The heavy, resonant voice grew louder, booming through the Demon Lock Tower and echoing across Mount Shu.
Inside the sacred grounds of Shu Mountain—
the elders meditating in their secluded halls were jolted awake by the deafening sound.
"What's happening?!" one of them barked, jolting upright.
"Who dares disturb Shu Mountain's peace?!"
"I'm not sure," another elder replied grimly.
"The sound came from the Demon Lock Tower."
"Let me see..."
The Grand Elder, Qing Wei, waved his sleeve.
A water mirror formed midair, revealing the scene at the tower's summit.
A woman in crimson robes knelt before a crudely built stone altar, praying fervently.
Qing Wei's brow furrowed.
"It's her. Red Kwai..."
Standing nearby, Elder Cang Gu scowled.
"That sword spirit has fallen to the demonic path! She dares sacrifice all living beings to some evil god!"
"Wait," another elder, the strategist You Xuan, interjected.
"Doesn't it strike you as odd?
Where did Red Kwai gain such overwhelming power?
The Demon Lock Tower hasn't had a new evil imprisoned in years."
The five elders exchanged uneasy glances.
They knew Solanum—once a princess of Jiang Nation—whose soul had merged with the Demon Sword after death.
Sealed inside the tower to prevent her from succumbing to darkness, now she was split into two beings: Solanum and Red Kwai.
And now, Red Kwai had apparently forged a connection with a dark, ancient power.
The worst part was...
Even knowing this, they had no way to stop her.
Opening the Demon Lock Tower manually was impossible.
It would unleash sealed terrors far worse than Red Kwai alone.
Qing Wei spoke calmly, his tone grave.
"Prepare the great defensive formation.
We must not let this evil spirit escape.
If she succeeds... the world will plunge into chaos."
Cang Gu frowned.
"Isn't that a little extreme?
The Demon Lock Tower's defenses are nearly impregnable.
Not even immortals can break free once sealed inside."
You Xuan gave him a cold look.
"Have you forgotten... that thing?"
Cang Gu shuddered.
How could he forget?
Decades ago, when they were still young and arrogant, the five elders had foolishly used forbidden techniques to purge their own evil thoughts.
Those evil remnants—corrupted by their own greed and ambition—merged into a nightmarish creature.
A fusion of five monstrous souls.
Even now, the memory of that abomination haunted them.
If it awakened—and joined forces with Red Kwai—the consequences would be catastrophic.
Qing Wei's voice was sharp.
"No mistakes. Begin the sword formation."
Above the Demon Lock Tower, countless swords materialized, weaving into a dense canopy of cold light.
Brilliant streams of sword qi descended like a waterfall, sealing the tower from the outside.
Inside, Solanum looked up at the raging storm of energy overhead, her eyes wide with terror.
"We've been discovered!" she whimpered, clutching her knees.
But Red Kwai remained calm, focused entirely on her chanting.
The crushing sword energy rained down, but it did not disturb her at all.
At that moment—
in a deeper corner of the Demon Lock Tower—
an ancient figure stirred.
The Evil Sword Immortal.
He snapped awake, sensing the overwhelming spiritual pressure.
"Those damn old geezers again," he growled.
"Every few centuries, they can't help but poke the beehive..."
His sinister mind stretched outward—and soon, he detected Red Kwai's presence.
A twisted smile crept across the Evil Sword Immortal's face.
"Interesting... A spirit like hers could be useful."
Disguising his aura, he began drifting toward her, hiding his sinister intentions.
Meanwhile, in the World of the Gods—
Lucian Carter was quietly studying divine arts when he sensed the birth of a new altar.
He paused, feeling the powerful ripple through the layers of the multiverse.
"Hmm... this world's reaction is strong.
It must be Solanum's doing.
Or perhaps... it's time to show these so-called immortals what a true god is."
Lucian's gaze pierced through the endless Sea of Chaos.
World after world passed by, each one thin as mist before his eyes.
It took him less than thirty seconds to lock onto the Immortal Sword World.
Compared to other worlds he had encountered, this one was sturdier—
but to him, it was still just a minor obstacle.
"Impressive... but still insignificant."
His divine will condensed into a single sharp point and stabbed through the world's barrier.
Inside Shu Mountain—
the five elders felt the sudden shift in the heavens.
Their faces blanched as they looked skyward.
A colossal figure now loomed over the world.
A voice, ancient and terrifying, rumbled across the heavens:
"Before I was born, the world did not exist.
Before time flowed, I watched in silence.
I am the Eternal God."
Mountains shuddered.
Rivers trembled.
All living beings—humans, demons, spirits alike—fell prostrate, overwhelmed by primal terror.
At the summit of the Demon World's fortress, the demon king Chonglou stared upward.
Cold sweat poured down his face.
He, who feared nothing and no one, now felt his heart seize with dread.
"What... what is this being?" he whispered.
"Even more terrifying than Scaboo, the strongest fighter in history..."
The skies themselves turned golden, bathed in the Eternal God's divine light.
The six realms—
the human world, demon world, spirit world, immortal world, ghost world, and devil world—
all felt the presence of something far, far beyond their comprehension.