I wish to make you my master Please let me follow you

"BOOM——!"

These words were even more vicious than Wang Zhan's "Reality-Shattering" fist, directly shattering the last shred of Mo Yu's self-respect and every excuse he had left!

They laid bare his most unbearable, most unwilling-to-admit inner self in vivid detail!

Yes! When he fought Wang Zhan, had he ever possessed that unyielding, death-defying resolve?

His mind had been filled with nothing but how to win with dignity, how to protect his reputation!

Mo Yu's face turned deathly pale, his body trembling violently.

Yet, in the midst of this extreme humiliation and despair, an even crazier thought flashed through the darkness like lightning, suddenly illuminating his nearly lifeless heart!

This person saw through all my weakness at a single glance! His power, his vision, that pure, unadulterated warrior spirit—aren't these exactly what I lack?!

A thought, one that even he deemed absurd and insane yet carried a fatal temptation, began to spread wildly like wildfire—I want to follow him!

This isn't sinking into degradation; it's rebirth! This isn't shame; it's enlightenment!

He abruptly lifted his head, and a nearly obsessive, fervent light burst forth from his once-dull eyes, locking onto Xiao Ruo Bai with an unwavering gaze.

That look was too complex—full of struggle, awe, and the desperation of a gamble with fate. He stared like that, as if conducting a silent oath that would seal his destiny.

Xiao Ruo Bai's heart started to beat frantically from being stared at like that. He instinctively stepped back half a pace, crossed his arms protectively over his chest, and alarms blared in his mind.

"What does this look mean? Did the beating break his brain? I'm not into guys, you know!"

Even Little Black in the void tilted its head, a rare hint of confusion flickering in its golden pupils as a puzzled whimper escaped its throat.

Just as this eerie silence was about to reach its peak, Mo Yu, the once-almighty Prodigy of the Qilin, mustered all his strength, his voice hoarse yet carrying an unyielding finality, and roared:

"I am willing to pledge my loyalty to you as your master! Please allow me to follow you!"

The moment these words were spoken, it was like a thunderclap crashing down. The entire scene fell into absolute silence, so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

Everyone stood frozen in place, their faces etched with an almost incomprehensible shock.

Mo Yu's earth-shattering declaration fell like a divine thunderbolt from the Nine Heavens, plunging the entire ruined battlefield into a deathly hush! Time itself seemed to freeze in that instant.

All the onlookers—whether the various prodigies from distant mountain peaks, the ordinary cultivators on the periphery, or even the mighty beings of vast aura high in the heavens—

All of them, as if struck by a paralysis spell, stood rooted to the spot, their faces filled with an ultimate, impossible-to-fathom shock!

"Did I hear that right? The Qilin Prodigy Mo Yu wants to pledge allegiance to the Battle Asura as his master?"

A cultivator stammered to himself, rubbing his ears violently, wondering if his hearing had been damaged in the earlier storm of energy.

"Madness! The Qilin Prodigy's Dao heart must have completely broken—he's gone utterly mad!"

Someone gasped in shock, their eyes filled with horror and pity. "He is a prodigy of the demon clan, bearing the Imperial Bloodline! How can he utter such self-deprecating words!"

"Pledge himself to a human as his master? This is a marvel unheard of since time immemorial! A demon of Imperial Blood bowing to a human as a vassal? That's a shame ten million times worse than death!"

Gasps of shock, cries of alarm, and questions surged like a tide after the brief stillness. Everyone was shaken to their core by this world-upside-down scene, their very Dao hearts wavering.

Above the nine heavens, Wang Zhan's father’s pupils abruptly contracted, first in utter shock, then a corner of his mouth curled into an undisguised sneer of contempt and gloating.

“Hmph, Qilin Imperial Blood? Nothing special after all! So pathetic, groveling in the dust like this! Though Zhan’er lost, his pride remains unbroken! The demon race truly is nothing but spineless weaklings!”

