Calm Amid Madness

Mount Zhu. At this moment, Mount Zhu was completely deserted. Several peaks had been dug up, and the cultivation grounds were sealed off. It felt rather desolate. Even though the Iron Eater race had not been gone for long, the place already looked abandoned and stripped of vitality. San Yue broke the seal, and the group filed in. Calling them a "group" was a stretch—there were barely any of them. General Xuelan remained silent, Fat Ball looked all around, and Tongtian was the only one scurrying about doing odd jobs. At the moment, he was indeed the only one suited for menial chores. He had no choice; he was simply too weak. Even the weakest among them, Xuelan, was a Heavenly King, whereas he was merely a second-grade Dao Integration cultivator. What else could he do here besides chores? Tongtian quickly cleared a patch of open ground for Su Yu and the others, threw together a bamboo cottage, and bustled about happily, thoroughly enjoying himself. Coming to the Upper Realm was fantastic! Now that they were here, they could beat Yue Hao to death, or beat that ancestor of the Prison King lineage to death! Once those foes were dead, he, Tongtian, would strike it rich! If they hadn't come to the Upper Realm, his only hope would have been beating the Martial Emperor to death. Still, having lived as neighbors with the Martial Emperor for so many years, it was far more satisfying to beat the Prison King lineage to death instead. As Tongtian busied himself, San Yue asked with some uncertainty, "Your Majesty, when do we strike? Do we wait for the myriad races to make the first move?" "Why would we?" Su Yu chuckled. "We'll wait a bit. Just a few days, giving the Prison King lineage enough time to summon that Rule Master... Of course, fearing they won't take it seriously, we need to apply some appropriate pressure!" "The Eight-Winged Tiger was actually mistaken," Su Yu added with a laugh. "If the Prison King lineage faces no danger, why would they be in a hurry? But once a crisis strikes, they'll panic naturally. In their panic, they'll summon that Rule Master into the world as quickly as possible, regardless of the cost!" San Yue nodded, then asked, "Then... what about the Tea Tree and the others?" "No rush for them!" Su Yu smiled. "Right now, no one has pressing concerns, so they have plenty of time to overthink. Once a massive battle breaks out, they won't have time to let their minds wander. That's when the Tea Tree and the rest should take the stage! As things stand, bastards like Tiangu are definitely guarding against me." If the Tea Tree suddenly appeared right now, it might cause them to overthink. Su Yu was in no hurry. He would wait! Once the great battle erupted and both sides suffered losses, locked in brutal combat, no one would have time to ponder whether this serendipitous opportunity was poisoned. When it came to psychological warfare, Su Yu certainly had his tricks. Play hard to get! Lay down a smokescreen! Make them feel that this opportunity was exceedingly hard to come by. Only then would it be effective! If an opportunity came too easily, they wouldn't cherish it. "Then... Your Majesty, what do we do next?" Great Axe was still baffled. First waiting, then not waiting—what on earth were they supposed to do? Su Yu felt helpless and mentally exhausted. This time, he hadn't brought along a single clever person; everyone he had brought to the Upper Realm was a brute force fighter. Not one of them used their brain. San Yue wasn't actually stupid, but he preferred viewing things from the perspective of the Iron Eater race, which wasn't on the same wavelength as Su Yu's strategic thinking. Relying on San Yue to devise plans wasn't reliable. Forget it, he could only rely on himself. People who actually used their brains—like King Dazhou and Wan Tiansheng—would have made things so much easier here. Unfortunately, brawn and brains rarely went hand in hand. Su Yu smiled and said, "Whenever we fight and kill, the ultimate purpose behind everything is to strengthen ourselves. Do you understand?" "That is the essence and the core!" Su Yu continued meaningfully, "We don't fight and kill merely for the momentary thrill; we do it to empower ourselves!" "All of us have progressed too quickly, so it's very difficult for us to make breakthroughs in the short term... Therefore, right now, the best and simplest method to strengthen our collective force is for *me* to grow stronger!" Everyone nodded. Fat Ball nodded, and Marquis Tongtian nodded furiously. "Once I grow stronger, every powerhouse who merged into my Dao will grow stronger!" "And my advancement relies on two things: first, the perfection of my Great Dao!" "Second, the perfection of my world!" Great Axe asked blankly, "Aren't the Great Dao and the world the same thing?" Su