Chapter 1196

“Auriel’s divine clan has departed!”

Before leaving, they cast disdainful glances at the Burial Gods Alliance, as though looking upon a horde of corpses.

Although the Burial Gods were furious, they couldn’t gauge Ye Yu’s true power. And since Zeng Tian hadn’t ~Nоvеl𝕚ght~ given any orders, they could only stand by and watch.

Their faces were grim—some had already made plans to retreat. Clearly, they feared Ye Yu’s strength.

But then Zeng Tian suddenly sneered!

Ye Yu frowned.

Originally, his plan had been this: activate the special effects, pretend his power was spiraling out of control, and scare the Wuliang Hall gods into fleeing first. Not out of pity, but because of Hong Zhencheng—if that big brain were around, he’d surely yank Ye Yu back mid-escape and shout, “Shangshen, stop playing—just strike them yourself!” The brat was capable of that stunt.

Beyond that, Ye Yu had hoped to intimidate the Burial Gods into retreating immediately, so he could harvest a huge wave of subjugation points and withdraw unscathed.

But it was now obvious that plan had failed.

Worse, Ye Yu noticed something shocking: as soon as the effects had kicked in, Zeng Tian’s subjugation value had stood at a mere two thousand—and it had already decayed to zero. Zeng Tian had utterly dispelled his fear. He simply was not afraid of Ye Yu! Infuriating—subjugation value could actually decay! If Ye Yu had known, he’d have harvested it sooner.

Still, Zeng Tian was the lone exception. The others had contributed well—especially the ten or so gods of Wuliang Hall, who had provided nearly ten million subjugation points. Ye Yu wasted no time converting every last point into cultivation. In the next heartbeat, his realm rocketed: Late New God Realm, New God Realm Zenith, Early True God Realm—then halted. As expected, the Divine Realm demanded astronomical subjugation values for a breakthrough. Barely making Early True God was hard enough.

And it still wasn’t enough. Zeng Tian’s decayed points proved that Ye Yu had failed to intimidate him.

What next?

As Ye Yu pondered, Zeng Tian laughed uproariously and strode forward.

“When I first began cultivation, my talent was pitiful—weak bones, poor gifts. Had I lacked family backing, my master would never have accepted me! I envied my senior brother then—he was powerful and treated me like a slave. Yet in two short years, I severed his head!”

“As I advanced, I met countless prodigies with terrifying strength—but I killed them all. I learned that flashy tricks are worthless. Real power kills, not scares. Isn’t that so, Shangshen?”

Zeng Tian now stood right before Ye Yu. His gargantuan, flabby frame towered over him, exuding suffocating pressure. Downward, his grotesque grin chilled the blood.

Ye Yu’s mind shifted. He deactivated the effects. All celestial phenomena vanished; calm returned.

He stared quietly at Zeng Tian. In truth, Ye Yu had a second plan: if intimidation failed, he’d carve a path away, luring the Burial Gods into chasing the fleeing Wuliang Hall deities—more merits there, death for anyone chasing him. Everything was set.

So why was Zeng Tian acting like this? Why press so close, as if certain of victory?

Ye Yu bristled. Even three realms below, at this proximity, after activating All Beings Equality, a gamble might succeed—but if he lost, drained of divine power, the surrounding gods would finish him.

Ye Yu hesitated—just as Zeng Tian gripped his battle axe.

All the gods held their breath, eyes locked on them. They waited to see who would triumph. By aura alone, the two seemed evenly matched. Ye Yu said nothing, but everyone sensed he was holding back.

Two heartbeats passed. A breeze stirred—and a head was severed in an instant. The massive body crumpled, kneeling in its own gore.

Ye Yu looked up to see a breathtaking woman in a black robe streaking across the sky, brandishing a moon disc. They formed a perfect T-shape, one high, one low.

The Burial Gods Alliance stared wide-eyed. Their mightiest—Zeng Tian—was dead. They would have fled then, but it was too late.

With a sweep of her moon disc, dazzling light erupted. Scores of Burial Gods fell dead in an instant.

Only now did Ye Yu truly see her: raven-black hair bound flawlessly, peach blossom eyes both fierce and elegant, her serene face at perfect odds with her lethal aura.

She alighted before Ye Yu and asked, “A newcomer to Wuliang Hall? Who are you?”

Ye Yu blinked—she seemed both familiar and strange.

She turned with effortless grace and strode away. Her voice rang out coolly: “I am Xie Buyu, leader of the Wuliang Hall Alliance. Young one, remember to read the Hall manual. It’s a joke to walk out the door without even recognizing your alliance leader.”