Blood and carnage filled the void.
Two of the Demon Half-Emperor's three-life embodiments were gone—either devoured whole or blown up by the Demon Emperor himself.
At this moment, the myriad heavens fell utterly silent.
In the next instant, the Nether Emperor, the Immortal Emperor, the God Emperor, the Dragon Emperor, the Primordial Giant King, the Destiny Emperor, the Spirit Emperor...
One Half-Emperor after another manifested their towering forms.
The Tiangu Immortal Emperor’s voice reverberated across the heavens, shouting in a frigid tone, "The God-Devouring Half-Emperors are audacious beyond measure! Daring to launch a sneak attack to murder the Demon Half-Emperor—they deserve to be slain!"
"They deserve death!"
As the Half-Emperors materialized, a sense of shared dread crept over them. Two Half-Emperor-level figures ambushing the Demon Emperor and shattering his three-life embodiments was no trivial matter.
Out in the void, the big fur ball was still being tossed about by the aftershocks of the blast, its frame shrinking rapidly like a deflating balloon.
A moment later, it drifted close to the mother ball.
The big fur ball glanced in every direction, then blinked toward the little fur ball, who had taken flight inside the ancient city in a desperate bid to get out. It exchanged a look with the mother ball, and both spheres vanished on the spot.
Just before leaving, the big fur ball cast an extra glance at Su Yu, its eyes tinted with bewilderment.
Without lingering any longer, it disappeared into thin air.
A spatio-temporal passage opened wide!
In the blink of an eye, a colossal Sky Origin Fruit Tree appeared before everyone's eyes. In the next breath, both the big fur ball and the mother ball were prostrated atop the branches.
The big fur ball kept quiet.
A pair of tiny hands sprouted from the mother ball. Planting them on its hips, it shouted, "We're home now, and we're not eating anymore! That Half-Emperor wanted to eat our little one first, so we ate him! If he hadn't tried to eat our kid, we wouldn't have eaten him!"
Still resting its hands on its hips, it let out a burp. It had not eaten much, but it was already full. Raising its voice again, it declared, "We're really home! When we say we're done eating, we mean it! We're locking up and going to sleep! Goodbye!"
With a loud creak, like the shutting of a gateway, the mother ball waved toward the surrounding figures in all directions. They were home.
Farewell!
No more fighting, no more eating! They had a perfectly valid reason for eating the Demon Emperor.
Neither ball was stupid. The commotion caused by their feast was simply too enormous.
Home, go home!
Once they were back in their own realm, there was nothing to fear.
Two Half-Emperor-level combatants holding down their ancestral lair, unburdened by racial entanglements, with only one little youngster to look after—even if an army marched on them, they would not be afraid.
As for those Half-Emperors outside, they were merely making empty threats.
Going into their home to fight those two to the death? Forget it for now. There was no need for such extremes.
Just then, with a sharp screech, the entrance to the God-Devouring Ancient Realm was wrenched open a crack. "Burp..."
This time, it was the big fur ball.
Letting out a loud burp, sounding somewhat weak, it shouted, "Um, we're going home and won't eat anymore. My kid is still small, so don't hit him! You're all so old, yet you still bully a little one. If you hit him again, we'll eat yours too!"
With that, the gateway was tucked away with a tear in space, and the two balls were truly home.
Safely inside, the door was firmly shut.
If anyone had the guts, they could barge into the ancient realm to fight them.
If not, they could camp outside and lay siege for centuries. Neither ball cared about being blockaded.
As for shattering their ancient realm, an alliance of all the emperors could indeed accomplish it, but the key question was... at this stage, who would be willing to make such a sacrifice?
Who wasn't terrified of the two balls fighting with their lives on the line?
Now that they had departed, the emperors instantly arrived outside the Demon Realm, while the Demon Emperor immediately retreated within its borders.
One Half-Emperor after another looked down upon the Demon Realm.
The Tiangu Immortal Emperor said calmly, "Demon Emperor, are you alright? With your three-life embodiments fallen, the Demon Realm might be in some peril. The human race is treacherous, so beware of a surprise assault. If the Demon Emperor trusts us, we can guard the Southern War Zone on the Demon race's behalf!"
Just then, the Demon Emperor's voice echoed out, reverberating through the four quarters: "Demon race Eternals, return to the Demon Realm!"
At these words, the Demon race experts, already trembling with unease, retreated one after another.
The Blood Fire Demon King, who had been locked in battle with King Daxia, braced himself to take a savage saber strike and swiftly fled with his injuries. King Daxia did not pursue him; the fellow was simply too strong, and if they fought to the death, King Daxia might not necessarily come out on top.
The Blood Fire Demon King retreated at top speed, escorting a cohort of demon Invincibles. Several among them were gravely wounded, and one was so faint in aura that he had lost an embodiment. In their wake, Niu Baidao fled in sheer delight, clutching a carrier.
