As the Sovereign of Death swept her hand, a Spatial Ring appeared alongside the Sovereign Artifact. Ren took the ring with some confusion, pricked his finger to make it recognize him, and inspected it. He was startled at first, but then understood.
Inside the Spatial Ring were eleven identical bottles, each filled with Sovereign's Might. A rough estimate put the total at no less than fifty drops. Although the Sovereign of Death could only provide Death Sovereign's Might herself, the Overgods could easily trade among themselves for the different types, so she naturally had plenty.
"Since you've become my emissary, no one can bully you—not even Reding and the others. Keep this safe. If Reding or the others dare attack you, use it immediately." As the Sovereign of Death spoke, she swept her hand again, sending several sheets of parchment inscribed with magic runes flying toward Ren.
"Thank you, Overlord!"
Ren bowed slightly to express his gratitude to the Sovereign of Death. Though these things might not mean much to her, that didn't stop him from thanking her.
"All right, you can head down the mountain. If you need anything, you can come find me at the Nether Hotel anytime, or summon me directly with the parchment." The Sovereign of Death waved a hand and spoke casually.
"Then I'll take my leave, Overlord." Ren nodded, didn't linger, and turned to head down Nether Mountain.
After Ren left, the Sovereign of Death leaned back in her throne again and laughed with delight.
"I wonder what Uterede's expression will be when he hears about this. Ren is a Prefect of his Hell, after all!" The Sovereign of Death seemed to be imagining an amusing scene, and the corners of her mouth curled even higher.
As two of the Four Rule Overlords, the Sovereign of Death and the Destruction Overlord had a rather complicated relationship. They weren't enemies, but they weren't particularly close, either. They often compared themselves with each other.
Dannington, the only confirmed Paragon High-God of the Death Law, had become the Destruction Overlord's emissary. Back then, the Sovereign of Death had felt she'd lost face in front of the Destruction Overlord. For years, she'd wanted a Paragon emissary of her own, but had never managed to get one.
But today, Ren had come—a supreme powerhouse who had lived in Hell and grown into a Paragon, even an Asura. He'd left Hell and come to the Netherworld to find her, then become her emissary. If the Destruction Overlord heard about this, his expression would surely be very interesting. After all, although Ren cultivated the Wind Law Profound Mysteries, he was, strictly speaking, from Hell.
"Come to think of it, I should thank Reding and the others!" The Sovereign of Death shifted in her seat and muttered under her breath. Of course, she was only saying it. If the four of them really planned to lower themselves to attack Ren, she'd make sure those four worms learned that they couldn't lay a hand on someone under the protection of a Rule Overlord.
While Ren wandered Nether Mountain, Hell, Liang'an Prefecture, and even the entire Bifu Continent had already erupted into an uproar.
News had spread rapidly that the Four Divine Beasts Clan had sent nine Asuras and dozens of Seven-Star Demons to the Bifu Continent to hunt down Ren, the Prefect of Liang'an.
The Four Divine Beasts Clan made no attempt to hide anything. They even deliberately helped spread the news, while arranging for people to circulate a warning: if Ren came forward to accept his punishment, they would kill only him and spare those around him. If he resisted, they would capture him, find someone who cultivated the Death Law, and make him wish he were dead.
High above the Suo'aiya River on the Bifu Continent, more than a dozen Metal Lifeforms sped past. Their imposing appearance made it easy to tell they belonged to the Four Divine Beasts Clan. Every bandit group watched them with fear and envy.
At the front of the convoy, inside the long, green-dragon-shaped Metal Lifeform—more than a hundred meters long—a stern man in a green robe sat in the central seat, his long hair hanging loose.
Beside him, his younger sister, equally graceful, wore a silver mask, her green hair flowing freely. Their three other younger siblings also waited quietly, looking toward the person below who was reporting to them.
"Patriarch, the message has been sent out, but Ren hasn't responded. It seems he's gone into hiding for now." A young man in a blue robe knelt on the floor and answered respectfully.
"Mm, I understand. You may go." Gaiseresen nodded slightly and waved him away without a care.
Not long ago, Gaiseresen and the others had traveled to the Bifu Continent through a teleportation array and quickly found the clan's forces. The Four Divine Beasts Clan now had nine Asura-level powerhouses. They believed that, if they wished, they could sweep across the Bifu Continent.
"Big brother, it seems that Ren is planning to refuse our 'kind offer.' Should we hurry up to keep him from escaping?" Gus, the White Tiger Patriarch, asked bluntly, not bothering to hide his contempt for Ren.
"No need to rush. Even if Ren escapes, it won't help him. Our clan has people in every Divine Plane. If we want to find him, how long can he run? Besides, being hunted by us as he flees, then dying in despair, will punish him and serve as a warning to everyone else."
Gaiseresen shook his head slightly. After what had happened between Venna and Ren, he'd reflected on whether he'd been too lenient as patriarch all these years, allowing one incident after another to happen.
Gaiseresen had concluded that from now on, they had to use even more ruthless methods, so everyone across the planes could see the Four Divine Beasts Clan's strength and the consequences of offending them. Ren was an ideal example.
If Ren tried to flee, the clan would hunt him to the ends of the earth and make him understand that he couldn't escape them, no matter where he went. They would capture him after he'd fallen into despair. In the end, Ren's fate would become a warning to the Divine Planes, ensuring no one dared provoke the Four Divine Beasts Clan again.
At least, Gaiseresen believed his decision was the right one. It would show those fools who dared challenge the Four Divine Beasts Clan what they were capable of. As patriarch, with his father and the others staying out of it, this was what he had to do.
At Tamojin Lake in Liang'an Prefecture, the mountains and lake, once blanketed in gold, had been enveloped by green energy while Ren cultivated. The entire lake now shimmered with a translucent green hue, and from a distance, it seemed almost naturally emerald.
At that moment, a middle-aged man in a gray robe sat aboard a Metal Lifeform, hovering not far from Tamojin Lake.
Anyone from Fiend Castle would recognize him at once. He was Belfield, once a Seven-Star Demon under Alfred, the former Prefect of Liang'an.
But today, Belfield, a "powerhouse," showed no trace of a powerhouse's bearing. He stood respectfully behind a young man with golden hair.
The golden-haired young man sat by the window, holding a cup of specially prepared wine. A hint of gold blended into his white eyebrows, and his whole person gave off a lazy air. He looked like an ordinary young man.
Yet Belfield didn't dare show him the slightest disrespect. In the records at Fiend Castle, he'd once seen this man mentioned. He had taken part in a Planar War, and his strength surpassed even that of the former Prefect, Alfred.
That wasn't all. The young man's identity was what made him truly fearsome. He came from the Radiant Divine Realm and belonged to the Augusta Clan, reputed to be the foremost clan in the Divine Planes. He was a third-generation member of this powerful Overgod clan—and a top-tier Asura.
The golden-haired young man was named Montero Augusta.
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