You want me to take out a loan to practice cultivation? I'll just pay off the debt physically.

The newly reconstructed but still weakened divine body of the God of Flames trembled violently under the distorted starlight of the Star Abyss.

His enormous eyes, burning with the newly ascended divine flames of rules, were fixed intently on the familiar yet incredibly glaring figure before him.

[Master of Kung Fu, Li Yunhai!]

The moment He saw the other, a chilling, immense malice, originating from the depths of His soul, swept through the core of His will like a frigid current from the abyss.

On His face, beneath the newly formed divine skin, grief and humiliation surged like magma, almost bursting through the shackles of reason.

In the next moment, countless fragmented conspiracies, betrayals, and schemes collided and recombine wildly within His chaotic divine consciousness.

He understood!

Everything is clear now!

No wonder that terrifying Rule-Based Killing God Ye Lingtian kindly passed on the invaluable method of transferring authority to me.

No wonder all of this happened so coincidentally!

No wonder I was tricked into this place and ended up in the Star Abyss!

This is clearly an elaborate death trap!

[By becoming a true god of rules, one severs the link between their authority and the will of the spirit world, thus losing their greatest backer.]

Then, Li Yunhai, this traitor, led two True Gods of the Rules, precisely waiting for His moment of weakness after His ascension, to ambush Him in this Star Abyss, far from the protection of the Spirit Realm.

The goal was to surround and kill Him, and to refine and devour His newly formed divine essence and divine fire, which contained the boundless source of the rules of flames, as the finest nourishment.

[One plan leads to another, one scheme conceals another.]

From the moment He obtained the method of transformation, He had already fallen into this deadly trap.

[Add to that the relentless pursuit by the spirit realm's will, a deadly conspiracy, what choice did the God of Flames have but to risk his life in this perilous transformation in despair?]

But, do you want His life?

【Then let's exchange it with the blood of the true god of rules!】

Even though His divine fire was extinguished and His divine essence shattered, He, the God of Flames, was still alive.

Before annihilation, drag enough victims down with you!

[Especially that damned traitor: Li Yunhai!!!]

The God of Flames was overwhelmed with grief and indignation; the newly generated divine power of the rules surged within him like a suppressed volcano.

His anger was like a tangible flame, almost setting the space within sight ablaze.

Other rules are irrelevant to God.

[Anyone can obtain the divine resources He has gathered, but Li Yunhai is the one who cannot.]

This traitor, this ungrateful wretch whom I once nurtured with all my resources, whom I regarded as a confidant, yet who ultimately brought disaster upon me.

They must die!

Their souls must be utterly destroyed, never to be reincarnated!

If there is an afterlife, no!

There is no afterlife! He will tear him to pieces right now!

Just as the soul of the God of Flames was filled with boundless hatred and curses, the traitor whom He hated to the core remained calm, even displaying a complex and indescribable emotion, and steadily took a step forward.

[Blazing Flames!]

Li Yunhai's voice pierced clearly through the chaotic aftershocks of energy, ringing out calmly without a trace of murderous intent; instead, it carried an almost welcoming tone.

He wore the distinctive silver-gray uniform of the Red Heart Society Research Institute, a stark contrast to the brutal battlefield environment around him.

Welcome to become a true master of the rules!

I've been waiting for you here for a long time.

[God of Flames: "???"]

A huge question mark exploded instantly within the core of His burning divine will.

Almost instantly, all His anger, resolve, and suicidal madness froze.

【ah? ? ? 】

【What is he saying? 】

Welcome yourself?

[Have you been waiting a long time?]

Are they not stationed here to take advantage of His illness, to kill Him, and to steal His treasure?

But how is that possible?

[Having just completed his transformation, his divine body is not yet solidified, his divine fire is not yet stable, and he is still adapting to the power of the rules. This is a once-in-a-millennium opportunity for a decisive victory.]

Will the other party let go of this easy prey?

Immediately afterwards, a deeper, more primal sense of vigilance, stemming from ancient divine instincts, surged forth like a venomous snake.

【trick!】

This must be a trick by that cunning Li Yunhai!

[Use these seemingly harmless words to lull yourself into a false sense of security, and then launch a devastating sneak attack.]

【right! 】

That must be it!

This kind of insidious trick is exactly what traitors excel at!

In that instant, His divine body tensed, the remaining divine power of the rules compressing within Him like a supernova about to explode. His divine eyes were fixed intently on Li Yunhai's every subtle movement, preparing to face the anticipated betrayal!

Facing the fiery god's menacing gaze, which seemed to prey on anyone, Li Yunhai showed no hostility whatsoever. Instead, as if he could see through the god's thoughts, a helpless, bitter smile appeared on his lips.

