Yuan’s Ascension

“Even now, if Master were to become an Astral Monarch, your strength would likely rival ours," said the usually silent Sixth Devil.

Wu Yuan couldn't help but smile.

Sixth Devil was right. Among Astral Monarchs, those with first-degree immortal roots were rare, but there was usually one among every few dozen or hundred Astral Monarchs.

But those with an Apotheosis root? They were truly rare, hardly one in an entire macrocosm. Astral Monarchs who possessed one were truly one in a million.

An Apotheosis root also bestowed great strength upon the cultivator. Apotheosis-level Astral Monarch mana was ten times that of First-level Astral Monarch mana.

With my Apotheosis root, once I break through, just employing the fourth move of the Nine Swords of Spacetime would grant me seventh-stage Astral Monarch strength. Wu Yuan thought to himself. If I were to use the fifth move, my strength would probably approach ninth-stage Astral Monarch powerhouses.

This was a terrifying aspect of Apotheosis roots. It could be said that for an Astral Monarch to truly transcend the boundaries between phases and battle against Sovereigns, the primary requirement was an Apotheosis root.

Time passed.

Wu Yuan conversed at length with the eight devil marshalls, gradually familiarizing himself with and deepening his understanding of them.

"Alright," Big Devil spoke up. "You eight, return to your grottos for now. When Master needs to summon you, he will notify you."

"Yes," the eight devil marshalls bowed respectfully, Second Devil and Ninth Devil being no exception. Clearly, they all respected Big Devil considerably.

Soon, the eight devil marshalls dispersed, returning to the worldlets they commanded within the Black Devil Blood Hollow.

Only Big Devil and Wu Yuan remained behind.

"Master," Big Devil said respectfully.

"Big Devil, tell me about the other places in the Blood Hollow. I'm not very familiar with them yet," Wu Yuan smiled.

"Please follow me, Master." Big Devil waved his hand, and a spatial passage tore open before them.

Wu Yuan strode forward.

As its master, he could sense that the power Big Devil wielded all originated from the Black Devil Blood Hollow.

"Master, the Black Devil Blood Hollow has two core areas. One is the Black Devil Domain, the eighth trial ground, which only you can enter," Big Devil said. "The other is the Devil Ground where we were just now, which I usually control."

Wu Yuan nodded slightly.

"The Black Devil Blood Hollow, a top-tier high-grade Dao Instrument, contains fifty-five thousand worlds internally, collectively known as the Devil Realm," Big Devil pointed to the distant void.

At this moment, the two of them stood in a vast void, where enormous worlds could be seen rotating in space.

The numerous worlds were located quite closely to each other. Each world seemed no less vast than the mainland of an immortal continent.

"So many worlds," Wu Yuan said softly.

A normal immortal nation only had a few thousand immortal continents.

"True immortal continents are centered around a mainland spanning tens of thousands of light years of space, so these worlds are far inferior to real immortal continents.

Moreover, the beings born in the external immortal continents are nurtured by heaven and earth, with immense potential.

The potential of Devil Realm beings is much lower, as they are ultimately only beings nurtured by a Dao Realm," Big Devil sighed.

"It seems there are tens of thousands of worlds... but the true number of cultivators that can be nurtured is very few, just slightly more than an immortal nation or a galactic cluster. As for super powerhouses, even fewer are born.

In countless years, the entire Devil Realm has not been able to produce a single Astral Monarch," Big Devil said.

"Not even one?" Wu Yuan asked, puzzled.

"There were some with potential, but with the Sovereign's fall and no new master to take over, I feared that the emergence of new Astral Monarchs would cause turmoil within the Blood Hollow, so I deliberately stifled the Devil Realm's development," Big Devil said. "After all, new Astral Monarchs might not be loyal to the Sovereign.

Moreover, to lessen the burden on the Black Devil Blood Hollow, I would secretly incite the various worlds of the Devil Realm into warring against each other, causing massive numbers of Archimmortals and Archdeities to perish.

