Xu Yuan had his own temper.
If you refuse to respond when spoken to politely, then I'll just demonstrate my strength first.
Within the Blood Essence Domain, layers upon layers of abilities were stacked—his Battle Armor Domain, Starry Contemplation Technique, Dream Space, and even the domain derived from his mech were all overlaid.
Combined with Xu Yuan's Forbidden Seven Techniques, it could be said that this small area was now under his complete dominion.
The Blood Essence Domain was the Heavenly Origin Five Elements Spear.
Similarly, the Heavenly Origin Five Elements Spear was the Blood Essence Domain.
In other words, Xu Yuan's blood essence was this domain.
"My body is the domain!"
At this moment, Xu Yuan's body seemed to overlap entirely with the domain.
Devouring Heaven and Earth Technique!
This was true Devouring Heaven and Earth!
Having been pushed to the point of devouring Abyssal energy, Xu Yuan saw no harm in taking the opportunity to experiment with some projects he'd been meaning to study.
"This domain has been stacked with so many buffs. Now, I can achieve things that defy imagination—like slightly accelerating the flow of time."
Outside, the Ardent Emperor grew enraged, gathering divine power to send Mu Ye flying before charging toward Xu Yuan.
However, this brief moment equated to a full three minutes within the domain.
Three minutes—more than enough time for Xu Yuan to complete his research.
At this moment, he was the absolute ruler of this small world.
The domain isolated everything. Its devouring power sealed off the edges of the domain, while the Dream Space blurred the boundaries, providing further security.
The Ba Emperor's power hadn't changed.
As Xu Yuan devoured Ba Emperor's energy, he felt as though he might burst. The terrifying Abyssal energy rapidly integrated into his body.
"Ba Emperor's power hasn't decreased, which means the strength he displayed isn't the entirety of his energy reserves."
Xu Yuan understood.
He recalled that in the original story, devouring an Abyssal Emperor would cause the entire layer they ruled over to collapse.
At the time, he hadn't thought much of it. But as his cultivation deepened, he found himself increasingly puzzled.
After all, even a core didn't determine the life and death of an entire plane.
Take the Golden Ancient Tree, for example—a plane core obliterated by the Godslayer Missile. Yet, Douluo Planet hadn't experienced any collective natural disasters afterward.
Even if the Abyss had a unique structure, shouldn't there still be ways to stabilize an empty shell of a collapsed layer? Why did the entire level collapse?
Now, through a simple experiment, Xu Yuan had obtained the answer.
Xu Yuan's soul power surged, quickly advancing him by one rank.
His soul power was now at level ninety-two.
Back when he was in the eighties, the amount of energy required to increase a single rank was already staggering—comparable to the total energy of a Super Douluo.
Yet now, despite absorbing a vast portion of Ba Emperor's energy to ascend from level ninety-one to ninety-two, Xu Yuan still couldn't sense any decline in Ba Emperor's power.
That's right—Ba Emperor's strength had been replenished.
His aura remained at the same level.
"So, it's not that the Abyssal Sage King hoarded most of the plane's power; rather, it's that you lot are simply incapable of fully digesting it," Xu Yuan remarked indifferently.
It wasn't that the Abyssal Sage King left only a small fraction of energy for the other Emperors to maintain their power—it was that these Emperors had already reached their limits in terms of talent and energy allocation.
Unless the entire Abyssal layer advanced, elevating their innate potential as Emperors and allowing them to harness more power, their capacity wouldn't increase.
But that ratio couldn't rise anymore.
As Abyssal Emperors, they inherently possessed at least ten percent of the entire plane's energy.
If they didn't even have that much, their deaths wouldn't have caused the collapse of their respective layers.
The research continued.
Xu Yuan kept devouring Ba Emperor's energy while silently observing the changes within the domain.
With the Dream Space fused with the Blood Essence Domain, this space existed in a half-real, half-illusory state. Xu Yuan himself had merged with the domain, gaining the ability to influence the flow of time. In this state, his perception was terrifyingly acute.
