The old man dressed in black released his spiritual sense to probe the entire Annihilation Mountain. A
few seconds later, he realized the extent of the damage. "What happened?!"
he murmured, looking puzzled.
"Humph!
How dare they destroy the Annihilation Mountain while I was absent?
Fine! Those so-called super forces will pay a heavy price for what they have done.
No one can destroy my place and expect to escape retribution."
The elder's face darkened as he sneered.
He walked out of the depths of the void in the Annihilation Mountain.
With his hands behind his back, he strolled around leisurely. Even at his most comfortable pace, he
was incredibly fast.
A moment later, a mountain appeared before him.
To his surprise, several creatures were fighting on the peak.
Many creatures were nearby, excitedly watching the battle.
The elder also sensed the intoxicating aura coming from divine pills located in a cave on the mountain's
top.
He immediately understood that the dozens of Divine Realm masters were fighting fiercely to determine
who got possession of the divine pills.
Several dead bodies were scattered on the ground, making it evident that some creatures had already
died in the battle.
Annihilation Mountain had become a popular place for cultivators to explore.
As such, killing was inevitable as cultivators would often clash during their adventures.
It wasn't unnatural or alarming for creatures to lose their lives here every day.
"Ha-ha! The pills are mine now!"
While the fierce battle raged, a short and strong man circumvented the other creatures and dashed
toward the cave's entrance.
He was so fast that he reached his destination in an instant.
As the other masters were caught off guard, they failed to stop him.
"Ha-ha!"
The short, strong man burst into laughter as he rushed into the cave. Greed shimmered in his eyes as
he reached out to grab those divine pills.
"Damn it!"
the other cultivators roared in unison.
Just as they were about to charge at the short man,
an old man in black robes appeared beside the pills, like a ghost.
He shot a cold glance at the masters attempting to get their hands on the pills.
"Old man, who the hell are you?
Get out, or I will kill you!"
the short, strong man snarled when the elder's presence caught him by surprise.
The elder remained silent and expressionless when he heard the threat.
"Since you want to die, I'll grant your wish!"
The short, strong man threw a punch at the elder in black. His fist enlarged rapidly, transforming into a
giant mountain as it headed for its target.
To everyone's surprise,
the colossal fist collided with an invisible force and exploded, even before it reached the elder.
The backlash from the impact didn't stop there.
Puff!
To everyone's horror, the short man's arm shattered. Bone fragments pierced his flesh and muscles
seconds before his arm burst into a cloud of blood mist.
Even before the masters had time to process what had happened,
the short, strong man's body swelled like a bubble and exploded, spraying blood and flesh everywhere.
Even his spiritual soul was destroyed.
Throughout the incident, the old man in black stood emotionless, arms casually placed behind his back.
He appeared unaffected and uninvolved, more like a spectator than a defender.
Everyone gasped.
Silence descended on the mountain after the short, strong man's agonized screams faded.
It was eerily quiet.
No one dared to make a sound.
Everyone gaped at the black-clothed old man as confusion and fear coursed through them.
His continued silence and emotionless glare sent a chill down their spines.
"Swear your allegiance to me.
Otherwise, I will kill you all."
The elder's calm voice echoed throughout the void.
"Sir, who are you?
I'm the prince of the heaven roc race.
My father is the chief of the heaven roc race,"
a slender young man announced as he stepped forward.
"I have never heard of the heaven roc race.
Doesn't matter.
But since you're rocs, I guess you and your kind are supposed to move extremely fast.
I need someone to run errands for me.
From now on, you and your kind will bow to me and work for me," the elder in black stated.
His voice was still devoid of emotion.
"How dare you?
You are so rude!
What makes you think that you can order us like this?" The prince of the heaven roc race was so
insulted that he pointed at the elder in black and yelled.
His anger continued to grow till he found himself trembling with rage.
"Guys, let's tear this rude old man to pieces.
Then we will decide who will have those divine pills,"
the prince of the heaven roc race suggested to the others.
"Okay!"
The other creatures thought for a while before agreeing.
For these Divine Realm masters, even one divine pill was a priceless treasure, and they were willing to
take such a risk for it.
"We'll work together and take out this old bastard."
Dozens of masters at the Divine Realm charged at the elder in black.
"You losers have the nerve to challenge me? This is ridiculous!"
The black-clothed old man shook his head. Despite their large numbers, the Divine Realm masters
were not a threat to the elder. In fact, killing them would be easy for him.
The elder stifled a yawn
as he pointed at the charging masters.
Puff! Puff! Puff!
His finger seemed to have magic power. Every time he stretched his finger, a master at the Divine
Realm would explode. Like before, even their spiritual souls would be shattered.
In less than two seconds,
all the masters at the Divine Realm had died, never to be resurrected.
Amid the bodies and the bloody remains stood the prince of the heaven roc race. He was so terrified
that fear had paralyzed him.
"You... You..." the prince of the heaven roc race muttered, unable to complete his sentence.
His face turned pale as he glanced at the destruction around him.
Even the creatures around the mountain were freaked out.
They gaped at the elder in the black robes in horror.
Instinctively, they wanted to flee, but they couldn't move. It was almost as if some enchantment was
controlling them.
"Do you want to live or die?" the black-clothed old man asked.
Unlike his previous emotionless demeanor, he flashed the prince of the heaven roc race a menacing
grin.
The young prince collapsed to his knees in front of the elder.
"Sir, please spare my life. I don't want to die!"
he begged as panic coursed through him.
"Now,
take me to your race's headquarters.
I will stay there for the time being.
And you and your people will run errands for me,"
the elder in black commanded flatly.
The young prince didn't dare to disobey.
"No problem!
I'll lead the way!
I will take you there as long as you let me live!" the prince of the heaven roc race assured as he
repeatedly kowtowed before the elder.
Now that he was scared out of his wits, he didn't have the courage to refuse.
"Such being the case, I will spare your life," the elder in black said.
In the span of a breath, he reached out, grabbed the divine pills, and swallowed them all.
"All of you must bow to me, or you will die,"
the elder in black announced as he glanced at the creatures around the mountain.
"Run now!" someone screamed.
Instantly, all the creatures around the mountain pivoted, ready to run.
None of them wanted to submit to this terrifying black-clothed old man of unknown origin.
"Go to hell!"
the elder in black said impassively.
With a snap of his fingers,
all the creatures who were on the run exploded, and their spiritual souls were destroyed.
Seeing this, the prince of the heaven roc race almost fainted.
The sound of his chattering teeth echoed across the now silent mountain.
"Let's go,"
the old man in black commanded as he strolled toward the Annihilation Mountain's entrance.
The prince of the heaven roc race, though unwilling, felt like some invisible force was dragging him
behind the elder.
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