Swallowed Star: Lord of the Wolf

To maintain this terrifying rate of consumption, Jiu Wuye had to rack his brains.

Using his authority as city lord, he imposed several temporary "special commercial taxes" in the core commercial district of Xuanhu City, targeting highly profitable auction houses, high-end material shops, and cave rentals. This caused dissatisfaction among some forces, but he suppressed it all with the official reason of "strengthening city defenses and eliminating wild beasts in the wilderness".

At the same time, other expenditures of the city lord's mansion were drastically reduced, including additional subsidies for the garrison and maintenance and upgrade costs for public facilities, which led to widespread discontent among the city lord's guards and some areas within the city began to show signs of decay.

These methods cannot be implemented for too long, otherwise they will cause irreparable damage to Xuanhu City.

But after careful consideration, Jiu Wuye concluded that compared to a Chaos Realm expert, this price was negligible and entirely worthwhile. Moreover, Guji had said that he was about to break through... which gave him even more confidence to act boldly.

……

Of course, Guji didn't stop cultivating except by devouring other beasts. Although his heart was filled with the desire to devour, he never forgot Xu Yang's advice - even if his cultivation progressed very slowly, he must never give up on independent cultivation, otherwise he would be digging his own grave!

Therefore, aside from freely displaying his true form and devouring everything within the absolutely safe World Treasure, in any other part of Xuanhu City, he disguised himself as a burly man named Heiyan using his "Formless and Shapeless" ability. Completely unrelated to the City Lord's Mansion, his aura was suppressed to that of a Void True God, revealing a somewhat clumsy but undeniably powerful persona.

He would occasionally appear under this identity at "The Drunken Immortals," the most chaotic tavern in Xuanhu City.

In a dimly lit and noisy corner of the tavern, Black Rock, dressed in an inconspicuous gray leather armor, occupied a small table by himself. In front of him were several jars of the strongest "Burning Heart Burner," the only inferior wine he found somewhat palatable; he considered all other fine wines as bland as water.

His imposing figure was shrouded in shadow, seemingly engrossed in drinking, but in reality, his invisible, terrifying perception, belonging to the Beast Realm, was like the most sophisticated radar, silently sweeping across the entire tavern, capturing every conversation and every fluctuation of the soul.

This was the Mind-Refining Method, "Red Dust Tribulation," that Xu Yang had chosen for him from among the spoils of war. Because the Beasts of the Realm carried the Great Dao of Destruction, they didn't need to cultivate any other secret techniques. They were born with the ability to automatically comprehend methods as the Great Dao of Destruction advanced. They only needed to cultivate their willpower; otherwise, if their willpower became a hindrance, they would be at a great disadvantage in battles.

The clamor of the immortals' revelry was like a turbid wave, crashing against every corner.

The strange smells of cheap liquor, sweat, barbecue grease, and various spices, along with the incessant jerk laughter, boasting, arguing, and the clinking of dice, create a chaotic yet realistic picture of the lower-level cultivators.

This is one of the largest gathering places for cultivators below the Eternal True God level in Xuanhu City, where desires and struggles are laid bare.

Guji huddled in the shadows of the corner, his rough gray leather armor stained with oil. Two of the three jars of "Burning Heart Wine" in front of him were already empty. He deliberately hunched over, his head bowed, his large straw hat covering most of his face, revealing only his sharply defined, stubble-covered chin.

He is still in the first step of "The Tribulations of the Mortal World" - "hiding in the city, blending into the crowd".

"Hey! Scarface, didn't you say you found a fragment of an ancient treasure in 'Black Wind Gorge' yesterday? Show it to us guys!" A bald, burly man covered in tattoos, with an aura at the late stage of Void True God, drunkenly patted a man with a scar on his face next to him.

Scarface's eyes gleamed, his demeanor clearly bluffing: "Hmph! That's a good thing! I... I'll go back and have a master appraise it! What if some fool targets it if I bring it out now?"

Lies...greed...fear...

Guji's thoughts were calmly recorded.

Scarface exuded no aura of ancient treasures whatsoever, and his heart pounded like a drum. The bald, burly man appeared carefree, but deep in his eyes lay a barely perceptible mockery and probing. He didn't believe Scarface's words at all; he just wanted to see him make a fool of himself.

"Tch, coward!" The bald man spat disdainfully, then turned to another table and looked at an old man at the table, dressed in a tattered robe and with a timid expression. "Old cripple, I heard your son died on the last mission? Did you get the compensation? Want me to 'pull some strings' for you? I'll only charge you 30%!"

