The First Signs of the Calamity Tribulation

The moment the God-Slaying Spear appeared, the chaotic currents within a radius of hundreds of millions of li abruptly froze.

The spear was jet-black from end to end, its shaft covered in dark red patterns like dried-up veins.

A cold gleam flickered at its tip. Merely hanging there, it gave off a bone-piercing killing intent, as though countless departed souls were wailing upon its shaft.

The instant Luo Hou gripped the spear, his aura surged sharply.

He had originally been suppressed by the Chaos Demon Ape, yet now he seemed like a completely different person.

Dark red killing aura erupted from within him, condensing into a blood-colored phantom behind his back. Within it, mountains of corpses and seas of blood could vaguely be seen.

"Dead monkey, do you really think I'm afraid of you?"

Luo Hou sneered and thrust his spear.

Rather than being alarmed, the Chaos Demon Ape was delighted.

"Good!"

With a roar, he swung his iron staff and charged forward.

Staff and spear collided with an earthshaking boom.

The chaotic currents around them were blasted into a wild surge, forming a visible shockwave that spread in every direction.

Shichen stood in the distance, watching with relish.

To be honest, life in the chaos was far too dull. With a fight to watch, of course he would watch a little longer.

Within the battlefield, Luo Hou and the Chaos Demon Ape had already begun fighting in earnest.

Cold light flared and withdrew from the God-Slaying Spear's tip as endless Law of Slaughter spread along its shaft. Everywhere it passed, even space was corroded into fine black holes.

"Dead monkey, you're courting death!"

With an angry roar, the spear shot forth like a dragon, stabbing straight at the Chaos Demon Ape's heart. Before the spearpoint even arrived, the frigid killing aura had already made the ape's fur stand on end.

Yet the Chaos Demon Ape was delighted rather than alarmed, and an exhilarated light burst from his scarlet eyes.

"Hahahaha! This is satisfying!"

He threw back his head in wild laughter. His iron staff swept out, and the Law of War condensed into tangible golden light as it fiercely met the spearpoint.

Clang!

Luo Hou used the force to fly backward, the web between his thumb and forefinger splitting as black blood dripped down the spear shaft.

The Chaos Demon Ape was also forced several steps back. A wound deep enough to expose bone had been carved across his chest by the spear aura, but instead of growing angry, he pounded his chest and stomped his feet, his roar shaking the heavens.

"Again!"

His physique was one that grew stronger the more he fought. The God-Slaying Spear's murderous aura had not crushed him; instead, it drove the Law of War within him into an even greater frenzy. Layer upon layer of golden battle patterns emerged across his jet-black body, while his aura soared without restraint.

Luo Hou's expression darkened.

This black ape was simply a madman—the more he fought, the fiercer he became.

"Damn it..."

The two fought directly for several epochs. Shichen could tell that Luo Hou was already beginning to struggle and would soon be defeated.

Luo Hou was only at the Fifth Heaven of the Primordial Chaos Realm, his cultivation already lower than the Chaos Demon Ape's. Not to mention that fellow only became more excited as the battle went on, the fighting spirit within him like an inexhaustible spring, surging forth in ever greater amounts.

Sure enough, after another epoch of fighting, Luo Hou's aura began to grow chaotic.

Shichen, feeling that he had watched enough of the show, decided to step in. The Law of Time issued from his palm, and the two figures were directly frozen in place.

"Have you made enough trouble?"

Shichen's figure slowly emerged from the void. Standing with his hands behind his back, his gaze swept over the two before finally falling upon the God-Slaying Spear. He gave a slight nod.

"The God-Slaying Spear, the companion supreme treasure of the Great Dao of Slaughter. It truly is extraordinary."

As his words fell, he flicked his fingertip.

The restraints dispersed.

The Chaos Demon Ape suddenly came back to himself. Swinging his iron staff, he showed no fear at all, instead staring at Shichen with shining eyes.

"You're Shichen? The first-born Time Demon God? Come! Fight me! I, the Demon God of War, have long wanted to fight you!"

He had long heard of Shichen's reputation and had always wanted to find an opportunity to spar with him. Now that they had met, the battle intent all over his body was nearly overflowing.

Luo Hou, meanwhile, put away the God-Slaying Spear. His expression was cold and hard as he gave Shichen a slight nod, but he did not utter any threats.

In that instant of time stagnation just now, he had not even had room to resist. The strength of the Fifth Heaven of Heavenly Dao Realm was right there; whether he accepted it or not, he had no choice but to submit.

Shichen ignored that monkey who only knew how to fight. Raising his eyes, he looked into the depths of the chaos.

"You fought until heaven and earth turned upside down, scattering the aura of the calamity tribulation everywhere. It does the chaos no good."

"The aura of the calamity tribulation?" Luo Hou frowned.

He had only felt that gray aura was cold and sinister, unaware of the danger within it.

Shichen said calmly, "More and more Demon Gods are being born, and the calamity tribulation has already appeared. This means the chaos origin has begun to decline. If we continue this internal strife, it will benefit no one."

The Chaos Demon Ape scratched his head, seeming to understand yet not quite. He did not care about any calamity tribulation; he only cared whether he could fight to his heart's content.

"I heard all the fighting from far away and wondered who it was."

A teasing voice approached from the distance as Yang Mei's figure walked through the air.

He glanced over the devastated battlefield, then at the excited Demon Ape and the slightly dark-faced Luo Hou, unable to stop himself from laughing.

"The Demon Ape is one thing, but Luo Hou, you've gone mad with him too. You've only been born for how long, yet you're already butting heads with this battle maniac?"

Luo Hou's lips twitched, but he said nothing.

Yang Mei turned toward Shichen, his smile fading somewhat. "You said the aura of the calamity tribulation has spread?"

"Yes." Shichen nodded. "The Demon God of Disaster was only just born, yet the aura of the calamity tribulation has already begun to spread. It is faster than expected. The rate at which the chaos origin is declining is likely more severe than we estimated."

Yang Mei's expression also grew solemn.

They had lived for thousands of chaos epochs and were no longer as ignorant as they had been when they first emerged.

The more Chaos Demon Gods were born, the more chaos origin was consumed. The Demon Gods only consumed it without replenishing it. Once the Three Thousand Demon Gods and those countless lower-ranking Demon Gods had all been born, the chaos origin would likely degrade into chaotic spiritual energy.

Both men understood what the decline of the origin meant. Sooner or later, the Great Dao would make a choice, and the most likely choice would be to refine the origin anew by opening heaven and earth.

When that time came, the Three Thousand Demon Gods would be the first price to pay.

"Come, let's find somewhere to discuss this properly," Yang Mei said.

Shichen nodded. He then glanced at the still-eager Chaos Demon Ape and the silent Luo Hou standing nearby, pondering briefly before saying,

"You two should come as well. The calamity tribulation concerns all Demon Gods. The earlier we know, the earlier we can prepare."

The moment the Demon Ape heard there was something interesting to join, he immediately nodded.

"Fine! I'll listen to you!"

Luo Hou also gave a slight nod. In the next instant, the four figures vanished from where they stood.