Devouring You

Inside the ancient city. Su Yu had not pinned all his hopes on the little fur ball. Besides, if the big fur ball actually came, it might be fine for others, but as for himself... he smelled appetizing indeed. He sent Wan Tiansheng and Liu Wenyan away and returned once more to the rear hall of the castellan's mansion. At this moment, the passage was very quiet. Xingyue did not emerge. If she had come out, she might have seized the opportunity to kill Su Yu. However, she had most likely been battered into seclusion and would not show herself for now. "Lord Xinghong!" Xinghong opened his eyes and looked at this top-notch troublemaker. Su Yu said in a heavy voice, "Lord, if I die, can I become a dead spirit?" Xinghong pondered for a moment. "Most likely, yes!" "What do you mean, 'most likely'? Isn't it guaranteed?" "Not necessarily." Xinghong explained, "Becoming a dead spirit requires certain conditions. As for the specifics, you will understand once you become one." Nonsense! Su Yu muttered internally, but soon asked again, "Then if I become a dead spirit, can I retain the memories of my previous life?" "You cannot. Of course, if you reach the Eternal Realm, you can recover some. However, what you recover will not be all of it. By then, your past might just be an insignificant fragment within your memories. Some die so thoroughly that they will never recover any memories at all, or they can no longer be considered the same person." "What is the purpose of the Dead Spirit Realm's existence?" Su Yu looked at the stone statue. "Lord, the dead spirits and living beings stand in opposition, don't they? If I become a dead spirit, and if one day I walk out from the Dead Spirit Realm, will you stop me, Lord?" Xinghong looked at him. Su Yu seemed somewhat pessimistic. He had even prepared himself to become a dead spirit. "I will," Xinghong said calmly. "The meaning of our existence is to guard the Dead Spirit Realm. Unless... we die in battle and can no longer guard this domain." "Will the Dead Spirit Realm ever launch a full-scale invasion?" The stone statue remained silent. Su Yu asked no more. Taking a deep breath, he was indeed prepared to turn into a dead spirit, though that was not guaranteed to succeed. He took out a storage ring and spoke, "Lord, I have some things I would like to deposit with you for now. If... I hope you can pass them on to my teacher, Liu Wenyan." Xinghong remarked blandly, "If Yanmo truly attacks, you will not survive, nor will your teacher." Su Yu smiled. "If the fur ball's daddy comes charging over, it probably won't pay any attention to my teacher and the others. It's better to be prepared just in case!" He smelled fragrant to them; there was nothing he could do about that. Every time he had thought about squeezing the fur ball to death, Su Yu had made this kind of preparation, intending to drag his enemies down with him. Now, things were better. There was no need to crush the little fur ball. If its elder—that Half-Emperor—truly arrived, it might be able to deal with the Demon Emperor. After all, this was not the Demon Emperor's true body. In Su Yu's estimation, the God Emperor, Demon Emperor, and Immortal Emperor were naturally the top three powerhouses in the myriad realms. The little fur ball's elder was a Half-Emperor, but it might not necessarily be overwhelmingly strong, perhaps even inferior to mighty figures like the Nether Emperor and Dragon Emperor. "Half-Emperor" in ancient times had merely been an honorific title—an honorific for the leader of a race. The human race had an emperor, known as the Human Emperor. Beneath the Human Emperor, the other races were titled Half-Emperors, signifying they were half a tier below the Human Emperor. A Half-Emperor did not necessarily possess absolute dominance in strength. Of course, being an Invincible was the baseline; without being an Invincible, one was not even qualified to be called a Half-Emperor. The stone statue said calmly, "Right now, the sacred city is sealed off. The other party might not necessarily enter. There is no need for this." The Demon Emperor could not enter, nor could the fur ball. Su Yu nodded. What he feared was that this race would fixate on him. It was only natural; hadn't the little fur ball clung to him in just the same way? It was only because it couldn't digest the golden album; otherwise, given the little fur ball's nature, it would have swallowed it whole long ago. This race looked amusing and cute, but Su Yu had never treated the fur ball as a pet, because it was an ominous beast of slaughter. Without saying more, he set down the storage ring, turned, and left. The moment he walked away, he reversed into death qi once more. Soon, Xingyue surfaced in the passage below, speaking with some indignation, "He's doing it again!" Xinghong said indifferently, "He is constrained and has no choice but to reverse. Otherwise... he would be drained dry." This time, Su Yu had fully opened his Yang apertures. If he did not reverse his qi, it wouldn't work. He could only rely