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--- Chapter 449 ---
"BASTARD!" An enraged, mechanical roar echoed in the chamber.
Xu Deming always felt that his year-long suffering was self-inflicted, and he hated himself for it. Even after becoming what is effectively a cyborg, that self-hate still lingered within his soul, burning him deeper into the abyss.
Yet, Han Yuan told Xu Deming that the very reason he became stranded in this timeline was someone else's scheme. Even though it was indirect, the source of the problem still lay with the Abyss Plane, which Tang San had lured to the Douluo Continent.
If Tang San hadn't lured the Abyss Plane to the Douluo Plane, the Sun Moon Federation wouldn't have rushed to develop plane-crossing devices to search for habitable realms to ensure their survival.
Consequently, Xu Deming wouldn't have secretly tested the device and become trapped in this era for over ten thousand years.
Right now, the hatred within Xu Deming's soul was focused on one person, the otherworldly devil, Tang San.
"Hehe..."
"Hehehe..."
Xu Deming laughed, banging the coffin with his metal arm, causing a loud thud. "As expected, someone who possesses such assassination arts, founded the Tang Sect, and basked in Shrek's glory is no good person."
"He's a bastard through and through, yet many worshipped him."
"If not for Tang San, the Sun Moon Empire would have conquered the world a long time ago."
"But no, he had to descend into the mortal world like some noble god and force the Sun Moon Empire to halt its ambitions."
"He even forced us to change the capital to Heaven Dou City."
"So much for humiliation, all from a so-called noble deity."
"Ptui! I can't physically spit on Tang San's name, but if I could, I would spit him to death!"
"Tang San, Huo Yuhao, Tang Wutong, I wish a terrible fate upon you all!"
Han Yuan smiled faintly, knowing he had gained an ally in hating Asura God and Tang San alike.
While Xu Deming was essentially a robot and a very rational version of himself, his soul was still that of a human. When a human hates, that hate has the potential to burn everything.
While it was shady of him to reveal Tang San's true nature to gain Xu Deming's trust, Han Yuan was not the type to allow a random piece to disturb his grand scheme.
Xu Deming's existence was a flaw in Han Yuan's plan, but he also had the potential to become a part of it, a complete wild card that could assist him in his revenge against Asura God.
Moreover, Han Yuan might be able to use Xu Deming's existence as a plane-hopping anchor for the next 'world' he was about to visit. His background and timeline aligned perfectly with Xu Deming.
'9,000 years after Huo Yuhao ascended to godhood, which means 1,000 years until the Legend of the Dragon King starts.'
'If I can effectively connect Xu Deming's own timeline with the one requested by the Task Master System, I could access a world 20,000 years into the future.'
'Silver, no, it was the Golden Dragon King, Gu Yuejin, wasn't it? Heh, don't worry, I will gladly take the spirit beast to a better environment, one that falls under my dominion.'
'Gu Yuena, oh, Gu Yuena, you would have never imagined that I was going to use an alternative counterpart of yourself to fight you.'
'Tsk, tsk, Alpha, your scheming game is unmatched as always.'
Considering the bizarre situation in Glory City, Alpha, who was 'forcibly' pulled into the past, quickly discovered something was wrong with this timeline.
Whether it was the advanced Spirit Guidance Technology, the Spirit Ascension Platform, or even the plane-crossing devices, Alpha knew none of these could exist in the past without reason.
Initially, Alpha thought another transmigrator or reincarnator had come to the past of the Douluo Continent, but he quickly dismissed that baseless guess. The timeline of the past is directly connected to his present.
If that were the case, the Task Master System would have warned Alpha long ago because changing this timeline directly correlates to his future.
However, since Han Yuan could traverse here from the Dou Qi Plane, it proved that no transmigrator from outside the Douluo Universe was interfering with the past. Rather, it pointed to someone from a second category: a native time traveler from far into the future. Given the level of civilization advancement this "time traveler" possessed, Alpha deduced it must be someone from around 20,000 years in the future.
The Spirit Ascension Platform couldn't have been developed when Huo Yuhao was around, who is situated 10,000 years in the future. The same applied to the spiritual energy refining technique, which is only applicable when hunting spirit beasts in the Spirit Ascension Platform; however, Xu Deming cleverly replaced it with the Demon Spirits from the Small Demon Grotto Plane.
Although Alpha had not seen any Soul Contract from the City Lord, he had already deduced that the time traveler should possess it.
After all, while the Soul Contract itself was developed by Electrolux, the Undead Scourge from another world, who unfortunately became Huo Yuhao's teacher, the technique was later modified.
The 'understanding' between the two parties had shifted, transforming the Soul Contract technique of the past into nothing more than a beast-taming method in that era.
Yet, we must consider the greed and wariness inherent in the human heart. Even gods can be greedy, and humans are no exception.
Han Yuan looked at Xu Deming, the target Alpha had set his sights on, and remarked, "Getting angry is pointless if there's nothing you can do against Tang San."
"You are less than human right now," he continued. "Your cultivation has reached a Divine-level, but that's merely a Wild God compared to Tang San, who holds two divine positions: one at the Godking Realm and the other exceedingly close to it. So, calm down."
Xu Deming froze momentarily, unclenching his metallic hands and exhaling a cold mist of calm. "You are right... Anger is futile."
"If hatred clouds my judgment, I become no different from a mindless monkey, which goes against my upbringing. My ancestors would certainly shame me for such behavior."
"It's good that you can think this way," Han Yuan nodded in approval. "After all, revenge is best served cold."
"So, you're saying you could assist me in this revenge?" Xu Deming's gem-like eyes glimmered coldly.
Han Yuan shrugged. "That depends on your story and your 'true' ambition. What happened after you rejected the God of Damage's inheritance?"
"After, huh?" Xu Deming fell silent.
"After I turned down the offer to become a god, knowing it would be a trap, the gods were clearly displeased."
"While they couldn't directly punish me for my insolence, they found ways to do so indirectly. For a decade or two, I was constantly harassed by Evil Spirit Masters, unable to roam the Douluo Continent without being attacked by one of them."
"They thought they were clever, but I anticipated their moves. So, I built a human settlement, far from other human civilizations, to anticipate any ambush from the Evil Spirit Master."
He then looked at Ye Ziyun. "And that city would later be known as the Glory City!"