Yu sighed and explained, "They're not! Perfecting a Great Dao is the Dao's own affair. Of course, perfecting the Dao helps empower the world, but the world itself can also grow on its own!" "How does it grow?" Great Axe pressed. Su Yu smiled. "Now that hits the mark! There are actually quite a few methods. First, devouring chaos origin... just like the Eight-Winged Tiger and his lot, devouring chaos origin strengthens the world! Second, devouring ancient beasts. Ancient beasts are powerhouses of the Chaos race, so slaying chaos ancient beasts helps me strengthen my world! Third, killing experts who cultivate the Dao of Chaos! Fourth, killing experts of the myriad Daos and stripping their Great Dao power to replenish my own!" Great Axe summed it up: "So, just kill more people?" "You could put it that way!" Su Yu nodded. Great Axe sighed inwardly. *Why didn't you just say so from the start, damn it? Beating around the bush for so long.* Su Yu felt a bit exasperated. "I was explaining the purpose of killing to you, not just killing for the sake of killing. There's a fundamental difference." Great Axe nodded perfunctorily. *Isn't it still just killing people?* Su Yu gave up completely. Forget it, no point explaining. Of course it was different! Put simply, one was aimless slaughter, while the other was targeted execution. Anything done without an objective was bound to fail; only with a clear goal, conviction, and a plan could one succeed! Great Axe couldn't be bothered to ponder further, and Fat Ball wasn't inclined to think much either, asking curiously, "So that means we can kill anyone, and killing them will make you stronger?" "Not necessarily!" Su Yu smiled. "When we kill them, we must strip away their Great Dao power. If you kill them and their Dao explodes, what do I get? A corpse? That's virtually useless! The key lies in preserving as much of their Great Dao origin power as possible after they're killed!" "Then what should we do?" Fat Ball asked helplessly. "When we kill them, their Daos just detonate! How do we preserve so much?" "That's why we have to be swift, accurate, and ruthless!" Su Yu laughed. "We must be fast enough that they can't even react, minimizing the consumption of their Dao power, leaving their bodies intact so the Dao can be stripped away..." Understood! This time, Marquis Tongtian grasped it. "Your Majesty's intention is to teach us how to kill? You want us not to butcher haphazardly, but to kill with artistry and taste?" Su Yu was speechless. How was he supposed to answer that? He *did* mean that, but not in the way Tongtian phrased it. Oh well, close enough! Tongtian continued with sudden realization, "Your Majesty is displeased with how uncivilized Great Axe and Fat Ball are when they kill—blowing enemies to pieces so there's not even a full corpse left. San Yue is the same, smashing them to smithereens with a single strike of his bamboo pole. That's no good, right?" Su Yu said nothing. Tongtian carried on, "I get it. Your Majesty prefers Xuelan's style—freezing enemies solid, right?" His eyes lit up. "Your Majesty, is that what you mean?" Su Yu hesitated for a moment, then finally nodded. *Damn it! You're roughly right, but hearing it come out of your mouth makes it sound totally warped.* Now Great Axe understood as well, muttering helplessly, "All we know how to do is chop directly!" Tongtian added, "Speaking of that style of killing, Xuelan and Princess Qi are quite suited for it. Women are much more civilized when killing—one freezes them solid, the other petrifies them. That has a lot more artistic flair!" Su Yu couldn't be bothered to banter with him and quickly said, "It's not about the quantity of kills, but keeping them intact—that part is correct!" "So no matter how many we kill going forward, each kill must yield returns. We can't kill for nothing!" Having said that, Su Yu added, "We need to put some pressure on both the myriad races and the Prison King lineage! If we don't apply pressure, they won't know how crazy we can be. We must force them to hand over the people of the Iron Eater race!" "Then what do we do right now..." Great Axe looked at Su Yu. Su Yu smiled. "First, turn Mount Zhu into our rear base. Then, move the entire Mount Zhu straight to the front line! Once it's moved, we launch our retaliation and exact our revenge! Our slogan will be: Avenging the previous incident! If only a few from the Prison King lineage come, we swallow them whole. If too many come, we retreat toward Human Mountain!" The others exchanged glances. *So aggressive? Going in guns blazing right off the bat?