Swallowing the Stars: The Birth of a Cosmic God King

Amidst the overwhelming discussion.

A post quickly rose to the top of the trending topics list.

The poster's ID is very ordinary, called "Shenghai Laozhang", and the verified information is "Physical Education Teacher of the Third Middle School of Shenghai Base City".

The post contained only one picture and one paragraph of text.

The accompanying image is still a frame taken from the video, showing Yan Ning carrying the corpse of the Deep Sea Demon Octopus, standing on the ruins, with the blood-red setting sun behind him and the receding tide of beasts in front of him.

Blood dripped from the sword.

His clothes were soaked in blood, and it was impossible to tell whether it was the monster's or his own.

His face was expressionless, showing neither the joy of victory nor the relief of surviving a disaster.

It was just calm.

A kind of peace that brings comfort, even makes you want to cry.

The text reads:

"I am fifty-two years old this year. I have lived in Shenghai for fifty-two years. I was six years old when the cataclysm occurred. My parents carried me out of the monster's mouth. I have seen too many beast tides and too many people die."

Every time, I wonder, when will this end? When will someone stand up and kill all these beasts?

"Today, I saw it."

"That man didn't even glance back at the tentacle. He disdained to look back, because he knew that with that one strike, even the most powerful beast would die."

"One man and one sword, and the sea will be at peace."

"From today onwards, I am no longer afraid."

"Azure blue, with mountains!"

Within ten minutes of its publication, the post garnered over a million likes, over 500,000 shares, and over 300,000 comments.

In the comments section, countless people posted:

"I feel the same way, as someone from Shanghai. This afternoon I was standing on my balcony when I heard an explosion in the distance, and my legs were shaking."

"I'm not from Shenghai, but do you understand that feeling? It's... that feeling of turning the tide!"

"I used to criticize him for putting on a show, but I apologize. Director Yan, you're not putting on a show, you're a savior!"

"My grandfather was a war god who died in the Northern Frontier last year. He once said: 'Humanity has survived to this day not because the monsters are not strong enough, but because there are always people willing to stand up. Yan Ning was that person.'"

"One man, one sword, and the seas are at peace." That line is so inspiring! I'm going to stick it on my bedside table!

......

The Palace of the God of War.

The council chamber was so quiet you could hear a pin drop.

The image on the holographic screen had frozen: Yan Ning stood on the ruins, sword in hand, with a blood-red setting sun behind him.

No one speaks.

Inspector Lu's teacup had long since gone cold; his thoughts were still immersed in the scene from before, and he didn't notice the movement in his hands at all.

Inspector Liu leaned back in his chair, his eyes fixed on the screen, as if trying to etch the image into his mind.

Those war gods who were just discussing amongst themselves were now all silent.

A long time passed.

Inspector Lu finally spoke, his voice hoarse: "Old Qin... just what kind of monster is your grandson-in-law?"

Qin Mufeng remained silent.

He sat there, his back ramrod straight, a calm smile on his face, as if he had expected this, and said indifferently:

Don't ask.

"You wouldn't understand even if I told you."

But deep down, I almost couldn't take it. Yan Ning, you've not just stood up, you've ripped a hole in the sky!

......

Shenghai Base City.

Operations command center.

Zhao Zhengguo stood motionless in front of the holographic screen.

Fang Ping stood behind him, his face deathly pale.

"Fang Ping," Zhao Zhengguo suddenly spoke.

"exist."

"You just said that Yan Ning only broke through to the Planetary level half a year ago, and at most he is at the second level of the Planetary level. Facing eighty Lord-level beasts would be suicide."

Fang Ping stared blankly, as if he had lost his mind.

"Planetary level two."

Zhao Zhengguo repeated the phrase, then smiled wryly, "A second-tier planetary-level beast, instantly killing a third-tier planetary-level king beast with a single strike—what kind of logic is that?"

Fang Ping lowered his head, not daring to answer.

Zhao Zhengguo did not press the matter further.

He turned around and looked out the window.

The lights of thousands of homes in Sheng Hai Base City twinkled in the night, and 300 million people were cheering for the appearance of that young man.

"Chairman Cho."

"Um?"

"I...I misjudged it."

"We all misjudged it."

......

deep sea.

Dark, cold, and silent.

Sunlight cannot penetrate the hundreds of meters deep seawater; only the occasional geothermal rays seeping from cracks in the seabed outline a blurry shape in the darkness.

But this silence was broken tonight.

A golden figure darted through the deep sea at an astonishing speed.

The Golden Horned Beast.

Its size has increased since it hatched, and its body, which is more than two meters long, is like a golden lightning bolt in the dark seawater. Wherever it passes, schools of fish scatter in fright and large sea monsters flee in a frenzy.

But there's no escaping it.

The Golden Horned Beast's perception range covered an area of ​​tens of kilometers, and the aura of each king-level monster was as clear as a torch in the night.

Yan Ning's consciousness was immersed in the perspective of the golden-horned behemoth.

He began to get used to this "dual perspective" feeling.

Multitasking is effortless.

"The first one."

The Golden Horned Beast locked onto a planetary-level second-tier king beast, a giant whale-like monster over a hundred meters in size, covered in thick carapace.

But in the face of the Golden Horned Beast, this "fortress" was as fragile as a toy.

The oppressive aura originating from the pinnacle of cosmic bloodline suddenly spread out, causing the giant whale king beast's body to tremble violently and freeze in place.

It's not that I don't want to run.

It was the suppression at the bloodline level that prevented it from even mustering the courage to escape.

With a gentle flick of its hooves, the golden-horned behemoth sliced ​​through the seawater, tearing a wound several meters long in the whale's belly.

Blood gushed out, turning the surrounding seawater a dark red.

The golden-horned behemoth pounced, opened its mouth, and began to devour.

It's not about eating.

It's absorption!

The Golden Horned Beast's devouring talent was on full display at this moment.

The life essence, flesh and blood energy, and even the primal energy in the crystal core of the giant whale king beast were being extracted, compressed, and transformed into nutrients for the golden horned giant beast at a visible speed.

The massive object, weighing tens of tons, was reduced to a shriveled, empty shell within minutes.

The golden-horned behemoth snorted, a hint of displeasure flashing in its golden vertical pupils.

"Planetary level two, too weak."

The thought flashed through Yan Ning's mind.

Too weak.

It's not that the King Beast is weak, but that the Golden Horned Beast's growth requirements are too great!

A second-tier planetary-level king beast, if placed in the hands of any human martial artist, would be enough to propel them from the peak of the first tier to the second tier.

But for the Golden Horned Beast, this amount of energy was merely a drop in the ocean.

"continue."

The golden-horned behemoth flicked its tail and disappeared into the deep sea once more.

The second one.

A planetary-level, second-tier peak, giant octopus king beast with tentacles thicker than the deep-sea demon octopus.

The oppressive aura dissipated.

Deterrence.

Claw strike.

Swallow.

In less than five minutes, the second one turned into a dried-up corpse.

The third one.

At the third level of the planetary realm, a colossal beast resembling but not quite a crocodile hides in a rocky cave on the seabed, attempting to use the terrain to evade the pursuit of the Golden Horned Beast.

But the golden-horned behemoth's senses locked onto its aura, and it smashed the reef to pieces.

A golden beam of light shot out at close range, blasting a large hole in the giant beast's head.

Swallow.

The fourth head, the fifth head, the sixth head...

One after another, king-level monsters disappeared silently into the deep sea.

They were once the overlords of this sea, beings that struck fear into the hearts of countless human martial artists.

But in the face of the Golden Horned Beast, they were merely nourishment!