Compared to its previous magnificence, the Yunhuang World had now become destitute.
First, there was the dividing of land to be used as indemnity for Blackie. With one-third of the origin gone, the Spiritual Qi became thinner and the Wisdom in the area became incomplete. Even the Saint’s fruit position became lesser by two—all evidence of the difficulty the Chaos went through.
Then, a gang of foolish people, who thought that because they had the backing of Father God, came to the Chaos to force a confession of guilt.
To the surprise of everyone, even Father God, not one of them ever came back. They had obviously angered the bigshot and the low-level members all perished in his anger. They originally had the backing of a high-level member of the Heavenly Realm, not to mention the 15 Chaos Daluo Golden Immortal, and eight Saints. Now, there were only six Chaos Daluo Golden Immortals and three Saints left.
But they did not entertain any thoughts of hatred, not even wanting to take revenge. This time, the whole world had become silent, all hoping the bigshot would not do anything to them.
Luckily, the situation was not as bad as they feared. The bigshot did not plan to eliminate them all since he had not appeared for such a long time. They finally felt like they had the chance to breathe out a sigh of relief.
In this kind of situation, one should not blame the enemy but instead, praise him for his great mercy.
Currently, the six Chaos Daluo Golden Immortals and three Saints had gathered. They were the symbolism of the highest power in Yunhuang. They were analyzing the world’s situation with a critical eye.
“It’s a good thing we’ve managed to stabilize the situation here,” said the white-shirt old man.
“It’s just… Now that the Wisdom is incomplete, it’ll be hard for us to progress if we stay here, unless something extraordinary were to occur,” said the black-robed man sitting next to him.
“Brother Tianmu, do you plan to travel to the Chaos?” asked a purple-clothed Goddess with curiosity flashing in her eyes.
The black-robed man was silent for a while. “I plan to go to the Area of the Gods.”
“Area of the Gods?”
They were all stunned by what they heard, their eyes flashed with fear.
They were aware of how they overlooked the Area of the Gods when it had not yet transformed from the Prehistoric era. They had no idea how the Prehistoric era was able to transform to the Area of the Gods. At the thought of the death of their Father God, the fear they had for the Prehistoric era heightened. Thus, the Area of the Gods had become a forbidden place to them.
They would not return alive if anyone from the Area of the Gods were to know they came from the Yunhuang World. Perhaps the most valid reason for not going was the existence of the many powerful figures there.
In short, avoid the Area of the Gods at all cost.
“I know what you’re all worried about,” said Taoist Tianmu with a calm face. “But ever since that incident, no monk from the Prehistoric era ever came by anymore. This just proves they don’t even want to bother with us. Besides, the Area of the Gods has a better environment for training. I’m a monk, so it’s natural for me to go against fate to reach enlightenment. How could I let a little fear in my heart stop me?”
The rest of the group looked at him with admiration. They were about to say something but were interrupted by a sudden sound.
“Well said! But you need not go to the Area of the Gods for there’s a better opportunity!” The voice belonged to an old hunchbacked green man with only one eye, who had suddenly appeared in the air above the group.
The way the old man appeared was very unusual. There were no warning signs, as if Heaven was ignoring his existence. Although he was smiling, they still felt suffocated by the sinister aura flowing out of his body.
They became shocked when they realized the old man’s aura was more powerful than their Father God and wondered whether he was a high-level member of the Heavenly Realm.
The white-shirt old man’s heart was beating wildly. “To whom am I speaking to?” he asked respectfully.
“I am the Ministry’s Right Messenger. Your Father God used to serve under me,” replied the old green man.
The Ministry? Served under him? The hearts of the white-shirt old man and the rest of the group sank deeper into the ocean. They had heard about the Ministry before, but they never knew their Father God used to be a member there. It was still too early for them to tell whether a visit from the Ministry was a blessing or curse.
The white-shirt old man took a few gulps and asked, “May we know the reason for your visit?”
The old green man laughed sinisterly and slowly answered, “Don’t you want to exact revenge? Let me tell you all something. Three days ago, I managed to inflict some heavy damage on the giant black dog. If it wasn’t for some accident, I would’ve captured him alive!”