Now, the entire Devil Realm has about 1.3 million Archimmortals and Archdeities," Big Devil said.

Wu Yuan nodded, impressed by Big Devil's thorough consideration.

Any expanse of heaven and earth had limits to the number of beings and powerhouses it could support. As a high-grade Dao Instrument, it had limited essence and similarly had a maximum population capacity.

"However, now that Master has inherited it, all the Astral Monarchs, Archimmortals, and Archdeities in the entire Blood Hollow will obey Master's commands," Big Devil said. "As long as Master gives the order, they can once again follow Master to conquer the Dao Realm."

Wu Yuan was speechless.

Conquer the Dao Realm? He had no such intentions.

Moreover, the power of the Black Devil Blood Hollow seemed formidable, but compared to the nine major factions of the Dao Realm, it was insignificant.

Which of the nine great forces of the Dao Realm didn't have thousands or tens of thousands of Astral Monarch powerhouses and hundreds of millions of Archimmortals and Archdeities?

Moreover, they had Sovereigns backing them.

"I am a Spacetime Island imprint bearer, destined to leave the Dao Realm in the future," Wu Yuan said. "In the future, can you follow me when I leave?"

"We can," Big Devil smiled. "Master need not worry. In fact, the Dao Master does not restrict powerhouses from leaving the Dao Realm... it's just that while leaving is easy, returning is difficult, and the Dao Realm is much safer than the realms outside. Foreign powerhouses cannot enter the Dao Realm.

So, Dao Realm powerhouses would usually only let their mana bodies or ether bodies venture outside for a bit, and rarely allow their true selves to leave the Dao Realm.

It's good that Master will leave the Dao Realm in the future," Big Devil said. "After all, we Devil Realm powerhouses are viewed with hostility by the nine major factions of the Dao Realm. It would indeed be difficult to restore the Sovereign's past glory.

It's better that we follow you, Master, to conquer other macrocosms," Big Devil said.

Wu Yuan nodded slightly.

Conquer? He hadn't thought about it. The various forces in the Greenridge Macrocosm were not easy opponents, and he didn't have much ambition for conquest.

However, if he could bring this Devil Realm force back to the Greenridge Macrocosm in the future, he would have support, and after overcoming his Tribulations, it would be easier to gain a foothold in the Eternal Sun Immortal World.

"Master, please continue to follow me," Big Devil said.

The two walked through the void, quickly arriving in a special space.

…

In the misty expanse, a towering black altar stood alone, flanked by roaring flames on either side. Above it, a massive tome floated in the air, with eight names etched into its surface.

Big Devil and Wu Yuan appeared atop the altar.

"This is the Devil Subduing Tome. The Devil Subduing Tome is a treasure forged by our late master through immense effort. One can use it to control the vast troops of the powerful devil army, and it is a high-grade Dao Instrument.

It possesses the power to subdue and bind, but its core abilities lie in soul control and array manipulation," Big Devil explained, pointing to the black and red book-like tome in the distance. "Each of those eight names is a strand of animus from Second Devil to Ninth Devil.

As such, even if they become Sovereigns in the future, they won't be able to break free and will have to obey your commands, Master," Big Devil continued. "However, your current strength is insufficient to control the Devil Subduing Tome... Sovereign-level Dao comprehension is required to fully decipher it.

Therefore, the Devil Subduing Tome should remain here on this altar for now. Through the altar, Master, you can still utilize a fraction of its power.”

Once the animus is branded, not even a Sovereign can break free? Wu Yuan thought to himself.

He recalled a treasure from the myths and legends of his previous life called the Investiture of the Gods, which bore some resemblance to the Devil Subduing Tome before him.

"Are there no limitations to the Devil Subduing Tome?" Wu Yuan asked, puzzled.

"There are! Soul control comes in two forms. One is direct invasion, but this method places an enormous burden on one's own soul," Big Devil explained. "The second is through soul-type treasures like the Devil Subduing Tome.

