"I said, before I completely go mad, I will do one last thing." Ares turned back. Although he had no facial features, Tang Wulin could feel that he was smiling, "Ares the War God, once fought for the sake of fighting, killed for the sake of glory. But now, I finally understand the meaning of battle—protection. This is more meaningful than all my battles over the past thirteen thousand years."
He turned, facing the seventh tumor.
"But your body can't withstand one more attack." Dai Chengfeng analyzed calmly, "That tumor's guardian, though weaker than before, still requires a full-force strike equivalent to a first-level god to destroy. You right now..."
"I know." Ares said calmly, "So, I won't attack the tumor."
Everyone was stunned.
"What I will attack is this domain itself." Ares raised his bone blade, pointing at the sky, "The world behind the Abyss Gate is the Abyss's reflection in the Divine Realm. It can exist because the Abyss's power has constructed a temporary 'law' here. As long as this law is destroyed, this domain will collapse, the Abyss's power will be temporarily dispersed, and we will have a window to approach Isis."
"But the power required to do that..." Qian Renxue drew in a sharp breath.
"Requires igniting all the divine power and divine position of a god." Ares said, "Fortunately, I have one right here."
"You're mad!" Bibi Dong said sharply, "That will completely annihilate your body and spirit—not even a chance for reincarnation!"
"I've been mad for a long time." Ares said in a low voice, his voice carrying relief, "From the first day I was imprisoned here, I've been mad. Now, I only wish to die as a god, not become a monster."
He looked at Tang Wulin.
"Tang Wulin, you just asked me if I was prepared to pay the price to recast the seal. Now, I ask you the same question. I have paid my price. Is your price ready?"
Tang Wulin was silent.
Then, he nodded heavily.
"I am ready."
"Very good." Ares seemed satisfied, "Then, after I ignite my divine position, you will have approximately thirty breaths' time. Within thirty breaths, the Abyss's power will be dispersed, all monsters will temporarily lose their ability to act. You must use these thirty breaths to rush to the Tree of Life, find Isis's consciousness, and then—"
He didn't finish speaking, nor did he need to.
Everyone understood.
"Begin."
Ares took one last look at this world.
This dark red, twisted, mad world—where he had been imprisoned for thirteen thousand years. He hated this place, hated the Abyss, hated everything. But now, he wanted to thank this place—because here, he found the ultimate meaning of battle.
Ares the War God, born for battle.
Now, he would die for protection.
"In the name of Ares the War God—"
He raised his bone blade high, the divine power within his body beginning to burn. That wasn't ordinary burning—it was the complete burning of divine position, divine soul, and divine body as one. Golden flames rose from him—that was the War God's divine fire, pure, scorching, filled with unyielding fighting spirit.
Those dark red "blood vessels" struggled in the flames, those eyeball-like protrusions screamed, the Abyss's power tried to stop him, but it was too late.
Ares's divine position had already been ignited—this was an irreversible process.
"—This body, this soul, this divine position—"
Golden flames surged into the sky, burning a great hole in the dark red heavens. Within the flames, a faintly visible burly figure could be seen—he wielded a giant axe, wore battle armor, eyes burning with never-extinguishing fighting spirit. That was Ares's true appearance, the posture a War God should have.
"—Will burn here, to open the path for protection!"
As the final word fell, the golden flames contracted to their extreme, then—
Exploded.
Not an energy explosion, but a law-level explosion.
Centered on Ares, a golden ripple spread outward. Where the ripple passed, the dark red sky faded, the scorched earth crumbled, those monsters stiffened as if frozen, then turned to flying ash. Under the War God's self-destruction, the Abyss's law briefly shattered.
"Go!"
Tang Wulin roared, his dragon wings flapping as he charged toward the Tree of Life.
Qian Renxue, Bibi Dong, and Dai Chengfeng followed closely behind.
Thirty breaths.
They only had thirty breaths.
First breath—they broke through the monsters' encirclement.
Fifth breath—they crossed over those fissures flowing with magma.
Tenth breath—they flew over those twisted mountain ranges.
Fifteenth breath—they arrived at the base of the Tree of Life.
The situation here was even more shocking than what they saw from afar.
The Tree of Life's trunk—the upper half was pure white, flowing with warm golden patterns, emitting a dense life aura. But the lower half, starting from the ground, had completely turned black. Black root systems like countless tentacles deeply embedded in the earth, drawing that dark red viscous liquid from the fissures. That liquid spread upward along the roots, eroding the trunk like a virus.
At the base of the tree, there was a faint point of light.
That was the phantom of a woman, curled up, arms wrapped around her knees, head deeply buried in her arms. Her body was semi-transparent, as if ready to dissipate at any moment. Around her was dense, almost substantive darkness. From within the darkness, countless tentacles extended, entwining her, trying to drag her into deeper darkness.
That was Isis, the last consciousness of the Goddess of Life.
"Isis!" Qian Renxue shouted, wanting to approach.
But the dark tentacles moved.
They surged from all directions—no longer monsters, but tentacles condensed from the purest Abyss power. Each tentacle had god-level strength, and carried intense contamination—once touched, one would be eroded by the Abyss.
"Twenty breaths!" Dai Chengfeng swung his sword to sever several tentacles, but more surged forth.
"I'll clear the path!" Tang Wulin charged at the forefront, the Golden Dragon Spear dancing into a golden storm, tentacles severing where it passed. But he could feel that the power of the seventeenth seal was rapidly fading—the backlash was coming.
"Twenty-five breaths!" Bibi Dong's death aura formed a barrier, temporarily blocking the flank attacks.
Finally, at the twenty-eighth breath, they rushed before Isis's consciousness.
"Isis, wake up!" Qian Renxue reached out, wanting to touch that phantom.
The phantom trembled, slowly raising her head.
That was an incomparably beautiful yet haggard face, eyes filled with exhaustion, pain, but in the deepest depths, a trace of unextinguished light. She looked at Qian Renxue, a trace of confusion flashing in her eyes, then gradually clearing.
"You are... the Angel God?" Her voice was weak, like a whisper.
"Yes, I am Qian Renxue." Qian Renxue held her hand—though it was only a phantom, she indeed touched her, "We've come to save you, we've come to close the Abyss Gate."
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