Chapter 829: Heavenly Dao Revolves Well

(Last night I didn’t sleep a wink—so drowsy, spirit limp and weary.)

Su Yu felt deeply that his strength was insufficient!

No matter how swiftly he improved, no matter how formidable his underlings’ combat power, he still found it lacking—and the reason for this lay in the pitfall left by the Human Emperor.

Otherwise, Su Yu might already have led his people to the upper reaches.

The reason he did not go now was simply worry.

But as things stood, among all the myriad realms, the only thing known that could hope to elevate him was the Gate of Hell—yet that place was even more dangerous than the Human Emperor’s domain.

Relying solely on fleecing wool would never yield a first-class result.

If it were that simple, it would be easy!

……

The Netherworld Domain.

Su Yu arrived once more.

The Netherworld Emperor sensed him at once, and upon seeing Su Yu, he hurriedly said, “Your Majesty!”

Su Yu nodded slightly, then glanced at Chen—an exceedingly ancient being, a figure from the era of the Netherworld Lord.

Su Yu pondered for a moment, then spoke: “Netherworld King, let me ask you a question.”

“Your Majesty, please speak!”

“In your era, how did the powerful cultivate to such great heights?”

“Was it merely by accumulating time?”

Su Yu was puzzled by one issue: “Simply relying on time to build up a foundation?”

This question rather stumped the Netherworld Emperor.

For a moment, he did not know how to answer. The “powerful” in Su Yu’s mouth were clearly not ordinary experts; ordinary Rule Masters he might not even deign to notice. What Su Yu valued were those terrifying existences.

The Netherworld Emperor hesitated, then said, “Your Majesty, the strength of the myriad realms’ experts, when traced to its root, is still connected to the River of Time! In our era, when the gates were not manifest, everyone’s foundation was the River of Time! Whether the Netherworld Lord or others, the root of their power lay in the River of Time!”

Su Yu nodded slightly. Correct.

The River of Time was the most mysterious existence in the myriad realms—the most powerful, and the most terrifying.

As for himself,

his understanding of the River of Time was actually not that deep. For instance, he had never been to the upper reaches, nor had he ventured too far into the lower reaches. He dared not go rashly, for fear of problems.

If he went to the upper reaches, perhaps one day there would pass a long time here; of course, if he went to the lower reaches, he might directly appear in the future. Likewise, the River of Time was not in this segment of the myriad realms; once it reached other places, various issues could arise.

The upper reaches existed in the past; the lower reaches existed in the future.

Summoning the past and future bodies—that was the concept of the Three-Body Method.

It meant fishing out the past and future from the River of Time to strengthen oneself.

The Netherworld Emperor’s answer was precisely this—including the Netherworld Lord and others, their power all lay within the River of Time.

“Past and future bodies…”

Su Yu murmured—the abandoned Three-Body Method!

It was considered the weakest cultivation method on the path to enlightenment, yet it allowed one to die three times. Moreover, the Three-Body Method had one advantage: if one were truly formidable, one could capture the future, capture the past, and endlessly nest dolls.

Of course, under normal circumstances, ordinary people could not achieve this.

Su Yu had never studied the Three-Body Method, because everyone who used it said it was weak.

At this moment, Su Yu thought of the Heavenly Gate, the Earthly Gate, and going to the upper reaches… but the Netherworld Emperor said that the root of everything still lay in the River of Time, and that everyone’s power came from being strong within it.

Su Yu stroked his chin, pondering some questions, then suddenly said, “Do you know the Three-Body Method?”

“The Three-Body Method?”

The Netherworld Emperor had heard of it. Of course, when he was unsealed, Su Yu’s side had already abandoned the Three-Body Method; even those who had previously walked the path of the three bodies had mostly switched methods.

Su Yu added, “When I was weak, I once entered the River of Time with others. But the river I saw back then was different from the one I see now!”

Su Yu explained: “At that time, I could see some memories of the past, and even glimpse the future! Of course, I never looked at the future! According to everyone’s explanation, that was because I was walking a tributary… I could see some traces of memory. But now, when I look at the River of Time again, why is it different from before? What I see is the main current, without those bubbles from before!”