The frustration he had felt because of Xiao Ruobai now eased somewhat, thanks to Mo Yu’s “cringing and obsequious” display—as if he had found an even more contemptible object for comparison.

Meanwhile, Xing Lan of the Heavenly Secrets Pavilion erupted with unprecedented, dazzling light of deduction in his deep eyes, staring intently at the resolute Mo Yu below and the calm Xiao Ruobai. A towering wave crashed within his heart.

“Could such a thing happen?! Imperial blood kneeling in submission?! The fate of this Battle Asura can actually trigger such a drastic shift?!

Is this boy truly the destined one of this era?! No! I must report this to the Pavilion Master immediately!”

Below, Wang Zhan, who had barely managed to suppress his injuries and was quietly regulating his breath, had his energy jolted by the sudden turn of events. His eyes snapped open, and as he stared at Mo Yu, they brimmed with disbelief.

“Mo Yu! You actually…!”

At that moment, at the center of the storm, Xiao Ruobai looked at the Qilin Scion before him—disheveled and battered, yet with eyes burning with stubborn insistence—and furrowed his brows almost imperceptibly.

He had anticipated that Mo Yu might rage, might refuse to yield, might argue back, but he never expected the other to directly declare he wanted to “pledge allegiance as his master.”

“Pledge allegiance to me? What kind of scheme is this Qilin boy playing at?”

Xiao Ruobai’s thoughts raced. “Is he talking nonsense after his Dao heart shattered? Or is this some underhanded tactic of retreating in order to advance? Or did he truly see something in this defeat?”

Xiao Ruobai’s gaze turned sharp as a blade, as if trying to pierce Mo Yu’s sea of consciousness to perceive his true intentions.

“Troublesome,” Xiao Ruobai sighed inwardly.

He did not answer immediately, only silently watched Mo Yu, his eyes filled with scrutiny and probing.

This brief silence carried more oppressive weight than any words, and the murmuring crowd that had just risen once again subsided involuntarily.

Everyone held their breath, waiting for the Battle Asura’s reply.

He raised an eyebrow slightly, pausing for a moment over Mo Yu’s face—a face mingling humiliation, despair, yet also a flicker of desperate entreaty.

He could feel that these words were not empty boasts, but rather a desperate resolve born from breaking and rebuilding.

After a brief silence, Xu Yan’s surprise gradually faded, returning to his earlier calm, but a trace of unfathomable depth lingered in his eyes.

He spoke flatly: “Following me means casting aside all the empty fame you’ve accumulated in the past, means you will face battles ten times bloodier than today, and means your life or death shall be bound to my will.”

“Have you thought this through clearly?”

Mo Yu met his gaze, which seemed to pierce his very soul, gritted his teeth hard, and knocked his head heavily against the ground. His forehead struck the icy rubble, producing a dull sound.

“I have thought it through! Please take me in, my lord!”

Xiao Ruobai silently watched Mo Yu, who knelt prostrate with his forehead pressed to the rubble, his body trembling uncontrollably with excitement and tension.

His gaze was calm, yet it seemed to weigh a thousand jun, pressing down on Mo Yu’s spine and on the hearts of all present.

He was pondering.

To accept the Qilin Scion Mo Yu? This child was proud and overbearing—was his current defeat-driven submission a genuine pledge, or just a momentary impulse?

Though the Qilin King's blood was undoubtedly precious, if his heart was not sincere, it might lead to trouble in the future.

What he sought was the supreme path of martial prowess; he had no need for those who were half-hearted or merely borne empty reputations.

Moreover, the Southern Domain’s demonic clan forces entangled in the background—whether they would bring fortune or calamity remained uncertain.

Time itself seemed to stretch in that moment.

Above the ruins, the wind wailed, and the breaths of the distant onlookers were instinctively held. The eyes of all were fixed upon the newly ascended king and the once-arrogant scion of the Qilin, now lying beneath his feet.