After the Lord of the Abyss Awakens - Chapter 107.1

Wang Chang’er rose from the coffin and slowly sat up, holding his face with one hand, his eyes filled with contemplation.

How many years had passed, the time he had spent here…

He knew clearly what had happened to him. Some trivial calculations by otherworld gods, along with his own carelessness, had led to him being trapped in a lightless space, tormented by curses day and night.

His constitution was strong, having already reached the divine realm at that time, and with numerous protections on his body, the curses couldn’t cause him real harm. During this period, he continued to level up. Since he couldn’t train his body, he trained his spirit instead. Over time, his spirit ascended, and he easily reached the God King realm.

Recently, he had been sensing disturbances outside, perhaps because the mastermind behind this had encountered some problems, their power becoming unstable.

He recognized this was an opportunity, and naturally had to seize it. So just now, he had taken advantage of the moment to break through the power bindings and curses, successfully breaking out of the coffin.

To his surprise, this place turned out to be a ship, a vessel drifting in the middle of the ocean, without any guards, and he was the only person on the entire ship.

Looking carefully, this ship was at least over a thousand years old, aged but not decrepit, sailing normally in an inexplicable way, like a ghost ship, and he was the ghost on board.

“…”

What kind of situation was this?

Wang Chang’er fell silent. Despite his vast experience in countless battles, he had never encountered such a bizarre situation.

The mastermind had locked him in a coffin and abandoned him in the middle of the ocean, just like that?

Were they waiting for him to be attacked by sea beasts, for the coffin to end up in a sea beast’s stomach?

Ridiculous, how many years had passed.

It was simply inconceivable.

Wang Chang’er stood up, his gaze sweeping across his surroundings. His divine consciousness spread out, scanning the entire sea area, and then he truly discovered that he was the only human within a radius of over ten thousand meters.

This ship was drifting lonely in the middle of the ocean, weathering wind and rain, like a scattered leaf. Moreover, it wasn’t even a magically reinforced vessel, just an ordinary wooden ship that could be capsized by slightly larger waves.

This was far too inconceivable.

Had the mastermind just imprisoned him and forgotten about it, or did they think he could never break out of the coffin, so it didn’t matter leaving him here?

Wang Chang’er’s eyes turned cold, “They really underestimated me.”

He moved around and changed into different clothes – black clothes and long pants. Though they seemed casual and ordinary, they didn’t diminish his inherent bearing at all.

Clothes wear the person, or the person wears the clothes – he was clearly the latter. Just by slightly rolling up his sleeves, the beautiful, flowing muscle lines on his arms were fully displayed. These were muscles developed from years of sword practice, his palms covered in thick calluses. As a Berserker class, he also possessed the secondary profession of Swordsman, later becoming a Sword Saint, though these were merely empty titles.

Having just awakened, his mind was still somewhat clouded, and he needed to slowly sort through his memories, especially to recall – what exactly had happened before his incident.

Then, Wang Chang’er walked out of the cabin, recalling the people he had seen before the incident, and finally his eyes sharpened as he identified the first suspect in his memories.

On the eve of battle, he had caught a distant glimpse of someone who looked like Arnold on the battlefield. Due to the ongoing war, he hadn’t had time to determine whether that person was real or not, only sparing a couple of glances, though the impression remained vivid.

Thinking about it now, that person was definitely Arnold.

That is, the 19th generation Sage of humanity, possessor of unprecedented magical talent, the future star of the Sage Tower, the “special one” bearing humanity’s fate.

Wang Chang’er had long known something was wrong with him, questioning whether he had truly died back then, suspecting he was secretly manipulating human leaders. But he hadn’t expected such a grand scheme – imprisoning him in a coffin under curse and seal, who knew what else he had done over these thousands of years.

Wang Chang’er thought for a moment, then suddenly his face darkened, his killing intent turning frigid, his released magical power nearly destroying the entire ship.

Back then, he had always suspected Arnold was behind what happened to Xiu Si, and now it seemed he was definitely right. It was Arnold’s doing, and not just Xiu Si – Arnold had continued to target their other heroes afterward.

“Ungrateful brat, so what if your mind was corrupted by humanity’s collective evil? It was still your own thoughts, your own actions!”

Wang Chang’er’s eyes revealed icy fury, his fists clenched so tight his nails nearly dug into his flesh.

“Others helping you is a favor, not helping is their right. Who do you think you are? Why throw such a fit?”

“If I had known this earlier, I should have killed you with my own hands. Didn’t you want to die too? Then die!”

