Chapter 415: Stomach of the Abyss!

The Blade Sovereign tucked the silver-gray scroll away and gazed toward the distant sky above the battlefield. It looked empty, but she knew a powerful entity lurked there. Against that entity, her chances of winning were dismally low.

After pausing to gaze for a moment, the Blade Sovereign raised a hand. The floor of the hall split open, and a massive, dark green orb of light floated up from the fissure to hover in midair.

"One hundred and seventy thousand years of accumulation! Today, it finally sees use!"

The Blade Sovereign extended her twelve snow-white arms and spread her fingers. A powerful suction erupted from her palms, drawing twelve streams of energy from the dark green orb into her hands and lifting her to hover in the air.

As the energy flooded in, the Blade Sovereign's aura climbed steadily higher. Light green patterns surfaced on her skin, growing darker and darker until they turned a deep, inky green.

Finally, sensing her body had reached its absolute limit, she deliberately severed the connection. The dark green orb grew significantly more translucent.

This leftover energy could not be wasted. It was a pity it only worked on the Snake Demon Clan, otherwise...

With that thought, the Blade Sovereign waved a hand. The remaining dark green energy scattered into streaks of green light that shot out of the Viper Temple, drilling into the bodies of the High-Tier Legend snake demons on the battlefield with lightning speed.

Out on the battlefield, the White Dragon Lord watched those streaks of green light fly out of the Viper Temple and burrow into the Eight-Armed Snake Demons. Their auras instantly skyrocketed, pushing them straight to the peak of the High-Tier Legend rank.

The White Dragon Lord quickly deduced what was happening: it seemed to be a secret energy infusion technique that could temporarily boost the snake demons' combat prowess. Exactly how much it increased their strength remained to be seen.

He communicated with his companions through the Soul-Linking Chain. "The Blade Sovereign certainly has quite a few good things hidden away!"

Light of the Firmament replied, "She has run the Viper Temple for hundreds of thousands of years, after all. We need to be careful."

The White Dragon Lord's five-member party retreated a little, layering on defensive magic while observing the transformed Eight-Armed Snake Demons. Green patterns had surfaced on the demons' bodies, looking both alluring and bizarre. Their attack speed, raw strength, and agility had all received a comprehensive boost, leaving their previously evenly matched opponents struggling to hold the line.

Though the Eight-Armed Snake Demons were reinforced, there were only nine of them. They could salvage some local disadvantages, but they could not reverse the overall collapse of the battlefield. The Blade Sovereign's trump card could not possibly be this weak.

Sensing something, the White Dragon Lord looked toward the Viper Temple just in time to see its main doors swing wide open. The Blade Sovereign swayed her slender waist as she sauntered out.

She lifted her head, and the White Dragon Lord met her icy gaze. The killing intent in those eyes sent a chill through his heart. His nerves pulled taut, ready to trigger the magic within his horn ring at a moment's notice. He harbored no illusions about being able to withstand an abyssal lord whose power rivaled Intermediate Divine Power.

Fortunately, the Blade Sovereign only spared the White Dragon a single glance before shifting her gaze to the distant, empty sky. As if performing a magic trick, a scimitar appeared in each of her twelve hands. She fanned the twelve blades out behind her back like a painted folding screen. Combined with the dark green patterns on her body, she looked like a peacock displaying its feathers.

It was a lethal beauty!

Sensing the battle intent radiating from the Blade Sovereign, the floating island in the distant sky deactivated its invisibility array, casting a massive shadow over the battlefield below.

This was the aerial fortress of the Divine Alliance—the Sword of Justice. The name came from the inverted mountain peak at the bottom of the floating island, which hung down like a sharp sword. The Sword of Justice was the headquarters of the Allied Forces Command Center, and the seat of the Radiant Archangel—Izel Light of Light.

Izel Light of Light flapped his brilliant golden wings and soared into the sky. A blinding holy light burst from his body, outshining even the sun itself. The Allied Forces felt as though they were bathed in a warm spring breeze, but to the Demons and Devils, it was like standing under a barrage of lasers, leaving them feeling as if their entire bodies were being pierced by needles.

Feeling the aura of the holy light, the White Dragon Lord breathed a sigh of relief. With this entity here, the Blade Sovereign would not be able to stir up much trouble.

The moment the holy light erupted, the Blade Sovereign moved. In an instant, she shot high into the sky and clashed with the oncoming Light of Light. Even the sturdy spatial fabric of the Blood War Battlefield could not withstand the battle between these two supreme powerhouses, shattering like a broken mirror.

The shockwaves of their fight carried destructive energy in all directions, slamming into the Magic Shield protecting the White Dragon Lord's body. The shield crackled under the impact, its energy reserves depleting rapidly.

