Chapter 1385 : A Demon King's Summons

"A perfect opportunity," Eldrin Chen murmured inwardly, a flicker of understanding crossing his mind.

He surmised that the Dark Great Roc Demon King's frantic rush towards the Leaf Ruins Divine Sea was almost certainly in response to a summons from the Western Abyss Dragon Palace.

Watching the Dark Great Roc Demon King depart, Eldrin Chen felt a wave of relief. Without hesitation, he activated the Polarity Void Mirror and set his course for Gale Wind Valley.

This was his second visit to Gale Wind Valley, and Eldrin Chen moved with the confidence of one who knew the path.

He slipped through the shadows, navigating unseen towards the Blessed Land [a land imbued with potent spiritual energy and natural treasures]'s core. It wasn't long before he located the lair of the Dark Great Roc Clan's Eight Tribulations Demon Immortal [a demonic cultivator who has survived eight heavenly tribulations].

"A pity. No World-Opening Spiritual Root [a legendary spiritual root said to possess the power to help open a new world or dimension]," Eldrin Chen sighed softly.

Gazing at the heart of Gale Wind Valley, he couldn't help but feel a tinge of regret.

As a top-tier Blessed Land, the lineage of Gale Wind Valley boasted over a dozen Earth Immortal Patriarch [a patriarch who has attained the Earth Immortal realm]. With such profound heritage and accumulated resources, gathering four World-Opening Spiritual Root would have been a trivial matter for them.

The fact that none were present here meant the roots were likely stored within the Dark Great Roc King's personal Earth Immortal World [a pocket dimension cultivated and controlled by an Earth Immortal], and had yet to be retrieved.

Contemplating this, Eldrin Chen shook his head. "Enough," he said to himself. "To obtain a single Eight Tribulation Path Source [a condensed source of power and enlightenment from surviving eight heavenly tribulations] is fortune enough for me."

With this thought in mind, he did not hesitate. In an instant, his hand gripped the Infernal Prison Heavenly Halberd and he thrust it forward in a single, decisive strike.

For a cultivator with the combat power of a Late Stage Earth Immortal [a high-ranking immortal who has cultivated their power within the earthly realm] to launch a surprise attack against an Eight Tribulations Immortal [an immortal who has survived eight heavenly tribulations], the outcome held no suspense whatsoever.

The Eight Tribulations Demon Immortal [a demonic immortal who has weathered eight tribulations] from Gale Wind Valley had no time to react. In a flash, the halberd's point pierced through the center of his brow. A torrent of Fiendish Energy [the malevolent spiritual power cultivated by demonic beings] surged forth, violently churning within and utterly annihilating his Primordial Spirit [the foundational spiritual core and source of a cultivator's consciousness and power].

"Who is it?!"

In that same instant, the Dark Great Roc Bird Clan was thrown into alarm. More than ten Earth Immortal Patriarch [powerful patriarchs of the Earth Immortal realm] surged out in shock and fury.

Alas, it was already too late. Eldrin Chen activated the Polarity Void Mirror [a mystical mirror capable of manipulating the void between polarities], which enveloped the Path Source [the condensed origin of a cultivator's chosen Dao Path] and vanished into the void. In the blink of an eye, he had reappeared countless millions of Li-length [one Li-length equals five hundred meters] away across the sea.

The Earth Immortal Patriarch of Gale Wind Valley were filled with boundless rage, but without a Void Spiritual Treasure [a magical artifact specifically designed to suppress or control spatial void abilities] to constrain him, they could only curse their helplessness, watching powerlessly as he departed.

Once he had left the Gale Wind Sea Region, Eldrin Chen intended to head towards the Returning Abyss Sea Region. However, he had not flown for long before he came to an abrupt halt.

"No, I cannot return."

Eldrin Chen murmured to himself, his expression turning profoundly grave.

Now that the Lord of Western Abyss Dragon Palace has stepped into the Celestial Immortal Realm [the realm of celestial beings], the Demon Race will launch a counter-offensive against the Human Race in these final thousand-plus years.

Under such circumstances, the Lord of Western Abyss Dragon Palace's primary targets will undoubtedly be the top-tier Blessed Land [realms of concentrated spiritual fortune] like the Divine Lord of Ye Ruins.

Setting aside the enmity spanning tens of millions of years between the two sides, the World-Opening Supreme Treasure [artifacts of primordial power used to establish new realms] and Primordial Unity Immortal Weapon [weapons forged at the dawn of creation] housed within these supreme Blessed Land are treasures the Western Abyss Dragon Palace must obtain.

Furthermore, peerless talents like Eldrin Chen, who have stepped into the Forbidden Domain [a realm of power that defies conventional limits], are seeds of future Celestial Immortal Great Power [beings of immense celestial might] and will certainly be among the Demon Race's targets.

"With my current strength, I might not yet be worthy of the Lord of Western Abyss Dragon Palace's direct attention,"

"But as a precaution, I cannot return to the Returning Abyss Sea Region. I must remain hidden, at least until this Great Tribulation [a cataclysmic era of heavenly ordained trials] concludes."

Eldrin Chen murmured to himself, deciding then not to return to the Returning Abyss Blessed Land.

He concealed himself in the profound depths of the Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea and immediately used a secret art to send a message to Exquisite Jiang and the others, informing them of the battle's unexpected turn.

Upon receiving the news, Exquisite Jiang and Verdant Consort openly fled the Returning Abyss Sea Region, hiding within the boundless expanse of the Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea, leaving only Sun Consort and others to guard the Returning Abyss Sea.

In truth, it was not just Exquisite Jiang and Verdant Consort. Across the vast Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea, countless prodigies of the Human Race and the Divine Clan [clans descended from divine beings] were doing the same.

