"That's a reasonable request."
Huo Yuhao nodded. "If there are no gains, I will compensate you. But I can't think of suitable compensation right now. How about we decide after we see whether there are gains in the secret realm? Speaking of which, when do the three of you plan to visit the secret realm?"
"Then we'll discuss compensation if there are no gains. As for the secret realm..."
Oscar exchanged a glance with Ning Rongrong and mused, "The sooner the better, naturally. Of course, if you have other matters, we can exchange later."
"I have nothing pressing at the moment. Let's do it today."
Huo Yuhao looked at Gu Yuena. "Na'er."
"Alright."
Gu Yuena stood up from her seat, looked at the Star's Favor on her wrist, and gently stroked it.
A brilliant starlight surged from the bracelet, slowly condensing in the void into a shimmering, star-lit gateway. The edges of the portal bore faint, ancient patterns, solemn and majestic, as if connecting to another world.
"This bracelet is a divine artifact?"
Oscar's pupils contracted slightly. "A secret realm that can only be opened with a divine artifact?"
Ning Rongrong also covered her mouth in surprise.
When Huo Yuhao had mentioned divine-level opportunities in the secret realm earlier, she had still had some doubts. But now that even opening the portal required a divine artifact, there was nothing to question.
She hadn't expected such a place to exist in the mortal world.
Had it been there during their era, or had it formed recently due to the chaos in the Divine Realm?
While they were thinking and marveling, a voice came from the God-Imprint Throne's mark in Huo Yuhao's Sea of Spirit. It was the Eternal Lord speaking.
"I gave you access to the Eternal Domain for this?!"
Throwing deities directly into the Eternal Domain, effectively imprisoning them—was this something a person could come up with?
I gave it to you as a refuge, not as a prison!
The Eternal Lord's tone was flat, but Huo Yuhao could faintly detect a hint of speechlessness.
"When I was designing the plan earlier, you didn't object, so I assumed you gave your tacit approval."
Huo Yuhao coughed lightly. "Besides, you gave me the authority for refuge. But right now, they're out there, and the chances of me encountering danger are greater. Bringing them into the Eternal Domain—isn't that also a form of refuge?"
Eternal Lord: "..."
This twisted logic—he actually didn't know where to begin refuting it.
After a moment, the Eternal Lord finally said, "Handle the trouble you've caused yourself. Don't let them cause chaos in the Eternal Domain after entering."
Huo Yuhao: "Understood."
Whether the God-Imprint Throne had the ability to trap two injured, support-type deities clearly needed no doubt.
After all, the power of super-divine artifacts had begun expanding rapidly starting from Soul Land IV.
Take the Heavenly Saint Abyss Splitting Halberd as an example again. If its energy was fully released, it was enough to destroy an entire planet.
The God-Imprint Throne, at its worst, wouldn't be far behind.
However, even if it could trap them, if Ning Rongrong and Oscar were restless, the Eternal Domain—the internal space of the God-Imprint Throne—would not be at peace.
He had caused this, so he would have to deal with the consequences. The Eternal Lord clearly had no intention of stepping in personally.
On the other side, after stabilizing the gateway, Gu Yuena looked at the three and said flatly, "Let's go."
Ning Rongrong and Oscar exchanged a glance, suppressed their surprise, and stood up.
Tang Wutong also rose to follow, but Oscar, snapping back to attention, raised his hand to stop her.
"Wu Tong, stay here. You're only a wisp of divine consciousness. If you encounter danger in the secret realm, you might dissipate directly. We'll go in. You stay here."
Though he didn't say it directly, the meaning was clear to everyone. You're just a wisp of divine consciousness. You can't help and might even become a burden.
Tang Wutong's steps halted, her expression freezing for a moment.
She looked at Oscar, then at Ning Rongrong. Seeing that both held the same attitude, she finally walked off to the side in a huff.
She was useless, fine.
Back then, they'd needed her protection. Shameless men and women.
Seeing Tang Wutong blocked from entering, Huo Yuhao narrowed his eyes but said nothing, leading the way as he and Gu Yuena stepped through the portal.
Ning Rongrong and Oscar followed closely behind.
As the four entered, the portal gradually dissolved into starlight.
In the Eternal Domain, the four crossed through the gateway. The sight before them made Ning Rongrong and Oscar pause briefly.
This was a vast, boundless primeval forest.
The crisp chirping of insects and birds reached their ears, rising and falling like a natural symphony. The air was thick with vibrant life force; every breath carried a warm, nourishing energy flowing through their bodies.
Beneath their feet was soft, loamy soil that absorbed their footsteps silently. Towering ancient trees stretched dozens of zhang into the sky, their trunks so thick that a dozen people would need to join hands to encircle them. Moss and vines crawled over the bark.
"This is the secret realm?"
Ning Rongrong looked around, her eyes full of wonder.