on Xingyue's death qi to sustain them. Otherwise, he would have to emulate the ancestor of the Bai family, spending entire years in secluded meditation to cultivate and recover merely to replenish what the Yang apertures required. "Are the Heaven Apertures really so difficult to open?" Xingyue murmured. If it was so difficult, how many people in this world could ever open them? Xinghong said nothing. Xingyue had recovered very little of her memory, so naturally she did not understand that if opening the Heaven Apertures were that simple, it would not have been so exceedingly rare even back in the ancient era. Powerhouses who had opened their Heaven Apertures... Xinghong had only heard of them, but had never actually met one in person. Of course, that ancient emperor might have opened them. However, Xinghong had no right to probe into such matters. He stopped dwelling on it. As a guardian, he shouldn't think too much about things outside the rules. Although Su Yu's presence could lighten his burden and allow him to step outside the ancient city, he could not repeatedly break the rules for Su Yu's sake. Earlier, when he secretly helped slay Mohe and the others, that was fine. Now, however, the all-heavens myriad realms were watching closely. He could not disregard the rules and perform actions beyond their bounds. Unless... he could silence all witnesses by killing them. ... Meanwhile. In the Eastern War Zone of the All-Heavens Battlefield, radiant twilight glowed around Niu Baidao, moving him almost to tears. Fuck! After more than four hundred years, I have finally attained the Dao! My life has been so hard! Today could be counted as good fortune. First, Xia Longwu had struck down that Invincible, and then Niu Baidao had absorbed a substantial share of the benefits brought by Xia Longwu's phenomenon. After that, those enemies were drawn away by the ancient city and Xia Longwu. His luck had finally turned, and this time, he had achieved the Dao at last. Unfortunately, there was no grand phenomenon. No matter! Succeeding in achieving the Dao was already tremendous luck, not to mention that attaining it in the All-Heavens Battlefield was inherently far superior to doing so in a small realm. Just as Niu Baidao was thinking this, his expression suddenly shifted. In the next instant, the void trembled, and two ball-like objects vanished from where they stood. "Hubby, this one also smells a bit tasty. Why aren't we eating him?" "If we eat this one, the Demon Emperor will know we've come out... Besides, he smells a bit like our little guy... An acquaintance, perhaps?" "Oh! Then we won't eat him." "..." The voices were very faint, but as a newly minted Dao-attained powerhouse, Niu Baidao still heard them clearly. Large drops of sweat rolled down his forehead. Holy crap! What is going on? His eyes flickered as he recalled something, remembering certain records from over three hundred years ago... Good grief! It couldn't be that one, could it? Hubby... This... is this a married couple? A wave of lingering terror washed over him! That meant I was almost eaten just now. Niu Baidao was also a Civilization Master, matching their appetite. When he thought of that, he truly had come within an inch of being devoured. It was terrifying. Why did this family come out?! The Demon Emperor! His heart stirred. The Demon Emperor... Were these two balls heading off to eat the Demon Emperor? Terrifying! Disaster is about to strike. Still, that was fine. Eating the Demon Emperor... If the Demon Emperor truly ended up being eaten, that would be monumental news. Naturally, it would be a splendid thing for the human race. Thinking of this, Niu Baidao's eyes glinted. He decided to find an Invincible from the Demon race to mess with. If something really happened to the Demon Emperor, it might plunge the Demon race into upheaval, and he might even reap some cheap benefits. ... Outside the ancient city. The sky grew darker. The aura radiating from Moduona's body was also steadily growing stronger. Around him, phenomena were actually beginning to coalesce. Anyone below the Invincible realm whose breakthrough could trigger a phenomenon was no ordinary mortal. Especially when breaking through from Lingyun to Shanhai. On the human race's side, Su Yu had rarely heard of such an occurrence; it seemed only Xia Longwu had produced any phenomenon during that breakthrough. Of course, when others broke through, because the phenomenon at this realm was not overwhelmingly large, if they hid away to break through, you might not notice it at all. Su Yu stood high above the castellan's mansion, looking in that direction. Moduona was about to break through. Once he entered the Shanhai Realm, his physical body would be stronger and capable of bearing more of the Demon Emperor's power, making it trivial to summon Yanmo again. Yet the fur ball's elder had seemingly not appeared. Beside him, Wan Tiansheng and Liu Wenyan reappeared. Su Yu looked at the two and said, "Teacher, Manor Head, find a place to take cover." Wan Tiansheng said