Duality of Shadows-Chapter 945: Enjoying Life
At the center of the Yinblood Sect’s building, a cluster of runes suddenly materialized, and from within them, the whale appeared.
Alm and Bruno were exhausted, but a massive wave of faith power surged toward them. They absorbed it immediately, using its energy to force the laws to help them recover. Within minutes, they took a deep breath and pulled out the Eraser hammer.
They could perfectly sense everything inside their inventory and knew time was against them. The people inside couldn’t stay there for long, and at that very moment, the Chaos Tree was withering, rapidly losing its vitality.
Without hesitation, they headed to the Underworld. There, they thought about the system.
[Accept rewards?] [Yes / No]
They accepted right away. Thankfully, they knew the Chaos Tree could perfectly absorb celestial energy. Now, this was precisely the solution they needed.
Suddenly, in that empty, Yin-filled Underworld, the heavenly laws surrounded them with a destructive aura.
The whale’s eyes gleamed. They had faced many terrifying tribulations since restarting in this universe. In fact, they’d taken advantage of these tribulations a few times, though it had always been incredibly dangerous, and they’d nearly died several times.
"Now, you’re just a meal that came at the perfect time."
**BOOM!!!**
A vast area in the Underworld, as large as the queen’s entire universe, was consumed by a sinister and furious sound. It felt as though the heavenly laws were locked in a deadly battle against their worst enemy.
And it wasn’t wrong to think that. At that moment, a round figure was ferociously devouring all the tribulation’s power. Not even the clouds were spared. The heavens tried to punish them and attacked relentlessly, but by now, the laws governing the world and mortals meant nothing to them.
In just one hour, it was over. Only a round figure remained, completely untouched, with its body pulsing in an ethereal glow.
’It’s ridiculous. We’re indestructible now, but this defies all the heavenly laws’ expectations, which is why they don’t know how to handle us and keep attacking,’ Bruno murmured calmly.
Meanwhile, Alm focused on their internal universe. The Chaos Tree had absorbed everything as if it were the best nourishment possible.
Alm concluded, ’We might have about a dozen years until the energy runs out. Common resources are useless to the Tree; to sustain this universe, we’ll have to keep cultivating as fast as possible.’
For a regular cultivator at their level, taking a thousand years to advance in cultivation was still considered fast. The higher the realm, the longer it would take.
They felt the changes in their bodies. They were now in the Divine King Realm, the tenth divine cultivation realm. Even so, despite all the alterations in their bodies, when they were out of energy in their full physical form, their power remained identical to before.
However, they instinctively knew that as they advanced in their cultivation and regained more energy for their body and soul, their capabilities would increase exponentially.
’Our power limit is tied to cultivation, both conventional and physical,’ Bruno murmured. ’There must be benefits even without energy in this form. Probably the Complete Knowledge of the Universal Heavenly Laws we got from the optional quest will help us figure this out.’
They had amassed countless points to spend, along with a ton of extra resources. They needed to organize everything as best as possible. On top of that, they had to find time to study and cultivate.
But time wasn’t on their side, and the queen certainly wouldn’t let this event go without retaliation.
The hammer struck again. By using the celestial soul, they could enter and exit the queen’s universe with hardly any disruptions. However, this time, Alm and Bruno felt a subtle danger upon their return, one that was gradually intensifying.
’It’s not concrete yet, but the queen must’ve sent her heroes back into the universe. They’re on alert, and we won’t be able to enter and exit so easily anymore,’ Alm stated coldly.
They returned to the Yinblood planet. This time, everyone felt their arrival and rushed toward the building.
Mistie was the first to arrive, her expression tense: "The heroes... they appeared in droves. They’ve also summoned all the major sects in the universe for some work. Afterward, a grand meeting will be held."
Alm and Bruno grew serious upon hearing this. If the immortal heroes focused on their allies, they’d realize there was no mind control over them. While the control on the people of this universe was subtle, they’d recently discovered it could be extremely dangerous.
In the events with the Leviathan earlier, the immortal heroes hadn’t wasted time analyzing the young ones taking the trial. But this meeting would be entirely different. Surely, they knew their enemy was infiltrated and would handle everything meticulously. The queen had a tendency to act that way.
"When is this meeting?" the whale asked seriously.
Mistie, sensing the tension and danger in their gaze, swallowed hard: "First, they’ve demanded everyone turn in resources; they’re building a grand formation. The amount of resources is as massive as an entire planet. They said this will be the new temple of the Sacred Goddess."
"But since there was a recent war, everyone burned through their resources and lost their treasures. No one has much to offer now, so they’ll probably mobilize to gather resources... considering the amount of high-level resources needed, I’d say everything will be ready in about two years, and the meeting will happen then."
