Chapter 782: The Truth, Chesspiece (2)

"Senior, the powerhouses from the Devil Realm are one thing, but what about the other Archimmortals and Archdeities from various factions in the Dao Realm? Would they willingly become members of the devil army?" Wu Yuan asked, his voice tinged with confusion.

"If they were Astral Monarchs, I naturally couldn't force them if they were unwilling to join the devil army," Sovereign Black Devil replied, his voice as cold as ice.

"But a group of mere Archimmortals and Archdeities?" His eyes glinted with a merciless light. "If I want them to join, they'll have no choice but to comply, whether they like it or not... Rest assured, if you succeed, they will follow your orders without question.

Even if they only sent their mana bodies or ether bodies, the measures I’ve put in place can still affect their true selves," Sovereign Black Devil explained, his tone matter-of-fact.

Wu Yuan listened, his heart pounding with shock.

In an instant, he understood. It must be soul control.

He realized that promising individuals like Archimmortal Xiang Fei and Astral Lord Gu Shou, once chosen, would likely have their souls controlled by Sovereign Black Devil, rendering them incapable of resistance.

His thoughts turned to Cen Jiang and the numerous servants of his body refiner self, whose souls were all similarly under the Eldritch Court's control.

Controlling souls was incredibly difficult and it came with numerous drawbacks.

Sovereign Black Devil possesses such terrifying power even after his death?

Wu Yuan marveled inwardly.

If he were still alive, he might even be able to control Astral Monarchs directly, turning them into his servants.

The so-called devil army troops are nothing more than slaves.

Wu Yuan thought, shaking his head slightly. He was beginning to understand the nature of Sovereign Black Devil.

This being, self-proclaimed to be a devil, was certainly no benevolent entity. Acting without any regard for others, he truly lived up to the name of ‘devil’!

Simultaneously, Wu Yuan’s initial confusion about why the inheritance candidates were chosen from Archimmortals and Archdeities, rather than Astral Monarchs, was now resolved.

It was because the measures prepared by Sovereign Black Devil were incapable of controlling the souls of beings as powerful as Astral Monarchs.

No matter how hard the other Archimmortals and Archdeities fought, their fates were sealed in tragedy.

Perhaps those who were eliminated early in the first trial, losing only their mana bodies or ether bodies, are actually the lucky ones.

Wu Yuan mused silently.

Such was the nature of destiny. Those with great power could do as they pleased, while the weak had no means to resist. They could only choose to believe or disbelieve.

Evidently, most Archimmortals and Archdeities chose to believe Big Devil's words, exerting their fullest efforts, yet they were doomed to a tragic fate. But there was nothing to be done about it.

In fact, am I any different?

Wu Yuan sighed inwardly.

By choosing to send my true self here, my fate is already sealed. I can't resist Sovereign Black Devil; I can only choose to trust him.

What would the consequences be? Wu Yuan didn't know. He could only make his choices, take his chances, and hope that he would emerge victorious and survive.

Power.

Wu Yuan reflected silently.

If I possessed the strength of a Sovereign, even Sovereign Black Devil couldn't force me to make choices against my will.

As if sensing Wu Yuan's thoughts, Sovereign Black Devil said slowly, "You are an Ancestral Pagoda imprint bearer. Others may choose to kill you, but they can never control your soul. If anyone dared to invade and control your soul, they would likely incur punishment from the Ancestral Pagoda."

"Unable to control my soul?" Wu Yuan was taken aback.

"Don't think this is a good thing," Sovereign Black Devil sneered, shaking his head. "This is all because we imprint bearers are merely 'food' to the Ancestral Pagoda."

Wu Yuan fell silent.

He could sense the deep resentment and melancholy in Sovereign Black Devil's heart. He seemed to harbor intense hatred towards the Ancestral Pagoda.