calmly, "No need. If Yanmo truly arrives, I still have the strength to put up a fight. Hiding away only to be slaughtered would be far too pathetic." Saying that, he added, "Are you certain you don't need Lan Tian to step in?" "No need!" Su Yu shook his head. He was the culprit who had killed an ancient city resident. If he fell, Yanmo would have no further justification to emerge, and the ancient city would be sealed for three days. After three days, Old Wan and Old Liu would have to fend for themselves. Wan Tiansheng gave him a deep look, said nothing more, and vanished in an instant with Liu Wenyan. As a clever man, he understood Su Yu's plan. He did not expose it either. ... Su Yu kept staring intently at Moduona. After watching for a while, he suddenly called out, "Moduona, you and I have crossed paths many times, yet we've never exchanged blows even once. You are number one on the Heaven Ranking, and I have held the top spot on the Heaven Ranking as well... We have never determined who is superior." Moduona opened his eyes and looked toward Su Yu. That was not Moduona's gaze, but the Demon Emperor's. Soon, however, Moduona's gaze shifted. Compared to the Demon Emperor's profound depth and dead stillness, Moduona's own eyes appeared somewhat more vibrant. Hearing Su Yu's words, Moduona smiled slightly and replied, "If that is what you wish, then survive this calamity first, and you will have your chance! If you die inside this ancient city, a dead genius is no genius at all!" Su Yu smiled. "True enough! Still, your status as a genius is somewhat unworthy of the name. You can't even resist a mere sliver of willpower. No matter how strong someone else makes you through alteration, that is still something bestowed by others, not fought for with your own hands!" Moduona gave a soft laugh. "Perhaps. However, you must understand that there are times when resistance yields no results. You too are resisting, yet what has come of it today? This world is just like this: the strong prey on the weak. If you want absolute freedom... What you rely upon is this ancient city, yet can you untether yourself from it right now?" He was altered by the Demon Emperor, but wasn't Su Yu also being constrained by the ancient city? It sounded pleasant to say there was nothing wrong with it. Su Yu could reverse death qi. In truth, however, he was also subject to another's control. If he did not shoulder the death qi for the stone statue, would the stone statue take action on his behalf? If Su Yu lacked this ability and could not reverse death qi, he would have perished long ago. Su Yu nodded and chuckled, "Fair point. That is why so many things must ultimately be won through one's own efforts. Moduona, if I were you, the moment I gained enough strength, I would slaughter the entire Demon race. It's just too disheartening." Moduona smiled without answering. Su Yu did not say more either. This fellow Moduona was clearly unwilling. Otherwise, according to Wan Tiansheng, the Demon Emperor could have directly reformed him and pushed him into Shanhai very quickly. That he had not entered it until now showed that he was fighting back as well. The Demon Emperor's alterations—and those done by other emperors—were actually things some of them engaged in. It was not necessarily an evil thing; for many, it was an opportunity, a tremendous stroke of fortune. If one possessed ordinary talent, a Half-Emperor wouldn't even look twice at them. Furthermore, growing stronger after being modified did not necessarily carry hidden repercussions. Those Half-Emperors had endured countless hardships to cultivate to that realm. Which of them wasn't exceptionally gifted, with an immensely formidable physical body and peerlessly powerful three-life embodiments? Unless pushed to absolute despair, who would ever abandon their own three-life embodiments? Therefore, throughout history, cases of a genius's physical body being seized were exceedingly rare. Conversely, quite a few geniuses had their physical bodies or seas of will strengthened by Half-Emperors and ultimately advanced to the Invincible realm. Thus, it wasn't that Xuan Wuji, Zhan Wushuang, and the others were blind to the situation; they simply chose to accept it without resistance, because it was indeed considered a great stroke of fortune. Moduona paid him no further attention, his aura growing increasingly powerful. A physical body stepping into Shanhai was the same across all races. Aperture fusion! Under normal circumstances, upon reaching Tengkong and Lingyun, a warrior had only nine apertures left, as all other apertures had been fused. A Shanhai warrior's task was to fuse these nine apertures once more. When they were merged into a single aperture, that was the Sun Moon Realm. Upon reaching Sun Moon, one would then expand and strengthen that solitary aperture. From beginning to end, a warrior was constantly tempering their physical body. Whether it was casting the body in Tengkong, mutating origin qi in Lingyun, or fusing and strengthening apertures in the later