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"If I were to return now, back to the main world, the size of my inner world would likely exceed a hundred miles, or even several hundred miles," Lin Yuan thought to himself.
Normally, an evolver who has just entered the Eighth Rank would have an inner world reaching a radius of a hundred miles.
Accompanied by continuous cultivation and deepening at the Eighth Rank, the inner world would slowly grow.
The premise of this growth mainly depends on the comprehension of spatial rules.
It also involves grasping more core spatial models, this leads to the inner world becoming more stable, thus making it easier to expand.
Without sufficient comprehension of space, forcibly expanding the inner world could potentially lead to its collapse.
But with Lin Yuan's current understanding of spatial rules, expanding the inner world to several hundred miles would be effortless.
With an inner world several hundred miles in size, even if Lin Yuan were only at the initial stage of the Seventh Rank, relying on the immense power of his world would be enough to contend with evolvers just entering the Eighth Rank.
"The Seventh Rank of Martial Dao" Lin Yuan mused momentarily.
For many years, he had spent a significant amount of time perfecting the evolution path of the Seventh Rank of Martial Dao.
After all, Lin Yuan was well aware that his foundation lay in the martial evolution system, while his cultivation system in the Demonic Tree was only temporary.
Entities like the Primordial Demonic Tree advanced quickly in the early stages of cultivation but carried many hidden dangers.
They were far inferior to the balanced progress of the martial evolution system.
"Now I've essentially perfected the 'Baron Stage' of the Seventh Rank, and next is the 'Marquis Stage'" Lin Yuan thought to himself.
In the main world, many evolutionary paths divide the Seventh Rank into three stages:
Baron Stage.
Marquis Stage.
King Stage.
Lin Yuan similarly divided the Seventh Rank of Martial Dao into these three stages.
Perfecting the Baron Stage is equivalent to completing one-third of the Seventh Rank.
Only the Marquis Stage and the King Stage remain.
"It's about time to take action."
Lin Yuan glanced at the deepest part of the Black Mist Mountain Range.
Since the disappearance of the Phoenix King, the remaining seven 'Kings' of the Black Mist Mountain Range had gathered together.
This behavior thwarted Lin Yuan's idea of systematically defeating them one by one.
For nearly a decade, Lin Yuan's roots had spread throughout every corner of the Black Mist Mountain Range, except for the deepest part.
He was afraid of alerting the enemy.
But now, with Lin Yuan's strength, he could easily suppress those seven Kings with a flick of his wrist.
In the deepest part of the Black Mist Mountain Range,
Seven colossal creatures stood.
A terrifying aura pervaded the area. Ordinary beasts, not to mention approaching, would be frightened by the slightest sensation.
These seven colossal creatures were the seven 'Kings' of the Black Mist Mountain Range.
Alongside the former Phoenix King, they were collectively known as the Eight Kings of the Black Mist, absolute rulers of the Black Mist Mountain Range for countless ages.
However, at this moment, among these seven 'Kings,' the atmosphere was tense, and their expressions revealed worry.
"Where did the Phoenix King go? It's been a whole decade, and there's no trace of him" the Monkey King muttered softly, sending massive shockwaves in all directions.
As soon as these words were spoken, the other five Kings exchanged glances.
They, too, wanted to know the whereabouts of the Phoenix King.
Ten years ago, the sudden disappearance of the Phoenix King, along with the Phoenix Tree and the Flame Valley, gave rise to ominous thoughts in their minds.
Exactly because of this, for the past ten years, the seven Kings had gathered together and never parted, all to guard against something.
But this couldn't go on forever.
It had already been ten years, and there was still no sign of the Phoenix King, which meant the situation was probably dire.
"We can't continue waiting."
"I'll go out later and see the leader of the Azure Alliance, inquire if he knows anything about this."
The leading colossal King finally spoke.
Among the Eight Kings of the Black Mist, the King of Elephants was the leader, carrying the bloodline of ancient elephants within.
"Yes."
"Let's go ask the leader of the Azure Alliance."
"Indeed, even if the leader doesn't know, it's worth investigating."
"I want to see who dares to make a move against our Black Mist Mountain Range."
The other beast Kings discussed eagerly.
The leader of the Azure Alliance was the strongest in the Azure World, the main force against the extraterrestrial evil gods.
Given the character of the leader of the Azure Alliance, he would never tolerate internal disturbances in the Azure World while facing external threats.
