"Aaaah…" A shriek tore through the air, and suddenly, on the face of the waterfall, a colossal human visage materialized. The face was elongated, its nose jutting out dramatically, sending spray flying; its mouth hung wide open, as if Old Liu’s attack had truly caused it pain.

"Waaah!" Old Liu craned his neck to look up. That massive face seemed as tall as a skyscraper. His eyes widened as he spurred his sword onward. Facing something so immense, every hair on his body stood on end. "You have got to be kidding me; the things inside this ruin are too bizarre."

"Try the Black Flame!" Ye Xiu, standing on a crystal wheel while retreating, bombarded the giant face. At this moment, he unleashed the Nine Dragon Black Flame toward the face. The nine dragons shot out fiercely, managing to vaporize the moisture in the waterfall even as they approached the cascading water, but the instant they made contact with the face's main body, they vanished into nothingness.

"Ah, ah…" After being struck, the giant face let out an enraged roar and slowly lowered itself. Its entire countenance was the color of moss, the outlines of its eyes appearing deeply etched. As its eyes snapped open, they emitted a brilliant radiance, and under that glow, two towering jets of water shot toward where the group was fleeing, resembling lasers.

"Damn it, I wasn't the one who hit you, why are you aiming at me!" Old Liu, being higher up, instinctively positioned himself in front of Ye Xiu and Mei Yi. He twisted and tumbled on his sword, barely evading the water pillars. Just then, the giant hand below rose as well, threatening to drive him into a desperate corner.

"Let me up!" Ye Xiu leaped onto an empty crystal wheel nearby. He glanced back at Mei Yi. "You go down first; I’ll draw its attention away."

Mei Yi was reluctant, but seeing Ye Xiu’s confident demeanor, she nodded. At that moment, the two crystal wheels split into two paths: one followed Ye Xiu upward, and the other charged straight down the waterfall.

"Waaaaah!" Seeing the giant hand rising toward him, Old Liu jumped off his Demon-Breaking Sword in fright. At that instant, his entire body plummeted rapidly, and the Demon-Breaking Sword, as if recognizing its master, followed suit.

"Pffft!" The giant hand lunged through the air, missing its target amidst a shower of water spray. The previous water pillars, incredibly, struck the outline of the giant hand instead, and the pillars inexplicably reflected, their target now being the rapidly descending Old Liu.

"Watch out!" Ye Xiu spurred his crystal wheel forward, boosting his speed with the Black Flame. As he neared the water pillars, he enveloped his entire body in the black fire. At that moment, the waterfall's water evaporated entirely upon encountering the Black Flame.

"Hoo, looks like keeping you around has its uses after all," Old Liu breathed a sigh of relief. He planted his foot back onto the Demon-Breaking Sword, stabilizing his body once more. But just then, another giant hand emerged from the opposite side of the waterfall, swinging down with brutal force to strike both of them.

"Let's go!" With Mei Yi absent, Ye Xiu couldn't freely control the direction of the crystal wheels. At this point, he grabbed the hem of Old Liu's robes and plummeted downward, trying to escape. "We can't fight this colossal thing; let's get out of here."

"Go! How do we go?" Old Liu gaped in astonishment. He pointed below; it turned out that just a short distance from them, another giant hand had emerged from beneath the waterfall. The three hands swiftly closed in, intending to capture them both then and there.

"What monster! Three hands!" Ye Xiu gritted his teeth in fear. He used the Black Flame to alter their direction of descent, allowing them to easily avoid the hand below. However, the waterfall was not as simple as they thought. At this critical moment, countless water jets shot out, threatening to strike them both. He had no choice but to unleash the Nine Dragon Black Flame downward again. Amidst the deafening roars, both men were nearly thrown off the Demon-Breaking Sword and plunged downward.

Old Liu was dizzy and nauseous from the water shock; he almost vomited. "Wow, this thing is more thrilling than a roller coaster. I really want to see the true identity of the giant behind this waterfall."

"Look! Look!" Ye Xiu pointed down in front of them. A giant foot suddenly lifted. Their falling speed was too great for them to dodge. In an instant, they were kicked away like footballs by the leg and vanished from the scene with a final "Waaah..."

...

Ten thousand miles away, within the Dao Realm, the One Origin Nether River Realm was alight with strange luminescence. Following a thick plume of smoke and dust, a dark figure shuttled beneath the mirror surface of a secret chamber. Clad in somber, decaying shades, he held a pipe aloft in mid-air—this man was Yan Du, a capable general under the Death God of the Dark System, Lord Zhou.

"Tongjiang Realm, you are the sole element linking the Human Realm and the Nether World. No matter how powerful Sha Jun Tian Xia is, he cannot return to the Demon Realm now. I must ask you where he is." Yan Du raised one hand, and the black mist blurred the mirror before him. The mirror was ancient and black, completely embedded in the stone wall, its surface the color of rock, but under Yan Du's magic power, it began to emit a faint, sickly glow.

"Wuuu! Wuuu!" After two sounds, the entire scene shuddered. Brilliant light radiated from the mirror, yet it reflected nothing. Instead, it projected a massive rectangular image that appeared before Yan Du.