"Indeed, there are remnants—but they've completely become part of my soul power. Outsiders can't manipulate them, so they won't affect me. However, my body is adapting to the Abyss. If I remain exposed to Abyssal energy for too long, my body will gradually adapt. Although the Abyssal Sage King won't be able to directly control me through this energy, he could attempt to descend into my body without facing significant resistance."
Xu Yuan quietly exhaled in relief.
Today's actions were out of necessity.
Previously, he had developed a new type of soul-guided weapon and created a star-energy relay precisely because he feared that directly devouring Abyssal energy might create hidden dangers or provoke the Abyssal Sage King's wrath, leading to a catastrophic situation.
But now, things were different.
The Abyss was striking at the Blood God Legion. If they allowed the Abyss to achieve its goals, the Blood God Legion would suffer heavy losses, and their future efforts to seize the cosmic phenomenon would inevitably falter.
So, he decided to openly reveal his ability to devour Abyssal energy.
Over these years, he hadn't stood still.
Two years ago, he could already slowly absorb Abyssal energy. Now, with the aid of his domain, he devoured it without restraint, achieving astonishing efficiency.
Bursting from overload?
No, that was impossible.
Not only had Xu Yuan fused with the Life Gold, but his current state alone ensured that such an overload wouldn't occur.
At this moment, he was the domain.
From the outside, the domain appeared to expand as it devoured massive amounts of Abyssal energy.
Ba Emperor roared in anger and fear.
He felt his power draining, being permanently stripped away!
Though Xu Yuan had lost his physical form and couldn't continue pummeling Ba Emperor, he maintained absolute dominion over this space, continuously using the spear embedded in Ba Emperor's body to devour his energy.
The spear was the Heavenly Origin Five Elements Spear.
The Heavenly Origin Five Elements Spear was Xu Yuan's blood essence, which was Xu Yuan, which was the Blood Essence Domain.
(TLDR: HOFES = XY's blood essence = XY = Blood Essence Domain)
At this moment, the changes within the domain were extraordinarily exaggerated, forming a bizarre closed loop.
It was akin to battling the Abyssal Sage King within the Abyss itself—even a God King couldn't gain the upper hand.
Since Ba Emperor lacked the ability to break through Xu Yuan's Blood Essence Domain, he couldn't escape Xu Yuan's devouring.
"With all that terrifying energy, yet no idea how to use it—you've wasted it."
Xu Yuan's words pierced like demonic whispers, becoming the death knell for Ba Emperor.
Three minutes later, Ba Emperor vanished from this world.
However, those three minutes were merely three seconds in the outside world.
Ardent Emperor sent Mu Ye flying with a swing of his halberd, unleashing divine power that split Xu Yuan's Blood Essence Domain in two.
The Blood Essence Domain dissipated. Xu Yuan, clad in three-word battle armor, was surrounded by countless mecha components. In his hand was a spear, its tip piercing through the chest of a gaunt Ba An.
Ba An was already devoid of life.
A gaunt Ba An.
This was the first time anyone had such a thought.
Because the corpse dangling from Xu Yuan's spear was no larger than a human child, its flesh seemingly devoured, leaving behind nothing but skin and bones.
The Abyss.
The layer where Ba Emperor resided suddenly collapsed.
If Cao Dezhi were to enter the realm of fundamental perception once again, he would see one platform among the 108-tier pyramid collapsing.
The Ba An clan collectively lost control, roaring and unleashing their primal instincts, wreaking havoc throughout the Abyss.
Their emperor was gone.
"Bastard!" The Ardent Emperor roared in fury, charging at Xu Yuan with his halberd.
Xu Yuan looked at the Ardent Emperor, his expression calm and composed.
Earlier, when suppressing Dark Bell and suddenly sensing this disturbance, his expression had turned grim.
Rushing here to stabilize the situation, his face remained heavy.
Even after trying to talk to Ardent Emperor and receiving no response, he still felt uneasy.
But now, he was composed.
All worries stemmed from insufficient strength.
"The energy within Ba Emperor's body was truly terrifyingly abundant."
Feeling the swelling within his body, Xu Yuan couldn't help but frown.
The Devouring Heaven and Earth Technique activated, swiftly digesting everything.
"I should thank you for helping me shed so much excess."
