If you can't win, run!

The Dark Heavenly God spun around and swiftly bolted into the distance, pouring all his strength into propulsion, streaking like a comet across countless planar worlds and dimensional spaces, rushing toward the edge of existence.

The Ancient War Venerable, holding his battle blade, watched the Dark Heavenly God vanish in the distance and chuckled softly, "The twelve worlds outside the Ancient World—they were all created by me. In my domain, where can you possibly flee?"

He took one step, and his figure dissolved.

"Too strong! How could he be so ridiculously powerful?!" The Dark Heavenly God flashed past countless uninhabited planes, each teeming with different life forms and races, pausing for not a second, running frantically.

"Back then, he was gravely wounded by the Ancient God, and his divine blade was utterly destroyed. Just what kind of power did that Ancient God possess?" The Dark Heavenly God felt his scalp prickle. "Monsters! They are both absolute monsters! How can such powerful beings exist in this world—and two of them?!"

He was boiling with suppressed rage, on the verge of exploding.

Just then, a wave of light shimmered across the void ahead, and slowly, a youth clad in golden armor materialized, tilting his head with a gentle smile as he watched him. "Your speed is slightly faster than I anticipated. I thought I might have to wait for you for a while..."

The Dark Heavenly God’s pupils contracted violently, his body screeching to a halt as if slamming on the brakes. Terror gripped him as he stared at the Ancient War Venerable. "Impossible! I possess the divine seal of the Gale Heavenly God; no one in this heaven and earth can outpace me!"

"This world belongs to me; wherever I wish to go is but a single step away," the Ancient War Venerable smiled. "Give up. With your current strength, there is no hope. Your humble resistance will only earn you a far more agonizing consequence."

Despair flashed through the Dark Heavenly God’s mind, and he glared at the Ancient War Venerable in fury. "Even if you cannot kill me, if you push me too far, I will detonate myself, even if it means crippling you. With the Ancient God still standing, you two are evenly matched; a heavily injured you will surely die!"

"Very well, give it a try," the Ancient War Venerable chuckled, looking at the Dark Heavenly God. "I also wish to test the true might of my Civilization Armor on you."

The Dark Heavenly God finally noticed the golden armor he wore. The armor, brilliant as pure sunlight, was inscribed with countless runes that seemed to fly like light threads, dazzlingly swirling around it, forming a natural shield.

"You think this mere piece of armor can withstand the full force of my self-detonation?" The Dark Heavenly God’s face turned grim.

"We shall see if I can," the Ancient War Venerable replied with a slight smile. "Proceed."

Being so cavalierly dismissed was a first. The rage in the Dark Heavenly God's chest churned like fire. He took a deep breath. "Good, very good. I shall grant your wish!" A chilling light suddenly shot from his eyes, his aura rapidly surging to its zenith. On his brow, between his eyes, nine divine seals of different colors materialized, resembling gemstones inlaid around a royal crown, encircling his mane of hair.

These nine seals of disparate colors slowly intertwined, gradually spinning like a hurricane, becoming indistinct. Simultaneously, a supremely potent force, like a roused predatory beast, slowly awakened within him. Earth-shattering energy drifted out from his pores and strands of hair, permeating heaven and earth, causing cracks to splinter across the sky of this dimensional void.

"The dignity of a god cannot be profaned!" Madness flared in the Dark Heavenly God's eyes as he roared, "Die!" His body began to swell incessantly until his chest bulged like an inflated balloon, and he charged toward the Ancient War Venerable.

A violent impact occurred the instant they were within dozens of kilometers!

The Dark Heavenly God’s entire body exploded outward in a great blast. A destructive force swept out, as if heaven and earth were being annihilated. The sky evaporated and crumbled into countless wisps of pure and turbid energy, while the grass and stones on the ground vanished, leaving only empty space.

At the epicenter of this devastating shockwave, a faint white glow enveloped an almost transparent figure, standing quietly at the very center of the explosion.

Time passed—it was impossible to tell how long—before the cataclysmic shockwave finally subsided. The dimensional space surrounding them was utterly ruined and collapsed.

As the energy storm dissipated, the figure of the Ancient War Venerable slowly emerged. His golden armor flickered with a faint white light; the inscribed Civilization Runes coiled around it like minute divine dragons. His hair was slightly disheveled, and the garments beneath the armor were somewhat creased and torn, but otherwise, he seemed largely unharmed.

"Worthy of the Civilization Armor," the Ancient War Venerable showed a look of pleasure on his face. "The power of Civilization is indeed the mightiest. Formed from the collective faith and wisdom of countless living beings, refined over countless eons, and baptized by the seven passions and six desires—this power, once birthed, is irreproducible!"

He swept his gaze around.

Everything had been reduced to nothingness; even the sky and earth were gone.

"So cunning..." The Ancient War Venerable chuckled suddenly, his figure flashing as he vanished.

In a remote corner of the Ancient World, amidst the vast void, a speck of black light slowly began to coalesce. This wisp of black light was insignificant in the starry expanse, almost negligible. As soon as it appeared, it immediately darted toward an obscure, uninhabited star region.