stages, everything served as preparation for attaining the Dao. When the power of the apertures was immense, the physical body was mighty. With a mighty physical body, one could tear open the River of Time and dredge out the past and future. Only with a strengthened body could one merge their three lives into one; otherwise, when the immense power of past and future was stacked upon a single form, an insufficiently strong body would simply explode. This was the Dao of warriors. As for the Dao of Civilization Masters, the human race had very few records. There were records up to the Sun Moon Realm, but regarding how to advance to an Invincible Civilization Master after Sun Moon, the human race possessed no records whatsoever. Nowadays, whether warriors or Civilization Masters, once they reached the ninth level of Sun Moon, the path they walked was essentially that of warriors. Su Yu spoke no further, watching silently from the side as Moduona advanced to Shanhai. His own physical body was still some distance from Shanhai, though in truth, not exceedingly far. Observing how others broke through was a good opportunity, especially with a genius of this caliber. Moduona's vitality was extraordinarily robust, and his physical body was remarkably strong. Su Yu estimated that this fellow's body had undergone at least forty to fifty body-castings, and the quality of his origin qi was shockingly high, forged through the nine Lingyun transformations. Only at this moment could one vaguely sense just how formidable his aperture strength truly was. Su Yu seemed never to have witnessed this fellow go all out. Looking at him now, Moduona's physical strength definitely exceeded the power of three hundred thousand apertures, perhaps even higher. Once he successfully broke through to Shanhai this time, his physical strength might reach over five hundred thousand apertures, officially reaching the standard of a first-level Sun Moon among the gods and demons. Even before this, he was likely capable of battling and slaying Sun Moons of minor races. He was formidable indeed! Of course, compared to Su Yu, he still lagged far behind. Su Yu was watching, and the other Invincibles were watching too, each of them looking on with subtle shifts in expression. This Demon genius was truly powerful. The feeling he gave them was that he could already do battle with Sun Moons right now. Once he advanced... Zhan Wushuang, Xuan Wuji, and the like would most likely be no match for him. And those fellows were already at the eighth or ninth level of Shanhai. Of course, Zhan Wushuang was currently still inside the little fur ball's belly, and nobody had the leisure to care about him. With so many Invincibles having died, who had time to worry about the life or death of a single genius? Boom! The void trembled as two of the nine brilliantly radiant apertures began to merge. Gradually, those two apertures became one. At this moment, wind rose and clouds surged as demon qi roiled. In the sky, small clouds manifested one after another, bearing Heaven Yuan Qi, Mystic Light of Heaven and Earth... Moduona appeared even more talented than Xia Longwu. When Xia Longwu had advanced to Shanhai, it seemed there had only been some origin qi gathering into rain. Of course, it was said that Xia Longwu had broken through within the Human Realm, whereas Moduona was doing so on the All-Heavens Battlefield, and the All-Heavens Battlefield seemed to favor geniuses even more. His physical body was undergoing metamorphosis, and the flame at the center of his brow burned brightly. Simultaneously, within the void, faint flashes of lightning flickered, vanishing quickly. Right at this moment, Xinghong suddenly materialized beside Su Yu—or rather, Su Yu suddenly found himself transported back beside Xinghong. Xinghong looked toward the void, looking at Moduona, and spoke slowly, "He is quite a monstrous seed of talent. Do you see those lightning flashes?" "Yes." Su Yu nodded. Xinghong remarked, "He has only just entered Shanhai, yet lightning has already appeared. When he reaches Sun Moon, it might be even stronger. When achieving the Eternal Dao, he might encounter a Tribulation of Rules. Surviving the tribulation would elevate him to a higher tier. It seems that since the ancient era, no one has walked this path again." Su Yu was surprised, but quickly responded, "A tribulation? Lightning? I encountered that when I entered Tengkong, and it was much stronger than this. I was even struck by lightning once... In that case, when my physical body enters Lingyun, will I encounter it again?" Xinghong abruptly shut his mouth. Discussing this topic with a monstrous prodigy seemed like a terrible choice. He might as well chat with Xingyue! How tiresome! Su Yu was truly a tiresome fellow. Whenever someone discussed these subjects, he would invariably bring up his own feats, making any attempt to show off completely hollow—as though one were telling a billionaire that someone was impressive for earning ten thousand coins a day. Moduona's breakthrough to Shanhai