Wang Chang’er was extremely angry. Even a Buddha would feel some anger after being manipulated for so many years, let alone him being human, and especially since Arnold hadn’t just harmed him, but also his most important partner.

Wang Chang’er walked out onto the deck, as if knowing someone was listening, and cursed angrily. “I knew something was wrong with you from the first day I saw you.”

“Always clinging to Xiu, did you think he was your salvation?”

“You’re weak so you’re right? Stop using that to manipulate people!”

Wang Chang’er’s gaze blazed like a torch, his anger manifesting as flames of magical power around his body, causing massive waves that scared away all the surrounding sea creatures.

Then, on the turbulent sea surface, a brilliant light suddenly split the sky. Though delayed, the massive sonic boom arrived, causing enormous waves, with dark clouds blocking out the sun.

Humans in the surrounding waters panicked, thinking the Sea God had awakened, and fled screaming.

****

Meanwhile, in the deep night of the Oedipus Empire, the Imperial City was silent.

On the second floor of the bookstore, some cats were awake while others slept.

“How is it?”

The Siamese cat seemed rather impatient, gently tapping the mighty lynx beside it with its paw.

This little fellow, tiny as a lump of coal, had astounding courage to make such a bold move toward the fierce lynx.

The lynx seemed unbothered, sitting there quietly as if meditating. Its paws were neatly placed before it, three parts mighty, three parts dignified, and four parts seemingly asleep.

Unlike the petite Siamese cat, the lynx’s paws were enormous, almost as big as the little Siamese’s entire head. One swipe could easily envelop the Siamese’s small head, leaving it dizzy and confused.

However, facing the Siamese cat’s provocation, the lynx maintained its composed demeanor.

After waiting for a long time, the silver cat yawned, its eyes slightly red.

The big orange cat had fallen asleep on the sofa, with the gray cat peacefully lying on His belly.

The big orange cat’s belly made a nice pillow – fluffy, warm, and fragrant, perfect for sleeping.

The silver cat stared for a while, perhaps too sleepy, as if possessed, finally unable to resist the temptation, slowly walked over and also rested on the other side of the big orange cat’s belly.

The sleeping faces of the three cats looked particularly peaceful, somehow harmonious and heartwarming.

Cats’ bodies were just like that, always needing sleep.

At this moment, the Siamese cat turned its head casually, and the scene before it left it somewhat stunned.

Three brother cats were sleeping together, the big orange cat had become their shared pillow, its soft belly gently rising and falling with each breath, its tail curled around the gray cat, while its paw pressed on the silver cat’s head.

The Siamese cat’s eyes widened, wanting to speak but stopping itself,

No, what were They doing?

The Siamese cat watched this scene, thinking don’t tempt me, I don’t want your brotherly love!

At this moment, the previously mountain-like steady lynx suddenly awoke, a flash of surprise passing through its eyes, before shouting loudly. “How did he escape!”

This sudden sound echoed in the quiet space.

The Siamese cat jumped in fright, instinctively reminding the lynx. “Don’t shout too loud, Father is sleeping downstairs!”

There was a hint of nervousness in its voice, afraid of disturbing their sleeping father.

The lynx immediately realized this and quickly lowered its voice, saying. “I found Hero Wang Chang’er, he actually broke out of the coffin with his own power and has escaped!”

“Escaped?” The Siamese cat was stunned for a moment, then burst into hearty laughter, rolling happily on the floor.

The lynx pressed its paw on the little Siamese, covering its mouth, and made a shushing sound.

The little Siamese’s eyes widened, immediately understanding – can’t be too dramatic, Father was sleeping downstairs!

“Wang Chang’er has escaped from the mastermind’s control. Don’t know where he’s gone, but he’s quite fast, even breaking the sound barrier. It seems during these thousands of years, he hadn’t stopped leveling up, and has become even stronger. Now he’s starting to look more like the strongest hero he should be.”

The lynx paused, seeming to think of something, a glint of cunning flashing in its eyes, “Ah, I bet he’ll definitely go to the Human Alliance. This will be interesting to watch.”

“Who cares, let’s catch him first and bring him to meet Father.”

The Siamese cat struggled free from the lynx’s paw, its eyes fierce.

“That’s hard to say.”

The lynx suddenly extended its massive paw toward the little Siamese.

The Siamese cat felt a gust of wind by its ears, dazed for a moment, before being steadily embraced by the lynx.

The little Siamese was startled, its fur standing on end.

The lynx smiled and said, “I’m very curious about how he’ll react to the current Human Alliance.”

“What do you mean?”

