Chapter 1 The Heterogeneous

The heterogeneous races had never been a monolith—in fact, they were more likely to stab each other in the back than stand united. Therefore, it was impossible for such a loose alliance to reach any meaningful conclusions. Hao Ren had listened to the entire meeting without expecting any definite results. He was simply piecing together the causes and consequences of the whole affair, as well as the current situation, from the discussions of these old monsters.

In the ancient times before the rise of humankind, when "gods" from other worlds still ruled this planet, a dangerous force known as the "Shadow of Chaos" appeared. Like the mysterious Nu Ling phenomenon, the Shadow of Chaos brought great trouble to the world with its powerful and strange abilities. It was difficult to destroy and could cause the supernatural races to fight amongst themselves by influencing their minds. Later, these Shadows of Chaos were sealed by several heterogeneous leaders of the ancient era—including Vivian—and entrusted to several great families for safekeeping. As the age of mythology came to an end, the heterogeneous families declined, and only the Ankatelo family remained to guard the Shadows of Chaos. The information about the Shadows of Chaos became vague and unclear over time, and it was now merely a legend for many.

The Shadows of Chaos had disappeared from this world for thousands of years, but recently, the Ankatelo family, responsible for guarding the seal, suddenly lost contact with the outside world, and these shadowy monsters reappeared. The only clue pointed to the Demon Hunters: it seemed that the Demon Hunters had attacked the Ankatelo family and accidentally destroyed the seal. As for the truth… according to Wayne, all the investigators sent to the Ankatelo territory to investigate the situation had either died or gone mad, and no one dared to venture there again for the time being.

That was the whole story. After describing the current situation, the heterogeneous leaders fell into a long period of argument and deadlock.

They agreed on one thing: the Shadows of Chaos were extremely dangerous, so they must immediately investigate the situation of the Ankatelo family and find a way to reseal those shadows. However, they argued endlessly about sending out an investigation team. Each family and sanctuary representative was unwilling to take the lead, and they were even more wary of forming a joint investigation team with other races. Werewolves were unwilling to work with vampires, the undead were unwilling to work with wizards, and the descendants of gods were all lone wolves, unwilling to be with anyone. Moreover, they suspected each other, believing that the other side would definitely stab them in the back, trip them up, steal their kills, steal their equipment, collude with the Demon Hunters, seize territory, and so on…

Worse still, the things the representatives suspected each other of were all true, because that's what they themselves were planning…

Such a discussion could not possibly produce any results. Hao Ren, watching from the sidelines, felt a headache and was amazed at the same time. He couldn't help but whisper to Gene Lucas, "What's going on? How can you still be fighting so fiercely at a time like this?"

"You think this is serious? It's already much better than it was hundreds of years ago," Gene Lucas still had that gentlemanly demeanor, but when he spoke about the internal situation of the heterogeneous races, he was full of irony and self-deprecation. "At least now we can sit at the same table without fighting. We can even thank the recent strange phenomenon of weakening 'innate hostility' for today's meeting, otherwise there would have been bloodshed long ago."

Lili clicked her tongue. "Is that necessary? What a big feud."

"Several races have been fighting for thousands of years, it's impossible for them to suddenly trust each other," Vivian sighed softly. "The main thing is that everyone is afraid to believe that the other side will really cooperate with them. And more importantly, they're worried about the Demon Hunters. According to Hogwarf, there are Demon Hunters active near the Ankatelo family. If this incident was really the work of the Demon Hunters, then the Ankatelo territory should already be under their control. The first to take the lead at this time would almost certainly be cannon fodder. This is no longer the age of mythology. The surviving heterogeneous families today are barely holding on, and they no longer have the strength to confront the Demon Hunters head-on. Even a brave race like the werewolves will avoid the Demon Hunters if they can. Alas…"

Elizabeth curled her lips. "Tsk, how unsightly. Is it so hard to unite? My dad united the whole world back then…"

Before the little demon could finish speaking, her father smacked her back. The great demon was a little embarrassed. "Uh, Dad's example is a bit special, it can't be taken as the norm."

