Chapter 1700: Consuming Black Sand

“AHHHHHHH!”

A scream of unbearable agony echoed across the golden desert as the Shooting Star Dragon Halberd embedded itself in the chest of the Lion of Babylon. Cain pressed down with such titanic force that the air itself ignited in his wake, creating the illusion of gargantuan meteors falling from the heavens.

“BOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMMM!”

The desert quaked violently. Entire tectonic plates heaved and shattered, giving birth to canyons the size of cities. The land convulsed under the force of the strike, dunes turned to glass, and waves of golden sand were thrown hundreds of kilometers into the air.

But for Black Sand, things were far from over.

Before he could regain control of his body, Lord of Conquest Leviathan lunged forward, fangs gleaming with molten fire. He buried his fangs into the side of Black Sand’s thick neck and injected torrents of red flame directly into his bloodstream. The fire was no ordinary elemental surge; it was pure vitality-devouring flame empowered by Cain’s Path of Conquest.

Black Sand howled, striking back with thunderous claws, trying to shake off the draconic serpent. But Leviathan’s armor-like scales were impervious, and Cain refused to let go.

Second by second, the strength and light in Black Sand’s eyes began to fade, his overwhelming might slowly draining away until, at last, his colossal lion-beast form shattered into fragments of sand and stone, revealing his true body falling helplessly through the air.

Cain wasted no time.

Returning to his human form in a flash of energy, he darted forward and seized Black Sand by the neck, lifting his limp figure off the ground. With a savage twist of his will, Cain ripped the man’s Inner Universe straight from his core and sent it into his Inner World, where the World Tree eagerly devoured it without hesitation.

Black Sand’s body convulsed as his vitality plummeted. Even as a dual-path cultivator, the loss of his Inner Universe was catastrophic. Combined with his critical injuries, it was a blow that would inevitably lead to death.

But Cain had no intention of letting him die so easily.

With calculated precision, Cain’s eyes glowed crimson, and a small, burning-red gate formed behind him.

The Scarlet Throne opened in silence, tendrils of ethereal power intertwining with Black Sand’s battered soul and fractured will. In a moment of sheer spiritual violence, the Scarlet Throne ripped both soul and ego from Black Sand’s physical form and consumed them entirely before sealing shut once more and vanishing into the void.

“Success.”

A small smile curled on Cain’s lips as he spoke the word into his mind. But his moment of triumph was short-lived. His expression quickly turned serious as he sensed the incoming presence of a powerful figure—one that would soon arrive on the battlefield.

Cain’s Dark Moon Eye began to glow ominously as he turned to face the distance.

The first to arrive was a Middle-Stage Prima Deity named Lancet, an Inferno Daemon known not for his raw might but for his uncanny survivability and masterful detection techniques. He had decided to approach the disturbance without waiting for reinforcements, confident in his ability to escape if needed.

As Lancet reached the outer edge of the destruction and caught a glimpse of what remained on the battlefield, his blood ran cold.

What he saw was the figure of Zoro, one of Divine Calamity Heaven’s Triumvirate, gripping a lifeless golden corpse by the neck.

Lancet froze.

He didn’t understand how someone so powerful could have delved so deep into the continent, but every fiber of his being screamed danger. The moment Zoro’s illusionary eyes locked onto him, pure horror exploded in Lancet’s mind. Without a moment’s hesitation, he burned a portion of his life force, transforming into a red beam of light and retreating at breakneck speed into the distance.

Back on the battlefield, Cain exhaled deeply.

Had Lancet focused a bit more, had he pushed through the illusion with effort, he might have noticed something was wrong. But Cain’s Dark Moon Eye had done its work perfectly. The panic, the illusion, and the sheer weight of Zoro’s projected presence had been too much.

Without losing focus, Cain waved his hand, sending a ripple of chaotic energy across the ravaged desert. The wave swept over the land like an invisible storm, obscuring all traces of his aura and concealing the residue of the battle. He then stored Black Sand’s corpse in his spatial ring and vanished from the scene.

Less than two minutes later, four more Prima Deities arrived.

Each scanned the devastated landscape with grim expressions. Their frowns deepened as they extended their Ego Waves outward, desperately attempting to track down the one responsible. But it was already too late. Cain had long since activated a teleportation formation—one he had prepared before the battle even began—and returned to the Volcano Tree, resuming his disguise as Jarkal.

He arrived back less than five minutes before the others. Stabilizing his aura quickly, he slipped into a quiet meditative pose, his body seemingly entrenched in cultivation.

That’s when he sensed it.

“He’s is really up to get me..”

The thought passed through Cain’s mind as he noticed the presence of the white stag Deus Behemoth hovering in the sky above the Volcano Tree.

Of course, Cain gave no sign that he had noticed. He remained still, projecting the calm demeanor of a man fully immersed in training.

The white stag remained in place for several long minutes, silently watching the man below. His brows were furrowed, his expression unreadable. There was something—an unshakable feeling—that continued to bother him, something he couldn’t identify.

When Michael had heard of the explosion above the golden desert, his instincts had flared. If Jarkal had been absent from his abode, it would have been justification enough to detain him. But the man was right here.

In the end, Deus Behemoth sighed deeply and vanished, choosing instead to investigate the battlefield in person.

Only once the stag was gone did Cain allow his wide smile to reappear. But even then, he did not allow himself to be distracted.

Instead, he immediately began assimilating the memories and insights of Black Sand’s soul, absorbing everything he could—every fragment of thought, law, experience, and knowledge.

Although Black Sand’s combat style didn’t fully align with his own, his understanding of the Law of Earth could be of great help.