*Damn, I'm a genius!*
He had guessed that disaster would strike the demons. Sure enough, the moment the Demon Emperor suffered a setback, the demon combatants and the myriad realms' Invincibles had all been stunned. He, on the other hand, had ignored everything else and seized on his opponent's moment of shock and hesitation, risking severe injury to obliterate one of the other's three-life embodiments.
What a massive profit!
At that moment, the Blood Fire Demon King led over a dozen Invincibles back to the Demon Realm. Above the realm, the phantom silhouettes of the demon Invincibles also flickered into view.
The Demon Emperor's voice remained even. "There is no need for you all to trouble yourselves. It is merely a minor wound. My Demon race still possesses dozens, nearly a hundred Eternals. Guarding a mere Southern War Zone is well within our capability! Furthermore... my injuries are not so severe. It is nothing more than three-life embodiments..."
Before his voice had fully faded, a terrifying aura surged abruptly.
The expression of a demon Invincible changed drastically. In the next instant, he let out a shrill shriek, followed by a deafening boom.
His past and future embodiments exploded, and his present embodiment suddenly shifted into the Demon Emperor's aura.
In a flash, it transformed into the likeness of the Demon Emperor and vanished on the spot.
*Boom!*
A tremendous tremor rocked the Demon Realm, and clouds of blood began to shower down.
Among the remaining demon Invincibles, some frowned while others breathed a sigh of relief.
Thank goodness!
A demon Invincible had died, but this was proof of the Demon Emperor restoring his strength. Under normal circumstances, they would feel the grief of shared peril and tremble with fear, but at this critical juncture, everyone understood the Demon Emperor's intent.
He needed to recover a portion of his power to deter the surrounding experts.
In a moment where the race's survival hung in the balance, the death of a single Invincible was acceptable. Moreover, that Invincible had achieved the Dao not long ago; he had merely been a genius of yesteryear, and now he had become one of the Demon Emperor's embodiments.
Restoring one of his three-life embodiments had taken merely an instant.
Though his Invincible-level battle prowess was slightly weaker than before, the gap was not insurmountable.
The Demon race was not like the human race, after all.
Even without an emperor, the human race lived quite well because humans faced no suppression when entering other realms, allowing them to pose an absolute threat to their rivals. The Demon race could not do that; once the Demon race lost its emperor, the entire realm would be destabilized and torn apart.
They could not freely charge into foreign realms to exert deterrence like the humans could. Strictly speaking, their situation was far more perilous than that of the humans.
Though the Demon Realm had its suppression effect, if the experts of the myriad races truly banded together to shatter it, that suppression would be meaningless.
The Human Realm, on the other hand, could not be broken so easily.
That was a realm that once had an emperor in the ancient era!
Breaching the Human Realm would require a far higher price than breaching the Demon Realm.
The Demon Emperor had recovered only one embodiment and had not yet restored a second. In truth, he possessed more than one prepared vessel for his embodiments.
Right at this moment, the God Emperor let out a chuckle.
He exchanged a glance with the Immortal Emperor. In a sudden coordinated strike, each hurled a palm print toward Moduona in the ancient city. They understood the Demon Emperor's scheme: the embodiment he had just reconstituted was his past embodiment, and he intended to nurture Moduona into a formidable future embodiment.
If that was the case, they would simply kill Moduona.
Let's see who the Demon Emperor would use to restore his future embodiment then!
The Demon Emperor's past embodiment had been reconstituted rather hastily from an Invincible who had achieved the Dao only recently. If his future embodiment was not strong enough either, his overall strength might suffer a catastrophic decline even after recovery.
At that instant, the Demon Emperor's phantom projection materialized above the Demon Realm.
He looked toward the two emperors without uttering a single word. He merely shifted his gaze toward the God Realm and the Immortal Realm, looking at the younger generation of gods and immortals scattered across the Allheaven Battlefield.
He issued no threats.
If you kill Moduona, then unless you suppress the Demon Realm for all eternity, he will strike at every opportunity to butcher the younger generation of your realms.
At all costs!
The two emperors halted their attacks at once. Tiangu gave a faint smile and reached out, scooping Moduona up like a chick and plucking him through the shattered void. Smiling, he said, "I was merely worried that something might happen to Moduona. The area near that ancient city is not safe."
The Demon Emperor said nothing.
Looking at Moduona in his grasp, the Immortal Emperor remarked with deep meaning, "Cultivate well. The future of the Demon race still rests on your shoulders! Now that the Demon Emperor is wounded, if your strength is lacking, how can the Demon Realm remain secure?"
He had stopped just short of saying: *You are the vessel for the Demon Emperor's future embodiment, so you'd better cultivate properly. Only when you grow strong can the Demon Emperor recover smoothly.*
Moduona kept his head lowered and said nothing.
His ancestor and his teacher were both demon kings. At this moment, both kings furrowed their brows, their thoughts inscrutable.
The Demon Emperor meeting with disaster was something nobody wanted to see.
The Demon race wanted it least of all!
As one of the overlords of the heavens, the Demon race was immensely powerful. Yet without the Demon Emperor to hold them together, they were nowhere near as resilient as the humans. If the Demon Emperor could no longer suppress the various Invincibles, the Demon Realm was prone to falling apart!