The group looked at each other with shock in their eyes. But their expressions changed when they detected the hidden message. They were not stupid after all.
“What would like us to do?” asked the purple-clothed Goddess.
“Something very simple.” The old green man laughed before continuing. “Let the Ministry use this place as our experimental site. Naturally, there would be some compensation for you all which will be more than generous as this world is already broken beyond repair. Think of it as giving it a second life.”
The group’s expression flared with anger and they pressed their lips into a thin line. They knew that once this place became an experimental site, no creature around the vicinity would be spared. Both humans and demons would all become the Ministry’s experimental subjects, turning this place into a purgatory.
The creatures worshipped them as their guardian spirits, some of them were even their followers and Orthodoxy. They would have smited the old green man on the spot for even suggesting this if it was not for the fact he was much more powerful than all of them put together.
The white-shirt old man squeezed out a smile. “That’s a good joke. There’s no reason to take from us since our Father God is also a member of the Ministry.”
The old green man’s face was expressionless. “Funny you should say that, for it’s known that all the possessions of a member belong to the Ministry. Hence, it’s natural for us to take control of this place. I bet he wouldn’t even dare to question my decision if he was still alive. It’s only for his sake that I took the time to let you know beforehand.”
“I won’t allow it!” shouted Taoist Tianmu coldly and determinedly. “I forbid the Ministry to turn Yunhuang World into an experimental site!”
“Your courage is commendable but I’m afraid this isn’t the time for it,” said the old man nonchalantly. “I’ll give you another chance.”
“I’ll never allow it, no matter how many chances you give,” said Taoist Tianmu with a grave face. “Father God died for the Ministry and now you’re repaying his sacrifice with an evil deed! It’s no wonder your less-than-stellar reputation has reached the ears of everyone in the Chaos. The Ministry’s nothing but a bunch of evil villains! I’d rather die than let you use this place!”
The old green man laughed coldly. He raised his hand and suddenly, heaven and earth moved while the sky remained still. A surge of power flowed out of the old green man’s fingertips—power that was enough to overthrow everything in the world—and flew straight at Taoist Tianmu and the rest of the group.
A loud hum sounded and there were air ripples everywhere. Yunhuang World’s Heaven tried to stop the old green man but it was no match for him. The surroundings ended up being caged in a barrier.
The group’s spiritual cultivation was obviously not enough to overpower the old green man’s attack. They were unable to move or to speak. In their eyes, it looked like there was an infinite number of old green men falling from the sky. There was no way they could withstand the attack.
Taoist Tianmi was suppressed without any effort and was caught by the old green man until they were standing face to face.
“Don’t die. You’ll be a great experimental subject. It’ll be a waste for you to die,” said the old green man. He raised his hand again and a bulky black medicine pill flew into Taoist Tianmu’s mouth. Then, he proceeded to whack him on the back of his head.
An inexplicable power started to swirl inside his body and he started to get cramps everywhere. His face became contorted as if he was under extreme pain. After a while, his eyes became blood-red and a cloud of red mist enveloped him. The old green man threw him down like a dead dog and ordered his servants to put him in a cage.
After that, he turned to look at the rest of the surviving group with a calm smile on his face, as if nothing had happened. “How about you all?” he asked neutrally.
The white-shirt man glanced at the imprisoned Taoist Tianmu who was writhing in pain. His eyes flashed with deep anger but he managed to control himself. “I’m willing to help you in any way I can,” he replied with a raspy voice.
“Me, too,” said the purple-clothed Goddess, biting her lip.
“What a pity,” said the old green man flirtatiously looking at the purple-clothed Goddess. “We at the Ministry love watching the interaction between a berserk Goddess and demon. For your sake, I hope you’ll never get caught by me.”
The purple-clothed Goddess’s body trembled with fear. She lowered her head and with a shaky voice, thanked the old green man for his mercy. This method of deterrence was the epitome of the cruelty that existed in the Immortal Realm. There was no further voice of dissent.
The old green man ordered his servants to capture some people from the Yunhuang World and proceeded to take out a transparent crystal ball from his sleeves. There seemed to be a neon glow flashing in the center of the ball. If one looked closely, there seemed to be a world inside it.