Ordinary pocket dimensions and demiplanes didn't have this vibrant, life-filled feeling. This place was practically no different from a complete plane. If they hadn't just entered through a spatial passage opened by a divine artifact, she would have suspected that Huo Yuhao and Gu Yuena had brought them somewhere on the Douluo Continent, not to a secret realm.
Gu Yuena also looked around curiously. This was her first time entering the Eternal Domain as well.
So this was the internal space of Yuhao's super-divine artifact. Truly extraordinary. None of the super-divine artifacts she knew had such an internal world, let alone a complete ecological cycle and life system like this.
The origins of this super-divine artifact were likely terrifying.
Fortunately, it now belonged to Yuhao, not to her enemies.
Gu Yuena thought to herself.
Just as the three were each marveling, and Ning Rongrong and Oscar were feeling hopeful about exploring this secret realm—
The entire sky suddenly shifted. The azure blue was replaced by a brilliant, iridescent glow, and a dense, sacred aura descended from above.
Seeing the sudden change, Oscar instinctively moved to shield Ning Rongrong.
In the distance, a massive creature, thirty meters long, with horns on its head and five claws beneath its belly, tore through the air toward them.
"Who dares to trespass on Divine Dragon Island—hmm? It's you."
The Holy Sacred Dragon descended from the sky, its dragon eyes fixed on Huo Yuhao with a hint of respect. "Master, you've actually come in on your own."
After the previous trials, he had already acknowledged Huo Yuhao. In his view, the other would certainly complete the final trial, so he had changed his address early.
"Holy Sacred Dragon, it's been a while." Huo Yuhao greeted with a smile.
"Dragon?"
Ning Rongrong, Oscar, and Gu Yuena, all accustomed to Western dragons, were stunned.
Wait, this was a dragon? Then what were the dragons of the Douluo Continent?
Among the three, Gu Yuena's expression was the most peculiar.
She could indeed sense a powerful bloodline force from the Holy Sacred Dragon, but his bloodline had almost no relation to the Douluo dragon bloodline whatsoever.
She had no doubt that he wouldn't be suppressed by her bloodline.
After exchanging a few words with Huo Yuhao, the Holy Sacred Dragon's gaze swept over Gu Yuena, Ning Rongrong, and Oscar in turn, a gleam of scrutiny flashing in his eyes.
"Deities?"
The Holy Sacred Dragon's voice was low and resonant, carrying a hint of surprise.
"Master, are they your friends?"
Oscar and Ning Rongrong felt something was odd.
Although it was normal for Huo Yuhao to be able to enter, know the creatures here, and even have them acknowledge him as master, since this secret realm was in his hands, the dragon's words implied that only Huo Yuhao had been here before, not Gu Yuena. If there were opportunities here that he couldn't obtain himself, shouldn't he have brought Gu Yuena in with him?
Ignoring their confusion, Huo Yuhao first looked at Gu Yuena and introduced her. "Gu Yuena, my... girlfriend."
Seeing the smile in Gu Yuena's eyes, Huo Yuhao paused, then turned to Ning Rongrong and Oscar. "As for these two, they are the Food God and Nine-Colored Celestial Maiden from the Divine Realm. Two second-class deities."
"From today onward, they will likely be staying in the Eternal Domain for quite some time."
The earlier part of the introduction was normal enough. But when Ning Rongrong and Oscar heard the last sentence, their expressions changed drastically.
"Lord Huo Yuhao, what do you mean by that?!"
Oscar immediately pulled Ning Rongrong back, putting distance between them, his brow furrowed.
"Staying for some time? You don't mean to imprison us here, do you?"
Ning Rongrong's expression also darkened, divine light faintly shimmering behind her. "We trusted you and followed you in seeking opportunities, yet you schemed against us?"
Seeing their reactions, Huo Yuhao remained calm. "If your attitudes toward the Abyss matter were like the Butterfly God's, I would have been willing to negotiate in good faith with you."
"But your attitudes made me realize that if I let you leave the Qiankun Questioning Love Valley, it would only create complications in the future. So naturally, I can't let you go."
"You two may not be aware, but under Tang San's behind-the-scenes manipulations, the Douluo Continent's Plane Lord and Life Core have become Tang Hao and his wife. They are both second-class deities. I don't want to give them two more allies."
As for Tang Wutong's divine consciousness, that didn't count as an asset.
Hearing this, Ning Rongrong and Oscar's expressions turned completely grim.
No one would feel good about being led into a trap by an enemy without any warning, but they didn't lose their composure.
"Huo Yuhao, you said earlier that you didn't want a divine battle on the Douluo Continent that would alert the Abyss. Were you lying?"
Oscar stared at Huo Yuhao, his tone dark. "Or do you think this secret realm can trap us? Though strange, you're a deity too. You should know that not even a true plane barrier can stop us, let alone a pocket dimension!"
Huo Yuhao smiled upon hearing this. "Before you say that, why not first check where exactly this place is?"
