CHAPTER 764: CHAPTER 186 SUBSTITUTE

"Hmm? Within the black glow wrapped in shadows," a voice of surprise suddenly emanated, followed by the black light shattering, revealing a group of people with whom Zhou Yan was very familiar.

The Evil King was at the forefront, followed by Moon Immortal, Fairy Die, Saint Yao, Void Double Saints, Yaochi Saint, and Wu Ji, with Jia Yongheng and Li Wuxian rounding up the group of ten.

These ten had formed a combination of various potential and constitutions with Wu Ji and Jia Yongheng at the core, deriving a bizarre form of Heavenly Mechanism and Qiankun.

"You, are you really Zhou Yan? How, how have you become so powerful?"

The Evil King inhaled sharply, his eyes narrowing sharply upon seeing Zhou Yan, clearly very shocked.

Then he saw Liu Jin and Fang Hong beside Zhou Yan and immediately felt the oppressive weight of their bloodline, feeling as insignificant as an ant—this was due to the mark of the Breeding Ground, which induced a sense of inferiority.

In an instant, the Evil King understood something, and could not help but say with a wry smile, "Now, you have become the Lei Yan King of All Heavens and Myriads of Worlds, haven’t you? Truly, a day apart seems like three autumns; I did not expect you to grow so fast..."

"Meeting you here is truly a lucky encounter; we thought it was the Ghost Fox Killing Spirit making another appearance," Fairy Die chimed in.

"I have restored some of the Lei Yan King’s power, but my realm still remains in the Sword Void Nine Transformations Realm, not as strong as you all think. It’s just that, in this place, everyone’s power is suppressed to the Sword Void Nine Transformations Realm, which consequently makes me seem extremely powerful. These two are Liu Jin and Fang Hong. Jia Yongheng, you should recognize them, right?"

Zhou Yan said with a smile.

At this moment, Jia Yongheng showed a bitter smile and said, "My King, your subordinate has not performed well; now..."

"There’s no need for that; you have done very well. And your Tao was borrowed from the Fang Family. You should continue your cultivation, and later, if you’re willing to go to the Fang Family, I’ll introduce you, or if you prefer, continue following me."

"I, Jia Yongheng, will surely assist the Lei Yan King life after life," Jia Yongheng immediately replied respectfully.

"You all, let’s not catch up just yet; this place is no safe haven. Hmm, Lei Yan King, do you still remember the favor I did for you? I’m Yueyue," Moon Immortal spoke with a soft voice, her eye filled with affection for Zhou Yan that even a blind person could see.

"Ahem, I, I still haven’t recovered some memories. For now, let’s, um, let’s get past the danger first. Come over here; I’ll start the Qiankun Life and Death Chess. With many of us together, we have enough soul power."

Zhou Yan declared.

Liu Jin, the chubby one, had originally wanted to flaunt his high, rich, and handsome status and his charismatic talents in front of Moon Immortal and Fairy Die, but after Zhou Yan revealed his identity, the two women kept their gaze fixated on him. Liu Jin immediately felt disheartened and let out a deep sigh, handing over the Black Chess.

As Fang Hong said, Bloodline Divine Ability and Foreknowledge and Inference were as if nullified here.

Zhou Yan activated the Qiankun Life and Death Chess, then inquired, "Saint Yao, with you here, what happens to Nine Origin Heavenly City?"

"Alas, this might be a disappointment to you, Zhou—Lei Yan King. Some noble families from the Upper Planes have suddenly sent many formidable geniuses to the Lower Realm, and we don’t know how they managed to descend, so we went to investigate.

Along the way, the Evil King mentioned discovering a hidden place with a chance at Transcendence, so we went to take a look.

To confirm, we went with the Body of Destiny Jia Yongheng, the Void Sword Body Wu Ji, and the Void Double Saints, and ended up being swallowed here.

We’ve been circling back and forth in this Black Mountain and just can’t find a way out, and we’ve encountered many perils. ’Reincarnation Saint’ and ’Fairy Ming Xia,’ who were with us, have both fallen..."

"Nine Origin Heavenly City, by now, must be in chaos due to those Upper Plane geniuses, and your friends and family... despite our desire to look after them, we fear that..."

Saint Yao felt incredibly ashamed and bowed his head directly.

When Zhou Yan was just Zhou Yan, he did not stand on ceremony as a saintly figure. Now that Zhou Yan had resumed the identity of Lei Yan King, he could only be as lowly as an ant.

Sometimes, reality is just as it is—inescapable and undeniable, only to be accepted.

Saint Yao, the Evil King, and even the Void Double Saints had calmly accepted Zhou Yan’s identity, but now the Void Double Saints felt even more uneasy in their hearts, fearing that Zhou Yan might strike them down.

After all, the power of the Evil King was evident, and Zhou Yan had only to lift his hand to stop the Evil King’s assault. The place here severely weakened their power; they had gone from high and mighty saints to mere fish on the chopping board.

The two harbored some trepidation, but did not pay much heed to it—they had been walking amidst life and death for some time, becoming indifferent and numb to it, and so did not take it too much to heart.

"So it is... there shouldn’t be too much trouble; you don’t need to blame yourselves. Their talents and abilities are there; if they have indeed perished, then that is their fate, and we have tried our best."

Zhou Yan thought about it, and gradually let go.

Just like his uncle’s relationship with him, if they could not withstand the hardship and fell, there was nothing to be done. After all, everything that could be done had been done to the utmost.

Yet what Zhou Yan did not realize was that this attitude of his, now not as concerned as before, instilled an indescribable coldness and fear in the hearts of the Evil King and the others.

Even the people he used to care so much about were starting to become indifferent? What about their lives as saints—were they now merely ants?