Chapter 667 - 660: The Voice from Behind
In the space outside Earth.
Leaning on the massive crystal beside him, Zhou Yuanjue looked down at the azure planet below.
He gazed upon the magnificent view, feeling the joyous and celebratory will of countless beings on Earth reach him.
It was a wondrous, ineffable feeling.
A sense of accomplishment, of satisfaction, of pride...
But then, Zhou Yuanjue severed all these feelings.
Accomplishment, satisfaction, and pride could feed the vanity of human instinct, but for him, they were only obstacles to his continued progress.
Although he now stood at the planet’s apex, having even surpassed it, an infinite unknown still lay before him, waiting to be explored.
The will for transcendence never rests.
Some might find this obsessive, beyond human nature.
But it was precisely this drive that had allowed Zhou Yuanjue to advance all this way, cutting through every thorn in his path.
In outer space, he quickly got his bearings. This time, he didn’t aim for the center of the Pacific Ocean but set his destination for the Donghua coast on the Far East Continent.
’It’s time to return to land.’
Things weren’t over yet. Once he returned to land, replenished his energy, and completely uprooted the remaining Ancestral Incarnations and their corresponding Sealing Realm Images, only then would this Chapter truly be closed.
At that point, he could finally focus his mind on investigating the coming disaster and uncovering the secrets of the True Realm.
BZZZT!!
Immense power erupted from his body. With his hand pressed against the massive crystal of the Ancestral Fusion Body, he plunged rapidly toward Earth, soon re-entering the atmosphere and falling into the planet’s gravitational pull.
BOOM!!
The friction between his body and the surrounding air generated a deafening roar and intense heat. The giant crystal, like a meteorite falling from the heavens, was wreathed in traces of fire.
It plummeted from the sky like a meteor.
Pulled by gravity, the two figures fell swiftly toward the sea, finally landing several hundred kilometers from the Donghua Coastline.
BOOM!!!
Smashing into the sea like a meteorite, the powerful impact and heat threw up massive waves and a curtain of mist. But compared to the previous battle between Zhou Yuanjue and the Ancestral Fusion Body, this commotion was insignificant.
Soon, Zhou Yuanjue resurfaced, carrying the giant crystal of the Ancestral Fusion Body. The sea was now clear and sunny; all the dark clouds and terrifying natural disasters had vanished.
Breathing in the fresh, salty air above the waves, Zhou Yuanjue’s mood brightened.
THAP THAP THAP THAP!!
Just then, the sound of many footsteps approached.
Zhou Yuanjue looked toward the source of the sound and saw numerous figures running toward him across the surface of the sea from the distant Donghua coastline.
They were the Donghua Martial Artists who had been stationed at various points along the coast.
They had come together to welcome humanity’s hero home.
Countless figures gathered on the sea before Zhou Yuanjue, led by the Chief Commissioner and the upper echelons of the Donghua Martial Arts Family.
Zhou Yuanjue’s gaze swept over each of the Martial Artists present, finally landing on the Chief Commissioner’s face.
The Chief Commissioner gave him a slight smile.
A slight smile appeared on Zhou Yuanjue’s face as well.
After this long journey, their shared goal was finally within reach.
He had not let down the Chief Commissioner’s trust.
No more words were needed. Everything was understood.
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With the decisive battle won and Zhou Yuanjue’s return, humanity officially sounded the horn for a counterattack.
In just seven days, numerous Celestial Demon forces across the world were uprooted, and vast swaths of occupied land were reclaimed by humanity.
During this time, Zhou Yuanjue did not take action, instead focusing on replenishing his energy after the great battle.
The Celestial Demons’ power began to shrink rapidly. All their forces retreated to the Northern India Continent, with the Starry Sky Country at its core. This was their final foothold.
Starry Sky Country.
As the nation most heavily corrupted by Ancestral Power in the world, and as the Celestial Demons’ final lair, the terrifying corruption that saturated the land did not vanish even though the Ancestral Fusion Body had been sealed by Zhou Yuanjue.
The terrifying Power of Nightmare from the Master of Nightmares still permeated the country, continuously draining the consciousness of living beings, dominating their actions, and enslaving their bodies.
With the Ancestral Fusion Body sealed, authority over Nightmare City fell into the hands of the four remaining Ancestral Incarnations.
At this moment, in the vast council hall of Nightmare City, only three lonely figures were present.
These four Ancestral Incarnations were the Lord of Divine Wrath, Zhou; Evil Cycle Mang and Yu, who appeared as a twin-bodied being; and finally, the Master of Fanaticism, Tuo.
A deathly silence filled the council hall.
As Ancestral Incarnations residing in Nightmare City, they naturally had ways to observe the details of the battle seven days prior. And because of this, they understood the true terror of Zhou Yuanjue all too well.
Even four fully-formed Primordial Ancestors using Illusion-Truth Fusion couldn’t match him. That terrifying final outburst, the Divine Bird soaring through space—such power had already reached the level of a True Realm Life form.
Even if they were at their peak as fully-formed beings, they would still be no match for him, let alone now, when they had yet to reclaim their sealed power.
"Everyone, Mo and the others have been sealed. Zhou Yuanjue must be recovering his strength right now. Once he’s fully recovered, it will likely be our doom. What should we do?"
Tuo said in a heavy voice.
"Even if we lose, we won’t let them have an easy time of it!"
"There’s a huge stockpile of devastating weapons in the Starry Sky Country’s arsenal. While these weapons can’t harm the top-tier humans, if detonated, they could destroy this world!"
"If we can’t have it, then let’s destroy it all!"
A harsh glint flashed in Zhou’s eyes, revealing an ineffable madness.
"I disagree with this course of action."
"Mutual destruction benefits us in no way. As it stands, even if we fall into his hands, death isn’t certain. Even being sealed leaves a sliver of hope for survival."
"If we push things to the absolute limit, we’ll likely lose even that last sliver of hope. It’s hard to imagine what a completely maddened enemy would do to us."
"Besides, do you really think someone with his abilities wouldn’t be prepared for a self-destructive move like that? The moment we make a move, before the weapons are even fully armed, that person will probably use a True Realm Jump to appear right in front of us!"
"Zhou, don’t let your madness cut off our last path to survival!"
The twin-bodied Mang and Yu spoke, their two heads speaking in turn.
"Path to survival? You think we still have a path to survival?"
"So, you’re saying we should just surrender?"
"We are the great and mighty Primordial Ancestors! And you want us to surrender like this?!"
"No! We still have Nightmare City under our command, and all these people, these lives... They are all our bargaining chips! We can make one last stand..."
Zhou said, his expression ugly. Suddenly, his body froze. He felt a terrifying gaze on him from behind.
At the same time, he clearly saw the shocked and dumbfounded expressions on the faces of the two Primordial Ancestors sitting across from him.
"Oh? I’m very curious. How exactly do you plan to make your stand?"
Just then, a faintly mocking voice sounded from behind Zhou.