Those harboring hopes of reaching the Celestial Immortal realm all fled their respective Path-Field domains, hiding themselves within the vastness of the Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea.

Although it was unlikely that a being of Western Abyss Dragon King's current Celestial Immortal stature would stoop to personally targeting lower-tier Immortal cultivators, they dared not take the risk.

The Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea was boundless and fathomless. Once concealed within its endless expanse, even a Celestial Immortal Great Power would find it exceedingly difficult to locate someone, let alone now, with the Great Tribulation raging and the Celestial Mechanism [the underlying principles of heaven and fate] obscured and inscrutable.

Eldrin Chen hid deep beneath the sea. To avoid detection by the Demon Race, he changed his hiding place every few years, and thus, centuries slipped by unnoticed.

During this time, Eldrin Chen discreetly gathered information, gradually piecing together the current state of affairs.

After his great victory over the coalition of Half-Step Celestial Immortal experts, the Lord of Western Abyss Dragon Palace had immediately mobilized the Demon Race to besiege the Leaf Ruins Divine Sea, intent on utterly eradicating his formidable foe, the Divine Lord of Ye Ruins.

Yet, the Divine Lord of Ye Ruins proved truly Extraordinary. Within the Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea, he had used the Primordial Unity Ruins Heaven Sword to establish a Ninth Rank Mountain Protection Formation [a supreme-grade defensive array]. For centuries, he had held his ground in a bitter stalemate, with neither side achieving a decisive victory.

"Nearly thirty thousand years of warfare... the reserves of the Western Abyss Dragon Palace have truly been exhausted," he mused.

Learning that the conflict remained unresolved, Eldrin Chen sighed inwardly, a wave of complex emotion [mixing reflection and awe] washing over him.

At its zenith, the Western Abyss Dragon Palace lineage had boasted over two hundred Earth Immortal Patriarch [powerful cultivators at the Earth Immortal realm], more than thirty thousand Nine Heavens True Dragon [supreme dragon beasts], and several beings who had reached Earth Immortal Great Perfection [the pinnacle of the Earth Immortal realm].

Yet, in the tens of thousands of years of great war, the strength of the Western Abyss Dragon Palace has been more than halved. Now, fewer than fifty Earth Immortal Patriarch [powerful cultivators who have attained the Earth Immortal realm] remain, and only a single existence at the Earth Immortal Great Perfection [the pinnacle stage of the Earth Immortal realm] still lives.

Artifacts like the World-Opening Ancient Ship [an ancient vessel of immense power] and various other rare treasures have also been largely depleted.

In such a weakened state, the power of the Western Abyss Dragon Palace is insufficient. Even after conscripting forces like the Dark Great Roc Demon King [a powerful demonic sovereign] to besiege it, they have fought for centuries without yet conquering the Ye Ruins Blessed Land [a sacred land imbued with potent spiritual energies].

"I hope the Leaf Ruins Divine Sea [the divine sea surrounding the Ye Ruins] can hold out a little longer."

Eldrin Chen murmured inwardly, finally suppressing his thoughts and continuing his journey through the boundless ocean depths.

Unconsciously, he arrived at a place filled with vast emptiness.

Just as he was about to leave, his brow furrowed slightly. He faintly sensed several extraordinarily powerful auras locked in combat.

"There are Earth Immortal [a high level of immortal cultivation] level experts fighting here?"

Eldrin Chen's eyes flickered. He immediately used the Polarity Void Mirror [a magical treasure that conceals its user within the void] to hide within the void and stealthily approached the location of the battle.

He hadn't traveled far before he saw two dazzlingly brilliant figures engaged in combat within this expanse of empty sea.

Of the two sides locked in combat, one was a Nine Heavens Divine Spirit [a divine being born from the heavens] commanding boundless Thunderclap [a divine thunderclap technique], while the other consisted of five Demon Race [a race of beings with demonic heritage] Earth Immortal [an immortal whose power is anchored to the earth] whose demonic auras blotted the heavens.

Eldrin Chen roughly sensed their cultivation levels. The Thunderclap Divine Spirit [the divine spirit of thunderclaps] possessed cultivation at the First Layer Earth Immortal [the first level of the Earth Immortal realm], yet its combat power rivaled that of a Sixth Level Earth Immortal [an Earth Immortal at the sixth level], marking it as a force not to be underestimated.

The cultivation levels of the Demon Race Earth Immortal varied, but the leader among them had reached the Seventh Level Earth Immortal [the seventh level of the Earth Immortal realm].

Now, with the five Demon Race Earth Immortal deploying a grand formation and launching relentless assaults, the Thunderclap Divine Spirit was being pushed to the brink of utter defeat.

"It's the Golden-Winged Heavenly Ape Clan [a clan of powerful apes with golden wings], and that one."

Observing their identities, Eldrin Chen pondered briefly before discerning their origins.

The combatants were, respectively, members of the Golden-Winged Heavenly Ape Clan, and the Thunderclap Divine Spirit from the Myriad Tribulations Sea of Thunder [a legendary domain of endless thunder tribulations].

Within the Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea [the Western Essence Divine Abyss Sea], the Golden-Winged Heavenly Ape Lineage [the lineage of the Golden-Winged Heavenly Apes] was also an exceptionally powerful Earth Immortal Blessed Land [a land blessed with earth-immortal-level spiritual energy]. At its peak, this lineage boasted fifteen Earth Immortal Patriarch [patriarchs who have attained the Earth Immortal realm], and even one powerhouse at the Eighth Level Earth Immortal [the eighth level of the Earth Immortal realm].