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Bai Yuan had considered a more direct approach—secretly arranging for his main body, Gu La, and other avatars to enter the Abyssal Passage together, feasting freely in this grand "dining hall."
But the Blood God Legion maintained extreme control over the Abyssal Passage, treating it as the highest-level secret.
Smuggling outsiders in would require too many explanations, too many loopholes to cover—risking exposure. He ultimately abandoned the tempting idea.
"No matter," Bai Yuan mused inwardly. "Both Tang Wulin and I are 'shearing wool' here, continuously draining abyssal energy. That Abyssal Sage King won't stay seated for long."
"When he can't suppress his impatience and personally intervenes or sends stronger forces, the chaos that follows will be the perfect moment to summon my main body and avatars. Then… draining several layers of the Abyss might even be possible!"
Thus, in the days that followed, Bai Yuan settled into a rigid routine.
His daily routine became: entering designated Abyssal Passage zones, devouring measured quantities of abyssal creatures. He carried back the chaotic energy to refine slowly, steadily enhancing his bloodline strength, soul power, and spiritual energy.
Occasionally, at Zhang Huanyun or Cao Dezhi's private requests, he forged soul refined or Heavenly Refined metals—trading them for military merit or rare resources he needed.
News of his Divine Craftsmanship status was tightly sealed by Zhang Huanyun and Cao Dezhi within the Legion's highest echelons.
They strictly forbade leaks to their backing factions. After all, a Divine Craftsman barely in his twenties—a mere Soul Saint—in this sensitive era following Shrek Academy's destruction, would be like a child carrying gold through a marketplace. Countless covetous eyes and dangers would inevitably follow.
They sought to buy Bai Yuan time to grow.
Unbeknownst to them, Bai Yuan's true reliance had never been the now-historical Shrek Academy—but rather his main body, quietly amassing power overseas.
—
On a remote, hidden island in distant seas.
Gu La's main body, alongside six avatars—Mu Yi, Du An, Alice, Liu Niandao, Yin Wansheng, and Bo Xi—gathered with one purpose.
Their goal was clear: over four months, upgrade all crimson mecha components from soul-refined to Heavenly Refined metal!
That seven "Divine Craftsmen" unafraid of elemental lightning tribulations required four months to complete this task revealed the staggering quantity of Heavenly Refined metal needed for a single mecha.
And this was merely an upgrade of existing soul-refined armor. Building a complete Heavenly Refined mecha from scratch would demand a decade of tireless work even from a master craftsman like Zhen Hua—and likely cost him his life.
During this period, the continuous turmoil and deterrence caused by Gu La's Groudon avatar "reclaiming land" in distant seas prevented both the Federation and Plane Lord Tang Hao from dispatching forces to investigate. This provided perfect cover.
Gu La and Alice worked in tandem, weaving time power and the Love God's Yin-Yang transformative energy to shroud the entire island. This perfectly concealed the elemental lightning tribulations triggered by frequent Heavenly Refinement, ensuring flawless execution.
Naturally, some avatars occasionally needed to return to their posts to maintain their covers.
Liu Niandao, a key Tang Sect executive, traveled to Star Luo Continent's branch to assist relocation and stabilization during the Sect's post-destruction struggles.
Bo Xi, Star Luo Empire's imperial son-in-law, made regular appearances to supply the royal family with soul-refined metals, preserving his standing.
Gu La personally handled the mecha's core components—energy chambers and primary weapon systems.
Thanks to the God-Level Jump Drive Engine obtained from the system—a technology centuries ahead of its time—he no longer needed an external power source.
More crucially, he planned to deeply fuse this mecha with a "modified" Pokémon, using it as the vessel for his third martial soul. Many conventional mecha structures could thus be simplified or redesigned.
Time flowed swiftly amid the rhythmic clang-clang of forging and the occasional flash of lightning—quickly masked. The four-month deadline neared.
—
Blood God Legion, Abyssal Passage perimeter.
Bai Yuan devoured abyssal creatures day after day. Over four months, his cultivation reached Level 82—a full level per month.
With his "bottomless" energy capacity and formidable Yin-Yang Devouring soul core, this pace was terrifying.
While ordinary soul masters required a decade to gather energy for a second soul core, Bai Yuan needed only sufficient abyssal prey.
Don't be fooled by that single ring's advancement—his actual combat power now rivaled, even surpassed, ordinary Super Douluos!
During spare moments, he'd already upgraded his Two-Word Battle Armor's core components to Heavenly Refined metal.
Upgrading his entire armor to four words would require breaking through to Titled Douluo first, to endure the massive energy consumption.
That day, after devouring his quota of abyssal creatures and feeling energy saturation, Bai Yuan prepared to return topside for rest and refinement.
Suddenly—disaster struck!
A violet shadow, swift as a ghost, lunged from the shadows behind him! An arm—slender, pale, yet covered in eerie purple patterns—fingers sharpened to soul-piercing points—aimed straight for Bai Yuan's back.
The Mei Empress! A monarch-level abyssal creature in this layer, matching human Super Douluos in power.
Bai Yuan's danger sense screamed. Within the channel, his martial soul faced severe suppression—too slow for perfect defensive attachment. But his combat instincts flared instantly!
Hmph!
He snorted coldly. Thought shifted. His magnificent Two-Word Battle Armor, [Abyss Devourer], flashed across his body.
Simultaneously, light flared in his hand—a spear of ancient design, radiating heavy pressure. A ninth-grade soul device—a replica of Atlas Douluo Yun Ming's Atlas Spear!
Though merely a copy, in Bai Yuan's hands it erupted with terrifying might.
His eyes narrowed. A devouring spear intent that seemed to swallow heaven and earth surged from him.
"Devouring Sun!"
Crafted after studying Yun Ming's battles and adapting it to his devouring nature—inspired by Yun Ming's "Atlas" domain.
The spear thrust out. His Yin-Yang devouring soul core spun wildly. A miniature dark vortex formed at the spear tip—not just carrying peerless penetration, but a terror that locked onto and devoured all before it—stabbing straight at the Mei Empress's arm.
Shhk!
Spear tip pierced the demon queen's palm. The dark vortex clung like a parasite, ferociously devouring abyssal energy from her arm.
"Aaaah!"
The Mei Empress shrieked in shock and fury. She felt that energy was permanently lost.
Instant understanding struck—This is why the Sage King sent me to investigate this human. He possesses the power to truly threaten the Abyss's essence.
Terrified, she acted decisively. With a violent tremor, she severed the energy in the impaled arm—letting it be devoured—while retreating to distance herself from Bai Yuan.
Her other hand conjured a whip of purple energy, lashing like a venomous serpent to force a ranged duel.
Yet Bai Yuan's body brimmed with energy—needing refinement. He had no desire to tangle with this abyssal monarch.
Deflecting the energy whip with his replica spear while devouring part of its power, he retreated step by step toward the channel's exit.
Soon, he found the Blood God Legion officer on guard nearby. Reuniting, Bai Yuan growled: "Go!"
Under the Mei Empress's resentful gaze, they swiftly retreated from this Abyssal layer, returning to the Blood God Legion's safety.
Brief as it was, this encounter confirmed Bai Yuan's suspicion: the Abyss's upper echelons had noticed him.
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