"Today, I will slay a god!"
Lin Fan's voice was not loud, yet it made Grandma Blood River's delicate brows furrow slightly.
Her abyss-deep eyes fell upon Lin Fan, carrying a trace of rare surprise.
Since she had transformed into the Eerie Divine Statue, the years had stretched on for so long that even she could no longer remember how many tens of thousands of years had passed.
During that time, she had seen countless gifted prodigies and heroes, heard countless grand boasts. Yet for a young cultivator to stand before her as Lin Fan did today and utter the words "slay a god" in such a calm tone—this was the first time.
The corners of her lips curved, but it was not a smile. It was a chill of sinister coldness.
"Young man, do you know who you are speaking to?" Grandma Blood River's voice was not raised, but it was terrifyingly cold.
"Even in those most chaotic ancient years, when the myriad heavens and worlds warred without cease, few dared speak to This Seat in such a manner."
She paused, her eyes narrowing slightly as her tone grew ever more sinister. "It seems that unless I make you pay a price carved into your very bones, you truly do not know the height of heaven or the depth of earth."
The moment her words fell, the blood-colored lotus platform beneath her feet suddenly blossomed with demonic light.
The lotus platform had originally been dark red, as though forged from congealed blood. Yet now, it seemed to come alive. Layer upon layer of petals slowly unfurled, and dense, bizarre patterns emerged upon every single petal.
Those patterns were incomparably intricate, like some ancient script that transcended this age, yet also like forbidden totems that had existed since the opening