C1572 The Replacement of the Divine Throne

"How did you manage that?"

Untamed's eyes widened in awe as he gazed at Yu Yuan's Lunar Spirit, still lingering at Skyreach Peak. He scratched his head in excitement, itching to return to the Marsh.

Unlike Zu Ann, he couldn't glimpse the fleeting images that had passed through Yu Yuan's mind.

Yet, it was in his domain, the Marsh, where Yu Yuan's real body had materialized, bringing with him the Kylin Heart.

He was well aware that the Kylin from Shadow's Keep was likely slain by Boulderdawn in the extraterrestrial realms.

Both Gui Xu and Tianqi were currently in the Everlands, while another enigmatic Soul-Capturing God-King presided over the extraterrestrial.

Taishi alone, in Yu Yuan's opinion, wouldn't have been capable of killing the Kylin and retrieving the Kylin Heart.

"There's also the Queen, adept in the arts of destruction, death, and rebirth," Zu Ann interjected, taking a deep breath before speaking on Yu Yuan's behalf. "With the Kylin gone, Dark Phoenix is bound to unravel."

"Green Willow..."

Untamed's eyebrows shot up, and with a sudden slap on his thigh, his face lit up with an astonishing brightness.

"Not long ago, Green Willow entered the Marsh from the Skyreach Consortium and hasn't left since. I was here at the council, wary that Han might be up to something, so I didn't inquire. Heh, heh!" The Ape chuckled mischievously, his eyes narrowing with approval the more he observed Yu Yuan. "Are you planning to offer that divine seat to Green Willow?"

"That was Taishi's plan," Yu Yuan responded with composure.

"Bravo, Taishi! And the secular bird, too! Well played!"

The Ape was ecstatic, dancing on the spot. He leapt up from the gray stone and then hunkered down, drawing a deep drag from his pipe.

Then, with a snarl, his potent demon energy nearly tore through the mist enveloping Skyreach Peak.

"As long as Green Willow is in my Marsh, no one can thwart his Path to Godhood!"

Following his thunderous roar, the Ape reverted to his primal form—a colossal gray giant ape towering tens of thousands of feet high, surpassing even Skyreach Peak.

Clouds drifted below his neck as his Demonic Eyes fixed on the sky's wall.

Perched atop Skyreach Peak, with his head piercing the heavens, the Ape grinned, his fangs gleaming like rows of sharp blades.

Green Willow is to ascend as the Kylin at Skyreach Peak. Henceforth, the Marsh will be sealed off. Neither the Unbound nor any ninth-level archdemons will be permitted to tread there again."

Roar!

Untamed let out a thunderous roar toward the Star River beyond the Everlands, instantly returning to the Marsh from Skyreach Peak.

Whoosh! Whoosh! Whoosh!

The river, linking the Marsh to the outer world, quickened its flow. Thick spiritual energy of water began to converge into the Marsh through the network of rivers and lakes.

Within the Crimson Sun Empire.

Han Miaoyuan's expression abruptly shifted as he was about to enter the Sunfire Emperor's cultivation site, just as the Banner of Duality descended.

Whoosh!

Han Miaoyuan emerged in his real body, grasping the Banner of Duality, standing atop the dark red mountain peak, and quietly attuning himself to his surroundings.

Deep beneath the earth, he tapped into his divine status and the Banner's power to faintly detect the primal energy left by Yuwen Hao after his death. It lingered in a place unreachable by most, perceptible only to those of supreme strength who had attained a divine status.

Upon discovering that the primal energy he had reserved for Zhong Chichen remained untouched, Han Miaoyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

Then, he began to theorize and contemplate deeply.

Who could have slain the Kylin so swiftly?

He was certain it wasn't Lin Daoke.

Lin Daoke wouldn't have located the Kylin that quickly, and even if he had, it would have taken time to slay it.

Had the Dark Phoenix intervened, the Kylin would not have perished...

With Yuwen Hao's recent demise, the Kylin's fate seemed all too suspicious.

Considering that the powerhouses of the Everlands were detained at Skyreach Peak, and with Lin Daoke, Tan Xiaotian, and the Dark Phoenix all preoccupied, the Kylin's death following Yuwen Hao's could only be attributed to an outside force!

After a short pause, Han Miaoyuan hummed softly, an answer forming in his mind.

Standing within the Crimson Sun Empire, he turned his gaze toward the Moonfall Sanctuary, immediately sensing the presence of Tianqi and Gui Xu. "Both God-Kings are present, but could Taishi alone have slain the Kylin so effortlessly? No, there must be another significant player involved, one who harbors a deep-seated hatred for Shadow's Keep and the Dark Phoenix..."

Han Miaoyuan quietly pondered to himself, unable to see anything, yet he managed to piece together the entire puzzle.

He seemed to have a clear vision of Boulderdawn's schemes, Taishi's strategies, and the Dark Phoenix's involvement.

...

Marsh.

Yu Yuan and Green Willow emerged beside a pristine lake after leaving the Nest of Perdition. This was a sacred forbidden area where the Untamed had meditated for ages.

Green Willow and Yu Yuan had been granted access.

Before them lay a dark cyan heart, shrunk to the size of a watermelon, yet brimming with undiminished vital energy.

Green Willow's gaze was intense, his breathing labored, yet he remained silent.

Yu Yuan called forth the prismatic Dragon Slaying Stage from within his acupoints and thrust its sharp end into the Kylin Heart.

Puff!

At the moment the Dragon Slaying Stage pierced the Kylin Heart, hundreds of delicate bloodline chains shattered instantly.

