Chapter 130: Intervention

“Bang!”

The sniper rifle roared.

In the distance, the head of a general-rank powerhouse exploded.

Fang Qingyun lowered his rifle and gazed into the distance, shaking his head. “There are truly too many powerful demons.”

They had been hunting him for five days!

Over those five days, Fang Qingyun had lost count of how many powerful demons he had killed.

At any rate, he had slain quite a few of them.

Yet a vast army of demons still pursued him from behind.

His actions seemed to have enraged the demonic powerhouses. In addition to Iron Tail, the demons had dispatched a considerable number of others to hunt him down.

Among the demons pursuing Fang Qingyun, five had already reached the peak of the general rank.

That only strengthened his resolve to hunt them down.

“For the sake of humanity!”

Fang Qingyun muttered to himself.

Every powerful demon he killed meant one fewer demon on the human front.

As the weakest of the three great races, humanity had risen amid hardship and adversity. It had used every method imaginable to struggle its way to this point, sacrificing countless lives along the way.

If he could kill these five peak general-rank powerhouses, along with the other general-rank demons, humanity would suffer at least tens of thousands fewer deaths.

“Still, this is strange.”

Even while fleeing, Fang Qingyun could not help feeling puzzled.

He did not understand whether the demons were laying a trap or whether something else had happened. Why were only peak general-rank powerhouses pursuing him?

Under normal circumstances, the demons should have been furious at the havoc he was wreaking among them. They should have dispatched divine generals long ago.

The demons had at least several hundred divine generals. Although they were scattered across many locations, sending one or two should not have been difficult.

Naturally, Fang Qingyun had no idea that the demonic higher-ups were currently embroiled in a furious quarrel, practically on the verge of open war.

Humanity limited itself to verbal clashes and covert acts of sabotage.

Neither side dared engage in an outright battle.

The demons were different.

…

“Have you heard?”

“You mean the fight between Divine General Wolf King and Divine General Azure Wing? Tsk, tsk. I knew it. Whenever the divine generals hold a meeting, they are bound to start fighting.”

“That is old news— from the day before yesterday, isn’t it? I am talking about yesterday. Divine General Red Howler faced three divine generals alone, and the meeting hall was stained red with blood!”

“That happened too?”

“I heard several divine generals were injured yesterday. One of them nearly had his arm broken.”

“They were truly trying to kill one another!”

In one of the demons’ main cities, the demons were engaged in heated discussion.

Many of them regarded one another with open hostility.

The divine generals of their respective clans had suffered losses.

As the divine generals fought, conflicts continually erupted among the demons below as well.

The reason was simple: the Origin.

The Origin had been born on Storm Continent, and all three great races would send people to compete for it.

In a chaotic battle involving the three great races, many were destined to die. Who would willingly allow the powerhouses of their own race to perish?

Especially when most of them were young prodigies.

They represented the future.

Thus, during the meetings, the demonic divine generals did everything they could to force the other factions to send more fighters while obtaining less of the Origin for themselves.

How could the others agree?

And so the arguments began.

Unlike humanity, the demons were not skilled at restraint. As the arguments escalated, they eventually came to blows.

The meeting halls had been destroyed countless times, and many demonic divine generals had been beaten into critical condition.

Fortunately, the demons were the foremost of the three great races. They had a vast population and more divine generals than humanity and the demon race combined. Otherwise, this conflict alone would have severely weakened them.

Even so, the demons’ progress was giving their leaders a massive headache.

The Origin had appeared on Storm Continent, the demons’ core continent. The demons should have been trying to claim all of it. Why, then, were they advancing the slowest?

In the end, the demonic leaders simply issued an order:

“Whoever acquires the Origin must hand over half of it. The other half may be used personally.”

Only after this order was issued did the demons truly begin considering what sort of clansmen they should send into battle.

Some clans practically mobilized their entire population.

Others remained lukewarm.

It was not that they lacked ambition for the Origin. They simply knew that even if they participated, they would never obtain any of it.

Use it personally?

For the great clans, that posed no problem.

For the smaller clans, it was merely something to listen to.

If they truly obtained the Origin and failed to hand it over, their entire clan would be doomed.

The demons consisted of countless races and innumerable species—several hundred clans, large and small. Who would care if one minor clan disappeared? As long as the few great clans remained intact, the demons would not perish.

The demon race was likewise divided into numerous factions.

They were far better organized than the demons, but they had one major problem: they were not warlike.

Compared with the demons, they were lacking. Even compared with humanity, they fell far short.

They preferred research.

Thus, when they heard about the struggle for the Origin, many demons of every size signed up. In the end, only after one of the Demon Kings issued an order did a vast number of them gather.

