Retreat, World Lord Level Golden Horned Beast, Luo Feng Begins to Take Off

The Machine Race has arrived with at least forty Universe Masters, and when combined with their peak-grade treasure puppets and hundreds of millions of puppet legions, their combat power is in no way inferior to any other peak power.

What is even more fatal is that the Machine Race is naturally immune to soul attacks, which means that her most powerful weapon is nothing but scrap metal in front of them.

"Machine Race..." The Beast Ancestor's hand gripping his blade trembled slightly, the cold light of the Ice Wind Domain flickering uncertainly around his body. "You are standing completely on the opposite side of us."

"No." The Machine Father God's reply was crisp and decisive. "This is merely a transaction. Once the transaction is complete, my Machine Race can still cooperate with you."

"You!"

"Of course," the Machine Father God added leisurely, "the Machine Race is very willing to fight alongside the Demon Race."

The expressions of the Beast Ancestor and the Zerg Queen sank to the bottom simultaneously.

They are all ancient monsters who have lived for hundreds of millions of years; which of them hasn't climbed to the top through blood and conspiracy? Just from that one sentence, they could hear the subtext: today you attack the Demon Race, but tomorrow, your opponent might suddenly gain an unexpected ally.

Furthermore, if the Machine Race can help the Demon Race, they can naturally help others as well.

"Are we still fighting this battle?" Lord Juefeng turned his nine heads toward the Beast Ancestor, asking in a low voice.

The Beast Ancestor did not answer. He stared at the five massive War Factories in the Machine Race's formation, stared at the dense legions of puppets, and stared at the Tremor Demon Ancestor and Dream Demon Ancestor in the Demon Race camp, who were covered in wounds but still possessed fierce gazes. Finally, he fixed his eyes on the cold flagship of the Machine Father God.

He rapidly simulated various possibilities in his mind.

In a head-on collision, with him and the Zerg Queen against the Demon Race and the Machine Race, they no longer held the advantage in numbers.

More importantly, the Machine Race's puppet legions do not fear death and can be consumed infinitely, whereas the Universe Masters of his vassal races are irreplaceable—lose one, and they are gone forever.

If they truly fought to the end, the Zerg might be able to retreat unscathed, but his Demon Beast Alliance would suffer a devastating blow.

He tightened his grip on the Starfall Blade, the dark gold scales on his arms rubbing together to produce a harsh, metallic screech.

"Retreat."

The word was squeezed out from between his teeth.

Lord Juefeng's nine faces simultaneously revealed expressions of shock: "Alliance Leader..."

"I said retreat!" the Beast Ancestor growled, his scarlet eyes filled with unwilling fury, yet he forced it down. "Now is not the time for a desperate fight. The Demon Race would rather carve off their own flesh for the Machine Race than let us benefit—I have noted this debt. Sooner or later, I will let them know who the true Beast Ancestor is."

He waved his blade, and the Ice Wind Domain wrapped around his subordinate Universe Masters as they slowly retreated.

The Zerg Queen watched the slowly retreating Demon Beast Alliance, then looked at the iron-clad defensive line formed by the three Universe Supreme Masters opposite her, a flash of complex emotion crossing her beautiful eyes.

She, too, was weighing her options.

If they fought hard, it was not certain they would lose.

Her Queen Palace possessed peerless defense, and while the soul attacks of the Eternal Pearl were ineffective against the Machine Race, they still posed a threat to the two old ancestors of the Demon Race.

As long as she could pin down the Tremor Demon Ancestor and the Dream Demon Ancestor and press her Zerg warrior legions forward to create a breach, it was not impossible to tear open the Demon Race's defensive line.

But the problem was, what if she did tear it open?

The Machine Race would not sit idly by.

The Demon Race would not stand there stupidly and take a beating, either.

In a three-way melee, the outcome would devolve into a long and uncontrollable war of attrition.

