The Celestial Demon Clan needed to rely on Shi Yan for strength and survival; they could not leave him. However, Shi Yan would suffer no loss whatsoever if he departed from the Celestial Demon Clan.

When one party needed to beg and the other was unattached, naturally, the supplicant had to bow their head.

"From this day forward, the Spirit Gathering Ancient Formation in the Celestial Demon Mountain Range shall not be activated again. Your Celestial Demon Clan's territory lies in the Azure Sky Sea Domain. You have the right to enter the Dark Magnetic Miasma for cultivation, but it is absolutely not an exclusive domain for your clan; others may enter to cultivate, and your clan shall not interfere!"

Shi Yan emerged from a void rift, hovering motionlessly above the Celestial Demon Mountain Range, looking down at the assembled clan members, and roared this out loud.

A sense of sorrow and helplessness washed over the Celestial Demon Clan members, yet none dared to refute him.

Cang Yun, a powerful demon among the Celestial Demons, froze mid-gesture, his expression one of shock. He looked up at the sky, his face etched with bitterness, sighing inwardly with a desolate expression.

The Sacred Beast Azure Dragon looked crestfallen. After a few seconds of contemplation, he nodded in agreement. "On behalf of the Celestial Demon Clan, I accept this arrangement. We will no longer forcibly siphon the energy of the surrounding oceans."

"I hope there won't be a next time," Shi Yan said, his face cold and stern. "If there is, your Celestial Demon Clan will be driven from this place. From then on, this region will become your clan's forbidden zone!"

All the Celestial Demon Clan members fell into a profound silence, fearful to even breathe. Though they harbored resentment, they felt utterly powerless.

"For the next ten thousand years, the world energy here will reach its zenith. As long as your Celestial Demon Clan lives peacefully here, being the original race nurtured by this land, your clan's overall strength is certain to reach an unprecedented height. Provided you remain obedient, I can guarantee your clan's prosperity."

Shi Yan frowned, looking over the assembled Celestial Demon Clan members, his gaze finally resting on Cang Yun.

"Brother Cang, I am not targeting your Celestial Demon Clan specifically. I only hope you will cease being so selfish and grant others the right to survive—give others a way to live. Your clan has wandered between the stars, sustaining your lineage by exhausting the energy of various life-bearing worlds. I do not wish for you to treat this place as just another life-bearing star for your operations, using its depletion and the seizing of others' benefits as the cost to strengthen your clan."

In the Wilderness, Cang Wa had always shown him kindness, a debt he acknowledged, which was the reason for these words.

Under Shi Yan's scrutiny, Cang Fa offered a wry smile, glancing at the Azure Dragon before ultimately remaining silent.

The Azure Dragon had already recognized reality and could only sigh internally, having reached a decision; he spoke no more.

Seeing the silence from the Celestial Demon Clan, Shi Yan had no desire to prolong the conversation and prepared to depart.

The Azure Dragon pondered for a few seconds, then suddenly spoke, "The Bloodthirsty lineage's Blood Covenant has been activated. All inheritors of the Bloodthirsty lineage on this continent are being drawn by the power of the Covenant and are departing. Currently, Xuan He and Frielet have commissioned the Giant Wave Merchant Guild to search for you; they have been looking for quite some time. If you intend to take charge of the Bloodthirsty lineage, you should leave immediately, following the Blood Covenant."

Shi Yan's expression darkened. He immediately unleashed his divine sense, which instantly swept across the entire continent.

The aura of Yang Qingdi was gone, and Liana's life magnetic field was absent. There was no sign of Feran or Cato either. This confirmed that what the Sacred Beast Azure Dragon said was true.

As an Immortal Realm cultivator stationed on this continent, he could detect those unique energy fluctuations, so it was not surprising to Shi Yan.

"Blood Covenant?" Shi Yan looked confused.

"It is the special summoning method of your Bloodthirsty lineage. The mark on the inheritor's brow acts as a medium to mobilize the mysterious power of the Sacred Land, transporting the inheritor directly there. The Blood Covenant is only activated when the Bloodthirsty lineage has a major undertaking. This current activation is related to your ascension."

The Azure Dragon, having accepted the facts, finally regained clarity. He knew that the future might and glory of the Celestial Demon Clan were inextricably linked to Shi Yan.

If Shi Yan could survive and continue to grow stronger, the Divine Grace Continent would maintain its abundant world energy, ensuring the spiritual energy remained high, and the Celestial Demon Clan would benefit in turn.

If Shi Yan perished and his soul was extinguished, his connection to the origin would be severed, and the corresponding Divine Grace Continent would change, unable to sustain the Celestial Demon Clan's energy abundance for ten thousand years.

Therefore, not only could he harbor no ill will toward Shi Yan, but he also had to actively ensure Shi Yan continued to grow stronger, powerful enough that no one could easily kill him.

Understanding this, he revealed the situation without reservation. "As the Bloodthirsty inheritor, even if you do nothing, the God Race will not spare you. Furthermore, you obtained the Origin Fruit; the God Race will undoubtedly dedicate themselves to killing you to ensure their own race does not decline."

His expression turning solemn, the Azure Dragon boomed, "As far as I know, the God Race Elder Council has summoned the Four Heavenly Kings, which implies... the God Lord may have awakened."

"Four Heavenly Kings? God Lord?" Shi Yan was stunned.

"The God Lord was the recognized patriarch of the twelve families of the God Race ten thousand years ago, commanding the Elder Council. He was also the one who obtained the Origin Fruit ten millennia ago, renowned as the mightiest figure in the God Race in tens of thousands of years. It was he who led the God Race and the experts of various star domains to sweep away your Bloodthirsty lineage. It was also he and the assembled powerhouses who besieged and annihilated the Bloodthirsty."

