"The final piece of the map is finally complete."
In the conference room.
Xu Cheng gazed pensively at the massive wall-sized map of the continent before him. He tapped the last empty spot — the Douling Empire. A servant promptly added the Douling map piece to the wall, completing the full view of the continent.
[Ding! Congratulations, Host, on unifying the continent. You have achieved an unprecedented feat and earned the title: "Emperor of the Ages." As a reward, you are granted the design blueprint for a Level 15 Star-Annihilation Cannon, the final form schematics for an interstellar battleship, and the structural analysis of a spatial storm. Please collect your rewards~]
[Our future lies among the stars and the sea. After unifying the Douluo plane, even vaster realms await your exploration. Save those suffering in fire and blood, oppressed by all races…]
Finally.
Xu Cheng let out a long breath.
Satisfying!
He immediately opened the blueprints.
The Star-Annihilation Cannon, a truly epoch-defining doomsday weapon, needed no explanation. Once developed, a civilization would move from the galactic stage to the cosmic level. The final version of the interstellar battleship came with quantum leaps in warp drive, capacity (for mechs and personnel), and all-round improvements (energy, defense, etc.).
But most importantly—
The spatial storm analysis!
As expected from the system, just two glances at the diagrams had Xu Cheng dizzy with information overload. Suppressing his excitement, he knew this would become the core research focus of the entire Sun-Moon Empire aside from the Star-Annihilation Cannon.
Spatial storms had long been a thorn in his side — now he finally had the confidence to face them.
Even in the God Realm, spatial storms demanded extreme caution. Thankfully, time was on their side.
One day in the God Realm equaled a year in the mortal world.
Ten years until the spatial storm arrived — in mortal terms, three to four thousand years to prepare. With the full strength of the Sun-Moon Empire devoted to it, four millennia should be enough to minimize losses, if not completely master it.
"But…"
Xu Cheng paused in thought.
Building a Star-Annihilation Cannon or interstellar battleship in just days? Impossible — even if the entire empire exhausted its resources.
So the upcoming Abyss Plane incursion couldn't be used as a training field for the Sun-Moon Empire.
The Abyss was home to divine-level beings. If one acted, the Sun-Moon Empire wouldn't even have time to retreat — the loss would be catastrophic.
There's only one option left… use nuclear weapons.
Sorry, Abyssal Lord. I wanted to play nice, but without the right cards, I can only call in a few first-level deities.
BOOM—
A thunderous rumble snapped Xu Cheng out of his thoughts. He looked up through the towering glass windows.
What had been a clear blue sky now darkened. A pitch-black vortex, like a black hole, formed overhead.
In the distance—
The black hole resembled an inverted Nine-Layered Hell. Countless Abyssal creatures loomed within each level, glaring hungrily at the Douluo Star below, ready to descend at a command.
"What… is that?!"
"Is hell descending to the mortal world?!"
"Are beings from another plane invading us?!"
Countless citizens of the Douluo Plane looked skyward, stunned speechless.
Some aged scholars recognized the signs. The Douluo Star had ancient secret realms that connected to other planes.
The Abyss Plane — clearly hostile — was here.
Thousands of years from now, it would nearly annihilate the continent. Humanity would barely survive at the cost of immense sacrifice. Its terrifying legacy was well known.
In a corner of Mingdu…
A shabby figure, carrying a wine gourd and a chicken leg, stared dumbly at the sky. The half-eaten drumstick slipped from his hand unnoticed.
His face trembled, eyes red with emotion.
"It's here. It's finally here!"
"Our chance for revenge has come!"
Beside him, Xian Liner was also in tears. A month ago, they'd learned that many factions on the original continent had been wiped out. Even Shrek hadn't been spared. Ancestor Ayin had perished. The Sea God Pavilion elders were dead.
He'd wanted to rush out for vengeance.
But he held back.
They were Shrek's last hope. The Sun-Moon Empire might be arrogant and dismissive — but…
They would make them pay for underestimating Shrek.
Beibei stared silently at the sky, lost in thought.
But they were alone.
"Where's Cao Jin Xuan? Where's Zhou Sichen? Wait — why are you the only one left from the Academy team?!" Xian Liner shouted angrily.
"They've all left," Beibei replied calmly.
"While you were negotiating with the Sun-Moon Empire, their families sent word to recall them. With the old powers destroyed, they saw no hope and defected to the winning side."
He wasn't surprised. Even his best friend Xu Sanshi's betrayal had left him disillusioned. So the departure of these less-close classmates didn't shock him.
"Bastards…" Xian Liner cursed.
Her husband, mother, colleagues, even the Soul Tool Academy she built — all gone within a month.
Revenge was her only reason to live.
"No time for talk. With or without them, it changes nothing," Xuanzi said coldly. He glanced at Beibei, a flicker of warmth in his eyes.
"Shrek Academy is gone. We must cooperate with the Abyss Plane and inflict unspeakable damage on the Sun-Moon Empire to force him to act… only then can we rebuild on the ruins."
