Chapter 26: Just as Promised [VOLUME 1 - END]

Chapter 26: Just as Promised [VOLUME 1 - END]

Deep inside Chen Mo's soul space.

The elder's consciousness slipped through the rift he had torn in Chen Mo's defenses, emerging into the young man's soul space. He expected to find himself in some grand mindscape befitting one who wielded such incredible power. Instead, he was greeted by an endless void of inky blackness, not even the faintest glimmer of light to be seen.

"What is the meaning of this?" the elder muttered, his disembodied voice echoing weirdly in the abyss. He willed himself to move forward, though the concept of direction seemed meaningless in this place without reference points.

He thought it was a good thing that he was only in his soul state, if he was in his body form, he wouldn't survive a minute in this empty void.

As he navigated the strange, empty space, the elder grew increasingly restless and uneasy. How could the kid's spiritual sea be utterly devoid of anything? Surely there had to be something, some semblance of his psyche manifest here?

He wondered to himself whether the space element cultivators had no spiritual sea.

Just as his doubts reached a fevered pitch, the elder noticed a tiny pinprick of golden light in the distance, swirling lazily. He immediately surged towards it, the light growing brighter and more intense with every second until it engulfed his senses in a warm, radiant glow.

The elder threw up a metaphysical arm to shield his eyes, squinting against the brilliant luminance. "What happened? Where am I?"

As his vision slowly adjusted, he turned his head, only for his jaw to go slack in astonishment. Surrounding him in a vast panorama were millions - no, billions - of figures, each an exact replica of Chen Mo's physical form. They were seated in meditation, souls burning like brilliant stars as ethereal energy danced around their forms in dazzling spirals and eddies.

The elder's mouth worked soundlessly as he beheld the staggering display of soul power, a level of cultivation he could scarcely comprehend. The very air thrummed and distorted from the metaphysical pressures being exerted. Just being in the presence of these infinite Chen Mos made his core tremble, sweat beading on his brow from the sheer, overwhelming spiritual might.

"This...This is too much! I've never seen such soul power in my entire life!" the elder wheezed, turning this way and that in stunned disbelief. "It's enough to destroy the mortal world a million times over just by thinking about it!"

He immediately tried to back away, to retreat from this place that made a mockery of everything he thought he knew. But his metaphysical form stumbled, pitching forward until he found himself in an involuntary bow before the cultivating figures.

"Dammit! I just wanted some dumb treasure why do I have to go through all this"

As the elder struggled to lift his head, a new presence exploded into his awareness like a supernova, forcing his gaze upwards. There, seated upon a throne of blazing gold that seemed to be the epicenter of the very cosmos itself, was a figure he instantly recognized - a middle-aged version of Chen Mo regarding him coolly, his chin rested upon one upraised hand.

The elder's psyche reeled, every fiber of his being screaming at him to look away from that unmistakable face, that overwhelming aura of power older than the universe itself. Yet he found himself utterly transfixed, bound not by any force but the sheer gravity of this being's existence.

"Wh-What's going on?" he rasped out, terror and awe warring within him. "That man... he wasn't there before! As soon as I saw him, I became unable to move! Is this... the true difference in our power?!"

As panic took hold and the elder frantically searched for a way to escape, a lilting feminine voice broke through the oppressive atmosphere. If Chen Mo was here, he'd immediately recognize her as Rasiel, or at least that's what she claims to be.

"Oh my... I didn't expect to have a new visitor so soon."

From behind the golden throne strode a lithe, impossibly beautiful woman with features that seemed to shift and change with every blink of the elder's eye. One moment he saw the face of a blushing maiden, the next an inscrutable celestial beauty, then a terrifying demonic visage - ever-changing, always captivating.

"I'm sorry that my lord is busy and cannot entertain you properly," the woman continued with a sly smile, running one delicate hand over the back of the throne's imposing headrest. "Now then... what shall we do to make your stay more... eventful?"

The last word dripped with dark promise, sending chills down the elder's metaphysical spine. Before he could even think to speak or beg for mercy, the world around him fractured, reality itself shattering into countless shards.

And then the screaming began.

His fingers clenched into a white-knuckled fist, ice crystals blossoming around his arm in a frozen spiral.

"The Heavenly Palace will regret ever crossing the path of my Chen Family!"

...

With the aftermath of his battle with the treacherous elder finally behind him, Chen Mo turned his attention back to the still unconscious form of Mei Ling lying on the ground. He strode over to her, taking a moment to study her delicate features with a calculating gaze. Even in this vulnerable state, he could sense the immense latent potential simmering within her.

'Activate Skill [Existence]'

[

Name: Mei Ling/Yin Mei

Cultivation: 3rd Stage Foundation Establishment

Information: Yin Mei's reincarnation avatar, ???, Fox Demon, ???

]

'Just as I thought, her status as a reincarnation avatar didn't revert'

Gently, he knelt down and scooped Mei Ling up into his arms, cradling her protectively against his chest. With but a whisper of exertion, Chen Mo willed his transcendent energies to manifest, levitating them both up into the air until they hovered high above the Mei clan's mountain valley compound.

His piercing gaze swept over the sprawling architecture below, lingering on the opulent villas and treasured halls that had no doubt been paid for with the spoils of the Mei clan's deplorable misdeeds. A cruel smirk played across Chen Mo's lips as he extended one hand, a constellation of glimmering spirit blades coalescing in the air before him.

"These upstarts have grown too arrogant, daring to bully my people and coveting my Chen Family's treasure," he intoned, the words laced with disdain. "It's time they were reminded of their place."

With but a mental twitch, the blades launched in a blinding fusillade, precise streams of light raining down to inscribe massive characters upon the tiled rooftops and courtyard pathways below.

'THE PROTAGONIST SECT IS NOT EASY TO BULLY'

Chen Mo watched with a sense of vicious satisfaction as his message permanently scarred the clan's ostentatious facades. Let that serve as an ominous portent of the reckoning to come.

Of course, a bit of property damage was the least of what the wretched Mei clan deserved after their transgressions against Mei Ling and his own Chen lineage. Which was why, Chen Mo had preceded his grand proclamation by...appropriating a few choice valuables and heirlooms on his way through the compound. Supplies and resources to aid in the rebuilding of his sect, plundered from these false scions as recompense.

"There, I'd say we're about even for now," Chen Mo chuckled darkly, giving the comatose Mei Ling a gentle pat on the head. "I said I'd deal with them for you, didn't I? Now you don't have to worry anymore."

With a final disdainful look at the defaced Mei clan grounds, Chen Mo turned and soared off into the distance, Mei Ling secure in his grasp. They had taken the first step on a long road filled with formidable enemies and even greater challenges.

But Chen Mo was undaunted. With the vengeful will of his ancestors driving him forward and his massively overpowered Programmer Job, he would cut a swath through anyone foolish enough to obstruct the revival of the Protagonist Sect's glory!

*VOLUME 1 END