As for the Blood Fire Demon King, who had retreated so swiftly and preferred taking a wound over continuing his duel with King Daxia—was he doing so to protect the Demon Emperor, or did he harbor other ambitions? Who could say?
The Prime Demon race was the overlord of the demons, but the Blood Fire Demon race was formidable as well.
Yet the Blood Fire Demon race had been relegated to the vanguard.
Did the Blood Fire Demon King truly have no designs of his own?
His combat power had even managed to pressure King Daxia, meaning he was not necessarily much weaker than an ordinary Half-Emperor.
The Demon Emperor did not address these matters. Having barely restored his past embodiment, he had composed himself from his prior fury and said coolly, "To think the God-Devouring race possessed these two. That God-Devouring Half-Emperor has likely existed since ancient times... Tiangu Immortal Emperor, do you recognize it?"
The Tiangu Immortal Emperor remained silent for a while before saying impassively, "I may have encountered it before."
In that moment, he understood why he had felt an ominous premonition earlier. It was not just one, but two of them—and they had likely been lying in wait right outside the gates of the Immortal Realm.
Had he stepped outside, his strength was superior to the Demon Emperor's, so the two might not have been able to overwhelm him.
Yet if they had tangled with him and a few others had kicked him while he was down... he would probably have perished as well.
Cooperation among the myriad races depended entirely on the circumstances.
When targeting the human race, they were of one mind and purpose.
Targeting the God-Devouring Ancient race? What a joke. Those two spheres would face suppression upon entering a realm; why take the risk of going after them?
If you clashed with those two, returning to your own realm meant safety.
Clashing with human experts was different: you weren't even safe after returning to your home realm. That was the primary reason the human race was singled out.
With the retreat of the demon Invincibles, the skirmishes across the battlefields gradually ground to a halt.
With the sudden withdrawal of over a dozen Invincibles, the Invincibles of the other races wavered.
Some still feared the two God-Devouring powerhouses, and their desire for battle evaporated.
Xia Longwu had successfully achieved the Dao, and Su Yu and his companions were sheltered inside the ancient city with dozens of stone statues standing guard. By now, practically all the humans who needed to achieve the Dao had already done so. Was there any point in continuing the fight?
Killing Su Yu through the city's rules... was an option, with the Demon Emperor drawing out dead spirits.
Yet did the Demon Emperor dare to venture outside now?
Even if the Half-Emperors assured him they would not make things difficult, he would never step foot outside. Leaving the Demon Realm at this moment would mean he had truly lost his mind.
Not killing Su Yu would not destroy the Demon Realm.
If the Demon Emperor stepped outside and fell into an ambush, it might genuinely lead to the realm's annihilation.
Besides, the threat posed by the likes of Su Yu and Wan Tiansheng belonged to the future; how could it compare to the immediate crisis at hand?
***
On the Human Realm's side, one Invincible after another gathered together.
The Invincibles of the myriad races had all fled.
They had no intention of continuing. The human race had always been weaker than the allied races; earlier, the combatants had mainly fought to pin each other down, which was why the human Invincibles had escaped largely unscathed. Now that the Demon Realm had suffered a crisis and the battle had ceased, the humans had no desire to fight to the bitter end either.
Concluding the battle at this point served the human race's best interests; they had made enormous gains.
The biggest loser was the Demon race. Counting the Invincible the Demon Emperor had executed himself, they had lost a full four Invincible experts, and the Demon Emperor was severely wounded.
The other races had suffered relatively minor casualties.
The God race had lost two Invincibles, while the Nether race, the Immortal race, and the human race had lost one each. In this campaign, nine Invincibles had fallen in total.
This was the highest casualty count among Invincibles in several centuries.
King Daqin, King Daxia, King Dazhou... powerful figures assembled one after another.
Xia Longwu, Niu Baidao, and the other newly ascended Invincibles converged as well.
A great many had achieved the Dao this time.
Xia Longwu, Niu Baidao, Zhou Polong, Zhou Potian, Liu Wushen, Qin Zhen... as well as Nan Wujiang!
Indeed, Nan Wujiang had also managed to achieve the Dao amidst the chaos.
Yun Chen, the Primal Cult Master, had failed to succeed.
Nan Wujiang, who had once been known as Xuanjia, cast a complicated gaze into the distance toward the cluster of ancient cities. He seemed to spot several figures: Su Yu hovering in midair, and the fleeting silhouettes of Wan Tiansheng and Liu Wenyan.
Back when he was Xuanjia, his relationship with Su Yu had been fairly good.
Yet now... a subtle rift seemed to have divided the Multiple Divine Character faction.
That group did not seem to fully acknowledge them.
Nan Wujiang looked toward the distance in silence. Beside him, Yun Chen walked over, his eyes similarly filled with complex emotions. "Master..."
Nan Wujiang gave a slight nod and said nothing.
This time, seven new Invincibles had been born!
