Elven cultivators

In the eyes of the dark elves of Shadow City, the Dark Spider Queen has always been an indisputable symbol of absolute power.

They knew better than anyone the terror of that ancient predator.

Because it was under its protection that Shadow City expanded from a small force to the massive power that now unifies vast underground territories.

It is no exaggeration to say that the existence of the Dark Spider Mother is the foundation upon which Shadow City survives.

However, at this moment, the enormous beast that had borne their awe and reliance for hundreds of years now lay charred black in the pile of rubble, its movements even as it stood up appearing clumsy and slow.

Seeing this, the Dark Elf Matriarchs felt their heads buzzing and their minds go blank.

Maya, standing behind the Dark Elf Matriarch, felt her throat go dry, finding the situation utterly absurd.

She never imagined that one day she would witness the Dark Spider Queen being beaten to such a terrible state.

That elf... who exactly is he?

Anton ignored the group of dark elves in the distance who were speechless with shock, his gaze remaining fixed on the Dark Spider Mother.

After seeing the other person finally manage to regain their footing, a barely perceptible hint of admiration flashed in his eyes.

"As expected of a being at the pinnacle of sainthood, it withstood my Purple Heaven Divine Lightning enhanced by Gangyun head-on despite the elemental advantage, and only suffered such minor injuries."

The Purple Heaven Divine Thunder is inherently effective against evil and demonic creatures, and it is especially effective against giant alien beings like the Dark Spider Mother, which carries a foul and filthy aura.

Not to mention that the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder just now also incorporated the aura of the sky above, making its power even more violent.

If an ordinary saint were to take such a blow, he would be severely injured, if not killed.

But this giant spider still had the strength to struggle to its feet, and had not completely lost its fighting ability.

Even with Anton's extensive experience, this tenacious vitality and resilience are truly remarkable.

While Anton was expressing his feelings, the dark elves on the other side, upon hearing these words, had expressions that were even more indescribable.

What do you mean by "only suffered this little injury"?

The Dark Spider Queen is at the pinnacle of sainthood, among the most elite combatants on the continent.

There are probably very few people on the entire continent who could defeat it so miserably.

You're still not satisfied?

The dark elves were momentarily dazed, feeling as if they were in a dream.

The Dark Spider Queen also seemed to be enraged by Anton's words.

It let out a sharp, low hiss, its eight limbs suddenly spreading out, dragging its scorched body as it lunged at Anton once more.

Anton remained expressionless. With a casual flick of his wrist, five-colored light surged from his palm, transforming into a giant hand that covered most of the cave's ceiling, pressing down heavily.

Wherever the edge of his palm passed, the air was compressed into obvious distorted patterns, and the floating dust and debris seemed to be gripped by an invisible force, suddenly suspending for a moment.

The Dark Spider Queen's raised upper body, along with her raised legs, was pressed back to the ground.

The shell and the gravel squeezed together, producing a dull creaking sound.

The dark spider mother's hiss suddenly rose several pitches, and her eight legs frantically pried at the rocky ground on both sides, trying to overturn the seemingly illusory yet as heavy as a deep mountain five-colored giant hand on her back.

However, the Heaven-Turning Seal then flew out from Anton's sleeve, its body growing longer in the wind, transforming into the outline of a mountain that covered the entire area, pressing heavily on the giant hand.

Immediately following, the Nine Dragons Divine Fire Cover opened its crimson-gold walls, and nine fire dragons coiled and surged along the inside of the cover, taking turns crashing into the Dark Spider Mother's carapace while wrapped in scorching flames.

Anton then opened his mouth and spat out a thin stream of crimson-gold flame, which landed precisely on the scorched crack on the back of the Dark Spider Mother.

The flames clung to the carapace, spreading silently, like oil seeping into dry wood, leaving only hissing sounds and rising blue smoke.

The struggles of the Dark Spider Queen suddenly weakened, and the anger in her hiss was gradually replaced by pain.

After a series of repeated suppressions, it finally stopped moving and was firmly suppressed in place.

Anton looked at its crouched body and breathed a slight sigh of relief.

If it were any other Saint-level expert, even if he could win, he would have to go through a fierce battle and suffer enormous losses.

The Dark Spider Mother was the only exception.

It was just bad luck for this guy. Both the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder and the Bright Three Yang Qi were very effective against it, so the outcome of the battle was never in doubt.

"Still not convinced?"

Seeing the Dark Spider Queen staring intently at him with her compound eyes wide open, Anton narrowed his eyes, raised his hand again, and purple-white lightning once more condensed in his palm.

The Dark Spider Mother's compound eyes contracted violently, and her entire body trembled slightly.

After a moment of silence, it slowly lowered its head, letting out a low whimper, and then sent a thought toward Anton. It was full of clear weakness and submission.

Anton smiled slightly before dispelling the lightning in his palm.

He had not yet fully mastered the Purple Heaven Divine Thunder; it needed to be enhanced by the Gangyun to unleash its powerful force, enough to severely injure the Dark Spider Mother.

If the Dark Spider Queen doesn't surrender soon, this Purple Heaven Divine Thunder will deplete both of his Qi Clouds, leaving him with no trump cards.

