Countless fragments scattered across the ruined sky, each piece still twitching with residual life yet unable to pull itself back together. A mournful wail tore through the desolate world.
Shuhu had been defeated—utterly and completely.
"I never expected the Demon Bow to lend you its power!" the scattered remnants shrieked from high above. They did not flee. Instead, driven by desperate madness, they surged toward Kanzaki like starving beasts that had caught the scent of blood.
"But the Demon Bow is stingy! It granted you only a single use of that strength!"
"What does it matter if you destroy my body? My form may be shattered, but yours can still be remade! Since you took everything from me, I will take your body in return! Hahaha!"
All the fragments ripped through space and distance, pouring into Kanzaki's body. They corroded and assimilated every cell without resistance. Kanzaki made no move to dodge. He had never intended to.
Soon, he no longer resembled anything human. His body twisted and swelled. Rough bark spread across his skin while grotesque, mutated organs—plundered from countless Abominations—sprouted across his form. His aura faded, replaced by Shuhu's distinctive, nauseating blessing of Abundance.
Kanzaki had become a four-limbed monster, unrecognizable even to himself.
"Hahaha! Can you feel it now?" Shuhu's arrogant voice echoed from the monster's throat, thick with the triumph of a victor. "You are me, and I am you. We can never be separated again!"
"Without the status of an Emanator, what will you use to resist my will? Become my vessel!"
Just as Shuhu believed victory was assured, the monster's mouth curved into a cold, sarcastic grin.
"Resist?" Kanzaki's voice drifted faintly from the depths of his sea of consciousness. "I never planned to resist your will in the first place…"
Shuhu's laughter died. A strange unease stirred in its heart.
"What do you mean?"
Kanzaki's voice grew weaker, yet it carried a chilling certainty that sent a shiver through Shuhu.
"You are me. I am you. As long as I die… you die with me."
Shuhu understood the plan at once.
"Even I cannot kill you quickly. Now that you are in my grasp, I will force your body to regenerate endlessly. You will find it impossible to die! Then I will imprison and seal away every last fragment of your consciousness… Hm?"
Shuhu suddenly cried out in alarm. A familiar power had risen from the depths of the sea of consciousness, forcibly isolating the foreign will and desperately protecting the final spark of clarity against the erosion.
"Without the status of an Emanator, all your struggles are meaningless! My power far exceeds your imagination!"
The brutal struggle of mutual devouring began.
Not long after, a streak of golden light tore across the sky. Teng Xiao had finally arrived. He surveyed the scarred surface of the Desolate Planet. When his gaze fell upon the four-limbed monster radiating a terrifying aura amid the ruins, he froze for a moment before tightening his grip on his greatsword.
Its appearance had changed beyond recognition, but that nauseating aura—he would know it even in death.
Although he did not understand why the Reignbow Arbiter was also watching this battlefield, for now…
Teng Xiao drew a deep breath, his eyes burning with killing intent.
"Shuhu. Prepare to die."
"Hehehe… Teng Xiao, if you were at your peak right now, I truly could not touch you. But alas…"
Shuhu glanced at the dimming light of the Divine General behind Teng Xiao and let out a strange laugh. Yet its response to Teng Xiao's attacks was far from calm. It had not yet fully seized control of Kanzaki's body. Setting aside their enmity for a moment, Shuhu felt a flicker of genuine admiration.
A mere mortal had forced an Emanator into such a wretched state. That alone was enough to be proud of across the entire galaxy.
Even so, Teng Xiao's strikes landed with little effect. Compared to their clash at Cangcheng a thousand years ago, Shuhu had become far more troublesome. Each time it returned from death, the cursed giant tree only grew stronger. In the past, Teng Xiao could cut Shuhu down multiple times. Now, ever since Shuhu had appeared on the Luofu, every attack had proven futile.
Teng Xiao had no path of retreat. Even if it cost him his life, he had to keep Shuhu here until reinforcements from the other Xianzhou ships arrived.
Half a system hour passed.
Teng Xiao blocked a heavy blow. The terrifying force rattled his bones and drew blood from the corner of his mouth. He could no longer maintain the Divine General's presence. Shuhu sneered and prepared to seize the opening—only for more than ten peculiar warships to materialize out of thin air.
A mighty ancient dragon circled above the fleet and unleashed a devastating dragon's breath. Shuhu was caught off guard and took the full brunt of the attack. Its injuries healed rapidly as it looked skyward.
"Xianzhou's Vidyadhara High Elder… Lord Tianfeng?"
Lord Tianfeng stared down at Shuhu, his expression shifting abruptly.
"How can the aura of the Ambrosial Arbor's blessing exist within you?!"
Teng Xiao's face darkened at once.
The Ambrosial Arbor had been defiled by Shuhu?
When—?
"This is all thanks to Kanzaki," Shuhu cackled. "He brought the power of the Ambrosial Arbor to me."
It was nearly complete. Kanzaki could no longer speak back. In a few more minutes, this body would belong entirely to Shuhu. Though it could not compare to its original shattered form, given enough time it would rebuild everything. It had plenty of time.
Shuhu's left arm transformed into a gnarled branch. Kanzaki's face condensed upon it.
"Though his attempt at revenge was beyond his means, I admit… he was a respectable opponent."
Seeing that face, both Teng Xiao and Lord Tianfeng clenched their fists until their knuckles whitened, teeth grinding audibly.
A hero who had dedicated most of his life to the Xianzhou… devoured by Shuhu.
"Where is my old general friend from the Xianzhou? Why didn't he come? Ah, right—Sha Feng is already dead. The current general seems to be called… Never mind. It is not important."
Shuhu now appeared completely at ease, composed and unhurried. Only after occupying Kanzaki's body had it realized how much power of the Ambrosial Arbor this man had seized. Frankly speaking, the blessing of Abundance that Rahu had devoured from all the people of Cangcheng combined could barely reach one-tenth of the Ambrosial Arbor's power.
If it had known this earlier, there would have been no need to waste so much time with Kanzaki. Once it fully controlled this body, even if the Xianzhou Marshal himself arrived, no one would be able to stop it.
"Come then. Continue your futile attacks."
"You deserve to die!!!"
Teng Xiao roared and charged alongside Lord Tianfeng. Shuhu sneered inwardly. Attacking this body would only accelerate the dissolution of Kanzaki's consciousness and hasten its own victory. That was why it had not killed Teng Xiao immediately.
Gradually, the fastest relief fleets from various Xianzhou ships arrived, joining the desperate encirclement. Yet the longer the battle raged, the uglier everyone's expressions became.
Not only did Shuhu show no signs of weakening—it grew stronger with every exchange. Attacks that landed on its surface could barely inflict meaningful damage.
The fighting dragged on. News arrived from the rear that the main forces the Luofu could still deploy—led by four members of the High-Cloud Quintet—were about to arrive.
But at that exact moment, the monster surrounded by the allied forces suddenly erupted with an extremely terrifying aura, blasting everyone nearby away.
"Hahahaha! It is done! I am Shuhu! I am Eternity!"
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Bonus chapters
200 - Stones
400 - Stones
600 - Stones
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