With the emergence of Zhu Tianfang and Zhou Tianyuan, the human race had gained a full nine Invincible-level combatants. Of the original forty-one Invincibles, only Fenhai had died, bringing the total to forty-nine!
In truth, there were even more.
It was just that those few were crippled and broken.
Their appearance would only come in an hour of absolute survival.
King Daqin also looked toward the ancient city.
Inside the ancient city, Su Yu, with the little fur ball perched on his head, let out a silent breath of relief. Grabbing the little fur ball, he sent a voice transmission: "Don't run around recklessly, or someone might beat you to death. You... your family is insane!"
Utterly terrifying!
Fortunately, before the two spheres had even managed to look at them properly, the Half-Emperors had pressured them into fleeing back into the God-Devouring Ancient Realm. Su Yu had been scared half to death.
He had dreaded that they might linger on him with an extra look and refuse to leave.
Wan Tiansheng and Liu Wenyan were likewise astonished, looking at the little fur ball with strange expressions.
This race possessed more than one Half-Emperor ball.
There were two!
The Demon Emperor had suffered precisely because of this. Had there been only one, he wouldn't have feared it; facing two, he had been helpless.
Furthermore, the God-Devouring race was different from other races. Three Invincibles had been present, and had the attackers been conventional warriors, those three could have held them at bay even if outmatched.
Yet whenever those three Invincibles attacked, their strikes often passed through empty air.
In the end, the Demon Emperor had received zero reinforcement.
Outside the ancient city, the Invincibles of the myriad races were rapidly retreating.
Due to these unforeseen turns and the Demon Emperor's injuries, the battle had reached its final moments.
The Demon Realm was bowing out!
The Demon Emperor would not show himself again. Under such conditions, there was no benefit for the other races to keep fighting the humans.
Why give the Demon race an advantage for free?
Su Yu breathed a sigh of relief as well. Fortunately, judging by the situation, the great battle was essentially over.
Just as he was relaxing, Wan Tiansheng's expression shifted slightly. He transmitted his voice: "Open the ancient city and let me leave!"
"Manor Head..."
Su Yu looked toward him, and Wan Tiansheng said calmly, "News of what happened in the Human Realm will spread very soon. It will do you no good for me to stay with you. Furthermore... if I remain here and the myriad races come to demand me, it will be wrong whether you surrender me or protect me. And if the human race comes to demand me... will you hand me over or not?"
"Manor Head, I'm not afraid of them..."
Wan Tiansheng smiled. "Foolish! Open the gates. While the others are away and no one is paying attention, let me leave first. Quickly!"
"But..."
Liu Wenyan sighed. "Open the gates with minimal commotion. Let Martial Uncle Wan leave first!"
Left with no choice, Su Yu cracked the city gates open.
Wan Tiansheng looked back at him, then at Liu Wenyan, and cupped his hands slightly. This time, it was a true farewell.
He vanished on the spot, his figure disappearing in the blink of an eye.
Along with him, Lan Tian in the distance vanished instantly as well.
Lan Tian seemed rather cheerful, and within moments, both were gone without a trace.
Once Wan Tiansheng was gone, Liu Wenyan took a deep breath and said, "No matter who asks, say you don't know. Say he left a long time ago."
Su Yu nodded.
Liu Wenyan looked at him, paused, and added, "You promised two carriers to the castellan of the ancient city?"
"Yes."
"Hand them over later when more people arrive! Without the Civilization Tombstone and without the carriers, you're just Su Yu..."
Su Yu nodded.
"Also... you haven't killed Zhan Wushuang yet, have you?"
"Not yet. I was going to kill him in a bit..."
"Don't!"
Liu Wenyan cut him off. "Do not kill him! There is no need to execute a defeated foe. Having lost to you, he will never catch up to you in this lifetime! That is simply how the contest between geniuses works. But if you kill him, the God race will hound you relentlessly..."
Liu Wenyan smiled just as he had years ago, offering guidance in the same familiar manner: "There is no need to slay him—let him go! You don't need to extort anything from him, either; a defeated genius can hardly be squeezed for much anyway. Just release him directly, and both the God race and the myriad races will suspect that you reached some agreement, whether you actually did or not! As for the human race... pay them no mind. If they have the ability, let the human geniuses kill him. If you kill Zhan Wushuang with utter ease, those people will only assume they could do it too. Only when Zhan Wushuang takes out his resentment toward you by slaughtering human geniuses and crushing this generation... only then will they understand that without you, they are nothing at all!"
Su Yu nodded.
This was his teacher. Regardless of whether it sounded entirely reasonable, he would listen for now. So, release Zhan Wushuang?
Still... without getting any benefit at all?
After some thought, Su Yu instructed the fur ball to spit Zhan Wushuang out.
Soon enough, a sphere was spat onto the ground.
Zhan Wushuang's phantom projection coalesced. He glanced at Su Yu with a bitter expression. "I lost... Are you going to kill me? Very well. Dying by your hand is better than dying to some ancient relics!"
