"What was that?" Chen Xin and Qian Renxue were shocked. That strike had instantly broken the arrays of two first-tier gods.
Clearly, only a God King possessed such power.
They were both newly minted first-tier gods, far from a peak first-tier like Sea God Poseidon. Even together, they could not match a God King. Blocked by that power, they could only watch as Bibi Dong entered the God Realm.
They wouldn't give up, though. Once the purple thunderbolt passed, they pushed their speed and gave chase.
…
At the God Realm's Heavenly Gate, the Asura God looked at the God of Destruction. "Destruction, must you do this? You used Annihilation God Thunder against the newly ascended Angel God and Sword God just to let the new Rakshasa come up."
"Hmph. My attack only stopped them; it didn't harm them. This concerns my plan to expand the God Realm. For our future, we need greater power. No one will stop me!" the God of Destruction said stubbornly.
He might not be a bad person, but in the matter of expansion his fixation was too deep—already a heart demon. Unless the God Realm completed expansion or was utterly destroyed, he would not turn back.
The Asura God had no solution. It was a joint decision of the Council. Moreover, his Asura godhood had begun its transfer. Though Tianlin hadn't fully inherited it yet, the authority kept flowing to him.
As Tianlin grew stronger, the Asura God weakened. He had been Asura for many years; even after giving up the godhood, he wouldn't drop below God King level. But he no longer had the Asura Demon Sword—an Super-artifact—making him the weakest of the five God Kings.
Super-artifacts provided a staggering boost to a God King's strength. In the original, Huo Yuhao broke through to God King after his third eye evolved from artifact to Super-artifact by absorbing chaotic qi.
"Asura, when did you become so timid? Back then even the supreme Dragon God died by your hand. You think this filthy thing can be stronger than the Dragon God?" the Evil God King scoffed.
The Asura God was helpless. He couldn't exactly say that he and the Dragon God had planned it, that the Dragon God died on purpose, and that he intentionally let the Silver Dragon King go.
Back then, in the God Realm war, if it had kept raging, even the Dragon God couldn't have saved the soul beasts from extinction under the five God Kings and numerous first-tier gods. The Asura God and Dragon God had a decent rapport. He wouldn't betray his side; he would stand with the human gods. The Dragon God could only ensure a sliver of survival for soul beasts by making such a pact with him.
"Destruction, Evil—you two do everything to the extreme. I may oversee law, but I know that law does not run counter to human feeling. I hope you won't regret this," the Asura God said gravely.
Just then, a gloomy laugh came from the portal.
"Haha, so this is the God Realm? Strong holy aura and evil taint too. A place both delightful and disgusting. Since I'm here, let me make some changes."
"That's the new Rakshasa? Heh. A first-tier god with all divine sense sealed, reduced to a puppet. Pathetic trash," the Evil God King sneered. As a God King, he saw Bibi Dong's state at a glance. He felt contempt—Rakshasa was under him; having such a useless subordinate was shameful.
"Seven Deadly Sins, deploy the Original Sin Grand Array," the God of Destruction ordered. The seven sin gods, long prepared, immediately surrounded Bibi Dong.
"Oh? You're the Seven Deadly Sins. And the Evil God King is here too. Haha, splendid. You're exactly who I was looking for," the Evil Sword Immortal rejoiced. The God Realm's masters of evil thoughts—he already had Rakshasa's power. If he devoured the rest, he would be invincible.
"Devour us? Dream on. Original Sin Array, rise!" said Pride, the head of the Seven Sins, coldly.
The seven-in-one array instantly enclosed Bibi Dong's body.
A dim spirit pearl flew from her arms, beyond her control, and was locked with her at the array's core. From within the Evil Spirit Pearl, evil aura surged out, then was converted by the array.
The five God Kings—Asura, Destruction, Life, Kindness, and Evil—plus the former Rakshasa God flew into the array's eye and began absorbing the converted power.
Even though the former Rakshasa had passed on his godhood, his tens of thousands of years of cultivation let him still wield some authority over evil thoughts. His strength hadn't fallen much; he remained first-tier and could use evil thoughts to strengthen the array. He was about to leave the God Realm. If he could break through to God King before departing, he could explore farther in the cosmos.
"Rakshasa, you dare betray me!" the Evil Sword Immortal feigned anger.
The former Rakshasa sneered. "Heh. Your power could help me break through, yes. But if the Original Sin Array lets us refine you and that Super-artifact Evil Spirit Pearl, I might gain even more. The choice is obvious."
"Hehe, worthy of you, Rakshasa. I should have known—one who becomes a god by evil thoughts would never keep promises. This time, I, Evil Sword Immortal, will concede." He chuckled coldly and, as if giving up, had Bibi Dong sit cross-legged at the array's core.
To the God of Destruction and Evil God King, this was normal. How could a mere first-tier god face eight first-tier gods and five God Kings?
Moreover, the Original Sin Grand Array was one of the God Realm's Three Great Arrays. In war, it had earth-shaking might; in support, it could convert any evil power to strengthen others. Even God Kings and Super-artifacts could be refined within it.
But they overlooked one point: all of that held only if the Evil Spirit Pearl truly was merely an Super-artifact. Before, Bibi Dong's strength had been insufficient, so the Pearl's power seemed only slightly above Super-artifact, not fully beyond. At god level, she could fully unleash it. This grand array was exactly what the Evil Sword Immortal wanted—a perfect setup.
Whoosh, whoosh!
Just then, two streaks of light rushed over—Chen Xin and Qian Renxue.
Seeing Bibi Dong apparently trapped at the array's core, they moved to strike again—but were blocked by a burly man.
"Angel God, Sword God—I am the God of Destruction's first-tier subordinate, the God of Strength. You may call me the Strength God. By order of the God King of Destruction, withdraw immediately."
This God of Strength was not Zhou Weiqing, but his predecessor. His cultivation was no weaker than Sea God Poseidon, famed as the strongest first-tier god.
"God of Strength, why stop us? Can't you feel the Pearl's evil aura? Now is the time to destroy it," Qian Renxue demanded.
He shook his head. "Not my concern. This is the God Kings' joint order. Angel God, just follow orders."
"And since you've come to the God Realm, you can no longer return to the mortal world. Go to the Angel Palace and the Sword God's Mountain. They will be your cultivation grounds henceforth."