The black-and-gold scales on Pei Yuan's neck were still spreading.
His skin was rapidly covered in glossy black scales. The whites of his eyes vanished completely, and his eyes became deep-purple vertical pupils.
His aura surged to an absurd height in a matter of moments.
It finally settled at the peak of the Immortal Ninth Order.
The few surviving Council Members of the Shadow Guard Bureau scrambled away in terror.
The Empire's Chief Diviner, whom they had once followed, no longer looked remotely human.
Pei Yuan rolled his neck, producing a series of cracks.
"Eight hundred years in hiding."
He looked down at his scale-covered palms. There was no fear in his voice, only the exhilaration of finally being able to stop pretending.
"For eight hundred years, I played my part among these insects, ate their food, wielded their power, and mapped out the harvest routes for the God Clan."
Pei Yuan raised his head, fixing his vertical pupils on Lin Feng, who hovered above the ruins.
"What a shame you came along and disrupted everything. But it doesn't matter."
He spread his arms.
A layer of blood-red mist rose from his black-and-gold scaled armor.
"With the bloodline of the Asura Royal Clan awakened, the power this shell can contain far exceeds your imagination."
Pei Yuan laughed, baring a mouthful of fangs.
"Lin Feng, you are strong. But with your Immortal Second Order foundation, you can't withstand me."
Lin Feng stood at the edge of the ruins, the Myriad Tribulations Heavenly Halberd planted beside his feet, and quietly listened until he finished.
He did not reply.
His attention was entirely on the System Panel frantically refreshing in his mind.
``` [Emergency update in progress...]
[Extraterrestrial entity from outside this universe detected.]
[The host's current version cannot analyze the entity's law