The spell's range covers the entire territory of China? Hand it over to the state.

In the center of the arena.

The black mud, which had been slowly shrinking after devouring Zhong Kui and seemed to be digesting its spoils, suddenly stopped.

That feeling was very strange.

It's like someone who has an upset stomach, wanting to vomit but unable to, wanting to swallow but unable to.

The surface of the black mud, which had been flowing smoothly like liquid, began to show irregular bumps. Then, a deep, resonant sound, as if from the depths of the earth, clearly emanated from this utterly ethereal substance.

thump.

thump.

thump.

With each beat of the drum, the black mud trembled violently.

The sky began to change color.

The sky, which had been tinged with deathly gray, was suddenly filled with vast expanses of purple aura.

That is the purple of "purple aura coming from the east," a purple of immeasurable nobility.

This purple aura was extremely domineering, forcefully pushing aside the rules of the West and spreading out a long, starry scroll stretching for tens of thousands of miles above the arena.

"What kind of energy fluctuation is this?"

Hermes's expression finally changed, and the serpent staff in his hands began to frantically warn him—it was the instinctive fear he felt when facing a higher being. "That Eastern god has clearly already been disintegrated..."

"break down?"

It was as if one could hear Hermes' words, a majestic, grand voice that seemed to contain the roars of countless dead souls yet was also upright and peaceful, bursting forth from the very center of the black mud.

"Have I given my permission?"

Boom! ...

With this question, the entire mass of black mud exploded.

It wasn't broken by external forces, but rather burst by internal pressure.

A dark purple beam of light, powerful enough to pierce through the heavens and earth, shot into the sky, instantly shattering the so-called "Embers of Tartarus" into pieces.

The black mud, which could devour even light, seemed to encounter the scorching sun's glare like remnants of snow before this purple light, emitting a sizzling sound and frantically retreating in all directions.

At the center of the beam of light.

A figure slowly emerged.

That was no longer the disheveled man in the red robe who spoke with a thick local accent.

His body swelled to a hundred feet tall, resembling the majestic Mount Tai.

The original bright red judge's robe has disappeared, replaced by an imperial robe that is as black as ink, embroidered with nine evil dragons from the underworld, the sun, moon, stars, mountains, and rivers in gold thread.

The black gauze hat on his head was gone, replaced by a flat crown with twelve strings of white jade beads hanging down from the front and back.

His face remained ugly and ferocious, and his large beard still stood out like iron spikes.

But at this moment, no one thinks he's ugly.

Through the swaying tassels, one could only see a pair of eyes as deep as an abyss and as vast as the starry sky. There was no laughter or anger there, only the indifference and majesty that held life and death in their grasp.

He simply stood there quietly, and the space around him seemed to freeze automatically.

The black mud that had tried to fight back earlier was met with an invisible wall when it was still a hundred meters away from him. It had no choice but to obediently lie down on the ground and turn into black floor tiles.

[Divinity advancement complete.]

[Current Form: Emperor Fengdu of the Northern Underworld (Zhong Kui Version)]

[Functional shift: From "enforcer" to "ruler".]

[Domain Expansion: Netherworld Ghost Kingdom.]

The entire room fell silent.

Whether they were Chinese or Westerners, they were all speechless, their mouths agape.

The overwhelming sense of oppression was far beyond anything the judge who caught and ate ghosts had ever felt. If Zhong Kui was a killing blade, then this one was the god who made the laws.

"Zhong Kui isn't dead?"

"And this is... the countenance of an emperor?!"

In the command hall, Zhang Daoxuan exclaimed in shock, "The Great Emperor of Fengdu! This is the Emperor of the Underworld himself! No wonder... no wonder this black mud is ineffective!"

"What do you mean?" Old Wang asked, puzzled.

"Still don't understand?" Zhang Daoxuan pointed at the screen, his voice brimming with excitement. "Just now, Lord Zhong Kui was a subject, unable to control natural disasters. But now, he is the ruler! He is the emperor of the underworld! In his territory, there are no natural disasters, only illegal constructions! There is no chaos, only places where rules haven't been established yet!"

"this……"

Everyone looked at each other, then turned to look at Su Yun. Needless to say, it was Su Yun who had made his move again.

