A woman with a mane of silver hair and donning pure-white robes walked elegantly out of the void. In that instant, all of space fell silent for a moment.

At just barely sixteen years old, she was extraordinarily beautiful—in fact, all possible descriptors for charm seemed insufficient to describe her. She was in human form, as she wasn’t an entity that took the form of whoever was looking at her, but her appearance seemed to fulfill all standards of beauty across the various species beneath the heavens.

Even members of other species would be captivated by her allure. There was a special bearing about her that perfectly interpreted all possible renditions of beauty within the world.

The little fox… Tushan!

Troublemaker Tushan!

Luo Houluo stared dumbly at Tushan before shaking himself awake with a violent shudder.

“Tushan!” he shrieked hoarsely. “Don’t the rumors say that you’ve lost all of your cultivation because of grave injuries?”

“You just said it, they’re just rumors.” Tushan smiled faintly at the demon god. It was just the slightest upward curve of her lips, but Luo Houluo felt ready to burst with joy. The preeminent beauty of the great wilderness had just smiled at him??

“Damn, what a terrifying woman!” Luo Houluo firmly bit the tip of his tongue and cut down a burgeoning inner demon. He had to remain clear-headed!

Ring—

With a graceful flick of her hand, the troublemaker sent her bell ringing out in a powerful toll once more. The realm monster and eyeball instantly exploded into dust when the ferocious sound wave washed over them.

Luo Houluo crossed his hands in front of his chest and took the force head-on. Spitting out a mouthful of blood, he flew backward into the void.

“This might… no wonder it’s the first connate treasure of the great wilderness!” Luo Houluo was stronger than Tushan, but when she wielded the Bell of Chaos, he couldn’t put up a fight against her at all.

There was nothing for it but to glare at Lu Yun and turn on his heel to leave.

Tushan looked silently at Luo Houluo’s departing figure. Instead of chasing after him, her form slowly scattered and dispersed, with the bell returning to the little fox in Lu Yun’s arms as well.

The little fox yawned weakly and fell sound asleep.

Lu Yun took a deep look at the little fox in his embrace and sighed softly. That had been a replica that she’d left in the bell. Though it was her replica, it’d still exhausted her stamina and sent her into a deep sleep that she wouldn’t wake up from anytime soon.

The sea of flames that’d blazed for several hundred thousand years was gone, replaced by an enormous sun star. Layers and levels of palaces protected the star, keeping the sun’s heat firmly trapped within itself.

“It looks like there’s still an enormous gap between me and the demon gods within the great wilderness.”

Diexi was a connate treasure that Lu Yun could fully deploy, but even with the shortsword in hand, he still couldn’t stand up to a stray thought from Luo Houluo. However, if he could truly reach the chaos realm, then an opponent of the demon god’s caliber shouldn’t prove to be an issue any longer.

“Lie Shan of the human race greets the seniors!” Lu Yun raised a cupped fist salute to Bai Ze, Xiang Liu, and Dusk Snake.

“You’re human? Since when did humans produce a great master of the combat arts at the empyrean realm?” Dusk Snake frowned when he heard the youth’s background.

“That there weren’t any in the past doesn't mean there aren’t any now.” Lu Yun took special note of that senior’s reaction. “This matter is over now, so this junior will take his leave.”

“Wait.” Dusk Snake walked out and prevented Lu Yun from leaving. “Her Highness Tushan and the Bell of Chaos are matters of great import. Leave them behind, you may go yourself.”

Lu Yun’s expression began to turn ugly. They wanted the little fox and the bell?

The little fox had completely exhausted her mental state; it was no different from consigning her to death if she remained here. Dusk Snake’s target was most likely the Bell of Chaos.

People said that the Bell of Chaos was one of Taiyi’s possessions, that he’d been born clutching the bell. But now in Lu Yun’s eyes, this bell should’ve belonged to the little fox in the first place. It’d only spent some time in Taiyi’s hands.

Bai Ze and Xiang Liu looked askance at Dusk Snake, but didn’t say a word to stop him.

The Bell of Chaos was the foremost connate treasure beneath the heavens, a treasure that Taiyi had used to quell the great wilderness, establish the celestial court, and occupy the skies above the great wilderness. The bell and the Great Formation of the Nineheavens Gates had enabled him to be the sovereign of the three realms.

Though Taiyi had established his court to defy the realm monsters, he’d also well and truly become the ruler of their world as well.

During this time, he’d used the Bell of Chaos to suppress countless demon gods within and without the great wilderness, forcing them to bow their heads in submission. Bai Ze, Xiang Liu, and Dusk Snake had been among those he’d subdued. They’d later become celestial kings of his court.

Tushan had plainly been grievously injured and lost her cultivation. She was in no shape to carry on after scaring off Luo Houluo, so of course Dusk Snake would make a move when the Bell of Chaos was so close at hand.

This Lie Shan human in front of them was just an empyrean realm cultivator. Though current life forms might call him a great master of combat arts, he was just an ant in the eyes of connate gods like them.

“Her Highness?” Lu Yun paid special attention to what Dusk Snake called the little fox. He looked down at the sleeping form in his arms. No-Good Tushan had already married Taiyi and become a royal consort of the celestial court?

The little fox was currently fast asleep and dead to the world. If she’d woken up and heard what Dusk Snake called her, she probably would’ve summoned her replica in the bell again and blasted Dusk Snake to pieces.

Alas, she was out cold and Dusk Snake had lost his patience. He suddenly reached out and grabbed for the fox. However, he didn’t dare kill the boy. Lie Shan was a human empyrean cultivator. Heaven knew how much in resources Fuxi had used to propel a lowly human from the bottom of the totem pole to his current heights. If Dusk Snake killed him, Fuxi would be out for his hide.

Lu Yun shifted slightly to the side and dodge the grab when he saw Dusk Snake make a move.

“Oh? You dare avoid me?” Dusk Snake snorted and shook all over as he brought down an overbearing aura onto Lu Yun.

“I’m no match for Luo Houluo, but that doesn’t make me afraid of a half-baked connate demon god like you.” Lu Yun looked on coldly and sliced through the void with Diexi, hacking apart the aura that the great god released.

“You bastard!” Dusk Snake was incensed to see a mere empyrean cultivator raise a blade to him. Without a second thought, he brought down a palm strike on Lu Yun.

“Don’t!” Color drained out of Bai Ze and Xiang Liu’s faces when they saw their brethren really attack the human. If this boy died, Fuxi would skin Dusk Snake alive!

Boooom.

A tremendous boom rang out as Lu Yun took three steps back. Dusk Snake also stumbled back a step, which left everyone gobsmacked.

“What’s going on! How can an empyrean ant repel me?” Incredulity filled Dusk Snake’s eyes. Though he’d only taken one step back, he really had been rebuffed by an empyrean realm human.

Though Lu Yun had sealed off the sea of flames and battled the realm monster earlier, everyone had attributed those feats to Tushan after her replica appeared.