had merely summoned faint lightning, yet Su Yu claimed he had encountered it upon entering Tengkong, had even been struck by it, and that it had been stronger than this. Su Yu was actually rather curious, asking, "Lord, was the ancient era much more prosperous than now?" He was genuinely curious about the ancient era, and equally curious about its downfall. Where had so many mighty experts gone? Were they all dead? Then why were Xinghong and the others able to survive? Xinghong said blandly, "Prosperous... not necessarily. One can only say that the conditions back then were better, making cultivation simpler. I have observed the Human Realm today; origin qi is thin and scarce. In the past, however, origin qi was often so dense that it condensed into rain and poured down... Tell me, under such conditions, wasn't starting out far easier?" Su Yu clicked his tongue in awe. That truly sounded exaggerated. "Then why did the ancient era collapse?" Su Yu inquired once more. Xinghong fell silent for a long time before speaking, "Do not ask me why it collapsed... I only know bits and pieces. By that time, we were already stationed here to guard the dead spirit passages." Su Yu exhaled. "In that case, it wasn't destroyed by the dead spirits? I had assumed it was the dead spirits that brought ruin to the ancient era, but it turns out that wasn't the case..." He had indeed thought so. He had previously wondered whether the fall of the ancient era was tied to these dead spirits. It was terrifying to think about! No one knew how many Dead Spirit Monarchs there were, and anyone who died could potentially become a dead spirit. Listening to this tone now, Xinghong and the others had already taken up their guard posts before the ancient era met its demise. "Lord, in the ancient era, whose command did you guardians follow to guard these places? The ancient Human Emperor's?" Could the one capable of commanding these individuals be the ancient Human Emperor? Otherwise, even for Half-Emperors, commanding these Invincibles and making them willingly become guardians would have been an arduous task. Xinghong said blandly, "What do you think?" "I think... you might have been a general under the ancient Human Emperor, Lord? In that case, we are on the same side..." "..." Xinghong chuckled. This kid was simply too good at forging connections. Even this counted as being on the same side? "No, we were not subordinates of the ancient Human Emperor you speak of." Xinghong said calmly, "Never mind. The past has passed; there is no need to discuss these things further. As for the ancient Human Emperor you speak of... he existed, but that does not mean he was the sole ruler across all the heavens." Su Yu was surprised. "Outside the human race, did other races also have ancient emperors? Isn't it said that there was only one ancient emperor?" "You do not understand..." Xinghong had no desire to say more to him and vanished instantly. Su Yu reappeared in his original spot. At this moment, the vitality within Moduona surged like a tidal wave, roaring and rumbling as surrounding phenomena multiplied. He was about to break through. Originally, it would not have been so rapid, but the Demon Emperor's possession had nonetheless conferred substantial benefits upon him. Provided the Demon Emperor did not intend to devour his body, altering his form was effectively bestowing a grand opportunity upon him. Boom! His blood and vitality surged, roaring like a rushing torrent. In the next moment, Moduona swallowed those phenomena of the heavens in a single gulp, his aura rising explosively as he officially entered the Shanhai Realm. At this juncture, the passage of time thickened, and the Demon Emperor channeled down even greater power. In an instant, Moduona's aura shifted from Shanhai to the Invincible realm. After Moduona's breakthrough, the Demon Emperor possessed him once again. Moduona's eyes shifted as well, devoid of his previous youthful vigor. Clearly, he was no longer Moduona. Possessing him once more, the Demon Emperor smiled, looked toward the city, and gazed at Su Yu. In his hand, a drop of blood essence appeared once again, burning slowly. Moduona's body vibrated as he began to summon Yanmo once more. ... At that very moment. Within the void. One on the left, one on the right, the two fur balls did not travel together, but approached the temporal passage from separate sides. This passage connected directly to the Demon Realm. At the end of the passage was where the Demon Emperor resided. Entering the Demon Realm brought suppressive constraints. It was unlike the Human Realm. In the Demon Realm, the Demon Emperor was exceptionally strong. With the suppressive forces applied to outsiders, even if the two fur balls entered, they might not necessarily overcome him. Once suppressed, they might even be killed in counterattack. However... both fur balls possessed ample experience in devouring divine characters and seas of will. Right now, while drawing closer to the passage, the big fur ball spoke within the mother