This was a battle between two Emperor's‑Throne‑level powerhouses, dueling across the barrier between worlds. Their divine arts and spells followed the principle that 'the Great Dao is utmostly simple': few visible changes, but overwhelming force. With just a handful of moves, they unleashed power that ordinary gods and demons could never hope to match.
This was the realm of Dao‑level divine arts: streamlined, effective, without superfluous changes. Quinn Shepherd’s ‘Open the Calamity’ sword was the gateway marking his entrance into sword‑dao at this level.
However, Quinn had only mastered a single move; once he unleashed it, there were no follow‑up sword techniques. By contrast, Lady Umbral and Prince Umbral could conjure dazzling arts at will—even fighting across the world‑barrier, their moves were rarely repetitive.
The emperor dueling Lady Umbral was just as she’d described: a cultured, refined man. Though he possessed imperial bearing, he was never overbearing or arrogant.
He was strikingly handsome, with large, phoenix‑like eyes and long, narrow eyelids. His beard, shaped like a calligrapher’s perfect ‘eight,’ gave him an air of elegance.
This was Prince Umbral—the very one who, years ago, betrayed Lady Umbral and seized control of the Umbral World.
"Though you’ve been dead for so many years, it seems disaster has turned into fortune for you."
Prince Umbral, unable to break through after a long siege, still could not invade the Umbral World. Suddenly he laughed, "Your grasp of Dao now far surpasses the past. Fighting you across the barrier, I truly can’t win. So I’ll have to use a little trickery."
Suddenly, the Umbral World was wracked by violent change. Countless soul‑black‑sand surged in from every surrounding heaven, and swarms of husk‑ghosts—monsters born from dead souls—charged madly at Lady Umbral. In moments, the entire sea was overrun with rampaging husk‑ghosts!
And not just that—all the soul‑black‑sand in the Umbral World surged down upon Lady Umbral at once. The entire realm, this colossal world‑husk, was on the verge of awakening.
The Umbral World was plunged into utter darkness—no trace of light remained.
Lady Umbral let out a soft laugh. Suddenly, she tossed Tian Dou into the air and flicked it gently—instantly, the hourglass spun wildly, and the entire Umbral World began to rotate!
With a tremendous roar, the sea flipped into the sky, the land hung upside down, and the firmament became an empty, barren ground. Countless husk‑ghosts flailed as they were hurled through the air—then, as the world spun again, they were smashed ruthlessly back down.
The spinning Tian Dou dragged the entire Umbral World with it, tossing the husk‑ghosts up and down so they had no chance to attack Lady Umbral. Even the soul‑black‑sand was scattered; the colossal world‑husk could not strike at her at all.
Prince Umbral sighed softly, his figure gradually fading into the darkness of Nether City.
"You truly have broken free of the shackles of an innate god—even learned my Dao‑arts from Tian Dou. I’m even more curious about the dao‑friend who resurrected you. Who is he, to accomplish such a stunning feat...?"
His face slowly sank into shadow and vanished: "But you still cannot subdue the husk‑ghosts, nor reclaim the Umbral World."
He was a man who knew when to advance or retreat. Realizing he could neither enter the Umbral World nor use the husk‑ghosts to oppress Lady Umbral, he decisively withdrew, conserving his strength rather than wasting it.
Lady Umbral breathed a sigh of relief. Raising a finger, she tapped lightly, and the spinning Tian Dou gradually slowed to a stop. But at that very moment, the Umbral World pressed down on her again!
"How can I possibly slay this colossal world‑husk and restore the Umbral World to my control?"
Lady Umbral couldn’t help but feel troubled.
Though she could block Prince Umbral’s invasion, the Umbral World still wasn’t truly hers; Prince Umbral remained its hidden master.
Unless she could resolve the realm’s fundamental dilemma, reclaiming the Umbral World would be nearly impossible.
The heart of the problem was that the Umbral World was a no‑man’s‑land: neither Tu Bo nor Heaven Duke could govern here. The realm was independent, but fraught with hidden dangers.
The eternally ravenous husk‑ghosts would devour every living thing. As long as the Umbral World remained in Heaven Duke’s shadow, the dilemma would persist—husk‑ghosts would fill the land, consuming all.
"What is the true key to solving the husk‑ghost problem?"
Lady Umbral sat by the sea, bored, propping her chin in her hand. The tower stood tall, suppressing unrest in the Umbral World. She mused, "If I can’t solve this dilemma, I’ll always be alone. No other living thing can survive here. Unless I can let life thrive in the Umbral World, the crisis will never end... If only the Grand Archmage were here—he might have an idea."
She pondered bitterly. The husk‑ghost problem was the root of the Umbral World’s dilemma. Now that she was no longer a perfect innate goddess, she could learn new divine arts—perhaps there was a solution out there.
If she couldn’t solve the husk‑ghost dilemma, she’d be trapped here forever. If she left, Prince Umbral would seize the opportunity to invade and steal the Umbral World, leaving her homeless.
At the Yong River Source in the Great Ruins, Quinn Shepherd had none of Lady Umbral’s worries. Though she and Prince Umbral battled across realms, the endless upheavals in the Umbral World didn’t affect the Great Ruins at all.