The terrifying power born from Arceus's self-destruction surged outward like an unleashed primordial catastrophe.
Lakes evaporated in an instant.
Mountains shattered into dust.
Space itself collapsed layer by layer, unable to withstand the violent impact.
Bang! Bang! Bang!!!
In an unimaginably short span of time, that hidden "realm-within-a-realm," buried deep inside the Nebula World, was completely obliterated. Matter was reduced to the most basic particles, and even the gray qi streams that had once wrapped and protected this space crumbled like brittle paper beneath the torrent of destructive energy.
As the gray qi barrier shattered, the scenery behind it was forcibly exposed—
It was the deepest region of the Space Interlayer.
The Space Interlayer was often divided into layers by ordinary Undying beings:
The first layer: scattered space fragmentsThe second layer: the God Kingdom layerThe third layer: raging space torrents…and so on
But in the eyes of supreme existences like Bai Yue, this "layered" concept was merely a rough simplification.
In truth, the Space Interlayer was boundlessly vast.
The closer one was to the Original Universe, the smaller and more fragmented the space shards became.
The farther one ventured away, the more enormous and terrifying those fragments grew.
Here—at the deepest extremity of the Space Interlayer—space fragments were no longer measured in kilometers or light-years, but in grotesquely exaggerated scales. Massive fragments hurtled through the void at extreme speeds, colliding from time to time and instantly annihilating one another into the most primitive energy particles.
Even more dangerously, because this region lay close to the Primordial Universe's membrane wall, traces of chaotic energy from the Universe Sea seeped inward. These chaotic currents mixed with shattered spatial particles, forming violent gray qi torrents that raged endlessly.
This place was a forbidden zone.
Even ordinary Universe Exalts would be reduced to nothingness if caught here unprepared.
Suddenly—
A colossal space fragment within the torrent exploded violently.
The gray qi wrapped around it was ripped apart, and within the raging energy tide, a solitary figure could faintly be seen standing unmoved.
It was Bai Yue.
The space that had once nurtured the Universe Heart had been hidden inside that fragment. Arceus's self-destruction had completely blown it apart, releasing its contents into the chaotic depths of the Space Interlayer.
Endless energy surged outward like a broken dam, scattering nearby space fragments. Some fragments were pulverized directly into spatial dust.
Within a radius of hundreds of millions of kilometers, everything was reduced to swirling particle streams—like molten sand drifting slowly through the void.
Bai Yue stood calmly amid the devastation.
The epicenter of the explosion had been terrifying, but with the supreme defensive treasure he obtained from the Mysterious God Temple protecting him, and with the Primordial Universe forcibly limiting the self-destruction's power to the sixth-tier ceiling, he was merely pushed back several kilometers by the shockwave.
Not a single injury marred his body.
A moment later, the shockwaves dissipated completely.
Bai Yue frowned slightly.
"What exactly did I do to enrage Arceus to this extent?" he muttered to himself. "Or… is he simply insane?"
For the first time in a long while, Bai Yue questioned his own conduct.
After all, he had:
Led the Human Race's Venerable army into the Nebula WorldSlaughtered the native Overlords and Lord GodsInvaded territory Arceus had ruled for countless agesAnd finally contested the Universe Heart that Arceus had guarded for hundreds of millions of years
When listed out like that…
"It does sound rather excessive," Bai Yue admitted inwardly.
But even so—was it truly worth self-detonating an entire Universe Lord god body?
Universe Exalts could be resurrected.
Universe Lords possessed clones.
Such an act was nothing short of suicidal madness.
Yet the fact remained: Arceus had done it without hesitation.
Bai Yue couldn't make sense of it.
After a brief pause, he shook his head and abandoned the thought.
The gray Chaos Domain expanded rapidly, sweeping through the devastated region.
Bai Yue began searching for two things:
The fully formed Universe HeartThe treasures left behind after Arceus's "death"
Under a Universe Lord's self-destruction, anything below high-grade palace treasure level would have been obliterated without a trace.
The Chaos Domain quickly covered the entire affected area. Everything that still existed was laid bare before Bai Yue's perception.
Because Arceus had stood between Bai Yue and the Universe Heart when he self-detonated, the shockwave had hurled them in opposite directions. The surviving treasures were scattered throughout the space between them.
Bai Yue locked onto the nearest surviving armor treasure.
Whoosh.