fur ball's mind, "In a moment, I will reverse time to link with his temporal passage and drag out his past and future. Then we feast..." The mother fur ball also said in its mind, "Can we pull his true body out and eat it together?" "Difficult! We eat past and future first, then the true body. If we can't get the true body, forget it..." "Okey-dokey!" The mother fur ball was thrilled, quickly adding, "Then do we eat the past first, or the future first?" "The future is a bit stronger, and the past is a bit weaker. But the past tastes more fragrant and mellow. The future is a bit unstable..." The big fur ball offered its critique. Among the three-life embodiments, the flavor of the past was far more mellow. The future, because the future was not singular, was somewhat ethereal, leaving a rather illusory taste when eaten. In truth, the flavor of the present was the very best, but the true body was generally harder to consume. "Understood, then we'll eat the past first, then the future..." The two balls reached an agreement, lurking in the void undetected, unnoticed by anyone. Even the Demon Emperor himself did not sense them, because this was not his true body. And right at the moment he began summoning Yanmo, a temporal passage suddenly manifested, directly latching onto the Demon Emperor's temporal passage. The big fur ball's eyes shone with excitement. In an instant, it began reversing time! "Who is it?" Moduona roared in fury! At the same time, demon qi churned within the Demon Realm. The Demon Emperor's true body snapped his eyes open, his face chilling. At this moment, a temporal passage traced along his own, actually extending directly into the Demon Realm. The Demon Emperor threw a punch! The temporal passage shuddered, but was not destroyed. "Come!" "Fragrant one, come out..." Time reversed! Near the Demon Emperor's true body, an intensely powerful suction force gripped him, shaking even the Demon Emperor for an instant. In the next moment, a somewhat weaker Demon Emperor flew outward along the temporal passage. That was his past embodiment! Someone was rewinding his past! The Demon Emperor's face turned icy. With a low shout, the entire Demon Emperor Hall shattered with a deafening boom. The Demon Emperor's true body rose, charging out along the temporal passage in pursuit, roaring in fury, "Audacious!" Who was it? He looked toward the end of the passage and seemed to catch sight of something. Instantly, he realized what it was, shouting angrily, "God-Devouring Half-Emperor? You seek death!" He did not fear this opponent! The God-Devouring Half-Emperor was strong, but in a real clash, the creature would most likely still be inferior to him. He was not afraid. He had merely never anticipated that the other party would be bold enough to attempt devouring his past and future. Utterly outrageous! With his past embodiment ahead and his present and future unified behind, he gave swift chase after his past self. All three embodiments threw a punch simultaneously. He was also a Civilization Master, but against the God-Devouring Half-Emperor, the methods of a Civilization Master were useless. He had to use the techniques of a warrior! This God-Devouring race was far too brazen! Three fists slammed out, shaking heaven and earth. Above the Demon Realm, the heavens seemed to fracture. One Demon Invincible after another stepped forth, looking into the sky, some terrified, others nonchalant. Who was so daring as to launch an assault against the Demon Emperor? ... The moment the big fur ball acted, countless beings witnessed it: a temporal passage piercing through the Demon Realm, tracing along the Demon Emperor's passage to drag and rewind back into the Demon Realm. It seemed intent on reversing the entire world into the past. "The God-Devouring Half-Emperor!" At this moment, beside Moduona, several Invincibles paled. Should they intervene? If they struck, they would offend a Half-Emperor. Yet... if they didn't act now... Soon, three Demon powerhouses took action. There were still three Demon Invincibles present; they had to step in to stop it. As for the other races, they did not intervene. This was no ordinary powerhouse, but the Half-Emperor of an ancient race; offending him served no purpose. As for the Demon Emperor... with how mighty he was, nothing catastrophic would happen to him. This God-Devouring Half-Emperor was far too bold. Did it actually intend to eat him? An utterly insane notion! Meanwhile, the big fur ball had already revealed itself, opening its own temporal passage as well. The white fur across its body transformed into rings of temporal fluctuations, pulling the Demon Emperor forward. The big fur ball was straining intensely. It was very formidable, but claiming it was definitely stronger than the Demon Emperor would be overestimating it. However, it was skilled in reversing time and did this often. Since the Demon Emperor had proactively opened a temporal passage, it would not be polite. "Come on, I'm so hungry!" The big fur ball let out a roar as well. Hurry over