Chapter 1704: Unparalleled Demonic Might

Heaven is unworthy.

These four words, alongside the figure of the Northern Divine Region’s first Devil Master in history, were deeply etched into everyone’s memory.

At this moment, all they could feel was an unsettling arrogance and profound disrespect for the Heavenly Way.

But one day in the future, they would clearly understand the true meaning of these four words as spoken by the Devil Master.

No heavenly sacrifice was needed; the coronation proceeded directly. As Yan Tianxiao’s lengthy imperial decree concluded, the Soul Stealing Great Devil Maidens, Jie Xin and Jie Ling, flew forward. One on each side, they draped Yun Che with a Heaven Smiting Devil Mark cloak over his shoulders and fastened a black crystal jade belt around his waist.

On the jade belt were embedded three dark devil beads of varying shades. Each emitted the foundational devil aura of the Soul Stealing, Yan Mo, and Burning Moon realms, symbolizing Yun Che’s absolute control over the three King Realms.

Aboard the Soul Sky Battleship, Chi Wuyao lightly raised her hand, palm facing forward, and an imperial crown, intricately carved with ancient devil patterns, floated before her. This crown was forged based on records of the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor’s crown. As it took shape, winds and clouds shifted, and devil might shook the heavens.

Chi Wuyao did not step forward. Instead, she suddenly turned to Qianye Ying’er and said, “Yun Qianying, you shall crown him.”

“Me?” Qianye Ying’er glanced sideways. “Are you joking?!”

Chi Wuyao smiled. “Since he is unwilling to conform to tradition, we shall follow his wishes. The person performing the coronation also needs not follow the Northern Region’s conventions.”

“His path as a devil, in just a few short years, you have accompanied him every step of the way to this day. Beyond being a companion, you are also his guide, his catalyst, and his witness. Outside of worldly rules, no one is more suitable to crown him than you.”

As ripples flickered in Qianye Ying’er’s eyes, Chi Wuyao placed the imperial crown into her hands: “This crucial moment, symbolizing a turning point in his destiny, are you truly willing to yield it to another woman?”

Casting a deep look at Chi Wuyao, Qianye Ying’er took the imperial crown. Her figure floated up and, under the gaze of all beings in the Northern Region, she slowly descended beside Yun Che.

Though her face was not revealed, even her silhouette alone was as beautiful as a celestial illusion.

All Divine Emperor crowns in the Northern Divine Region traditionally featured nine strands and nine beads. Yun Che’s Devil Master crown, however, had twelve strands in front and back, and twelve devil beads, a design unprecedented in the Northern Divine Region.

And this also came from Chi Wuyao’s hand.

For this coronation ceremony, she personally handled everything concerning Yun Che.

Yun Che and Qianye Ying’er. Two people who had together fallen into the abyss of darkness and transformed into vengeful devils. Their path of vengeance, today, at this very moment, finally paved the way they had long dreamed of.

Her delicate hand raised, Qianye Ying’er looked at the figure of the man before her, revered by all beings, feeling his steady, warm breath. With the gentlest motion, she placed upon him the Devil Master’s imperial crown, symbolizing a turning point in his destiny and also in the Northern Region’s fate.

With the imperial crown upon him, the Devil Master descended upon the world. Yan Tianxiao knelt heavily, bowing with a resounding voice:

Aboard the profound ark, within the holy domain, everyone from the three King Realms knelt down, bowing their heads.

The core strength of the three King Realms was almost entirely present. They symbolized the absolute core of the Northern Divine Region. Their shouts of worship, echoing to the heavens, were like crashing waves, shaking hearts and rending souls, causing all the Realm Kings and overlords, both inside and outside the holy domain, to prostrate themselves in awe.

When all three King Realms had knelt, how could others remain standing?

As the shouts of worship subsided, Yan Tianxiao did not rise. Maintaining his prostrate posture, he declared loudly: “The Devil Master is the Devil Emperor reborn in this world. With the Devil Master’s descent, the Northern Region is destined to defy fate, alter its destiny, and receive blessings for myriad generations.”

“I, Yan Tianxiao, Divine Emperor of the Yan Mo Realm, willingly accept the Devil Emperor’s bestowal and pledge to uphold my ancestors’ will. I, along with the Yan Mo Realm, shall eternally pledge loyalty to the Devil Master. The Devil Master’s command shall be our supreme destiny, and the Devil Master’s will shall be our lifelong pursuit. Should I violate this oath, may heaven and earth utterly destroy me!”