Alm and Bruno scoffed. That previous war was proving useful now. Taking their time to finish everything and wearing everyone down slowly had been crucial.
"Summon all our allies quickly; the final war is about to erupt." The whale spoke firmly, and Mistie’s gaze wavered at the weight of those words.
"All of you must pretend to assist the heroes, but avoid meeting them at all costs. If an immortal hero focuses on you, you’ll be exposed and killed. We’re all walking the edge of death now."
They took a deep breath before concluding, "When that formation is completed, and everyone is forced to attend the meeting, that’ll be the key moment. Obviously, if you can find a way to delay the resource gathering and slow them down, that’d be perfect."
Mistie’s eyes shone with determination, and she responded promptly, "I’ll gather everyone immediately!"
With a swift motion, she flapped her wings and flew off. When the whale turned, he noticed all his generals present, their faces tense after hearing everything.
"Our time is running out," they said, looking calmly at everyone. "But... we’ll deal one final heavy blow before leaving this place and starting the war. Prepare yourselves. The peaceful moments you’ve used to recruit and train are over. Now, we either point our blade to kill—or die."
"YES!"
Everyone stared at that round figure, feeling an immense sense of security emanating from him. Something about him was vastly different from before, as if they were in the presence of something indescribable. Their hearts and souls wavered under the intensity of his aura.
Alm and Bruno could feel his influence on them, too. With the changes to their bodies combined with their celestial soul, he was far beyond just a cultivator or pseudo-immortal. He had become something else—something above even the very laws that govern all living beings.
They nodded, and the inventory opened. Soon, the goddess Fey emerged, looking surprised.
"This is the planet the Fey created to live together. I’ve already shared your Dao with everyone, but now you can help them even more," the whale said, and she nodded, understanding.
"Your Dao uses the Fey bloodline to connect with the environment’s laws. Almost all the Fey who learned the Dao can manipulate the five natural laws. But can you do it with time-space?"
Anizu nodded. "Yes, that’s the pinnacle of my Dao." After speaking, she quickly realized what he was aiming for. "On this planet, with billions of Fey together... if they all cultivate my Dao to a decent level, I can use their bloodline, and together... yes, I can influence the entire planet. Outsiders wouldn’t notice anything unless they enter."
"Good. We have at most two years. That’s very little time. Everyone already has your Dao, as I said before. I need you to lead the Fey and find a way to make time flow differently on this planet," the whale said calmly.
She nodded. "I’ll do my best... but I think it’ll be tough to pull off in such a short time..."
"Just try. You’re underestimating the Fey on this planet," he said, turning and heading into the building.
Anizu was a bit confused but, minutes later, fully understood those words, utterly astonished.
Everyone on this planet was anything but ordinary cultivators. They had been living under that figure’s influence for a while now, receiving his attention, support, and training methods. She quickly became emotional; her race and this entire sect were terrifyingly powerful.
Meanwhile, Alm and Bruno focused on the inventory. Soon, Ruri appeared with an excited look. "I’ve spoken with everyone, Master. The nine-star tree is studying the Tree of Chaos as if it’s a sacred treasure. Everyone’s excited, but... even though the entire universe has been moved, the natural laws of the place are a level lower than before. Not to mention... there’s no Qi for them to cultivate."
"This is temporary. All the laws in that place come from the Tree of Chaos. Right now, I’m focusing its power to keep them alive there. But the primordial sun can be used by the Gaias. They’ll convert everything into Qi for the inhabitants. Also, all the planets have received astronomical amounts of life essence. In a few years, once the Gaias absorb their gains, all of them will become worlds no smaller than planet Alpenglow."
Alm and Bruno reflected on this. Time now passed the same way in that universe as in the world they were in. This meant everyone there would have to spend at least ten years with their cultivation stagnated until the Gaias absorbed everything and began generating Qi for the inhabitants.
"Well, this is an opportunity for them," they murmured, turning their attention to Liumi, who was in the inventory, visibly excited by all the company.
"Pass along my order. During these ten years, since cultivation will be stagnant, they must focus on increasing their numbers. I’ve got a few billion souls to reincarnate who were slaves of the queen... but... I think we won’t have enough time. Humanoid races create a lot of barriers with these things..."
Ruri also chimed in softly, "That won’t be a problem. The religion of planet Pristine has spread to all the others, Master."
"Hm? Is there a difference?" they asked, confused.
