Lu Jun saw that the White Tiger Pendant showed no interest in the Immortal Demon Lotus, so he stood silently to the side like a ghost.
At that moment, Mo Fan sensed the Little Loach around his neck trembling. After thinking for a moment, he took the initiative to give it a try.
He took the Immortal Demon Lotus and, hiding in a dead angle out of the Evil-Eye Copper Mirror's line of sight, fed it to the Little Loach. In return, it surged back with a massive amount of energy, crashing against the high-tier barrier.
Soon, a terrifying energy erupted from a corner of the great hall, casting half of it in a purple hue.
Zzz zzz zzz! Thunder roared as countless currents wove together into a net, spreading across the ground.
Mo Fan's entire body was wrapped in lightning, like a thunder god descending to the world. Surging magical energy overflowed, and a purple constellation projection appeared behind him.
"HAHAHA! Lightning Element, high-tier! Lightning and Fire, both high-tier! Once the Little Loach finishes digesting the Immortal Demon Lotus, the Star Constellation Magic Weapon is just around the corner!"
At this moment, Mo Fan was slightly proud. Thinking of Lu Jun, he figured they were now both dual-element high-tier. Though Lu Jun had some advantage in terms of foundations and techniques, with Little Flame Fairy, Mo Fan had caught up in strength.
Seeing this, Lu Jun didn't need to guess what little Mo Fan was thinking.
But Lu Jun curled his lips, unconcerned. Once he sold the seven Warrior Souls stored in his White Tiger Pendant, a new high-tier magic element was within reach not to mention the funding from Dean Xiao.
By then, the gap between them would widen even further. As for the two new elements Mo Fan had awakened, it'd be optimistic to expect them to reach even peak basic tier.
After this small episode, the door to the front hall finally opened.
Everyone filed in. First came lifelike statues, all carved from white jade that resembled the fair, smooth skin of young women.
Most importantly, all the statues were of lithe, graceful women with delicate jade-like feet.
Their poses varied some bowing their heads, some saluting, some kneeling, some smiling. Walking past them, one felt like an emperor with a long line of palace beauties welcoming him.
To better highlight their soft and alluring posture, the statues were all unclothed.
"Tsk tsk tsk, the Ancient King really knew how to enjoy himself. Ancient custom-made figurines."
Lu Jun marveled, admiring the statues of girls, mature women, and lolis alike. Whether plump or slender, they were all captivating.
Mo Fan and the other three looked embarrassed and quickly passed by, reaching the most dangerous checkpoint.
[Bridge of Certain Death]!
They stood at the edge of a jade platform. Ahead, there was no path just a vast empty void, as though standing on a cliff edge.
Wooo wooo wooo~
Black wind howled, swirling on both sides of the stone platform, as if tens of thousands of black sickles were dancing wildly above and beside them.
A single misstep, and one would be swept into the abyss.
Lu Jun extended a strand of spiritual thought, which was instantly shredded by the black wind blades. His face turned pale.
"Wind Element Heaven Seed, as expected!"
He murmured to himself, his eyes burning with excitement as he recalled this place. The original work clearly stated this was one of the locations of a Heaven Seed.
Even a Commander-level creature falling into the Wind of Death would be torn to shreds.
Lu Jun couldn't use the Wind Element Heaven Seed himself, but once his sister reached the Super Tier, she could absorb it. At that point, she'd become a top-tier international mage.
For now, he lacked the power to subdue such a violent Wind Seed, but that was fine—once he seized the Ancient King's Armor Robe, Dark Abyss and the Undead Empire would all be his.
Lu Jun shifted his gaze from the wind and looked toward the steep cliff.
Ten magnificent, soaring white arch bridges stood tall their gray-white bridge bodies like flying dragons, connecting one end of the platform to the other.
Only by stepping onto the stone bridges could one avoid the Wind of Death.
However, nine of the ten bridges led to death, and only one was the path of life thus the name Bridge of Certain Death.
