Song Chi's will controls the battlefield through his War Puppets, including powerful Eleventh-Rank puppets generated by the War Puppet Mother Tree. The Torch Civilization's fleet faces brutal fighting in the Flame Prison Abyss, but their puppet army significantly lowers their casualties. While the alliance battles fiercely, Song Chi prepares for the final assault on the Abyss Core.
"Titan!"A colossal figure, dwarfing the heavens by billions of miles, crackled with terrifying thunder. Gripping a massive hammer that pulsed with seven-colored light, he unleashed a furious roar before smashing the hammer forward once more. It struck the churning tide of demons, discharging world-ending thunderous power that radiated outwards. From the hammer's impact point, an area spanning trillions of miles was instantly consumed by the violent thunder, and the abyssal demon race within sight vanished.Once the pervasive thunder power faded, the countless figures of the demon race were gone, leaving naught but fields of ash. Such ferocious combat raged across every part of the crimson land within the Flame Prison Abyss.This eleven-rank Thunder Titan, possessing astonishing combat prowess, had just completed an assault when, in the very next moment, he was ambushed by an Ancient Abyssal Serpent lurking deep within the Earth Vein. His colossal divine body was dragged into a seething Blood Pool and ultimately devoured by a horde of demons, his indestructible Divine Soul twisted into nourishment for the Abyss.An Eternal Master from the Eternal Clan, brandishing an ancient Seven-Colored Compass, was orchestrating a grand purification ritual. However, he was abruptly struck by a Spirit Storm, a joint assault from several Heart Stealing Demon Lords. The resplendent Eternal Divine Light flickered out instantly, and his very existence was forcefully expunged from the River of Time.A Star Speaker from the Source Star Divine Hall attempted to commune with the Source of the Starry Sea, aiming to bestow blessings upon the alliance army. Tragically, they were hit by a ripple emanating from the projection of the Chaos Bell. The Power of Stars they guided spiraled out of control, backfiring and transforming them and several nearby allied combat squads into a dazzling, yet fatal, starburst.An eleventh-rank "War Dominator" mecha, originating from the Mechanical Nest, was executing a critical decapitation mission deep within enemy territory. It stumbled upon a peculiar corruption virus specifically designed for mechanical units by the Abyss. Its core logic circuits became tainted, leading it to turn its own cannons upon the alliance's positions, unleashing indiscriminate bombardment for a full quarter of an hour. This caused immense casualties before alliance forces finally managed to destroy it through a joint effort.The Abyss party, too, sustained grievous losses.Mighty Flame Demon Lords, enigmatic Heart Stealing Demon Lords, grotesque Abyss Lords—these powerful entities continually fell victim to the alliance's desperate counterattacks. Their demon souls were either utterly vanquished through purification or were reclaimed by the Abyss amidst mournful cries, destined to be used in the incubation of newer, more twisted demons. This process, however, is not one that can be completed within mere hundreds or thousands of years.Beyond these battles of near-mythological sacrifice, the common armies on both sides were rapidly depleted at a rate that was plainly visible.The imposing war formations of the Titan Giant Clan, once majestic as mountains, eventually dwindled to mere scattered squads making a final stand.The Eternal Fleet of the Eternal Clan, which once blanketed the crimson Vault of Heaven, now consisted of only scattered remnants, adrift and burning amidst the demon flames.The Star Mage teams from the Source Star Divine Hall, their chanting growing increasingly sparse, were ultimately drowned out by the monstrous roar of the demon tide.Demons, Flame Demons, Demonized Creatures—these fundamental units of the Abyss turned to dust en masse under the salvos of the alliance's ship cannons and barrages of forbidden spells. Yet, their numbers appeared to be endlessly replenished, surging forth from the deeper reaches of the Abyss.As time wore on, this chaotic conflict, despite its duration of only a century, felt extraordinarily prolonged for both factions locked in its embrace.When the dust and smoke from the hundred-year bloodbath began to settle slightly, the demon flames of the Flame Prison Abyss seemed to darken, having consumed an unfathomable number of lives. On the battlefield, only a sparse few forces could still maintain any semblance of structured presence.The Mechanical Nest managed to retain a substantial mechanical fleet. While suffering immense losses among its low-to-mid rank units, its mechanical legions' fearless nature and a degree of resistance to Demonic Qi corrosion allowed it to preserve a framework of high-rank combat power.Most noteworthy, and still commanding significant attention, was the Torch Civilization Expedition Army.Thanks to the War Puppet Mother Tree's strategy of deploying an almost endless sea of puppets, coupled with the layered defenses provided by the five Human Emperor's Throne Ship avatars and a considerable number of Enslaved Species, the Torch Fleet miraculously conserved over thirty percent of its core vessels and the majority of its high-rank captains.The defensive perimeter they established became one of the last relatively stable "Pure Lands" within this desolate purgatory.As for other civilizations... they were nearly annihilated.Only a very select few strong individuals, blessed with both luck and skill, managed to survive by clinging desperately to the defenses of either the Torch or the Mechanical Nest.
From the Abyss's side, the once endless flood of demons noticeably dwindled, with the presence of high-ranking demons reduced by over ninety percent.
The Flame Prison Abyss, which served as the ultimate defense at the deepest part of the Abyss, was nearly entirely covered by the fallen bodies of innumerable lifeforms from both opposing sides.
On this particular day, the imposing figure of the Sky-splitting God King materialized above the dwindling alliance forces. Visible wounds marred his divine form, and the projection of the Heaven-opening Axe flickered with diminished intensity.
The consciousnesses of the Eternal Ancestor, the Source Star God Master, and the Mother of Ten Thousand Machines also converged, their majestic auras not quite at their former Zenith. Furthermore, the formidable White Bone Giant, under Song Chi's command, was present among them.
"The Flame Prison Abyss has fallen; before us lies the Returning Ruins Abyss!" The Sky-splitting God King's voice, though laced with profound weariness, thrummed with an even fiercer killing intent.
"This is the core of the Bottomless Abyss, the site of the Dimension Upgrade Ritual, and the final sanctuary of those Demon Gods!"
His piercing gaze swept over every surviving unit of the alliance gathered below, lingering briefly upon the battered remnants of the Torch Fleet and the Mechanical Nest.
"All who are still capable of fighting, follow us… we strike directly at the enemy's core!"
There was no grand, stirring speech, only the stark, unvarnished truth.
Every soul present grasped the grim reality: while the horrors of the Flame Prison Abyss were indeed unparalleled, the true, climactic confrontation awaited them within the treacherous depths of the Returning Ruins Abyss.
There, the Demon Gods of the Abyss lay in wait, whole and powerful, guarding the very heart that sustained the Abyssal Dimension Upgrade.
