The collapse of the secret realm lasted for nearly half an hour.
Ancient formations shattered one after another.
Mountains crumbled.
Spatial cracks spread across the sky.
Countless martial artists fled toward the exits like frightened birds.
No one dared remain behind.
The inheritance had already been taken.
The battle had already ended.
Remaining any longer would only risk being buried inside the ruins forever.
Yet amid the destruction—
one group remained seated calmly.
The Li Faction.
At the center of the ruined inheritance platform sat Li Tao.
Golden dragon patterns continuously flowed beneath his skin.
Every breath he took absorbed astonishing amounts of spiritual energy.
The enormous Spirit Dragon Pool before him was shrinking at a visible speed.
The inheritance had not only granted him the Dragon Overlord Body.
It had also recognized him as the owner of the entire opportunity.
The pool itself was willingly pouring energy into his body.
Murong Qing watched from nearby with a complicated expression.
"Monster."
Li Tao opened one eye.
"You sound jealous."
Murong Qing nodded honestly.
"I am."
The surrounding people immediately burst into laughter.
Even Xuan Lingtian laughed.
For the first time since arriving in Fortune City, the young master of the Xuan Family felt completely convinced.
The man standing before him truly possessed qualifications beyond imagination.
Not because of talent.
Not because of opportunities.
But because he somehow managed to win every impossible battle.
Three days later.
The ruins had completely stabilized.
The Li Faction occupied the entire core region of the secret realm.
Without Luo Chen and Ye Feng.
No force possessed the courage to challenge them.
The rewards began to reveal themselves.
The first beneficiary was naturally Li Tao.
After absorbing nearly seventy percent of the Spirit Dragon Pool, his cultivation rose explosively.
Middle Earth Immortal.
Late Earth Immortal.
Peak Earth Immortal.
Half-Step Transcendent.
Early-stage Transcendent.
Middle-stage Transcendent.
His advancement only stopped after reaching the absolute limit of his foundation.
The Dragon Overlord Body continuously refined the excess energy.
Rather than rushing into Core Formation recklessly, Li Tao forcefully compressed every bit of energy into his body.
His foundation became terrifyingly stable.
Even Murong Qing was speechless after witnessing it.
This was no longer a question of talent.
This was pure absurdity.
The second biggest beneficiary was Murong Qing.
As a genuine cultivator, his absorption efficiency far exceeded ordinary martial artists.
The bottleneck that had trapped him for months shattered instantly.
Peak Foundation Establishment.
Half-Step Core Formation.
Core Formation Realm.
Boom!
The moment the breakthrough completed, a terrifying pressure swept across the secret realm.
The surrounding martial artists instinctively retreated.
A true Core Formation cultivator had finally appeared.
Murong Qing slowly opened his eyes.
Golden light flickered within them.
The nameless sword beside him emitted a joyful sword cry.
Even Li Tao felt a slight pressure.
Murong Qing smiled.
"I finally caught up."
Li Tao rolled his eyes.
"Try harder."
Murong Qing immediately wanted to stab him.
Meanwhile—
another breakthrough occurred.
Xuan Lingtian.
The young master of the Xuan Family had accumulated enough foundation long ago.
What he lacked was opportunity.
The Spirit Dragon Pool solved that problem.
Peak Earth Immortal.
Half-Step Core Formation.
Core Formation Realm.
Boom!
A second Transcendent aura erupted.
The surrounding experts almost fainted.
Two Transcendent experts appearing simultaneously in a low-grade world was practically unheard of.
Xuan Lingtian laughed loudly.
His spear erupted with dragon-like qi.
For a moment he felt capable of fighting anyone.
Then he looked at Li Tao.
The feeling immediately disappeared.
The older generation benefited equally.
Li Tian directly stepped into the Transcendent Realm.
His aura transformed completely.
The gap between Earth Immortal and Transcendent was enormous.
For martial artists—
this was the realm where one truly began controlling heaven and earth.
Every movement carried natural force.
Even he himself felt somewhat unreal.
Just a year ago he had merely been a powerful businessman.
Now he could destroy buildings with a casual punch.
Life truly was unpredictable.
Li Jing nearly jumped with excitement.
Peak Earth Immortal.
Only one step separated her from Transcendent.
A'Fu and A'Qian reached the same level.
Even Li Tao's mother advanced dramatically.
The entire faction experienced explosive growth.
When compared to their strength half a year ago—
the difference resembled heaven and earth.
Neo silently watched everything.
A faint smile appeared on his face.
For once—
he could relax.
No calculations.
No interventions.
No desperate point spending.
No management warnings.
His host had finally become strong enough to stand on his own.
Then his eyes drifted toward the system panel.
The smile instantly vanished.
[Current System Strain: 90%]
[Warning]
[Further Major Intervention Prohibited]
[Violation Risk: Extreme]
Neo sighed.
