Ding Yun and the other pioneers were not to be trifled with. With prior precautions in place, while not everyone managed to escape smoothly, most did manage to reach the Demon Realm alive with the help of the Demon Realm Origin Guiding Technique that Ding Yun had prepared for them.
Only a few unfortunate pioneers, whose strength was too low or whose vigilance was insufficient to instantly activate the backup measures Ding Yun had left them, met their unfortunate demise.
Fortunately, though they perished, the resources they had gathered were taken by Ding Yun the moment they died, as the Demon Realm Origin Guiding Technique automatically activated.
However, this was not the end.
Nor did it mean they were safe.
For the Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light did not return or dissipate just because its intended targets had vanished. Instead, it directly pierced the Immortal-Demon barrier and hurtled towards the Demon Realm, seemingly unwilling to cease until its targets were annihilated.
At this point, having only refined half of the Demon Realm Origin, Ding Yun had no choice but to intervene. The Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light, though it lost its tracking ability upon entering the Demon Realm due to Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable lacking management authority over the Demon Realm, thus unable to pinpoint every target precisely, its destructive power remained largely undiminished.
It transformed from targeted attacks to indiscriminate assaults. What was once a threat to specific individuals now meant an unknown number of people were in mortal danger.
Fortunately, Ding Yun already possessed some authority over the Demon Realm. She quickly contained the Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light within a certain range and, using her own Demon Sovereign Origin, mobilized the endless demonic energy of the Demon Realm to form a Yin-Yang Great Millstone with the Holy Light.
Thus, they began to wear each other down.
Although Ding Yun, having not yet broken through, could not mobilize energy with the same level of refinement as the Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light, she had the advantage that the Holy Light entering the Demon Realm was like water without a source, unable to continuously strengthen itself. Therefore, as time passed, Ding Yun, backed by the Demon Realm, gained the upper hand and eliminated the crisis with minimal cost.
Afterward, Ding Yun, without bothering to consider or worry about whether Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable would directly attack the Demon Realm, hurried to continue refining the Demon Realm Origin. After all, no matter when Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable arrived, refining more of the Demon Realm Origin meant a greater chance of victory. Dwelling on whether the opponent would come was utterly useless.
Meanwhile, the Divine Beast clan and the ascenders in the Immortal Realm were still somewhat bewildered. They did not understand what the Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable meant by "outer-realm heavenly demons," mistaking him to be referring to the invading demons. They even thought his actions were a threat, compelling them to surrender.
To be safe, they could no longer afford to ponder. They had to quickly urge their chosen representatives to immediately offer gifts to the Primordial Chaos Imperial Palace and seek peace.
The Nine Great Demon Sovereigns, however, were startled. Seeing so many streams of Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light heading towards the Demon Realm made them feel inexplicably uneasy.
"What should we do? What does he mean by this?"
"The outer-realm heavenly demons… doesn't seem to refer to us…"
"It's too terrifying. Each strand of Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light could probably injure us. The Demon Emperor realm is simply unapproachable; one touch and we'd likely die!"
"Before those streams of Primordial Chaos Supreme Annihilation Holy Light flew towards the Demon Realm, quite a few escape lights seemed to have passed through the Immortal-Demon barrier and gone into the Demon Realm. Could it be that the outer-realm heavenly demons he just mentioned have already escaped to the Demon Realm, or are they beings of our Demon Realm? And what did these outer-realm heavenly demons do?
Why would they undermine the foundations of the Immortal Realm and steal the Immortal Realm's Origin?"
"The trouble now is ours. What do we do? Should we return immediately? Staying here probably won't gain us anything. Perhaps by returning, we can leverage the advantages of our homeland and barely resist. Moreover, we are not without means of mutual destruction, so it's best to leave quickly. To deal with the current Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable, we must return to the Demon Realm and make preparations.
Without trump cards, I truly cannot feel at ease."
"We can't hesitate any longer, retreat immediately…"
Upon witnessing the numerous streams of Holy Light casually unleashed by Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable, each possessing power comparable to their strongest attacks, none of the Demon Sovereigns present harbored any thoughts of resistance. Their sole desire now was to protect their lives.