Ruri smiled brightly. "In our first home, Master and I are always worshiped together in the statues. Everyone understands that we’re a couple; Master is known as the ruling God... and I’ve become something like the goddess of love and fertility. It’s complicated, but apparently, everyone who follows the religion feels inclined to pair up because of this. If I give a few words... I think there won’t be enough souls to be born in this era."
Alm and Bruno sighed but admitted this would be extremely useful. Ruri had brought billions of souls, which were the specters sealed in that place. They were already integrated into the reincarnation cycle, only needing bodies to be born into.
In ten years, in that universe that gathered all the primitive races of the micro-universe, now added with endless mutants and an entire planet of Charming Eyes race people, an incredible army was about to emerge.
The couple moved to that location; many things needed to be organized.
Alm and Bruno focused on recovering Nayr, Hibria, and all the mutant Draconic Beasts. They didn’t need to deal with Emppu, since everyone on the planet had already been fully healed before. Now, they were safe. The Nine Stars Tree would visit all the inhabitants of that place to evaluate them thoroughly.
Ruri handed the Nine Stars Tree the key that allowed access to all the small worlds filled with treasures. And they would also explore the resources of the Alpenglow planet. That planet, without God Gaia, was dead, and its population would be redistributed to other planets, helping promote a blend between the peoples.
The Nine Stars Tree would be responsible for teaching the rules to the newcomers. They came from diverse origins, but the local religion worked as an efficient filter.
If anyone wasn’t part of the faith, it would be obvious to everyone, who would stay alert to their movements. To be accepted by the religion, one needed at least an average karma. In a few years, those with bad intentions would be naturally eliminated or would die. All the good things in that place were only delivered to the faithful. Without access to resources or influence, they would become irrelevant.
Muham had been eliminated when Alm and Bruno drained the sacred power from everyone on the Alpenglow planet. Being a hero, almost all his soul was imbued with that power, which made him disappear once it was removed from him. As for Dijinn, he had been killed earlier, during the emergency attack against the invader.
It was no surprise to discover that Dijinn wasn’t truly imprisoned after the tournament; that had been a farce. Once the event ended, he was cured and recovered in a few days, only to be eliminated afterward. Such was the world of cultivation: the strong were the law, and nothing would truly happen to them.
Then they healed the immortal elf, and the Nine Stars Tree said it would take care of her to recover her body perfectly.
After settling those matters, the couple turned to Caipora and the Tarrasque, who, now recovered, existed only as divine souls.
"Don’t worry about us," Caipora said calmly, standing beside the Tarrasque. After everything that had happened, the two finally decided to admit they were together. "This Primordial Sun... we can absorb it slowly. Our body is made of primordial energy, remember? We can rebuild it with this power. Of course, this will take time, and the body will be fragile, almost powerless. Once we manage, we’ll have to start cultivating from scratch."
Alm and Bruno listened attentively, but soon something crossed their minds. They focused... and in a small corner of that universe, they felt a fragile, lonely fragment floating in the midst of emptiness and the laws of chaos.
They approached and found what remained of Behemoth’s soul. It had been brought along with the universe.
"We managed to solve everything in time, before it was completely destroyed..." Alm murmured dryly.
Ruri, however, laughed, noticing the obvious relief in his voice as he saw it. Now, Behemoth was just an insignificant fragment, completely unconscious and powerless. He had worked hard to keep the place sealed.
The two took that soul and conceived an audacious idea. With the Chaos Tree still not fully formed, they already had the possibility to alter reality. Now, being the will of the heavens of that place, and having the decree of the heavens’ will...
"Would this work?" Bruno murmured curiously.
They focused intensely...
Soon, the small fragment of Behemoth began to pulse, as if the laws were shaping something in it. Caipora and Tarrasque also felt the same phenomenon and widened their eyes in disbelief at what they sensed.
After a few minutes, Alm and Bruno opened their eyes. "It’s done..."
Without delay, they moved to the now inert Alpenglow planet. They placed Behemoth’s soul in the core, where the soul of God Gaia had once resided.
The two, satisfied, turned to Ruri, who was confused. "We altered the rules for him and that couple of idiots. Now, Behemoth will be able to be reborn using the laws of the planet’s land, consuming everything around him to form a new body. It will be like an incubator. When he’s reborn, he’ll be a new Behemoth, without the previous cultivation restrictions. He and the other two will be able to reach the level of a Chaos Dragon or beyond... but if this idiot wastes the opportunity, I’ll kill him myself out of rage."
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Alm finished, imagining that lazy one spending his days eating, sleeping, and enjoying life without appreciating the gift he had just received.
"Now, let’s move to the main part," the whale said, pulling out two items from the Primordial Chaos, completely covered in golden runes.