* "What if the Chaos Ancient race intervenes..." "Kill them all the same!" Su Yu didn't care in the slightest. "Among the ancient beasts, only a handful possess intelligence; most are mindless brutes, so ignore them! The Eight-Winged Tiger and the Chaos Dragon will exercise restraint anyway. Their goal in gathering ancient beasts is to use them as cannon fodder to surround and kill that Rule Master!" With that, Su Yu grinned. "So, our persona is simple: reckless!" A persona was built through one's own actions. Let the myriad races keep guessing! No matter how they speculated, he had only one defining trait: reckless! He had been reckless last time, and he would be reckless this time as well. "So right now, we move house! We'll establish a base for ourselves, relocate the Iron Eater race over, and when Marquis Juzhu and the others return, they can even drill the Iron Eater troops..." Alright, then! They understood now: their first day here was meant for moving house. Then move it was! Before long, several top powerhouses began the relocation. This was no ordinary move—they shifted the entire Mount Zhu Dao ground directly to the front line, placing it right alongside Human Mountain. Su Yu intended to take root there. ... On that day, the inhabitants of Human Mountain witnessed several top powerhouses carrying the colossal Mount Zhu as they soared toward the front line. Before the various races could even process the news, Su Yu's group had already moved Mount Zhu over. Not only that, but Su Yu also ventured directly into the outer perimeter of Chaos Mountain that day, uprooting divine chaos peaks one after another and transporting them toward Mount Zhu, intending to forge a fortress base right there. In truth, it was to let everyone know exactly where to find him. ... At the summit of Human Mountain. A group of experts gazed across the void at Mount Zhu, which stood less than a hundred li away. Su Yu was truly going to wage war against the Prison King lineage. At that moment, someone spoke up: "When do you think he'll come to negotiate cooperation with us? If he does, what terms will he demand, or rather, how should we use him?" "Hard to say. Probably within three to five days!" several Celestial Venerables mused. Just as they were speaking, Su Yu and his companions unleashed their auras on the other side. An instant later, the group flew straight into Chaos Mountain, crossing the Chaos River. Su Yu's voice shook heaven and earth, laden with savagery and bloodlust as he roared, "Yue Hao, get out here!" "You dare kill my people? If I don't slaughter you, this Emperor will never rest!" Su Yu's aura swept across the firmament, brutal and ferocious as he bellowed, "Insolent beast! When I set out to kill you, you actually dared resist! You dared kill my people! Yue Hao, kill yourself, and kill that Yuxi as well, and this Emperor might spare your miserable life!" *Boom!* A deafening explosion rang out as Su Yu shattered a massive mountain with a single palm strike. Radiating sheer murderous fury, he roared, "Level the inner ring of Chaos Mountain! Clear all obstacles! I want to see these beasts' lair with my own eyes!" "Understood!" Following Su Yu's command, thunderous rumbles shook the land. Mountain after mountain was leveled to the ground! These top powerhouses blasted peak after peak into dust. Some mountains still harbored chaos ancient beasts, but every last one was ruthlessly slaughtered on the spot! At this moment, in the south and north, a tiger and a dragon gazed at each other across the distance, surrounded by countless ancient beasts, yet neither intervened. Meanwhile, Su Yu and the few top entities ran rampantly across the land! One mountain peak after another was wiped out! Su Yu laughed fiercely, "Once I raze your kennel to the ground, let's see where you can hide!" *Boom!* Su Yu blasted heaven and earth with a punch, blowing a figure in the void to pieces on the spot. Right then, he threw open his Heavenly Gate; the colossal Heavenly Gate blanketed the skies, reflecting across the myriad realms! "Ambush me? Spy on me? Keep dreaming! Does that garbage Hell Gate of yours even have the right to peer at me?" "A pack of worthless dogs! How dare you kill my people? Ask around the Upper and Lower Realms—when has Su Yu ever suffered a loss? I've slain dozens of Dao Integration experts and multiple Heavenly Kings from the myriad races! Who dared to kill my people? What breathtaking audacity!" "You're practically begging for death!" In his berserk state, Su Yu was truly unhinged, his aura boundlessly mighty as it swept across the world. Across the entire inner ring of Chaos Mountain, plumes of dust billowed into the sky from the endless devastation of shattered mountains! ... At that very moment, deep within the inner perimeter of Chaos Mountain. Surrounded by towering peaks. Inside a great hall lined with powerhouses, Yue Hao wore an unsightly expression, and the ancestor's face was equally dark. "He's back!" Su Yu! The ancestor had