Dicaro shrieked, then instantly teleported to Reddy’s side, already preparing to disengage, completely ignoring the dense spatial restraints he had woven around the colossal insect.

“Xiao Luo, what in the blazes is that thing?” Reddy shook his draconic head, his silver form shooting out arcs of pale-blue lightning that coiled like a rainbow, all binding toward the monstrous bug.

“Don’t waste your effort. I fear we truly cannot handle this entity,” Dicaro said, his face smeared with gore, his expression ragged, forcing out an ugly, strained smile.

It was at this moment that Shi Yan’s expression drastically changed, a look of utter horror blooming in his eyes.

Because the spirit bound by Ming Hao, within the Blood-Patterned Ring, was currently emitting piercing shrieks. For some unknown reason, the spirit seemed to have suddenly gained an inexplicable surge of power.

His soul slipped into the Blood-Patterned Ring and discovered that within its depths lay countless complex and mysterious barriers. These layers of wards, like draped curtains, enveloped a hazy, gray soul—which must be the ring spirit.

Now, those dense barriers were fracturing like shattering mirrors, revealing numerous cracks, and the ring spirit’s aura was growing increasingly violent from within its seal.

This spirit was not the original one. It was one that Xuan Shan had drawn over from the Ancient God Continent using his essence. Like Shi Yan himself, it was potentially a soul from beyond this domain. It had swallowed the original spirit, harboring malicious intent to seize Shi Yan’s soul, and later developed an evil ambition to gather the Bloodthirsty Skeletons for resurrection.

Ming Hao had deployed his divine power to seal it at the heart of the ring, preventing its escape. Only in specific moments could it occasionally communicate with Shi Yan.

But now, the barriers Ming Hao had erected were shattering and tearing apart; the ring spirit was clearly on the verge of breaking free.

Beside him, Dicaro was screaming again, looking as if the giant insect was utterly unconquerable, which unsettled Shi Yan’s mind, making him feel increasingly uneasy.

At this critical juncture, he pondered for a few seconds, then suddenly raised a hand and grasped; a profound vortex materialized beside him.

“You return to Divine Grace Star first.” Without giving Xia Xinyan time to prepare, he pushed her away with a slight shove. A gentle force surged into her body, sending her directly into the vortex.

Simultaneously, he touched his brow, and his main soul floated out directly from his forehead.

The blood-red mark between the main soul’s eyebrows suddenly emitted a strange crimson light. This light, like a signal thread, plunged directly into an unknown, mysterious location.

Within the forbidden Blood Sea, a streak of blood light descended from the heavens, landing upon the Devouring Island at its center.

In the interim, a torrent of intent was released. Xuan He and Feliette immediately perceived it, both their expressions shifting slightly. They began arranging matters with grave seriousness.

...

Before long.

“Zzzzzip!”

Right beside Shi Yan, a ball of strange light condensed, and a spectral soul soon emerged, instantly transforming into a soul avatar of Ming Hao.

Two flashes of electric light followed, and Xuan He and Feliette suddenly materialized as well, their expressions solemn.

As soon as Ming Hao appeared, he saw Dicaro, face covered in gore, preparing to drag Reddy away in fear. Ming Hao paused for a moment, then suddenly spoke in a gentle tone, “Senior Brother.”

Dicaro halted, turned to look at him, and shouted, “I do not have a good junior brother like you!”

“Xiao Luo!” Reddy yelled, writhing his draconic body, shouting, “What are you afraid of?”

Xuan He and Feliette, however, were now looking at Shi Yan—more precisely, at the Blood-Patterned Ring on his hand. Xuan He asked, “That ring spirit… is it about to break its seal?”

Shi Yan nodded and turned to Ming Hao, “You set those seals. They were safe until now, but for some reason, they have suddenly become violently unstable.”

Ming Hao, his face grim, reached out and clenched the Blood-Patterned Ring. A wisp of soul penetrated it, and his expression instantly shifted as he looked toward the giant insect in horror!

He then closed his eyes again, as if contemplating something, before snapping them open and looking at Dicaro, “Senior Brother, that thing… is it what Master spoke of back then?”

This time, Dicaro did not retort; he showed a pained expression and nodded, “It should be.”

Xuan He and Feliette were perplexed, glancing between Ming Hao and Dicaro, unsure what entity they were discussing.

Seeing Dicaro admit it, Ming Hao’s expression became extremely ugly. He said in a deep voice, “That thing is influencing the ring spirit inside, seemingly helping it break free!”

At these words, everyone present froze.

Ming Hao also frowned, “Don’t look at me. I don’t know what’s happening, nor what connection the ring spirit inside has with that thing.”

“What is that thing?” Xuan He asked.

While they were speaking, the giant insect was still struggling fiercely, trying to break free from the layers of space Dicaro had locked down.

It writhed like a planet, its released aura sealed away, perceptible only to Dicaro, who alone bore the brunt of it.

Dicaro felt as if his chest had been struck hard; his whole body trembled violently, and his face, already paper-white, was now covered in more blood.

He suddenly screamed, “My Spatial Source Mark cannot hold! I must release the seal! Everyone, prepare yourselves!”

“What is that thing?” Xuan He and Feliette demanded in unison, looking toward Ming Hao.

“A Primordial Being!” Ming Hao roared.

Xuan He, Feliette, Reddy, and Shi Yan all looked stunned, clearly having never heard the term, their faces blank with incomprehension.

“Netherworld Lock Armor!”

