“Why…” Even as Duo Ling spoke, his hand had already been pierced by the beam of light, yet he remained nonchalant, uttering in a deep voice, “…would you be here?”

The moment those words left his lips, his gaze fell upon the end of the hall, where he saw Fu Ling’s figure.

“You’re so good at scheming…” Fu Ling glared at Duo Ling, approaching step by step. “Why don’t you guess…”

“You are strong… but not yet at the level of a Four Pillar God.” Duo Ling pondered as he spoke. “Even if you could defeat the other Spirit Dukes in a one-against-many situation, it would take a considerable amount of time, and… you couldn’t be unharmed like this after the battle.” At this point, his expression changed slightly. “So… someone must have helped you.”

“You guessed correctly…” In that instant, another voice joined their conversation.

Accompanied by the voice, a black stone floating in mid-air appeared before everyone.

The stone was about three cubic meters in size, with a texture similar to crystal. It was irregular in shape, and its surface was adorned with grayish-white patterns.

Although it looked like an inorganic object, it was actually… a creature, named—Wu Xing Mo (Formless Demon).

“So it was you…” Duo Ling looked at Wu Xing Mo, a hint of regret in his tone. “No… I should say, as expected.”

From Duo Ling’s expression and words, it was clear… that he had been wary of Wu Xing Mo for a long time.

Among the Nine Spirit Dukes of the Underworld, Wu Xing Mo had always been the most mysterious. No one knew the limits of its power, and it never revealed its thoughts.

In the past few years, Duo Ling had repeatedly tried to put Wu Xing Mo in dangerous situations, wanting to test how strong the stone really was, but Wu Xing Mo was always able to retreat unscathed in ingenious ways… practically flawless.

“After the last Peak Competition, you suddenly disappeared.” Duo Ling paused for two seconds, then continued to Wu Xing Mo, “To appear here today, standing on Fu Ling’s side… Could it be that you were originally a spy she planted?”

“Heh…” A disdainful laugh echoed from the floating stone. Its voice and tone were comparable to a radio announcer, warm, soft, and even pleasant to listen to. “Duo Ling, don’t underestimate things you don’t understand… you don’t have that kind of strength or qualification.”

As soon as these words came out, Zhuan Xie Zun and Dian He Wang, who were watching from the sidelines, both changed their expressions.

“Who… exactly are you…” Duo Ling also wore a solemn expression. “Or rather… what are you?”

“If you can ‘be crowned as king’ as you wish, you will naturally know.” Wu Xing Mo replied, “But now… who will become the new king is still unknown.”

“Oh?” Hearing this, Duo Ling shifted his gaze back to Fu Ling. “With you… you also want to compete with me for the throne?”

“What a joke!” Fu Ling replied coldly. “You should say that to yourself.” She strode towards Duo Ling, approaching menacingly, and said, “In terms of strength, I was the number one Spirit General under the command of the Underworld Nether King back then… What are you? In terms of qualification, I admit that you used power and conspiracies to defeat and imprison me… after all, it was my own lack of ability. But now… you have betrayed the Nether King and are trying to replace him. I ask, among the upper and lower ranks of the Underworld Spirit Kingdom… who will obey you?”

“Heh… qualification…” Duo Ling sneered. “You still want to discuss so-called legitimacy with me? Utterly boring…” He clenched his fist and shouted, “The most reliable means to make people submit is power!”

“Then…” Fu Ling replied, “let’s have a contest of strength and determine the winner.”

“Hmph…” Duo Ling still sneered. “Fu Ling… after so many years, how come you haven’t made any progress at all?” He spread his hands, gesturing to the four people beside him. “This world… is a world where the winner is king, and the process and means are ultimately explained by the victor… Why should I abandon an advantageous situation and engage in that kind of one-on-one, duel-style contest with you?”

“Because…” At this moment, Wu Xing Mo spoke, “this is Feng Bujue’s intention.”

“You said… what?” That name seemed to possess magic, causing Duo Ling’s expression to change drastically.

“Isn’t what he said clear enough?” At this moment, Dian He Wang, standing to the side and behind Duo Ling, suddenly interjected with an icy tone.

“Hehehe…” Zhuan Xie Zun, on the other hand, laughed. “You… are too young…” He shook his head and said to Duo Ling, “You have both ambition and ruthlessness, but unfortunately… you are not cunning and thorough enough.”

“What do you mean? What do you mean by this!” Duo Ling’s voice instinctively rose, because an emotion called “fear” was faintly rising in his heart.

“Don’t you understand?” Wu Xing Mo said, “Why would I appear on the battlefield between Fu Ling and the Spirit Dukes? Who else could have told me this information in advance…?”

Hearing these words, Duo Ling’s mind buzzed, and a surge of anger welled up in his chest.

“In other words…” At this moment, Taliohum still maintained his composure. He used his usual, sinister tone and continued, “While Feng Bujue was setting up the situation for us to encircle and suppress the Nether King, he also set up another layer of calculation outside of this situation…” As he spoke, he looked at Zhuan Xie Zun. “Old Zhuan… you and He Wang are also involved in this, right?”

“That’s right,” Zhuan Xie Zun replied leisurely. “We knew about Feng Bujue’s arrangements in advance; on the one hand, he allowed Duo Ling to instigate that plan of luring the tiger away from the mountain and using a knife to kill someone, and on the other hand… he allowed Wu Xing Mo to lurk in the dark, and after Duo Ling left the battlefield, he would take action to help Fu Ling.” He stroked his beard and smiled (Zhuan Xie Zun’s image at this moment was that of an old white-haired and bearded mage), and turned to Duo Ling and said, “Hehe… thinking of replacing the position of the Four Pillar Gods, how could it be so easy? Duo Ling, on your road to being crowned king… Fu Ling is an unavoidable obstacle that you must overcome, and you must rely on yourself to step over it.”

“Okay, let’s not say anything extra… There are a total of seven people here. If we really start fighting, it would be three of you from the Phantom Demon Church against four of us. Weigh it carefully…” Two seconds later, Dian He Wang took the opportunity to continue, “Duo Ling, Feng Bujue’s intention is… whoever wins between you and Fu Ling can ascend to the throne. You yourself said—the most reliable means to make people submit is power. Then… use your power to pioneer the future.”

“Damn it…” At this moment, Duo Ling was trembling all over, unable to contain his anger. “That Feng… you schemed against me…”

“Alright, don’t put on that defeated look before the fight even starts.” Samodier said something fair to his ally at this time, “Feng Bujue’s approach… also has a certain amount of reason.” As he spoke, he had already retreated to the side, “Wanting to replace a god is not so easy… A status that is not earned by paying the corresponding price will usually not last long.”

“Heh… well said.” Taliohum also immediately stated his attitude, “Duo Ling, whether you will become an existence that surpasses us, or perish here… let us witness it together.”