Voom~

The void directly ahead suddenly ripped open, and the figure of the Ancient War Venerable stepped out. He tilted his head, looking at the black wisp. "I knew you wouldn't simply self-destruct so easily. It's a pity, though. This entire world is mine; no matter where you try to go, I can find you. Don't think that just because this is my stronghold, I wouldn't consider the possibility of you appearing here and neglect to check."

The black light contracted to an extremely small size, seeming to tremble with fear.

The Ancient War Venerable chuckled lightly, beckoning with his hand. The black light, like a tiny spark, was drawn before him and settled into his palm.

"I created you once; now, I shall reclaim you," the Ancient War Venerable smiled and opened his mouth, intending to swallow the tiny ball of black light.

Whoosh!

A beam of white light suddenly streaked past, snatching the cluster of black light from his hand.

The Ancient War Venerable's expression changed drastically. He looked up to see a tall, slender youth standing in the void, his black hair flowing freely. A subtle melancholy rested on his handsome features as he held a wine gourd, looking slightly intoxicated yet sober, gazing into the distance while clutching the black light he had just snatched from the Ancient War Venerable.

"Fourth Sovereign!" The Ancient War Venerable's eyes turned icy. "Why aren't you staying put at the Ancient Realm Peak? What are you doing here?"

Ye Chen, currently transformed into a blade, felt a silent shock. He hadn't expected this seemingly down-on-his-luck youth to be the Fourth Sovereign he saw by the entrance to the Ancient Realm Peak back then—the progenitor of the Mental Civilization, essentially the ancestor of his own reincarnation!

"Indeed, why aren't you staying in your Ancient Divine Temple?" The Fourth Sovereign shook his head and began to chant leisurely.

Anger flashed in the Ancient War Venerable’s eyes. "I granted you the Xuan Realm back then, viewing you as the human I admired most. Are you intending to betray me now?"

"The Xuan Realm was not granted by you; it was personally bestowed by the Ancient Realm. Everything within it is under my control. Though the soil was carved from your world, the World Primordial Spirit within it is mine, not yours," the Fourth Sovereign smiled. "To earn your admiration truly makes me happy. If a person can make their opponent admire them, it is surely a great success!"

The Ancient War Venerable narrowed his eyes slightly. "So you mean to betray me? Very well. I sensed a rebellious bone in you from the start; I see I was right. However, with just this little bit of strength, you are likely far too short. Tell your master, the Ancient God, to come over himself!"

The Fourth Sovereign laughed. "It is not yet time for a great war. My master is conserving his energy and is not available to be summoned now. Moreover, he is not someone I can simply call upon."

A chilling glint flickered in the Ancient War Venerable's eyes. "Aren't you afraid I will kill you right here?"

"If I lacked the ability to escape, I would indeed be quite fearful," the Fourth Sovereign supported his chin, his eyes holding a smile. "Unfortunately, unless you unleash your true power, it will be difficult to kill me. If my death can force you to expend genuine power, it is worth it—it will at least increase the guarantee of my master defeating you."

The Ancient War Venerable stared at him for a moment before speaking. "Very well. But you forgot, the Dark Heavenly God in your hands is the union of Nine Gods. His power is not much less than mine. If I can vanquish him, dealing with you might not even require my true strength." Saying this, his figure flashed instantly, and a brilliant streak of blade light slashed directly toward the Fourth Sovereign.

The Fourth Sovereign’s expression turned grave. His figure flickered, his hands moving like Tai Chi, slowly pushing out six palms that raised countless afterimages, seeming to overlap tens of thousands of strikes as they met the brilliant blade light.

Bang!

A muffled grunt escaped him as the Fourth Sovereign retreated several steps, an astonishing fighting spirit blazing in his eyes. "As expected of the First Divine Blade; its power is truly unparalleled!"

He swept his hand, and the void behind him instantly tore open, revealing the cosmic background of Earth—a brilliant starscape like an intricate, mysterious diagram.

"You are not leaving!" The Ancient War Venerable's icy voice seemed to boom from the depths of hell. The surrounding void immediately became imprisoned, and even the rift he had opened instantly sealed shut, locked down like solid iron, leaving not a single gap.

The Fourth Sovereign’s face changed slightly as he looked at the Ancient War Venerable. "Aren't you afraid of expending too much energy, leading to defeat when you fight my master?"

The Ancient War Venerable coldly sneered, "The me of today is beyond your wildest imagination. Once I devour the power of the Dark Heavenly God, I will fully recover to my peak state. Let alone your master, even the strongest entities within the Ancient Realm will meet their demise at my hands!"

Sharp light flashed in the Fourth Sovereign's eyes. He retreated rapidly, flicking his hand to send a torrent of brilliance scattering outward, violently tearing at the spatial barriers, trying desperately to communicate with the spatial nexus connected to the Xuan Realm.

Once inside the Xuan Realm, he would be absolutely safe.

However, the seal of the Ancient War Venerable was extraordinarily firm. No matter how hard he struck, it remained utterly unyielding.

"You shall be buried alongside the Dark Heavenly God!" A fierce, cold light erupted from the Ancient War Venerable’s eyes. He brandished his divine blade, unleashing a chaotic yet razor-sharp torrent of blade energy that crisscrossed as it lunged toward the Fourth Sovereign. (To be continued)