Chapter 258: Final Toll

The ninth chime was imminent, yet Jiang Yan’s mind grew increasingly suspicious.

“Nine chimes, each one claiming the lives of countless powerful beings. Rumors say the Four Directions Realm is fraught with peril, where even Martial God-level existences could fall.”

“The Four Directions Realm is like a timed harvester, scheming endlessly to lure people to their deaths.”

Whether the nine chimes were mere coincidence or part of a deeper scheme had been a subject of speculation not only for Jiang Yan but for many over the years.

So-called powerful beings cherished their lives yet risked them all the same. Even if they knew a cliff lay ahead, if the opportunity was great enough, they would dare to tread through the depths of hell.

“Over all these years, powerful beings have still willingly entered, proving that the opportunities within the Four Directions Realm are real.”

“The Four Directions Realm is treacherous. To have even a sliver of a chance, I must strengthen my Laws.”

In truth, Jiang Yan wasn’t overly concerned about something like a key to the Four Directions Realm. Even without one, he might still be able to enter the Realm Gate through his own abilities.

【Space Law】

Spatial teleportation that ignored restrictions.

However, with so many powerful beings gathering in the Four Directions Realm, if others discovered Jiang Yan could traverse the Realm Gate without a key, it would inevitably invite trouble.

Thus, Jiang Yan had no choice but to use a Four Directions Boundary Stone as a cover.

Another month passed.

Jiang Yan’s cultivation at the Eighth Rank progressed even faster, and his Spirit Eye was further expanded.

Eighth Rank Transcendents absorbed the profound spiritual energy of heaven and earth to refine themselves, then strengthened their Spirit Eye to enhance perception, gaining further opportunities to comprehend the core of Laws.

But Jiang Yan seemed different. As soon as he broke through to the Eighth Rank, he could see Law fragments through his Spirit Eye.

In other words, his starting point was the perfection others sought, though what true perfection entailed remained unknown.

“This body is like a bottomless pit, constantly absorbing the profound spiritual energy of heaven and earth. Lately, even the Chaotic Void Ancestral Spirit has grown silent. How strange.”

Fortunately, the Martial Way wasn’t rigidly bound to progressing one realm at a time, so the anomalies of his body didn’t hinder his cultivation of Ninth Rank Laws.

Currently, only the Sky-Severing Law hadn’t reached the Ninth Rank standard, so Jiang Yan relocated to another major star for Secret Realm cultivation.

The ninth chime, however, remained elusive.

Half a month later.

After Jiang Yan was successfully blacklisted by the local Secret Realm operators, both his Sky-Severing Law and Thunderfire Law showed improvement, though the progress was much slower.

Now, all four Laws had reached the Law Embryo stage, placing them within the Early Stage of the Ninth Rank.

Moreover, the Chaos Yin-Yang Law, Life and Death Law, and Sky-Severing Law were all high-priority Laws.

One was the Legacy Law of Divine Demonic Creatures.

One was the Law that established the reputation of a Demon Race King.

One was a Law Jiang Yan comprehended on his own.

“With these high-priority Laws combined, I might even be able to contend with a half-step Martial God.”

But against a true Martial God…

“I could still catch them off guard.”

With the Chaos Yin-Yang Law to transfer damage, as long as luck was on his side, it could prove unexpectedly effective at critical moments.

Just as Jiang Yan was studying how to combine his Laws, the ninth chime finally arrived.

The Four Directions Boundary Stone inside his Spatial Ring resonated at that moment, subtly conveying a direction to Jiang Yan.

“It even has auto-navigation?”

But now wasn’t the time to worry about navigation.

Because his Spirit Platform sensed countless powerful existences converging toward his location.

Under the resonance of the stone, his form could no longer be concealed.

Jiang Yan manipulated the heavens and earth, rushing toward the direction guided by the Boundary Stone.

He dared not take a warship, as facing so many powerful beings would render it useless in mere moments.

From all directions, powerful auras continuously closed in, surrounding him.

“Chaos Void World!”

A chaotic, disordered sphere extended infinitely, enveloping the entire sky and earth, firmly trapping the Transcendent Creatures pursuing him.

Under the enhancement of four Laws, even if they exerted their full strength, it would be difficult for them to break the Domain in a short time.

An Eighth Rank Transcendent had just unleashed a fireball against the barrier when, in the next moment, the Chaos Yin-Yang Law redirected it, triggering the Instant Kill Law and causing his immediate death.

For a moment, all Transcendents watched their surroundings warily, not daring to act rashly.

Jiang Yan never believed the Domain could trap so many powerful beings. Once it faced a collective bombardment of Laws, and the tolerance range exceeded what the Chaos Yin-Yang Law could withstand, the Domain would shatter on its own.

Fortunately, the other Laws bought time to sustain the Domain.

By now, Jiang Yan had already fled to an unknown location.

But at the same time, even more powerful beings closed in.

Once Jiang Yan entered the Realm Gate, they would truly have no chance. Thus, these Ninth Rank Transcendents, long stuck at their bottlenecks, would spare no cost to capture Jiang Yan.

Meanwhile, similar scenes unfolded in various parts of the universe.

Zhang Erdan watched the gathering swarm of ants and let out a meaningful, cold laugh.

“The weak have no right to enter the Four Directions Realm.”

Thud—

He stomped his foot, and a blue ripple rose from beneath him, extending outward in all directions, instantly expanding for millions of miles.

All who had pursued him were trapped within the Formation.

“Law: Myriad Phenomena at Peace.”

The originally blue Formation seemed to come alive as countless Phantom Images slowly emerged from within.

Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Vermilion Bird, Black Tortoise—all fierce and menacing.

“Not good, this is the Human Race’s Martial God! Run!”

Boom!

All who had dared to trespass perished here, with no survivors.

The air surged with blood Qi, and not a single soul dared to trespass further.

In the face of absolute strength, even the largest swarm of ants was nothing more than cannon fodder.

On the day the Four Directions Realm opened, only existences like the Martial God could ensure their Boundary Stones would not be lost.

Just then.

“Tsk tsk tsk, Xiao Erdan, so much Flesh and Blood Essence. Did you guess I was coming?”

The Sky Demon, Xiang Yu, emerged from the blood mist filling the sky, grinning wickedly at the cold-faced Xiao Chunwei.

Xiao Chunwei’s expression fell. “It’s Xiao Chunwei.”

“By the way, have you found that person?”

At this, the Sky Demon’s expression also fell.

Both the human and the Demon felt rather awkward.

“Alright, keep the stone safe.” Xiao Chunwei tossed the Boundary Stone into the Sky Demon’s hand.

“Rest assured, my Demon Race values credibility above all. I won’t go back on my word.”

After a brief exchange, the human and the Demon vanished into the Void.

The so-called resonance of the Boundary Stones was completely insignificant before two Tenth Rank powerhouses.

Across the universe, anyone holding a Boundary Stone was pursued by large numbers of powerful beings.

Unless one had reached the level of Martial God, even if you were half-step Martial God, you could not guarantee the ownership of your Boundary Stone.

The only two choices were to abandon the Boundary Stone or enter the Realm Gate early.

…

In a certain space within the universe, a heavy ancient bronze door slowly rose.

Patina of wind erosion crept across the bronze surface, with a total of one hundred and eight thousand ancient inscriptions carved upon the door panels. Many of the characters had already vanished, eroded away in the passage of ancient time.

When the ancient bronze gate stood fully erect within the Void, the Universe emitted a timeless, boundless tremor, as if welcoming the arrival of this creation.

The great door parted slightly, a sliver of faint light seeping through the crack.