"Senior Black Devil," Wu Yuan ventured. "If you believe the Ancestral Pagoda to be so malevolent... Why leave behind this legacy? Wouldn't it be better to simply destroy this strand of the Ancestral Pagoda’s essence?"

He couldn't understand.

"You truly are naive," Sovereign Black Devil glanced at Wu Yuan. "Do you really think death brings liberation?"

Wu Yuan was stunned.

"Have you ever heard of reincarnation?" Sovereign Black Devil asked.

"I have," Wu Yuan nodded. The concept of reincarnation had existed since ancient times, prevalent even on the Blue Planet.

"Reincarnation does indeed exist. But there are no such things as the underworld, hell, or the six realms of reincarnation as commonly imagined. Those are merely the fantasies of ordinary beings.”

Sovereign Black Devil spoke gravely, "The animus of life is essence born from the workings of heaven and earth. Once it perishes, it will be reborn in the vast rivers of space and time across the megaverse under the operational rules of heaven and earth... In reincarnation, it is absolutely impossible to awaken memories of past lives.

The origin of all life stems from the beginning of this cycle of heaven and earth, and when the samsara cycle of heaven and earth concludes, all animus will be completely annihilated, with no possibility of returning."

Wu Yuan listened, awestruck.

In this vast heaven and earth, reincarnation truly existed? This information indeed surpassed his imagination.

"Trapped in samsara, each new life is, under normal circumstances, like a true death, with almost no connection to past lives," Sovereign Black Devil continued. "There is only one exception, and that is becoming a supreme entity, reaching the ultimate heights.

Once one transcends the samsara cycle of heaven and earth, they can break free from reincarnation, no longer suffering its torments, and also awaken memories of life after life since the very beginning of the samsara cycle of heaven and earth.

However, in each samsara cycle of heaven and earth, countless Sovereigns are born, yet how many truly transcend?" Sovereign Black Devil's voice grew somber.

Wu Yuan remained silent.

Transcendence was indeed incredibly difficult.

"The Ancestral Pagoda, too, can escape the constraints of samsara cycles," Sovereign Black Devil's eyes flashed with a hint of fear. "For all Ancestral Pagoda imprint bearers, it's fine if they haven't merged with the Ancestral Pagoda’s essence, but once they do, even if they perish, hoping to re-enter the cycle of reincarnation is nothing but a pipe dream."

Wu Yuan was taken aback.

Once an Ancestral Pagoda imprint bearer merged with a strand of the Ancestral Pagoda’s essence, they couldn't enter the cycle of reincarnation even in death?

"This remnant consciousness of mine can clearly sense that my true spirit has been trapped, unable to enter the cycle of reincarnation," Sovereign Black Devil shook his head gently. "Without entering the cycle of reincarnation, I will never have a chance of breaking free.

Perhaps the probability of eventually reaching the supreme level after struggling through each reincarnation is extremely low, and even if I were to reach the supreme level in the future, I would no longer be who I am today. But, there is still a glimmer of hope.

Being bound eternally by the Ancestral Pagoda leaves not even a shred of hope," Sovereign Black Devil spoke slowly.

"If I wish to be reincarnated, there is only one possibility. That is to choose an Ancestral Pagoda imprint bearer to replace me, to merge with this strand of the Ancestral Pagoda’s essence. Then, the Ancestral Pagoda will naturally set me free," Sovereign Black Devil looked at Wu Yuan. "Do you understand?"

Wu Yuan now understood clearly.

Sovereign Black Devil had set up this inheritance, not truly for the sake of finding a successor, but to free himself from the Ancestral Pagoda's constraints and regain his freedom to enter the cycle of reincarnation.

And he, Wu Yuan, was the chosen one.

"I am not the one who chose you," Sovereign Black Devil shook his head. "Your arrival here might also be due to the intangible guidance of the Ancestral Pagoda. Even without me, you would surely have had the 'coincidental chance' to merge with a strand of the Ancestral Pagoda’s essence in the future.