All three sides soon completed their preparations.

In the dim void, a demonic figure sat quietly in midair. His entire body was covered in muscle, and his features were ferocious.

Anyone who saw him would instinctively think of the word “狂暴”—savage.

And yet he was exceptionally quiet.

Even the space around him seemed influenced by his presence, filled with an atmosphere of stillness.

…

Suddenly, he opened his eyes.

Unexpectedly, they were exceptionally clear, like spring water.

“Profound Extremity, Murinho—you two actually came together? Since when have the demon race and humanity become so close?”

His voice was somewhat hoarse.

A clear, resonant voice rang out. “Humanity is willing to befriend every race and develop together with them.”

The speaker was a handsome middle-aged man who appeared to be in his thirties. A faint smile remained on his face at all times.

As for Demon King Murinho, his expression was calm.

He wore a broad robe and a crown, carrying an innate air of majesty. He sat quietly in another corner, standing on equal footing with the Demon King and Human King, forming a triumvirate.

“Hypocritical!”

The Demon King gave his verdict. Then he looked at the Demon King with a cold laugh. “Besides, even if you want to befriend humanity, humanity may not consider you worthy. Who would make friends with food?”

“Heh.”

A sharp glint flashed through Profound Extremity’s eyes. “Food? What does it mean to die at the hands of food? I recall that someone’s ancestor died precisely at the hands of food. His corpse was even made into a specimen.”

“Impudent!”

The Demon King roared. His body changed as well, and the phantom of an enormous spider appeared behind him.

“You are the impudent one!”

Profound Extremity sneered, an aura no weaker than the Demon King’s surging from his body.

“Today, I will send you to your death!” the Demon King said grimly. “I want to see whether that sharp tongue of yours remains so bold before you die.”

Profound Extremity merely glanced at him, too lazy to respond.

Demon King Murinho opened his eyes and said calmly, “Enough, Spider King. If you want to fight, the two of us will accompany you. If not, hurry up and set up the barrier.”

In an instant, Spider King reined in his fury and became calm once more. He glared at Demon King Murinho and snorted.

At their level, a true battle could not easily break out.

Especially with the Human King and Demon King arriving together, the outcome had already been decided.

They were afraid of being ambushed by the demons.

The demonic divine generals were enormous in number. If they formed an encirclement, even a king-level powerhouse could be injured.

Even if they ultimately obtained the Origin, such a price would be far too great.

The Origin could create powerful beings, but it could never produce a king-level powerhouse.

As long as they could kill an opposing king-level powerhouse, any sacrifice would be worthwhile.

The greater picture?

King-level powerhouses were the greater picture.

As long as they remained alive, the greater picture could not collapse.

“Zzzzzzz!”

The three king-level powerhouses sat cross-legged, vast amounts of power pouring from their bodies and blotting out the sky.

As the three forces spread, space began to twist and tremble.

It seemed afraid.

“Snap!”

The three powers quickly came into contact. Instead of clashing, they began to spread outward in every direction.

A barrier.

They were creating a colossal barrier.

Within it, their descendants would slaughter one another and compete for the Origin.

“Vmmm!”

Just then, another force descended from the heavens, plunging straight down and surging directly into the place where the three kings’ powers converged.

“What?”

The three king-level powerhouses were stunned.

The next moment, their expressions changed dramatically.

The instant this sudden force appeared, it was overwhelmingly powerful. It actually suppressed all three kings.

“Who?”

The three kings roared simultaneously.

King-level!

It was unquestionably king-level—and not an ordinary king-level powerhouse.

Even so, to inject power so brazenly while they were establishing the barrier was an outright provocation against all three kings.

Only the supreme king-level powerhouses of the three great races would dare provoke three kings at once.

And even they might not fare well.

King-level was already the summit.

No one had ever reached a realm beyond king-level.

The supreme rulers of the three races—the Human Emperor, Demon Emperor, and Demon Emperor—were also king-level, merely stronger existences within that realm.

At once, the three king-level powerhouses erupted with power and forcibly pushed back the force that had suddenly intruded.

“Heh heh heh!”

A series of sinister voices rang out.

Then an indistinct figure appeared before the three kings.

“You…”

The expressions of the three kings changed dramatically.

“An Empty Beast?”

“Correct. Greetings, three kings!” a shrill voice replied.

“What do you want?” Profound Extremity asked coldly.

On the other side, Spider King’s expression was even uglier.

This was Storm Continent, the demons’ core continent. Yet an Empty Beast of such terrifying strength had appeared here. What was it planning?

At least the human and demon kings had announced their arrival beforehand.

Did this Empty Beast think Storm Continent was its own private garden?