already inquired about who was responsible for their heavy casualties last time. Su Yu! The Human Lord of the Lower Realm! The new Human Lord of this tide. Everything Marquis Tianlong knew, they knew as well. This invincible figure from the Lower Realm had suffered his first setback at their hands—even though their losses had been far greater, losing a Celestial Venerable, multiple Heavenly Kings, and dozens of Dao Integration experts. Yet now, that lunatic clearly felt he had been wronged. He had apparently never suffered such a major loss before. And now, he had brought his subordinates to exact vengeance. "San Yue, Great Axe, Xuelan, Tongtian, and that dog from last time that likely belongs to King Wen!" "Su Yu himself is even stronger than before—he has actually reached the realm of a Celestial Venerable!" "Indeed, a child of destiny like him only grows stronger through battle if he isn't killed!" Anyone who could become a Human Lord was a child of destiny. They simply hadn't expected revenge to arrive so swiftly. The troublesome part was that if they mobilized forces to surround and kill Su Yu and his cadre, the myriad races would certainly be spurred into action and intervene. The ancestor frowned slightly. "Our urgent priority is not dealing with these people, but welcoming Eldest Senior Sister into this realm!" Eldest Senior Sister! Indeed, the one behind the Hell Gate, the direct disciple of the Prison King. A genuine Rule Master! Yet now, Su Yu had come to wreak havoc, bulldozing his way forward. Stopping him was problematic, but not stopping him was equally troublesome. The ancestor's brow furrowed before he said grimly, "Yue Hao, Yueluo, both of you go. You don't need to finish that fellow off—just stall them! If they truly flatten everything on the front line, it will only bring trouble! Furthermore, what on earth are that Eight-Winged Tiger and the severed-tail dragon planning? They claimed they would help us hold back the myriad races, yet now that Su Yu is attacking, why haven't they lifted a finger?" According to their arrangement, the Eight-Winged Tiger and the Chaos Dragon were supposed to help them keep the myriad races at bay, buying them time to summon Eldest Senior Sister. After all, behind the Hell Gate resided the will of a mighty chaos entity. A chaos powerhouse could naturally be considered the progenitor of the chaos ancient beasts. Yet right now, neither of them had moved to intercept Su Yu's group. Was it because this hadn't been part of the plan, or was there another reason? Below, Yueluo and Yue Hao exchanged a glance. Yueluo giggled charmingly. "Ancestor, there are more than two Celestial Venerables over there." "Just hold them back. If real danger arises, reinforcements will naturally come!" "Very well." The two looked at each other, and Yueluo gave a light laugh. "We'll do as Ancestor commands." ... Soon, Yueluo and Yue Hao flew out from the Prison King lineage's stronghold, speeding toward Su Yu and his companions. ... At that moment, Su Yu sensed two powerful auras approaching and chuckled coldly. "Damn it, they really look down on us—only two of them came?" Far too few! Even though both possessed formidable auras, and Yueluo's aura was faintly comparable to Fat Ball's blackened state—perhaps even slightly stronger. Sure enough, the Prison King lineage had no shortage of powerhouses. As for Yue Hao, Su Yu had clashed with him last time and knew him well; he was also very strong. Last time, Fat Ball hadn't blackened and had been no match for him in a one-on-one fight, getting beaten half to death! "Perfect timing! Leave Yueluo to me. Fat Ball, the rest of you, kill that Yue Hao for me! Since they dare underestimate us, maybe on our very first day here we can bag a Celestial Venerable for fun!" Su Yu tore through the void, heading straight for Yueluo! At the same time, San Yue, Great Axe, Fat Ball, Xuelan, and Tongtian lunged toward Yue Hao in unison. Their speed was terrifyingly swift! In the blink of an eye, Su Yu shattered the void and closed the distance, coming face to face with Yueluo. Upon seeing Su Yu, Yueluo's eyes brightened, and she offered a sweet, alluring smile. "What a handsome little brother... Your big sister..." "Fuck off!" The moment Su Yu saw Yueluo, pure revulsion welled up inside him—she was utterly disgusting. Just thinking about how Lan Tian used to pinch his orchid-fingers at him made Su Yu want to beat Lan Tian to death. Unfortunately, Lan Tian was one of his own, and recently Lan Tian rarely transformed into an alluring woman, preferring the guise of a little girl instead. "I'll hammer you to death!" Su Yu hadn't wielded his giant hammer in ages. Now, the massive hammer materialized instantly—the Mind Expansion Hammer, which had been one of his signature techniques back in the day. He brought it smashing down! *Boom!