“I’ll also need half of the Origins of Yunhuang World.” His tone was one of informing, leaving no room for discussion. Then, he squeezed a lever which caused the Yunhuang World’s Wisdom to manifest itself. Their world was suddenly thrown into darkness.
It was futile to resist. Speckles of Origins started to gather inside the crystal ball which caused it to glow even brighter.
The white-shirt old man and the rest of the group trembled fearfully at the sight of this. Shame and anger filled their chests and they kept their heads low to keep the old green man from seeing their true feelings.
The old green man did not even bother with them. He immediately left the Yunhuang World with a smile after collecting the Origins. He did, however, leave them some parting words. “If any of you are found to be slacking by the time I’m back, then there’ll be no reason for your existence anymore.”
He was not worried that the white-shirt old man and the rest of the group would betray him. It would not be difficult to dispose of them even if they dared to do so.
He continued his journey in the Chaos without resting, all the while with only one destination in mind. Although his speed was the thing of legends, it still took him six hours to arrive at this particular galaxy. He slowly descended on a hot red star.
There were already some Ministry people gathered there, including the Left Messenger with her demon mask.
“Did you get it?” she asked when she saw the arrival of the old green man.
“Need you ask?” replied the old green man with a smile as he took out the crystal bowl. “Inside this Origins Stone are the Origins I’ve extracted from five different worlds. The power it contains is more than one complete world! Taotie won’t be able to resist this so I’m sure it’ll be easy for you to bait it with this.”
The Left Messenger was slightly surprised. “You’re asking me to bait him?” she asked with her brows knitted together. Taotie was known for its unassailable power, so the risk of capturing him would naturally be high.
“There’s no one, apart from me and you, who can withstand his attack. Besides, the rest of the group will be busy laying the imprisonment formation. As for me…” The old green man’s expression flashed with a vengeance. “I plan to kill two birds with one stone by taking this chance to eliminate that pesky Deluxe Merit Saint, too!”
A surge of anger bubbled up in him whenever he thought about the Deluxe Merit Saint. Never in his life had he ever felt so aggrieved. He could not wait a moment longer to kill him!
It would take the Left Messenger one day to draw Taotie to this place. He could use that time to lay out the formation to easily kill the Deluxe Merit Saint.
The Left Messenger stayed quiet for a while before nodding her head. Her plans had also been foiled by the Deluxe Merit Saint, so she naturally felt it was best to eliminate him.
Once the plan had been fixed, the Ministry people each went to do their assigned task.
The old green man laughed sinisterly while he was laying out the formation with the ingredients he had so lovingly prepared. The farther the distance, the more difficult it would be to use the Immortal Weaken Spell. Not to mention, the sacrifice needed would be too much to the extent it would take all that old green man had. However, he felt it would be worth it.
“Deluxe Merit Saint, you should feel proud that you’re able to force me to pull out the big guns,” muttered the old green man to himself. “Master would surely reward me handsomely if he knew I’ve eliminated a pesky troublemaker.”
Meanwhile, in Demon City, the past two days had been the happiest two days of the demons’ lives. How could they not be happy when they were able to listen to the expert playing on the zither from time to time, resulting in their realm advancing at the speed of a rocket?
The brother-in-law of their Demon King was so infinitely powerful that they were grateful to be alive in the same time and space as him.
Currently, Daji and Fire Phoenix were discussing something with Blackie.
“The Ministry plans to capture Taotie?”
Blackie’s eyes were filled with deep hatred. “Not if I can help it! I’ll definitely make them pay for what they did to me. From now on, I’ll go against them in anything. If they plan to capture Taotie, I’ll catch it first!”
Daji’s face broke into a smile. “I’m confident we’ll be able to capture Taotie with your help.” She got wind of the Ministry’s plan when she destroyed their stronghold. It was also there where she found out about Taotie’s whereabouts.
The ingredients were handpicked by their master, so they must capture Taotie before the Ministry got their hands on it.
“I’ve already asked Yao Mengji to request some backup from the Heavenly Palace. Taotie’s infamous for being the fiercest beast in the Chaos. We shouldn’t let our guard down and bring more people just to be safe,” said Fire Phoenix.
“We should go now! The Ministry might’ve already put their plan into motion!” said Daji hurriedly with a slight frown on her face.
