Chapter 1568: Making a Move! Becoming the Captain!

Chapter 1568: Strike! Become the Captain!

Zhou Shiyi watched the scene unfold, his lips twitching slightly.

At last, he understood what kind of copy Zhou Shiyi was—this split soul, this phantom of the original.

A copy of boldness, or more bluntly, a copy of arrogance! Only such a soul could act with such raw, unthinking aggression.

Still, one couldn't deny it.

Though reckless, this action proved remarkably effective.

He could clearly see that the numerous deities present—especially the Saint Scale·Shadow Dragon Sovereign—had already begun to flush with heat.

Yet, aside from the Saint Scale·Shadow Dragon Sovereign, no other deity had reacted with anything beyond restraint.

After all, they had all witnessed the powerful beings standing behind Zhou Shiyi—the Supreme Gods and Sovereigns themselves.

Plus, with Sokhi and Hank—two near-omnipotent willful beings—any advantage in their clash would by no means be guaranteed.

Thus, they all turned their gaze toward the Saint Scale·Yōlong God Sovereign.

As the leader of the Saint Scale Treasure Hunt team, his duty extended beyond ordinary treasure-seeking; in times of crisis, he was expected to step forward and stand as their protector.

Otherwise, who would acknowledge him as their leader?

Indeed.

The Saint Scale·Yōlong God Sovereign stepped forward with a darkened expression, speaking coldly:

"What do you mean?"

Zhou Shiyi grinned widely, tugging at his ear, boasting arrogantly, "Are you deaf, then?"

"What I said earlier—never repeated."

"If you can't hear it, then I shall... fight you until you understand!"

The words had barely finished echoing.

Zhou Shi directly swung his sword forward.

An unimaginably terrifying nine-colored sword aura burst forth, instantly enveloping the Saint Scale·Yōryū God Sovereign.

The Saint Scale·Yōryū God Sovereign's face instantly contorted.

Upon sensing the lethal threat emanating from that terrifying nine-colored sword aura, he felt a deep, primal sense of impending doom.

Such a feeling—this ancient, primal dread—had not been experienced by him, a top-tier quasi-omnipotent will-being, in a very long time.

Only a few times, and even then, only when facing those few omnipotent will-beings.

Could this man before him be an omnipotent will-being!

No!

Absolutely impossible!

How could a true master of the Supreme Will Realm engage in so much idle chatter with Him?

No time for thought.

Instantly, the Holy Scale Lord of the Azure Dragon summoned his divine power.

And there, upon the brow of the Lord, a gray scale emerged.

As soon as that gray scale appeared, an untamed, ancient aura surged throughout the space.

The divine beings witnessed the Holy Scale Lord of the Azure Dragon unleashing this move and were all struck with astonishment.

For they all knew this was the Lord's ultimate reserve—only deployed when facing an equal or an invincible foe.

Never before had such a stranger, a Supreme God, provoked the Holy Scale Lord of the Azure Dragon into using his final move so swiftly upon first contact.

Unbelievable!

At this moment...

And there it was—the gray scales, suddenly radiating a column of gray light, charging straight toward Zhou Shiyi.

Attack where he must defend!

Saint Scale·Yōlong God-King knew he would likely not withstand that blade energy, so he chose not to block it—instead, he launched a direct assault upon the wielder of the blade.

According to his expectations, the man before him, who claimed to be "I," would retreat to preserve himself as soon as the blade energy approached, causing the attack to dissipate. Then, his own peril would naturally vanish.

Yet Zhou Shiyi stared calmly at the advancing gray column, unmoving, unreactive.

As the gray beam closed in, growing nearer and nearer, Saint Scale·Yōlong God-King’s mind flickered with confusion and urgency.

Why isn’t he retreating?!

Does he truly believe he can withstand his own law-based technique?

That technique carries decay and corruption—once touched, it will swiftly erode and consume the divine essence and form of the victim, and such damage is nearly impossible to reverse.

Can he not see that?

There was no time to think, for the blade light emitted by Zhou Shiyi had already closed in, and He had not withdrawn the force from the blade’s glow, allowing it to remain intact and unbroken—thus, He could only retreat in panic.

Yet He soon realized something terrible.

He could not escape!

The blade light seemed to have locked onto Him, as if eternally fixed in front of His form. No matter how He flew, teleported, or deployed any other evasion tactic, the blade light remained steadfast, advancing with a steady, horrifying velocity, as though it had been forged to pierce through space itself.

In that final moment,

aware that escape was impossible, the Holy Scale Lord of the Shadow Dragon, Saint Ling, summoned every ounce of divine power and defensive capacity within him—even drawing upon the primordial divine force from the core of his godhood—trying to withstand this onslaught.

