Outside World
Within the vast crater left behind by their battle, Qian Renxue stood silently, her gaze fixed upon the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud hovering before her.
The artifact trembled faintly, as if sensing that its true master had disappeared.
Behind Qian Renxue's head, the six soul rings hovering shone, carrying a resonance of faith.
She extended her hand and poured all her faith power into the Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud without hesitation.
At first, the shroud shone with a deep azure-blue light, vast and boundless like the ocean itself.
Then—
A golden-yellow radiance surged forth, brilliant and sacred, washing over the blue like sunlight piercing the depths of the sea. The two powers clashed for a brief moment before the golden light overwhelmingly prevailed.
The Vast Sea Cosmic Shroud began to dissolve.
It shattered not into fragments, but into countless illusory droplets, each one shimmering like condensed belief and divine meaning. These droplets drifted forward gently, passing through the air before sinking one by one into Qian Renxue's forehead, vanishing completely.
A sudden tremor passed through Qian Renxue.
It was her martial soul that resonated violently.
At this moment, she was merely possessing it, yet the response was unmistakable. It felt as though something long missing had finally returned to its rightful place.
Like a puzzle that had remained incomplete for countless years—now whole.
The twelve wings, their edges traced with faint platinum runes, now entirety of her wings ignited with a rich, golden glow..
Then—
Qian Renxue suddenly felt weightless, as though her consciousness had been gently lifted away from the world. The surroundings blurred, and she realized she had stepped into something akin to a dream.
An illusory river flowed into existence around her. (AN: Her cheat makes an appearance again)
It was neither water nor light, yet it carried both. Time itself seemed to ripple upon its surface as Qian Renxue slowly sank into it. Within the flowing currents, images began to surface—
The past of this world.
She saw the Douluo Continent engulfed in an abyss-like darkness. A suffocating black aura covered the land, blotting out the sun and stars alike. Humanity struggled desperately beneath it, cities crumbling, hope thinning with every passing moment.
Then—
A ray of light tore through the dark clouds.
It was sharp, pure, and absolute.
The moment it descended, Abyssal demons scattered across the land began to burn simultaneously. Their screams echoed as holy flames devoured their corrupted forms, reducing them to ash before they could even flee.
At the center of that light stood the Angel Goddess.
Her figure was radiant beyond words, wings spread wide as her angelic sword gleamed with divine judgment.
One powerful Abyssal Demon, its form towering and grotesque, laughed as it stared at her.
"How long can you fight?" it sneered.
"We die here and revive again in the Abyssal Plane. We know no fatigue… but you will."
The Angel Goddess looked at it calmly, her expression serene and cold.
"You are nothing more than a well-fattened pig," she replied, her voice echoing like a divine decree,
"to be used by the enemies targeting me and raised only to be slaughtered when the time comes."
With a casual wave of her angel sword, light descended like a verdict.
The Abyssal Demon did not even have time to scream before it was obliterated, its essence torn apart and sent back into the abyss.
She slowly turned her gaze toward the seemingly empty void.
"Stop hiding," the Angel Goddess said coldly."I know you are here."
At this moment, she stood at the peak of a First-Class God, only a single step away from the Half-Step God King realm. Under such overwhelming divine perception, concealment was almost meaningless.
The void rippled.
A shadow condensed from nothingness, twisting and folding upon itself until it formed a familiar figure—
Poseidon's divine consciousness.
"Well," Poseidon said with a light chuckle, his figure wavering like reflected light on water,
"you found me."
The Angel Goddess did not smile.
Instead, she asked solemnly, her voice carrying the weight:
"Why must all living beings of this world suffer simply because you stand against me?"
"This is the same world that nurtured you… the same land that allowed you to ascend."
Poseidon sneered.
"Stop cloaking yourself in lofty words," he replied mockingly.
"You are nothing but a greedy woman who monopolized the faith of an entire continent, disguising yourself as sacred and holy."
"You devour faith wantonly to grow stronger at an alarming pace," he continued, his eyes narrowing.
"And your so-called authorities have already trampled over the boundaries belonging to other gods."
The Judgment Authority wielded by the Angel Goddess overlapped heavily with the Asura God's Authority within the God Realm.
In the God realm, one god commanded one authority—overlap will lead to the competition for the power between two.
This was precisely why Asura had begun plotting against her.
The Angel Goddess raised an eyebrow slightly.
"So," she said calmly,"you are jealous of my sacred and holy authority?"
The hypocritical smile on Poseidon's face finally cracked.
"You possess an authority of purity and sanctity," he said darkly.
"When I ascended to godhood, I had to gather faith from countless sea soul beasts, scraping together belief piece by piece."
His jealousy was naked.
In his heart, he believed that such an authority—such reverence, such unconditional devotion—should have belonged to him.
The Angel Goddess shook her head slowly.
"You still don't understand," she said, her voice neither loud nor soft, yet echoing across the void.
"If you accept the faith of millions, you must also bear its weight."
"That weight," she continued, "is sacredness and holiness."
(AN : Abyssal plane is in Douluo Dalu 3)