Su Yu had not paid much attention to this issue, because what he saw back then might have been merely some images recorded in his own memory, imprinted in the river. Now that he was powerful, the imprint could not be tolerated by the river—that was only natural.

“Memory?”

The Netherworld Emperor was somewhat surprised: “Your Majesty means that the Three-Body Method you speak of can view memories through the River of Time?”

“Yes!”

Su Yu nodded. “I have also seen others’ memories. But now, because we no longer follow the Three-Body Method, I lead people directly along the main current of the River of Time, so it seems no one else can see them anymore.”

“The Three-Body Method… Your Majesty, could you tell me more about it?”

The Three-Body Method was a widely used cultivation method that had been passed down only after the disappearance of high antiquity.

The Netherworld Emperor knew almost nothing about it.

Su Yu quickly explained, then said, “In my view, the past and future bodies of the Three-Body Method are actually rule power—some insights into the past, some explorations of the future. Thus, when the three bodies merge, they become immensely powerful!”

The Netherworld Emperor grew interested: “The Three-Body Method… Your Majesty, I am certain that this method did not exist in our era! Who created the Three-Body Method?”

“This…”

Su Yu truly did not know!

He only knew that in high antiquity, this method already existed, but few used it because it was too weak. With the three bodies separated, it was pathetically weak.

Those who attained enlightenment through the three bodies were weaker than those who used other methods.

As for preserving life… a strong man killing you once or three times made no difference.

But the Netherworld Emperor spoke up: “Your Majesty, three times… yet one can revive twice! You said that being killed means the Sea of Will shattered, the Great Dao severed, the physical body crushed—under such circumstances, one can still be reborn?”

Su Yu was also startled!

Yes, one could be reborn!

That was how the Three-Body Method worked.

The Netherworld Emperor drew in another breath: “Your Majesty, you are also a world-opener. Can you achieve resurrection from the dead, even within your own world?”

Su Yu was silent for a moment, then nodded: “Very, very difficult. Perhaps I am still too weak; I cannot bring the dead back to life. Otherwise, the strong in my world would be immortal and indestructible!”

“Exactly!”

“But according to Your Majesty’s words, as long as one reaches the peak of Sun and Moon—the so-called quasi-invincible realm—and possesses past and future bodies, one can actually be resurrected… This defies all reason!”

The Netherworld Emperor was extremely surprised: “Yet Your Majesty says this method is the weakest…”

Su Yu could not help but say, “It’s not just me saying it—everyone says so. And… it is the truth. The Three-Body Method has many drawbacks. With the three bodies separated, it is very weak. Even when merged, it is still inferior to normal cultivation!”

At this, Su Yu raised an eyebrow slightly: “When the three bodies are separated, striking the Great Dao forces the opponent’s three bodies to separate… Why does the Three-Body Method feel somewhat like a path of avatars—imprinting three times on the Great Dao, splitting the whole person into three parts… so that dying once allows one to revive again…”

Now that Su Yu looked at the Three-Body Method again, indeed, this resurrection was extremely difficult.

Who created the Three-Body Method?

It felt far from simple!

However, the Death Spirit Emperor pondered for a moment and said, "Your Majesty, regarding the Three-Body Method, are there any representative figures?"

"None!"

Su Yu shook his head. "In ancient times, no one cultivated the Three-Body Method. After that era, few practiced it. Those who did either died or changed their paths. As for those who cultivate it now..."

Were there any left?

Su Yu thought for a moment and said, "There should still be some Eternals, Eternals from the myriad races, those who haven't left—they all cultivate the Three-Body Method!"

The Death Spirit Emperor fell silent for a while, then spoke, "This Three-Body Method reminds me of something!"

"What?"

"The Lord of Death!"

What did this have to do with the Lord of Death?

Su Yu was surprised. How did the Lord of Death come into this? Could it be that he created this technique?

The Death Spirit Emperor explained, "In the late era of the Creation of Heaven, the Lord of Death once had an idea—a terrifying one, at that—but later he abandoned it..."