And then, the next instant,

he saw the nine-colored blade light surge forward, untouched by any law of the universe, advancing with an unchallenged, invincible grace, shattering through every defense he had ever summoned, piercing directly into the center of his brow.

Crack… crack… crack…

In that instant, the gods seemed to hear something shatter.

When they saw Saint Scale—Yōron God Sovereign again, they saw the once-unyielding Saint Scale—Yōron God Sovereign standing motionless, frozen in place. Then his aura began to vanish rapidly, dissolving in mere breaths—within seconds, his presence was entirely gone. And then, with a thunderous crash, he collapsed to the ground.

His eyes remained fixed upon Zhou Shiyi, as if even in his fall, he would force himself to witness exactly how the other would respond to his assault.

He saw it.

The gray light column he had unleashed suddenly halted, just one meter before Zhou Shiyi, as though time itself had frozen in midair.

Then—

The gray column shattered on its own, dispersing into countless wisps of gray mist, vanishing before the eyes of the gods.

Saint Scale—Yōron God Sovereign’s eyes widened slightly.

And then he realized another thing—something that left him utterly despairing.

He couldn’t understand it.

He could not comprehend how, with nothing but empty space, the other had nullified his full-force attack.

With this despair and confusion.

The Holy Scale·Yōlong God Sovereign has completely fallen!

Silence!

The entire resting space of the Holy Scale Treasure Hunt team fell into stillness.

They stared, wide-eyed, at the corpse of the Holy Scale·Yōlong God Sovereign, utterly unable to comprehend that their esteemed captain had perished so swiftly at the hands of the other.

He had been a top-tier precursor to the Supreme Will realm, indeed one of the best among such warriors.

Otherwise, he would never have surpassed the other three precursors to ascend as team leader, nor would he have chosen the name "Holy Scale" for the group.

His strength had been nothing short of invincible within his own tier.

Yet, before the one known as the Sovereign, that invincibility appeared so fragile, so insignificant.

A single strike, and the Holy Scale·Ouroboros God Sovereign fell instantly, while He himself remained unharmed—unscathed, as if nothing had ever happened at all.

What an utterly terrifying power!

Even the most elite of the Supreme Will Realm masters would scarcely possess such strength.

Such mastery and dominance—saying that He is truly a Supreme Will Realm master might well be believed by many!

"Your captain seems rather weak, doesn't he?"

Zhou Shiyi grinned, his words spilling forth with a bold, arrogant aura.

With those words, his fierce and domineering presence became unmistakable.

None of the gods present spoke.

Believing in strength above all, they had already been fully subdued by Zhou Shiyi’s effortless slaughter of the Holy Scale·Ouroboros God Sovereign.

No trace of dissent remained in their hearts.

Powerful!

Especially powerful without a single doubt!

Such power can utterly conquer enemies and rivals.

And now, there is no question—these very ones have been utterly subdued by this very quality.

Zhou Shiyi glanced at Sokhi beside him.

Sokhi instantly understood, stepping forward with a proud, commanding posture.

"Have you truly grasped the might of our sovereign?"

"From this day forward, this so-called Holy Scale Treasure Hunt team shall serve under my sovereign's banner..."

"Sovereign, what shall we call him?"

Sokhi suddenly turned to Zhou Shiyi.

Zhou Shiyi didn't expect to encounter such a minor issue as naming. Still, the name did need to be changed. After thinking for a moment, He casually said, "How about we call ourselves the Chaos Treasure Hunt Team?"

He bore the bloodline of the Chaos Human race, and beneath his feet lay the corpse of a Chaos God or Demon—naming the team "Chaos Treasure Hunt" made perfect sense.

"Good!"

Upon hearing this, Sokhi immediately turned to face the highest deities and the other being of near-superior will, raising his head proudly:

"From this day forward, our treasure-hunting team shall be known as the Chaos Treasure Hunt Team."

"Quick! Bow to your new team leader and future Emperor!"

"Respect to the Emperor." *13

The divine beings exchanged glances, quickly accepting the reality. Immediately, they all spoke in unison.

After embracing their new identities, their expressions showed no sense of loss—instead, a spark of excitement stirred within them.

A being of supreme strength!

Their thoughts were so direct!

You're strong! You can bring us greater benefits! Then we'll follow you!

You're weak! Then get out of here immediately!

Previously, they acknowledged Saint Scale, the Lord of the Hidden Dragon.

Now, the one they have come to recognize as their sovereign—this Emperor—clearly surpasses even Saint Scale, the Lord of the Hidden Dragon. Thus, it is only natural that he will bring them greater gains. And so, their hearts now brim with anticipation for the future.

