The Stars Beyond

Chapter 386: A Chasm That Devours Myths

It was a giant spider, pitch black and covered in hard, steel-like fur. It was about fifteen meters long and dove down at lightning speed, its eight spider legs as black and cold as spear tips, aiming at Wang Xuan as it sought to snatch the golden, pulsating creation true crystal from his hand.

Beside Wang Xuan, the green-haired elf girl collapsed, her consciousness fading away as her spiritual blood gushed out uncontrollably from the iron spike wound. Then, her head slumped to the side, her eyes dimmed, and she died on the seabed, swept away by the currents.

"Wang Xuan was surprised by the severity of the injury. Just one spike, and she was dead. Perhaps it hit her core consciousness imprint. But he felt no guilt; she had struck first in her attempt to seize the true crystal.

He swiftly moved his body sideways, avoiding the spider's leg attacks. As the giant spider missed its target and spun rapidly, it created a massive vortex, stirring up the currents.

Wang Xuan frowned. Such a large spider turned out to be the consciousness of a creature; it was quite powerful, but without mastering the rules of transcendence, it couldn't look down on him.

In an instant, he broke free from the black vortex, then flew with his sword. The iron spike emitted a faint light, not yet activated as a treasure, but still sturdy.

With a sound, he merged with the special "iron sword" underwater, colliding with the black spider several times. Initially, the spider seemed arrogant, like a grandchild beating up a grandfather.

However, in a moment, three of its legs were pierced by him. The spider, a master of the spider clan, couldn't believe it—how could his eight-legged spider deity be injured by a mere novice?

It felt surreal, almost dreamlike. Who was he? A descendant of a peerless strongman, often listening to the teachings of the supreme beings.

And now, he was being stabbed by a junior cultivator.

During the battle, despite its array of spells and its whirlwind of legs and spears, it was futile. The spider was outmatched.

Facing his attacks, the opponent had only one move: a single spike to shatter myriad techniques, simple yet brutal. That iron spike was truly wicked, piercing through barriers of light and breaking through spells, stabbing his massive legs and piercing his body, causing his face to contort in pain, blood streaming from his body, and his spiritual essence writhing in agony.

In the end, he fled, unable to bear the pain any longer, unable to withstand the iron spike. His spiritual essence was riddled with holes, reaching his core imprint.

However, Wang Xuan had no intention of letting him go. At the last moment, body and sword merged as one, and the secrets of the Divine Slayer Sword were fully unleashed, distorting time and space, surpassing all logic!

Using the golden beast skin on his body as a shield, Wang Xuan endured two fierce stabs from the spider's massive legs, while driving the iron spike through its colossal head.

The eight-legged spider deity died a miserable death, its spiritual essence crumbling, assimilated by the transcendent light sea, carried away by the waves. A greenish creation true crystal fell, which Wang Xuan caught, very satisfied. This would be his "provisions" for advancing to the realm of transcendence.

Not only here, but elsewhere, there was a rising tide of resistance, with bloody massacres erupting. Once a precious item was discovered, it would trigger intense competition.

As the transcendent light sea receded, many remarkable treasures were washed ashore, some of which did not belong to this mythological civilization, astonishing even the most exceptional experts.

Half a day later, Wang Xuan had obtained a total of six creation true crystals. The dense material approaching reality was continuously refined by his spiritual essence, loosening the barriers of his realm.

"Thirteen... creation true crystals?!" His eyes glowed with excitement.

In the depths of the sea ahead, scattered crystals were strewn about—emerald green, deep purple, silver-white, golden yellow... dazzling with colors that intoxicated the beholder, inviting them closer.

Wang Xuan was certain that if he could obtain and fully refine all these superlative creation true crystals, he should be able to break through the barriers!

However, it was a bit far away. If he rashly rushed over, he might be swept away by the transcendent light sea, unable to turn back, and die in the great retreat tide.

Wang Xuan emerged from the transcendent light sea and immediately contacted Fang Yuzhu. After all, they were allies, and there was no need to be embarrassed. For him, the treasure below was a must-have.

Fang Yuzhu nodded and said, "At a critical moment, I'll use spiritual threads to guide and locate you. You won't be assimilated for a short time. Seize the opportunity."

In the vast universe, beneath the profound starry sky, the transcendent light sea surged and receded, causing even the spirits to tremble and resonate. This was the last lingering brilliance of transcendence.

With a splash, Wang Xuan once again submerged into the depths, venturing into the dangerous area where the pile of crystals drifted with the dark currents. He felt a spiritual thread wrapping around him but didn't dwell on it, swiftly approaching the crystals.

