The Three Lords must have been watching everything Minglong did all along.
They must have been deeply conflicted as well.
On the one hand, they instinctively felt that Minglong had little chance of winning, but on the other, they could not help harboring a sliver of hope.
It was precisely this contradictory mindset that had led the Second Lord not to pass Explore the Sea on to Minglong, yet also not to stop him from building Minglong City and using the Dragon Ancestral Land to elevate his Slaughter Authority.
In the end, Lord Yi had come to deal with Minglong after he lost control, presumably because the Second Lord could not personally face this disciple of theirs who had scouted the path for everyone.
But Minglong's failure had certainly not been without value.
For one thing, he had let everyone truly experience how invincible the "Paradox Level" was. Even after its bearer had fallen, their crown would never fall into another's hands.
For another...
"Perhaps you haven't truly failed yet." Lin Yuan looked at Minglong and said earnestly:
"The fact that your will can still awaken in this History Secret Realm proves that you haven't been completely devoured by Chaos."
"As long as your will remains, Chaos's control over the Crown of Destruction will never be complete."
"Chaos still hasn't succeeded in reviving to this day, and you deserve a share of the credit for that!"
A History Secret Realm could not project a Lord of the Crown, so the consciousness of Minglong speaking with Lin Yuan now was indeed his true consciousness.
This will, hidden within Chaos and seemingly completely polluted, had opened its eyes again through the barrier of the History Secret Realm and a series of coincidences, declaring that it was still holding on.
And this, in