* The void cracked wide open. The Mind Expansion Hammer was designed specifically to target the sea of will. Moreover, heaven-scorching flames now blazed atop the hammer, searing the sea of will. With a single strike, heaven and earth practically buckled under the force! *Boom!* Yueluo had barely finished smiling when a gigantic hammer came crashing into her face. She retreated in haste, letting out another coquettish giggle: "Little brother..." "Die!" Su Yu flew into a total rage! *Boom!* The massive hammer rattled the realm. With a thunderous boom, towering mountains collapsed in every direction, sending shockwaves through the universe! *Pfft!* Yueluo was sent flying back thousands of meters, coughing up blood, a look of utter bewilderment on her face. *Is he crazy?!* She had been so polite, so charming, so gentle. In truth, that smile and that laugh were manifestations of a Great Dao—a power specifically crafted to bewitch and influence opponents. Even a Celestial Venerable would be affected by it. Yet with this madman Su Yu, the more she tried to influence him, the more deranged he became. "Disgusting!" Su Yu roared in fury. "In all my life, I loathe nothing more than hideous, revolting wretches like you who act half-man, half-woman! I'll slaughter you!" Yueluo nearly exploded with rage! *You're the disgusting one!* From a distance, Great Axe's booming laughter echoed: "His Majesty's taste truly aligns with mine—this woman is too ugly, absolutely revolting!" This was the first time in Yueluo's life that two men had called her disgusting in succession. Great Axe didn't count; she found him repulsive anyway. Yet Su Yu, a dashing young man, actually found her revolting as well. Enraged, Yueluo shifted her aura, instantly turning gentle and delicate. In a flash, countless illusions and mirages materialized around Su Yu. "Brother Yu..." "*Blargh!*" Su Yu nearly threw up on the spot, his fury reaching a boiling point. "You filthy slut, you're asking for it!" *Boom!* The giant hammer obliterated heaven and earth! It rained down upon Yueluo with lunatic fury! Yueluo was utterly dumbfounded. Why? Was Su Yu not a man? Besides, this illusion was supposed to mirror Su Yu's inner desires and conform to his preferences. Why was he reacting like this? "Lan Yueluo, I'll slaughter you!" *Boom!* The hammer of the Great Dao pounded down relentlessly, driving Yueluo to near insanity. *Why?!* Her Great Dao power had virtually zero effect on Su Yu! In an instant, Yueluo fell into a dire disadvantage. A moment later, the massive hammer slammed into her body, making her vomit blood frantically. With a sharp shriek, a longsword flew out from her, but before it could strike, Su Yu bellowed, and the giant hammer multiplied into tens of millions of phantoms! *Rumble!* With a sharp crack, the longsword was smashed to powder. Yueluo instantly adopted a pitiful, frail demeanor. "Emperor Yu..." "Fuck your mother, you're still doing it?!" "Die!" Su Yu was completely frenzied. *Still doing it!* *Lan Yueluo, don't think I don't know you're just an old man inside! I'll destroy you!* *Rumble!* Explosions echoed across the heavens. For a moment, their battle raged even more fiercely than the clash of the other four Celestial Venerables. With another deafening crash, Su Yu, seemingly provoked to his limit, erupted with all his might, his hammer blasting Yueluo backward tens of thousands of meters as blood gushed from her mouth! Yueluo was completely stunned! Why? And for the record, my surname isn't Lan! "Ancestor!" she couldn't help shrieking. He was a madman! Not only was this lunatic ridiculously strong, but he also wasn't a normal man! Any ordinary man would have fallen into her trap under the sway of her Dao, but the more she exerted her power on this maniac, the more berserk he became! He was raging with genuine fury! Su Yu had been annoyed by Lan Tian countless times, and every single time he had wanted to hit him, only barely holding back. Today, Yueluo dared pull this same stunt on him! *I'll beat you into meat paste!* The giant hammer blanketed the sky, forcing Yueluo into desperate retreat. As Yueluo fled, Yue Hao was also fleeing frantically. Fat Ball, whom he had thrashed last time, went berserk right from the start today. It blackened instantly! After blackening, Fat Ball's aura swelled to terrifying heights. Clutched in its paws, the boots rained blows upon Yue Hao. And this time, it wasn't just the boots! In the void, collars, rubber balls, chains, and various treasures erupted at once. Even pots, pans, bowls, and basins flew out, transformed into lethal weapons. In an eye-blink, Yue Hao was battered black and blue, covered in gruesome wounds! Yue Hao and Yueluo had only just joined the fray, yet far from holding the enemy back, if reinforcements didn't arrive immediately, both of them were finished! Deep in the chaos, the ancestor was also shocked and immediately barked, "Send reinforcements! Aid them!" *Holy hell! What lunatics!