Showdown, no more pretending There should be more sincerity between people.

If greeting a normal Evil Spawn of Calamity, it would trigger a specific dialogue—the creature would drool and amiably reply, "Fellow Daoist, you smell delicious, truly a top-tier specimen!"

But clearly, the half-Cosmos-level Evil Spawn of Calamity Chen Yi had just greeted was anything but normal.

Its body, wreathed in tendrils of black mist, shuddered abruptly before it slowly turned around, eyeing Chen Yi with a strange look as he caught up effortlessly. "You got a dog chasing you or something? Why the rush?"

Chen Yi smirked. "Dropping the act already? No more pretending?"

"Wasn’t planning to in the first place."

The Evil Spawn shrugged, its rotting flesh sloughing off as it reshaped into a human form. However, due to irreversible mutations, its body remained covered in green fur, its skin desiccated like withered bark—resembling a zombie.

"Chen Yi, first time meeting. Greetings. My name is He Chunqiu, though you may also call me Black Earth."

His voice was grating, like sandpaper scraping against stone, unpleasant to the ear.

But these were trivial matters. As long as they could communicate normally, it was fine.

Chen Yi gave him a peculiar look. "Don’t tell me you’ve got an old partner named White Cloud?"

"How’d you know? White Cloud is indeed my wife!" Black Earth answered truthfully.

He wasn’t lying in the slightest—this body had once belonged to a Taiyi Realm powerhouse from the Divine Realm named He Chunqiu, titled the Black Earth True Monarch, whose Dao Companion was the White Cloud Divine King, Shang Xinci.

So, standing before Chen Yi now was none other than the Black Earth True Monarch, He Chunqiu. What did that have to do with the Great Love Divine Venerable Hu Fangyuan?

Chen Yi raised an eyebrow. By now, he was certain of one thing: the mastermind behind the scenes could be anyone—except He Chunqiu!

But did it even matter?

The identity of the mastermind wasn’t important!

What mattered was that he could, to some extent, represent the Divine Realm.

Chen Yi regarded him calmly. "Black Earth, is it? Then tell me—which fragment is the Heavenly Dao Key hidden in the Abyssal Ruins? Do you know the coordinates of the other Heavenly Dao Keys? Or better yet, can you reunite all nine?"

It was almost laughable. This should have been the Divine Realm’s responsibility, yet its denizens were slacking off harder than ever, leaving an outsider like him to pick up the slack. Pathetic.

"Look at you, always in such a hurry." Black Earth shook his head. "This isn’t the place for lengthy discussions. Return the Primordial Heaven-Piercing Mirror first, and I’ll tell you everything you want to know—no holding back. Right now, the priority is securing that newly emerged treasure!"

"Even if neither of us is fated to claim it, we can’t let it fall into the hands of the Immortal Realm!"

Chen Yi gave a slight nod. "Fine. Where do you suggest we go next?"

He knew his limits. While he excelled at exploiting loopholes and breaking mechanisms, understanding their underlying principles? He was as green as a rookie.

This realm was riddled with hidden mechanisms and oppressive restrictions, making brute-forcing impossible. If left to his own devices, the Immortal Realm cultivators trailing behind would overtake him in no time.

So, the best strategy was to let this "He Chunqiu—Black Earth" test the waters first, then follow in his footsteps.

Black Earth pondered for a moment before asking, "My divine sense is heavily suppressed here, extending only ten thousand li. What about you?"

Chen Yi hesitated, observing the pristine surges of primordial qi in the surroundings, then replied evenly, "Less than ten thousand li."

Black Earth: "..."

Bullshit!

Others might not know, but I do!

Your willpower could freely stretch across the River of Time, yet it fails here?

And when did you even probe with divine sense?

I didn’t feel a thing!

"Chen Yi, don’t you think people should be more honest with each other?"

Chen Yi maintained a deadpan expression. "Look at me—my energy level bar is lower than yours. You’re at the peak of the True Immortal Realm, while I’m barely at the early stage. Plus, with this realm’s suppression, reaching nearly ten thousand li is already pushing it, don’t you think?"

In truth, just as Black Earth suspected, he hadn’t extended his divine sense at all.

After that incident where he accidentally consumed Wuji’s "filth" and had to sever 60% of his soul power, he’d developed the same cleanliness obsession as Wuji. He refused to release his divine sense in mysterious, powerful realms, fearing contamination.

And this realm housed a Chaos Treasure—an artifact of the highest grade. Was it wrong to be cautious?

Black Earth’s lips twitched, but he dropped the subject. "Five hundred li ahead, there’s an area shrouded by an extremely pure surge of primordial energy. Can’t see what’s inside. Shall we check it out?"

"Let’s go." Chen Yi readily agreed.

This realm had many restrictions. The most basic ones were:

1. Flight was forbidden—leaving the ground increased suppression.

2. Speed limits—traveling below 100 km/h was fine, but exceeding it triggered forced deceleration.

3. The energy level bar overhead—those who didn’t suppress their energy couldn’t enter.

These three rules essentially leveled the playing field for all entrants.

Fairness for all, opportunities for everyone—no bullying the weak!

Not fast, but steady. Black Earth and Chen Yi pushed their speed to the limit, maintaining exactly 100 km/h. After two and a half hours, they finally reached the primordial energy surge.

...

Author’s Note: Can’t take it anymore, boiling hot, brain’s fried. Mwah, see you tomorrow.