Chapter 1216 - 556: Desperation_2

Before falling unconscious, he had only one thought.

"Survive... must... survive..."

...

Not sure how much time had passed, perhaps just a moment, or perhaps centuries.

When Xu Ran regained consciousness again, the first sensation was intense turbulence and the piercing sound of metal scraping.

"Warning... hull integrity below 15%... energy core nearing shutdown... anti-gravity system failure..."

"Warning... imminent... crash..."

The intermittent alarm sounds pulled him out of his stupor.

He painfully opened his eyes and found himself lying in the main control room of the Pioneer. The originally sleek bridge was now covered with fierce cracks, countless lines burst open, sparkling with dangerous electrical sparks.

Not far away, Zhen Shan’s imposing figure was desperately bracing a massive cabin wall that was about to break away, his muscles knotted, blood vessels bulging, clearly at its limit.

Cang Shi was sprawled in front of the main console, continually coughing blood, but nonetheless gripping the control stick desperately, trying to stabilize the out-of-control warship.

"My lord... you’re awake!"

Cang Shi sensed Xu Ran’s awakening through Divine Thought, his voice filled with the joy of survival after calamity.

"Where are we...? " Xu Ran’s voice was incredibly hoarse, the severe pain in his Divine Soul almost making it hard to think.

"Don’t know..." Cang Shi smiled bitterly, "We’ve been drifting in a grey ocean ever since coming out of that rift. There are no stars here, no heaven and earth, only endless... void and... remnants."

Remnants?

Xu Ran struggled to sit up, looking out through the massive fissure in the bridge.

The scene before his eyes was indescribably stunning.

They seemed to be floating above a grey, viscous ocean. However, this "ocean" was not composed of water, but rather a grey, deathly silent energy mist.

And amidst the boundless grey ocean, floated... countless "corpses".

These were not corpses of living beings.

But rather... corpses of worlds!

Some were continental fragments larger than galaxies, above which could still be seen gigantic cities that had long crumbled into ruins, and grand divine statues weathered over countless epochs.

Some were giant dead trees, each branch had once been a flourishing plane, but now only deathly grey remained.

Further away, one could even see a half-broken ring-shaped world, a shattered mechanical Celestial Kingdom, and... floating in the mist, unimaginably massive yet having lost all luster... skeletal remains of stars!

This is... a graveyard of worlds! A cemetery of civilizations!

An ancient sorrow and deathly silence swept over, causing Xu Ran’s Heart Spirit to tremble.

"Is this... the Sea of Realms?" he murmured.

"It must be," Cang Shi’s voice carried a hint of awe and fear, "Legend has it, as epochs change, great realms birth and perish, those discarded, defeated, or naturally ending worlds have their remnants eventually plunge into this ’Sea of Abandonment’, becoming eternal drifters. Here is life’s Restricted Area and... the treasure seekers’ paradise."

Treasure seekers’ paradise?

Xu Ran keenly picked up on this term.

"Indeed," Cang Shi explained, "Every world’s remnants might harbor the core inheritance of that civilization. It could be never extinguished Dao Principles Source, or buried Divine Artifact, or... civilization tablets recording lost legacies. But similarly, it’s also full of deadly danger. Broken Laws, rampaging energy, and... birthed within these world remnants, living by devouring world source... Sea of Realms Fierce Beast!"

Even as he spoke, the Pioneer’s descent grew increasingly urgent.

"Can’t hold it!" Zhen Shan roared, the wall finally shattered completely, the violent grey mist rushing in, carrying a chilling force capable of eroding the Divine Soul.

"My lord! We must abandon ship!" Cang Shi urgently exclaimed, "The ship’s energy can no longer support us landing on any remnant!"

Xu Ran’s gaze turned sharp, scanning below.

In their descent path, the nearest was a dark red continental fragment, spanning tens of thousands of miles. The entire continent exhibited a bizarre texture of metal and flesh, barren, with only towering black mountain peaks like swords piercing the sky.

The whole continent emanated a strong aura of... slaughter and ominousness.

"Let’s head there!"

Xu Ran made a decisive decision.

No time for hesitation!

He stood up, although his realm had fallen, and his Dao Foundation was damaged, his foundation as Master of Reincarnation remained. He took a deep breath, barely expanded the shattered Reincarnation Domain, transforming it into a grey-white shield that encompassed Zhen Shan and Cang Shi.

"Go!"

The three of them turned into a streak of light, rushing out from the shattered bridge. In the next instant after they departed, the Pioneer, having lost its last vestige of energy support, emitted a sorrowful wail, plunging headfirst into the grey fog sea below, quietly swallowed.

This vessel, bearing the final hope of a civilization, ultimately extinguished in the cold Sea of Realms.

A trace of gloom flashed within Xu Ran’s heart, but was soon replaced by determination.

The ship is lost, but can be rebuilt! As long as people remain, hope remains!

He led the two, fully powering the Reincarnation Domain, resisting the erosion of surrounding grey mist, heading towards the dark red continental fragment, slowly descending.

The nearer the approach, the more intense the overwhelming aura of slaughter became, as if billions of souls had wailed and perished in this land.

"My lord, such strong resentment here..." Zhen Shan’s face paled, primarily cultivating the physical body, his Divine Soul being relatively weak, having the least resistance to this aura.

Xu Ran’s perception was more profound.

His Reincarnation Dao could clearly perceive that every inch of this continent’s soil was soaked with the blood of gods and demons, every grain of sand contained the imprint of indestructible battle souls.

This seemed... like an ancient battlefield relic!

Finally, before the energy of the Reincarnation Domain depleted, their feet sunk, landing on solid ground.

The land beneath their feet was as hard as divine iron, displaying a dark red hue, seemingly dried bloodstains. The air, filled with a faint scent of rust and blood.

Looking around, the heavens and earth were enveloped in deathly silence, only the whistling gale, sweeping past the sword-shaped peaks, emitted a mournful sound as if ghosts wailed and gods howled.

"Let’s find a place to rest first."

Xu Ran said solemnly.

His condition at this moment was unprecedentedly terrible. His Divine Soul weakened, Dao Foundation cracked like a spider web, and within him, void and empty, difficult to condense a trace of Dao Power.

The immediate priority was recovering from injuries and stabilizing his realm.

The three found a relatively sheltered mountain hollow, where Xu Ran sat cross-legged, beginning to attempt operating Reincarnation Dao.

However, he soon frowned.

The Laws of this realm are incomplete, chaotic!

He couldn’t draw any effective energy from the void to replenish himself. Not only that, the rich aura of slaughter and resentment in the air continued to erode his Heart Spirit, making it difficult to quiet his mind.

"No," Xu Ran opened his eyes, shaking his head, "The environment here is simply not conducive to healing. We must find a place... an Energy Source, or... a relatively intact place of Laws."

"Energy Source?" Cang Shi’s face turned bitter, "My lord, in this Sea of Realms, most world sources have extinguished, finding an Energy Source, how difficult it is..."

As soon as he finished speaking, a bright... blood light suddenly illuminated the distant sky!

That blood light shot straight up, dyeing half of the sky a crimson red, a vast and overwhelming energy wave filled with violence and madness, like a tsunami, swept forth!

Xu Ran and the other two’s expressions changed drastically, they looked up sharply.