Ye Yu tucked the organized notes into his robe and stepped up to the passage leading to the Celestial World. He was just about to enter when he stopped.
He’d spotted signs of damage along the passage.
It wasn’t broken, but hairline cracks ran through it.
That made him curious. Was this deliberate sabotage? Or collateral damage from some battle?
If it was the latter, there was nothing to discuss.
But if it was deliberate—what was the saboteur after?
Ye Yu couldn’t make sense of it.
He entered the passage and arrived in the Celestial World.
There, he checked the passages to the Demon Realm and the Underworld and found damage of varying degrees on both.
For now, it wasn’t severe; without a careful inspection, no one would notice these small details.
If one fruit is bad, it could be an accident.
If all the fruits are bad, you can rule out “accident.”
Someone was deliberately sabotaging the passages of the Lower Five Realms.
And their strength wasn’t ordinary—otherwise, how could they shake such colossal structures?
But why do this?
People always have reasons for what they do.
Acting without awareness is what fools do.
What good would destroying passages do for them?
Ye Yu couldn’t help but frown slightly.
Right then, he noticed the space around him begin to warp.
This was the omen of shattering the void—the sign right before ascending to the God Realm.
It seemed his time was running short.
He drew in his aura at once and headed toward the Wuwei Tower.
He didn’t dare move too fast.
Right now he was like he had been back in the mortal world:
he couldn’t afford any large movements.
He’d suppressed his cultivation too hard. He should have gone to the God Realm already; delaying this long had pushed the power in his body to a critical point.
At any moment, he might shatter the void and be gone.
It left Ye Yu with a sense of helplessness.
Had he known, he wouldn’t have studied the passage problem.
But it was too late to say anything now; moving quickly and steadily was the safest course.
As time passed, the warp under his feet worsened.
Luckily, the Wuwei Tower was less than a hundred li away now—if he could just hold out a little longer, he’d be fine.
Ye Yu let out a slow, turbid breath.
Just then, a figure barred his way.
From the demon horns on the figure’s head and the thin, gaunt frame, it was clear the other was a Fallen Demon.
“Why are you forcing down your cultivation instead of moving on to the next realm?” the demon asked.
“It’s none of your concern. Move, or die.”
Ye Yu kept his pace as even as possible, his voice ice-cold.
It was only because he was at such a critical juncture that he couldn’t make a move.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t have wasted words on a stranger from the demon race.
The warning didn’t drive the Fallen Demon back. Instead, a playful smile tugged at the demon’s mouth.
“Don’t bluff. In your current state, you’re perched on the edge of shattering the void. If we really fought, you’d likely ascend to the God Realm before you managed to kill me.”
Hearing that,
Ye Yu had to halt and study the demon closely.
The other carried a Demon Emperor cultivation—and seemed quite familiar with shattering the void and stepping into the God Realm.
Who was he? Ye Yu hadn’t seen this person in the Demon Realm before.
Could he be an old monster who’d only just awakened?
Sensing Ye Yu’s complicated gaze, the Fallen Demon spoke softly. “No need to be so tense. I’m Cui Yachun of the demon race. I bear you no malice. I only want to borrow something. As soon as you agree, I’ll leave at once and won’t delay your business. How about it?”
Ye Yu laughed in anger.
“Well, well. # Nоvеlight # The demon race truly has nerve now—panhandling from me, of all people.”
That was a new one.
“What do you want to ‘borrow’?” Ye Yu asked coldly.
“Everything you’re carrying.”
Cui Yachun stepped forward and formed a seal with both hands.
In an instant, a gigantic array diagram flared in the clouds.
Countless black dragons roared out of the array.
They turned into chains that bound Ye Yu tight.
The rest coiled around them, waiting to strike.
“Friend,” Cui Yachun said lightly, “I know this array might have trouble killing you.
“But holding you for a while won’t be difficult.
“If you try to break the formation by force, your power will surge and you’ll head straight into the God Realm.
“That’s not what you want right now, is it?
“So be good and toss me your storage ring, your immortal robe, and any valuables. I’ll open the array and clear a path for you.”
“Don’t be stingy at a time like this. Once you’re in the God Realm, these things won’t be of much use to you anyway. Better to let me handle them, don’t you think?”
Ye Yu couldn’t help but laugh.
“You really are a genius of twisted logic—mugging top-tier yokai immortals right as they’re about to head to the God Realm. How did you come up with this line of work?”
“Funny coincidence,” Cui Yachun replied, grinning. “There have been quite a few immortals heading to the God Realm lately. So I came up with a quick-money method.”
“My talent can’t compare with yours who are about to ascend.
“If I don’t stockpile resources this way, I’ll never reach the God Realm in this lifetime.
“You people standing on the mountaintop—give us climbers a chance.”
Ye Yu’s eyes narrowed.
Quite a few immortals heading to the God Realm lately?
The leap from immortal to god was no easier than a mortal stepping into the Emperor Realm.
There was no way large numbers were ascending at once.
That alone proved the Celestial World had undergone some kind of change. Otherwise, even someone like Cui Yachun wouldn’t be lurking here.
There was definitely a problem.
Seeing Ye Yu remain silent, Cui Yachun urged, “Friend, have you decided?”
“I noticed you seemed terribly anxious just now, rushing to take care of something. What, not in a hurry anymore?”
It sounded like a question, but it was psychological warfare,
stoking Ye Yu’s anxiety to force a quick compromise.
This trick had worked for Cui Yachun many times before.
But this time he was unlucky—he’d run into Ye Yu, the type who yields to softness, not to force.