"What?"

"To devour the River of Time!"

Su Yu bared his teeth. Damn, that was indeed domineering, indeed mad. Even I hadn't thought of that!

The Death Spirit Emperor recalled for a moment and continued, "At that time, the Lord of Death was extremely overbearing. He once proposed in the heavens to find three powerful beings—one at the beginning, one in the middle, one at the end—to lift the entire River of Time, compress it, and let him swallow it!"

"However, according to some accounts back then, the River of Time exists in different dimensions... that is, what Your Majesty calls the past, present, and future!"

"So, a single person cannot exist in three temporal dimensions at once... Could it be that the Three-Body Method is related to this idea of the Lord of Death?"

He spoke with some doubt, while Su Yu furrowed his brow. "You mean the Lord of Death said that when a person is at one end of the River of Time, they cannot appear at the other end?"

"Exactly!"

The Lord of Death nodded. "Not even with a clone! For instance, if Your Majesty goes upstream now, even if you leave a clone here, once you leave the bounds of the myriad realms, the clone will collapse!"

Su Yu frowned. "What about separating spirit and flesh?"

"That... I'm not sure. Perhaps it's possible?"

Su Yu nodded slightly. "So, to have clones simultaneously—one at the source of the River of Time, one at its end, and one here—is impossible?"

"Yes, that was the Lord of Death's meaning. As for the specifics, I'm not entirely clear, since it involves matters too lofty..."

"..."

Su Yu nodded and fell into deep thought.

He had come to resurrect the Death Spirit Emperor, but as they talked, they had drifted into discussing the Three-Body Method.

And now, the Three-Body Method suddenly seemed mysterious.

Resurrection from death was a problem many could not solve, including the Human Emperor, including the King of Literature!

None of them could do it!

Yet this trashy Three-Body Method—those who cultivated it could actually live three times. And truly three times: even if their flesh, will-ocean, and great path were all obliterated, they could still be reborn!

That... was terrifying!

Especially since this wasn't an exception; it applied to all cultivators of this method.

Ever since Su Yu had deemed the Three-Body Method too weak, he hadn't paid it much attention. Three times? Even if you could be reborn three hundred times, if someone could kill you, they'd still kill you!

But Su Yu, who had personally overseen resurrections, knew how difficult resurrection was.

Resurrecting a dead spirit in the Death Spirit Realm would anger the Lord of Death.

Thoughts rose one after another. The Three-Body Method was just something that had suddenly come to mind. Su Yu quickly suppressed it and said gravely, "Let's not study that for now. I came this time for your resurrection! Once you're resurrected, I'll go to the myriad realms to capture some cultivators of the Three-Body Method and examine its characteristics, so you can see them too."

Others were all trapped within the mountain, accustomed to defaulting the Three-Body Method as trash. But the Death Spirit Emperor had never encountered it; perhaps he might discover something.

"Resurrection..."

At that moment, the Death Spirit Emperor felt a daze. I... am to be resurrected?

"Your Majesty, what about the Lord of Death..."

Su Yu smiled. "Last time he tried to stop me, he barely reached the level of a fifth-rank Rule Master. This time, when you're resurrected, what level do you think he can reach?"

Even if the other awakened again, Su Yu felt that his own speed of improvement was faster.

As long as I improve quickly, even if I keep resurrecting, you can't do anything to me. The first time, you were fifth-rank; this time, fourth-rank or even third-rank—I'll still beat you!

The Death Spirit Emperor's heart stirred. That was true.

Su Yu improved too fast!

If so... he too felt a surge of excitement. Resurrection—that was a good thing!

Everyone wanted it!

But Su Yu thought for a moment and said, "However, if you're resurrected, you can only be resurrected into my world. And my world... to be honest, it currently cannot allow resurrection again!"

The Death Spirit Emperor didn't quite understand Su Yu's meaning at first. Su Yu smiled and explained, "Simply put, my world and the Death Spirit Great Path have no intersection. So it cannot guide those who fall in my world. That's why what I said earlier about resurrection from death was all just to boost morale. For now, the path of life and death in my world isn't strong enough to guide the dead... So, in my world, death is true death!"

