### **Chapter 262 — The Wasteland of Eternal Screams**
A red horizon stretched endlessly.
Ancient skeletons towered like mountains — each the corpse of a being that once shook realms.
Some still glowed faintly, leaking divine essence and demonic aura that twisted into storms.
Yang Lin's cloak fluttered as he walked through the wasteland.
> **Yang Lin (to himself):** "Even in death, they struggle for power. Pathetic… yet admirable."
He paused before a shattered statue half-buried in ash. Its face resembled a god — but its eyes were those of a demon.
This was where both heaven and hell had perished together.
The air thickened — danger gathering.
A phantom roar erupted. From the dust rose **an ancient demon's remnant soul**, its shadow the size of a mountain.
> **Demon Shade:** "Leave… mortal. This land devours all hope."
> **Yang Lin:** "Then I'll feed it defiance."
His aura exploded, Void Dao and Starfire Qi intertwining. The clash lit up the sky for a thousand miles.
When silence returned, the shadow knelt before him, fading into mist — leaving behind a crystal of dark origin.
Yang Lin caught it between his fingers.
"A demon's inheritance core."
He tucked it away.
The hunt had just begun.
---
### **Chapter 263 — The Gathered Wolves**
Days passed.
The other sects entered — one after another.
From the **Nine Demon Peaks**, crimson-robed prodigies descended like vultures.
The **Heaven Shatter Pavilion**'s core disciples walked through storms with shields made of celestial stone.
All were hunting the same rumor — the **Heart of the Abyss**, a treasure said to make even immortals transcend tribulation.
And at the center of their hunt… stood one calm figure in black.
> **Demon Peak Disciple:** "That man again…"
> **Heaven Shatter Disciple:** "Yang Lin. The one who challenged Heaven itself."
They whispered, but none dared approach.
Those who did before… had vanished.
Yang Lin ignored them, following a faint vibration beneath the soil — a rhythm older than life.
> **Yang Lin:** "Something's calling me from below."
---
### **Chapter 264 — The Heart Beneath**
He reached a canyon torn apart by thunder — black lightning danced in its depths.
At the bottom pulsed a faint light, beating like a heart.
As he descended, demonic runes flickered on the canyon walls — ancient contracts written in forgotten tongues.
He landed lightly.
The ground trembled.
> **Unknown Voice:** "A mortal walks into our grave…"
The earth split, revealing a **massive demonic skeleton** chained by celestial seals.
The bones leaked black mist that turned to illusions — showing wars, gods falling, heavens burning.
> **Yang Lin:** "Show me your memory."
His palm touched the ribcage — and visions rushed through him:
millions of demons kneeling before a single throne,
a man in dark gold armor slaying angels,
and a voice whispering —
> *"The Demon Emperor… sealed by Heaven's betrayal."*
Yang Lin opened his eyes, frost and flame clashing in his gaze.
> **Yang Lin:** "Then I'll unseal him… not to serve, but to learn."
---
### **Chapter 265 — The Demon Emperor's Test**
The seal flared.
A spectral figure emerged — regal, terrifying, but bound.
> **Demon Emperor's Soul:** "Another fool seeking power?"
> **Yang Lin:** "No. I seek truth."
The ghost smiled, intrigued.
> **Demon Emperor:** "Then defeat my memory. Only the worthy can inherit the abyss."
Darkness swallowed him whole.
Yang Lin found himself in an illusionary battlefield — surrounded by fallen gods and demons.
The air was fire, the earth blood.
Every strike he delivered was reflected a thousandfold — each shadow matching his strength.
For three days and three nights, he fought himself — his pride, rage, and mercy.
When the final strike came, he didn't swing.
He let his blade rest — his will calm.
The illusion shattered.
> **Demon Emperor's Soul (smiling):** "You passed. Power isn't control — it's clarity."
From the void, a fragment of **Abyssal Dao** merged into Yang Lin's body — pure darkness harmonizing with his light.
---
### **Chapter 266 — Rise of the Abyss Flame**
When he awoke, his aura had changed.
