Deep within Pope's Palace, Spirit City.
Bibi Dong had not rested. She stood before an enormous floor-to-ceiling crystal window,
her violet eyes fixed deeply upon the golden halo that had once again lit up the eastern horizon, sending a chill through the heart.
When news of Li Xin's breakthrough, the changes to the Heavenly Ranking, and the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone reward reached her clearly—
"Crack!"
The shaft of the luxurious Gem Scepter in her hand was crushed hard enough to crack!
The languidness had vanished entirely from her exquisite face, leaving only bone-chilling frostiness and an ambition that nearly burned.
"Breakthrough... reward... Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone..."
She enunciated each word slowly, her voice low and hoarse, like a sinister wind rising from an abyss.
"Merely rising in rank can earn such a heaven-defying opportunity... If I can accelerate the completion of my God Trial and attain a higher rank..."
Madness and reason intertwined within those amethyst-like eyes.
The reward system of the Heavenly Ranking lay before her like the most tempting poison.
The path to becoming stronger had never been so plainly laid out!
"Looks like... I can no longer proceed step by step."
Bibi Dong slowly loosened her hand, allowing the crack on the scepter to spread.
She turned toward the deepest shadows within the hall, where endless filth and bloodshed seemed to churn.
"I need faster, richer nourishment..."
Along with her murmur, endless coldness and resolve spread through the air.
Meanwhile, in the canyon, Lin Jiang, who had just stepped through the palace doors, stopped in his tracks.
He looked back at the heavens, watching the Heavenly Ranking shine brilliantly once more for Li Xin,
and sensing the fresh greed and undercurrents that the Hundred Thousand Year Soul Bone would inevitably stir across the continent.