Abyssal Depths

"Roar—"

A distinctive drumbeat rang out, like a wild ox bellowing endlessly across the wilderness. Its echoes resounded without end, heralding the start of the Pan'ao Gathering. In the darkness, the cold, bloodthirsty gazes of World Lord life-forms swept across their surroundings, searching for opponents.

At the same time, they transformed into light and shot upward at top speed.

Fall behind, and you were out. Even kin who dared hold back could meet a brutal end. And as for those called Wangming, they were born bathed in Dragon Blood; mercy was never an option.

Dragon in the Abyss!

This was the first stage of the contest.

The Abyssal Depths beneath the Ascension Field offered only three thousand spots for advancement. They had to reach the top of this abyss as quickly as possible, or be eliminated. More than a third of those who entered the Ascension Field were Ninth-Rank World Lords. A Silver Crown Dragon had at most two chances to enter the Pan'ao Gathering in its lifetime, and could choose only one of its rankings as its final result.

A third of them were Peak World Lords, mostly veteran powerhouses from previous gatherings, with deep reserves of experience. There were almost no aging World Lords to be seen. The most frightening were the Silver Crown Dragons competing for the first time as Peak World Lords. They had not only talent, but abundant resources to support them.

"But I'm no weaker than they are!"

Huang Long's figure flowed like a gust of wind, nearly invisible in the darkness as he surged upward. Flying rocks and shattered peaks were visible overhead, but even without interference from other life-forms, reaching the surface would take a full hundred seconds. And how could no one possibly get in his way?

Some Silver Crown Dragons