Necropolis Immortal

"Those are just wild speculations," Haidong Lin grit his teeth. He felt that everything Lu Yun said was driven by the young man's desire to have them enter the Abyssal Hell together.

"You can use formula dao yourself if you don't believe me," Lu Yun sighed. "Order is complete in the primary worlds, so everything has to follow the framework of order. Formula dao must confine itself to order, so it cannot consider all aspects of an issue.

"But here, it can perfectly deduce everything just from a tiny clue."

The path of formula destiny!

Lu Yun could derive the fortunes of even mighty figures such as the Sea Emperor and Princess Mu. Most importantly, he'd established a connection with the Imperial Seal. Through it, he could use formula destiny to grasp the presence of fortune. The fortunes of the emperor, princess, and many other strangers drifted around the seal. The latter group was all as strong as the emperor and princess.

Haidong Lin's forehead relaxed. He didn't utilize formula dao himself, but he believed Lu Yun.

"Even so, I cannot go to the abyss with you. The World of Sea needs protection," he shook his head. "But you can access sequence here. You should be able to see it now."

"I hadn't planned on having you go with me," Lu Yun shrugged. "It's not the time to access sequence either. I can see my own destiny here. Even though it's subject to interference, I know that the best place for me to activate sequence is in the Abyssal Hell.

"Young man," he smiled at the frail youngster in front of them. "This is for you. If my guess is correct, you're the future Sea Emperor."

Lu Yun waved a hand and handed over his Fire Virtue Orb, his Water Virtue Orb, and the Metal Virtue Orb that he'd obtained from Jian Zhuxian.

Flabbergasted, the young man fearfully accepted the orbs. He was just a true void cultivator, but could deploy the strength of a Nihil World Sovereign with the Water Virtue Orb. And now he had three more similar treasures!

"Find a way to collect all five and combine them into one. If you can do that, you'll receive incredible power. There's a fetus in the Fire Virtue Orb that can become your replica. Also, the man beside me is the missing Sea Lord Doinglin as recorded in the Chronicles of the Sea Emperor. He traveled to a world of sequence on account of the Sea Emperor's orders all those years ago and has returned now," Lu Yun chuckled. "Well? Hurry up and greet your master."

The young man's mind was completely blank. It took him some time to process what he'd just heard before he thudded to his knees in front of Haidong Lin and kowtowed vigorously, not knowing what to say.

Haidong Lin looked frostily at Lu Yun and glanced at the young man. The future Sea Emperor? In his eyes, the Sea Emperor was one and only. Sacred and inviolable, which meant Lu Yun's statement immensely displeased him.

"Oh don't look at me like that, this world needs a living emperor. I think he's a perfect candidate. If you keep harping on about your emperor, this world is done for if he fails his mission," Lu Yun addressed Haidong Lin. "Alright, this is where we part ways. I'm heading to the Abyssal Hell and you'll stay here to rebuild the empire. Farewell."

He deployed the Wandering Step and vanished on the spot without the slightest reluctance. Haidong Lin would never go with him to the abyss, he'd expected that before they even reached this world.

"Wait!" Haidong Lin's voice caught up to him as soon as he set off. He appeared next to Lu Yun in the next second. "I'm going with you."

The young man wasn't with him—he didn't even know the boy's name. "You said His Majesty and that Princess Mu is in the abyss. I want to see how real that is."

His expression was grave; he'd employed formula dao the second Lu Yun left. Although his skill wasn't as masterful as Lu Yun's, he'd come to the outline of a similar answer. With his speed, he easily matched Lu Yun's pace.

"No, you can't go with me." Lu Yun stopped and looked at Haidong Lin. "You'll be a burden in the abyss, you'll only drag me down."

"You were a burden in the darkness too, but I protected you!" Haidong Lin glared at him.

"Uh, very well then. Fine, say nothing and ask nothing once you enter. Anything you see will go with you to your grave. You can't breathe a word of it even if your emperor asks," Lu Yun said sternly.

"Does it have to do with your secrets?" Haidong Lin nodded. "I can do that. I swear to order that if I violate what you just said, I will suffer order's backlash."

"Then let's go." Lu Yun stretched out his hand for Haidong Lin to grasp and the two vanished at the same time.

……

Haidong Lin's altar.

"Am I really the future Sea Emperor?" The young man stared dazedly at the four orbs in his hand. There were two of water, one of fire, and one of metal. "But no matter what, there is hope for us now that Sea Lord Donglin has returned."

The confusion cleared from his eyes and he looked resolutely to the distance. Though he didn't know it, he'd already set foot on the path to becoming the next Sea Emperor.

……

After they left the World of Sea, Lu Yun and Haidong Lin passed by several dozen major worlds before reaching the end of the secondary worlds.

A profound gloom stretched ahead of them, darker than even the land of darkness from before. It stretched between the darkness and secondary world, like something cutting through reality.

"This is the Abyssal Hell!" Haidong Lin announced. "Are they really all inside?"

"What is the original emperor's cultivation level?" Lu Yun murmured as he stared at the hell. "He made his move from this locale and crossed the Abyssal Hell, secondary worlds, land of darkness, and primary worlds to bring back the Imperial Seal, Di Yin, and his clan?"

Haidong Lin gaped at Lu Yun's question. Indeed, how much strength did it take to accomplish such a task? Was that the true capabilities of the emperor of the original Hongmeng, the legendary titan of the Boundless Planes?

He didn't think that Lu Yun was lying or trying to scare him.

"Come on, let's go inside too." Eagerness gripped Haidong Lin and he stepped forward to lead the way.

Bam!

His head crashed into something and he bounced back.

"What??" Haidong Lin had once briefly explored this hell since he was curious about it. Though he'd ran back out after a few steps in, access had been easy and this weird obstacle hadn't existed.

"A boundary." Lu Yun reached out to gently caress the air. There was an invisible barrier outside the Abyssal Hell, a boundary of some sort.

"Impertinent prisoners, how dare you trespass in the Abyssal Hell!" An angry yell sounded as a long chain stabbed out of the void, aimed at Lu Yun and Haidong Lin.

etvolare's Thoughts

Hell... chain... you guys thinking what I'm thinking?