King Realm, Abyss, Void Cavity!

Nanjiang City, slums on the outskirts of District 89.

Zhang Wei, captain of the Patrol Bureau's First Squad, clutched the wound on his chest and watched the scene in the sky with an ugly expression.

"How did this happen...?"

A month ago, he had led his team in tracking down a group of Abyss Cultists who had infiltrated Nanjiang City. They had finally found the cultists' hideout today.

Just as they were about to wipe them out,

something unexpected happened.

Among them was a fifth-rank martial artist with an awakened S-rank sequence. Having changed class into the rare Blood Priest profession, he used the exceedingly rare Blood Sacrifice skill to forcibly sacrifice all the Abyss Cultists, along with the bodies of civilians they had secretly slaughtered, summoning the Abyss's descent.

By the time Zhang Wei reacted,

it was already too late.

The instant that evil, powerful Abyss aura erupted,

three Patrol Bureau members died on the spot. Even Zhang Wei, a sixth-rank martial artist, suffered severe injuries.

Sensing the aura emanating from the crack in the sky,

Zhang Wei muttered, "King Realm..."

Beyond ninth-rank martial artists lay the King Realm, beings capable of destroying an entire city with ease!

Above that were Demigods, catastrophes capable of annihilating nations!

Crackle, crackle, crackle!

Strands of Black Thunder surged out from the crack in the sky. The aura of a King Realm Abyss creature changed even the heavens. The clear sky swiftly turned overcast as violent winds, torrential rain, and lightning intertwined, creating a terrifying sight!

The Abyss entrances outside Nanjiang City also began to stir. Ferocious beasts broke through their seals, their eyes red as they roared and charged toward the city walls!

"Open fire!"

The soldiers roared as artillery fire thundered. Before the beasts could even get close, more than half were wiped out. Then came close-quarters combat between the military martial artists and the beasts. Both sides slaughtered one another desperately.

Jiang Yuan looked up through the Sky Rail window.

Several figures stood high above Nanjiang City, radiating terrifying spiritual will and pressure. Their life magnetic fields blazed like several scorching suns, making them impossible to look upon directly.

"Is that... a Void Cavity?"

Liu He stared solemnly at the tear in the heavens.

The elderly man at the front said, "That's right."

A dignified beautiful woman beside him said, "It's my first time seeing one too."

As she spoke, a gigantic, sinister single eye appeared within the Void Cavity. It gazed intelligently down upon them and the entire city. A horrifying will carrying a corruptive aura descended, changing the expressions of several people. Liu He, whose life level was lower, instantly went pale.

The dignified woman raised her hand.

A pale-purple Spirit Barrier engraved with patterns appeared before them, and the Spirit Pressure vanished at once.

The elderly man at the front shouted, "It can't come out yet. Attack immediately and destroy the Void Cavity!"

The alloy saber he leaned upon became covered in boundless lightning. With a wave of his hand, a thousand-meter-long lightning blade light shot into the sky and slashed toward the Void Cavity.

The sword-bearing middle-aged man said coldly, "Wretched beast! Get back!"

He gripped his sword and swung it. Space itself seemed to tear apart as a terrifying cross-shaped sword aura howled forth, as though it would slice everything to pieces.

Liu He also unleashed his talent. Several white spheres appeared before him, firing Air Cannons one after another!

"Boom! Bang! Crackle!!"

Under the attacks, the Void Cavity grew smaller and smaller.

The Abyss entity inside refused to give up. A gigantic tentacle covered in eyes twisted as it squeezed out, firing purple beams from those eyes that disintegrated everything in their path.

Liu He narrowly dodged, breaking out in a cold sweat.

The black-robed mage raised his hand, forming barrier after barrier to block the purple beams and protect the city below.

"Mental Storm!"

The dignified woman was enraged as well. Purple light shone from her eyes, and she unleashed terrifying mental power to suppress its movements.

The white-haired elder severed the tentacle with a lightning strike, and the sword-bearing middle-aged man sent out countless sword lights, chopping it into tens of millions of pieces.

Finally, an elemental energy sphere summoned by the mage shrouded in black robes exploded. The horrific blast wave swept through everything nearby, scattering the dark clouds and declaring the battle's end.

In the city below,

the crowd could not help but sigh in relief at the sight, then began cheering excitedly.

The white-haired elder put away his Thunder Blade, stroked his beard, and said in a deep voice, "These Abyss Cultists are getting more and more outrageous."

"If this isn't dealt with, there'll be a serious problem. Lu Beili, what exactly is your Patrol Bureau doing?"

Lu Beili, the sword-bearing middle-aged man, replied calmly, "This was our oversight. I will take responsibility, and the details of this incident will be reported."

"Hmph. It had better be." The white-haired elder snorted and turned to leave.

The others dispersed as well.

Yet none of them noticed

that the remnants from the explosion had fallen into the city. Some tiny pieces of flesh, no larger than fingers, had not been fully burned away and landed on the ground, along the edges of buildings, and atop cars.

They began to squirm softly, as though they were alive.

The Sky Rail arrived safely after a scare.

Jiang Yuan finally let out a sigh of relief when he got home.

He learned the full story of the incident from the Martial Artist Association's official website.

"Abyss Cultists again. That bunch of lunatics."

They were all madmen, corrupted by the Abyss's spiritual pollution. They had fallen, worshipping the Abyss as a god and believing it to be the only eternal, undying existence.

"Do they really want to drag humanity into the abyss of apocalypse?"

Jiang Yuan shook his head, once again feeling fortunate that he had chosen to hide his talent and profession.

He browsed the news.

The Nanjiang City Martial Artist Association had also released information on those who participated in the battle today.

The white-haired elder, Qin Zhennan, president of the Nanjiang City Martial Artist Association and known as Nanjiang City's strongest. A ninth-rank martial artist whose profession was the epic-class Thunder Warrior.

The middle-aged beautiful woman, Luo Ningyan, an eighth-rank martial artist with an S-rank Psychic Class talent. She had changed class into an Illusionist and was the president of the Pharmacist Association.

Liu He, principal of Nanjiang City Martial Arts Middle School, a seventh-rank martial artist and Qigong Master.

Lu Beili, commander of the Patrol Bureau stationed in Nanjiang City, an eighth-rank martial artist who had changed class into the legendary Sky-Breaking Swordsman profession.

The black-robed figure, an eighth-rank martial artist and an Elemental Mage affiliated with one of the nation's top guilds.

They were all renowned figures. Aside from the commander responsible for defending the city, it could be said that Nanjiang City's top combat forces had all gathered there.

"No wonder I felt suffocated just looking at their figures..."

Jiang Yuan muttered.

Yet even such powerful people needed to join forces to fight the Abyss.

Jiang Yuan once again felt the threat of the Abyss, as well as the cruelty and danger of this era.