Not far away, dark mist churned as a group of creatures swiftly approached, encircling the area.
In truth, they had spotted Shi Hao long ago but had not acted immediately, opting instead to surround him while waiting for the Netherworld Clan’s elite reinforcements from behind.
“Strike now! They’ve brought many. The Netherworld Clan lacks everything—except corpses. Break through while you can,” whispered Hong Huang, her voice trembling with lingering fear.
These were beings steeped in yin energy—cold, lifeless, devoid of warmth or vigor, as if freshly unearthed from the earth. Among them were humanoid figures, divine birds, beasts, and even creatures like colossal squids from the rivers and seas.
Shi Hao, however, showed no concern. Instead, he grinned, for the leaders of this group—aside from one humanoid figure—were all extraordinary beings.
A massive black tortoise, as large as a small hill, its shell adorned with golden markings and horns sprouting from its head, had attained godhood months ago.
A sea beast, towering like a mountain, serpentine in form yet bearing enormous clam shells, stared coldly at them.
…
The leading figures loomed like colossal peaks, gazing down at Shi Hao and Hong Huang with disdain.
“You—scram!”
Among the strongest Netherworld leaders, a humanoid figure pointed at Shi Hao, ordering him to leave Hong Huang’s side, his body wreathed in thick black yin energy.
Shi Hao glanced at him and sneered, “Scram? Why don’t you show me how it’s done?”
“I was going to let you live a little longer, but now you die first!” The humanoid figure waved his hand, unleashing a surge of Nether Mist as newly ascended Netherworld god-level experts charged forward.
A reeking squid, each of its eight arms wielding hammers capable of smashing mountains, swung at Shi Hao.
**Boom!**
The ground trembled violently as the squid attacked.
“Be careful! That squid is powerful—almost as strong as their leaders,” Hong Huang warned from behind, her expression grave. Years had passed since they last met, and she had no idea how strong Shi Hao had become.
Yet, before her words fully settled, everything froze.
**Crack!**
Shi Hao stood unmoved, his body erupting with radiant lightning that surged like a river from his pores. A single bolt condensed into a golden spear, piercing the squid’s body and impaling its soul.
The creature stiffened before collapsing with a thunderous crash, splitting the earth and kicking up clouds of dust.
Silence reigned. The leading creatures, especially the humanoid one, stiffened in shock. The latter spat out a white bone banner, his tone suddenly softening.
“Friend, we are of the Netherworld Clan—”
“You think you’re worthy of calling me ‘friend’?” Shi Hao cut him off. “You’re neither human nor ghost. Pathetic.”
“Weren’t you just ordering him to scram? What happened to that bravado?” Hong Huang taunted from behind, inwardly stunned. Shi Hao had dispatched a powerful foe in a single strike—more ruthless than ever.
“I was being polite, leaving room for courtesy. Don’t push it,” the humanoid figure hissed, his eyes icy.
“Courtesies from the Netherworld? Are you joking?” Shi Hao scoffed.
With a **clang**, a sword materialized in his hand, crackling with dazzling lightning.
“Kill him!” the humanoid figure commanded, wary of Shi Hao’s lightning—a natural bane to Netherworld beings.
A dozen Netherworld warriors surged forward, their black mist and yin energy staining the sky like spilled ink, the air turning frigid. Even as gods, they exuded an inescapable chill, their bodies flickering with ghostly flames—black fire that alternated between scorching heat and freezing cold, capable of icing the earth.
“Kill!”
The dozen lunged forward.
Shi Hao roared, lightning weaving around him like a blazing sun. This was the Thunder Emperor’s technique—unyielding, righteous, the perfect counter to yin-infested creatures.
**Crack!**
In an instant, seven or eight Netherworld warriors were reduced to charred husks.
This was slaughter.
Having ascended to godhood, Shi Hao’s power had soared. His lightning technique now raged like divine punishment.
**Whoosh!**
Shi Hao shot forward like an arrow, closing the gap in a flash. His lightning sword pierced the humanoid figure’s protective yin barrier.
**Clang!**
The bone banner rose, unleashing a tide of vengeful spirits—ghouls that had devoured countless souls, surging toward Shi Hao.
The Netherworld leader was no weakling, far surpassing ordinary Venerables. He wielded his treasure to resist.
**Boom!**
Shi Hao’s lightning cascaded like a waterfall, obliterating every wraith in its path.
**Snap!**
The bone banner shattered between Shi Hao’s fingers.
The humanoid figure fought desperately, unleashing every secret art, howling in defiance.
He lasted fourteen moves before a brilliant sword flash severed his head.
In truth, he was formidable—few of his peers could withstand Shi Hao’s onslaught for so long.
“You—” His severed head, still flickering with ghostly flames, trembled in shock and terror.
“Humanoid, but useless,” Shi Hao said, crushing the skull underfoot. The Nether Godlight exploded, snuffing him out completely.
All this happened in the blink of an eye—too fast for anyone to intervene.
“What’s happening?” A new figure arrived, leading a three-headed hellhound.
“Why isn’t this woman dead yet? And who’s this human? Kill them both—no loose ends,” the newcomer growled, clad in blood-red armor, his eyes silver-white.
The hellhound at his side reeked of decay, its three heads snarling viciously.
“Sir, this man is too strong. We’re no match,” the Netherworld warriors bowed, even the giant tortoise and sea beast deferring.