On that day, Yan Tianxiao’s submission was coerced, and the intense reluctance almost made him grind his teeth to powder. But at this moment, his declaration was resolute, every word resounding firmly. From the King of a realm down to the weakest mortal spirit in the Northern Region’s remotest corner, everyone could discern a determination almost etched into his bones.

The former foremost Emperor of the Northern Region, accustomed to looking down upon all beings, would have found it most impossible to accept being subservient to another.

Yet, not only did he swear loyalty and submission before all beings of the Northern Region… but he did so with such unwavering resolve.

This undoubtedly deeply shook the hearts and souls of everyone in the Yan Mo Realm, from top to bottom.

Yan Tianxiao’s change in mindset was subtle and gradual. However, without personally facing Yun Che, without personally witnessing and feeling the repeated demolition of one’s understanding, it was likely that no one could comprehend it.

And whatever decision Emperor Yan wished to make, it did not require others’ understanding or criticism!

The complete transformation of his mindset was a deeply hidden desire that was suddenly ignited at a certain moment… that was to defy fate.

When Yun Che first arrived in the Northern Divine Region, the information he received from Qianye Ying’er about the three King Realms was that apart from the ambitious Devil Queen of the Soul Stealing Realm, the other two King Realms were content with their comfort and oblivious to danger, enjoying the resources and status of King Realms, yet never thinking of breaking through their dark cage.

However, it wasn't that they didn't want to, but rather that they were utterly powerless. Not to mention the three Divine Regions; any one of the East, West, or South Divine Regions was far beyond the Northern Divine Region’s ability to contend with.

Chi Wuyao, bearing the soul of the Devil Emperor, after gradually seeing the full picture of the Eastern Divine Region through Mu Xuanyin’s eyes, had for an entire ten thousand years never truly taken action.

But Yun Che’s arrival allowed her to truly see hope… and this hope was far from bleak.

No one wished to be eternally locked in a dark cage, and no one wished for their descendants to eternally vanish within a gradually shrinking cage.

And when the desire to defy fate, suppressed for countless years and generations, was truly ignited, the flames that erupted were enough to make Yan Tianxiao burn his Divine Emperor life to its fullest, with wild abandon.

He was like this, and Fen Daoqi, the first to “defect” from the Burning Moon Realm, was also like this.

Aboard the Burning Moon Battleship, led by Fen Daoqi, the Eclipse Moon disciples and Burning Moon Divine Envoys followed closely after the Yan Mo Realm, swearing loyalty with the world as their witness:

“We, the people of Burning Moon, pledge our souls as a covenant to eternally serve the Devil Master. Should we betray this oath, may we suffer eternal damnation and have our souls scattered, and may all beings in the Northern Region bear witness!”

Aboard the Soul Sky Battleship, Chi Wuyao’s devilish voice, chilling and deliberate, slowly articulated: “From today onward, the Soul Stealing Realm pledges loyalty to the Devil Master. The Devil Master’s will shall be the Heavenly Decree. The Devil Master’s enemies… are the mortal enemies of my Soul Stealing Realm!”

The last six words, though still a faint devilish whisper, made people feel as if they had fallen into a cold abyss, chilling them to the bone.

The dark projection formed by the combined might of the three Great King Realms was grander in scale than any in history.

The density of the projection far surpassed the Star God projections during the Profound God Convention in the Eastern Divine Region.

Therefore, the loyalty and oaths of the three King Realms were, in the truest sense, made before the entire Northern Divine Region.

“Rise.” Yun Che looked straight ahead, calmly uttering the three words.

His divine sense swept across the Soul Sky Battleship. All eight Devil Maidens were present, save for the seventh Devil Maiden, Huajin.

As the enthronement ceremony was being held here, she had already infiltrated the Eastern Divine Region alone, beginning the first step of creating momentum… and also the first prelude to his revenge.

Yan Tianxiao rose, his figure descending, and his gaze swept over the heroes of the Northern Region before he suddenly declared: “Today’s grand ceremony is not only the day of the Devil Master’s coronation, but also announces the dawn of another era for our Northern Divine Region!”

“For ages, the Northern Divine Region has endured a challenging fate. In its darkness, there has been endless chaos, sin, and despair. Although our three King Realms are esteemed in the Northern Region, we have failed to fulfill our duty of leadership, and even more so, we have failed to reverse the Northern Region’s dark destiny.”