There was no chance of becoming a dead spirit. Last time, the Southern King had scared the myriad realms' experts silly, but that was because he didn't understand the process of the Death Spirit Great Path's guidance.

The Death Spirit Emperor chuckled. "That doesn't matter much to us. Even if the current River of Death could guide, it would be hard to guide a Rule Master. Otherwise, those dead Rule Masters would have been resurrected long ago!"

"Weren't you a Rule Master before you died?"

Su Yu still had some doubts about this.

Indeed, logically, the Death Spirit Realm couldn't guide Rule Masters. So, wasn't the Death Spirit Emperor a Rule Master before his death?

The Death Spirit Emperor was silent for a moment, then spoke, "I suppose I was."

"You suppose?"

"I... was an Eternal. Does Your Majesty understand?"

"A Path Opener!"

Su Yu understood. "So, before your death, you had the strength of a Rule Master, but you hadn't yet fully opened your great path, right?"

"Yes!"

The Death Spirit Emperor nodded. "I was similar to Fatty Ball and the others—a Path Opener. But for a Path Opener, to fully open their great path... there is actually a period of transformation, when the path no longer extends. Only then is it considered fully opened, and the great path completely becomes a tributary of the River of Time. I hadn't reached that stage, so I was only an Eternal. But the path I opened wasn't weak, so I wasn't afraid of ordinary Rule Masters."

"What path did you open?"

Su Yu was intrigued. In that era, opening a path wasn't unusual. In the beginning, there weren't many paths in the world; it was the predecessors who opened them, allowing later generations to merge with them.

What path had the Death Spirit Emperor opened back then?

To have the combat power of a Rule Master before fully opening his path—that was quite impressive. The path wasn't weak!

"The Path of Stars!"

The Death Spirit Emperor explained, "Your Majesty has seen that the heavens have sun and moon..."

Su Yu nodded, then suddenly paused. Yes, the heavens had sun and moon—how normal.

There was even a realm named Sun and Moon.

"What's wrong?"

But the sun and moon... everyone was so used to their existence that no one really paid much attention. What exactly are the sun and moon?

Su Yu suddenly felt his mind wander. Why was he thinking so much today?

The sun and moon—such ordinary things. Everyone knows that the heavens have a sun and a moon: the sun is yang, the moon is yin. What's the big deal?

At the final moment of their eruption, Corona Celestial and Eclipse Celestial even unleashed the combat power of a Rule Lord!

The Death Spirit Emperor didn't care about that and continued, "The path of stars—or rather, the path of the sun and moon—absorbs their essence and summons their power. Perhaps it's really the path of yin and yang, but my path is mainly based on the yin moon..."

Su Yu mostly understood and said solemnly, "You mean your path is based on the sun and moon, similar to Moon Celestial's?"

"Something like that."

Su Yu nodded in understanding. "This path—you created it yourself. What are its characteristics?"

He explained, "Just asking out of curiosity."

"Characteristics?"

The Death Spirit Emperor didn't mind and went on, "It's extremely cold and yin, freezing the soul, but it also tempers the body. That's about it."

Su Yu nodded.

The path of the sun and moon. Interesting.

Where are the sun and moon, exactly?

He could see them too, but he didn't know where they were. They weren't in the sky. No matter how high you flew in the sky, you'd reach the upper realm, and from there, if you flew higher, you'd enter the chaos.

Thoughts surged one after another. Soon, Su Yu said, "The path of stars—I don't seem to have it recorded here. But I do have the path of yin and yang. You could choose that. The difference isn't huge. Or you could consider it yourself and later open a new path in my world."

The Death Spirit Emperor smiled. "That doesn't matter. They're almost the same, and yin and yang is actually a greater path, with more potential than the path of stars."

Su Yu nodded again and called out, "Liu Hong!"

A moment later, the world trembled. Liu Hong flashed into view. Seeing the Death Spirit Emperor and then Su Yu, he gasped. "Your Majesty... you're going to revive the Death Spirit King?"