The little Siamese didn’t understand. Had their Third Brother turned into some kind of entertainment demon after awakening His power and becoming Amonized? Since when did He care so much about such things?

But the lynx continued, “Besides, Father is sleeping.”

It was night in Oedipus, while it was daytime at the Alliance.

When Wang Chang’er reappears on the continent, the first thing he’ll definitely notice will be the Continental Human Alliance, because it was his own painstaking creation – how could he not care?

So, what exactly would happen?

How would the humans view Wang Chang’er? Would they accept or reject him? Would they return the Alliance’s actual control to Wang Chang’er?

The lynx was very curious about this.

The Siamese cat thought about it and suddenly became interested too, chuckling, “I sense there’s room for me to play a role.”

The lynx lifted the little Siamese, bringing their eyes close together, staring as it said, “Good, then I’ll leave you to check out the situation.”

The little Siamese glared at the lynx, then nimbly jumped down to the floor, its form disappearing.

“As if I needed you to tell me!”

The little Siamese’s power was too useful in matters concerning humans – just the power of Sin and Punishment alone made countless humans fearful.

The lynx’s lips curled into a smile as it turned back to see those brother cats now cuddling tightly together in their sleep, inseparable just like when they were young.

These little bodies were curled up together, breathing evenly and peacefully, clearly feeling as relaxed beside their brothers as they did beside Father.

The instincts revealed in sleep said it all – these fellows might argue and compete normally, refusing to yield to each other, but undoubtedly, brotherly love truly existed.

“…”

The lynx slowly walked over, using its enormous body to half-encircle those little ones, like a giant bread tenderly wrapping several small loaves. To prevent any cats from rolling away in their sleep, the lynx deliberately used its tail to hold them, forming a warm circle.

Perhaps because the lynx’s fur was soft and warm, several cats unconsciously moved closer to It in their sleep, as if finding a comfortable pillow, and satisfied expressions appeared on their little faces.

The gray cat thought what a warm pillow, murmuring in its dream, “Father…”

The lynx smiled faintly, thinking there’s no need for dreams, Father has already returned.

****

Meanwhile, at the Continental Human Alliance, people came and went through the execution hall, with nearly three hundred people moving about at any given time, either reporting intelligence or inquiring about information at the mission windows.

The God of Chaos matter seemed to have settled, but many security risks still existed.

They had to remain vigilant against threats from subspace, preventing monsters from taking advantage of the chaos to attack the continent, especially the other two watchful otherworld gods.

There were twenty-four intelligence windows in total, distributed independently in a semicircle, with several people at each window.

The building had a hollow structure, with the first floor being the largest circle, while the second, third, and fourth floors were ring-shaped.

If you stood in the center and looked up, you could see the sky through the glass.

Here, the first floor was the intelligence hall, the second floor was the council hall, the third floor was the decision-makers’ office area, and the fourth floor was generally closed, reportedly housing countless books.

At one of the first floor’s intelligence windows, someone asked. “What exactly is the situation with the God of Chaos? Did He leave on His own, or did someone intervene to cause His departure?”

The intelligence officer shook their head. “Unknown, I heard even Norman Til doesn’t know the exact situation.”

Upon hearing Norman Til’s name, that person became proud, “So what does this tell us? The seven great magic families were just fear-mongering before. After their downfall, even the God of Chaos doesn’t come to the continent anymore. We’re very safe. His Excellency Norman Til was right to eliminate them, there weren’t any consequences at all.”

“Right, without them, humans not only have no troubles, but everything is going more smoothly. The only regret is that they weren’t eliminated sooner.”

“Exactly right.”

Some people were passionately discussing.

At this moment, someone quietly landed at the entrance and slowly walked into their intelligence hall.

Anyone working in the Alliance wore uniforms, but this suddenly appearing person was wearing ordinary black clothes and pants.

They immediately noticed that this person wasn’t from the Alliance, nor was he a guest, because as soon as he appeared, his gaze carried a hint of scrutiny.

Inside the hall, the atmosphere suddenly became tense.

The guards at the entrance immediately mobilized, raising their swords and walking toward the sudden visitor.

“Long time no see, this place has really changed.”

Wang Chang’er slowly walked into the hall, his voice calm and deep.

The guards’ eyes were vigilant, because they all discovered that they couldn’t determine his level with their methods.

What did this mean?

It meant the opponent’s strength was above theirs, above level 85, perhaps even stronger!

People in the hall noticed this disturbance and turned to look, with several level 90+ experts preparing to set aside their work to deal with this uninvited guest.