If it really comes to that, he will most likely choose to kill him directly to avoid giving the opponent any chance to retaliate.

Fortunately, the Dark Spider Queen eventually chose to yield.

Anton was quite satisfied with the result.

After all, it would be a waste to kill a creature at the peak of sainthood, and one that also possesses the potential to become a god in the future.

However, figuring out how to control this guy is a problem.

The Great Dao Jade Slip contains numerous methods for controlling beasts, but they are of little use to the Dark Spider Mother, which is equivalent to a Nascent Soul stage spirit beast.

In fact, in the cultivation world, spirit beasts that have reached the Nascent Soul stage are basically impossible to control through coercive means.

Most sects establish long-term patronage or cooperative relationships with spirit beasts, using profit to motivate the spirit beasts to serve the sect.

If we want to command the Dark Spider Queen, it seems that we can only start from this aspect.

Anton seemed to be deep in thought.

Meanwhile, the Dark Elf Matriarch was completely dumbfounded.

The moment they saw the Dark Spider Queen submit, they felt as if their worldview had been shattered.

The Dark Spider Queen, who was at the pinnacle of sainthood and terrifying in their eyes, actually wagged her tail and begged for mercy from an elf.

They wouldn't have believed it if they hadn't seen it with their own eyes.

At this moment, Anton turned his head, his gaze finally falling on the group of dark elves not far away.

As his divine sense swept over the area, he immediately understood.

He already knew from intelligence that there were twelve mistresses in Shadow City.

Apart from the two young girls at the very back, the other twelve dark elves before them were all legendary-level.

If nothing unexpected happens, all the Dark Elf Matriarchs of Shadow City are here.

Anton spoke with a half-smile: "You must be the Dark Elf Matriarch of Shadow City."

These words were like a bucket of ice water poured over their heads, jolting the matriarchs awake from their shock.

Heather was the first to react, almost reflexively kneeling on one knee and bowing her head deeply: "My lord, Heather Farrell, the First Mistress of Shadow City, is willing to lead all of Shadow City to obey your command."

The other eleven mistresses also came to their senses at this time, cursing Heather for being a coward, but their actions were swift and decisive. They also knelt down and offered flattering words of loyalty to Anton.

Maya knelt down behind her mother, her head bowed, her gaze fixed on the broken spider silk on the gravel in front of her knees, her ears filled only with the pounding of her own heart.

Anton swept his gaze over the twelve kneeling figures and spoke calmly, "All power of Shadow City is hereby transferred to Nine Nether City. From this day forward, Shadow City will no longer exist independently and will be fully taken over by Nine Nether City. Do you have any objections?"

The matriarchs were taken aback upon hearing this, and then realized that the elf before them was the master of the mysterious Nine Nether City.

Why would surface elves come to the Underdark to establish their power?

But the thought only flashed through their minds for a brief moment before quickly receding.

The defeat and submission of the Dark Spider Queen had completely crushed any thought of resistance in their hearts.

Faced with this terrifying being who could easily suppress even the Dark Spider Queen, all they could do was submit.

They lowered their heads, their expressions becoming even more respectful, and responded in unison.

"As you command, sir."

Anton looked at their bowed backs and a hint of mockery crossed his mind.

Most forces in the Underdark surrendered readily because the rules here are simple—survival of the fittest.

Surrendering is not shameful when facing an enemy stronger than oneself.

However, precisely because of this, their loyalty is often worrying; they will betray without hesitation given the chance, and various means must be used to check and balance them.

Fortunately, he has no shortage of means to check and balance others.

"Go back and prepare; the army from Nine Nether City will arrive soon."

Anton said no more and turned to walk towards the Dark Spider Mother.

The enormous spider crouched low, its compound eyes following his figure out of the corner of its eye.

With a slight thought, Anton released the sword pellet from his chest, which transformed into a beam of sword light that enveloped the man and the beast before streaking away like a meteor into the distance.

The cave fell silent again.

The dark elves slowly rose, looked at each other, and the atmosphere became somewhat silent.

Just moments before, they were discussing how to fight against Nine Nether City, confident that as long as the Dark Spider Mother was there, they would definitely win the war.

In the blink of an eye, his illusions were completely shattered by the master of Nine Nether City.

They had already surrendered and submitted before the army of Jiuyou City even arrived.

But there's nothing we can do. Without the Dark Spider Mother, Shadow City is unlikely to be a match for Nine Nether City.

Not to mention that behind the other side stood a top-tier expert who could even suppress the Dark Spider Queen.

They now have only two choices: either submit or abandon Shadow City and migrate immediately as a whole.

In the Darklands, migration is not such a simple matter.

In any habitable place in the underground world, there will inevitably be a force occupying it.

Finding a place large enough to accommodate the entire tribe and defeating the local forces would require countless casualties.

Moreover, even if they migrate away, who can guarantee that they won't be pursued by the Nine Nether City?

If it really comes to that, they probably won't have a second chance to submit.

The cost of running away is far too high; in comparison, surrender seems to be the wisest choice.

After a long silence, Heather finally spoke.

"Let's go back. We still need to prepare to welcome the Nine Nether City army."

The other mistresses all had very complicated expressions upon hearing this.