Vol 5 Chapter 41: Demon Emperor

"You... have improved."

When Mo Yu and Sheng Kun met again after ten years, Sheng Kun was particularly pleased to see Mo Yu's significant increase in strength.

With the Millennium War approaching, the stronger Mo Yu became, the more helpful he would be to her.

When the time came, it would be a battle of "king versus king" among the Four Heavenly Kings, but even the minor players could be troublesome. Having enough powerful followers to deal with the enemy's followers was equally crucial.

After all, one should never underestimate weak followers—the power of "formations" was exceptionally formidable. When enough cultivators combined their strength, they could deliver a fatal blow even to high-level cultivators.

"How does soul usurpation feel?"

"With the cultivation technique you gifted me, my bloodline strength has improved significantly."

"Haha, naturally." Seeing that Mo Yu had indeed used the technique she gave him to begin refining his destiny, Sheng Kun was even more satisfied.

Although Mo Yu had not yet usurped the Limitless Immortal Physique to truly step onto the "Path of the Yin-Yang Heavenly Demon," he had already perfected the yang aspect of his yin-yang destiny through the technique during his usurpation of the Slaughter Immortal Physique.

Once he usurped the Limitless Immortal Physique next time, the terrifying power of the physique would shape the yin aspect.

"If luck is on your side during the next usurpation, your demonic bloodline should also reach perfection."

"Take this." Sheng Kun waved her arm and tossed a piece of immortal stone toward him.

"This is..." Seeing the Origin Source she threw at him, Mo Yu looked surprised.

He could sense that this Origin Source was vastly different from the ones he had seized before!

"This Origin Source is a rare treasure. Only one appears in the Origin Realm every century. Use it for cultivation."

"And this!"

Sheng Kun then took out a formation banner and said, "This is an immortal artifact—a Time Dao artifact. It doesn’t require a cultivator’s energy to activate, but it needs Origin Source as fuel. Once activated, no matter where you are, it can alter the flow of time inside and outside the banner."

"In ten years, a supreme-grade Origin Source will emerge. I’ll lend you this artifact for ten years. With this rare Origin Source, I want you to successfully usurp the 'Limitless Immortal Physique' and perfect your demonic bloodline within this decade. Can you do it?"

Sheng Kun’s generosity shocked Mo Yu. Even though he knew she was scheming to permanently bind him to her faction, seeing this rare Origin Source and the immortal artifact left him speechless.

"Thank you, Holy Son. I won’t disappoint you."

......

Sheng Kun had no choice but to invest the rare Origin Source and immortal artifact in Mo Yu. She estimated she had at most ten years left.

After ten years, regardless of whether she succeeded in seizing the millennium supreme-grade Origin Source, she would no longer be able to stay in the Origin Realm.

By then, the Heavenly Demon Sect would undoubtedly spend enormous resources to cultivate a new Holy Son or Holy Daughter-level figure to replace her in guarding the Origin Realm.

But which faction that person would belong to was uncertain.

Currently, as the overseer of the Origin Realm, the Yin-Yang Heavenly Demon Faction reaped countless benefits and absorbed vast amounts of immortal energy. But once she left, those advantages would vanish.

"I hope... you won’t let me down."

Sheng Kun summoned a leader and had them temporarily break through to the Void Mystical Stage using the Heavenly Demon Physique, leaving the Origin Realm to report the current situation back to the Yin-Yang Demon City.

......

Heavenly Demon Realm.

The sky was perpetually dark, occasionally streaked with blood-red lightning.

The Yin-Yang Demon City, as the territory of the Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor, was a formidable force within the Heavenly Demon Sect of the Heavenly Demon Realm.

At this moment, as a teleportation formation flashed within the city, a purple-haired female cultivator descended. Upon arrival, she immediately traversed the void and arrived outside the palace of the Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor.

"Disciple Mo Lin has brought important intelligence from the Origin Realm. I request an audience with the Ancestor!"

"The Ancestor is in seclusion. No visitors." Two demonic dragon guards glanced at the female cultivator and shooed her away.

"I come on behalf of Holy Son Sheng Kun to request an audience with the Ancestor..." the purple-haired cultivator insisted.

The demonic dragons looked impatient...

"Let her approach." Just then, an aged female voice echoed from within the palace. Seeing this, the guarding demonic dragons stepped aside, and the purple-haired Mo Lin let out a relieved sigh before entering the palace.

Inside the palace, a white-haired old woman leaned on an immortal artifact-grade cane, eyeing the entering cultivator. "What business does Sheng Kun have sending you here?"

"Greetings, Ancestor." The purple-haired cultivator immediately knelt. "The Holy Son has found a successor in the Origin Realm and seeks your support."

"A successor?" The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor shook her head. The Yin-Yang Demon City had controlled the Origin Realm for so long that other factions would likely not allow it to remain in their hands.

She hadn’t even planned to continue meddling in the Origin Realm after Sheng Kun’s return. Yet, her disciple refused to let go—even going so far as to cultivate a so-called successor.

Even she would struggle to nurture another figure like Sheng Kun. What was her disciple thinking?

Her support would likely be useless.

"This individual is of demonic bloodline, not just an ordinary Heavenly Demon Sect prodigy!" Mo Lin reported. "He is the inheritor of Demon Emperor Tianchou!!! Having mastered the Eight-Armed Heavenly Demon Sword Path, his talent, potential, and strength are all extraordinary."

"Demon Emperor Tianchou?!" The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor froze in shock.

Mo Lin continued, "After disappearing into the Star Abyss, Demon Emperor Tianchou did not die but instead fell into a remote cultivation world to recover. The inheritor was trained there and sent to the Origin Realm to gather Origin Sources to aid her recovery."

"The Holy Son believes this is an excellent opportunity to potentially ally with the notoriously solitary Demon Emperor Tian—"

"Stop!" The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor cut her off, her expression suspicious. "Demon Emperor Tianchou is currently recovering in a remote cultivation world? And sent an inheritor to the Origin Realm to gather Origin Sources for her?"

Mo Lin hesitated, then nodded.

The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor scoffed. "Nonsense! Half a year ago, Demon Emperor Tianchou returned to the Heavenly Demon Realm completely unharmed—she was merely lost in the Star Abyss for countless years!!!"

Of course, this news... was still known to very few. The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor’s expression darkened with suspicion.

Ignoring Mo Lin’s confusion, she felt something was amiss and quickly closed her eyes, projecting her consciousness across the Heavenly Demon Realm until she locked onto a sword-filled domain.

"Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor?" Within the sword domain, a woman with disheveled black hair sat cross-legged among countless broken blades, her sharp eyes opening.

"What do you want?"

"Demon Emperor Tianchou, did you train an inheritor and send them to the Origin Realm?"

"Inheritor?" Demon Emperor Tianchou said coolly, "I have no inheritor."

The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor’s expression darkened. "My disciple claims a demon-blooded cultivator wielding the Eight-Armed Heavenly Demon Sword Path is posing as your inheritor, using your name to gather Origin Sources in the Origin Realm... You truly don’t know this person?"

Demon Emperor Tianchou also paused, then laughed. "It seems someone took advantage of my absence to deceive you all under the guise of being my inheritor. How amusing—they even fabricated my Eight-Armed Heavenly Demon Sword Path..."

BOOM.

The Yin-Yang Demon Ancestor’s consciousness returned, her terrifying gaze fixed on the now-frightened Mo Lin.

"That fool Sheng Kun was deceived and didn’t even realize it! Whoever this impostor is, whatever their ambitions, daring to scam the Yin-Yang Demon City means they have a death wish! Tell Sheng Kun—if she can’t deal with this person, don’t bother returning!"