"Yes."

Good heavens, this was going to be a nightmare!

Su Yu looked at Liu Hong and was silent for a moment, then suddenly said, "Don't stay in the shadows anymore. I might need you."

"What?"

Liu Hong was taken aback. What did that mean? He wasn't going to be a shadow guard anymore?

Su Yu was silent for a while longer. "If I go upstream, I can't move the world with me. Even if I could, by the time I moved it there, it would be too late. Your Ink Path—didn't I move it to the intersection of life and death before?"

Liu Hong's heart stirred. Yes, so what?

"You... try to see if you can connect one end of the Ink Path to my world. Link the River of Time, the River of the Dead, and my world—all three paths together."

Su Yu thought for a moment and continued, "That way, the power of my world might radiate over a larger area, even reaching upstream."

Liu Hong gasped wildly. "Your Majesty, isn't Lan Tian already doing that?"

Lan Tian seemed to be in charge of the connections. Why was he being dragged into this? It was too dangerous!

Su Yu shook his head. "First, I had Lan Tian sever his path and merge it into my world. Even if he restores it to the River of Time now, it's a huge hassle—though not impossible. Second, Lan Tian focuses on the path of time, not the path of the dead. I want to connect the path of the dead as well."

Liu Hong didn't understand. Was there any point?

Su Yu snapped, "Are you an idiot? If I don't connect to the path of the dead, how can I revive people? How can the River of the Dead be summoned? How can I steal its power?"

Su Yu said solemnly, "Right now, life and death in my world are unbalanced. Xingyue controls the path of life. Even if I balance life and death, it's useless—she keeps drawing power from the path of life to strengthen herself, breaking my balance. I need the power of the path of the dead to perfect my own life and death and achieve equilibrium."

He couldn't stop her. Xingyue had always controlled the path of life. Su Yu couldn't tell her not to cultivate. But that also broke the balance of life and death in his world.

Liu Hong grimaced. "Your Majesty... so I really become a pipe?"

"Yes."

Su Yu nodded. "You don't like it? You're not just a pipe—you're a three-way connector!"

Liu Hong wanted to cry but had no tears. A three-way connector—yes, his path was now at the intersection of life and death. Su Yu's meaning was clear: one part draws power from the River of Time, one part from the River of the Dead, and one part connects to Su Yu's world.

Su Yu smiled now. "This way... there's hope of achieving balance between life and death. Xingyue, controlling the path of life and death, should become three times stronger. And as she grows stronger, the path of life and death in my world grows stronger too. It's a roundabout way of strengthening myself."

Very good!

He had originally planned to let Lan Tian do this, but now he thought Liu Hong might be even more suitable. Liu Hong had asked him to move his path to the intersection of life and death, wanting to feed from both sides. Su Yu figured he could feed from both sides and then satisfy himself.

Very good!

Liu Hong looked utterly resigned. So he still had to work for Su Yu.

Su Yu didn't care whether he agreed or not and continued, "Later, do the same as last time. Lead the Death Spirit King into my world."

Su Yu waved his hand. In the distance, at the place of return to nothingness, a projection of the world appeared. Su Yu said, "Same as before. The Death Spirit King enters, devours the source power, channels the power of life and death through the Ink Path, connects to the path power in my world, and I'll infuse enough life force to help you revive."

The Death Spirit Emperor took a deep breath. It came so suddenly.

He had thought Su Yu wouldn't consider reviving anyone for a while. But not long after, Su Yu was starting his second revival.

And Su Yu was decisive.

Without hesitation, after saying this, he let out a low shout and punched the sky. Above, a river appeared. Su Yu smashed a hole in it and stepped inside.

The moment he entered, the river churned violently.

Because he had come once before and revived someone, the river was extremely sensitive to his aura. As soon as Su Yu entered, the entire River of the Dead trembled.

It was as if someone had stripped Nan Wang from Su Yu's world, stolen his path power, and fled Su Yu's world. If Su Yu were in that position, he'd fight too.

Obviously, that was exactly what he was doing to the Death Spirit Lord.

...

