A cold drop of sweat slid down Renewal's face.
He slowly looked up…
—and his fear deepened.
Fragments of memory surged through his mind.
That "tree"… it wasn't a tree.
The image from before resurfaced.
The so-called "uncle" had once held a floating stone, light circling it as a hologram appeared.
Artifact Peak: Image Capture.
A young man had been shown—average in appearance at first glance, yet with long raven hair and eyes that felt ancient beyond time.
Renewal had frozen back then.
"This guy… doesn't look like a tree."
The uncle had only nodded.
"Look closer. The ears."
Renewal focused—roots had been covering them.
"Oh…"
"Quite a handsome boy, isn't he?"
"…I don't know about that."
Present
Renewal's pupils shrank.
"…How are you alive?"
The young man only smiled coldly, holding the face artifact.
"You're not even going to ask how we defeated you?"
A chilling sneer formed on his lips.
"Sheng Zoi Bai!"
With a snap of his fingers—
Two wooden chairs and a table appeared.
He calmly sat down, as if this were a casual meeting.
"Renewal… formerly known as the Blood Killer. We are here to negotiate—"
"Forget that!" Renewal snapped. "How are you alive?!"
Sheng Zoi Bai sighed, standing up.
Behind Renewal stood figures he recognized—
The Seven Element Rainbow Sect Immortals.
Renewal's expression twisted.
How are they here? Why are these old monsters working together?
Even they… shouldn't rival him.
Confusion flooded his mind.
Then suddenly—
His eyes widened.
"Wait… you're that tree. Which means…"
His voice dropped.
"You split your soul… and planted it in another realm."
Silence.
"In that realm, it formed a new body… lived a new life…"
This was an immortal technique.
A forbidden one.
When an immortal neared death, they could split their soul and send fragments into other realms. If one fragment matured, it could return and revive the original body.
But—
The chances were nearly zero.
Almost impossible.
No one had ever succeeded.
Until now.
Sheng Zoi Bai smiled.
"You could've done the same."
"…But you didn't. Why?"
Renewal's face darkened.
"Idiot… a split soul can only survive half a year without the main body."
His voice sharpened.
"How did yours survive for…"
"…Three million years?"
For the first time—
Sheng Zoi Bai's expression turned serious.
He raised a hand.
"And now… I only have a few days left."
Renewal blinked.
"…What?"
"I only have…"
Sheng Zoi Bai lifted a single finger.
"…nine hours."
Silence.
Renewal stared at him, speechless.
"What do
Renewal's lips parted slightly, but no words came out. His mind, sharp and calculating even in chaos, failed to process what he had just heard.
"…Nine hours?" he finally muttered, his voice low and uncertain. "You expect me to believe that?"
Sheng Zoi Bai didn't answer immediately.
Instead, he slowly sat back down, brushing a strand of raven hair over his shoulder. His movements were calm—too calm for someone standing on the edge of death.
"I don't need you to believe me," he said quietly. "Time will prove it."
Renewal's eyes narrowed.
Something was wrong.
This wasn't arrogance.
This wasn't a bluff.
This was certainty.
A faint tremor passed through the air.
The massive pagoda above them creaked, ancient and heavy, as if responding to something unseen.
Sheng Zoi Bai lifted his gaze slightly.
"I made a deal," he continued. "With something… older than you, older than me… older than this entire continent."
Renewal's heart skipped.
"The Culprit of Fate Building…" he whispered.
BOOM.
The sky distorted.
The pagoda gates slowly opened wider—
And the shadow behind them shifted.
Yao Ming stepped forward, half his face illuminated, the other half swallowed by writhing, ancient eyes that seemed to look back at reality itself.
"You're slow, Renewal," Yao Ming said lazily. "He already told you the important part."
Renewal's fists clenched.
"…You," he growled. "You're the one I fought."
A faint smile touched Yao Ming's lips.
"And you still lost."
Before Renewal could respond—
Sheng Zoi Bai raised his hand slightly.
"Enough."
The space around them dimmed.
"Let's not waste what little time I have."
He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table.
"Renewal… do you understand what it means for me to have only nine hours left?"
Renewal didn't answer.
But his eyes… sharpened.
"It means," Sheng Zoi Bai continued softly,
"That everything I do now… carries no consequence for me."
A pause.
"No fear. No hesitation. No future to protect."
A cold chill ran down Renewal's spine.
For the first time—
He felt it.
Danger.
Real danger.
"I came back," Sheng Zoi Bai said, his voice dropping to a near whisper,
"Not to live…"
His eyes locked onto Renewal's.
"…but to finish something."
Silence crushed the space between them.
Even Yao Ming stopped smiling.
Then—
Renewal laughed.
At first, it was low.
Then louder.
Then wild.
"Hah… hahahaha!"
His aura surged, blood energy leaking out like a rising tide.
"You think nine hours is enough to threaten me?"
The ground beneath them cracked.
"Even if the heavens themselves gave you another life—"
His eyes burned with killing intent.
"You're still beneath me."
Sheng Zoi Bai didn't react.
He simply… watched.
Calm.
Unmoving.
"…Am I?" he said softly.
BOOM!!!
A torrent of blood exploded into the sky.
The pressure was suffocating.
Violent.
Unstable.
Inside the Jade Palace—
Mingyin suddenly stiffened.
A deep, suffocating pressure spread through the air like an omen.
His eyes darkened.
"…So it begins."
He closed his eyes briefly.
Calculating.
Weighing everything.
"The next move…" he murmured,
"…is a gamble."
He exhaled slowly.
"Fifty percent chance of survival…"
A pause.
"…or death."