“But what we could not achieve, the Devil Master surely can. This is why the Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor bestowed the Devil Master upon us, and it is also why we are willing to eternally pledge loyalty to the Devil Master!”

Yan Tianxiao’s gaze swept down, his vast imperial might, heavy as substance, pressing upon everyone’s chests and heartstrings. His voice, too, became incredibly deep: “Are you willing to follow us in pledging allegiance to the Devil Master and striving together for a new dawn in the Northern Region!?”

His voice seemed to inquire, but was truly a mighty command from heaven.

The Soul Stealing Holy Domain fell into a terrifying silence.

To conquer the three King Realms was to conquer the entire Northern Divine Region.

When all three King Realms had submitted, the will of the other star realms became completely irrelevant. Inviting them here was by no means to solicit their desires, but merely for them to observe and witness, and also…

For the declaration they were compelled to make!

Under the combined might of the three King Realms, who would dare to disobey?!

As his voice fell, Yan Tianxiao’s gaze sharply shifted, falling upon the foremost seats within the Soul Stealing Holy Domain.

There, resided the three strongest star realms beneath the Northern Divine Region’s King Realms: the Heaven Punishing Realm, the Calamity Desolation Realm, and the Divine Python Realm. At the forefront were the Great Realm Kings, all three present: Tian Muyi, Huo Tianxing, and Saint Monarch Kuishou.

For this enthronement ceremony, the shock and complexity in their hearts were beyond words.

The last time they saw Yun Che was at the Heavenly Monarch Grand Assembly in the Heaven Punishing Realm.

Now, barely a year later, seeing Yun Che again, he was already above the nine heavens, above the King Realms!

The gazes of all the Realm Kings present also fell upon these three Great Realm Kings. In the Northern Divine Region, they were among the very few who held even a slight say when facing the King Realms.

However, facing the unprecedented combined pressure of the three King Realms, no matter how absurd or incomprehensible the command… did these three Great Realm Kings truly have the courage to question and defy it?

The three Realm Kings exchanged glances, each seeing extreme complexity in the other’s eyes.

“Wait.”

At this moment, Yun Che suddenly spoke, his calm two words instantly shattering the suffocating silence. He stretched out his arm, and immediately, Yan Tianxiao’s supreme imperial might permeated the air.

Yan Tianxiao’s eyes flashed with surprise, but he said nothing, bowing his head and stepping back.

Under everyone’s gaze, Yun Che slowly stepped forward, his dark eyes gazing ahead with an imposing air, and he spoke in a deep voice: “You must be thinking now, how can someone who originated from the Eastern Divine Region, arrived in the Northern Divine Region only a few years ago, has not contributed an iota of merit to the Northern Divine Region, and has not built an inch of foundation, possess the virtue and ability to become the supreme ruler of this Northern Region?”

“Someone who is barely thirty years old, a ‘junior’ in profound cultivation, a mere child with a cultivation of only level eight Divine Sovereign, by what right can he lead the myriad devils of the Northern Region and become its first Devil Master?”

“You might even be wondering if this so-called ‘Devil Master’ is merely a puppet collectively set up by the three Great King Realms to better manipulate and control the Northern Region.”

Yun Che’s voice was icy and indifferent, each word slowly striking everyone’s nerves.

They all raised their heads in astonishment, surprised by the words they heard.

And Yun Che’s words, without a doubt, were exactly what they were thinking and wondering about.

From the Eastern Divine Region, barely thirty years old, with Divine Sovereign realm cultivation… yet becoming the unprecedented Devil Master of the Northern Divine Region, surpassing the three King Realms!?

Although it was rumored that he bore the Devil Emperor’s legacy, and rumored that he could unleash the power of a true god… rumors were, after all, just rumors.

But even if all of this were true, how could he, a mere individual, in such a short time, make the three King Realms submit to such an extent?

“Puppet” was the word most frequently appearing in the minds of countless Northern Region profound practitioners.

They simply never expected that these very words would be spoken directly from his own mouth.

“Heh,” a light chuckle, yet filled with world-disdaining arrogance. Yun Che raised his head, his crown’s tassels swaying, and the Devil Master’s words, deep and resonant, spread to every corner of the Northern Divine Region: “This Devil Master shall make you clearly see what it means to be qualified!”