"The Eastern Sea of the Human Realm?" Yan Du seemed to have discerned the clue. He gave a light laugh and stepped into the image, his entire body gradually disappearing at that moment. "As expected, Sha Jun Tian Xia cannot return to the Demon Realm. The only thing he can do now is establish a foothold in the Human Realm and rebuild Jidu."

Vast sea, east of humanity. In this place ravaged by sea winds, a desolate island floated in the sky beneath a dense black mist. It was scorched black and devoid of life, holding nothing but a towering city and bodies moving like walking dead. This was the hidden location of the Jidu Tyrant, Sha Jun Tian Xia, in the Human Realm—and also his base for conquering humanity.

"Who is it?" Sha Jun's voice pierced through layers of mist. His tone was deep and resonant, yet it lacked true force. As a denizen of the Demon Realm, without the support of the Demon Source, his physical power was affected.

Yan Du stepped onto the floating island. Faced with thousands of ferocious zombies, he lowered his head and replied humbly, "Yan Du, subordinate of the Death Kingdom's Lord Zhou, requests an audience with the Master of Jidu, Sha Jun Tian Xia."

"Death Kingdom?" Sha Jun's tone carried a slight delay as he pondered his connection to this Death Kingdom before his arrogance returned. "Let him in!"

At this moment, the zombies in the plaza stepped aside. Those creatures were neither fully human nor fully demon; their only common traits were elongated limbs and glowing green eyes. After Sha Jun's command, they all prostrated themselves on the ground, as if they had never seen someone like Yan Du before.

Yan Du ignited his pipe, exhaling strange mists that carried peculiar scents on the air, causing even the surrounding zombies to shy away. He looked curiously at everything on the floating island. The city before him seemed long abandoned; the only remarkable feature was its unattainable height. Following the guidance of Sha Jun's voice, he walked toward a huge circular platform.

This platform was made entirely of wood, crisscrossed with incredibly thick iron chains. Beside the chains, a massive gear was situated, and as Yan Du approached, dozens of fierce-looking zombies gathered around the gear.

"Is this what Jidu looks like after being abandoned?" Yan Du stepped onto the platform with a question on his mind. He looked up at the towering castle, which was overgrown with moss, the thick smell of seawater still clearly detectable. Could it be that Sha Jun had buried such a city deep beneath the Human Realm's seas long ago?

"Creeeeak... screech..." The zombies strained against the gear, producing agonizing sounds. As the chains tightened, the wooden platform began to slowly ascend toward the open-air terrace above. Yan Du did not fear Sha Jun's might, because he knew one thing: Sha Jun Tian Xia would never give up any opportunity to attack the Human Realm.

"What does Lord Zhou want you to do?" On the open-air terrace, a deep-red figure drifted in the distance. This was merely an afterimage created by Sha Jun Tian Xia's own power. Nearly everyone who has seen Sha Jun Tian Xia's true face in this world is already dead.

Yan Du was shaken to his core by the air current the moment he stepped off the wooden platform. He hadn't intended to bow before Sha Jun Tian Xia, but such oppressive power left him no choice. Though he used his internal energy to force his legs straight, his knees were visibly bent. "Yan Du of the Death Kingdom pays respects to the Master of Jidu."

"Hmph!" As Sha Jun spoke, a wave of power surged from the ethereal red shadow and swept through the air. "While I still have some patience, state your purpose!"

"Pfft..." Yan Du could no longer contain it; a mouthful of blood surged from his core, and he collapsed onto the ground. This was just Sha Jun's remnant image, yet it could force him into submission. "Lord Zhou heard of Sha Jun Tian Xia's fearsome renown and merely wishes to cooperate with you to unify the various realms."

"Unify?" A bolt of purple light flew from the red shadow, striking Yan Du directly in the chest and knocking him to the ground. "What caliber of person is Lord Zhou to presume to unify the realms with me? I give you one more chance, or else... die!"

Yan Du, who had approached to persuade Sha Jun with full confidence, found the Tyrant as haughty as expected. He steadied his mind. "If Lord Sha Jun wishes to re-enter the Human Realm, he will surely need to open the passage between the Demon Realm and the Human Realm. Lord Zhou has already found a way to open this passage, hoping to assist Lord Sha Jun in achieving the glory of unifying the realms."

"Oh, that passage!" Upon hearing this, Sha Jun's red shadow instantly vanished, and a figure in dark robes darted onto the open-air platform. He was imposing and powerful, his presence radiating unparalleled might wherever he went. "In this world, besides that woman, is there anyone else capable of opening the passage between realms?"

Yan Du dared not delay, bowing low. "Lord Zhou knows precisely what Lord Sha Jun needs most. The Dark System Death Gods will certainly lend their full support to Jidu!"

Sha Jun showed a flicker of excitement. He paused, then asked, "What benefit does this bring to the Death Gods? Does Lord Zhou intend to emulate the Nether King of the Death Kingdom and unify everything?"

"I dare not. I merely admire Lord Sha Jun and wish to foster good relations with the Demon Realm," Yan Du said, finally showing a hint of relief. He sighed and continued cautiously, "For the details, please allow me to explain them to Lord Sha Jun..."