Would the Universe Masters of her vassal races suffer more than fifty percent losses?

Would the Mother Queens of the Zerg race perish?

Every Mother Queen at the level of a Universe Master is the Zerg's most precious asset; she could not afford such a loss.

"Machine Race..." she murmured, her red lips parting, her voice cold. "This debt, this Queen has also noted."

The Queen Palace emitted a low hum, and all the Zerg warriors retreated into the palace like a receding tide. The Universe Masters of the Zerg camp were enveloped by the hazy starlight released by the Eternal Pearl, their figures gradually blurring into the sea of stars.

The Zerg and the Demon Beast Alliance had retreated.

In the void at the forefront of the Demon Ancestor Secret Realm, the traces of the great battle had yet to dissipate.

Shattered spatial rifts were still slowly healing, and stardust fragments drifted through the cosmos like countless silent tombstones.

The Tremor Demon Ancestor and the Dream Demon Ancestor stood in front of their regrouped Demon Race camp, gazing at the direction in which the Zerg and the Demon Beast Alliance had retreated, remaining silent for a long time.

"We kept half, but lost a quarter," the Tremor Demon Ancestor said slowly, no emotion visible in the eyes beneath his serrated shell.

This was the only way.

The Machine Race had sent troops to help them withstand the most difficult wave of joint attacks, and the price the Demon Race paid was the permanent cession of a quarter of their territory.

But if they hadn't invited the Machine Race, the Demon Race might have lost even the remaining territory.

"The Machine Race does not want life-bearing planets, only resources and shipping lanes. Giving them this quarter has the least impact on our foundation."

The Tremor Demon Ancestor seemed to be comforting the Dream Demon Ancestor, but he was also convincing himself.

The Dream Demon Ancestor did not answer; he simply closed his eyes in exhaustion.

Within the Machine Race's Divine Kingdom, inside the Father God's consciousness, a new round of game theory had already simulated three million years into the future.

"With the Demon Race's territory in hand, the next step is to integrate the shipping lanes of this star sector and increase the efficiency of the War Factories by another five percent. The Zerg Queen will not act rashly in the short term. There is a 73.4% probability that the leader of the Demon Beast Alliance will shift his hatred toward the Zerg after the battle, as he will perceive that the Zerg did not notify him when they retreated."

"After the human Giant Axe receives the new territory, they will enter a rest period of approximately ten thousand epochs. During this time, the main energy of the human Hong Alliance will be focused on clearing and developing the new territory, with an external expansion probability of only 15.3%."

"Optimal strategy: Consolidate forces, digest the spoils of war."

The great war came to a halt, and all parties, each harboring their own hidden agendas, retreated to their respective territories.

Human Virtual Universe, Supreme Round Table Conference.

Founder Giant Axe sat at the head of the table, projecting the intelligence he had just received onto the long surface. Eighteen human Universe Masters, including City Lord of Chaos, Darkness Master, Peng Gong Lord, and Dragon Walk Master, were all in attendance.

"The Insect Race and the Demon Beast Alliance hit a wall attacking the Demon Race, and the Machine Race actually sided with the Demon Race in secret. Zhen Jiao ceded a quarter of his territory to the Machine Race," Giant Axe's voice was low. "Interesting, truly interesting."

City Lord of Chaos frowned deeply: "This move by the Machine Race was beyond everyone's expectations. They had secret contacts with us and the Insect Race before; no one could have guessed they would suddenly lean toward the Demon Race."

"Not strange," the hoarse voice of Darkness Master rang out.

"Machine Father God is a lifeform of pure logic; his reasoning differs from ours. Helping the Demon Race is merely a transaction to him, not a matter of picking sides. He can help the Demon Race fight the Insect Race today, and he can just as easily help the Insect Race fight the Demon Race tomorrow. The only thing that matters is the price."

"The price," Peng Gong Lord sneered. "The price the Demon Race paid this time is not low. A quarter of their territory—anyone would feel the sting of that."