The old man trembled, his cloudy old eyes filled with despair and fear, his lips trembling as he couldn't speak.

Oppression... despair... the tragedy of the weak...

The bald, burly man's malice was like tangible filth, carrying with it the final exploitation of the weak. The others in the tavern ignored it, some even showing mocking smirks.

The law of the jungle, where the strong prey on the weak, is written all over their faces.

At that moment, the conflict broke out.

"Damn it! You surnamed Tu! How long are you going to drag this out for the money for that batch of 'Black Patterned Iron'?!" A short man with a sharp, dagger-like aura slammed his hand on the table and stood up, glaring fiercely at a well-dressed fat man in the corner with a huge gemstone ring on his finger.

The fat man, known as "Master Tu the Third," didn't even lift his eyelids, slowly picking his teeth: "What's the rush? Not all the goods have been sold yet. Don't you trust my reputation, Master Tu the Third?"

"Reputation? How many people have you ripped off?!" The short man laughed angrily. "If you don't pay up today, I'll smash this place up!"

"You think you can take me on?" Behind Tu San, two burly guards with imposing auras stood up, their eyes like those of ferocious beasts ready to devour their prey. Both were at the peak of the Void True God realm!

The oppressive aura pressed down on the short man without any attempt to conceal it.

The short man's face paled, but the fierce light in his eyes intensified. His hand was already on the short blade at his waist, and his breathing was erratic. He was clearly making the most intense struggle: should he fight to the death or retreat in humiliation?
[Anger...humiliation...murderous intent...weighing the options...]

Guji's peripheral vision was firmly fixed on the center of the conflict.

The short man's anger was real and desperate; Tu San's greed and arrogance were like a brand; and the two guards' cold-blooded killing intent was undisguised...

The onlookers around them, their souls swirling with excitement, anticipation, and schadenfreude... as if awaiting a feast of blood.

"Hey! Fight! What are you chickening for!"

"Master Tu, kill him! How dare this poor wretch challenge you?"

The clamor was like an invisible noose, tightening around the short man's neck. His eyes were bloodshot, his breath surging wildly towards the breaking point, his hand gripping the hilt of the knife trembled violently, and he was about to pull it out recklessly—

at this time!

hum!
An eternal pressure, heavy and vast as a mountain, descended without warning.

It was not violent and domineering, but rather carried an unquestionable power of order, instantly enveloping the entire conflict zone.

The hustle and bustle of Zuixianju was abruptly cut off by this oppressive force!

All those who were shouting and making a fuss seemed to have their throats choked, unable to breathe.

The short man's ferocious aura cooled abruptly, as if doused with ice water, and his action of drawing his sword froze halfway through.

Tu San's arrogance froze, his tooth-picking hand stopped at his mouth, and the two guards groaned as if they were carrying a mountain on their backs, sweat instantly beading on their foreheads, their steps firmly nailed to the spot by an invisible force.

A middle-aged man, dressed in a neat gray robe, with an ordinary face but sharp, eagle-like eyes, appeared silently between the two sides in the conflict.

He held an unassuming wooden token in his hand, engraved with an ancient character for "drunk." He was the owner of Drunken Immortal Abode, an eternal true god who usually lived a secluded life and possessed a restrained aura.

"Private fights are strictly prohibited in this establishment." The shopkeeper's voice was calm, yet it struck everyone like a cold, ironclad rule. "If you want to fight, go outside. Anyone who dares to lay a hand on someone here is disturbing the peace of my Drunken Immortal Abode..."

His gaze swept over Tu San and the short man, finally settling on the two guards. His eyes stung even the guards, who were at the peak of the Void True God realm, with a pain in their souls. "...Don't blame me for personally 'inviting' him out and collecting some 'quiet fee' along the way."

There was no earth-shattering momentum, only a pure and naked warning. The will of the eternal true God, like invisible shackles, forcefully suppressed the boiling murderous intent of both sides in the conflict.

Tu San's fat face twitched a few times, forcing out a smile that looked more like a grimace: "Manager Qin, please calm down! It's a misunderstanding, all a misunderstanding. My subordinates are just being ignorant!"

He glared at the short man and his guards. "Sit down! Don't disturb Manager Qin's business!" He sat down first, as if the conflict had never happened.

The short man's expression shifted, but under the shopkeeper's cold gaze and constant pressure, his anger and humiliation finally turned into a muffled groan of resentment. He slumped back into his chair, took a big gulp of wine, and concealed the bloodshot eyes and frustration in them.