This soft laugh sounded so abrupt and eerie to the Flame God's heavily guarded divine senses.

But soon, Li Yunhai's smile faded, and his expression became serious and complex.

Standing in this Star Abyss, he began to recount a truth that the God of Flames had never expected, to this former ruler of faith, this newly ascended True God of Rules now filled with wariness and hatred.

【Flame, put away your hostility.】

Listen to me, as members of the Red Heart Society, and as those who once most agreed with some of your ideals, we truly never imagined things would escalate to the point where we had to kill you, especially you.

Even if conflict is unavoidable, our initial intention is never to take your life.

To be honest, things have come to this point completely beyond the Red Heart Society's expectations.

[It could even be described as a huge misunderstanding, a series of unfortunate events orchestrated by your own hands.]

The flames of rage burned even brighter in the enormous eyes of the God of Flames.

What kind of ridiculous misunderstanding is this?

[How could things have turned out this way by sheer chance?]

[Across from him, Li Yunhai took a deep breath.]

Yes, it's a misunderstanding.

From the very beginning, the core target chosen by the Red Heart Society's god-making plan in the spirit world was never you, the God of Flames.

Our goal is the Goddess of the Night!

These words struck the Flame God's chaotic mind like a bolt from the blue.

[Dark Night?]

Is it that brooding, brooding old goddess who hides in the shadows all day?

Li Yunhai took a deep breath and continued speaking.

Who would have thought?

[When our martial arts master, under the guise of exchange, brings some modified versions of the techniques into your Blazing Flame Cult.]

[You, the great God of Flames, have acted as if you've discovered a priceless treasure after witnessing even a small increase in strength brought about by this technique.]

[You used coercion and enticement, pressuring us with threats to ensure the survival of our sect, and even offered up divine resources that would tempt even the Red Heart Society.]

You even went so far as to use divine power to carry out what could be described as a brutal physical kidnapping.

[They forcibly detained the seeds we sent and forced them to provide you and your core followers with deeper levels of cultivation method optimization services.]

Their resolute attitude and enthusiastic methods caught us all off guard.

We can't just change our established strategic direction and target personnel simply because you're so insistent, can we?

Li Yunhai's words were like cold, hard hammer blows, relentlessly striking the barrier of the Flame God's understanding.

Beside him, the newborn "True God of Rules" was completely dumbfounded.

In His enormous eyes, burning with fiery rules, anger was replaced by an almost comical bewilderment, as if He were seeing this universe for the first time.

【What do you mean? 】

[Does this mean that His divine power was stripped away, His pantheon destroyed, and He was relentlessly pursued by the will of the spirit world, with nowhere to escape, and that His forced conversion to cultivation, a near-death experience, was all an error?]

[The root of all this is that He was too proactive?]

[Because He coveted the Red Heart Society's cultivation techniques, He used every means to snatch that potentially disastrous powder keg from the Goddess of the Night, and then cherished it like a treasure, pouring all His resources into nurturing it?]

[They even kidnapped members of the Red Heart Society and treated them like treasures?]

【What the hell? 】

[The core of the Flame God's consciousness felt dizzy; a tremendous sense of absurdity and an indescribable feeling of being toyed with by fate instantly overwhelmed Him.]

[Was I really not in such a miserable situation?]

[This catastrophic disaster, I actually brought it upon myself?]

Is there anything more unfortunate or ironic than this in this world?

Li Yunhai silently observed the Flame God's worldview crumbling expression and sighed softly.

As the most trusted and top follower of the Flame Cult, although he infiltrated the cult with a mission, he still had extensive contact with the God of Flames.

To be honest, his feelings were incredibly complicated.

[Flame, to be fair, regardless of our stance, you've been incredibly good to me.]

These words came from the bottom of his heart and reflected Li Yunhai's true thoughts.

During his time with the Flame Cult, the God of Flames almost never refused any research requests made by Li Yunhai, whether they involved rare materials, ancient texts, or dangerous experimental environments, and always tried his best to fulfill them.

Even as the number of Red Heart Society members who infiltrated the sect increased dramatically, his position within the Blazing Flame Cult remained unshaken.

Furthermore, the God of Flames issued a divine decree granting him power within the Flame Cult that surpassed even that of the Pope.

Even though he was on a mission, he couldn't completely deny the weight of this recognition and the resources allocated to him.

Therefore, when he saw the God of Flames successfully transform into a True God of Rules...

[And by a twist of fate, following the safe evacuation route prepared by the Red Heart Society, he escaped all the way to the outskirts of the temporary headquarters established by the Red Heart Society for the True Gods of Rules, where he volunteered to receive them.]

[After all, he was worried that if others came, a conflict might break out.] (End of Chapter)