He looked out at the confused civilians of Mingdu.
"We do not need mercy. No more talk of sparing innocents."
"Mingdu must become a living hell."
He gritted his teeth, eyes bloodshot.
"Only then can we avenge Shrek's dead!"
He took a deep breath.
"Once the Abyss begins its attack and chaos erupts, that's when we strike! Don't hesitate about civilian casualties — kill your way straight to the imperial palace!"
Just as he gave the command—
The Abyss Plane moved.
With a simple wave from a shadowy figure, countless Abyssal creatures flooded down like a tsunami onto the Sun-Moon Empire.
"What a bountiful planet…"
The Abyssal Lord looked down arrogantly, licking his lips with greed.
"If I can conquer and devour it, I'll be even closer… to becoming a God King."
He sensed no danger here. Not even a single god-level entity.
A planet like this could only serve as prey in the Dark Forest of the universe.
Even that so-called "metal box" hadn't appeared — perhaps it had fled out of fear?
No… wait!
His eyes narrowed.
If those humans had escaped via spaceship… wouldn't that expose my location later?
These humans were evolving frighteningly fast. He grew uneasy. If they returned in millions of years, evolved and enraged…
He didn't fear resistance — not unless they reached godhood — but what if they fled now?
That would be a problem.
No matter — he'd devour this world first. Afterward, he'd track them down. A month isn't long; they couldn't have gone far.
But just then—
Screams echoed below.
The city of Mingdu was shrouded in a thin energy barrier. But the true counterattack came not from it — but from a real silver dragon that had suddenly appeared.
"ROAR!!!"
A deafening dragon's cry shook the heavens.
Elemental tides surged from the dragon's mouth, devouring the Abyssal army by the tens of thousands per second like a divine scythe of death.
"A silver dragon?!!"
The Abyssal Lord was stunned. Why was there a true dragon — and such a rare one — defending humans?
In the universe, dragons weren't rare. They ruled many star systems, often at the top of the food chain — with humans as prey.
But why protect humans here?!
"No… RUN!"
The dragon's slitted eyes locked onto him with terrifying pressure. He shuddered and turned to flee.
This adult silver dragon was at least a first-level deity, maybe even comparable to a God King. To him, just at the threshold of godhood, this was a dimensional crush.
Then—
The sky rippled.
Several figures appeared, blocking his escape, their mocking eyes fixed on him as they sealed the space.
The Abyssal Lord began to tremble.
Not from excitement.
But from pure terror.
Each of these new arrivals rivaled the silver dragon in power — all first-level deities.
What kind of place is this?!
He'd thought this planet was prey.
Turns out… it was bait.
He remembered a strange spatial ripple earlier — one that shouldn't exist on a godless world. He had thought it was random.
He'd been wrong.
He was the butterfly that flew into a spider's perfect web.
"Mother… I've failed you…"
He slowly closed his eyes.
These beings likely weren't even the strongest on this planet — the silver dragon's bearing hinted at multiple God Kings above her.
There would be no vengeance.
"At least you know your place," said Greed, curling his lips. "But a mere ant dares bark at our master? You deserve death."
This foreign invader was barely stronger than a divine priest. He wasn't even a third-level deity.
"Finish it. Don't waste our master's time," said Envy coldly.
"I alone am enough," sneered Pride.
Then, at a single snap of his fingers—
The Abyss Plane that had just arrived, collapsed like paper. The Abyssal Lord, cursing the name of whoever had set him up, vaporized in 0.1 seconds.
Back in Mingdu…
Xuanzi, Xian Liner, and Beibei had just burst from their quarters, preparing to slaughter their way through the city.
But then they stood dumbfounded—
The Abyss army was being swallowed by a silver dragon.
Then several true deities appeared, grinding them to powder.
As Sun-Moon defense forces arrived, Xuanzi's mouth twitched.
"What the hell are we even doing…"
It wasn't hard to guess. If that man had acted, he'd have waited until the Abyss destroyed the Sun-Moon Empire first.
But these gods were clearly protecting the empire — even appearing somewhat servile.
So, the Sun-Moon Empire… had backing from the God Realm?
And opposing the one we sided with.
Victory belongs to the skies.
Now it was clear. They'd never stood a chance.
Xuanzi exchanged a look with the others.
"Kill."
They had nothing left to lose.
Later…
"Your Majesty, the Shrek trio — Sea God Pavilion Head Xuanzi, Soul Tool Department Dean Xian Liner, and inner court student Beibei — have all been executed. Xuanzi tried to self-destruct but was crushed by the Silver Dragon King. No casualties were sustained."
"The invaders never breached the cities. They were destroyed in the sky by the divine beings. This is a victory worthy of the history books…"
Xu Cheng listened quietly.
The affairs of the continent… were now settled.
Now, only one goal remained:
Godhood.
(End of Chapter)