"Ha-ha, creation!"

At the opportune moment, Ada and A2 appeared behind him, laughing, and without hesitation, they attacked. They didn't dare to approach directly but stirred up violent undercurrents on the seabed, aiming to disrupt Wang Xuan.

This was entirely detrimental to themselves, as they were almost swept away by the turbulent light sea, all to interfere with Wang Xuan and lead him to his demise, carried away by the tide.

"You two are asking for death!" Wang Xuan was furious. He had already been keeping a low profile, not provoking anyone actively, only defending himself passively. Yet, there were still people repeatedly attacking him.

He reflected on whether he was too kind, not targeting them proactively, but still being targeted.

At a crucial moment, Fang Yuzhu's spiritual thread pulled him back, and he quickly grabbed the thirteen crystals and rushed towards the nearby sea.

Clearly, even someone as powerful as Fang Yuzhu couldn't keep his spiritual essence submerged in the light sea for long. She needed to use the Divine Slayer Sword to cut off the transcendent power attacking along the spiritual threads. If she were assimilated, the consequences would be severe, causing her to explode and disintegrate even on land.

Fortunately, at this moment, Wang Xuan had escaped the danger zone.

Under the sea, Ada and A2 smirked coldly, once again causing disruption. They joined forces to create terrifying transcendent undercurrents, blasting Wang Xuan towards the depths of the sea.

Most crucially, a terrifying dragon roar shook the sea floor, causing tumultuous upheaval. A divine dragon with twelve pairs of wings soared past, causing great trouble for Wang Xuan. Just as he had finished dealing with Ada and A2, he was struck by a beam of light emitted by the dragon.

His whole body was tossed around at the bottom of the sea, carried away by the waves, his body wracked with pain. This divine dragon was incredibly powerful and awe-inspiring. Wang Xuan had seen it from the shore before; it was a formidable figure.

The divine dragon split off a portion of its divine essence and descended to the seabed. Although it washed away the transcendental rules, its power remained immense. Ordinary beings couldn't hope to contend with it.

This strike carried tremendous force. Anyone else would have been shattered by it, their divine essence extinguished. Wang Xuan managed to withstand it, but even so, blood seeped from the corners of his mouth, his body clad in the resounding golden beast skin.

He had been too passive, repeatedly attacked on the edge of the danger zone, and once again thrown into the depths of the sea, making it difficult for him to counterattack.

Boom!

The dragon swung its tail. With the body of a true dragon and angelic wings, it was both sacred and resplendent. In this realm of light, it was the overlord, especially suited to this environment. The waves it stirred trapped Wang Xuan in dire straits, pushing him even farther from the shore.

Moreover, out of the thirteen varied-colored creation crystals Wang Xuan had just grabbed, seven were shaken loose and sucked in by the dragon's mouth.

Truly, when the dragon returned to the sea, it was invincible. It held all the advantages.

Wang Xuan's body emitted light, transforming into a sword wheel. Threads of patterns shot from his eyes, locking onto the shore. He forcibly attempted to return, to break free from this place.

Swish!

At this critical moment, Fang Yuzhu once again cast her spell, spiritual threads swiftly appearing and wrapping around his waist, pulling him out of the most dangerous depths of the sea.

Boom!

The divine dragon set its sights on the creation crystals on Wang Xuan's body once again, charging towards him, its wings spread out, intending to shatter Fang Yuzhu's spiritual threads.

Wang Xuan was tossed about in the turbulent currents, nearly swept away, his figure fading into the distance.

But Fang Yuzhu's strength was unmatched. She resisted the danger of assimilation and continuously reinforced her spiritual threads, forcibly pulling him back and successfully bringing him to the shallow waters.

"Not bad at all, to survive this. You weren't swept away," remarked the owner of Ah Da and Ah Er, the young man with silver short hair, appearing with a smile. With a single slash in the void, he aimed to sever Fang Yuzhu's spiritual threads.

Fang Yuzhu had a premonition and instantly retracted the spiritual thread.

Boom!

At almost the same time, the dragon charged in, fiercely attacking Wang Xuan, intent on seizing the remaining creation crystals from him.

Simultaneously, the young man with silver short hair smiled as he approached. With a relentless strike, he covered the area with his hand, surging with silver light, delivering consecutive heavy blows.

Though Wang Xuan was strong, facing the joint obstruction of these two powerful individuals, his body completely lost its balance. He was swept away by the vortex created by the two, carried by the vast sea of light downstream.