and let me eat! Beside it, the three Demon Kings struck, but their blows hit only empty air, deflected away as though misplaced by temporal turbulence, failing to land on the big fur ball. ... Inside the ancient city. Su Yu saw it as well. He caught sight of that gigantic fur ball, and his heart gave a jolt. Holy crap! It's huge! The little fur ball was only the size of a palm. Was this its father? Its father was at least a hundred times larger than the little fur ball! They did look very alike! From the looks of it, they were definitely biologically related. Yet in the next instant, Su Yu cast a suspicious glance at the little fur ball that had just flown out. Your dad... seems to have grown hands. Why are you just a ball? At this moment, the big fur ball suddenly extended two tiny, furry hands, hauling on the temporal passage with immense effort, looking as if it were trying to drag the Demon Emperor right out of the Demon Realm! And the Demon Emperor's past embodiment had already flown out from the Demon Realm. With time reversed by the big fur ball, the past embodiment had been separated, enraging the Demon Emperor. Unifying his present and future embodiments, he unleashed a punch, and at this moment, the all-heavens myriad realms could see that strike! A colossally gigantic fist! Simultaneously, above the Nether Realm, the God Realm, the Immortal Realm, and the Dragon Realm, phantom figures manifested one after another. Over in the Immortal Realm, Tiangu Immortal Emperor knitted his brows slightly. The God-Devouring race! It was this race that had appeared... In that case... it was this race that had pulled off that deed earlier, consuming his willpower? No wonder he had felt a sense of danger. Still, a single God-Devouring Half-Emperor, even if specialized against Civilization Masters, was not necessarily his match. That he had actually felt trepidation was rather bizarre. Just as he was thinking this, his expression shifted subtly. He abruptly looked toward the Demon Emperor. Just as he was about to speak, he cut himself off, a strange glint entering his eyes. What does it have to do with me! A good thing! The Demon Emperor is going to suffer this time. Sure enough, right as the Demon Emperor threw his punch, the big fur ball squeaked and screeched, continuing to drag his past embodiment, its fur turning red from sheer exertion. If it were truly just this one ball alone, it might not have been able to handle the Demon Emperor. Yet just as everyone was watching the big fur ball and the Demon Emperor... At the far end of the temporal passage, right at the boundary of the Demon Realm, another ball suddenly appeared. It bit down with a snap! Crunch! An ear-piercing sound reverberated across heaven and earth. The mother fur ball had appeared! It had gone to the other end, and now, with one bite, it severed the temporal passage. Overjoyed, it called out, "Hubby, you eat from that side, and I'll eat from this side!" "Alright!" Crunch, crunch! At that moment, the big fur ball and the mother fur ball began eating from both ends, looking as if they meant to carve up the Demon Emperor and share the meal! The temporal passage was swiftly severed and shredded! This time, the Demon Emperor's expression finally changed completely! It wasn't just one, but two! How could this be? How could the God-Devouring race possess two Half-Emperor-level powerhouses? "Bastards, you seek death!" The Demon Emperor roared furiously. Boom! The temporal passage blew apart. His physical form shuddered, having already reached the terminus. Catching sight of the big fur ball, he threw a punch! Boom! The big fur ball was knocked flying, yet managed to snap its jaws shut, taking a bite that caused the Demon Emperor's expression to twist. Without a word, the Demon Emperor unleashed countless punches in succession, but right at this moment, from behind him, a massive mouth snapped down! Crunch! Up front, the big fur ball quickly flew back, also taking a big crunching bite, shouting in delight, "His true body came out! Let's eat it together!" All three of the Demon Emperor's embodiments had actually emerged! Eat them all together! The Demon Emperor bellowed, wheeling around to strike, but facing a pincer attack from front and back—with the mother fur ball even squeezing stubbornly straight toward his sea of will—he let out a furious, startled roar! Two of them! Dammit, how can there be two? "God Emperor! Immortal Emperor!" He roared in anger, sensing that he was in dire trouble. At this moment, across several other realms, the auras of a few Half-Emperors began to ripple faintly. Tiangu Immortal Emperor shouted in reproof, "God-Devouring race, impudent! Withdraw at once..." There was only shouting, with no movement to follow. In the God Realm, the God Emperor joined in with a shout of his own... likewise doing nothing. Let them eat you; if you get eaten, so be it. If the Demon Emperor was truly devoured, it would actually be a great boon. The Demon Realm was neither weak nor small. The Demon Emperor understood this