this world."