Ming Hao offered no explanation. With a grim expression, he drew threads of spectral souls from his eyes. Instantly, hundreds of thousands of wisps of souls floated forth, resembling an ocean formed by souls, surging toward the Spatial Source Mark Dicaro had imposed. These souls permeated the layers of space, miraculously strengthening Dicaro’s spatial confinement.

Those myriad souls were mostly at the level of True Gods or Origin Gods, with many reaching the Immortal God tier. Hundreds of thousands of them—one couldn't guess how much slaughter Ming Hao had wrought over ten thousand years to accumulate such a hoard.

The numerous souls formed the shape of chain armor, densely coating the spatial imprint, multiplying Dicaro’s sealing power several times over.

Dicaro, whose expression was already foul, suddenly looked considerably more relaxed after the souls flowed into the imprint. He steadied himself, took a deep breath, and suddenly announced, “With the three of you added, perhaps we can contain this Primordial Being, but certainly not destroy it. And even containing it… I don’t know for how long we can hold it…”

Shi Yan was dumbfounded.

At this location, including Ming Hao, Xuan He, and Feliette, there were five experts who had reached the Second Heaven of Immortality. This combined force was enough to sweep aside any power in the heavens and earth apart from the God Race.

Yet, even this much strength could only contain the entity, and judging by Dicaro’s words, not for long. What kind of situation was this?

Surprisingly, Ming Hao entirely agreed with his assessment: “Senior Brother is absolutely correct. We can only trap it, perhaps for a few decades. Annihilation is nearly impossible.”

“What exactly is that thing?” Reddy transformed into a ball of lightning, which then split, reforming him into human shape, his face radiating impatience.

“The history of the Sky Demon Race, the Undying Demon Race, the Nether Emperor Race, and the God Race spans only one hundred thousand years. The earliest era, your era, was merely referred to as the Primordial Era, only a hundred thousand years ago,” Dicaro said to Reddy, his voice tinged with bitterness. “But before one hundred thousand years, there was actually another era called the Era of Primal Genesis. There were beings in that era, entities far exceeding the limits of our comprehension. Those beings were called Primordial Beings.”

Shi Yan and the others froze.

“Although my Master died by a bloodthirsty hand, he was the most exceptional Master of Spatial Profundity. His exploration of space never ceased throughout his life. He discerned many profound mysteries and knew the ancient secrets of the world. The matters concerning the Era of Primal Genesis were passed down by him.” Dicaro frowned deeply.

“The beings of the Era of Primal Genesis were immensely powerful. It is said that the original universe was tens of thousands of times larger than it is now, with infinite territory, star domains like water droplets in the ocean, endless and countless. The reason it became what it is now, with only this few remaining star domains, was, according to my Master, due to the conflict among the Primordial Beings.”

“The beings of that age were countless times larger than the members of the Sky Demon Race, and were extremely peculiar. They weren't necessarily limited to physical forms; one could be a massive mountain, an endless ocean, or even an entire planet that was a Primordial Being. They were unimaginably vast, possessed infinite lifespans, perceived the fundamental power of the cosmos, and wielded unimaginable strength.”

“If what you say is true, then the Desolate?” Shi Yan interjected suddenly.

“Your guess is correct; the Desolate is a Primordial Being,” Ming Hao said calmly, looking at him.

Shi Yan was stunned, his soul feeling a severe impact, causing him to freeze instantly.

“I can also tell you another fact: the Divine Grace Continent, Divine Marsh Continent, Ancient God Continent, and Ancient Demon Continent were once all parts of the Desolate. Just as a person is divided into a head and four limbs, the Desolate was the head, and the other four ancient continents were its limbs. They were once one body, but they were severed into pieces by an inconceivable existence due to catastrophic injury, causing them to look as they do now,” Dicaro snorted coldly.

Now, even Xuan He, Feliette, and Reddy looked terrified, displaying immense shock. Xuan He looked at Ming Hao, his emotions violently surging, and only after composing himself did he ask Ming Hao, “Is what he says true?”

Ming Hao was silent for a long moment. “I do not know truth from falsehood. These accounts are merely my Master’s speculations from back then. For ten thousand years, I have been trying to verify them. I cannot be certain yet, but this hypothesis is likely very close to the truth. At the very least, you all know one thing: the Desolate possesses vital consciousness and its own will. It merely suffered grievous injury previously, causing it to become so strange…”

“The Desolate is a Primordial Being, and this thing here should also be a Primordial Being. None of us knows the mysterious details of such entities, and no one has truly communicated or fought against one. But my Master once said that Primordial Beings are terrifying beyond measure, and we cannot stand against them; only other Primordial Beings can resist them,” Dicaro stated grimly.

“That seems right,” Shi Yan interjected once more. “My other soul gives me a sense of familiarity with this thing, as if I recognize it.”

All eyes immediately converged on him. Ming Hao’s expression trembled slightly. “I almost forgot you fused with the Divine Grace Origin Essence. If my Master’s speculation from back then holds true, fusing with the Divine Grace Origin Essence is equivalent to merging with a fragment soul of the Desolate. If that’s the case, it’s normal for you to feel a sense of familiarity.”

He paused, then looked back at Dicaro. “Senior Brother, you said no one has truly communicated or fought with a Primordial Being. You are mistaken there. There is one person who fought against a Primordial Being, and it seems… even won.”

“Who?” Dicaro’s expression shook.

“My former Master.”

...To be continued.RT