Seeing Huo Yuhao's confident demeanor, Oscar's heart sank. He signaled Ning Rongrong with a glance.
The next instant, a vast, awe-inspiring spiritual presence erupted from Ning Rongrong, spreading outward instantly.
Soon, the entire space of the Eternal Domain had been scanned by Ning Rongrong.
When she tried to touch the edge of the space, she seemed to sense a throne. It was pitch black, with a tall, ancient backrest carved with sun, moon, stars, flowers, birds, fish, insects, and various plant patterns. Along with it came a vast, majestic, inviolable will.
Ning Rongrong's face paled, her pupils trembling violently.
"This place, this is a divine artifact. No, this can't be a divine artifact. This is the internal space of a super-divine artifact!"
Ning Rongrong's gaze toward Huo Yuhao instantly became incredibly complex. Shock, horror, disbelief, and a deep sense of helplessness.
The dragon had called Huo Yuhao "Master." Earlier, she had simply thought Huo Yuhao had subdued it. But now that she knew this was the interior of a super-divine artifact, the dragon's address took on new meaning.
A being within a super-divine artifact calling someone master. What did that mean?
It meant Huo Yuhao was the controller of this super-divine artifact!
With their abilities, without Huo Yuhao's permission, there was no way they could break through the blockade of a super-divine artifact.
Hearing the words "super-divine artifact," Oscar's heart also trembled. Seeing Ning Rongrong's expression, he exchanged a look with her.
Ning Rongrong immediately conveyed what she had seen and guessed to him. After hearing it, Oscar's gaze toward Huo Yuhao also grew cautious.
A super-divine artifact. That was something even a God King might not possess. The current God Kings of Good and Evil did not have super-divine artifacts.
The person before them possessed a super-divine artifact. What kind of existence had he been in the past?
The Divine Realm had no throne-shaped super-divine artifact.
Then Huo Yuhao could only be a deity from outside the Douluo Divine Realm. A first-class deity from another divine realm, or perhaps...
A God King?
Oscar swallowed hard.
How ridiculous that he had previously guessed Huo Yuhao was a second-class deity or lower that the Divine Realm wasn't familiar with. After all, he had seen all of the Divine Realm's first-class deities and God Kings, and he remembered their personalities and traits. Huo Yuhao didn't match any of them, so naturally he had to be below second-class.
But he had forgotten that beyond the Douluo Divine Realm, there were other divine realms in the vast universe.
Now, they were in serious trouble.
After thinking for a long time, Oscar looked at Huo Yuhao with a complicated expression and asked, "Lord, you possess a super-divine artifact. Are you a deity from another divine realm?"
Unconsciously, his address had shifted to a respectful one.
Hearing this and seeing the tension on Ning Rongrong and Oscar's faces, Gu Yuena found the scene strangely familiar and was momentarily speechless.
Wasn't this what she had gone through?
At this moment, just like that moment.
Huo Yuhao, who had been prepared to pull Elder Electrolux and the others from the Undead Demiplane at any moment for a massive battle, had a peculiar look in his eyes.
He also found this scene incredibly familiar.
What exactly were you people imagining?
Seeing Huo Yuhao remain silent, Oscar took it as confirmation and sighed.
"This super-divine artifact isn't from our divine realm, so you must be from another divine realm. But your aura isn't strong, so you must have re-cultivated. I don't know if you're simply reincarnated here, or if, like our divine realm, you encountered something like space-time turbulence."
"But in any case, we have no past conflicts with you. The only grievance is Xiao San's plan. We can choose not to participate, to stay in the super-divine artifact until all grievances are settled. At that time, we hope you will spare our lives."
Huo Yuhao: "..."
Question: If the opposing side surrenders this quickly, how should he handle it?
He had thought they would at least fight before conceding.
After a moment, Huo Yuhao asked with a strange expression, "Aren't you going to try to capture us? Maybe you could get out that way. Why resign yourselves so easily?"
You're making me feel like I haven't accomplished anything.
"You jest, Lord."
Oscar gave a bitter smile. "We've already entered your super-divine artifact. Escape is impossible. Capturing you is even more impossible."
Capturing someone inside their own super-divine artifact. That sounded like a joke. The other could leave with a single thought. Attacking them would only thoroughly offend them, making it impossible to ever leave.
If he were alone, he might have chosen to fight. But Rongrong was here. He couldn't take that risk.
By conceding now and cooperating, there might still be a slim chance of survival. That slim chance wasn't just for them, but also for Wu Tong's divine consciousness and the others who had already come into conflict with this person.
After all, if the other truly was a God King reincarnated from another divine realm, Oscar didn't think Tang Hao and the others could defeat him. By conceding, they might even be able to plead for mercy on behalf of Tang Hao and the others after their defeat.
Hearing this, Huo Yuhao was silent for a long time before finally uttering one word.
"Good."
Subduing the enemy without battle was the highest strategy.
***
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