The two Abomination Rank powerhouses had already done their best to keep their fight as far away from the other battlefields as possible. Even so, the Magic Shields of High-Tier Legends like the White Dragon Lord would not survive more than ten hits from the shockwaves.

In the blink of an eye, the two Abomination Rank powerhouses exchanged blows countless times. The White Dragon Lord's eyes could only catch the afterimages of their movements.

Seeing the Blade Sovereign hold her ground perfectly in a head-on clash, the White Dragon Lord was astonished. Remembering the bizarre dark green patterns on her body, he understood everything: the main effect of this trump card had been applied to the Blade Sovereign herself.

The Abomination Rank battle fell into a stalemate, and there was no telling how long it would take for a victor to emerge. All the other battlefields could do was accelerate their offenses, striving to secure an advantage that would distract the enemy leader.

Bang!

The High-Tier Legend powerhouses from both sides slammed into each other once more. The White Dragon Lord's five-member party continued to spearhead the charge, clashing with several of the reinforced Eight-Armed Snake Demons.

"Nayinduo! How dare you?!"

Light of Light's furious roar suddenly rang out from the sky. Before the White Dragon Lord could figure out what was happening, a sensation of fatal crisis washed over him, like a sharp blade piercing right between his eyes. With no time to think, he triggered his equipment.

Forbidden Spell—Gate of the Ice Beast!

Three gates of frost materialized in front of the White Dragon Lord, blocking a lethal flash of a blade. The Gate of the Ice Beast was very nearly pierced straight through.

The White Dragon Lord drew a sharp breath. He recognized that blade flash. It was exactly like the trump card several Eight-Armed Snake Demons had used before, but this time, it had not been cast by a magic item. It was a magic clone of the Blade Sovereign.

The Blade Sovereign's clone suddenly appeared on the battlefield, staring at the White Dragon Lord with a face devoid of emotion. Horror gripped his heart.

'When did she leave a clone behind?!'

It was an ironclad rule of the battlefield that high-tier combatants did not waste their strength on low-tier ones. The only explanation was that the Blade Sovereign felt the White Dragon Lord could sway the course of the battle, making him worth her personal attention. She had left a clone behind in advance, and though Light of Light had discovered it, he had been too late to stop her.

Without a shred of hesitation, the White Dragon Lord simultaneously triggered the life-saving magic inside Amos's Horn Ring (Silver) and Amos's Horn Ring (Gold)—Summon Winter Commander!

Amos's Horn Ring (Silver) and Amos's Horn Ring (Gold) were his ultimate trump cards, custom-made using materials he had scoured the entire Star Realm to find. The two horn rings were a set. The silver ring carried the enchantment Summon Winter Guard, but when used in tandem with the gold ring, the spell evolved into the much higher-level Summon Winter Commander.

In the Elemental Plane of Ice, a loud shout suddenly rang in the ears of the slumbering Winter Commander, Motznovi. 'Lord Commander! Help!'

Motznovi jolted in shock. It was the Little White Dragon's voice. With no time to overthink it, it immediately stepped through the Portal that had formed.

Back on the Blood War Battlefield, the Blade Sovereign's clone watched the sudden formation of the massive Portal. The aura of an Abomination Rank powerhouse spilled out from within. She could not help but feel surprised; she had never expected the White Dragon Lord to possess such a trump card.

Ever since the soul shield on her pet had been triggered, the Blade Sovereign had resolved to eradicate the White Dragon Lord. If he could research Soul Magic to such a profound degree while only at the High-Tier Legend level, he would undoubtedly become a terrifying rival once he stepped into the Abomination Rank. She had to smother this threat in the cradle.

To assassinate the White Dragon, she had purposely left a clone inside the temple, waiting to launch a sneak attack while her true body occupied Light of Light. But Light of Light had noticed and warned him, giving the White Dragon Lord the chance to activate his defensive magic.

The Blade Sovereign had assumed the Gate of the Ice Beast was his final lifeline. She never imagined he would deliver such a massive surprise—an Abomination Rank Ice Elemental!

Seeing the Abomination Rank Ice Elemental stepping halfway out of the Portal, the Blade Sovereign's clone pulled out a silver-gray scroll without hesitation and unfurled it.

The exact moment the silver-gray scroll opened, the White Dragon Lord felt himself being locked on to.

There was no dodging! There was no resisting!

A dark vortex materialized above the White Dragon Lord's head. An unstoppable suction force grabbed him, dragging him inside.

"No!!!"

Countless cries of alarm rang out. They came from his five-member party, and they came from the Winter Commander, Motznovi.

Motznovi was absolutely furious. The White Dragon Lord was the Winter Legion's last hope of retrieving the goddess's relic, and that hope had just been snuffed out right in front of its eyes.

"Damned demon! What did you do?!"

Along with Motznovi's rage, a bitter winter descended.