Losing to a peer genius and being killed carried little grievance.
It was simply a matter of inferior skill!
However, if one suffered the misfortune of being killed by an Invincible or an advanced Sun Moon, dying at the hands of old fossils, none of these prodigies would ever accept it.
Su Yu said impassively, "A defeated dog isn't worth my blade! I defeated you today, and it will be even easier in the future. Do you want to live, or do you want to die?"
Zhan Wushuang's phantom frowned slightly.
"I want to live!"
It was that simple. Geniuses feared death too; if there was a chance to live, he would take it.
"If you want to live, it's simple. I want the blood essence of Civilization Masters from all the myriad races, at least a hundred drops per race. Once you provide the required amount, our slate will be wiped clean!"
Zhan Wushuang furrowed his brow. "Every race?"
"Every single one!"
Zhan Wushuang said in a low voice, "What realm?"
"Soarer realm and above!"
Zhan Wushuang fell silent for a moment before replying, "Deal!"
With an indifferent look, Su Yu rolled him back into a ball with a casual flick, cracked the city gates, and hurled him far into the distance. As for whether he would be beaten to death outside... that was none of his concern.
Liu Wenyan couldn't help laughing. "You brat, relying on mere verbal promises... you actually believe him?"
"I recorded it."
Su Yu chuckled. "Geniuses care about their reputation. If he denies it in private, that's fine, but if he refuses to deliver, I'll broadcast the recording. He'll lose all face and be branded a promise-breaker. All geniuses care about dignity, and a genius who breaks his word to an equal... that circle won't tolerate him anymore. Teacher, you wouldn't understand!"
Because you've never entered that circle, how could you know?
Liu Wenyan was struck speechless!
*Damn you!*
What kind of talk was that—I wouldn't understand?
Never mind, this brat was falling back into his old habits again.
"Is the Marquis alright?" Su Yu asked.
Liu Wenyan gave a wry smile. "His physical body is gone; do you think he's alright? His sea of will suffered a catastrophic wound; do you think he's alright?"
How could the Marquis possibly be fine after all that?
If they brought out his sea of will now, he wouldn't even be able to materialize a projection like Zhan Wushuang. His injuries were far more severe.
"Then for the Marquis, I still have quite a bit of Sky Origin Qi..."
Liu Wenyan waved his hand dismissively. "Don't give it! Let the human race provide it! Xia the Second ended up like this to save Xia Longwu, and Xia Longwu did it to buy time for the others to achieve the Dao. The human race must pay this price. You don't honestly believe the human race is so destitute they can't even afford the resources to restore the body of a quasi-Invincible, do you?"
Liu Wenyan offered a faint smile. "Don't worry. Furthermore... things might not be completely settled. The human side might not face trouble, but as for you... it's hard to say."
Su Yu frowned. Were they coming to attack him next?
Liu Wenyan surveyed the surroundings and took a deep breath. "I'm heading out first. I still have to survive within the human race, so there are things I cannot say openly. If anything happens, find me in Liu City. Hong Tan, Bai Feng, and the others are all there. On your end... stand firm. Do not be afraid. You are the castellan of an ancient city; you don't need to show deference to anyone!"
With that, Liu Wenyan swiftly exited through the cracked gate.
Just before leaving, he sent a voice transmission: "There are things I no longer need to teach you; Manor Head Wan must have mentioned some of them as well. Let your teacher offer you one final piece of advice: *When successful, benefit all under heaven; when poor, attend to one's own virtue.* When you are powerful enough to sweep across the world, you can do whatever you please. But until you reach that stage... do not waste your energy on meaningless endeavors."
Su Yu nodded.
Liu Wenyan vanished on the spot as well.
Not long after he departed, silhouette after silhouette manifested above the ancient city.
Dozens upon dozens!
Experts of the human race and experts of the myriad races alike.
These people seemed to have gathered here to draw the final curtain on this great battle.
At that moment, a human expert, who appeared to have just received word, shouted in fury, "Su Yu, where is Wan Tiansheng?"
Wan Tiansheng had slaughtered the sacred grounds and butchered experts from multiple prefectures.
The news had just broken.
Meanwhile, experts of the other races gathered as well, and an Invincible demanded coldly, "Hand over Wan Tiansheng, and this battle shall conclude once and for all! Wan Tiansheng slaughters all races indiscriminately; he has completely fallen into the demonic path!"
This "demon" did not refer to the Demon race, but to the true demonic path.
As for Su Yu, nobody brought up moving against him.
He was the castellan of an ancient city, not someone to be handled lightly.
Su Yu was taken aback. The various races that had been tearing each other apart moments ago... were on speaking terms already?
Su Yu was speechless!
Indeed, in this era, what you saw was not necessarily what you understood. The myriad races and the human race were mortal enemies, true enough, but at this stage, what needed to be fought had been fought, and what needed to be done had been done. Short of an all-out battle to the death, a semblance of peace could still prevail.
"He fled!" Su Yu replied coolly. "The moment the Demon Emperor suffered his setback, he took off."