* These four madmen were far stronger than anticipated. ... Atop Human Mountain. Everyone was dumbstruck. *They... they just charged in like that?* *They only just arrived in the Upper Realm!* *Do these madmen have no fear of death at all?!* For a moment, the experts exchanged bewildered looks. *Should we intervene?* This was completely unexpected! Su Yu and his people had started fighting the second they arrived, charging straight for the enemy's stronghold! This was sheer madness. The enemy ancestor was still present, after all! That was a supreme powerhouse! ... In truth, Su Yu wasn't afraid of that ancestor. Even now, he hadn't used his full strength. Besides, why reveal his full hand on the very first encounter just to put on a show for the myriad races? At that moment, he quickly sent a voice transmission: "Force them to use the Hell Gate! Tongtian, keep your eyes peeled. The moment they use it, bite onto it! No matter what, tear off a piece of their flesh! Slaying them will be tough, but swallow that Hell Gate for me!" Tongtian was overjoyed and urgently replied, "Rest assured, Your Majesty! Even if it kills me, I'll bite off a chunk of their flesh!" A projection of the Hell Gate! What a treasure! Would Yueluo and Yue Hao use it? Of course! The ancestor had yet to arrive, and they were already on the verge of being beaten to death by these madmen. The enemy's power was beyond comprehension. If help didn't arrive, they were truly doomed. The two retreated frantically. They had originally believed that between the two of them, even facing four Celestial Venerables, they could hold their ground. Yet on Su Yu's side, Great Axe and San Yue—whom they had assumed to be the strongest among the four Celestial Venerables—turned out to be the weakest. What kind of ghost had they run into?! At this moment, Yue Hao's skull felt ready to split open under the relentless stomping of the boots. Disheveled and soaked in blood, he let out a furious roar as a gateway materialized and swung open, directly sealing the boots within! Right then, Marquis Tongtian's eyes gleamed brightly! *It's out!* *I knew following His Majesty meant meat to eat!* *Sure enough, on my very first day in the Upper Realm, I get a feast.* Last time, he hadn't possessed the strength or the means to devour it, but this time... his chance had arrived! In that split second, Marquis Tongtian teleported directly before the gateway and morphed into a massive portal. His gate was even larger than that illusory projection. In an instant, his portal swung wide open and swallowed the Hell Gate in a single gulp! Yue Hao shuddered! Shock filled his eyes. Just as he tried to detonate the Hell Gate, a bamboo pole, a battleaxe, and a gaping maw descended upon him simultaneously! Yue Hao was horrified! He fled in panic, attempting once more to control the Hell Gate, but the three powerhouses pressed their assault. Yue Hao had no choice but to abandon control and continue his desperate escape. Yet at that very moment, a thunderous, savage roar erupted from Marquis Tongtian! "Devour!" *Boom!* Internally, the Hell Gate shattered, and an immense surge of specialized power flooded into Marquis Tongtian's body. Tongtian roared continuously. At that same instant, where the true body of the Hell Gate resided... Suddenly, that pitch-black Hell Gate began to tremble violently! ... Simultaneously, Yue Hao's forehead abruptly split open. He let out a bloodcurdling scream of pure disbelief and horror. "Impossible!" The Hell Gate was not a physical entity; it was merely a concentration of power. Yet right now, that specialized power had actually been swallowed by someone! *Bang!* The space between his brows ruptured once more! *Rumble!* Taking advantage of the moment he fractured, the three powerhouses struck in unison. A bamboo pole smashed his head to pieces, a battleaxe cleaved his physical body into shreds, and a gigantic mouth swallowed his flesh whole. Just as the maw moved to devour his sea of will, a shrill shriek tore through the air as Yueluo let out an ear-piercing wail. Everyone's eardrums rattled violently! Yueluo materialized in a flash, snatching Yue Hao's sea of will. Behind her, Su Yu brought his hammer crashing down. With a sickening *crack*, the entire left half of Yueluo's body was pulverized. With a hum, Yueluo vanished. From the distance, the ancestor came charging over with furious speed. "Retreat!" Su Yu grabbed Marquis Tongtian from behind, and in the blink of an eye, he and the several Celestial Venerables vanished from everyone's sight. At that moment, the