Tianming Pavilion, internal training ground.
"Boom!"
The heavy alloy sandbag was burst open with a single punch!
The high-density filling inside exploded like a celestial maiden scattering flowers.
Ren Shitou was shirtless, his bronze muscles bulging, each one sculpted like granite.
Every punch he threw, every kick he delivered, was accompanied by a sonic boom that ripped through the air.
The entire training ground echoed with the terrifying sounds he created.
The surrounding "white" ordinary members, and even the "blue" senior members, looked at him with changed eyes… from yesterday's mockery and disdain, to today's awe, jealousy, and deep fear.
This man, who was still moving bricks yesterday, had now become an existence they needed to look up to.
Ren Shitou enjoyed this feeling very much.
The system's power made him stronger every second, and this unprecedented strength made him extremely arrogant.
He increasingly felt that he was a born King!
Just then, the training ground's door was pushed open with a "bang."
Lei Shen, who had been quickly healed by a healing ability user, walked in with a few trusted subordinates, his face grim.
He stared intently at Ren Shitou in the field, his eyes filled with undisguised resentment and killing intent.
"You trash, today I'll let you know how powerful we are!"
Lei Shen's voice was bone-chillingly cold.
He wasn't going to fight one-on-one today.
He was going to use the most direct group beatdown to break this guy's bones inch by inch, to let him know who was the one not to be provoked in Tianming Pavilion!
Ren Shitou slowly turned around, casually crushing a barbell plate in his hand, metal fragments rustling down from between his fingers.
He grinned, revealing a mouthful of white teeth.
"A defeated opponent dares to bark?"
The fighting spirit instantly erupted!
"You're looking for death!"
Lei Shen roared, lightning flashing around him, and he charged forward first!
The several senior members behind him also moved simultaneously, sealing all of Ren Shitou's escape routes from different angles!
A group beating instantly broke out!
...High-level, observation room.
Dongfang Yue and Fuzi, among others, were overlooking the chaotic battle below through a huge reinforced glass.
Fuzi frowned deeply, his aura subtly stirring, evidently wanting to intervene and stop this escalating internal conflict.
"Fuzi."
Dongfang Yue's clear, cold voice rang out.
She stopped Fuzi and said in a calm tone, "No need to interfere."
"Since Lei Shen is unwilling, let him get his revenge himself."
"The law of the jungle is an unchanging rule, and it is also the most effective way to resolve conflicts."
On the surface, she spoke grandiosely and impartially.
Underneath, a wisp of undetectable divine sense quietly extended, precisely stirring the seed that had long been buried within Lei Shen's body.
By eliminating an elite backbone, her position here would rise another notch.
Heart Demon Incantation, activate!
Lei Shen, who was besieging Ren Shitou, suddenly paused!
The next second, an unknown blaze of karmic fire erupted from the depths of his heart, instantly overwhelming his reason.
"Kill! Kill! Kill!"
His eyes turned crimson, his attacks completely lost their coherence, only pursuing the most extreme destructive power.
"Rumble!"
A thick bolt of lightning not only struck Ren Shitou but also enveloped one of his own teammates nearby!
"Lei Shen! Are you crazy?!"
The teammate, scorched black all over, let out an incredulous roar.
But Lei Shen couldn't hear him at all; he only wanted to destroy everything in front of him now!
Although Ren Shitou was besieged and under immense pressure, the system had endowed him with abnormal resistance to blows and the characteristic of growing stronger the more he fought.
With the ebb and flow, plus Lei Shen's frantic output and
"pig teammate" behavior of even attacking his own allies… an opportunity!
Ren Shitou seized a gap in Lei Shen's attack, and like a cannonball, he slammed into his embrace, a punch filled with all his strength, fiercely striking his chest!
"Pfft—!"
Lei Shen, still in mid-air, spat out a large mouthful of blood, crashed against the wall, and once again fell unconscious.
The remaining few thugs looked at their boss lying on the ground, then at the "monster" covered in blood but with even greater fighting spirit, and all felt a chill in their hearts, retreating a few steps in unison.
The battle was over.
Ren Shitou won easily.
He completely solidified his position as the "Newcomer King."
As for Lei Shen, because he "couldn't even win with a group," his prestige was swept away, and he became the laughingstock of the entire Tianming Pavilion.
In the observation room, Dongfang Yue looked at the result below, a barely perceptible arc curving at the corner of her mouth.
Just like that, without showing off, she easily crippled an elite backbone… At the same time.
Several kilometers away, Lu Family Manor was peaceful and serene.