Boom—

A muffled rumble, like thunder from the abyss, as Yun Che’s profound energy exploded from his body. The Evil God’s realm gates—Evil Soul, Burning Heart, Purgatory, Rumbling Heaven, and Heavenly Wolf—opened instantly.

As his profound energy transformed into a deep crimson, his profound cultivation at Divine Sovereign Level Eight erupted with terrifying pressure that made the Soul Stealing Holy Domain tremble.

That profound energy explosion, exaggerated to the point of endlessly tearing apart perception and indescribable in any words, nearly burst countless bulging eyeballs in an instant.

And amidst their utter terror, they were completely unaware that this was only the beginning.

His profound energy surged to its peak under the power of the Evil God. Yun Che slowly closed his eyes, raising his arms. His long black hair, passing through the imperial crown, danced without wind.

His pupils, his entire body, and every single strand of his hair, now gleamed with a gradually deepening dark radiance.

It was the ultimate devilish light of the Eternal Calamity of Darkness.

RUMBLE!

Above the firmament, black clouds suddenly began to churn chaotically, and the light rapidly dimmed.

Pairs of eyes silently constricted, nerves and soul-strings rapidly trembled, and countless hearts pounded wildly.

Because between heaven and earth, a vast devil might was descending.

The very first moment this devil might descended, it was so heavy that all dark profound practitioners instantly suffocated. But the next instant, it rapidly grew, surging madly. Gradually, it surpassed Divine Emperors, surpassed comprehension, and even surpassed the limits of what their will and belief could bear…

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE—

Light rapidly faded, and the churning of the black clouds turned into a faint tremor, then… into a terrifying, almost audible wail.

Beneath the firmament, the Soul Stealing Holy Domain was trembling slightly, and all dark spaces were trembling. And this was by no means the release of power, but merely the pressure of darkness.

“This… this is… what?!”

Tian Muyi, the foremost Realm King beneath the Northern Region’s King Realms, his mouth hung open, and his pupils threatened to burst.

The immense change in Tian Guhu had made his understanding of Yun Che far surpass that of others, yet at this moment, under this terrifying devil might descending from the heavens, he was still terrified to the point of death.

Around him, the powerhouses of the Heaven Punishing Realm… and not far away, Huo Tianxing and Saint Monarch Kuishou, every single one of them displayed extreme fear and trembling.

Pressing upon their bodies and souls was a terrifying devil might so vast that it shattered their perception and threatened to disperse their souls at any moment. Under this devil might, they felt as if they were caught in the clutches of an ancient true devil, their entire beings filled with dread and terror beyond belief.

CRACKLE!

The black clouds collided, stirring up a world-shaking dark lightning bolt.

However, this thunder from the Heavenly Way faintly exuded a tremor… even a pathetic plea.

Above Yun Che, black clouds churned wildly, and the entire firmament seemed to press down completely, almost touching his dancing black hair.

And on his body and face, crimson devil marks appeared. These marks were not from his devil robes or imperial crown, but rather the Eternal Calamity Devil Seal, a manifestation of his Great Accomplishment in the middle stage of the Eternal Calamity of Darkness.

This was also the first time he had unleashed the Eternal Calamity of Darkness without reservation.

The Heaven Smiting Devil Emperor, as the first devil created by the ancient Ancestral God, her Eternal Calamity of Darkness was the primordial darkness, the ultimate darkness… in some sense, even the origin of darkness.

Under the devil might of the Eternal Calamity of Darkness, all devils were mere ants.

RUMBLE RUMBLE RUMBLE…

It was impossible to distinguish whether this was the roar of the Heavenly Way or the wails of fear.

Yan Tianxiao’s pupils constricted, and his lips trembled uncontrollably. His body slowly bent, and he knelt to the ground… and this time, his prostration was not due to ceremony or a pledge of loyalty, but a reverence and submission stemming from his very soul.

He had personally experienced Yun Che’s terrifying nature many times before, but only today, at this moment, did he realize that what he had witnessed before was still far from the Devil Master’s true limit.

Yan Tianxiao knelt, the Yan Mo knelt, the Eclipse Moon disciples knelt, the Devil Maidens knelt…

At the feet of Devil Master Yun Che, one Realm King after another, one dark profound practitioner after another… their devil bodies had already prostrated themselves on the ground in trembling, even before their minds could register.

In their increasingly dimming vision, they saw not only the newly emerged Devil Master of the Northern Divine Region, but also an ancient Devil God descending to break the world.