The flames around him no longer burned gold — but dark violet, carrying both divine and demonic essence.
He looked at his reflection in a pool of void water.
His eyes shone like twin galaxies, his cloak shimmering with abyssal light.
> **Yang Lin:** "Demon… immortal… neither define me."
At the same time, in the outer lands, sect disciples trembled as a new pressure swept across the region.
Some fell unconscious.
Others dropped to their knees without knowing why.
> **Heaven Shatter Elder:** "That presence… not human, not god. What did he become!?"
Yang Lin simply walked out of the canyon, his expression calm.
> **Yang Lin:** "I became balance."
---
### **Chapter 267 — Blood Rain Over Demonfall**
The sky darkened.
Blood-red clouds gathered as multiple sects clashed — greed igniting chaos.
He watched silently as hundreds fought over scraps of treasure.
Each one stronger than the last, yet all blinded by desire.
One cultivator charged toward him, shouting,
> "Leave, stranger! That core is ours!"
Yang Lin didn't answer.
A silent wave of energy passed — the man froze midair, eyes wide, body disintegrating into dust.
The others stopped instantly.
> **Yang Lin (quietly):** "If your hearts are this loud, you'll never hear the Dao."
He turned and left, leaving silence in his wake — and fear.
---
### **Chapter 268 — The Forbidden Altar**
Deeper inside the demon land lay a forgotten altar — black stone carved with heavenly runes and demonic glyphs.
Yang Lin approached, sensing immense pressure.
The entire altar pulsed like a living being — each heartbeat stronger than thunder.
> **Yang Lin:** "This… isn't treasure. It's a seal."
He placed his palm upon it — the runes glowed.
From the abyss emerged a whisper — ancient and feminine.
> **Voice:** "Who breaks the chains of cycles?"
> **Yang Lin:** "The one who no longer obeys them."
The altar cracked — light burst forth, forming an ethereal woman draped in darkness and starlight.
She was **the Keeper of the Abyss**.
---
### **Chapter 269 — Keeper of the Abyss**
The Keeper regarded him curiously.
> **Keeper:** "You carry both Heaven's fire and Hell's shadow. What are you?"
> **Yang Lin:** "A path that no one wrote."
Her expression softened — then darkened again.
> **Keeper:** "If you walk my domain, you'll inherit its curse."
> **Yang Lin:** "Then let it be written upon my blade."
She smiled faintly and reached toward him — merging a fragment of her essence into his aura.
> **Keeper:** "Then take the Abyss Sigil. It'll mark your defiance even beyond death."
For a moment, Yang Lin's presence shook the entire realm — Heaven and Hell alike felt a new name being carved into destiny.
---
### **Chapter 270 — The Last Demon Emperor's Throne**
The ground trembled — the Demon Emperor's throne rose from beneath the land, made of obsidian bones and heavenly metal.
He sat upon it — not as a ruler, but as a challenger to all creation.
> **Yang Lin:** "This world fears chaos, yet it was born from it. I'll remind it why."
The throne shattered beneath him, turning into light that merged into his being.
At that instant, his aura transcended the **Void Dao Realm** — reaching the **edge of the Tribulation Realm, First Stage**.
The heavens trembled once more.
---
### **Chapter 271 — The Sky Cracks Once More**
Lightning fell from every realm.
The sky itself opened — a massive eye staring down.
> **Heavenly Voice:** "You crossed too many lines, Yang Lin."
He looked up calmly, holding the **Black Hole Cutter**, its edge now glowing with abyssal and celestial radiance intertwined.
> **Yang Lin:** "Lines are drawn by those afraid to move forward."
With a single swing, he cleaved through the lightning — cutting Heaven's gaze apart.
The Land of Fallen Demons fell silent.
Every disciple who survived watched in awe.
> **Lian Yu (from afar):** "He… changed again."
> **Qianxue (softly):** "No. He's evolving."
The storm ended — leaving only one figure standing against the broken sky.
Yang Lin sheathed his blade, whispering quietly:
> **Yang Lin:** "The Fatebreaker walks onward.
> Heaven's law… is next."