However, until the matter was confirmed, they dared not contact the leader of the Azure Alliance casually.
In case they reported to the Azure Alliance, and the Phoenix King returned right after, it would be embarrassing.
They might even face reprimand from the leader.
But now, it had been ten years, and there was still no news of the Phoenix King, so they could report to the leader of the Azure Alliance with confidence.
"Let's go."
"We'll go out together."
The seven beast Kings stood up, ready to fly outside.
Suddenly.
The King of the Elephant's gaze shifted slightly.
"There's trouble outside," the King of the Elephants said, his body pausing as he looked around with great seriousness.
"Trouble?" The other five Kings became immediately alert at his words.
In the next moment...
Buzz.
A black vine descended from the sky.
"Hmm?" The Monkey King's face changed drastically, instinctively attempting to evade.
Though unclear about the nature of the black vine, the instinct of a beast king compelled the Monkey King to distance himself.
Yet, at this moment, the Monkey King's movements seemed to slow down countless times over.
More accurately, the space around the Monkey King seemed to stretch many times over, making the distance he could have easily covered in one step now seem like he was running in place.
Swish.
In an instant, the black vine wrapped around the Monkey King and dragged him upwards.
The King of the Elephants and the other five beast Kings could clearly see the Monkey King, entangled by the black vine, still struggling fiercely.
But it was in vain, as he was swiftly dragged away without any resistance.
"What is that?"
Only at this moment did the King of the Elephants and the other five beast Kings notice a towering ancient tree not far away, which seemed to have appeared out of nowhere.
The ancient tree stood countless miles tall, its trunk presenting a pitch-black hue, shrouded in a sinister, chaotic aura.
And just now, what dragged away the Monkey King was merely one of the countless vines of this ancient tree.
"Not good."
The King of the Elephants and the other beast Kings felt their scalps tingling.
They had no idea when such a monster had appeared near their lair. If a vine from the tree could drag away the Monkey King, who had such formidable strength, then how powerful was the entire tree?
As for the evil and chaotic aura emitted by the ancient god, the King of the Elephants and the other five beast Kings were too chaotic in their minds to contemplate.
Their only thought was—
Run.
Run as far as they could.
Boom!!
The terrifyingly powerful beast Kings almost simultaneously charged in five different directions.
Even in such a panicked state, they instinctively chose different directions.
In doing so, they could at least divert the attention of the terrifying ancient tree.
Rumble.
Six black vines descended from the towering ancient tree.
Five of the beast Kings faced the entangling vines, struggling for a while before being swiftly dragged away, just like the Monkey King.
Only the King of the Elephants remained.
"Ah ah ah ah, break for me!!"
The colossal body of the King of the Elephants erupted with earth-shattering power.
As a descendant of ancient elephants, the King of the Elephants inherited some of the terrifying talents of ancient elephants.
Ancient elephants were said to be not from the Azure World but from beyond.
It was with these talents that the King of the Elephants could overpower the other seven Kings of the Black Mist Mountain Range and secure the throne as the strongest beast King.
In fact, not only in the Black Mist Mountain Range, among the dozens of beast Kings in the other nine mountain ranges of the Azure World, the strength of the King of the Elephants could be considered terrifying, ranking in the top three or even the first.
Boom!
Faced with the easily entangling black vines, the potential of the King of the Elephants was fully unleashed. His blood boiled, and a huge phantom of an elephant appeared behind him.
Crack.
Under the King of the Elephants' frenzied outburst and the deployment of dozens of secret techniques to enhance his strength, the black vine was finally shattered, at least freeing him from being dragged away like the other beast Kings.
"My strength, my bloodline."
The King of the Elephants had not yet emerged with joy when he suddenly turned his head and despairingly found that hundreds or even thousands of black vines were sweeping towards him.
"This..."
The King of the Elephants' face turned ashen.
He had expended enormous effort to barely break one black vine, only to be confronted with hundreds or thousands more when he turned around.
How was he supposed to deal with this?
In utter despair, the King of the Elephants did not resist this time.
Instead, he actively jumped into the mass of black vines and allowed himself to be dragged away.
"Good, from today onwards, the Black Mist Mountain Range is entirely mine."
Lin Yuan's figure rapidly diminished, and under the influence of spatial rules, even those seven colossal beast Kings began to shrink in size.
Wrapped in black vines, hanging under the branches.
Lin Yuan glanced at the seven beast Kings who were asleep and did not intend to devour them.
