Tianlong, sensing the discord, addressed them with an unyielding voice. "Calm yourselves," he commanded, his golden aura radiating authority. "The people of the realm and the clans are important. I alone am enough for this task. Return to your clans, protect them, and maintain order. This mission was meant for me to bear, not for all of us to perish."
The clan leaders froze, their expressions ranging from disbelief to frustration. Madam Yue stepped forward, concern etched on her face. "Your Majesty, this reeks of an ambush. What if this is a ploy to divide us?"
"It is indeed an ambush," Tianlong admitted, his voice firm yet sorrowful. "But I cannot allow the realm to fall because of my hubris. If you remain here and your clans falter, the chaos will spread unchecked. You are their leaders, their protectors. Your absence will cost lives."
Yu Feng Lie, always one for brash honesty, scoffed. "Your Majesty, with all due respect, this is exactly what the demons want. They aim to divide us. If we retreat now, we lose our advantage. I refuse to leave you here alone!"
Before anyone else could speak, the Mermaid Clan leader surprised them all by stepping forward. "If His Majesty commands it, then I obey," he declared solemnly. "The duty to my clan comes first. I will ensure my people are safe."
Yu Feng Lie's frustration boiled over. "Coward!" he spat, his voice sharp and unrelenting. "Your Majesty, you cannot expect us to abandon you, not when we are halfway to our goal. If we die, then we die together, as one!"
Tianlong's golden eyes flashed with intensity as he turned to Yu Feng Lie, his voice sharp and commanding. "Feng Lie, listen to me! Your father entrusted you with your clan, not to be reckless but to be wise. You are their leader now, not a child chasing glory. If any harm befalls your people while you're here, the blood will stain your hands, not mine."
Feng Lie faltered, the weight of Tianlong's words sinking in. The Supreme God of War softened his tone slightly. "Your father raised someone capable of leading with both heart and mind. Do not disappoint him. Protect your people, Feng Lie. That is your responsibility."
The words silenced the entire group, and one by one, the clan leaders bowed their heads in reluctant agreement. Tianlong watched as they turned back toward their clans, their footsteps heavy with hesitation and guilt.
As the last of them disappeared into the distance, Tianlong stood alone, the shadow of the Abyss looming ahead. He looked to the dark horizon, his resolve unwavering despite the ominous weight pressing down on him.
"Let this burden be mine alone," he murmured to himself. Then, with a final breath, he stepped into the Abyss,
As Feng Lie hesitated at the edge of the Shadow Abyss, he glanced back one final time, his heart heavy with the weight of leaving Tianlong behind. He clenched his fists tightly, a sharp pain piercing through his chest. To him, Tianlong was more than just the Supreme God of War; he was like the older brother he had always idolized.
A single tear escaped his eye, falling into the dark, cursed mist of the abyss. "Oh, heavens above," he whispered, his voice trembling, "if today the God of War meets his end, the balance of the realms will shatter. The skies will rage, and the thunder will abandon the heavens, leaving the Jade Pavilion in ruins."
With a final reluctant step, Feng Lie turned and vanished in a streak of golden light, his duty to his clan forcing him to retreat despite the storm raging within him.
Tianlong took a deep breath as he entered the Shadow Abyss alone. The atmosphere was suffocating, filled with the cries of forgotten souls and the echoes of ancient curses. The moment he stepped deeper, an oppressive force began to weigh on him, sapping his strength and dulling his divine powers. It was as if the abyss itself knew him, targeting him with malicious intent.
The whispers began softly, like distant winds carrying haunting words:
"The jade will crack, the rivers will flood, and the celestial qi will shatter... All because of you."
Tianlong's steps faltered slightly, but he clenched his jaw and pressed on. His golden armor, which had always radiated divine strength
The abyss wasn't just attacking his body; it was clawing at his mind. Visions of his most painful failures danced before him—his parents' sacrifice, the countless lives lost in wars he had fought, and the burden of the realms that weighed heavily on his shoulders. For the first time in centuries, the God of War felt fragile.
"Show yourself, Demon King!" Tianlong's voice thundered through the dark, though it was tinged with exhaustion. "You will not break me with your illusions!"
But the abyss didn't respond with words. Instead, it responded with power. A figure materialized before him—an exact reflection of himself, but twisted and dark. This doppelgänger's eyes gleamed with malice, and a wicked grin stretched across its face. It wielded a sword that dripped with black ichor, a weapon forged from the curses of the abyss itself.
"You are your own greatest enemy," the shadow version of Tianlong spoke, its voice like a venomous echo. "The mighty God of War, burdened by guilt, destined to destroy everything he swore to protect."
Tianlong gripped his Sun Sword tightly, summoning what remained of his strength. "I may be burdened, but I will not falter. The heavens entrusted me with their safety, and I will not betray that trust!"
As the battle raged in the abyss, Tianlong felt his strength nearing its limit. The shadow doppelgänger sneered at him, landing a deep cut across his arm. Blood spilled, staining the cursed ground beneath them.
"You are weak," the shadow spat. "You don't deserve the title of God of War."
Tianlong staggered but refused to fall. He planted his sword firmly into the ground and steadied himself. "I don't fight for myself," he said, his voice resolute. "I fight for the realms, for the people who believe in me. Even if I fall, my duty will not end."
As Tianlong stood before the Devil Ring, his breath heavy, his golden armor dimmed and scratched from the trials of the Shadow Abyss, he began to summon the remnants of his strength. The ring floated ominously before him, pulsating with a malevolent energy that seemed to echo the cries of countless souls. Half-shattered and leaking its cursed essence, the Devil Ring was the last remnant of his parents' sacrifice—a weapon too dangerous for any realm to bear.