"He fled?"
"How could he have fled? With the ancient city sealed, where could he run?"
Someone roared in righteous indignation!
Su Yu's face turned icy. Floating in midair, he glared at the figures outside and barked, "I said he fled! Are you all deaf? Are you interrogating me? I pinned down over a dozen Invincibles for you, summoned two Half-Emperors for you, created the conditions for you to achieve the Dao, and sacrificed my own ancient ruins—and now you have the nerve to interrogate me? Even if he hadn't fled, why don't you try stepping inside to search for him!"
Su Yu snorted coldly, completely brushing off the gathered powerhouses, and snapped, "Cut the nonsense! This isn't your territory. If you have no business here, get lost! Careful, or I'll summon dozens of Lord Stone Statues and call upon the two God-Devouring Half-Emperors to have a match with you if you're not convinced! Furthermore, as for the human race: you owe me compensation for the ruins I gave up this time. If you don't pay me back... just you wait and see!"
He swept his gaze over the crowd, staring at the experts of the myriad races, and said coldly, "All of you, get lost! If you think you're stronger than the Demon Emperor, step right up and try your luck!"
With that, he summoned the little fur ball and flung it directly outside. "Come on! Beat him to death! Beat him to death, and I'll tell you where Wan Tiansheng went! A bunch of idiots—who do you take me for? Xia Longwu, someone you can bully as you please?"
Su Yu snorted, turned around, and called out, "Lord Xinghong, they're the ones coming to cause trouble for me this time... My Lord, I haven't stepped out of the city, nor have I poked my nose into outside affairs!"
Xinghong's projection manifested instantly!
At this stage, backing Su Yu up presented no difficulty whatsoever.
Not only him, but all around them, stone statues across multiple ancient cities projected phantom silhouettes, casting cold eyes upon the powerhouses gathered in the void.
Many blanched.
Su Yu glared at them and snapped, "Are you going to get lost or not? You think because you're Invincibles, I'm afraid of you? You think having dozens of Invincibles makes you impressive? Don't cross me! And another thing: Kongkong snatched my Civilization Tombstone. If the myriad races don't recover it for me... we'll settle accounts sooner or later! In addition, to protect Xia Longwu during his Dao breakthrough, I gave up two carriers..."
Su Yu flung two objects toward two of the neighboring ancient cities, ignoring their reactions, and shouted, "The Xia family must compensate me! As for whether the Xia family pays out of their own pocket or forces the rest of the human race to foot the bill, I don't give a damn! If you don't reimburse me... don't blame me if I refuse to give the human race any face on the Allheaven Battlefield! This time, whatever I owed the human race, the Xia family, or anyone else has been paid in full! Every single one of you who achieved the Dao owes a debt to my contributions! I've slain more Sun Moons than you've ever killed in your lifetimes, and I've shattered more three-life embodiments than all of you combined!"
He looked toward the newly ascended Invincibles and sneered mercilessly, "Every one of you owes me! Without me, you wouldn't have achieved a damn thing! It was I who contributed my ruins, used the ancient city to protect the Xia family, lured those quasi-Invincibles over so you could seize their carriers, and forced Fenhai out into the open... Have some conscience! And you dare come here to interrogate me? Do you even have the right?"
Su Yu did not mince his words in the slightest!
Just as Liu Wenyan had said, there was no need to be polite now. Being polite would only invite future trouble, giving people an inch to take a mile.
His tirade left the entire crowd speechless.
Su Yu continued, "The Civilization Tombstone and the carriers must be returned to me! It is an absolute requirement, and the human race must settle this debt! As for the God race, you'd best scram. That useless Zhan Wushuang wasn't even worth my time to kill; I tossed him out long ago, and he probably headed back to his ancestral grounds by now. Go look for him yourselves! And as for the other races, any race with fewer than forty Invincibles had better get far away from me, unless you want me to make it impossible for you to survive in the heavens!"
"..."
The expressions of the various Invincibles shifted continuously, and the Invincibles from smaller races were struck dumb.
*Make it impossible for us to survive in the heavens...*
Such words had come from the mouth of a mere Lingyun.
Could he back it up?
It seemed... he actually could.
The thirty-six ancient cities were scattered across all corners of the heavens.
Su Yu, as a castellan, was visibly different from the others.
At this moment, stone statues from various cities manifested in silence, clearly standing behind Su Yu.
This was terrifying indeed!
Su Yu barked again, "What are you all still standing around for? Do you want to lay siege to an ancient city? Come on, then! Whether it's the God Emperor or the Immortal Emperor, tell them to try! I don't look for trouble, but I'm not afraid of it either. At worst, I'll trade my worthless life to drag down one of your emperors just for the fun of it!"
"..."
Just then, the little fur ball that had been tossed outside chimed in with squeaks of its own: "I don't look for trouble, and I'm not afraid of it either! Fight if you want, who's scared of who!"
"..."
Though spoken in a childish, milky voice, a chill ran through the eyes of many Invincibles.
Sure enough, those two Half-Emperors had been summoned by Su Yu.