The White Dragon Lord could not witness the massive battle between Motznovi and the Blade Sovereign's clone. He felt as though he had been tossed into a washing machine spinning at high speed, his head swimming in extreme dizziness.

After what felt like an eternity of spinning, the vortex spat him out. He instinctively flapped his wings to stabilize himself, only to lose control of his momentum. He shot rapidly upward and crashed into a solid object, his sharp horns piercing right into it.

He hastily yanked his horns free and scanned his surroundings in high alert, only to be instantly dumbfounded.

An endless expanse of dark void surrounded the White Dragon Lord, devoid of up, down, left, or right. Massive chunks of rubble hung suspended in the emptiness. The largest ones were the size of small continents, while the smallest were mere specks of dust. Occasionally, a streak of brilliant aurora flashed through the void, only to vanish in the blink of an eye.

"Is... is this the Star Realm?!"

He quickly discarded that theory. The Star Realm would not possess such dense demonic energy. The abyssal energy was freezing and malevolent. He hurried to cast a Magic Shield over himself, preventing the corruption from mutating him into an abyssal magic dragon.

With the Magic Shield in place, the White Dragon Lord felt much better. He immediately tried to cast teleportation magic, but forget forming a teleportation array—not even a sliver of spatial energy responded. He tried to contact his clone, only to find the connection inexplicably severed. He then attempted to summon the White Tower, but he could not reach that either.

"Damn it! What the hell is this place?!"

Extreme frustration set in, but the White Dragon Lord knew anger would not solve anything. He forced himself to calm down and continued searching his surroundings for clues. But besides the suspended rocks, he saw absolutely nothing.

There was no gravity in the void, and no enemies nearby. He closed his eyes, letting himself float freely as he extended his spiritual sense to probe the local space. He discovered that the spatial energy here was like a pool of stagnant water, entirely devoid of ripples.

Sifting through his memories regarding the Abyss, the White Dragon Lord's eyes suddenly snapped open, flashing with shock. A single term surfaced in his mind: Stomach of the Abyss!

A famous scholar studying the Abyss in the Nordhill Plane had once proposed a hypothesis. After devouring a plane, the Abyss would undergo a digestion process. During this phase, it would strip away the world will, digesting and absorbing it to fuel its own growth. To prevent its prey from escaping, the space within the Stomach of the Abyss was incredibly solid. Even something as ethereal and formless as a world will could not break free.

That scholar's hypothesis had never been proven, but the White Dragon Lord knew the Stomach of the Abyss was real. He had learned of it from the Winter Legion.

Back when he was preparing to retrieve the goddess's relic, the Winter Empress, the Master of the Winter Legion, and the three Winter Commanders had imparted a massive amount of Abyssal knowledge to him to ensure his success. Information on the Stomach of the Abyss was included in those lessons.

Once trapped inside the Stomach of the Abyss, unless one possessed strength exceeding Intermediate Divine Power, escape was absolutely impossible. It was a forbidden zone.

The White Dragon Lord felt a headache coming on. He could not contact the outside world. Even if a powerhouse was willing to rescue him, they would not know where to look.

He had to save himself!

He took out two items: one was the Coin of Fate, and the other was a translucent ice crystal.

These were the only two methods he could think of that might allow him to escape with his life. The Coin of Fate needed no explanation. If the Goddess of Fortune smiled upon him, he might just bump into some supreme being taking a stroll through the Stomach of the Abyss in the very next second. That being might kindly bring him back, and perhaps even gift him a Divine Artifact or two, and from then on...

The White Dragon Lord wiped away a line of drool. Remembering his own painfully abysmal luck, he quickly killed that thought. If he met the Goddess of Misfortune instead, he would just die on the spot.

He turned his attention to the ice crystal in his hand. The Winter Empress, the Master of the Winter Legion, had given it to him. She had originally prepared it for his clone, which was about to explore an unknown plane. He recalled her words: 'No matter where you are, as long as you crush this ice crystal, you will be teleported to the plane where the Winter Crown is located.'

Although he did not know the Master of the Winter Legion's exact strength, she was at least at the Intermediate Divine Power level. What she said should not be false.

The only catch was that, upon leaving the Stomach of the Abyss, he would be stepping right into another unknown, perilous domain.

Trapped in the Stomach of the Abyss, the White Dragon Lord could not see any way to escape using his own power. He faced two choices: crush the Coin of Fate and gamble on his luck, or crush the ice crystal and, again, gamble on his luck.

Between the two, he much preferred the latter. The situation could not possibly get any worse anyway, so why not pick the option that still offered a sliver of hope to complete his mission?

With the Coin of Fate as a final safety net, even in the worst-case scenario, he still had a fifty percent chance of escaping.

With that thought, the White Dragon Lord crushed the ice crystal in his hand.