When the Blood Essence Domain was split open, Xu Yuan cleverly divided the energy into two parts—one he could handle, and the other as surplus. This excess was absorbed by the mech components surrounding his body.
Though technically a black-grade mech, its technology surpassed that of four-word battle armor.
Its intricate arrays made it flawlessly constructed.
Each mech component was both an independent entity and part of the whole mech.
After completing its upgrade, this mech, like three-word battle armor, gained a domain-like soul skill, as if it had condensed its own soul ring.
The domain's ability? Mastery over heaven and earth.
Now, the mech detached from Xu Yuan's body, its components orbiting around him and blending into the surrounding void.
A black halo emerged.
Mastery Over Heaven and Earth Domain.
The Blood Essence Domain expanded once more.
This time, it didn't isolate itself completely but silently permeated every corner.
The Dream Space overlaid.
The Battle Armor Domain overlaid.
The Starry Contemplation Diagram merged within.
Around Xu Yuan's body, rings of soul circles manifested.
Black, Black, Black, Black, Black, Black, Red, Red, Red!
Six black, three red!
The fifth soul ring now seemed to devour all light, its depth boundless.
"Fifth Soul Skill, Star Shift!"
Ardent Emperor's halberd tore through the air. Xu Yuan vanished from his sight in an instant, reappearing far away.
The terrifying force of the attack struck empty space, dissipating into nothingness.
In the next moment, Xu Yuan seemed to transform into Ardent Emperor himself, wielding a phantom halberd and thrusting it forward.
Feeling the divine power emanating from the phantom halberd—his own divine power—Ardent Emperor was utterly shocked.
"How is this possible?"
Xu Yuan said nothing. The phantom halberd had already been thrust forward.
Ardent Emperor swung his halberd horizontally, blocking it with the shaft of his weapon as it collided with the tip of the phantom halberd.
BOOM!
Ardent Emperor was sent flying backward, spinning several times in the air before finally stabilizing himself.
His hands trembled slightly as he looked down at Xu Yuan, who stood calmly holding his spear. A hint of fear entered his gaze.
Just now, he hadn't been prepared to defend in time; otherwise, he wouldn't have fallen into a disadvantageous position during the collision.
Of course, even now, he wasn't eager to retaliate against that strike. After all, he couldn't be certain whether Xu Yuan could continue to neutralize his attack and counter in some unfathomable way.
Mu Ye rose to his feet, ignoring his injuries, and stared at Xu Yuan's direction. He gazed at the figure clad in battle armor, surrounded by hundreds of mech components, standing tall with a spear in hand. For a moment, he felt dazed.
What had just happened?
Why did his previously ordinary disciple suddenly seem so fantastical?
Was that soul skill Star Shift?
Isn't Star Shift supposed to redirect the target of mental-type soul skills?
How could it also reverse Ardent Emperor's physical attack?
And… unless he misunderstood, hadn't Xu Yuan just devoured an Abyssal Emperor?
He really did devour one!
"Now," Xu Yuan's calm voice rang out again, "should we talk?"
This time, his voice carried confidence.
"You have no right to negotiate," Ardent Emperor coldly replied.
Even if you can fight me, do you really think you can resist the Abyss's invasion?
A smirk spread across Xu Yuan's lips.
"You might not know this, but the cosmic phenomenon is an opportunity—a chance for both our planes to seize. However, it's also an opportunity I can decide whether or not exists."
RUMBLE!
Ardent Emperor turned his head toward the entrance of the spatial passage behind him.
At the entrance, cracks covered the entire area.
The spatial entrance itself was on the verge of collapse, threatening to shatter at any moment and unleash spatial turbulence that would drag everything into the dimensional void.
And this was just the entrance. Inside the spatial passage, everything was shaking. The entire channel was beginning to disintegrate. The dense stellar energy accumulated over two years began to dissipate into outer space, and the rules nurtured within were collapsing.
Everything was falling apart!
Suddenly, a surge of power emerged. This dark, terrifying energy seemed to act as a savior within the cosmic phenomenon, stabilizing its collapse and spreading rapidly from one end to the other.
However, even so, the entire space continued to collapse.
This was a collapse at its core.
