Chapter 505: Courtesy Before Conflict

Baili Shang was in his quiet chamber, pondering over the unevenly textured black sphere in his hand, its intricate patterns glowing faintly, casting light around him.

*”How to crack it?”*

*”What secrets does it hold?”* Baili Shang racked his brain, knowing full well that this was his greatest harvest, his most significant stroke of fortune! If he could unravel its mysteries, his fate might change entirely. Yet, despite holding this treasure from the ruins, he remained utterly clueless about how to decipher it.

Suddenly, a voice echoed from outside: *”Commander Baili, Commander Baili!”*

The soundproofing array of the chamber allowed external voices to enter but prevented internal ones from escaping.

*”Hmm?”* Baili Shang frowned, swiftly placing the black sphere into a wooden box and stowing it away before opening the stone door and stepping out.

*”What is it? Didn’t I say not to disturb me unless it’s urgent?”* His gaze swept across the scene, landing on a World God guard stationed outside—one usually responsible for guarding the main hall.

The World God guard smiled slightly. *”Commander Baili, His Highness has ordered you to see him immediately.”*

*”His Highness?”* Baili Shang was taken aback. *”Understood. I’ll go at once.”*

—

Baffled, Baili Shang hurried toward the main hall. In all his years serving under Dongbo Xueying, he had never been forcibly summoned during seclusion. After all, ever since the incident with Venomous Ying, no one dared provoke the Inspector’s estate again. The place had remained peaceful.

Upon entering the hall, he saw Dongbo Xueying and Yu Jingqiu seated in the main positions.

*”Greetings, Your Highness and Madam,”* Baili Shang said respectfully.

*”Commander Baili… or should I call you World God Shang Yi?”* Dongbo Xueying suddenly remarked.

Baili Shang’s heart lurched.

*Shang Yi?*

*He knows? Am I exposed? The treasure from the ruins is still on me—will Dongbo Xueying try to seize it?*

His face paled instantly, panic flickering in his eyes before he quickly regained composure. *”Dongbo Xueying’s strength far surpasses mine. This is his territory, reinforced with countless arrays. Against him, I stand no chance. My fate is entirely in his hands.”*

*”Since my life is already under his control, what’s the point of panicking?”* Realizing resistance was futile, Baili Shang calmed down. *”No one knows about the treasure. If he truly knew, he would’ve acted already instead of talking.”*

Shock, fury, helplessness, acceptance—all flashed through his mind in an instant.

*”Your Highness knows?”* Baili Shang looked up.

*”Indeed,”* Dongbo Xueying nodded. *”You’d better confess honestly.”*

Baili Shang remained convinced that Dongbo Xueying couldn’t possibly know about the treasure. Unless pushed to absolute despair, he would never reveal his greatest secret.

*”How did Your Highness discover my identity? Did the Monarch of Cang Yong send someone?”* Baili Shang, sharp as ever, quickly pieced together a plausible explanation.

*”What grudge do you hold with the Monarch of Cang Yong?”* Dongbo Xueying pressed, noting Baili Shang’s earlier panic, which had raised suspicions in both him and Yu Jingqiu.

*”A weak World God like me could never offend the Monarch of Cang Yong. It’s simply that he’s too ruthless,”* Baili Shang sighed. *”He captured a group of us World Gods and forced us into a ruin as cannon fodder. When the ruin collapsed, many of us scattered and fled. I seized the chance to escape and regain my freedom. But I never expected the Monarch would still pursue me!”*

*”Your Highness,”* Baili Shang pleaded, *”please protect me. Without your shelter, I’m as good as dead.”*

Dongbo Xueying and Yu Jingqiu exchanged glances.

*A ruin?*

*”The Divine Realm is vast, teeming with World Gods. If you escaped, why would he go to such lengths to track you down through karma?”* Dongbo Xueying frowned. *”What could you possibly possess that makes him hunt you so relentlessly?”*

*”Karma?”* Baili Shang finally understood how the Monarch had traced him.

Karma was an enigmatic force. Even mighty beings who had transcended the River of Time and achieved true eternity were bound by it. When names of such beings were spoken, they sensed it through karma—a sensitivity only possible at their level. Ordinary Four Heavens World Gods, still bound by time, lacked such acute perception.

*”Answer me. What do you have that makes him hunt you?”* Dongbo Xueying demanded.

Baili Shang’s heart tightened.

*”I truly don’t know,”* he said helplessly. *”Perhaps it’s because we learned his secret.”*

*”Secret?”*

*”That ruin!”* Baili Shang waved a hand, conjuring a complex star map in midair. *”This marks its location. We didn’t know where it was until after the collapse. Though ruined, it remains massive. Maybe there’s something there he can’t afford to expose?”*

Dongbo Xueying studied him. *”Just because of the ruin?”*

*”I can’t think of any other reason,”* Baili Shang insisted.

*”Very well,”* Dongbo Xueying nodded. *”Commander Baili, from today onward, stay within the Inspector’s estate. The Monarch’s men are watching outside. If you leave, death could come at any moment.”*

Baili Shang paled.

*”If you have a doppelganger, keep it separate from your true body,”* Dongbo Xueying advised.

*”What does he mean? Does he know my doppelganger is here too?”* Baili Shang thought nervously. Both his true body and doppelganger were within the estate, relying on a single spacetime-concealing treasure to mask their presence. If his doppelganger were caught outside, the Monarch had ways to prevent suicide—even extracting memories.

*”Thank you, Your Highness. I’ll be cautious,”* Baili Shang said.

*”Dismissed,”* Dongbo Xueying said. Baili Shang bowed and withdrew.

Left alone in the hall, Dongbo Xueying and Yu Jingqiu exchanged thoughts.

*”His story about the ruin is likely true—it’s not something one would fabricate. But he revealed too little, offering only the star map without further details,”* Dongbo Xueying mused.

Yu Jingqiu smiled faintly. *”You’re overthinking it. You didn’t press him for more.”*

*”Perhaps,”* Dongbo Xueying conceded.

*”Still, Xueying, you should increase patrols. I doubt the Monarch of Cang Yong will give up so easily,”* Yu Jingqiu warned.

—

Far away in the vast Divine Realm, within the expansive Cang Yong Empire—a mighty nation forged by the Monarch himself—his will reigned supreme. This was why many powerhouses preferred independence over serving under Bloodblade Divine Court, Temporal Island, or Myriad Gods Palace. Submitting to others meant submitting to rules and restrictions.

Even killing a Three Heavens World God came with endless complications.

*”Monarch,”* a green-robed World God, Mou Xiao, bowed respectfully.

Upon the towering white throne sat a towering figure, his back adorned with massive bone spikes fanning outward. His bald head and hairless face exuded an air of indifference, his origins clearly non-human.

*”Dongbo Xueying insists on protecting his subordinate, refusing to expel Shang Yi unless we clarify our grudge and provide proof,”* Mou Xiao reported.

*”This Dongbo Xueying,”* the Monarch murmured, slender fingers tracing the throne’s armrest. *”Riding high on his recent triumphs, of course he’d shield his own. But since we extended courtesy first, his refusal leaves us no choice. World God Can Tu!”*

A figure emerged from the void, draped in black robes, his face obscured.

*”Dongbo Xueying is formidable. Sending ordinary World Gods would be futile. You’ll handle this,”* the Monarch said coolly. *”I’ve no wish to antagonize him, so act discreetly. Kill Shang Yi.”*

*”As you command,”* the black-robed figure intoned.