“I want a share of the Origin this time as well!”

The moment the Empty Beast finished speaking, the auras surrounding the three kings suddenly grew more powerful.

“You want a share too? Heh. What sort of dream are you having?”

The three kings pressed down simultaneously.

The opponent was powerful.

In truth, the Empty Beasts were the true darlings of the world.

They were born with astonishingly powerful strength.

Once they reached adulthood, they stood at the pinnacle.

Even the weakest possessed peak general-rank strength, while divine-general-level beings were commonplace.

There were no shortage of king-level Empty Beasts either.

They came in countless varieties. If all the Empty Beasts were regarded as a single race, the combined number of king-level powerhouses among the three great races would not even amount to half their number.

The records of the three races frequently mentioned powerful Empty Beasts descending upon the Azuremoon World and bringing enormous disasters with them.

Fortunately, the Empty Beasts were incapable of uniting. In fact, if they met without fighting, that was already considered a good relationship.

“Boom!”

The powerful auras collided violently.

An explosion rang out through the void.

The three kings simultaneously retreated one step, their expressions growing colder.

The Empty Beast also continued to retreat.

At the same time, it revealed a trace of its Origin aura, exposing its identity.

“So it is you!”

The Demon King sneered. “Earth Dragon!”

This was a renowned king-level powerhouse whose existence predated the history of humanity.

His accumulated foundation was unquestionably profound. No king present was his equal.

Even two working together might not be able to defeat him.

But there were three kings here.

“Impudent!”

Earth Dragon roared.

“Heh!”

The three kings looked at him with disdain and said coldly, “Earth Dragon, there is no place for you in the Azuremoon World. The void is where you belong.”

Earth Dragon’s expression turned icy. He no longer concealed himself, and an enormous phantom revealed itself in the sky.

It was as vast as a mountain range.

No—mountains were tiny before him.

His entire body seemed like a floating continent.

Even the largest flagship of the three great races, which measured a thousand meters in length, would perhaps not equal him in size if several were placed side by side.

“I already said it. I am determined to obtain the Origin this time!”

His voice was filled with absolute certainty.

The three kings slightly furrowed their brows and exchanged glances.

Profound Extremity said, “If you want some, wait until our three races obtain the Origin. We will leave a portion for you.”

“I would rather claim it myself.”

“Then I can only apologize.”

Profound Extremity’s words rang out with force. “If you want to enter Storm Continent and obtain the Origin, you will first have to pass the three of us.”

“Heh. You three think you can stop me?”

Earth Dragon let out a mocking laugh.

“Perhaps the three of us cannot,” Demon King Murinho said calmly. “But our races possess even stronger powerhouses. Besides, do not forget that this is Storm Continent, the demons’ core continent. There must be king-level powerhouses here, and the Demon Emperor may even be able to arrive.”

The Demon Emperor?

The strongest powerhouse among the demons.

At the mention of that name, Earth Dragon’s expression became solemn.

He had once exchanged blows with the Demon Emperor from afar and knew that the other’s strength was absolutely no weaker than his own.

The entire scene fell silent.

Suddenly, Earth Dragon said, “Your three races are competing for the Origin, correct?”

“Correct!”

The three king-level powerhouses stared intently at Earth Dragon.

Empty Beasts were not lacking in intelligence. On the contrary, every one of them was exceptionally clever.

“In that case, I will participate as well.” Earth Dragon remained calm. “Below the divine-general level, correct?”

“You want to send down an incarnation?”

Spider King’s brows drew tightly together. “Impossible!”

Even if a king-level powerhouse sent down an incarnation limited to below the divine-general level, it could probably still defeat several divine generals as easily as playing a game.

Some of the more powerful king-level beings possessed special incarnations capable of battling king-level powerhouses.

If such incarnations were allowed to participate in the struggle for the Origin, they might as well hand the Origin over directly.

Profound Extremity and Murinho nodded as well.

Earth Dragon continued, “I will send down fifty incarnations. Each incarnation will also contain a portion of my power. How does that sound?”

The three kings were stunned.

“The Origin?”

“Correct!” Earth Dragon replied firmly. “Each incarnation will contain a trace of my Origin. If one of my incarnations dies, its Origin will belong to you.”

This time, the expressions of the three kings changed as well.

Even a trace of Earth Dragon’s Origin was no less valuable than the Origin itself.

Moreover, the fact that Earth Dragon intended to send down fifty incarnations clearly meant that none of them would possess too much power.

At most, they would reach the peak of the general rank.

That was a bargain worth making.

The three kings exchanged glances, and each could see the others wavering.

If they were lucky enough, they might obtain a portion of the Origin while also acquiring Earth Dragon’s Origin.

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