"Thank you for the creation crystals," said the young man with silver short hair as he grabbed the colorful crystals that fell from Wang Xuan's grasp, collecting them.

The divine dragon also absorbed several pieces before swishing its tail and heading elsewhere to find its target. It and the young man with silver short hair avoided confronting each other.

......

He struggled desperately towards the surface, but the assimilation and traction forces deep within the light sea increased abruptly, far more terrifying than those near the shore, binding him and making it difficult to break free.

Most terrifying of all, at the deepest part of the transcendent light sea, it was like a mythical black hole, attracting everything related to the transcendent, even affecting someone like him who hadn't mastered the rules.

Wang Xuan exerted all his strength to resist and struggled against the blinding pull, his spiritual body glowing as if flames were burning within him, pushing towards the direction of the shore.

However, the terrifying pull from the depths of the light sea was too much. It dragged him as if into the abyss of the light sea, and he drifted further and further away from the coastline.

According to this trend, he was undoubtedly doomed, unable to return.

"Frustrating!" Wang Xuan's heart burned with unquenchable rage. He held back a heavy sigh, having been driven into a corner by the dragon and the silver-haired youth, he had no chance for revenge.

He desperately stabbed at various objects on the seabed with the iron spear, such as rolling decayed warships, massive blocks of divine iron, trying to stabilize himself and resist being pulled away, but to no avail. Even those massive objects were being pulled towards the center of the light sea, nearing death.

He was exhausted, his spiritual body trembling, radiating light continuously. However, the forces in the depths of the ocean were unstoppable!

He couldn't even replenish his strength. Not only did he lose the creation crystals in his hand, but even the few he had found earlier on his body were knocked off by the silver-haired youth and the dragon.

"I'm going to die in a place like this. I refuse to accept it!" In an instant, he thought of his parents, of many people.

"I haven't married or had children yet. There are still many regrets, and there are people waiting for me. I discovered the Void Land and the Meteorite Path. I want to see what's beyond them. I'm still in my twenties, in the prime of my life. I want to reshape the myth..."

All sorts of thoughts ran through his mind, chaotic and disorganized, as he resisted the gravitational pull of the light sea with unwillingness.

At the critical moment, he also thought of the two culprits. After the silver-haired youth knocked him into the deep sea, he clearly wore a mocking smile, and the dragon, before leaving, was full of disdain.

Boom!

Finally, when Wang Xuan was swept into the depths of the light sea, he collided with several pieces of crystal. He quickly grabbed one and absorbed the almost real super-quality energy.

However, it seemed futile. He couldn't break free, couldn't escape. The abyss that devoured both the extraordinary and the mythical seemed all too real, its gravitational pull increasing with each passing moment. His essence resonated with a deafening roar, and if he continued to resist like this, he might disintegrate on the spot.

"This is..." As he was carried further downstream, deeper into the abyss, he saw more and more strange phenomena. Occasionally, large clusters of crystals swam by like schools of fish, their density mesmerizing.

Ahead, vibrant and colorful, there were numerous gigantic bubbles, containing substances even closer to reality.

A familiar and terrifying substance caught Wang Xuan's eye. In the massive bubbles, crimson clouds churned like flames, like lightning, roiling within.

This was reminiscent of the crimson glow he had seen in the Void, intensely violent and vibrant.

Not just one massive bubble, but countless clusters, each filled with crimson mist and other extraordinary substances.

"Taking a risk, I'll detonate them!" Wang Xuan gritted his teeth, ready to break the balance of this area and burst out of the light sea. Once he was out of the water, everything would be manageable.

He charged forward, wielding his iron javelin, fiercely attacking the massive bubbles. Different volatile substances erupted upon contact, destined to explode upon collision.

Among them, the crimson substance did not disappoint him. Just like its counterpart in the Void, once activated, it resembled a sea of thunder.

He quickly covered his entire body with the golden beast skin. If it were anyone else, they would surely die; this intensely concentrated crimson substance would burn or cleave them in an instant.

It was like the highest flame, yet also like thunderous wrath. With just a touch, it could reduce a person to ashes.

"That is..." Wang Xuan disrupted the equilibrium here, about to unleash a tsunami-like wave. Suddenly, his pupils contracted as he saw something incredibly divine and radiant.

"I must seize it, bring it back. Once I do, I'll break through and seek revenge on that dragon and silver-haired youth!" With a reckless resolve, he charged forward.