"But the Demon Race preserved the rest of their territory." Giant Axe set down the battle report, a meaningful smile appearing on his rugged face.

"Zhen Jiao played this hand beautifully. At a time when everyone thought the Demon Race was finished, he managed to find a helper no one had counted on. The cost was high, but it is still better than being swallowed whole by the Insect Race and the Demon Beast Alliance."

"If I were in Zhen Jiao's position, I could not think of a better solution," City Lord of Chaos shook his head. "But this makes the landscape of the Primal Universe even more complex. The Demon Race, Machine Race, Insect Race, Demon Beast Alliance, and us humans—the four powers are now intertwined, and no one dares to make a move lightly."

"Isn't that perfect?" Giant Axe smiled slightly. "We happen to need time to digest our new territories and time to cultivate our geniuses in preparation for the Genius Ranking in 990,000 years. It is best if everyone remains at peace during this period."

He scanned all the Universe Masters present, his rugged voice carrying a hint of irrepressible confidence.

"While the Demon Race and the Demon Beast Alliance are still wallowing in the quagmire of their borders, we humans are already doing what we should be doing: gathering talent and building our foundation. By the time the Genius Ranking opens and human names occupy the top ten, it will be too late for them to catch up."

City Lord of Chaos and the others nodded one after another, a sharp edge appearing in their cold eyes.

Humanity now holds the most vast territory in the Primal Universe, possesses over a hundred Universe Masters, and has the tenth-tier combat power of Founder Giant Axe as a cornerstone.

The core strength includes a group of top-tier fifth and sixth-tier Universe Masters like Darkness, Peng Gong, and Chaos.

It can be said that among all the peak races, the comprehensive strength of humanity now firmly stands in the first tier.

More importantly, the reserve of new-generation geniuses among humans is the most robust.

Before the Sky Screen appeared, the mechanism for cultivating geniuses within the Virtual Universe Company had already been honed for nearly a hundred million years; the accumulated experience, resources, and inheritance systems far exceeded those of any other power.

Now, with the Genius Ranking a million years away as a goal, the human race is tilting its resources entirely toward the new generation.

City Lord of Chaos personally oversees the supervision, all Universe Masters have opened up their secret techniques, and even Founder Giant Axe occasionally takes time to lecture the super geniuses.

The moment Luo Feng completed his mission in the Blood Stone Galaxy, Giant Axe even added a note to his own divine power records: Domain Lord level 1, single-handedly slaughtered sixty World Lords; Luo Feng of the Virtual Universe Company Primal Secret Realm, priority attention.

On a nameless planet at the edge of the Milky Way Galaxy, Yang Yu withdrew his gaze from the battlefield, the corners of his mouth curling upward.

Luo Feng's performance satisfied him.

From the coordination between space laws and blade techniques to the synergistic operation of the Nine Tribulations Manual and his internal world, and the composure and patience displayed in his hunting strategy, every aspect met his standards, even slightly exceeding them.

"The Machine Race played this hand quite well."

Yang Yu commented casually, set down his wine pot, and turned to look toward the direction of the Universe Ocean, his gaze piercing through layers of space-time to land on the eternal Star Tower in the Outer Battlefield.

"Let them fight and squabble; it doesn't affect you anyway. When you reach the Star Tower one day, you will know what a true battlefield is."

The mission points for the Blood Stone Galaxy were credited quickly.

Luo Feng sat in his secret chamber, opened the point interface of the Virtual Universe, and looked at that long string of numbers, the corners of his mouth unable to stop curling upward.

Independently killing sixty-three World Lord-level Demon Race members, 100,000 points each, totaling 6.3 million.

An additional reward of 1 million for completely clearing the Blood Stone Galaxy.

Combining the two, a total of 7.3 million points.

Added to the base points he had earned as a monitoring envoy for fifty years, as well as his accumulations over the years in the Primal Secret Realm as a Domain Lord, his total points had broken the 10-million mark.