With trembling hands, Tianlong reached out, his divine qi pouring into the ring in an attempt to restore the protective seal. "This ends here," he muttered, his voice filled with both determination and weariness. "For my parents... for the realms... this cursed weapon will not fall into the wrong hands again."
Just as he began to mend the fractured seal, a thunderous voice broke through the oppressive silence.
"Tianlong, the great Supreme God of War... Oh, what have you done to yourself? What have you made yourself into?"
The voice was cold and mocking, each word laced with venomous delight. Tianlong turned sharply, his hand still steady on the Devil Ring, and his eyes narrowed at the figure that emerged from the shadows.
It was the Demon King, his presence filling the abyss like an inescapable storm. He was clad in robes of black titanium, adorned with cursed runes that glowed faintly with crimson light. His sharp, predatory features were highlighted by eyes that burned with an unnatural red glow. In his gloved hand, he held a staff that radiated pure malice, its top crowned with a writhing orb of darkness.
"Demon King," Tianlong said through gritted teeth, his voice steady but his grip on the Devil Ring tightening. "I should have known you'd come."
The Demon King smirked, his expression both amused and cruel. "Come? Of course, I would. Did you truly believe I'd let you handle this cursed artifact all alone? Your parents may have given their lives to seal it, but you? You are nothing like them. Look at you—tired, broken, your divine light fading with each step you take in this place. The mighty God of War, reduced to this pathetic state."
"Still so stubborn. You think you can seal it again? Let me tell you something, Tianlong." He raised his staff, and a wave of dark energy rippled out, causing the very ground of the abyss to quake. "This ring belongs to the abyss, to the demons, to me. It was forged in hatred, nourished by curses, and it thrives on despair. It is beyond your reach to purify or seal now. All you're doing is draining what little power you have left."
Tianlong's jaw tightened, but he didn't stop. "I don't need to purify it," he said, his voice low but firm. "I only need to keep it out of your hands."
The Demon King's grin faltered for a moment before he scoffed. "Such noble words for someone on the brink of collapse. But let's put that resolve to the test, shall we?"
As the clan leaders returned to their respective clans, the air of chaos and uncertainty began to settle. Messages flooded in, and one by one, the truth of the Demon King's deceitful ambush became clear. Though their lands were shaken, no significant harm had been done—only confusion and fear sown as seeds of distrust.
Madam Yue, however, was not one to rest in relief. Her sharp instincts told her that the calm was but a prelude to a greater storm. Determined to act before it was too late, she gathered her remaining strength and summoned the Spirit Tool of Wind and Fire, a sacred relic known for its ability to bridge vast distances and deliver messages directly to the minds of its recipients. The toll of using the tool was steep—it demanded the wielder's vitality and cultivation—but for the sake of the realm, Madam Yue deemed it necessary.
A shimmering wisp of fire entwined with wind formed in her hand as she whispered her message. "To all clan leaders, and especially Feng Lie, heed my words. The situation in the Shadow Abyss may be more dire than we imagined. If you truly stand for this realm, if you hold any loyalty to the Supreme God of War, hear me now."
Her voice, carried by the Spirit Tool, reached the minds of the clan leaders scattered across the heavens. "The Spirit Tool of Wind and Fire can take us to the Shadow Abyss in time to aid Tianlong. But know this: the cost will be great. Each of us will lose half our cultivation in the process. This is no small sacrifice, but it is a price I am willing to pay if it means saving Tianlong and protecting our heaven."
Feng Lie, seated in the main hall of his clan's stronghold, felt the message pierce his mind like a blade of fire. He stood abruptly, his heart torn between his duty to his clan and his loyalty to Tianlong. "Half my cultivation," he muttered to himself, clenching his fists. "But if I don't act now, my brother..."
Across the realms, other clan leaders heard the call. Some hesitated, weighing their own interests against the greater good. Others, like Feng Lie, found themselves burning with resolve.
The leader of the Water Clan, Yu Fang, grimaced as he received the message. "That madam Yue always has dramatic solutions," he muttered. But deep inside, he knew she was right. Tianlong's survival meant the survival of all.
The mermaid clan leader, calm and serene as ever, spoke softly to her attendants. "Prepare the ceremonial altar. If my cultivation must be halved, so be it. What good is power if the realm falls to ruin?"
Back in Feng Lie's stronghold, his trusted advisor approached him cautiously. "Young master, you are the leader now. This is not a decision to be taken lightly."
Feng Lie turned, his eyes blazing with determination. "A leader protects his people, yes. But a leader also knows when to sacrifice for the greater good. Tianlong has always been there for us. Now it's our turn to stand for him."
Without waiting for further counsel, Feng Lie stood before his clan's sacred fountain, calling upon its ancient power to summon his clan's elders. "Prepare yourselves," he declared. "If we are to fight for this realm, we fight as one."
Back in the heavens, Madam Yue completed the summoning of the Spirit Tool's power. Her face pale and her breath labored, she awaited their responses. One by one, the flames of acceptance began to appear in the air around her—a sign of the clan leaders' agreement. When the final flame appeared, marking Feng Lie's decision, she smiled weakly. "The heavens still have hope," she whispered.
With the Spirit Tool activated, a swirling vortex of fire and wind began to form in the skies above the heavens. It would carry the united clan leaders to the Shadow Abyss, to Tianlong's side. But the journey ahead was fraught with danger, and each of them knew the price they had already paid was just the beginning.
The battle for the realm was far from over.