Thus, their final decision was made quite decisively.
At the same moment, they immediately issued orders to retreat. They even preceded the other demons, taking their trusted subordinates and tearing through space, aiming to return to the Demon Realm as quickly as possible.
Unfortunately, at this point, they were already too late.
For Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable struck again, directly sealing the space in their escape zone, dragging them out of the spatial rifts, and using countless Immortal Realm laws transformed into a law cage to suppress them all and bring them back to the Imperial Palace.
To the Immortals within the Imperial Palace, it appeared as if Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable had disappeared for less than half a moment before capturing and returning all Nine Great Demon Sovereigns. This ghost-like, unfathomable power left them speechless with astonishment, and after a long while, they began to offer congratulations and flattery.
A while later.
The representatives of the Divine Beast clan and the ascenders, Immortal Venerable Taotie and Immortal Venerable Dongxu, entered with trepidation.
Upon seeing the Nine Great Demon Sovereigns bound tightly within the law cage, unable to even move, their hearts sank. If their opponent could effortlessly subdue the Nine Great Demon Sovereigns, then their previous plans of mutual destruction would likely be ineffectual. Now, they were truly at the mercy of their captor, their fate entirely dependent on Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable's mood.
Whether their clans would be wiped out or not rested on his single thought.
Despite their desire for composure, upon witnessing the scene, they had no choice but to bow deeply and perform a grand salutation.
"The two of you need not worry too much. During this breakthrough, I have traversed the River of Time and the River of Destiny. I have come to understand many things and know clearly that some matters are unrelated to your two races.
It was only due to the instigation of someone with ill intentions that such a great calamity was brought about, and that we fell into internal strife. Therefore, this matter will be resolved if you cease your hostilities, become vassals, and provide some compensation.
Not only have I broken through to a higher realm, but I have also successfully grasped the authority of the entire Immortal Realm. From now on, I shall be the Realm Lord of the Immortal Realm, the Heavenly Emperor Supreme.
Of course, this matter is not the most important.
The most crucial point is that I have discovered that many beings among the ascender forces possess a life essence incompatible with our Immortal Realm. To be precise, they differ somewhat from the life forms in the mortal world below, carrying the aura of other worlds no less significant than our Immortal and Demon Realms.
Several major incidents that led to our intense conflicts are related to them. The virus initially targeting the native Immortal clans was developed by them. Later, the virus targeting the bloodline conflicts of the Divine Beast clan, and the integration of the Five Decays of Heaven and Man laws into the Immortal Realm laws, all of them are related to them.
Or rather, they were the ones who orchestrated it all.
Therefore, I refer to them as outer-realm heavenly demons, implying that they are demons from beyond the heavens, invaders.
They are more detestable than the demons of the Demon Realm."
Primordial Chaos Immortal Venerable patiently spoke to this point before turning his gaze to the Nine Great Demon Sovereigns within the law cage and remarking:
"Oh right, you probably don't know this yet, but the Demon Realm no longer has a place for you. The Demon Realm has been occupied by the leader of those outer-realm heavenly demons, the former Demon Sovereign of Seven Emotions.
However, I must thank her. Had she not dominated the entire Demon Realm, even depleting the Demon Realm's Origin to a great extent, indirectly affecting the Immortal Realm,
and causing the Immortal Realm's consciousness to fear her invasion and plunder of the Immortal Realm's Origin, with no one capable of resisting, the Immortal Realm's consciousness would likely not have relaxed its permissions, allowing me to break through smoothly.
Let alone grant me the position of Realm Lord.
The reason I am not killing you is that I wish to enlist you. After all, even if you are demons, you are still demons of our Immortal-Demon Realm, ultimately more familiar than those outer-realm heavenly demons. I can promise you that after we purge the Demon Realm and eliminate all outer-realm heavenly demons, the Demon Realm can still be under your control. You will merely need to submit to our Immortal Realm and pay tribute. What do you think?"
(End of Chapter)