in his heart. Roaring in fury, his blood and vitality burned through the void. A spear abruptly materialized in his hand, sweeping outward with a thunderous roar! The big fur ball was batted away, but this infuriated the mother fur ball behind him. Expanding into a sky-blotting sphere, she snapped down in a single bite—not at his flesh, but directly at his willpower. Crunch! The Demon Emperor felt an agonizing, splitting headache! The Demon Emperor turned to thrust his spear, but from behind, the big fur ball came charging again. He thought of splitting his embodiments to fight, but dared not. Dividing his embodiments would cause his strength to drop, and he might truly be devoured by them. Yet caught in a pincer attack from both sides, he simply had no way to deal with two Half-Emperor-level combatants. Had they been within the Demon Realm, he wouldn't have feared them; if the two had dared enter, he could have slaughtered them both. Now, however, he had stepped outside the Demon Realm. "Damn it!" A blaze surged forth, incinerating the fractured void, only to be swallowed whole in an instant by the big fur ball, which even let out a satisfied burp. Delicious! The Demon Emperor's heart turned cold. It was eaten just like that! Without another word, he began dividing his embodiments. The others were merely watching the show. Damned bastards! He instantly split into three figures. His true body fled straight toward the Demon Realm, leaving his past and future to engage one fur ball each. He knew he was in deep trouble, but he could not keep all three embodiments out in the All-Heavens Battlefield; otherwise, disaster would follow! If fellows like the God Emperor and Immortal Emperor truly stepped in... it might not be to help him. Stabbing him in the back was just as likely. His true body fled swiftly, while his two avatars clashed fiercely with the two fur balls. However, they were in steady retreat. The big fur ball and the mother fur ball did not pursue his true body, snapping repeatedly toward the past and future instead. Crunch, crunch—even the void was being bitten to pieces. At that moment, the Demon Emperor tore through the void once more, quickly arriving above the Demon Realm, his face pale and grim. In the next instant, he let out a thunderous roar, and in the distance, his future embodiment abruptly exploded with a tremendous boom! The future was the strongest! Heaven and earth shattered! The entire void was blasted into nothingness. The big fur ball, locked in combat with the future embodiment, vanished in an instant, disappearing from the spot amidst the cataclysmic explosion. "Hubby..." The mother fur ball cried out. In her frantic rage, she snapped down at the past embodiment. The past embodiment cracked under the bite, yet burned its vitality and fled instantly. At this moment, the heavens cracked and the earth crumbled. The detonation of the future embodiment was so ferocious that even the big fur ball was nowhere to be seen. Just as the mother fur ball was about to look for the big fur ball, the big fur ball suddenly reappeared. Now looking quite fierce, it shouted angrily, "You blew me up! Eat him!" The two fur balls instantly chased after the past embodiment! The Demon Emperor's true body paled again, cursing furiously, "Damn it!" Even that failed to blow the God-Devouring Half-Emperor to death! The past embodiment fled at extreme speed, yet was still slower than the two fur balls. In the blink of an eye, the mother fur ball caught up, biting down crunch, crunch, crunch once more. A ruthless glint flashed in the Demon Emperor's eyes, and he prepared to detonate his past embodiment as well. Right at this moment, the big fur ball suddenly expanded countless times over, blotting out the sky and the sun until only this solitary ball remained visible! A single gaping mouth! With one gulp, it swallowed the past embodiment along with the surrounding void whole. Within its round, roly-poly belly, an earth-shattering detonation suddenly erupted! The explosion sent the ball tumbling wildly across the entire world! In the void, crimson spread as a rain of blood fell. A Half-Emperor's embodiment had fallen! This created an even greater commotion than the death of an ordinary Invincible. At this moment, the all-heavens myriad realms were struck utterly dumbfounded. What just happened? It was too fast! All they saw was the sudden emergence of two balls, and then... the formidable Demon Emperor had been treated like soft clay, bitten to the point of collapse by the joint assault of those two balls. He couldn't even care for his embodiments, directly abandoning them and detonating them himself. Where did these two balls come from? At this moment, the all-heavens fell silent. Countless Invincibles emerged, no longer having any interest in fighting. They appeared one after another, gazing toward those two balls, looking toward that gigantic sphere tumbling continuously through the air from the blast! The God-Devouring race? Some Invincibles didn't even know this race existed.