Eternal Thief

On the other hand, while the Corpse Clan had decided to fully retreat and obey the Corpse Governor’s order, and they were still reeling from the revelation, the Evernight Council had already reached its own conclusion.

The Dread Duchess paid no heed to the fleeing Corpse Commanders, and Belfast, as she was completely uninterested in them, slowly looked toward the distant horizon where the overwhelming aura continued to intensify.

Although her expression remained hidden beneath the obsidian mask, everyone around her could feel the subtle change in her demeanor, as the relaxed confidence and the excitement of the hunt were gone. Instead, she became incomparably serious.

’So, he’s actually managed to succeed? But how?’

The Dread Duchess felt complicated at that moment because she was just taunting the Corpse Commanders to bring out their cowardly Corpse Governor, yet now he was here; she didn’t dare to approach him.

It was fact that the Dread Duchess had been stronger then the Corpse Governor, and even managed to made the former fled the last time they clashed, and almost claimed his life.

Nonetheless, she didn’t feel depressed for long because she knew the Corpse Governor was probably using his forbidden method and doing this breakthrough out of desperation, so the chances of him succeeding were extremely low.

But even if he succeeded, he won’t be able to enjoy his status as the Abyssal King for long because of the Evernight Kings’ presence.

The other Evernight Dukes also have their own thoughts.

The Corpse Duke’s corpse flames flickered violently, ’An Abyssal King...is about to be born.’

The Enchantress Demon Duchess frowned as a rare solemnity surfaced in her enchanting eyes, ’He has already stepped onto the King’s Path. What descends now is merely the Abyss acknowledging him.’

The Yin Duchess’s icy eyes remained fixed upon the heavens. ’Now this is completely unexpected. Since he managed to reach this point, this could only mean that the two Kings failed to stop him.’

At that moment, the Midnight Duke’s grave voice echoed inside every Duke’s consciousness.

”Everyone.” His tone carried unprecedented urgency. ”The Corpse Governor has entered the Abyssal King’s Ordeal. I repeat. The Corpse Governor has entered the Abyssal King’s Ordeal!”

Silence followed, and no one interrupted because everyone already knew, yet they merely hoped they had been mistaken.

The Midnight Duke continued.

”The Evernight Demon King has personally confirmed it. The Ordeal has begun manifesting. Prepare for the worst.”

Those final words caused every Duke’s expression to change.

The Corpse Duke slowly clenched his fists as he couldn’t help but ask, ”...Which Ordeal?”

But no answer came immediately, and a moment later, the Midnight Duke spoke again.

”...Unknown. But the scale is abnormal, so the Evernight Demon King cannot yet identify it. Don’t worry, she’s on her way!”

The moment those words were spoken, even the Dread Duchess’s brows furrowed.

’Unknown? That was impossible.’

The reason behind her disbelief was that every Abyssal King’s Ordeal recorded by the Evernight Council had been meticulously preserved.

Yet now, for even the Evernight Demon King to be unable to identify it immediately could only mean one thing. The Ordeal was still taking shape!

At that instant, the profound aura descending upon the Undead Cradle suddenly intensified.

’BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOM!!’

The entire secret realm shook, not merely the battlefield; even the mountains quaked, ancient rivers reversed, the skies distorted, and the earth groaned. Even space itself emitted deep rumbling sounds. As if the entire Undead Cradle had become unbearably heavy.

Right at that moment, the heavens changed again, and everyone instinctively looked upward. The endless black sky began losing its darkness, not merely because the darkness was disappearing, but as though something was washing it clean.

Layer after layer, the darkness itself seemed to be retreating, and a strange pale radiance gradually seeped through the cracks of reality. It wasn’t bright, nor dazzling; instead, it possessed a terrifying gentleness. A warmth that didn’t belong anywhere within the Abyss.

Every living race instinctively relaxed.

”This...feels comfortable.” One Evernight Earl unconsciously murmured.

The gentle radiance touched his body, his fatigue lessened, and his exhausted soul became calmer. Even his cultivation circulated more smoothly.

”It...”

”...isn’t harmful?”

Several Evernight Marquises looked at one another in confusion, yet before they could celebrate, a horrifying scream erupted from the Corpse Clan.

”AAAAAAAHHHHHHH!!”

Thousands of corpse soldiers simultaneously collapsed, their corpse flames violently trembled, and dark smoke continuously rose from their bodies. Some weaker Corpse Lords rolled across the ground in agony. Others desperately covered their faces.

”It burns!”

”My soul!”

”My corpse Qi!”

”It hurts!”

The scene instantly stunned everyone.

The pale radiance hadn’t attacked or exploded, and it hadn’t even released any destructive force. It merely existed, yet its mere presence caused unbearable suffering to every undead creature beneath the heavens.

Even the endless Death Qi floating throughout the battlefield quietly began evaporating like morning dew beneath sunlight.

The First Commander’s expression drastically changed as his split soul instinctively retreated deeper inside the Bloody Abyss Barbarian. The Moon Mindfeather continuously released illusion laws to protect its soul.

Yet even through two Ancient Corpse Vessels, he still felt an indescribable burning sensation.

”Impossible! My undead soul...is rejecting this light!”

The Second Commander fared no better as the Twin-Devouring Nightmare instinctively lowered both heads. Its countless scarlet eyes tightly closed, and every beastly instinct screamed one warning: escape immediately!

Even Belfast’s Abyssal Miasma Ghost began shrinking. The endless gray mist that had previously covered thousands of kilometers rapidly contracted. Every strand of miasma touching the pale radiance quietly dissolved into nothingness.

Belfast stared blankly, ”My...Abyssal Miasma...is being purified!?”

There wasn’t even resistance; his mist simply ceased to exist.

---

Far above, the Corpse Governor silently watched everything, and his expression remained calm. Yet even within his eyes, a trace of solemnity surfaced.

”So... this is the Ordeal.”

The King’s Might surrounding him unconsciously intensified. Even he hadn’t expected the pressure to become this overwhelming before the true Ordeal had even fully descended.

---

Deep beneath the battlefield within the destroyed throne chamber, the Evernight Demon King suddenly appeared beside the Evernight Fiend King. Both stood upon the ruined entrance they had shattered moments earlier.

Neither spoke as they simply looked upward, and then for the very first time the Evernight Demon King’s calm expression completely changed as her beautiful eyes widened ever so slightly.

She muttered with a hint of disbelief, ”Impossible...”

The Evernight Fiend King frowned, ”You recognize it?”

She slowly nodded as her voice became unusually heavy.

”I do.” She looked at the heavens with unconcealed gravity, ”If I’m not wrong, it is one of the twelve Supreme Abyssal Ordeals of the Abyssal King Realm.”

The Evernight Fiend King’s expression instantly darkened, ”...Which one?”

The Evernight Demon King slowly uttered a name that hadn’t been spoken within the Evernight Council for countless millennia.

”Purgatory of the Sacred Moon!”

The moment those words left her lips, even the Evernight Fiend King’s pupils violently contracted. He instinctively looked toward the increasingly purified heavens. His expression finally showed genuine alarm!