Mo Fan and the other three hesitated at the platform's edge. Logically, splitting up meant four chances to guess correctly, raising their survival odds to 40%.
That would be the most logical and responsible choice.
But it was also too cruel especially for the younger ones.
Mo Fan decided they'd go together live or die as one and force their way across the Bridge of Certain Death. Fang Gu disagreed, preferring cold realism and choosing to walk a separate path alone.
At that moment, Lu Jun remained standing still. He would not risk stepping onto the bridge.
At this moment, Lu Jun stood still where he was. He wouldn't risk stepping onto the platform.
In the original story, Fang Gu had been lucky enough to pick the path of life. But now, in reality, Lu Jun couldn't be sure Fang Gu would be that lucky again.
After all, whether it's the butterfly effect or other subtle factors, they could easily alter the outcome of this gamble with probability.
He was waiting-waiting for Mo Fan to use the Demon Relic! Once he transformed into the Demon and destroyed the Bridge of Nine Deaths and One Life, he could seize the opportunity to step into the Blood Throne.
In the original story, the lurking Zhan Kong had probably seized this exact moment to enter the Blood Throne, donning the ancient King's Armor Robe and transforming into the Sovereign.
"Heh, I've been taking bullets for you all this time, Little Mo Fan—now it's your turn."
Lu Jun mocked inwardly. Originally, he had planned to push Mo Fan to the forefront while hiding in the shadows to grow, but plans couldn't keep up with change, and things had shifted slightly.
In order to compete for resources and grow stronger, he had to stand out. Luckily, his secrets had stayed hidden well enough, so there was no major issue.
Now, Mo Fan had finally finished his long primitive accumulation phase and had truly become a flagship figure. From here on, he would grow ever more flamboyant, drawing in storms and whirlpools of conflict.
The deviation in the plan had finally corrected itself, returning to the main storyline.
Boom rumble rumble!
About an hour later, from the depths of the distant darkness and void, a towering figure wreathed in supreme flames suddenly surged upward. An infinite and boundless pressure spread outward, accompanied by a majestic tide of energy.
Then came the magnificent scattering of divine radiance, illuminating the tiny sky above the Gate of Death, dyeing it a demonic blood-ink red, as if a sea of blood were surging to the heavens, blotting out the sun and sky.
The entire Dark Abyss trembled violently. Lu Jun, standing on the jade platform, almost lost his balance. Shocked, he looked ahead, where dense space fractures had appeared.
The firmament split open with a massive hole, revealing the battle between the Seven Undead Monarch, the Totem Black Serpent, and the human Super Mages outside.
Large masses of undead skeletons fell through the rift.
From afar, that tiny yet infinitely large demon figure turned into a meteor and soared toward the hole above. As Demon Mo Fan shot into the sky, he left a scene of utter chaos behind.
"Now's the time!"
With sharp eyes, Lu Jun spotted a silver vortex appearing on the other side. Without hesitation, he rode his flying sword into the dark void, cutting straight across the already-collapsed Bridge of Certain Death.
In the next instant, he and the trailing Zhan Kong stepped into the spatial transmission together.
After a spinning disorientation, Lu Jun was met with a breathtaking sight.
An awe-inspiring altar was hidden within the endless darkness, floating who-knows-how-long in this cold, ancient cosmic void.
Its entire structure took the shape of an ice crown. The base of the altar was a massive stone staircase each step several times taller than a human. It wasn't built for humans to climb, but rather for divine giants to ascend.
From afar, red silk seemed to hang down from the altar, cascading in bundles from the edges of every giant step.
But upon closer inspection, he realized those red drapes weren't silk at all they were thick streams of bloodfalls, so viscous they poured downward like syrup.
And at the top of the altar stood a majestic Throne of Kings, towering high, overlooking all beings. It was crafted from crimson jade, radiant and translucent.
Lu Jun saw Zhang Xiaohou and Su Xiaoluo already climbing up, and without hesitation, he rushed forward to catch up.