Mythical Era: My Evolution into a Celestial Beast

In the Eternal Realm, on one of the golden divine tree's branches that spanned tens of thousands of kilometers in length.

Atop one of its enormous leaves stood Heavenly King Zhenwu, Heavenly King Jiuyou, and Heavenly King Xuanwu. Dozens of kilometers behind them, Orbital Battleship 5 was quietly docked at the edge of the trunk.

Watching the Heavenly Feathered Race busily flit about in streaks of golden and silver light, Xuanwu smiled faintly and bitterly.. "Who would've thought our arrival would cause two civilizations to enter a final war ahead of schedule?"

As allies, the Heavenly Feathered Race had immediately notified Zhenwu and the others when they noticed the Purgatory Empires making preparations for total war.

"This was inevitable," Jiuyou replied calmly. "Even before we arrived, the Heavenly Feathered Race was nearing collapse. After so many years of bleeding, their foundations have already been drained. Our presence merely acted as a catalyst, pushing the hesitant demon gods to finally commit. Of course, according to our initial deception plan—pretending to be weaker—this war shouldn't have erupted for another two or three day-cycles. Still..."

Jiuyou smiled wryly.

Zhenwu allowed a rare grin to show on his stern face. "But Chen Chu's performance was too exaggerated. It startled the demon gods, didn't it?"

"Exactly." Jiuyou nodded. "We had told him to hold back, to not display too much strength. Who could've expected that he would wipe out over a dozen demon kings and two late-stage great demon kings in a single battle? Such a heavy loss would wound even a Purgatory Empire. That number of casualties is enough to cripple their elite strength in one go. Rather than giving their enemies time to recover, they'd rather go all in and crush everything at once."

Plans never kept pace with changes, especially in a vast world where gods and demons coexisted. Anyone who could wield principles wasn't a fool, so while the sudden escalation to full war was surprising, it wasn't entirely unexpected.

The three heavenly kings didn't mind Chen Chu not following the plan. Slaying so many demon kings and great demon kings was already an astonishing outcome.

Under normal circumstances, even if Chen Chu had the power to suppress those demon kings and great demon kings, he wouldn't have succeeded so completely. The moment he killed two or three, a demon god on the battlefield would have acted, either to crush him or retrieve the remaining demon kings.

While the three kings were sensing waves of mythical aura reviving within the Eternal Divine Tree's trunk, a young man with black hair appeared not far away. At once, their expressions turned cold.

Xiao Tianyi approached with a slight smile. "Heavenly King Jiuyou, Heavenly King Xuanwu, it has been a long time."

Jiuyou gave him a chilly attitude. "Xiao Tianyi, shouldn't you be looking for your demonized form? What are you doing here?"

Instead of wasting time, Xiao Tianyi bluntly replied, "The situation here is more complicated than I anticipated. I may need your assistance."

Xuanwu frowned. "Didn't you meet with Zhenwu earlier? Weren't you confident you could handle your demonized form on your own?"

Both Xuanwu and Jiuyou held a cold attitude toward Xiao Tianyi. As former seniors who had watched him rise, they had once believed humanity was about to produce another peak heavenly king, perhaps even a supreme powerhouse, and had supported him generously in the past.

Who could have foreseen that Xiao Tianyi would ultimately choose betrayal? Although the so-called truth behind his betrayal was later revealed, it still left many disappointed in him, as if he had squandered all of his promise.

With the talent that he had back then, had he not gone astray, defected, and split himself into three, he could have already broken through to the supreme level by now, adding another top-tier combatant to the human race. While he had since reached the late stage of the heavenly king level, nearing its peak, too much time had been wasted.

Now, humanity could no longer fully trust Xiao Tianyi. Xuanwu and the others knew well that his so-called betrayal had been layered with contingencies. If successful, he would have absorbed the other two true forms into his human form and become a central pillar of humanity on par with the First Councilor.

If he failed, however, he would become a great demon god. Even if the human race were wiped out, he could still lead a faction of demonized humans into survival.

In Xiao Tianyi's worldview, as long as he believed himself to be human, then even if he became a great demon god, he would remain human. Even after the Federation's collapse, the demonized humans under his protection would still be considered human in his eyes.

However, to Zhenwu and the others, Xiao Tianyi was far too idealistic. When a human became fully demonized, perhaps because their past had shaped them to, the first generation could retain self-awareness and a sliver of humanity, but those born later would not.

It was like those who migrated overseas and adopted new nationalities. The first generation would retain some sense of national identity, but the new environment would completely shape those born later. Once demonized humans were immersed in the Purgatory Demon Clan's civilization, thoughts, and culture, would they still count as humans?

Xiao Tianyi naturally sensed the coldness in Xuanwu and the others, but he didn't mind. The moment he set foot on this path, he had already steeled himself. He calmly said, "The demonized version of me possesses greater talent than I had anticipated. He has already broken through to the peak of the great demon king level, a full minor realm above me. At best, I can barely contend with him and seal him for a fleeting moment, but I cannot kill him.

"Now that a full-scale war is about to erupt, I must draw him out and eliminate him as soon as possible. With the demon gods watching from above, it'll be nearly impossible to find an opening once the battle breaks out. If he leverages the power of the abyssal backlash during the Heavenly Feathered Race's fall to break through to the demon god level..."

Xiao Tianyi paused. Zhenwu, Jiuyou, and Xuanwu's expressions grew increasingly grim. Although they didn't want to involve themselves with Xiao Tianyi, they knew how serious the situation was.

Zhenwu finally said, "You want me to intervene personally?"

Xiao Tianyi nodded. "Yes. Against a peak great demon king, neither Xuanwu nor Jiuyou can match him. Only you, Zhenwu, can pose a real threat. When I seal him for that brief moment, I'll need you to suppress him. In addition, I'll need you to contact the divine kings of the Heavenly Feathered Race.

"My demonized form plans to set the battlefield in the tenth plane, which is in a state of chaos due to demonic qi contamination. The principles are scattered, and neither side can cross realms to interfere. However, the divine kings will need to intercept any demon gods that would attempt to descend."

Originally, Xiao Tianyi hadn't intended to seek out Zhenwu and the others. He had hoped that An Fuqing would approach Chen Chu instead. However, just as they finished a battle, Chen Chu went into seclusion, and no one knew when he would emerge.

Furthermore, the power of his demonized true form had far surpassed his expectations. Even the battlefield itself had been partitioned off in a sealed plane, preventing many of Xiao Tianyi's strategies from being executed.

Heavenly King Zhenwu indifferently said, "Though your choices back then deeply disappointed us, rest assured. I will act when the time comes."

"Thank you." Although he had anticipated their agreement, Xiao Tianyi still bowed deeply before them. He then disappeared.

As they watched him leave, Jiuyou sighed. "What a shame. If only he hadn't chosen to sever himself back then."

Xuanwu solemnly replied, "There's nothing to regret. Our Federation has come this far not because of one or two geniuses, but because everyone worked together and selflessly paved the way for future generations."