"Ten million points," Babata's voice rang in his mind, carrying irrepressible excitement. "Luo Feng, do you know what ten million points mean in the Virtual Universe Company? Your teacher Hu Yanbo's entire net worth was only this much!"

"It is indeed a massive amount of points," Luo Feng nodded with a smile. "I can finally buy the resources for the Golden Horned Beast to advance to the World Lord level."

In the time that followed, Luo Feng placed order after order.

Through his status as a member of the Primal Secret Realm, he purchased massive quantities of precious metals within the Virtual Universe Company's treasury to accelerate the evolution of the Golden Horned Beast.

As ship after ship landed and departed.

Within a year, Luo Feng had gathered the metal formula required for the fastest evolution of the Golden Horned Beast.

This scene was also observed by Yang Yu, who knew that Luo Feng was preparing to have his Golden Horned Beast clone break through to the World Lord level so he could enjoy the ultimate cultivation acceleration ahead of time.

In this way.

Luo Feng's human original body could continue to enjoy the benefits of the Virtual Universe Company as a Domain Lord without having to go to the incredibly dangerous Outer Battlefield, while simultaneously accelerating his cultivation speed through the Golden Horned Beast clone.

Yang Yu was happy to see this happen.

Time flowed by.

Several years passed.

Luo Feng's Golden Horned Beast clone successfully broke through to the World Lord realm as he had wished.

In an instant.

Luo Feng's cultivation speed surged!

After only a few days of secluded training, he was directly acknowledged by the Origin Laws of Metal!

With both his soul and comprehension undergoing a transformation, Luo Feng.

Finally turned his attention to the slumbering Zerg Mother Nest on Earth.

Virtual Universe.

Luo Feng opened the treasury interface and searched directly for the Ten Thousand Heart Soul Control Secret Technique.

He had been coveting this secret technique for a long time.

It was one of the best secret techniques for soul-enslaving a Zerg Mother Nest.

Ten Thousand Heart Soul Control Secret Technique (Complete): 1.5 million points (30% off for Primal Secret Realm, 20% off for Primordial Secret Realm, 10% off for Heaven and Earth Secret Realm, full price for End of World Secret Realm).

"1.5 million..." He took a deep breath and clicked purchase. "Worth it."

1.5 million points would make even many Marquis-level Immortals wince.

But for the current Luo Feng, this investment was necessary.

After all, he had a ready-made Zerg Mother Nest on hand.

That Mother Nest was a legacy left behind by Hu Yanbo when he originally occupied Earth, and it had been trapped within the Zerg Mother Nest in Shennongjia ever since.

After Hu Yanbo died, the Mother Nest remained ownerless, and for all these years, it had been guarded by heavy forces from the Luo family.

A World Lord-level Zerg Mother Nest.

If he could successfully enslave it, it would be equivalent to possessing an army of World Lord-level Zerg warriors.

That would be one of his most powerful trump cards during the Domain Lord and even World Lord stages.

Once the Ten Thousand Heart Soul Control Secret Technique was in his hands, Luo Feng immediately began secluded meditation to comprehend it.

Three months later.

Having mastered the third level of the Ten Thousand Heart Soul Control Secret Technique, Luo Feng stepped out of the secret chamber and flew toward Shennongjia.

He did not alert anyone along the way; even the clansmen guarding the Mother Nest only sensed a gentle breeze pass by, unable to even catch a glimpse of his figure.

Deep within Shennongjia, that massive Zerg Mother Nest was housed inside an ancient castle covering a vast area.

The castle walls bore the marks of time and were covered in various plants. Occasionally, figures could be seen on the battlements, their invisible auras quite formidable—each one was at the Universe level. Currently, a Universe-level slave army was responsible for garrisoning the castle.

"Rumble~"

The main gate of the ancient castle swung open.