In a remote corner of the Ancient God Starfield, seven scorching suns blazed fiercely, their flames trembling like scales, colored in vivid, fiery orange-red. At the center of these seven suns was a small pocket of space, bubbling with molten magma, where small flickers of flame drifted.

A savage, ferocious beast floated within that fiery magma, the sound of wood vigorously burning—pa-pa—erupting from its abdomen. The seven adjacent, searing suns spewed torrents of blazing fire toward it, a fiery baptism to temper its monstrous form, rendering its body like white-hot iron, scalding crimson.

It was Guiliao! This was its terrifying beast form!

"Hiss-hiss-hiss!" It thrashed in the lava, its belly dissolving the flesh and blood of Putai with stomach acid, meticulously absorbing and consolidating the residual bloodthirsty aura within Putai’s body. "Roar!" It unleashed a heaven-shattering roar, a sound like heavenly thunder stirring up subterranean fire, causing the seven suns to shatter into pieces.

As the suns pulverized, a fissure tore through space, from which two ancient, colossal continents emerged—the Desolate Continent and the Ancient Demon Continent! Amidst the shower of solar flames, the two ancient continents, like two drops of water, strangely began to merge.

In a mere few dozen seconds, the two ancient landmasses coalesced into one, becoming a single, vastly larger continent, a magnificent, dazzling star. Guiliao’s body instantly doubled in size.

Its monstrous form hovered above the coalesced continent, drawing in the surging, immense primal energy of the land, breathing in the clouds and mist, its internal life fluctuations growing exponentially vast. Its eyes gradually shed their savagery, becoming unexpectedly calm, anciently profound, like those of an exceptionally wise elder, a sage, suggesting immense knowledge and insight.

Ripples of light surged across its monstrous, demonic body, and gradually, it reformed into a human shape, becoming him. He was still Guiliao, bearing a resemblance to Shi Yan in three aspects.

His aura was mysterious and deep, his eyes like bottomless pools, obscuring any internal marvels from view. He gazed in one direction and suddenly shot off, the shadow of the merged ancient continent trailing closely behind him like an obedient tether.

... On another sun.

Divine Lord Brian’s expression was grave, clumps of five-colored flames flickering in his eyes, undergoing a marvelous fusion. Brian stood at the pinnacle of the Immortal realm, merely one step away from comprehending the Dark Energy Domain Ancestor.

At this moment, he began the final fusion of the Primordial Fire, activating the imprint of the Desolate clone in his mind, granting him knowledge of the Primal Language and an understanding of some of the mysteries of the Primal Era. Ten thousand years ago, he already possessed the ability to merge the Heavenly Fire, but he regretted ever taking that step.

Because he didn't know if he would still be himself after taking that step; he feared being utterly possessed by the Desolate clone. Thus, for ten millennia, he hesitated, unwilling to rashly attempt it, hoping instead to observe Shi Yan’s condition.

At the bottom of the Sea of Annihilation, after his soul and Audrey’s soul had merged into Shi Yan’s Desolate clone, all three lived well, with no adverse events occurring. On the contrary, Audrey had gained the Soul Refining Cauldron, he had insight into Dark Energy, and Shi Yan had also profited immensely.

He concluded that fusing the Heavenly Fire truly wouldn't lead to the catastrophe he had once predicted, so now he commenced the fusion. The vibrant, five-colored flames intertwined within the sea of fire in his mind, his soul drifting ethereally, traveling through past and present, bathing in the long river of time.

He was a mere spectator, witnessing terrifying battles, scenes belonging to the distant Primal Era—struggles between colossal beings. He acquired fragments of memory belonging to one-fifth of the Desolate Clone, incomplete glimpses that nevertheless represented a portion of that era’s history.

While fusing the Heavenly Fire, he was also integrating the intent of the Divine Grace Continent’s origin, merging it truly with his soul. Time flowed swiftly, feeling both immensely distant and incredibly brief...

He awoke, confusion first clouding his eyes, then slowly, as if realizing something, sensing a wondrous connection, his expression suddenly shifted. He abruptly raised his head to the sky.

Above this sun, a massive shadow descended. Upon closer inspection, one could discern that the shadow belonged to a colossal star, from which he sensed an ancient, vast, and utterly unrivaled aura—an aura he had experienced before: it belonged to the Desolate One!

Guiliao's figure descended from the continent, suddenly materializing beside him. Deep in Brian’s eyes, sheer terror and unease surfaced, a violent tremor shaking the depths of his soul, carrying the despair of impending doom.

The consciousness of the Desolate Clone within his soul revealed exactly who the current Guiliao truly was! “In My world, no new Domain Ancestor should be born; it would fragment My world and divide My power,” Guiliao stated indifferently, his face devoid of human expression, supremely placid.

“When the Bloodthirsty Breakthrough to Domain Ancestor, you personally participated in the execution. Can you still not comprehend?” Guiliao spoke these words in the Primal Language.

