By now, he had carved out a fearsome reputation for himself. Though a rising Immortal King, he was second to none, capable of sweeping through the world and crushing all foes.
Yet now, someone dared to scheme against him, seeking to corner him to death—using the forces of the foreign realm to hunt him down in the Sea of Annihilation.
This enraged him, filling him with indignation. While he fought on the frontlines, there were those in the Immortal Domain who would resort to such treachery, using the enemy’s hand to eliminate him.
“Indeed, I was never truly a being of the Immortal Domain—just a passerby. This world was never mine to begin with. What ‘comrades’ are there to speak of?”
Shi Hao’s voice was icy, his eyes brimming with boundless killing intent, turning fathomless in an instant.
This time, he was deeply wounded. That someone behind him would dare act so brazenly, so maliciously, sent his murderous intent soaring to unprecedented heights.
Some Kings paled at the sight of Shi Hao’s demeanor, their faces etched with worry. With words like these, was he planning to rebel against the Immortal Domain?
This would be a disaster of the highest order!
What level had Shi Hao reached now? If he turned his back on the Immortal Domain, the loss would be immeasurable. And if he stirred up chaos, the Immortal Domain would suffer even greater damage.
“Friend, calm your wrath!” someone mustered the courage to speak, attempting to dissuade him.
Even Pan King and Primordial Chaos King stepped forward, whispering to him, urging him not to act rashly—assuring him that the Immortal Domain would give him justice.
“Friend, the moment we received word, we rushed out of the Immortal Domain to the Sea of Annihilation to aid you. Please, do not hold this against us,” another voice chimed in.
“I ask only one thing—where is that old bastard?” Shi Hao expressed his gratitude to the Kings, but the ancient one had ignited an unquenchable thirst for vengeance in him.
“Friend, please temper your fury!” The Kings pressed closer, urging restraint.
Since these people had come to his rescue, Shi Hao couldn’t outright dismiss them.
“I will wait for him to come to me!”
With that, Shi Hao departed, taking the forces of the Heavenly Court with him.
“Brother!” someone called from behind.
“Thank you all for your aid. I must tend to my wounds. I shall repay your kindness in time.” Shi Hao clasped his fists in salute.
The others felt ashamed. Though they had set out to assist him in the Sea of Annihilation, they had done little—Shi Hao had been too formidable, fighting alone. Their only contribution had been opening the path back to the Immortal Domain.
Upon his return, Shi Hao sought a full account of events.
The Second Under Heaven and the Immortal Gold Daoist were furious—Shi Hao had been barred from the city while pursued by enemies.
They also revealed another matter that enraged him further.
That so-called “senior” had returned and immediately come to demand answers, pressuring the Heavenly Court with unmatched arrogance.
Had it not been for the presence of the Second Under Heaven and the Immortal Gold Daoist, the Heavenly Court might have faced ruin.
Pan King had arrived swiftly, and even A’Man’s master had intervened to shield them.
“That ‘senior’ is truly so fearsome?” Shi Hao was taken aback.
“A giant among Kings, once revered throughout the Immortal Domain, unmatched in power!” the Second Under Heaven solemnly warned.
No ordinary King could have swayed the will of the guardians of the passage so easily—his past prestige was simply too great.
“Are you injured?” the Immortal Gold Daoist asked.
Bird Grandpa and Fine Jade Grandpa were deeply concerned. Shi Hao’s might was undeniable, his feats in the Sea of Annihilation witnessed by all. Yet even a peerless King, once wounded, faced grave consequences.
Shi Hao nodded. “The Origin Ancient Artifact is formidable. I must seclude myself to recover.”
The Heavenly Court remained tranquil, showing no signs of unrest.
Outside, speculation ran wild—Shi Hao must have suffered unimaginable injuries.
Otherwise, given his temperament, why would he remain so silent?
Within a stone cavern, Shi Hao secluded himself to recuperate. His injuries were real, but not as severe as the outside world believed. His focus was on reflecting upon the battle.
The Origin Ancient Artifact had left an indelible mark on him—it posed a dire threat.
In Shi Hao’s eyes, it was one of the most lethal weapons he had encountered.
What would happen if that box were fully opened? He pondered deeply.
He did not know if the foreign realm had noticed—the ancient artifact had once cracked.
When he distanced himself from the box, the fissures had gradually vanished.
Shi Hao’s wounds had long since healed. He studied the artifacts on his person, wondering which one could unlock the Origin Ancient Artifact.