Gu Qingcheng, over eight months pregnant, was lying on the bed, quietly taking a nap.
The sunlight from outside the window passed through the glass, gently falling on her heavily pregnant belly.
A strange scene occurred.
Those golden rays of sunlight were actually drawn by an invisible force field, converging into a warm pillar of light, gently enveloping the place where new life was being nurtured.
In the corner of the bedroom, a pot of originally unremarkable Clivia was visibly unfurling its flower buds at a speed visible to the naked eye, fully blooming.
On the delicate petals, even drops of dew-like liquid condensed; the liquid was crystal clear, emitting a refreshing fragrance, and the energy contained within was extremely pure.
"Thump… thump… thump…"
Inside Gu Qingcheng's womb, the fetal heartbeat was like the drumbeats of heaven and earth, steady and powerful.
Each beat formed an invisible "Dao rhyme," silently spreading outwards from Lu Family Manor as its center… This fluctuation was imperceptible to mortals.
But to certain special existences, it was no less than a super earthquake of magnitude twelve!
...Tianming Pavilion, Stargazing Platform.
This was "Tianji's" territory.
A giant holographic star chart was simulating the "flow of fortune" of the entire world.
Mr. Tianji was monitoring the changes in data as usual.
Suddenly!
"Beep! Beep! Beep!"
The entire Stargazing Platform was filled with extremely harsh alarm sounds!
The holographic star chart began to flicker and vibrate violently!
Above the star map representing "Magic City" and even the entire "Eastern World," an unprecedented "Emperor Star," emitting a supremely domineering purple-gold radiance, was slowly rising!
This star was too bright!
Its radiance, like a magnificent sun, was domineering, majestic, and supreme!
In just an instant, it completely suppressed all other stars representing the Tianming Zhe (Fated Ones) around it, making them dim and lusterless, like fireflies not daring to compete with the bright moon!
"Pfft—!"
"Tianji," who was facing the star chart, was struck by lightning!
He violently spat out a large mouthful of blood, his body swaying precariously, his face filled with shock and disbelief!
"This… what kind of fate is this?!"
"Completely unable to continue the deduction…"
"An Emperor Star descends? In the Age of Dharma Decline… how is it possible… for such a terrifying existence to be born?!"
His voice became sharp and distorted due to extreme fear!
...A moment later, an emergency meeting was held.
Fuzi, Jueying, and Dongfang Yue were urgently summoned to the Stargazing Platform.
They looked at the dazzling purple-gold "Emperor Star," and then at "Tianji," who was spitting blood and in a sorry state, and everyone was in shock.
Tianji wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth, and with a trembling finger, pointed at the "Emperor Star."
He gave his answer with an extremely solemn tone, yet with a hint of "I've seen through everything."
"I understand… I finally understand!"
"Ren Shitou's rise is no accident! Nor is it a stroke of luck!"
"He… he is the embodiment of this Emperor Star! Or rather, he is the vanguard projected into the human world before the Emperor Star's descent!"
"We were all mistaken! That Ren Shitou, whom we thought was a brute, is the true King of Destiny of our era!"
"He wasn't trash before; he was just a hidden dragon in the abyss!"
"Now, the dragon has raised its head!"
Fuzi and Jueying listened to this "logical" explanation, and then linked it to Ren Shitou's abnormal speed of rise, and both showed expressions of sudden realization.
So that's how it is!
Only Dongfang Yue, with her head lowered, had a trace of unshakeable confusion flashing in the depths of her clear, cold eyes.
For some reason, she always felt… that things weren't that simple.
But she couldn't explain why.
She just felt as if there was still a mastermind behind all of this… In Lu Cheng's study.
He leaned comfortably on the sofa, looking at Tianji's "divine stick" appearance on the virtual light screen, beating his chest and spitting, and finally couldn't help but burst out laughing.
"Hahahahaha… interesting, truly interesting."
"My son just turned over and stretched in his mother's belly."
"As a result, you smart people, who claim to see through the secrets of heaven, directly crowned my newly cultivated employee with the crown of the King of Destiny?"
As for why his son would have such abilities… his father was a great villain, his mother was the fated heroine, it would be problematic if he didn't have any anomalies.
In fact, Lu Cheng could even sense a trace of True Dragon Qi in Gu Qingcheng's belly… He looked at the rapidly increasing "villain points" in the system for Ren Shitou's account, and the smile on his lips grew even wider.
"Alright then."
"Since you all say so…"
"Then I'll… just make him a more competent King."