Lumine, "Do you know about that Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?"

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"What the hell? Am I seeing ghosts?"

High above Stormterror's Lair.

Tianfeng Douluo, Bai He, and the Nether White Tiger, who had just turned back, were now etched with panic, staring blankly at Lumine, who was hovering in the sky with her Wind Glider wings unfurled.

"Sustainer of Heavenly Principles? Seeing ghosts?"

The two men and one beast muttered to themselves, but they could not hide it from Lumine.

(A quick revision to the previous text: the incident in Khaenri'ah was orchestrated by the Abyss Prince, while Lumine was the one left in the dark.)

In an instant, she caught the keywords spoken by the two men and the beast. Her expression shifted violently. "You know about that Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?"

It was common knowledge.

The current Traveler, Lumine, had just awakened and needed to find that unknown god in order to find the Abyss Prince.

Therefore, she had not yet met the Abyss Prince.

And now.

She did not know which of the Seven Nations' deities had intercepted the two of them back then, so she could only search for them one by one.

However.

Just as she was about to help Dvalin, that Sky-Splitting Demon Dragon, remove the abyssal corruption, she heard that familiar term from two strangely dressed yet vaguely familiar men, plus a tiger that could speak human language and fly.

Sustainer of Heavenly Principles?

Wasn't that the very god who had blocked the Traveler twins back then?

How did these two know about it?

Could it be... Lumine suddenly thought of the man who had offered to escort them out of Teyvat back then, the one wielding an incredibly massive hammer!

Could it be...

Were they accomplices of that man?

As this flash of insight crossed her mind, Lumine realized that although their attire was different from the man with the hammer, it shared a similar overall style.

So...

Were they in cahoots?

But why would they want to help her?

"Who on earth are you people?"

Thinking of this, Lumine's expression hardened, and she demanded in a deep voice, "Do you know something?"

As soon as she said this, the two men and the beast present were all dumbfounded!

Know something?

What could they possibly know?

They didn't know a damn thing!

"ROAR!"

However, just as the situation reached a stalemate, the massive demon dragon let out a furious roar, and countless swirling vortices of air began to howl toward them from all directions!

"Dodge!"

Although Bai He's combat power wasn't much to speak of, as the patriarch of the Speed Clan, his reaction speed was not slow. Tianfeng Douluo, as a Titled Douluo whose Martial Soul was wind-based, also possessed a keen sensitivity to the air currents.

Therefore.

As the swirling vortices of air came howling in, both men reacted instantly.

But.

In comparison, the Nether White Tiger, formed by the Martial Soul Fusion Skill of Dai Weisi and Zhu Zhuyun, was a beat slower in its reaction.

Both of them were only around level sixty in soul power; the combined Nether White Tiger could at most fight a Soul Douluo, and it lacked the sensitivity to the wind that the other two possessed.

Thus...

BOOM!

In an instant!

The massive Nether White Tiger was struck by the countless air currents, instantly dissolving into two figures that plummeted from the ten-thousand-foot-high sky...

"NO!"

In the Star Luo Imperial Palace of the Star Luo Empire, the Star Luo Empress saw this scene on the light screen in the sky, jumped up in shock, and let out a shrill scream.

However.

It was of no use whatsoever.

Two figures plummeted from the high altitude into the currents below, and the image vanished.

[Star Luo Empire faction representative eliminated. Star Luo Empire faction mission failure confirmed!]

[Failure penalty: All spirit masters belonging to the Star Luo Empire shall have their spirit power level reduced by ten levels!]

[However, given that this is the Star Luo Empire faction's first time participating in this Heavenly Dao mission, a special pardon is granted to offset 90% of the penalty!]

Only a moment later, the majestic and emotionless voice of the Heavenly Dao resonated within the hearts of every living creature on the Douluo Continent.

In an instant.

The Star Luo Empress felt her entire body go limp, nearly collapsing to the floor.

It wasn't just her!

Within the imperial court, almost everyone felt a sense of weakness surge into their hearts.

"It's over, my spirit power level..."

"No, I only just managed to break through to level ninety yesterday, my Title Douluo status..."

In a flash.

The entire court was filled with a chorus of wailing.

"Enough!"

The Star Luo Emperor's expression turned grim to the extreme as he shouted sharply.

He still held considerable prestige in the court; with that single roar, the entire hall fell into dead silence, and no one dared to make a sound.

"Is now the time for complaining?"

The Star Luo Emperor's gaze swept coldly across the room. "The urgent priority is to decide the personnel for the next participation."

"My Star Luo Crown Prince has already sacrificed his life for the nation; what are you all still hiding and holding back for?"

"Do not forget!"

"This special pardon to offset the penalty only applies once!"

"If the next mission fails, everyone will drop ten levels of spirit power!"

"You had better watch yourselves!"

As his words fell, the expressions of the many ministers shifted repeatedly, their faces turning pale and green.

Everyone knew clearly that the Star Luo Emperor was speaking the truth!

Rather than complaining here, it would be better to think about what to do next...

"Your Majesty, I shall issue a proclamation immediately, notifying spirit masters with various specialties throughout the empire to enter Star Luo City!"

"Granted!"

"Now is not the time to be shouting about this!"

Inside Stormterror's Lair.

After narrowly dodging the currents, Tianfeng Douluo turned his head sharply to look at Lumine, who had also evaded the attack, and said in a deep voice, "The urgent priority right now is to first deal with the poisonous blood on this Demon Dragon!"

Every time he looked down, he felt a dizzying sensation rushing to his head (fear of heights), which made him extremely uncomfortable, even causing his legs to go weak.

Of course.

He was also well aware that they were currently under the light screen visible to the entire Douluo Continent.

He could not lose face for the Spirit Empire!

"Fine!"

The previous wave of current impact had also made Lumine realize that the current situation was indeed not suitable for such talk.

She took a deep breath, suppressing the excitement that felt like finding a glimmer of hope, and said in a deep voice, "You are responsible for the poisonous blood on its head; leave the back to me!"

"Good!"

"If you are hit by the currents, I will be responsible for covering you!"

Bai He was very clear about his own positioning.

He was a pure agility-type spirit master with very poor combat power, and a Demon Dragon of this size was simply not something he could break through.

Simply put.

It was better to act as logistics.

"No problem!"

Coincidentally, Tianfeng Douluo was also afraid of heights and terrified of falling; upon hearing that someone would cover the rear, he quickly agreed.

The next moment.

Nine spirit rings—two yellow, two purple, and five black—appeared behind him.

And.

Almost the instant the spirit rings bloomed, his ninth spirit ring suddenly shone with brilliance!

"Ninth Spirit Skill: Destruction Storm!"