Chapter 904: I Am Also a Ruthless Person

"Yours?" Zhang Xuan was startled.

According to the Cruel Man's description, he once fought a great battle with Master Kong, was killed, and only a single drop of his blood remained. After tens of thousands of years of cultivation, it transformed into a heart. This meant that after the battle, there should have been no remains. So how did a finger bone appear?

"That's right. Although I don't know what happened, and I've lost many memories, I can confirm this was my finger when I was alive! In other words, this fellow is occupying my property!" The Cruel Man gritted his teeth. As a former peak expert of the continent, even if he had been resurrected from a single drop of blood and lost countless memories, he could still recognize his own body parts. This finger was originally just a bone fragment. The Greenhorn Dragon Beast attached itself to it, devoured the blood and energy of master teachers, and only then did it gain flesh and blood.

"You want to take it back?" Zhang Xuan understood, his brows furrowed.

"Of course!" The Cruel Man gritted his teeth, and his heart pounded violently. A dense aura of slaughter immediately surged out, shooting straight towards the finger flying in the air.

"What?" The Greenhorn Dragon Beast's soul, which had just left the finger, shivered in fear upon sensing the aura of slaughter. With a shriek, it quickly burrowed back, crying out, "Cruel Man, save me..."

*Boom!*

As it spoke, Zhang Xuan immediately felt another aura of slaughter erupt from within the finger, clashing with the heart. When the two powerful auras collided, the entire folded space trembled, as if it could explode at any moment.

"Who are you?" Immediately after, a vast consciousness emanated from the finger, conveying an overwhelming sense of power. Zhang Xuan instinctively stepped back a few paces, reaching the edge of the folded space, his eyes wide with astonishment. He clearly sensed the other party's consciousness within the finger... it was actually identical to the heart from the Book of Heavenly Dao!

"Who am I? I am the Cruel Man!" the Cruel Man declared.

"Nonsense, *I* am the Cruel Man..." the consciousness from the finger retorted.

"Two Cruel Men?" Zhang Xuan blinked. What was going on? Even though he had read countless books and was well-traveled, he felt a bit dizzy.

"Bullshit! I'm the real deal, what kind of Cruel Man are you?" The Cruel Man's consciousness roared through the air.

"The Cruel Man once stood proudly between heaven and earth, not even fearing Master Kong. How could he submit to a mere master teacher and obey his commands? Don't you dare tarnish my reputation here. Surrender and let me devour you, otherwise, I'll kill your master too..." The finger snorted coldly.

"You want to devour me? Let's see who's more capable then!" The Cruel Man roared, his heart pounding fiercely. A powerful force immediately lifted the Book of Heavenly Dao, sending it directly towards the finger.

With a slight turn, the finger pointed back. With a *boom*, the Cruel Man convulsed violently, shaking uncontrollably, seemingly severely wounded. The Book of Heavenly Dao tumbled back into Zhang Xuan's palm.

"Master Zhang, quickly remove this book's suppression on me, otherwise, we might both die here..." The Cruel Man's consciousness transmitted.

"What exactly is going on?" Zhang Xuan frowned.

"It's likely that I was too powerful in my past life. Any drop of blood, flesh, or even a finger bone could transform into an independent entity. Before my main body died, these consciousnesses could be unified and even merged into one. But after my main body's death... the conscious entities that emerged all believe they are the true Cruel Man. To recover completely, one must devour the other, otherwise... one will be devoured, and their consciousness will vanish!" The Cruel Man hurriedly transmitted his conjecture.

"Something like this exists?" Zhang Xuan blinked. Regeneration from a drop of blood... that's too powerful!

"Yes, this fellow has devoured countless master teachers, absorbing their power, making him much stronger than me. Without lifting the book's suppression on me, I simply can't contend with him..." After explaining, the Cruel Man continued.

"Remove the suppression?" Zhang Xuan frowned. Whether the Book of Heavenly Dao imprisoned the opponent was indeed at his discretion, but if he truly released it, the entity might no longer obey his commands and would escape. Regardless, this was someone who had contended with Master Kong. While suppressed by the Book of Heavenly Dao, it would obediently comply, but once freed, how could it possibly follow orders?

"I thought you were something special to dare to contend with me. Die..." Their conversation lasted only an instant. The finger in the air repelled the Cruel Man with a single move, its confidence greatly boosted. It then sneered. The Demonic Faction cultivated by devouring humans, and devouring master teachers was even more effective. Although the Cruel Man had used the power of the underground palace to become a heart, he had not interacted with humans. Thus, his power was far inferior to that of the finger bone, which frequently devoured master teachers. Moreover, the finger was the most flexible part of the human body, and the heart could not compare.

*Boom!* Power surged down, and the finger once again pointed towards the heart. The dense aura of slaughter was like a sharp sword, ready to pierce anyone at any moment.

"Quickly help me remove the suppression..." Sensing the opponent's power, the Cruel Man was filled with anxiety. A stream of consciousness went to meet it, while he urgently shouted.