“I’ve decided—the Netherworld is now on my blacklist. Even ‘reborn,’ you all still stink of rot. Disgusting,” Shi Hao declared, pinching his nose. Even he, famed for his iron stomach, recoiled at the thought of roasting or steaming these creatures.
Behind him, Hong Huang stifled a laugh.
**Woof!**
The hellhound lunged, its three heads spewing different energies as it pounced from midair toward Shi Hao’s face.
“Like master, like mutt. Die!” Shi Hao kicked out, channeling the Kun Peng’s force.
**Boom!**
The newly ascended hellhound exploded midair, stunning every Netherworld onlooker.
The armored man’s gaze turned murderous.
“Be careful—he’s one of the Dark Divine Son’s men. Extremely dangerous,” Hong Huang warned.
“Dark Divine Son? Never heard of him. Stronger than the Netherworld’s prince? I killed that one too,” Shi Hao said casually.
“What? You’re **Huang**?!” The Netherworld warriors recoiled in shock. Their clan’s prodigy had been slain in the Yuan Heaven Secret Realm—news known to all.
“The Netherworld is vast, filled with endless corpses—some buried since the dawn of time. The Dark Divine Son is one such being, terrifying beyond measure,” Hong Huang explained, warning that this foe surpassed even their prince.
“If he shows up, I’ll kill him too,” Shi Hao said flatly.
“Arrogant! When the Dark Divine Son arrives, you’ll be crushed like an ant,” the armored man spat, eyes burning with fanaticism.
**Whoosh!**
Shi Hao unleashed carnage. The Netherworld warriors stood no chance—lightning scattered their yin energy, charring them black. To them, this was divine retribution.
The Thunder Emperor’s technique held boundless might.
“Spare us, brother! The Netherworld bears you no enmity!” The survivors begged, their courage shattered. Reborn from death, they valued life all the more.
“You wait—the Dark Divine Son will come for you himself!” The armored man turned to flee, unfurling a scroll to teleport away.
**Boom!**
Shi Hao swung his halberd, splitting the void and bisecting the man midair.
“Did you think you could escape me?”
“You—” With his dying breath, the man aimed a bone mirror at Shi Hao, capturing his likeness. “Your image is recorded… The Dark Divine Son will find you… tear out your soul…”
The mirror faded into darkness, vanishing.
“Dark Divine Son? Let him come. I’ll crush him too,” Shi Hao said.
Without suspense, every Netherworld warrior was annihilated.
Hong Huang looked at Shi Hao with concern. “The Dark Divine Son is an ancient corpse from the dawn of time—possibly a being from the last epoch, buried in the Netherworld until now. His awakening granted him innate divine abilities, monstrously powerful.”
Shi Hao paused.
According to her, the Dark Divine Son’s body was indestructible, surviving across eras. His flesh retained instinctive techniques from his past life.
“So in his previous life, he was immensely powerful. Even dead, his body remembers,” Shi Hao mused.
Yet he felt no fear. Whether the Six Crown King or the Dark Divine Son, they were still mortal, not immortals. There were ways to fight.
His priority now was strength. Once his path was perfected, even the most dazzling geniuses of history would be no threat.
As he looted the battlefield, Shi Hao eyed the giant tortoise and divine bird with longing. “God-level ingredients… Can I really not eat them?”
In the end, he tried roasting them—only to abandon the attempt midway, repelled by the stench of decay.
Hong Huang retched, complaining bitterly.
Shi Hao’s expression darkened as he glared at the sky. “Useless Netherworld—can’t even serve as food! Worthless!”
Outside, spectators froze.
The Netherworld faction seethed with rage.
Other cultivators and sect elders broke into cold sweat. This kid was downright demonic.
All eyes turned toward the Netherworld’s contingent.
In the void, a bone mountain loomed, shrouded in black mist. The Nether Lord, pale as if untouched by sunlight, exuded a sickly, eerie beauty—but his eyes were terrifying.
Below, every Netherworld clansman glared at the projection of Shi Hao, deciphering his words from his lips.
“Holy medicine!”
Within the minor world, Shi Hao rejoiced.
Looting the battlefield, he found not only Hong Huang’s holy medicine but two more—an unexpected windfall.
What he lacked most now was precisely such divine treasures, brimming with primal essence.
The three holy medicines radiated brilliance, their fragrance intoxicating, dense with primordial energy.
“Could there be an ancient immortal herb garden? Did they want to silence me?” Hong Huang mused, accepting her returned medicine.
“Let’s investigate,” Shi Hao said, light swirling in his palm.
One plant blazed crimson like coral, its aura healing his wounds with every breath. Another, a black vine with hound-shaped leaves, emitted barks as it swayed—a stunning mutation of a once-common spirit herb.
“With these, my dao injuries can heal. I can resume seclusion,” Shi Hao murmured.
But first, he and Hong Huang would scout the ruins—perhaps an ancient herb garden awaited.
Under the blood moon, shadows danced.
The ruins held no structures, only rubble and towering trees, eerie in the crimson light.
In the Immortal Ancient World, no silver moon hung—only this bloody orb, said to be stained by an immortal’s blood in an ancient war.
“Strange…” Hong Huang stared ahead.
At the ruins’ heart, wisps of immortal light rose, painting the sky in dreamlike hues. Faint singing seemed to drift on the wind.
“What’s that?” Shi Hao gasped.
A pristine white tortoise carried a flawless woman in white, gliding through the ruins. A rich medicinal aroma filled the air.
In that moment, both Shi Hao and Hong Huang felt as if they might ascend to immortality.
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