entire world fell silent! The ancestor let out a furious roar: "Su Yu!" It had truly happened in mere moments! Yue Hao's Hell Gate had been shattered, his physical body pulverized, and his sea of will barely rescued by Yueluo. Yueluo was hardly in better shape, with the entire left half of her body smashed to dust by Su Yu's hammer! It had been far too fast! Completely unforeseen! "Hahaha! Old bastard, kill Yue Hao and Yueluo yourself and deliver them to me! Yes, I'm adding Yueluo to the list now!" Su Yu's voice shook heaven and earth. "This was merely the interest! How dare you kill my people! You're begging for death! If I want to kill you, wash your necks clean and wait for me to take your heads. If you can't fight back, send us away obediently. How dare you resist and kill my people!" Like a madman, Su Yu roared, "Just a tiny bit of interest! This is only the first time! Today, this venerable one has just arrived in the Upper Realm, and this time, I've sealed the passage to the Lower Realm to fight you to the bitter end! Just you wait!" "If you don't kill Yue Hao and Yueluo and deliver them to me, I will never unseal the Lower Realm passage! Did you think I was soft like the myriad races? Down in the Lower Realm, I fought a thousand battles over three years, once every single day! Just wait and see!" "..." Such a deranged declaration made even the ancestor's face twitch. ... At the same time. Atop Human Mountain, before the Celestial Venerables could even decide whether to intervene, the battle was already over. Yue Hao was gravely wounded! Yueluo was lightly injured! At this moment, Celestial Venerable Mo couldn't help saying, "Has... has he always been this insane?" Moji thought for a moment and nodded. "Always! As long as he believes he can take on the enemy, he will keep fighting, keep killing, and keep battling without end!" That wasn't an exaggeration. Whenever Su Yu felt he held an advantage, he would pursue the fight relentlessly. Moji sighed. "This isn't the first time he's engaged in such relentless harassment! Back when he hid inside the ancient cities, he did the exact same thing. Whenever an opportunity to kill arose, he would risk coming out to slaughter until he couldn't kill anymore! He is both mad and calculated. You saw it yourselves—the moment that ancestor appeared, he fled without a second thought. That's how he has always operated!" Su Yu was indeed crazy, but he was also remarkably rational! The moment he gained an advantage, he fled instantly. Moji smiled wryly. "He'll strike again. This won't be the only time. His energy is boundless; he never tires. Today was merely the beginning!" Everyone fell silent. The Celestial Venerables looked at one another, rendered completely speechless! No wonder the Lower Realm had been unable to best Su Yu! Facing such a relentlessly clingy bastard was truly a nightmare. The myriad races were well aware that Su Yu was borrowing their momentum; otherwise, the Prison King lineage would certainly have given chase. And yet... it felt quite satisfying, didn't it? At this moment, the myriad races found it rather gratifying. If Su Yu wanted to borrow their momentum, so be it! They hadn't needed to lift a finger, yet the moment Su Yu's faction arrived, they had crippled two enemy Celestial Venerables halfway! Neither of those two was weak! Just then, a booming surge of aura erupted in the distance. Marquis Tongtian, having devoured the Hell Gate, had actually broken through! A Hell Gate cultivated for countless years by a Celestial Venerable had been devoured by him, propelling this second-grade Dao Integration cultivator straight into the realm of a Heavenly King! "Hahaha!" Marquis Tongtian's wild laughter echoed across the sky. "Kill!" "Your Majesty, let's kill them!" "Charge!" "Let's take down that ancestor! If I devour his Hell Gate, I can become a Celestial Venerable!" "..." That was Marquis Tongtian's voice. Fat Ball was also wildly excited: "Beat that Yue Hao to death! Beat him to death! He hit me last time!" At this moment, less than a hundred li from Human Mountain, these powerhouses were roaring with abandon. Their bellows reverberated across the entirety of Human Mountain. In an instant, tens of millions of pairs of eyes turned toward that direction. Madmen! A whole pack of them! They had actually broken through in the middle of battle! Now, Su Yu's side possessed four Celestial Venerables and two Heavenly Kings! Right then, Su Yu's voice drifted across the expanse: "Release the Iron Eater race, or face war!" "War!" "War!" "..." The shouts shook heaven and earth, echoing across Human Mountain! At that moment, Tiangu appeared, frowning slightly. "He's doing it on purpose!" Indeed, Su Yu was doing this deliberately. And yet... Tiangu knew that if they didn't release the Iron