Hao Ren thought so too. Izhaks' method of uniting the world was simply irreplicable. According to his thinking, Vivian would have to run over the whole world before she could take the first step towards racial unity, and it wouldn't be easy to do such a thing on Earth. After all, Hitler tried it once and got himself killed…

Anyway, the heterogeneous races all had their own agendas. Everyone wanted to preserve their strength, but they also wanted someone to stand up and solve the problem of those shadows as soon as possible. The discussion fell into a stalemate. However, Hao Ren had not come here to watch these people bicker. After waiting for the old monsters to argue until their mouths were dry, he suddenly stood up. "Well then, have you all said enough? If you're about done, I have a few thoughts to share."

The old monsters were suddenly interrupted, and they all looked over in confusion, wondering what this "wizard" who had suddenly appeared had to say. In the eyes of many heterogeneous leaders, Hao Ren was an unknown junior. He had no qualifications, no background, and appeared out of nowhere like a monkey brought in as a rescuer. Apart from being said to be the leader of a small sanctuary somewhere in Asia, he had no title, and even that title was just empty words. But such a guy who had suddenly appeared, the famous Vivian Ansester, had entrusted herself to his "sanctuary", which gave Hao Ren a mysterious aura in the eyes of several old monsters. They were full of curiosity about the "wizard" in front of them.

"I know you all have concerns, it's normal to hesitate because the area around the Ankatelo territory is very dangerous right now," Hao Ren said, pointing to a few people beside him. "It's okay if you don't go, anyway, we're going, including Vivian."

The scene was silent for a moment. Wayne looked at Vivian in disbelief. After receiving a slight nod from the latter as a reply, he was even more surprised. "How many people do you have?"

"Just the few you see," Hao Ren pointed to Vivian, Lili, Izhaks, and Elizabeth. "Of course, if the situation requires it, we will call for support. You don't have to worry about manpower."

Hao Ren's "call for support" was based on his hundreds of millions of tenants, but there was no need to explain such things to strangers. After seeing Wayne's ghostly expression, he said before the other party could speak, "We'll take care of our own affairs. If you don't want to go, you can't stop others from going, right? I only have one request—give us a few guides, at least someone who can enter the gate of the Ankatelo territory."

Vivian did not speak throughout the whole process. She was responsible for nodding after Hao Ren finished speaking, indicating that she fully supported him. So the old monsters in the council hall had no other objections, and they all agreed to let Wayne Watt's family contribute a few more guides…

Wayne had already lost several of the most elite Blood Sentinels in his family due to investigating that damned Ankatelo territory, so he didn't want to go again, but he couldn't easily refuse in front of Vivian. Considering that Hao Ren's request was only for a guide, and didn't require sending many people, he reluctantly agreed to the matter. "Alright, I'll prepare guides for you, and I can personally lead you until you enter the Ankatelo territory."

The other family leaders and sanctuary representatives applauded and praised, and everyone was happy.

Hao Ren could only sigh silently in his heart when he saw this situation: This group of people, they are unwilling to investigate together, they don't have the strength to investigate alone, and they suspect each other when lining up to go. With this "alliance" relationship, it's really a miracle that they have persisted until now without being wiped out by the Demon Hunters.

Only then did Vivian finally stand up and say a few words: "After we go, we will try our best to find out the source of the Shadows of Chaos and the method to seal them all, but don't put all your hopes on us. You must pay attention to the safety of your family members. If we fail, then you can only save yourselves."

After saying this, Vivian's slightly stern gaze swept across everyone's faces. After a long time, she spoke: "Don't forget, this is no longer the age of mythology. With the few of you left—you may not be enough for the Shadows of Chaos to kill."

The meeting ended in such a muddled manner. After that, Hao Ren and his group immediately set off for South America.