Martial World

The shackles went taut once more.

The fierce and sharp claws were like swords, able to pierce through stars. They tore open space less than half a foot in front of Lin Ming!

The tips of the claws almost reached Lin Ming’s eyes.

Looking at the bloodthirsty eyes of Empyrean Primordius, Lin Ming felt an inexplicable sense of bitterness.

Although he had never met Empyrean Primordius before this, Empyrean Primordius was still an important master who had a tremendously important influence on his life. Lin Ming hoped that while Empyrean Primordius was in his most difficult times, he would be able to help him. However… in the end he realized he was just a useless and lonely person.

Sheng Mei’s refusal, Primordius’ fate, all of this left Lin Ming filled with a sense of utter powerlessness.

“He… cannot return to how he was?” Although Lin Ming already knew what the answer would be, he still asked this question with unwillingness in his tone.

The old God Sovereign shook his head, “When Primordius took over the abyssal he was still able to preserve his logical mind and speak words. But afterwards… when his soul completely fused with that of the abyssal, he slowly became how he is now. In order to protect him I could only shackle him here with the dragon-trapping cables…

“100,000 years have passed. I fear that he has already forgotten everything of the past. All that remains in his heart is his hatred towards the saints… the saints took everything of his. They crushed his dreams and aspirations, and even killed the woman he loved above all…”

“The woman he loved above all?” Lin Ming was startled. “Is that Heavenly Empress Xuanqing?”

The old God Sovereign nodded. “Yes… the two of them once wanted to use the Samsara Road to establish the Grandmist Samsara Dao, and then develop that into something that could stand on equal ground with the Laws of the 33 Heavens. And using that as the basis, they wanted to establish their own independent world, copying Heavenly God Asura…

“Primordius and Xuanqing shared a common goal, and they were both peerless elites of their generations thus they were able to easily match together. They chased after their dreams, eventually falling in love with each other…”

The old God Sovereign’s quiet words left Lin Ming dumbfounded!

To copy the Asura Road Master, establish a separate Heavenly Dao and create a world!

Just how great a wish was this!

Yet, one was an unrivalled woman close to becoming a True Divinity, and the other was a genius of humanity that possessed the Grandmist Spirit Bead. If the two joined hands, there was really a chance they could succeed!

Perhaps even…

Lin Ming suddenly recalled Sheng Mei. When Sheng Mei asked him to leave with her, was it also for this goal?

He and Sheng Mei were similar to Xuanqing and Empyrean Primordius.

One was an unrivalled woman and the other was a peerless human who controlled one of the three divine artifacts of the universe.

If Lin Ming went together with Sheng Mei, perhaps they really could establish their own independent world and become existences similar to the Asura Road Master. Unfortunately… he could not!

Lin Ming didn’t know what feeling percolated in his heart. After a period of silence, his thoughts stirred. In this profoundly chilling land, Lin Ming could see hideously twisted words carved deep into the ground.

It seemed that when Empyrean Primordius became a demon but was still able to preserve his mind, he had carved these words with his claws.

It was the language of the Divine Realm. In these years, Lin Ming had already become accustomed to using the languages of the saints and spiritas, and now seeing the language of his home, he felt a certain closeness to it. But, the contents of the words carved into the ground were shocking, leaving Lin Ming speechless.

Just several words – ‘I, even if I become a demon, I will not regret!’

These words contained a tragedy and sorrow that was difficult to describe. Lin Ming fell silent for a long time.

Become a demon?

Lin Ming recalled the first time he had stepped into the Road of Emperor and saw the words Empyrean Primordius had left behind – “The masterless rivers of stars in the endless cosmos, I shall rewrite the infinite history!”

In the past, just how daring and high-spirited were these words? But now, there was only sadness…

And besides these words, there were also other characters.

Moreover, there were many of them. They connected together in rows, also carved by claws. The strokes twisted like worms without any sense of beauty, but the rugged and fierce way in which they were carved left the soul shaking.

‘Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill! Kill all enemies! Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate! Hate forever!’

‘I have become a demon, and I fear death no more. But once I die in this strange land, will my ashes return to my homeland?’

‘Time to time clarity returns to me, time to time I am lost in chaos. I know that one day I will devolve into a base beast. On that day, do not kill me, and do not seal me away forever. Wait until the great army of the saints arrives and let my demon body enter the camp of the saints, drinking thirstily of their blood, devouring my fill of their flesh! Let me die heroically in battle!’

‘I have made a vow. I will suffer the most bitter and excruciating pains in the world, all for a single chance to slaughter the saints and have them perish!’

…

‘Xuanqing, if there truly is life after death, I hope that I will be able to walk beside you again, hand-in-hand, building our world of Samsara, living a hundred million years without regret!’

…

The writing became increasingly distorted, until finally it was difficult to recognize.

Sometimes thick demonic energy was emitted from the words, shocking the heart!

Sometimes they were pitiful and pained, as if recalling the nostalgia and guilt that Primordius felt towards Xuanqing. Seeing these words, the heart quaked and the eyes became wet…

Lin Ming stood there for a long time, seeming to relive the scene from tens of thousands of years ago when Empyrean Primordius was locked away in this dark world with dragon-trapping cables, left to struggle with this pain by himself.

After seizing the body of an abyssal, he would have to resist the soul-rending pain and terror of being invaded by the abyssal’s spirit mark. Such a pain was unfathomable!

And originally, Empyrean Primordius had possessed a magnificent future as well as the Grandmist Spirit Bead. He should have been able to create his own history, but because of the saints he had lost everything and even his lover died for him.

Beside Lin Ming, the old God Sovereign quietly said, “Not many of our god race know that Primordius seized the body of an abyssal and is locked away here. I still remember the past, when Primordius was about to fall into depravity. During those brief moments of clarity he still cultivated the body transformation Laws and the Nine Stars of the Dao Palace, all in order to temper his demon body and prepare for the final war with the saints…

“At that time, the pain he withstood to his soul cannot be imagined. And he was well aware that there would come a day when he wouldn’t be able to persist. I once asked him whether or not he would like me to end his life for him.

“Primordius said that he had already expected this result when he seized the body of an abyssal. But, he wasn’t willing to die like this, because even if he fell into madness and lost the last traces of his sanity, becoming nothing more than a mindless beast, he still desired to one day break into the camp of the saints and perish together with the saint powerhouses…

“Many years have passed, and I often come to see him. He has already fallen into madness for a long time and lost all memories he once had. Now, the saints have arrived and started to kill my people and annex our lands. But I still cannot be cruel enough to unleash Primordius into battle. I know that once he breaks into the ranks of the saints, he will surely die in battle, just as he wrote. But no one would be able to recover his bones and his corpse would remain forever unable to return home…”

The old God Sovereign’s faint words were filled with inexhaustible grief. In a sense, Primordius was his son-in-law. Towards Primordius, he likely felt the same love as a father felt for their son…

The old God Sovereign let out a long breath and looked at Lin Ming. “Child, I can feel the same aura as Primordius emanating from your body. In addition with the Chain of Calamity you took out, I expect that you have gone to the place where Primordius fought and Xuanqing died in battle, even obtaining their inheritance?”

What the old God Sovereign felt within Lin Ming was the grandmist energy. This was the only reason he brought Lin Ming to this place where Primordius was caged, and allowed him to see Primordius.

Lin Ming quietly nodded…