"In that battle, the Bloodthirsty souls were scattered, and their physical bodies exploded into countless fragments, vanishing into the heavens and earth. In that conflict, the God Lord’s soul was severely wounded, though his body was annihilated. After the battle, he disappeared; he must have been in a dormant state, similar to yours, slowly recovering."

"The Four Heavenly Kings were the four most loyal and powerful subordinates under the God Lord. Within the God Race, they answered only to him. Their combat power back then was equivalent to the eight Bloodthirsty Retainers. After the God Lord's body was destroyed and his soul heavily damaged, the Four Heavenly Kings continued to hunt the Bloodthirsty lineage. As the Bloodthirsty gradually went into hiding, the Four Heavenly Kings also gradually vanished."

"The Four Heavenly Kings are not bound by the Elder Council. It is rumored they have roamed various star domains over the past ten thousand years, cultivating in many mysterious and remote places, awaiting the awakening of their master."

"Only their master can summon them. Now that the God Race Elder Council is summoning the Four Heavenly Kings, it is highly probable that the God Lord has awakened."

The Azure Dragon meticulously narrated the hidden status of the God Race and then seriously advised, "No matter how you try to evade it, the God Race will move against you because you are the successor of the Bloodthirsty. You cannot escape; your only recourse is to fight. With your personal strength and current realm, there is no possibility of contending against the God Race alone."

"Therefore, you must rely on the power of the Bloodthirsty lineage. You must seize this power and grow rapidly to have any hope of fighting the God Race. Since the God Lord has only just awakened, he likely needs time to recover. During this period, you should take control of the Bloodthirsty lineage; only then will you have a chance, a sliver of initiative."

Though the Azure Dragon felt deeply displeased with Shi Yan, for the sake of the Celestial Demon Clan's future, he had to explain the facts in detail, analyze the pros and cons, and guide him.

"If you wish to break free from fate, you must seize fate into your own hands. If you don't want the Bloodthirsty lineage dictating your life, you must become the master of the Eight Retainers and dictate the lives of others!"

The Azure Dragon saw with perfect clarity the resentment Shi Yan harbored about disappearing into the void rift, and now he couldn't help but clear the confusion for him.

Shi Yan stood frozen, frowning in deep thought.

The Azure Dragon did not disturb him, signaling the other Celestial Demon Clan members to remain silent as well, waiting for him to think it through and make his decision.

After a long pause, Shi Yan took a deep breath and asked, "How does one go to the Bloodthirsty Sacred Land?"

The Azure Dragon secretly breathed a sigh of relief, a spark of light flashing in his eyes. "As the Bloodthirsty inheritor, it is simple for you to go to the Sacred Land. You should be able to find the way."

He paused, then added, "On another note, the crisis in the Wu Dong Star Domain and the Mote Star Domain has been resolved. Under the pressure from the Thousand Illusions Sect, the Shattered Palace, and the Heavenly Water Palace, the God Race has retreated. Until the Thousand Illusions Sect, the Shattered Palace, and the Heavenly Water Palace make a unified decision, the God Race will not dare offend them. These three represent the scattered forces of the Star Sea, excluding the Four Great Races. Although this force is fragmented, it is incredibly significant. The God Race will try hard to win them over; in the war ten thousand years ago, it was precisely because of them that the God Race ultimately won. And you, if you can ascend to the peak, must also persuade those scattered forces. Even if you cannot gain their assistance, you must at least ensure their neutrality. If they continue to side with the God Race, this war will remain arduous."

Upon hearing this, Shi Yan's expression grew grave once more.

"Don't worry too much. Over these ten thousand years, the God Race has been overly domineering. Back then, before inviting those forces to participate in the war, they offered various generous terms. However, after the Bloodthirsty lineage was eliminated, the God Race failed to honor its promises. The friendship between the parties has long been broken, and in the last ten thousand years, they have engaged in open and secret conflict. It will not be easy for the God Race to win them over."

"Comparatively speaking, they should lean more toward the Bloodthirsty lineage. You were always arrogant and domineering, never paying heed to any other force, monopolizing the galaxy, and rarely negotiating terms. But you had one advantage over the God Race: you rarely made promises, but when you did, you always kept them."

"Therefore, if you can ascend to the peak, you will have a greater opportunity to gain the favor of those scattered powers."

The Azure Dragon, in earnest pursuit of the Celestial Demon Clan's future, spoke exhaustively, laying bare everything he knew and concluding by taking the initiative to declare, "From the moment you obtained the Origin Fruit, my Celestial Demon Clan will proactively stand with you. In this impending war, I can state clearly now: the Celestial Demon Clan will certainly stand on your side; we have no choice."

The Celestial Demon Clan members all looked bitter, sighing inwardly.

Even though Shi Yan had just corrected them and despite their myriad dissatisfactions, at this critical juncture, they still needed to stand with Shi Yan and give their utmost to help him resist the God Race.

Just as the Azure Dragon said, they had no choice. In fact, speaking earlier, the moment Shi Yan merged with the origin of their ancestral star, they were destined to stand in the same camp as him.

This was both their fortune and their tragedy; everything depended on how they acted and how they chose to view it.

"If your Celestial Demon Clan sincerely assists me, after the war, I will grant you the Blackwater Sea Domain as compensation for your efforts."

Shi Yan looked at the Celestial Demon Clan members, pondered for a moment, and said seriously.

The Azure Dragon's eyes brightened slightly, and he looked deeply at Shi Yan. "Thank you."