Brian heard and understood clearly. After a long, stunned silence, he suddenly grasped the situation and turned to flee.

“By completely fusing with My clone's consciousness, integrating a portion of My soul's thought—at this moment, you are destined to be dissolved by Me,” Guiliao murmured coldly. “I grant an Origin Fruit every ten thousand years, hoping those who obtain it would gradually merge My fragmented soul aspects, unifying My four clones into one.

Regrettably, no one ever succeeded. This time’s chosen one had the highest potential, but unexpectedly, those two fellows, Hui and Shi, awakened early, denying him more time to realize it.

Out of necessity, I had to act early. Although the Me fused this way will lose some power, there was no alternative...” Guiliao opened his hand, his palm seeming to encompass the heavens and earth.

Billions of sacred, brilliant lights erupted like a cage, binding Brian’s soul and destiny. “You are a failure.

If you had succeeded back then, none of this would be happening,” Guiliao’s tone was icy. He inhaled sharply, and Brian, like a frozen figurine, was crystallized and refined by the light, inching toward Guiliao’s mouth.

“You were born within My world; from the moment of your birth, My soul imprint existed within you. How can you resist Me?” "Whoosh!" Brian vanished as a streak of light into Guiliao's mouth.

Guiliao's figure flickered once, settling back atop the ancient continent above. That colossal continent drifted strangely within the Ancient God Starfield, gradually heading toward the direction of the Divine Race's Ancient God Continent.

... “Listen closely, listen carefully to what they are discussing.

I need to uncover the origins of my Phantom Race, the true cause of my progenitor’s death!” Mandis instructed Shi Yan within the Ancient Demon Starfield, urging him to focus. Shi Yan frowned, following her instructions to probe the conversation between Ziyao and Shi.

He was different from Brian. After completely fusing the Heavenly Fire of his secondary soul origin, he had indeed obtained many scenes from the Primal Era, able to hear the Primal Language and read the Primal Runes.

Yet, he still lacked understanding of the entanglements between these Primal beings during that time. What he possessed was merely one-fifth of the Desolate One's experiences; unless all those fragments were fused together, they remained incomplete.

It was like taking one-fifth of an entire painting—one could not discern the final image. Only when the entire picture was assembled could the truth be restored.

"Eh!" He suddenly cried out, his face turning slightly pale. He pressed a hand to his forehead, mumbling, “For some reason, I feel an intense unease, as if something terribly frightening has occurred...” The sensation arrived inexplicably, difficult to articulate, seemingly an instinctual dread originating deep within his soul.

"Ah!" Audrey's scream of terror sounded from behind him. Audrey clutched her head, terrifying colors blooming in her beautiful eyes, as if she had witnessed something horrific.

She shook her head, shrieking, “No, don’t come closer, don’t come closer!” like someone tormented by a nightmare in a terrible dream. "What is it?

What's wrong?" Adela called out sharply. “I—I saw myself die!

I saw someone kill me!” Audrey cried out hysterically, her face utterly drained of color. “It was like a scene from the future becoming reality, which I saw first.

It’s so frightening...” Shi Yan’s expression darkened. He immediately moved to Audrey’s side and whispered, “In your dream, who...

killed you?” “Guiliao! The Guiliao who appeared before, he killed me!” Audrey shook her head helplessly.

“Divine Lord Brian is dead, I’m certain he’s dead! I saw him killed, eaten by Guiliao!” “You are too tired.

You should rest properly. Having nightmares in broad daylight—it seems the pressure has been too much for you lately,” Adela comforted.

“No, that wasn't a dream.” Mandis, who cultivated the profound secrets of time, suddenly interjected. “The scene she saw might truly come to pass.

She... is a fragment of the Primal creature Desolate Clone’s soul; her soul carries the Desolate One’s imprint.

She can vaguely sense the Desolate One’s intentions and plans.” Mandis looked at Shi Yan, paused thoughtfully, and then said, “When that creature appeared earlier, I was already very puzzled, feeling it was different from current demonic beasts. Now, hearing Audrey, I can confirm that creature is the Desolate One!

It was thinking in its mind, thinking of killing Audrey, which is why Audrey can feel it! Because the soul Audrey merged originates from it—it is a part of it!

Just as consciousness and thoughts can flow freely between your main soul and sub-soul, Audrey can know its thoughts.” “Shi Yan, you are a step further than Audrey. You have already fused one of its souls.

If Audrey can sense it, what about you?” Ming Hao urged. Xuanhe, Filit, and the others all turned to look at him, their faces etched with unconcealed gravity.

“I sense a great terror might be approaching, but it’s not as direct as Audrey’s. I don’t know why,” Shi Yan said, narrowing his eyes, though colossal waves surged within him.

He never imagined the Desolate One was attached to Guiliao. This Guiliao...

did he establish a strange connection with the Desolate One by devouring Cang, or was he another of its pawns from the very beginning? Could Guiliao be the second perfect being the Desolate One refined using its own essence blood after the Bloodthirsty transformation?