The thickest of these chains, carrying the thunderous sound of the Storm Cosmic Order, burst apart after a brief resistance.

This prominent and sturdy bloodline chain, resembling a divine crystal, shattered and released a mysterious aura.

It began to transition from a solid state to liquid, shimmering with an enigmatic glow.

Recalling the colorless stream representing a divine seat that he and Youyu had observed in the Rainbow Ocean, Yu Yuan instantly recognized the transformation before him.

This was the primal energy capable of forging a Divine Throne, also able to crystallize into a Bloodline Gem within an archdemon's heart.

In that instant,

Yu Yuan sensed the Titan Spinosaurus within the Dragon Slaying Stage, nestled in the violet-gold dragon egg, emitting a low growl.

The growl conveyed a mix of longing and trepidation.

It was as if the creature yearned for something yet understood that its current power was insufficient, that it had not yet matured, and could not withstand the burden.

Only Yu Yuan could hear its cries, emanating from within the Dragon Slaying Stage.

Green Willow remained oblivious.

"Thank you."

Green Willow, in human form, plunged into the lake and instantly transformed into a massive green serpent, causing the waters of the deep marsh lake to ripple.

His emerald eyes glowed eerily, flickering like strange flames beneath the surface.

He suddenly realized that before he could exert his full strength, the lake he was immersed in had already begun to draw the desperately needed spiritual energy of water from the vast waters of the Everlands.

Simultaneously, he heard the Untamed God's roar and the proclamation of the seal on the Marsh.

A pure, colorless stream, rich with the Primal Energy of the Everlands, formed from the shattered Bloodline Gem within the Kylin Heart and gracefully flew out.

The Dragon Slaying Stage remained embedded in the Kylin Heart, yet the immense vital energy within the Demon Heart showed no signs of diminishing.

However, once the stream containing the Primal Energy of the Everlands departed from the Kylin Heart, Yu Yuan sensed the young creature's sense of loss.

This indicated that its yearning was not for the Kylin Heart or the abundant demon energy within, but for the Primal Energy of the Everlands.

Despite its current inability to absorb it, the creature was still filled with longing and a peculiar... fondness.

Yu Yuan furrowed his brow in deep contemplation.

What exactly was this Primal Energy of the Everlands, the most treasured in the entire realm, capable of forging a divine position?

And why did it so desperately crave it?

"Yu Yuan!"

After a thunderous roar, the Ape, in the form of the Untamed God, shrank once more, arriving beside the lake.

He watched the pure stream, symbolic of a divine seat, flow gently from the Kylin Heart into the lake where Green Willow lay submerged. The Ape flashed a toothy grin and enthusiastically clapped Yu Yuan on the shoulder.

Yu Yuan, embodying the Solar Spirit, was sent plummeting to the bottom by the slap.

"My apologies, I got a bit carried away today."

The Ape burst into hearty laughter, his face beaming with joy at the knowledge that the Kylin had perished and Green Willow was set to inherit the divine seat, struggling to contain his own excitement.

Yu Yuan, steadfast as a tree rooted in the earth, wore a grave expression.

The Ape's casual slap, with its slightly unchecked strength, unleashed a wildly disproportionate force. In Yu Yuan's perception, it was alarmingly excessive.

Such a slap, if it were to land on the mountains and rivers of the Everlands, would likely cause peaks to crumble and the earth to fissure.

And this was merely an unintentional act of the Untamed God...

"May I inquire," Yu Yuan asked earnestly, "if the Kylin Heart, pierced by the Dragon Slaying Stage within the extraterrestrial Star River, were to release its Primal Energy, where would that energy go?"

"It will return to the Everlands."

Untamed stood by the lakeshore, watching Green Willow absorb the clear, pure stream. With a radiant smile, he said, "Aside from the Great Demon God Bertain, no one can destroy the primal energy of the Everlands. Even he can only destroy it, but he cannot assimilate with it."

"The primal energy of the Everlands can only be refined by beings from the Everlands themselves, and only those who have reached the heights necessary to challenge the Divine Throne—and only within the Everlands itself."

"So, if the Kylin were to die in the extraterrestrial, its primal energy would still be drawn back to the Everlands."

"Of course, the process would be exceedingly slow. If Bertain were to intercept it en route, he could indeed destroy it outright."

Ape, clearly versed in the esoteric knowledge of the Divine Throne and primal energy, nonchalantly revealed the intricacies.

"So, what exactly is the primal energy of the Everlands? And where is it?" Yu Yuan inquired further.

Ape turned his gaze from Green Willow in the lake to Yu Yuan and replied, "Those who have a divine seat and primal energy within them can sense its location, albeit vaguely. But as for what it truly is, we can only speculate, since none of us can reach its original location."

"Where was it originally?" Yu Yuan pressed, intrigued.

"It lies at the Heart of the Everlands, surrounded by the most terrifying Earthfire. No cultivator from the Nagas or the Human Race can pass through the Earthfire to reach the Heart of the Everlands. Since no one can reach it, and no one has seen it directly, its true nature remains a mystery."

Untamed chuckled lightly, "We're left to conjecture how it came to be, why it can condense into a divine seat, and why it's shrouded in such mystery."

"Oh, wait, that's not quite right."

Ape smacked his forehead as if a thought had just struck him. Fixing his gaze on the Dragon Slaying Stage, he said, "In theory, only the dragon slayer, in the form of a pure soul, could traverse the Earthfire and potentially have a direct, close-up view of what forms the primal energy of the Everlands."

"But he never confirmed it."

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