He possessed several unique treasures—the Great Luo Sword Embryo, the pitch-black stone from the Seven-Colored Immortal Gold Man’s cave, the pristine bone inscribed with the Primordial True Explanation…
And then there was that flame, once entwined with the Three-World Bronze Coffin, now residing within him.
At the King level, Shi Hao recognized the terrifying nature of this flame—it replicated the Great Daos of the world!
Which one was the key?
And then there was that rotting wooden box!
Once, it could not be stored within spatial artifacts. But after Shi Hao became a King, this obstacle was gradually overcome.
Of course, it was only after he ascended to the rank of a Kingly giant that he managed it.
In the early stages of his Kingship, he still could not store the box, forced to carry it by hand.
After much study, Shi Hao remained uncertain which artifact could unlock the Origin Ancient Artifact.
“A seed, transformed into a key,” he murmured.
Suddenly, his body shuddered, his eyes blazing with realization. He had been searching among external objects, neglecting himself.
“I am the seed. Could it be…?”
The thought shook him to the core, but he quickly dismissed it. That seed had been circulating since countless epochs ago.
His path of embodying the seed had only succeeded in this era—it couldn’t be the key.
Regardless, he knew he might hold the means to unlock that box, to unravel the ultimate secret of the Origin Ancient Artifact.
Carefully, he stored these artifacts away. They would serve their purpose in time.
Next, Shi Hao extracted the soul of the newly slain Immortal King from his Law Pool, scrutinizing its condition.
He had once hurled this soul at the Origin Ancient Artifact, causing it to scream and mutate.
“It’s decaying. Prolonged exposure will annihilate it?” Shi Hao’s expression darkened. The Origin Ancient Artifact was indeed terrifying, its lethality unmatched.
Years later, Shi Hao emerged from seclusion. After meeting with the Heavenly Court, he summoned the Heavenly Horned Ant to a private chamber, releasing He Wushuang’s soul.
“Ah—!” The Heavenly Horned Ant’s eyes reddened instantly, thick tears of blood rolling down. He thought of his elder brother, his sisters—kin he would never see again.
This was his obsession, ever-present. Facing this arch-enemy, his hatred burned like madness.
“I want to kill him myself! I must kill him myself!” the Heavenly Horned Ant roared.
Many heard his frenzied cries. He seemed possessed, his human form disheveled before reverting to his true body.
From that day forth, the Heavenly Horned Ant vanished.
Only the higher-ups knew—he had gone mad, throwing himself into frenetic cultivation before venturing into the Immortal Domain’s most perilous land, the ancestral grounds of the Heavenly Horned Ant lineage.
Their origins lay in the Immortal Domain, but after their clan’s fall, the land had sunk into endless slaughter.
Stirred by vengeance, the Heavenly Horned Ant knew that without Shi Hao, he stood no chance against He Wushuang, a King.
He sought to rise, to seclude himself in his clan’s ancestral land, risking death to temper himself.
He begged Shi Hao to seal He Wushuang’s soul, vowing to end him himself one day.
Shi Hao agreed. Perhaps this boundless drive would propel the Heavenly Horned Ant to break through to Kingship. He looked forward to that day.
“That old wretch never came?” Shi Hao asked Bird Grandpa and Fine Jade Grandpa.
“No. But some Kings close to him inquired about your injuries,” the Second Under Heaven replied.
“Old bastard!” Shi Hao’s killing intent surged. Did that man truly intend to move against him? When a King raged, the heavens themselves trembled.
That day, blood-red clouds blotted out the sky as Shi Hao struck like thunder, shocking all.
He took the initiative, launching an assault so fierce that even Kings who tried to intervene were forced back by his murderous aura.
This was a battle of titans.
The old senior was indeed a giant among Kings, his divine abilities vast, his mana boundless. He clashed with Shi Hao for a thousand rounds.
“Brat, do you seek to rebel against the Immortal Domain?” Lu Gu bellowed.
He regretted it now—this youth’s strength surpassed all expectations, exceeding even the rumors.
How could a mere upstart be so formidable, pushing even a giant like him to his limits?
Lu Gu hailed from an ancient era, his cultivation spanning eons. He had seen countless prodigies, but none like Shi Hao.
“You dare claim to represent the Immortal Domain? If you can, then I’ll rebel—what of it?!” Shi Hao roared.
Such words could only come from him. No other King would dare.
In the end, Shi Hao tore the old senior apart bare-handed, sealing his soul within the Law Pool.