This fellow... was growing increasingly terrifying.
Was this the scion the God-Devouring Half-Emperor had torn open the void to mention upon departing?
Sighs rose silently in the hearts of the onlookers. Two Half-Emperor-level powerhouses—no, perhaps there were more among the ancient stone statues—several Half-Emperor-level combatants, and dozens of ancient stone statues... Su Yu was not someone just anyone could provoke.
After his tongue-lashing, Su Yu sneered with disdain, turned around, and flew toward the castellan's mansion without looking back. "I speak on behalf of the ancient cities. For the upcoming opening of the Star Residence Mansion, the ancient cities demand one hundred slots! I don't care how you scrape them together, but if you don't give them to us... none of you will enter! When the mansion opens, the thirty-six ancient cities will surround it from all sides! If you disagree... come and try us!"
At these words, several castellans in the other ancient cities shifted their expressions. Soon, one castellan laughed and echoed, "Indeed! Castellan Su's will is our will! When the Star Residence Mansion opens, we demand one hundred slots as well!"
Now, the faces of several Invincibles turned rather unsightly.
They had come here to pressure the human race and force Su Yu to surrender Wan Tiansheng. Instead, before they could even get a word in, Su Yu had thoroughly put them in their place!
Dozens of Invincibles were caught in an awkward dilemma, unable to advance or retreat.
Right at this moment, a soft sigh drifted from afar. King Daqin's voice resonated across the distance: "We will find a way to retrieve the Civilization Tombstone for you, and the carriers... will be delivered to you shortly. Do you have any other requests?"
Su Yu called out loudly, "These aren't requests, and I'm not forcing your hand! I merely want back what I contributed. As for holding off dozens of Invincibles on your behalf... consider that my repayment of past debts! After all, I was born and raised in the Human Realm! Even though you have wronged me... I enjoyed eighteen years of peace thanks to the human Invincibles who created a safe environment for me to grow up. Giving up what I did this time settles my debt to you! I am merely a living corpse now, unsure if I will live to see tomorrow... Everyone, with this repayment, our ties are severed, and we owe each other nothing!"
An Invincible sighed. "Su Yu... are you trying to sever yourself... from the human race?"
Su Yu replied calmly, "Not necessarily. After all... I can hardly be counted as human anymore. With this half-dead-spirit body, how can I be considered part of the human race? Of course, if the human race feels that I, Su Yu, am unworthy of being human, then severing ties suits me fine! As for Wan Tiansheng, that has nothing to do with me. Look for him wherever you like! He is neither my teacher nor my parent; why come looking for me? He has legs of his own and can walk wherever he pleases. Did you come questioning me because you thought I was an easy target? I achieved tremendous merits for the human race in this battle, yet this is how you treat me... Don't blame me for showing no respect. It wouldn't be impossible for the thirty-six ancient cities to bar humans from entry from now on!"
Several people blanched.
The Invincibles of the myriad races stayed silent this time, watching the spectacle with amusement.
They would no longer meddle in this matter.
On the God race's side, they had initially wanted to lash out over Su Yu killing Zhan Wushuang... but it turned out Zhan Wushuang had left long ago.
If that was the case, why bicker with Su Yu for no good reason?
This fellow was clearly not someone to be trifled with.
He didn't even show respect to the human Invincibles; would he show any to them?
What a joke!
"Everyone, return to the East Rift Valley!"
King Daqin's voice rang out once more. He and several top Invincible experts had not shown up in person; only over a dozen human Invincibles had arrived, but now... they had nothing left to say.
To the newly ascended, Su Yu claimed they owed him their breakthrough.
To the veteran Invincibles, Su Yu claimed he had paid a massive price to pin down dozens of Invincibles. While somewhat conflated and exaggerated, it was impossible to refute, and if Su Yu insisted on holding them to it, they had no ground to stand on.
Even though everyone knew Su Yu had let Wan Tiansheng go, Su Yu was no longer the Su Yu of the Great Xia Prefecture, nor the Su Yu of the Great Ming Prefecture.
Just then, someone in the crowd chuckled heartily. "Su Yu, they are them, and we are us... Su Yu, your Xinghong Ancient City sits right by the Star Sea. When people from the Great Ming Prefecture visit in the future, take good care of them!"
It was Niu Baidao!
Su Yu smiled as well and cupped his hands. "Congratulations on achieving the Dao, Manor Head!"
"Hahaha, congratulations to us both!" Niu Baidao laughed. "Congratulations to you, Su Yu, for becoming an overlord here. Look after us in the future, and feel free to visit the Great Ming Prefecture whenever you have time..."
Su Yu smiled faintly. "We'll see. I'm afraid that if I enter the Human Realm, I might be ambushed and killed—wouldn't that be a massive loss? Here, dozens of Invincibles protect my path. If I go to the Human Realm... who knows if someone might sell me out just to help another person achieve the Dao or advance? 'For the greater good,' right? My vision is narrow, and I cannot grasp the 'greater good,' so forget it! Furthermore, please look after my father. He is my only surviving kin in the Human Realm... If he should die one day, perhaps... I will completely abandon my humanity. Seniors, please take good care of him, lest we become a laughingstock to the myriad races!"