"Bastard!"

A vast, furious roar shook the entire river.

The pressure from the unseen source oppressed even Su Yu.

The whole river surged with towering waves.

This revival was much faster than the last—almost instantaneous. In the blink of an eye, a giant Death Spirit appeared, first confused, then a gleam of sharpness flashed in its eyes.

It suddenly looked at Su Yu, cold and indifferent. "You're back again?"

Su Yu laughed. “Are you the Lord of the Dead, or the Lord of the Departed?”

The dead giant, holding a massive pitchfork, strode toward Su Yu step by step, an air of indifference about him. “Dead or departed, it is all one! What brings you here this time?”

“To revive a person.”

“Who?”

“That Dead Lord…”

“Hmph!”

A cold snort echoed across the river. In that moment, the dead giant grew furious. “You want to pull out the first rule master from the river?”

What a joke!

That would be like taking away the strongest being in Su Yu’s world!

If Su Yu wanted to revive some insignificant nobody, he might not care much—but to revive the Dead Lord? That was unacceptable!

In an instant, a massive pitchfork thrust toward Su Yu!

But in that same instant, Su Yu caught the fork with one hand, looked down, and smiled. “Hurry up! This time the revival is too fast—go devour your origin power. We’ll leave as soon as it happens and not disturb the Lord of the Departed!”

Below, the Dead Lord shot through the air swiftly. The dead giant roared, thrusting his fork again to strike Su Yu, but once more, Su Yu caught it!

The dead giant trembled slightly. “You… how many ages have passed?”

Had countless ages gone by since last time?

Last time he saw Su Yu, he was only a Celestial Venerable, close to being a rule master but not quite. Yet this time, upon revival, he already possessed the same strength as before—roughly that of a fifth-rank rule master!

Last time, Su Yu had used Dragon Blood Marquis to blast him apart.

But this time, Su Yu simply caught his fork!

Su Yu laughed. “Fellow Daoist, there’s no need for fighting and killing. If you want to revive to fourth or third rank, it takes time. My coming here benefits you. If you drive me away now, you’ll have to go back to slumber.”

“But if I stay here, you can keep strengthening yourself and wrest control from the Lord of the Dead…”

Su Yu chuckled. “That’s called doing the public’s work while fattening yourself! If you chase me off right now, the Lord of the Dead’s will won’t keep feeding you power—that’s bad. Look, you’ve grown stronger again, haven’t you?”

“…”

The Dead Lord shot through the air swiftly. Hearing this, he was speechless. This Su Yu… truly had a silver tongue.

He deceived the living, then the dead, and now even the will projection of the Lord of the Dead!

If the Lord of the Dead ever truly returned and sensed that his own will projection had developed thoughts of its own—thanks to Su Yu’s instigation—he would probably cut Su Yu into ten thousand pieces!

But the Dead Lord paid no heed to that now. He flew swiftly into the depths, seeking his own dead origin. As for the giant waves, to a fourth-rank rule master like him, they were not much trouble.

The main core power was the dead giant, now held back by Su Yu.

Before long, from the depths came a thunderous boom!

The entire river roiled violently!

The Dead Lord, as the strongest—even the first dead to be summoned—was now fusing with his origin. The whole river resisted.

And the Lord of the Departed’s gaze turned instantly cold and boundless. In that moment, he seemed different from before. In the blink of an eye, his aura reached the fourth rank and kept climbing!

Sensing a powerful being trying to break free from his great path, the dead giant suddenly grew mightier.

Then, from his mouth came a domineering roar tinged with fury: “Bold little junior! You dare steal the dead I have nurtured? You seek death!”

As the words fell, the pitchfork in the Lord of the Departed’s hand suddenly transformed—in a flash, it became a book!

Yes, a book!

Completely different from before!

The dead giant’s aura surged again. He directly opened the book’s pages, a brush appearing in his hand. With a single stroke, a drop of dead ink fell onto the book, spreading instantly into the likeness of Su Yu.

Then he struck again with the brush, painting one of Su Yu’s eyes. Boom!

In that instant, Su Yu’s eye blazed with excruciating pain!