He could have killed him, but he found these souls useful—perhaps to breach the gates of the foreign realm or the Immortal Domain.
Had others known his intentions, they would have been speechless—such extravagance!
Most would study a King’s soul, plundering his Dao fruits.
But Shi Hao, embodying the seed, needed no external aids. His path was his own.
Instead, he pondered whether these souls could elevate the Heavenly Court’s generals.
Lu Gu’s fall sent shockwaves through the realms.
The foreign realm quaked, every clan awestruck. A giant had been slain by Shi Hao—his Deterrence unmatched.
Some pleaded for Lu Gu’s soul, calling him a pillar of the Immortal Domain, indispensable in defending their lands.
Shi Hao refused outright. If Lu Gu remained, he would leave the Immortal Domain.
This battle cemented Shi Hao’s dominance. His earlier slaying of Ao Sheng and Tai Shi had already marked him as untouchable.
But his youth had left some ancient returnees dismissive, relying on seniority to belittle him.
No longer. His status as a Kingly giant was now unchallenged, his name feared across all clans.
Coupled with his solo incursions into the foreign realm, even defeating Kun Di, his prestige soared to its zenith.
Time flowed like a river—200,000 years passed in a blur.
In these years, the Sea of Annihilation erupted in chaos repeatedly. Mighty beings stormed ashore, assaulting the Immortal Domain and the foreign realm, triggering crises.
Shi Hao fought in many battles, once slaying a giant from the Sea of Annihilation.
600,000 years later, the situation worsened. In one battle, six Kings fell, entire universes shattered.
The Dark Calamity grew ever more terrifying.
The sole solace was Shi Hao’s rise, his power ever-increasing. In the direst battle, he fought like a demon, drenched in blood, slaying two giants before charging into the Sea of Annihilation, wreaking havoc.
This was an era of blood and thunder, the age of the Kingly Tribulation.
The world’s mighty fell one by one.
Shi Hao sensed a greater force at work—something was absorbing the fallen Kings’ marks, harvesting their Dao fruits.
The pursuit of the Imperial Realm bred ever more tragedy.
700,000 years later, a lull arrived. The storms lessened, but all knew it was but the calm before the storm.
Shi Hao used these 100,000 years to refine himself, yearning to transcend Kingship.
In this peace, he also sought traces of the Willow Deity, scouring all clues left behind.
Finally, he set out. Even at his might, the effort cost him dearly to glean but fragments of the Willow Deity’s path.
“Shi Hao has entered the Sea of Annihilation!”
His every move now drew the attention of many. His strength was such that even Kings stirred at his actions.
The foreign realm, alerted, watched closely.
But none dared intercept him in the Sea of Annihilation—his name alone was deterrent enough.
Along the way, he slaughtered any who sought to assault the Immortal Domain.
His journey lasted 20,000 years before he reached an island.
“A teleportation array—how rare!”
In the Sea of Annihilation, arrays were nearly impossible to establish. Only special islands could host them.
This array spared him millennia of travel, propelling him deep into the Sea’s heart.
With a flash, Shi Hao vanished.
He reappeared on another island, bathed in a strange, sacred yet sinister light.
Shi Hao’s heart clenched.
The island was vast, its edges lost to the gray, churning sea.
At its center stood a willow tree—colossal, piercing the clouds, its countless branches shimmering with order.
“Willow Deity!”
Shi Hao rushed forward, then halted.
The tree was pitch-black, its leaves and limbs like carved obsidian, radiating a terrifying aura.
A Dark Willow.
Had the Willow Deity fallen into darkness?
Shi Hao’s heart sank.
The tree was eerily still, as if sealed or slumbering, showing no signs of awakening.
Heavy-hearted, Shi Hao approached, words failing him.
Then he froze, spotting a stele inscribed with bone texts—left by the Willow Deity itself!
“Abandoning the flesh, stepping into darkness, traversing the boundary between life and death…”
Shi Hao trembled, reading every word, uncovering shocking truths.
The Willow Deity had discarded its body, sending its soul into darkness to reach the Sea’s end. It had charged forth thus.
Other records followed.
The Willow Deity had undergone multiple nirvanas, leaving behind remnants like this blackened form.
Before its final journey, it had awakened all its accumulated power, reaching unfathomable heights.
It remembered its past, comprehending each nirvana’s purpose.
In the end, it deduced that crossing the Sea would take far too long.
So it chose an unthinkable path—allowing darkness to corrupt its body, birthing a new soul within.
Its true soul entered the dark prison, breaking through to the ultimate land!
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