On the arena.

Zhong Kui, now transformed into the Emperor of Fengdu, lowered his head slightly and glanced at the black mud still trying to wriggle beneath his feet.

There was no anger in his eyes, only the dissatisfaction of a superior seeing an unfinished building during an inspection.

"Under the whole heaven, all land belongs to the king."

"Within the entire realm, all are subjects of the king."

Zhong Kui spoke slowly, each word transforming into a golden seal that slammed into the ground: "Once you enter my territory, you are my subject. Even in this chaotic void, you must abide by the rules of the underworld!"

He stretched out his large hand and gently pressed it into the void.

"town."

Om-!

A magnificent, breathtakingly large black city phantom unfolded beneath his feet.

That is the legendary Ghost City of Fengdu.

The city gates stood tall, and eerie ghostly flames flickered. Countless armored ghostly soldiers stood solemnly atop the city walls, while the phantoms of the Ten Kings of Hell stood on either side, bowing in submission.

The once invincible "Tartars Black Mud," which claimed to devour everything, stopped its erosion the moment this ghost city descended upon it.

It was forced to be "formatted".

In the realm of the Fengdu Emperor, it is no longer a disordered increase in entropy, but is defined as asphalt used to pave the ground of the ghost city.

The black mud quickly solidified and smoothed out, transforming into a wide, pitch-black "Road to the Underworld" that led straight to the gates of hell.

The expressions on the faces of the Western gods were beyond ugly.

That was terror.

It's the bewilderment that comes after one's values ​​have been completely shattered.

"This is impossible..." Zeus abruptly stood up from his throne, the veins on his hand gripping his scepter bulging. "He changed the rules? No, he didn't change them, he... overwrote them?"

"It's not just about coverage."

Zhong Kui seemed to have heard Zeus's words.

He slowly turned around, and across the endless void, his gaze, passing through the twelve tassels, landed directly on the high and mighty King of Gods.

That look sent chills down Zeus's spine, as if he were no longer the king of the gods, but a prisoner about to be judged.

Zhong Kui slowly and deliberately pulled a thick booklet from the wide sleeve of his imperial robe.

This booklet was entirely black, without a trace of luster, yet it exuded an aura of cause and effect that was even more ancient and pure than the black mud itself.

On the cover, there are only three simple ancient seal characters: "The Book of Life and Death".

This is not the volume in the judge's hand that can only outline the lifespan of mortals.

This is the general outline.

It is a general outline that records all things in heaven and earth, gods, demons, ghosts, and the cycle of cause and effect.

Zhong Kui extended his jade-like fingers and gracefully and slowly turned the first page.

"Now that we've come this far, let's take this opportunity to settle the score of cause and effect."

Zhong Kui's voice wasn't loud, but it rang out like thunder in Zeus's ears.

"Zeus, the lord of the Western Olympus?"

As Zhong Kui spoke, he pulled out a vermilion pen from somewhere and lightly touched the name, his brows furrowing slightly as if he were plotting something.

"hiss……"

Zhong Kui shook his head, his tone carrying a hint of businesslike indifference, "I observe that you are shrouded in an aura of death, and your divine throne is crumbling. Your fate... is likely sealed."

The moment that stroke was made.

Click.

A faint, yet terrifying, shattering sound suddenly rang out.

Zeus clutched his chest, his eyes widening in disbelief.

A drop of golden divine blood slowly flowed down the corner of his mouth.

The other person merely glanced at that tattered book and called out my name.

This god-king, who had ruled the Western divine realm for countless years, had his divine essence cracked!

"What...what do you want to do?!"

Zeus's voice finally carried a hint of panic. He felt his life force being forcibly pulled by the invisible causal threads on that black book.

Zhong Kui grinned.

Although he was now incredibly imposing, that smile still reminded everyone of the gluttonous, red-robed giant from earlier.

"What for?"

Zhong Kui picked up his vermilion brush and waved it in mid-air. "Nothing much. I've been expanding the Underworld recently, and as you can see, we're short of manpower for paving roads and filling potholes."

"I see many wandering spirits on your mountain. Why don't we... send them all down to serve as laborers?"