From the day we became Ancestral Pagoda imprint bearers, we no longer had a choice. None whatsoever." Sovereign Black Devil looked at Wu Yuan with a hint of pity. "This is truly a path of no return."

Wu Yuan's heart trembled.

He now understood why Sovereign Black Devil had said those things earlier... If what he said was true, this was indeed a path of no return.

Realizing this, Wu Yuan fell silent.

"Moreover, you have no choice now either," Sovereign Black Devil looked at Wu Yuan. "This is your true self. You have only two paths before you: either attempt to merge with that strand of the Ancestral Pagoda’s essence – fail and die, or succeed and inherit everything I've left for you.

Or, I kill you right now!" Sovereign Black Devil said casually.

It was a blatant threat, revealing Sovereign Black Devil's true nature. This was his inherent character.

Either choose to merge, with death as the price of failure.

Wu Yuan pondered silently.

Or refuse, and die all the same.

Even if he refused today, could he escape in the future? Wu Yuan understood he had no choice. Now, there was only one path of survival – successful fusion.

"It’s isn’t all disadvantages," Sovereign Black Devil said. "If you succeed, your chances of becoming a Sovereign or an Overlord are high with the aid of the Ancestral Pagoda, and even your hope of transcendence will greatly increase."

𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦

Wu Yuan remained silent inwardly.

Transcendence? That was too distant a goal.

"Senior Black Devil, wherein lies the difficulty of merging with this strand of Ancestral Pagoda’s essence?" Wu Yuan asked.

"I do not know," Sovereign Black Devil shook his head.

"You don't know?" Wu Yuan was taken aback.

"The Ancestral Pagoda is a supreme divine object, its physical form unfathomable. This strand of its essence is likely but a mere fraction of its essence power, yet it holds boundless profundities," Sovereign Black Devil explained.

"Throughout history, each black pagoda imprint bearer has fused with the Ancestral Pagoda's essence under different circumstances, with variations in their strength levels when initiating the process.

From what I learned from True Saint Shi Yuan, there are only two certainties. First, merging before transcendence increases the chances of success.

Second, failure means certain death."

Wu Yuan's heart raced. No wonder Big Devil stated that there was such a consequence. It wasn't a threat from Sovereign Black Devil himself, but from a supreme divine object, the Ancestral Pagoda.

"Once you die, no one can save you, not even the supreme beings.

Take the Spacetime Dao Master, for instance. He can resurrect many beings before they re-enter the cycle of reincarnation, even reviving fallen Astral Monarchs. But should you fail, even if he were willing to intervene, he couldn't bring you back," Sovereign Black Devil stated.

The Spacetime Dao Master can resurrect even fallen Astral Monarchs? Yet he wouldn’t be able to resurrect me?

Wu Yuan marveled at the Spacetime Dao Master's abilities.

He also sighed at the overwhelming power of the Ancestral Pagoda.

But Wu Yuan didn't feel too disheartened. Even if the Spacetime Dao Master could resurrect him, it all depended on whether the Spacetime Dao Master would be willing to do so.

"Ming Jian, all you can do now is give it your all," Sovereign Black Devil looked at Wu Yuan.

Wu Yuan nodded, now understanding everything.

"You've already crystallized Spacetime True Intent at such a young age, and your Dao Heart and willpower are exceptionally strong among your peers... At the very least, you're more talented than I was at your age," Sovereign Black Devil gazed down at Wu Yuan. "I succeeded back then, so I believe you can succeed as well."

Wu Yuan listened intently.

The future was unpredictable. Even if the Ancestral Pagoda harbored some grand conspiracy, he was powerless to resist it now.

All he could do was give his utmost effort, striving to survive the present challenge.

Whoosh!

Sovereign Black Devil pointed towards the void, and countless wisps of blood mist appeared, coalescing into a hazy, dreamlike tower of swirling crimson.

"This is the strand of the Ancestral Pagoda's essence."