"No need to remove it. Just seal this fellow as well..." Zhang Xuan shook his head. Releasing it was definitely out of the question. Once released, it would be like complete freedom. He wouldn't be that foolish. Since it couldn't be defeated without releasing the suppression, he might as well just seal the finger as well. There was no need for further trouble. At worst, he would have two 'Cruel Men' in his hands, and they could squabble amongst themselves.

Just as he was about to summon the Book of Heavenly Dao from his mind, an idea suddenly struck him. Since this Book of Heavenly Dao could remove the suppression on the Cruel Man, could it also suppress the finger in the air and contain it? If it could, he wouldn't need to waste a new one. This item was too precious, a life-saving treasure. The fewer he used, the better; he should save it whenever possible.

"Go!" With this thought, he no longer hesitated. With a mental command, the Book of Heavenly Dao, which had been suppressing the Cruel Man, immediately flew out, heading straight for the finger.

*Whoosh!* Just as it was about to strike down the heart, the finger felt an immense force enveloping it, making it impossible to break free.

"What is this..." It cried out in alarm, wanting to escape, but found itself immobilized as if crushed by a giant boulder. The book before it contained the Great Dao of Heaven and Earth, like a cage, encompassing all the surrounding space.

"Haha, weren't you mocking me? Let's see if you can escape now..." Seeing that this fellow had encountered the same overwhelming suppression from the book, the Cruel Man burst into laughter. This fellow had just called him fake, arguing that a Cruel Man who dared to fight Master Kong wouldn't surrender to a mere Saint 9-dan student. Now, it probably understood that not only him, but even if the *true* Cruel Man were resurrected, he would still kneel! Master Zhang's ultimate weapon was truly terrifying and bizarre. Under the Heavenly Dao, there was nowhere to hide. No matter how monstrous your strength, how unparalleled your power, how invincible your heroism... it was all useless! Could you be stronger than Heaven itself? As long as you weren't stronger, you would only be crushed!

"No..." Hearing the mockery, the finger grew even more terrified.

*Crack.* With a miserable cry, it was instantly absorbed into the book. This fellow had devoured countless master teachers, making it much stronger than the Cruel Man. Yet, before the Book of Heavenly Dao, it was still as fragile as an egg, completely vulnerable.

Seeing that it worked, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief. With a gentle grab, the Book of Heavenly Dao returned to his palm. He lightly opened it and saw a finger and a heart sealed side by side within. Previously, sealing the heart had only taken up half a page. Now, with the addition of the finger, it was completely full. This meant that although this Book of Heavenly Dao had sealed these two powerful entities, it could no longer accommodate anything else.

"I'm real, you're fake!""No, *I'm* real, you're fake!"

One was in the upper half of the page, the other in the lower. The heart and the finger glared at each other, unyielding, filled with rage, gritting their teeth. The finger still seemed unable to believe it. It was formed from the Cruel Man's hand bone, a super-expert who had once fought Master Kong. Even a Saint 9-dan expert might have been able to seize an opportunity to escape, yet now it was trapped inside a seemingly ancient book.

"What kind of place is this?" It roared a few times, struggling desperately, but found that no matter how much it struggled, it couldn't break free. This book seemed to possess the will of the Heavenly Dao, sitting high above, looking down on all things. Anyone who dared to resist could be easily obliterated. Not to mention it, any expert, no matter how formidable, as long as they lived under the Heavenly Dao, had to obey its commands.

"Stop your useless struggles. Just let me devour you obediently, and it'll all be over..." The heart snorted coldly.

"Let you devour me? You're dreaming! You're destined to be devoured by *me*... And that Master Zhang, he's going to die too! All of you will die! Offend me, the Cruel Man, and you'll all be buried with me..." The finger shrieked wildly.

Before its cries ended, a finger gently descended and flicked it. The fingertip contained a dense surge of pure zhenqi. Before it could react, it tumbled several times, crashing wildly within the page. Struck by the zhenqi, it struggled to breathe. This zhenqi seemed to be its nemesis, easily suppressing all its power.

"Shut up!" Zhang Xuan's eyebrows rose. "Even if you still retain your consciousness from your past life and believe you are the Cruel Man, here, you're just a simple illustration. You need to shut your mouth!"

"You dare flick me? Do you know who I am..." The finger, just like the heart when it first entered, was completely defiant and incredibly arrogant. It still thought it was the peak king of the Demonic Faction who once dominated the world and was even feared by Master Kong.

Before it could finish speaking, Zhang Xuan flicked it again. There was only one way to make this fellow submit: beat it! Sealed by the Book of Heavenly Dao, he was the supreme master. He could kill it or destroy it whenever he pleased, no discussion needed.

*Thump, thump, thump!* After several consecutive flicks, the finger within the book felt like it was about to suffocate.

"You..." After a few roars, the finger finally understood its situation. It no longer dared to act arrogantly and fell silent.

"Who are you? And what's going on with that Greenhorn Dragon Beast? Why does one finger have two consciousnesses? Explain everything in detail, or else... Cruel Man, I'll make sure you're no longer cruel!" After lecturing it for a while and seeing that its arrogant temper had been worn down, Zhang Xuan calmly looked at it. What 'Cruel Man'? In front of me, you're just a weak chicken. Do you believe I can kill you twice over in a minute?