As if seared by deathly aura!

The dead giant was cold and merciless. “Little junior, we are both heaven-openers. I do not wish to bully the weak, but you go too far, daring to occupy my domain. Even a wisp of my will is beyond your reach! Today, I shall slay you!”

With that, he struck again with the brush, and Su Yu’s other eye appeared. In that moment, both of Su Yu’s eyes turned into dead eyes. Su Yu cried out in agony, his eyes burning as if about to go blind!

“This is my domain. To contend with me here is truly… delivering yourself to death!”

As he spoke, the dead giant painted Su Yu’s nose. Instantly, Su Yu’s nose was corroded by countless deathly auras—the power of the Great Path of Death!

“You are the Lord of the Dead!”

Su Yu shouted, realizing that this was the true will of the Lord of the Dead—perhaps a newly arrived will.

Su Yu roared, and suddenly, the power of ten thousand paths converged. A book appeared, and a brush materialized in his hand. He bellowed, “You are not the true body—can you still overcome me?”

“Painting, is it? You play that game—I can too!”

Su Yu wrote a single character on the Civilization Record: “Seal!”

A massive seal flew toward the enemy.

“Life!”

Countless life forces surged toward the enemy, while the enemy’s death aura swept back. Both held books, their great-path forces colliding midair. Su Yu was stronger at this moment than the dead giant.

But the enemy’s strength lay in this being his territory!

For a moment, they were evenly matched, though Su Yu had a slight edge.

The dead giant’s expression shifted slightly. With a cold snort, he painted Su Yu’s hands in an instant. Su Yu’s hands turned charred black, but he didn’t care. Gritting his teeth, he let out a low roar and painted a gate!

Not only did Su Yu paint this gate, but his Heavenly Gate also appeared. Suddenly, the gate in the book and the gate on his forehead emerged simultaneously, merging instantly. The power of ten thousand paths converged and, in a blink, swept toward the enemy!

“Heavenly Gate?”

The dead giant’s eyes narrowed with some anger. “A fine projection of the Heavenly Gate, but… too weak. I fear not even the true Heavenly Gate itself, let alone a mere projection…”

“Nonsense! You are a projection too!”

Su Yu snorted back. Did you think you were the true body?

At these words, the dead giant faltered for a moment. Yes, I… am not the true body!

But it was too late. As he struck, a tremendous pressure erupted from the Heavenly Gate projection, infused with life force, instantly transforming into countless chains that swept toward him!

“How dare you!”

The Lord of the Dead roared. “Even if the true Lord of Time were here, he could not bind me, let alone a mere sealing chain! Shatter!”

With a low shout, the Book of the Dead in his hand exploded instantly, striking the Heavenly Gate projection, causing it to convulse and tremble, the phantom showing signs of cracking!

But Su Yu quickly noted these words.

His eyes flickered, and he snorted coldly. “If a projection can’t handle you, I’ll go to the upper reaches of the River of Time and find the true Heavenly Gate to deal with you…”

The dead giant sneered. “Can you even get there? Arrogant nonsense!”

As he spoke, his death aura erupted again, the entire river shaking violently. With one strike, the Heavenly Gate projection trembled once more!

And Su Yu laughed again. “I attack from outside, while King Wen and King Wu strike from within. Caught between us, you will surely die…”

"Ha!"

A sneer rang out. "You mean those two? You're in league with them? Deal with your own troubles first—your mess isn't settled, yet you dare meddle in mine?"

Su Yu's heart jolted. So the Lord of the Dead was also within the Heavenly Gate!

So many powerful beings gathered there, and from the sound of it, the King Wen and King Wu's enemy wasn't him—they barely seemed to have crossed paths.

Su Yu wanted to pry further, but the dead giant's eyes suddenly turned cold. "Trying to trick me? Childish! What if you do know? You can't even enter the Heavenly Gate!"

Boom!

His aura surged again, and with a single strike, he sent the Heavenly Gate shuddering violently.