He teleported instantly, collected it, then teleported again—and again.
With his terrifying consciousness strength, tens of thousands of instant teleports imposed virtually no burden. In the blink of an eye, all scattered treasures were gathered into his possession.
Just as Bai Yue prepared to teleport toward the Universe Heart—
He stopped.
The surrounding time and space near the Universe Heart were completely sealed.
Not only could Bai Yue not lock onto its position, but even his spatial perception was forcibly blocked.
At the same time, he sensed something even more alarming.
The treasures he had just collected—
Still carried ownership marks.
"They're still bound…" Bai Yue's pupils contracted. "Arceus isn't dead."
Realization struck like lightning.
"What detonated earlier… was only a clone!"
Before Bai Yue could act on this revelation, the region where the Universe Heart was sealed underwent a dramatic transformation.
BOOM!!!
Just like when Bai Yue himself had broken through to Universe Lord, the projection of the Primordial Universe's Origin Law Ocean descended directly into the Space Interlayer.
An overwhelming pressure blanketed the region.
The already-chaotic Space Interlayer erupted once more.
A colossal vortex formed above, expanding outward layer by layer. Countless colors flashed within it, carrying infinite might.
Bai Yue stared in astonishment.
"This… another Universe Lord breakthrough?!"
He knew this phenomenon well.
At the center of that vortex was a passage—a channel linking the breaker's god power directly to the Universe Law Ocean.
Below the vortex, the Universe Heart—once an origin treasure—began to change.
Before Bai Yue's eyes, it transformed into a humanoid lifeform nearly one million kilometers tall.
Crystal-clear from head to toe.
A single massive eye set into its face.
"Arceus!" Bai Yue exclaimed.
The Universe Heart… had been Arceus's true body all along.
What he detonated earlier was merely an expendable vessel.
Now everything made sense.
Why Arceus had been willing to self-destruct so decisively.
Why his treasures were still bound.
Why he had been so confident.
But another mystery arose.
Arceus's aura clearly carried the imprint of a Universe Lord already—so why was he breaking through again?
Before Bai Yue could pursue the thought further, Arceus spoke.
"Lord of Hunyuan," Arceus's majestic voice resounded, "my previous proposal still stands. Accept the conditions, and we end this here."
At the same time, Arceus activated his innate secret method.
A second colossal figure—over 700,000 kilometers tall—appeared beside him, identical in appearance.
Bai Yue's gaze sharpened.
"That's not a clone… it's a god-power split."
He sensed it instantly.
When the second body formed, Arceus's main aura dropped noticeably—as if 30% of his god power had been forcibly separated.
This was not a disposable clone.
It was a true division of god power, capable of independent combat.
"You attacked me and still want to join the Great Alliance?" Bai Yue sneered. "You dream beautifully."
Despite losing a massive portion of god power, Arceus showed no panic.
With a thought, his will resonated with the vortex above.
Endless universe origin energy poured down, rapidly replenishing his god power.
In mere breaths, 3% was restored.
His aura climbed swiftly toward its peak again.
Bai Yue's expression darkened.
"This recovery speed…" he thought. "I can't let him drag this out."
Bai Yue advanced.
The Hun Yuan Staff swept outward, forming a heaven-piercing shadow that crashed down like a falling world pillar.
Even as a casual strike, it reached the absolute sixth-tier limit allowed by the Primordial Universe.
Arceus's expression changed drastically.
He retreated at full speed, abandoning his split body to intercept the blow.
The god-power clone roared and unleashed its strongest secret technique—
But it was meaningless.
Bang!
The staff shadow obliterated the clone entirely, erasing its soul at the source.
One strike.
One kill.
"How is this possible?!" Arceus roared while fleeing. "You lied to me! You're not a newly promoted Universe Lord!"
Bai Yue followed unhurriedly, Chaos Domain suppressing time and space.
"I never deceived you," Bai Yue replied calmly. "I really did break through less than a thousand years ago."
He smiled faintly.
"No one ever said a newly promoted Universe Lord must be weak."
Despair crept into Arceus's single eye.
Cornered, with his god power now restored to over 90%, he made a desperate decision.
He activated his innate secret technique again.
As a special lifeform, Arceus possessed two innate abilities. One of them was this terrifying Innate Clone Technique.
Each use split off 30% of his god power, forming an independent combat body.
At most—
Three such bodies could exist simultaneously.