However, even the Devil Subduing Tome can control 550 powerhouses at most. That's the limit."

Once an individual’s animus is engraved, that slot cannot be taken by anyone else unless they perish," Big Devil stated.

Five hundred and fifty? Wu Yuan mused. That was quite a substantial number.

"At its peak, the Devil Subduing Tome controlled over 500 Astral Monarchs, but after the final battle, the vast majority perished, leaving only the eight devil marshalls," Big Devil said, shaking his head.

"If you fully control the Devil Subduing Tome, Master, you could potentially enslave Astral Monarchs directly. But through the altar alone, you can only enslave some Archimmortals and Archdeities.

Even if the Archimmortals and Archdeities here are merely mana bodies or ether bodies, their souls can still be gradually infiltrated and controlled.

Right now, those undergoing the trials are the first batch of devil army candidates selected for you, Master, as per the Sovereign's instructions."

Wu Yuan remained silent.

Sovereign Black Devil had mentioned this matter before.

"Those who can obtain twelve Black Devil Tokens all have Astral Monarch potential. It is recommended that you enslave them, Master," Big Devil said. "If these devil army troops fail to break through in the future, you can always kill them to free up slots.

Of course, culling and selection cannot be done too frequently. Each use of the Devil Subduing Tome consumes its inherent devil-subduing power. Once depleted excessively, it takes eons to replenish.

Normally, controlling around a hundred individuals every ten thousand years shouldn’t be difficult," Big Devil explained.

Control a hundred every ten thousand years, and kill those who don't measure up? Wu Yuan thought, inwardly shocked.

The more he conversed with Big Devil, the more he realized what it truly meant to be a 'devil.' Their actions were indeed worthy of being called perverse and insane!

"Big Devil," Wu Yuan suddenly said, "For Sovereign Black Devil, mere Astral Monarch-level powerhouses shouldn't be that important, right?"

From what Wu Yuan knew, Sovereign-level powerhouses could single-handedly slaughter vast numbers of Astral Monarchs if they so wished.

"Master," Big Devil smiled mysteriously, "If, in the future, you are able to gather 550 late-stage Astral Monarch powerhouses and bind them to the Devil Subduing Tome, ensuring their absolute loyalty…

When they coordinate to form the Myriad Devils Grand Array, slaying ordinary Sovereigns would be completely effortless. This grand array possesses the combat power of a late-stage Sovereign.

That is the late Master's true intention," Big Devil continued. "The Devil Subduing Tome itself isn't exceptionally powerful, but if it can control 550 late-stage Astral Monarch powerhouses, then its value would surpass even the Black Devil Blood Hollow.

Its power would be limitless!"

Wu Yuan listened in shock.

A peak-stage Sovereign powerhouse? That was truly insane!

"However, there are some obstacles. Firstly, the true selves of most Astral Monarchs are usually in hiding, and secondly, directly enslaving Astral Monarchs is extremely difficult. Back then, even the Sovereign, who excelled at soul control, barely managed it," Big Devil explained.

"So, the most reliable method is still to control large numbers of Archimmortals and Archdeities, slowly screening and nurturing them.

Back when the late Master roamed the Dao Realm, the Myriad Devils Grand Array played a significant role, tying down several Sovereigns during the great decisive battle.

However, those Dao Realm Sovereigns probably don't even know of the Devil Subduing Tome's existence, thinking it was merely a powerful array," Big Devil chuckled.

"Master, you're only at the High Immortal stage now, so you need to start preparing and nurturing them early," Big Devil advised.

Wu Yuan inwardly sighed.

Sovereign Black Devil was indeed an inconceivable being, with abilities beyond imagination. He was formidable in personal combat, and possessed such a powerful devil army. Working in tandem, it was no wonder he could dominate the Dao Realm, overwhelming numerous major factions, and ultimately forcing the Dao Master to intervene personally.

"Master, let's move on to the next location," Big Devil said.

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