"Damn it! So the illusion originated from here!" The Abyssal Sage King's voice was filled with rage.
His perception had always extended toward Douluo Planet, sensing everything outside the spatial entrance.
From the moment Xu Yuan devoured Ba Emperor until now, only half a minute had passed—even he hadn't reacted in time.
In fact, when Xu Yuan devoured Ba Emperor, the Abyssal Sage King had been about to act. But at that point, abnormalities had already begun to appear in the cosmic phenomenon, and everything started to collapse.
His power hadn't spread far enough, barely managing to stabilize the collapse of the cosmic phenomenon. Afterward, he quickly mobilized the strength of his true body, allowing it to flow through the spatial passage.
At the same time, he grew greedy. During this period, he attempted to use his Abyssal energy to manipulate the laws of the Abyss and invade the entire cosmic phenomenon, hoping to deepen the Abyss's influence in this space.
However, no matter how hard he tried to increase his share, he couldn't reverse the collapse of the cosmic phenomenon.
Now, he understood everything.
The birth of the cosmic phenomenon relied on the Primordial Dream Space. Even though Xu Yuan had completely reconstructed the space at the time, without absolute control over it, it was still something he had created.
He could easily master it.
After the earlier anomaly, the Primordial Dream Space had dissolved into nothingness, becoming the essence of the entire cosmic phenomenon. It was no longer something ordinary means could sense. Only Xu Yuan, using the Dream Space as a stepping stone in the early stages, had regained partial control over the Primordial Dream Space.
A shadow of the Abyssal Sage King appeared at the entrance of the spatial passage. Ardent Emperor respectfully stepped aside, standing to one side.
"Your name is Xu Yuan? Fine, you've done well!"
The Abyssal Sage King's voice carried a terrifying oppressive force, akin to a hierarchical authority that left no room for resistance.
The Heavenly Origin Five Elements Spear in Xu Yuan's hand dissipated, merging into his body. Mech components surrounding him floated up and down, seemingly negating all pressure.
He calmly met the gaze of the Abyssal Sage King's shadow.
"The opportunity of the cosmic phenomenon—I can compete for it, and you can seize it, each relying on our abilities. Before the phenomenon fully forms, I suggest you refrain from doing what you did today. Otherwise, I won't hesitate to destroy this opportunity. Additionally, the spatial passage will collapse, and the Abyss will lose its chance to devour Douluo Planet after six thousand years of scheming."
Xu Yuan's threat was clear.
Ardent Emperor glared at Xu Yuan, wishing he could impale him with his halberd.
Before the Sage King arrived, this brat dared to act arrogantly, and even now, with the Sage King here, he remained brazen and bold, outright issuing threats!
"Are you threatening me?"
The Abyssal Sage King's voice carried suppressed fury.
Today, he had been threatened by someone who wasn't even at the god level!
An outright, shameless threat.
"I'm merely stating facts. I have the right to do so." Xu Yuan's gaze was calm, his eyes resembling a deep, boundless starry sky.
The Abyssal Sage King's shadow fell silent for a long while.
Even the battles on the other side of the legion had stopped now, as if everyone was waiting for the outcome of this negotiation.
After the battle began, especially when Ardent Emperor appeared from the spatial entrance and invaded, no one expected such a negotiation scenario to arise.
Xu Yuan—he had threatened the Abyss, threatened the Abyssal Sage King, and gained the right to negotiate!
"All those involved in this Abyssal invasion must stay behind. From now on, the Abyss shall not cross the entrance of the passage again. Moreover, before the cosmic phenomenon fully forms, Your Excellency must not personally intervene."
Xu Yuan's tone brooked no argument, firmly asserting these conditions.
"Impossible!" the Abyssal Sage King said gravely.
This Abyssal invasion had already invested heavily. Ba Emperor, Mei Emperor, and Ardent Emperor—just these three Abyssal Emperors represented a massive investment. Add to that the Abyssal energy just injected and the Abyssal army that had spread out.
In the past, it wouldn't have mattered. Xu Yuan hadn't demonstrated the ability to devour Abyssal energy on a large scale. Even if all their forces were left behind, he wouldn't have worried. But now, things were different.
