Ten minutes earlier, the unconscious Tan Qingying’s fingers twitched slightly in the Corpse Emperor’s Lair. Only a faint glimmer of clarity remained at the center of her brow. Her entire body was as dark as ink, as though it had been sculpted from black stone. Her aura was weak. but stable.
On the other hand, Tan Zhenwei was bored out of his mind. He had been here for days, but he remembered his ‘son’s’ instructions before leaving, so he stayed behind, watching over Tan Qingying, this so-called ‘daughter-in-law,’ with begrudging patience.
With nothing else to do, his mind often wandered into strange and absurd places. Several times, blurry images flickered in his head, like a broken television screen flashing chaotic signals. Yet, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't recall what those images meant.
Tan Zhenwei casually gnawed at the surrounding space itself like eating an apple.
Suddenly, he looked up. His gaze seemed to pierce through the restrictions of the Corpse Emperor’s Abyssal Tower as he beheld the distant battlefield. He felt an abnormal fluctuation in spatial energy when the Dimensional Gates were activated.
His eyes lit up instantly. Since he had merged with the talents of a Cave Beast, Tan Zhenwei’s eyes bypassed all material obstructions and locked onto exactly what he wanted to see.
Beast horde. The city’s defenders. Battle. The brutal clash between humans and star beasts unfolded before him. The scene was so familiar. It felt as though he had experienced it before. At that moment, a strange, itching sensation spread through his mind—like something was growing.
Huh? Am I... growing a brain?
Tan Zhenwei stood up straight. A powerful, irrepressible urge surged within him—an instinct to help those humans fighting for their lives.
It wasn’t just because they looked like him. But because... He felt was what he was meant to do. He took a step forward, allowing space and matter to blur around him. He arrived above the battlefield with just a single step.
He saw the flying star beasts emerging from the Dimensional Gates, and sensed the terrifying, destructive aura radiating from these savage creatures.
The moment this thought formed in Tan Zhenwei’s mind, space before him suddenly twisted and distorted. A vast, warped field unfolded, instantly enveloping every single flying star beast within its range.
Whether they were low-grade cannon fodder or high-grade Beast Emperors, they were all swallowed by the swirling distortion. They staggered mid-air, as if they had been thrown into a quagmire. Dizzy and disoriented, the once-fearsome creatures flailed like snails sinking into a swamp.
Tan Zhenwei glanced at his own hands, then touched his chest and abdomen, feeling an odd sense of surprise.
This ability...? Have I always been capable of this?
He turned his gaze toward the Dimensional Gate hovering in the sky.
With a simple snap of his fingers— The portal vanished.
His gaze then shifted to the battlefield below.
Another snap of his fingers.
All the Dimensional Gates on the ground disappeared in an instant. Tan Baiqu was utterly speechless as she saw all this unfold. The shock and joy that surged within her were indescribable—every single cell in her body erupted in elation.
Where did this savior come from?!
Then, a warm, gentle male voice rang out.
Tan Zhenwei appeared beside Tan Baiqu as if he had teleported. He looked at the young woman before him, his gaze filled with curiosity.
"Why do I feel so familiar when I look at you?"
For the first time, Tan Baiqu saw the face of this god-like man who had descended upon the battlefield. She had seen this square, dignified face somewhere before.
Wait. Isn’t this the long-deceased member of our family? The one who had once been chosen by the old family head as the rightful heir?
According to family records, he had been the unrivaled genius of the Tan Clan. But he had broken ties with the family over a marriage dispute and left for the far northwestern frontier to serve in the military. He had rarely maintained contact afterward.
Yet, the old patriarch had always insisted on passing the family head position to him, sparking widespread discontent within the clan. But during his return to Xiajing, this former prodigy had gone missing in action and was later confirmed to have died in battle.
What is his name again? Right. Tan Zhenwei.
Tan Baiqu knew what had happened after. Though Tan Zhenwei had never taken the mantle of Tan Clan Leader, his daughter, Tan Qingying, eventually had. At first, many opposed her rule, especially those led by Tan Shengwei, a faction of war heroes who had tried to obstruct her at every turn. But after Li Xiaofei slew a Saint with a single strike, all opposition vanished overnight.
Since then, Tan Qingying’s position as Clan Leader had been more secure than ever. But none of that mattered now. What mattered was—
Isn't Tan Zhenwei dead? Why is he here? And how did he become so powerful? He had trapped star beasts and shut down Dimensional Gates with a mere flick of his fingers. This level of power is almost divine.
Tan Baiqu’s heart pounded. She took a deep breath, trying to steady herself.
"G-Great Uncle... I’m your niece. My name is—"
"What?!" exclaimed the Divine Envoy as his face twisted in shock.
The Dimensional Gates had been shut down. Those gates were one of Eden’s highest-tier strategic weapons and almost never authorized for use in the various Earth worlds. They used the true laws of reality and should not have been disrupted so easily.
Among the hundred thousand Earth-like worlds, there should not be a single person capable of silently and effortlessly closing a Dimensional Gate in mere milliseconds.
Unless— he’s a god? But how can a god be born on such a tiny, insignificant Earth? An outsider?
A chilling realization struck the Divine Envoy, making his heart tighten. He was not strong enough to fight a god. His first instinct was to run but something felt off.
That man’s aura— It isn’t Eden’s. It isn’t even from the Star Council’s headquarters. Instead, he carried the undeniable scent of a native.
A native... became a god?
The Divine Envoy was stunned. He remained hidden in the shadows as he watched. The more he scrutinized the man, the more shocked he became. There was no doubt—this was a native-born god.
Though the underlying principles behind this transformation were beyond his comprehension, he was certain of one thing— That man was a newborn Primal God.
The Divine Envoy's gaze burned with intensity.
What luck! A Primal God! An existence rarer than a virgin in a brothel.
A being who had accidentally stumbled into divinity, and has yet to fully mature or be baptized by cosmic energy. But they have already given birth to a nascent divinity core—a Godhood.
It was an unfathomably rare treasure even in Eden. A loose, unclaimed Godhood appearing on the market was enough to plunge the supposedly peaceful and utopian Eden into bloody chaos.
But now it had appeared right in front of him, unguarded. The Divine Envoy’s body trembled with excitement.
Without hesitation, he made his move. Godly power surged as he melted into the air, becoming invisible. Slowly, he crept closer.
Fifty meters from the city wall, a Dimensional Gate opened instantly. In the blink of an eye, the envoy teleported across the battlefield and appeared behind Tan Zhenwei. Before the latter could even react, the envoy’s right hand thrust forward. .
A hand pierced through Tan Zhenwei’s back.
Tan Zhenwei’s body stiffened.
When he looked down, he saw a hand thrust through his chest, holding his still-beating heart.
A cold, sinister laughter echoed from behind. The Divine Envoy wasted no time. He yanked the freshly pulsing heart free. A Dimensional Gate burst open and he dove through it.
Tan Zhenwei’s vision blurred. The strength in his body drained away, slipping like sand through an hourglass. Beside him, Tan Baiqu was utterly powerless. She was far too weak; she hadn’t even had the time to react.
Laughter roared through the heavens.
At this moment, the Divine Envoy felt like the most favored child of fate.