The warning remained like a sword hanging above his head.
The situation had not improved.
In fact—
it had become worse.
If another disaster appeared, he would be forced to watch helplessly.
Fortunately...
Li Tao no longer needed constant assistance.
That realization made him feel slightly better.
Not everyone had left empty-handed.
Far away from the central ruins—
Luo Chen stood atop a mountain cliff.
His robes were torn.
Blood stained his sleeves.
His aura remained unstable.
Yet his eyes were shining brightly.
Inside his hand rested a crimson crystal.
A blood-colored crystal the size of a fist.
The object emitted powerful vitality fluctuations.
A treasure hidden beside the Spirit Dragon Pool.
The Blood Dragon Crystal.
Luo Chen smiled for the first time in days.
The inheritance had escaped him.
The Spirit Dragon Pool had escaped him.
But this crystal alone made the trip worthwhile.
It contained enough energy to greatly accelerate his cultivation.
More importantly—
it was perfectly compatible with his damaged body.
He looked toward the distant ruins.
His expression gradually became cold.
"Li Tao."
"Next time..."
"There won't be a second miracle."
Then his figure disappeared into the horizon.
After seizing control of an entire neighboring province, he still possessed resources far beyond ordinary people's imagination.
The next meeting would not be so simple.
Meanwhile—
deep within a hidden valley.
Ye Feng slowly opened his eyes.
Pain.
Every part of his body hurt.
His meridians felt torn apart.
His foundation was damaged.
His ancient cauldron had shattered.
Even his cultivation had become unstable.
The defeat in the secret realm had been devastating.
For the first time since his rebirth—
he had suffered a true defeat.
Not a setback.
Not an inconvenience.
A genuine defeat.
The room remained silent.
The heroines sat nearby.
Tang Jing.
Shen Yao.
Xu Yue.
Lin Bingxue.
Even Nangong Li and Qin Chanchan looked unusually quiet.
Nobody knew what to say.
The atmosphere felt oppressive.
Eventually—
the door opened.
Divine Doctor Xiao entered.
The old man's expression was calm.
Too calm.
Ye Feng immediately sensed something.
"Master."
Divine Doctor Xiao stared at him silently.
Several moments passed.
Then he sighed.
"You lost."
The words were simple.
Yet they pierced deeper than any blade.
Ye Feng clenched his fists.
Blood trickled from his palms.
Divine Doctor Xiao continued.
"You underestimated your enemies."
"You relied too heavily on destiny."
"You grew arrogant."
Every sentence struck directly at the truth.
Ye Feng remained silent.
Because he couldn't refute any of it.
The old doctor eventually walked toward a stone wall.
His fingers pressed several hidden mechanisms.
Click.
Click.
Click.
A hidden compartment slowly emerged.
Everyone froze.
Even the heroines looked surprised.
They had never seen this before.
Inside the compartment rested a black scroll.
Ancient.
Sinister.
Forbidden.
The moment it appeared—
the room temperature dropped.
An ominous aura spread through the surroundings.
Ye Feng's pupils contracted.
Even without opening it—
he sensed danger.
Extreme danger.
Divine Doctor Xiao carefully picked it up.
For the first time—
hesitation appeared in his eyes.
"This technique..."
"...should never have existed."
The room became silent.
No one interrupted.
The old man slowly looked toward Ye Feng.
"If you choose this path..."
"There will be no turning back."
His voice had become unusually serious.
"The righteous factions will hunt you."
"The martial world will reject you."
"The entire world may become your enemy."
"You may gain immense power."
"But you will lose something far more valuable."
The warning echoed throughout the room.
Every heroine became nervous.
Even Tang Jing felt uneasy.
Yet Ye Feng only had one question.
"Can it make me stronger?"
The old doctor closed his eyes.
"...Yes."
That answer was enough.
Without the slightest hesitation—
Ye Feng snatched the scroll.
The movement was so fast that everyone froze.
Divine Doctor Xiao's expression became complicated.
He had expected resistance.
Questions.
Doubt.
Fear.
Instead—
Ye Feng accepted instantly.
As though he had already made the decision long ago.
The young protagonist looked toward the distant horizon.
Toward the direction of Fortune City.
Toward the direction of Li Tao.
His eyes gradually became bloodshot.
"I don't care."
His voice was low.
Cold.
Dangerous.
"If the world stands in my way..."
"Then I'll crush the world."
The black scroll slowly opened.
Dark energy leaked from its pages.
The sky above the hidden valley immediately darkened.
Thunder rumbled in the distance.
Even Divine Doctor Xiao's expression changed.
Because he suddenly realized something.
The greatest threat was no longer Luo Chen.
It was no longer the Black Gate.
It was no longer even Li Tao.
The greatest threat...
might be the disciple standing before him.
And ten days later—
on the day of Li Tao's wedding—
all of those threads would collide.
The final battle had already begun.