Leaving all these forces behind meant handing over all that energy to Xu Yuan.
"Your Excellency, this war was instigated by you. Since you are now the ones hesitating to make a move, it's only fair to pay the price," Xu Yuan refused to back down.
"Xu Yuan, understand this: Ardent Emperor can commit suicide right now. With my protection, you cannot stop them from returning."
"If the cosmic phenomenon collapses, the Abyss and Douluo Planet will lose all connection." Xu Yuan remained unmoved.
"Even if Ardent Emperor stays, you cannot restrain him."
"He can flee anywhere on Douluo Planet, but he cannot return to the Abyss."
Finally, Xu Yuan's words showed a slight sign of compromise.
The Abyssal Sage King's shadow's gaze flickered.
Though he knew this wasn't Xu Yuan showing weakness—it was just that they had negotiated the finer details.
With this statement, even if he agreed to Xu Yuan's demands, it wouldn't be seen as abandoning his subordinates. Staying on Douluo Planet was just part of a larger plan.
"Your Excellency, I am willing to stay," Ardent Emperor immediately spoke up.
He pondered what staying here could mean.
At first, he had only thought of Xu Yuan's threats to the Sage King and the demands he made. But upon reflection, if he didn't return to the Abyss, Xu Yuan and his group couldn't stop him either.
Xu Yuan's abilities clearly required passive activation. If he was determined to escape, no one could stop him.
In that case, entering Douluo Planet's interior might allow him to accomplish more!
Of course, there was danger—namely, Xu Yuan.
No one could predict how fast Xu Yuan's strength would grow.
Based on Xu Yuan's previous display of abilities, once Ardent Emperor's strength fell short—or, more accurately, once he couldn't resist Xu Yuan's bizarre domain—he might very well be completely devoured.
"All those belonging to the Abyss will stay behind. As for the Holy Spirit Sect's soul masters, I will take them with me."
"Agreed."
Could it be that Xu Yuan was so accommodating on this matter, directly agreeing?
Even the Abyssal Sage King seemed somewhat surprised.
Xu Yuan added, "Neither of us will interfere. Whoever can enter the Abyssal passage on their own may do so."
The Abyssal Sage King smiled.
He gazed deeply at Xu Yuan.
"I see now—you enjoy gambling, and you're unwilling to give up this opportunity."
"After all, it's a chance to ascend in one step. Who would abandon it?"
"Very well. I'll remember today's agreement. Though the cosmic phenomenon collapsed because of your actions, requiring it to be reborn, it has already undergone one cycle of gestation, so the process won't be too slow. You have at most five years."
With that, the Abyssal Sage King's shadow dispersed, and even the Abyssal energy from his fading shadow wasn't reclaimed but instead dissipated into the surrounding environment.
Xu Yuan's eyelids twitched slightly. Silently, he expanded the range of his Blood Essence Domain, preventing the energy from mixing with the ambient spiritual energy.
Cao Dezhi tightened his grip on his Ruthless Sword. Sword qi erupted from the tip, but he still didn't raise his sword.
Ghost Emperor glared at Cao Dezhi and Xu Yuan, circling Cao Dezhi for half a lap before swiftly moving toward the entrance of the spatial passage.
Dark Hummingbird, taking advantage of the shattered mirror light and Zhang Huanyun's diverted attention, made one last desperate attempt. A burst of soul power exploded from him, propelling him toward the entrance of the spatial passage.
Dark Bell, unaffected by Xu Yuan's three spirit companions, also charged toward the passage entrance.
As for the remaining evil soul masters, they were all slain by the Blood Gods, Mu Ye, and Zhang Huanyun.
In the end, only Ghost Emperor, the nearly dead Dark Hummingbird, and the severely wounded Dark Bell Nanali managed to escape into the passage.
Xu Yuan turned his head to look at Ardent Emperor.
Ardent Emperor gripped his halberd tightly, took a deep breath, and flew off into the distance.
"Xiao Yuan, are you alright?"
After Ardent Emperor's departure, Mu Ye left the task of cleaning up the battlefield to others and quickly approached Xu Yuan.
Who knew if everything that had just transpired wasn't just a facade?
After all, everything about it was simply incomprehensible.
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