Just as Ming Xin entered seclusion in the Qing Xuan Realm and its countless inhabitants prepared for war, deep within the distant void...
A massive continent, shrouded in eternal darkness and storms of Destruction, floated amid endless Nirvana. This was one of the Void Clan's key strongholds—the Final Outpost.
At the center of the continent stood a magnificent palace built from pitch-black boulders, its architecture savage and twisted.
It seemed to have been piled together from the wreckage of countless worlds, radiating a suffocating sense of oppression. This was the outpost's council center—the Nirvana Hall.
At this moment, the atmosphere within the hall was so heavy it seemed ready to drip water.
Garm knelt on one knee, his once-burly body now somewhat stooped, his aura unsteady.
Fine cracks covered his dark-gold scales, wounds left behind from forcibly detonating his origin power and suffering the backlash.
He kept his head lowered, not daring to look directly at the figure seated high upon a throne forged from bones and dark crystals at the far end of the hall.
The being on the throne was not particularly large, yet he seemed to be the very center of the entire storm of Destruction.
He was shrouded in a broad cloak that seemed woven from flowing shadows, his face obscured, leaving only a pair of eyes.
Like two miniature black suns burning with cold flames, they looked down upon those below.
He was one of the Void Clan's higher-ups stationed at the Final Outpost.
--
Dark Sun Venerable Mephisto.
"Twice now, Garm." Mephisto's voice was calm, yet it scraped across the hearts of every Void Clan member present like an icy blade.
"First, the scouting team vanished. Then you personally led a squad there, only to suffer heavy losses. Even the Mark of Nirvana was