If it were before the contact with the Ancient Demonic Tree, facing such "delicious" beast Kings, Lin Yuan would probably have chosen to devour them immediately.
Just like devouring the Phoenix King.
It could quickly enhance his own strength and foundation.
But with the "feeding" from the Ancient Demonic Tree, Lin Yuan lost interest in these ordinary flesh and soul.
Even if these beast Kings were strong and vigorous, could they compare to the origin power of the Ancient Demonic Tree?
The two were completely incomparable; the origin power of the Ancient Demonic Tree was the core power of an extraterrestrial demon god.
In theory, as long as Lin Yuan devoured enough origin power from the Ancient Demonic Tree, there was a possibility of replacing it and becoming an independent extraterrestrial demon god.
"They can stay for now; they'll be useful in the future."
Lin Yuan did not kill the seven beast Kings. In his future plans, he should be able to make use of these seven beast Kings when needed.
For now, he left them there.
Anyway, at this moment, these seven beast Kings were in a state of deep sleep, almost equivalent to being dead, which did not affect Lin Yuan's next actions.
"Let's begin."
Lin Yuan's thoughts stirred slightly.
With the seven beast Kings dealt with, Lin Yuan had no more reservations and began to extend his roots towards the deepest part of the Black Mist Mountain Range.
"Hmm? There's a large spiritual vein here. No wonder those beast Kings made this area their lair."
Lin Yuan's roots delved deep into the ground, entwining around the abundant spiritual energy within the large spiritual vein, slowly devouring its pure spiritual power.
If the origin power fed by the Ancient Demonic Tree was considered the main course, then this large spiritual vein was like an appetizer, something to taste before the main meal.
Several days later, Lin Yuan's roots had completely covered the deepest part of the Black Mist Mountain Range.
In other words, now, the millions or even tens of millions of miles of the Black Mist Mountain Range were all under Lin Yuan's root coverage.
At this moment, Lin Yuan had truly become the "uncrowned king" of the Black Mist Mountain Range, far surpassing the "uncrowned kings" of past beast Kings.
After all, the past beast Kings of the Black Mist Mountain Range only nominally ruled over it, but Lin Yuan effectively controlled it, with his roots spreading throughout every corner of the Black Mist Mountain Range.
"Ancestor, the environment in the Black Mist Mountain Range is too harsh. Not long ago, several powerful beasts almost attacked me."
Lin Yuan's consciousness sank into the root area and, as usual, complained to the Ancient Demonic Tree.
"The Black Mist Mountain Range. With its multitude of beasts, it's extremely dangerous. You have indeed endured a lot," the Ancient Demonic Tree consoled.
After countless battles with countless practitioners in the Azure World, it had some understanding of many things within the Azure World.
Among them, the Black Mist Mountain Range, as one of the ten major beast mountain ranges in the Azure World, was undoubtedly dangerous.
In the eyes of the Ancient Demonic Tree, Lin Yuan being able to survive in the Black Mist Mountain Range was a miracle in itself.
"In that case, I'll give you some more origin power for self-preservation."
After some thought, the Ancient Demonic Tree considered Lin Yuan the last hope for its descent into the Azure World. How could it allow him to die at the hands of the beasts in the Black Mist Mountain Range?
"Thank you, Ancestor."
Lin Yuan expressed his gratitude.
In fact, Lin Yuan saw the current Ancient Demonic Tree as somewhat in a dilemma.
Over the past decade, the Ancient Demonic Tree had invested a considerable amount of origin power in Lin Yuan.
This origin power had to be "retrieved" when the Ancient Demonic Tree descended into the Azure World.
But to descend into the Azure World, it had to continue feeding Lin Yuan with "origin power." This put the Ancient Demonic Tree in a somewhat awkward position.
Before contacting Lin Yuan, the Ancient Demonic Tree did not consider the Azure World as a necessity.
If it could descend naturally, that would be good. If it couldn't, and the situation became deadlocked, leaving was not a big loss either.
But now, if the Ancient Demonic Tree chose to leave, the loss would be significant, with so much origin power invested in Lin Yuan.
It would probably take thousands or even tens of thousands of years for it to recover.
"The loss is only temporary. Keep your eyes on the long term. As long as you can descend into the Azure World, any loss can be recovered. Moreover, devouring the essence of a world will greatly benefit me."
With this mindset, the Ancient Demonic Tree once again sent a portion of its origin power to Lin Yuan.
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