The noise resumed, but now there was a hint of caution and restraint amidst the chaos.

Everyone subconsciously moved away from the center of the conflict, and their gazes toward the shop owner, Manager Qin, held a newfound respect.

[...rules...power...order...]

Guji's thoughts, like a deep, cold pool, clearly reflected all of this.

The resolution of conflict does not stem from a clash of forces, but from the advent and enforcement of higher rules.

Guji silently finished the last sip of wine, tossed aside the Chaos Stone, and his burly figure silently blended into the dim night of Xuanhu City.

Today was fruitful.

……

Time is like running water.

City Lord's Mansion.

In the absolute silence and darkness, only the low moaning of space caused by the subtle writhing of the enormous object could be heard.

The massive, mountain-like remains of the molten core beast were being entangled and dragged by countless writhing black tentacles covered in destructive vortex runes, slowly sinking into the abyss-like maw that seemed to connect to the source of destruction.

The last flickering crimson flame on the wreckage vanished silently the moment it touched the Beast's body, transforming into the purest essence.

boom--! ! !
When the last wisp of the molten core beast's essence was completely devoured, the space within the world's treasure seemed to groan under the unbearable burden.

It did not come from an external impact, but rather from the terrifying suction force that suddenly erupted from the core, like the collapse of a cosmic singularity.

The Beast Origin within Guji, after accumulating a vast amount of alien beast essence, especially the catalyst of the Molten Core Beast that surpassed all limits, finally underwent its ultimate qualitative transformation and sublimation—

All the chaotic origins of alien beasts, fragments of laws, and bloodline imprints were frantically compressed and smelted within the realm of his body!
The world seemed to have been frozen in absolute stillness!
Time, space, energy, light... all senses are abruptly removed.

hum! ! !
An indescribable, pure white light, like the first ray of light at the beginning of the universe, suddenly burst forth.

The light was not dazzling; rather, it possessed an indescribable sanctity and tranquility, as if it could cleanse the world of all filth and sin. In an instant, it expanded the collapsing space, forcibly mending and reinforcing those spatial cracks on the verge of collapse.

At the core of the light, a figure slowly coalesces and unfolds amidst a storm of chaotic energy.

He was born.

Like a holy deity born from the chaotic singularity of destruction.

Tall and slender, about ten zhang in length, its entire body was covered in an indescribable, flawless whiteness, like the first snowflakes of a frozen night. It did not have the texture of flesh and blood, but rather the texture of a perfect jade stone formed from the very origin of the universe. It was smooth, cold, and flowed with the purest and most translucent halo, untouched by any dust, and did not reflect any external light, as if it itself were the source of light.

He possessed a clear human form—his hands were slender and long, with fingertips as smooth as the finest jade beads. His feet were the same, firmly planted on the invisible chaotic energy. His head was perfectly proportioned, like a masterpiece meticulously sculpted by a divine craftsman.

The facial features are simple yet sacred.

Her beautifully shaped lips were pressed tightly together, their color a pale moon white, lighter than her skin, showing no sign of opening or closing, as if they had been closed since time immemorial. Her nose was small and straight, with smooth lines, the only three-dimensional protrusion on her face, as simple as the finishing touch on a painting.

The eyes are the most unsettling part; they have no pupils, no whites, only two deep, slowly rotating vortexes of darkness.

It has no ears, and the sides of its skull are smooth, curved surfaces.

On His smooth, full forehead, two snow-white horns, like pure moonlight, curved and pierced the chaotic void above. The horns were not bone, but rather crystals of some kind of pure energy, their surfaces flowing with subtle, mysterious runes of destruction that were constantly annihilating and regenerating, radiating a sharp, cold, all-piercing aura of annihilation.

This is a symbol of His power as a Beast of the Realm, and also a bridge to communicate with the source of destruction.

At this moment, this beastly form, a perfect fusion of holiness and destruction, is bathed in the light of its original reshaping.

Guji slowly opened his eyes, which contained the ultimate dark vortex of the universe.

There was no earth-shattering burst of power, only a silent, pervasive sense of absolute destruction.

The light remained holy, and the space remained stable, but everything within the world's treasure was forcibly imbued with fragility the moment he opened his eyes and awoke.

"It's finally done!"

A cold, clear thought, like an ancient, flowing spring, proclaimed that he had reached a new realm!

It is so perfect that it seems otherworldly.

Her fingertips were smooth and rounded like jade, and her movements were gentle and elegant, without a trace of worldliness.

Thoughts moved slightly.

Guji is overjoyed! (End of Chapter)