Everyone understood the underlying threat.
Silence fell.
Niu Baidao laughed. "Rest assured, how could that happen? Those who liked causing trouble... have all died this time. How tragic. No one would do such a thing now."
Su Yu smiled. "That is for the best! Manor Head, that is all I have to say! As for the rest, I cannot be bothered to waste words. The Human Realm may not owe me, but it owes my lineage... My teacher and the others are at Liu City, and I hope they remain safe! As for Wan Tiansheng, I know what he did. Such a person deserves to be executed by all! If I run into him next time, I will certainly kill him, rest assured. How ruthless of him to slay so many Shanhai and Sun Moon cultivators! Still, it wasn't too bad; I thought he was going to exterminate entire bloodlines. What madness! If it were me... hahaha, I certainly wouldn't have killed so few... Cough, cough, just a joke..."
Though Su Yu called it a joke, there wasn't the slightest hint of humor in his expression. He casually called the little fur ball back, patted its head, and chuckled, "Fur ball, grow up quickly to become as strong as your parents. If anyone messes with me, ignore whether they're Shanhai or Sun Moon—wipe out their entire family, old and young, leaving not even the chickens and dogs alive! What's the point of being soft-hearted? Neither demon nor saint... Don't you agree?"
The little fur ball nodded its round body vigorously. *Whatever you say is right.*
Outside, silence descended once more.
This fellow claimed he would kill Wan Tiansheng on sight, yet the words coming out of his mouth were far more vicious than Wan Tiansheng's actions.
Wan Tiansheng had only targeted Shanhai and Sun Moon cultivators; Su Yu, on the other hand, talked of slaughtering entire households down to the livestock.
None of the myriad races' Invincibles said another word, dissolving into the void one after another.
On the human side, some Invincibles remained enraged, but there was nothing they could do. Wan Tiansheng's strike had been devastating, nearly wiping out the descendants of several Invincibles.
Yet Wan Tiansheng had fled.
And Su Yu... were they going to seek revenge against Su Yu?
It was anyone's guess who would end up dead.
One human Invincible after another began to withdraw.
Su Yu smiled and called out once more, "Those on the human side, remember to deliver the carriers promptly! Don't claim you have none. You killed quite a few quasi-Invincibles and shattered many three-life embodiments this time. If you don't give them to me... I'll remember it for the rest of my life!"
***
East Rift Valley.
King Daqin smiled and shook his head, soon speaking up: "The Great Zhou Prefecture and the Great Qin Prefecture will each provide one carrier and deliver them to him later. As for Kongkong... Zhou Tianyuan, you specialize in the Dao of Spatio-temporal Arts. You and Zhu Tianfang will search for him. Zhu Tianfang once served as his superior, so he might be able to track him down."
"Are we truly giving them to him?" an Invincible asked with some hesitation. "The human race is sorely lacking in these resources right now..."
King Daqin said calmly, "Give them. If we don't... do you insist on forcing him to come looking for trouble before you're satisfied? Lower your posture. He is no longer the Su Yu of the human race. This time, the Multiple Divine Character faction has vanished from the Human Realm... What vanished was not the Multiple Divine Character Dao itself, but the Great Xia Prefecture's Multiple Divine Character lineage. He has no lingering attachments to the human race. If you don't want to hand them over, you can try using his father to test him; perhaps you can squeeze a few more carriers out of him. Why don't you go and give it a try?"
Silence fell instantly!
No one was foolish enough to try that.
Even the Demon Emperor had nearly been destroyed because of him; who would dare provoke him?
As for Su Yu's father... he was a scorching hot potato. It was better to let the Xia family continue taking care of him.
The Multiple Divine Character faction of the Great Xia Prefecture was filled with maniacs.
King Daqin paid them no further heed, exhaling a breath as he sighed, "A great victory... yet... the Human Realm's troubles have only just begun. As for those whose descendants were slain... ponder it yourselves. If anyone wishes to seek vengeance against Wan Tiansheng, feel free to do so on your own. I have nothing more to say on the matter."
The moment he finished speaking, Xia Longwu, who had remained silent all this time, said in an exhausted tone, "King Daqin, the Great Xia Prefecture has suffered grievous losses. The Xia family... requests permission to withdraw from the Allheaven Battlefield for ten years to recuperate. I hope King Daqin can understand!"
King Daqin looked at him, took a deep breath, and nodded. "Very well. The Great Xia Prefecture shall not be required to guard the Allheaven Battlefield for ten years, and the Great Ming Prefecture shall not need to send personnel to garrison it for five years. All else remains unchanged!"
With his consent, King Daxia and Xia Longwu departed directly without looking back.
They left behind a gathering of contemplative Invincibles, none of whom made a sound.
The great battle had ended, but the tribulations of the human race were perhaps only just beginning.
Chapter 502