At that moment, far away, the Dead Sovereign roared, his aura swelling to immense proportions. In a flash, he plunged into Liu Hong's Ink Path, heading for Su Yu's world. With his past experience, he knew how to be reborn.

The Lord of the Dead's expression shifted slightly, and he growled, "Chen, I gave you a chance to live once. Now you betray me too?"

In the distance, the Dead Sovereign's eyes flickered. "I... just wanted to live once..."

"Hmph!"

A cold snort rang out. The Lord of the Dead's face turned grim. He looked at Su Yu and sneered, "The Heavenly Gate is too chaotic—I can't project much power here. Otherwise... killing you would be like slaughtering a chicken! This time, you've gotten a cheap advantage. You'd better not come to the Heavenly Gate, or if it doesn't open... you're dead!"

Su Yu smiled. "We'll see when the time comes. Why all this fighting and killing..."

Boom!

A colossal force radiated across the river. In an instant, the dead giant vanished, his final words echoing: "If you have the guts, come find me at the Heavenly Gate! You're quite something. Those two are your accomplices? Fine—I wasn't going to meddle... but since they're your allies, I'll collect some interest. I'll go find them!"

"..."

Su Yu froze. The next moment, his face changed, and he hurriedly shouted, "No, wait—I don't know them well!"

"..."

The voice faded. The river stopped rippling. The world fell silent!

The Dead Sovereign was being reborn, but Su Yu couldn't care less.

His mouth hung open for a long moment. Finally, he muttered awkwardly, "This... is it over?"

King Wen and the others had tricked the Human Emperor; the Human Emperor had tricked Su Yu; and now... Su Yu seemed to have tricked those two in return.

Was this the cycle of heaven's justice, with no one spared?

I... never expected it to turn out like this!

"Uh... sorry about that. I didn't think he'd say that..."

Su Yu was at a loss for words. Did this mean he no longer needed to rescue King Wen and the others?

They might be dead!

...

At the same time.

Beyond the Heavenly Gate, in the endless void, King Wen and King Wu were still hiding and dodging when suddenly, a surge of overwhelming deathly energy erupted in a certain region, unleashing a terrifying force!

A cold voice rang out: "King Wen and King Wu? Well done! I thought that man looked familiar—so you're in league with him. You stole my domain, occupied my path... Are you ready?"

Boom!

A colossal aura rose!

...

King Wu glanced at King Wen, blinking. "Us?"

What was going on?

Was this... a declaration of war against them?

King Wen's face changed. His lips twitched, and after a long silence, he muttered almost inaudibly, "Damn it. That kid... has provoked this one. And the worst part is... it seems we're taking the blame!"

King Wu froze. That Su Yu?

Damn it!

This one was no pushover—even Old Wen couldn't handle him!

King Wen sucked in a breath. "Your son... has screwed us over?"

How terrifying!

"I told you, he's just like you. See, even the Lord of the Dead says so—he knows he's your son. Old Wen, you're too much of a disaster, and your son is even worse!"

"..."

Go to hell!

At this moment, King Wen felt like vomiting blood.

What had he done to deserve this?

This had nothing to do with him!

So even after entering the Heavenly Gate, he still had to take the fall for someone else?

In the distance, that overwhelming aura erupted again, cold and menacing: "I will find you. Is that man your disciple or your descendant? White robes... Are you deliberately targeting me? Indeed, you've long harbored hostility toward me—you deserve death!"

He wore black robes!

King Wen's face turned green. So just because he wore a white robe, he was connected to that man?

What kind of logic was that?

King Wen quickly sent a telepathic message: "Old Wen, I told you not to wear white robes, but you insisted. Now we're done for—this one is coming for us too, and we can't hold him off!"

If it were just this one, it might be manageable—they could flee if they couldn't win. But the problem was, this one had jumped out halfway, not their original enemy!

King Wen's eyes flickered. The next moment, a hearty laugh echoed through the heavens: "Thank you, friend, for helping me out of a tight spot! Hurry and retreat—be careful not to be surrounded... Withdraw!"

With that, King Wen grabbed King Wu and fled!

If you insisted on jumping out, don't blame me for dragging you into this!