Eater race, even if this lunatic was putting on an act right now, he would surely devise other means to cause them endless grief, even with the Prison King lineage as his primary enemy! Marquis Sheng stepped forward, his expression grave. "He isn't weak—not much weaker than me. Should we release the Iron Eater race?" At this moment, the Celestial Venerables looked at one another. To release or not to release? The moment Su Yu's group arrived, they had given everyone a harsh demonstration of their might! *We are powerful, we are insane, we have no fear of death, we break through in battle, and we fear nothing! Four Celestial Venerables, two Heavenly Kings. Unfettered! Without a single burden! Arriving with nothing to lose! Dangling no strings!* Someone sighed, "Release them! Keeping the Iron Eater race serves no purpose. To restrain them? Would these people truly allow themselves to be held back? Aside from San Yue, who among them would care?" "Still, if Su Yu's reckless actions get these people killed, San Yue will turn against him as well... Why not test it..." Before that speaker could finish, Su Yu's booming laughter rang out from afar: "Release them quickly, or else... we storm Human Mountain! People of the Prison King lineage, how about we team up and wipe out the myriad races first?" "..." *Fuck!* *This lunatic! Do you think we won't join hands with the Prison King lineage to wipe you out first? Do you really think that's impossible?!* An instant later, Su Yu laughed again: "Prison King lineage... Hahaha! Marquis Tongtian devoured your gate and seems to have gleaned some extraordinary intel. You're trying to pull that Rule Master out into the world, aren't you? What a monumental secret! Cooperate with me, and I won't expose your secret!" "..." *Boom!* Atop Human Mountain, waves of auras boiled with intensity. Deep within Chaos Mountain, the ancestor's face changed drastically. He glared at Yue Hao, who had just reappeared, his face ashen! Yue Hao's expression froze. Marquis Tongtian had devoured his Hell Gate projection and could actually glean information from it! *Damn it!* This was even worse than being gravely injured! ... "Su Yu, is that true?" From Human Mountain, Heavenly Venerable Yue's voice drifted across the void. Su Yu laughed heartily. "Guess if it's true!" "..." No need to guess! It was almost certainly true! If that was the case, joining forces with the Prison King lineage to deal with Su Yu was an utter joke. Cooperation was impossible! The next moment, Heavenly Venerable Yue's voice echoed through the air: "Release them! Su Yu, there is no need for us to clash right now. The Iron Eater race are not prisoners; they merely resided here. Since they wish to leave, then... be our guests!" An instant later, Marquis Juzhu and his companions hurriedly lifted a massive mountain and flew toward Mount Zhu! "Hahaha!" A chorus of top powerhouses' laughter shook heaven and earth, utterly unbridled and fiercely wild. ... At that moment, atop Human Mountain, Lei Bao felt an inexplicable trace of envy. Cultivating the Dao to the height of Su Yu and his companions was truly exhilarating. *Release them or not? If you don't, I'll attack!* Yet Su Yu's timing was impeccable. If you turned hostile against him right now, you couldn't afford the fallout! Because the Prison King lineage was actually trying to summon a Rule Master into the world! That single piece of intelligence instantly filled the myriad races with dread. They couldn't allow it! Therefore, they absolutely could not turn hostile against Su Yu right now. Envy stirred in Lei Bao's heart. San Yue had blatantly defected, yet the myriad races dared not harm a single hair on the Iron Eater race, all because several mighty madmen stood behind them. Whereas he... he could not take the Giant race away. It was simply impossible! Even though Hundred Battles was formidable, it didn't matter; the myriad races didn't fear Hundred Battles. And Hundred Battles would never be this mad. ... Meanwhile, Tiangu glanced toward Su Yu's direction, knowing full well that Su Yu wasn't truly insane. Yet what did that matter? Even knowing he wasn't crazy, did they dare refuse to release the people? Those from the Lower Realm knew that if they truly refused, Su Yu was entirely capable of launching an assault on Human Mountain. "We are constrained at every turn... precisely because we have too many reservations. We aren't crazy enough, nor are we calculated enough in our madness!" Tiangu muttered in a low voice. A madman wasn't terrifying. What was truly terrifying was a lunatic who, in the midst of madness, remained chillingly calm. A single mention of the Prison King lineage releasing a Rule Master had instantly extinguished the myriad races' desire to oppose Su Yu! Now *that* was true capability!