Zhou Shiyi, seeing that his authority had already taken root, shed the arrogant mask he had worn and instead offered a quiet, gentle smile:

"Since you all have chosen me as your leader, I will surely not fail to honor each of you."

"These," he said, "are merely small tokens of welcome—offered to you all."

"May we, together, prosper in this land of celestial remains, and reap abundant wealth."

And with that, he paused.

Zhou Shiyi raised his right hand, and immediately, a total of fifteen world rings flew before the assembled deities.

Each deity reached out and opened one, only to be struck by shock and joy—within the ring before them lay exactly ten thousand first-tier supreme god crystals.

"Thank you, Majesty, for this generous gift!"

The fifteen supreme deities exclaimed with awe and reverence.

Among them,

Sokhi and Hank's voices were especially loyal and resounding.

For they had discovered that, while their own world rings contained ten thousand supreme god crystals, these were not first-tier, but second-tier supreme god crystals!

Converted into first-tier equivalents, that amounted to a staggering hundred thousand first-tier supreme god crystals!

Ten thousand second-tier supreme god crystals were enough to see them through countless near-death experiences.

How could they not be thrilled?

Your Majesty is truly a magnanimous sovereign!

Each of the supreme deities present thought this with deep reverence.

Zhou Shiyi smiled gently and nodded.

The demonstration of authority had been accomplished. Now came the time for rewards.

Power and benefit—only then can subordinates serve Him faithfully.

This, He understood well.

And now, it was time to make his request.

Thinking this through, he spoke slowly:

"This time, the single treasure I seek is the Chaos Divine Artifact—what you call the True Blood God Stone."

"You must find sufficient quantities of True Blood God Stone during the upcoming exploration."

"Each unit of True Blood God Stone, I will purchase for 100 units of first-tier Supreme God Crystals."

"How much do you have?"

"I will buy exactly that much!"

"Any other treasures gathered during this process—besides the True Blood God Stone—I will not claim. You may keep them all."

The moment these words were spoken, every Supreme God, including the near-omnipotent will-bound master, stared at Zhou Shiyi with wide eyes, as if verifying whether he had truly spoken the truth.

Even Sokhi and Hank could not help but turn to look at Zhou Shiyi.

"Your Majesty, are you truly saying this?"

A fourth-tier Supreme God could not help but ask.

All the other Supreme Gods turned to Zhou Shiyi, eager to hear his answer.

"I, Zhou Shi-11, speak with the weight of nine oaths!"

Zhou Shi-11 spoke in a low, resonant tone.

He cared not for any other treasures. His and Zhou Shi-12's objective for this journey was crystal clear—they sought the Chaos Divine Treasure.

Beyond that, all other riches held no significance for them.

If they could obtain it, they would; if not, they would not lament it.

After all, with the myriad talents of their primordial bodies and the blessings of various Lords, their future would inevitably be rich with treasures. Thus, neither Zhou Shi-11 nor Zhou Shi-12 would be swayed by the abundance of riches here. Their focus remained solely upon the Chaos Divine Treasure.

The gods, hearing this, instantly grew excited and stirred with fervor.

The selection of a captain, as a guardian of their strength, traditionally entailed sharing a portion of the treasures gathered during their quest.

The share could range from as little as twenty percent to as much as fifty percent!

For instance, when Saint Scale—Master of the Shadow Dragon—was captain, he demanded that his subordinates submit forty percent of any treasure they found.

This was already an exceptionally high profit-sharing ratio.

Yet, in the end, the gods still accepted it.

The reason was simple.

They needed the protection of Saint Scale, the Lord of the Shadow Dragon.

And indeed, Saint Scale, the Lord of the Shadow Dragon, possessed sufficient power to safeguard them within Tianjun's corpse—enabling their survival and treasure-hunting.

Although the profit-sharing ratio was extremely high, they still chose to endure it, driven by these two factors.

They had originally expected that, with Zhou Shiyi becoming the new leader of the Chaos Treasure Hunt Team, the ratio he demanded would surely rise—perhaps even reaching fifty percent.

After all, Zhou Shiyi was vastly more powerful than Saint Scale, the Lord of the Shadow Dragon!

It was entirely reasonable for such a formidable being to demand a higher price.

Some treasure-hunting teams, in order to secure the protection of such a powerful figure, would even offer significantly higher profit shares—just to retain that strength and keep the guardian close.

But none of them could have imagined that the new captain before them would demand nothing but the most worthless, most discarded True Blood God Stone?!

Wasn't this a surprise?

It was practically a pie falling from the sky.

Now they all felt dizzy, as if a pie had just hit them.