The Empress Begs for Forgiveness? I, the Villainous Overlord, Won't Pretend Anymore! - Chapter 23:

Chapter 23:

Xu Ning took out the Supreme Dragon Blood and the Heaven-Earth Dao Bone from the system warehouse.

The Supreme Dragon Blood was a blood bead about the size of a phoenix eye, dark red in color. As soon as it appeared, a thick bloody aura filled the air. Just taking a breath of it made one feel refreshed and relaxed, and even the blood in his body seemed to boil faintly.

The Heaven-Earth Dao Bone was a palm-sized piece of bone, crystal clear and filled with extraordinary aura. Invisible laws of the great Dao spread from it like a spider web, emitting a mysterious power of space.

“Tsk tsk, this is exactly the setup of a Child of Destiny. Now, it’s mine!”

Xu Ning said to the system, “Use the Supreme Dragon Blood and the Heaven-Earth Dao Bone.”

The moment he finished speaking, the items in his hand vanished instantly.

In the next second, a vast surge of blood energy exploded from his dantian. A terrifying power rushed wildly through his meridians. Everywhere it passed, every muscle and even cell rejoiced, receiving a terrifying boost.

He let out a long breath and suddenly punched forward at the space before him!

BOOM!

The space trembled, then slowly cracked, revealing a pitch-black void with howling cold wind.

“As expected of a Child of Destiny’s talent. It’s truly terrifying. The strength of my physical body is now more than ten times stronger than before!”

“And that’s without even activating the Supreme Dragon Blood. Once activated, I could battle above my level!”

Suddenly, a sharp pain radiated from his chest as the order of the Dao descended and spread out.

His pupils shrank sharply. Everything around him slowed down drastically. He could faintly sense the surrounding spatial power with extreme clarity.

This sensation quickly faded, vanishing as if nothing had happened.

“As expected of the Heaven-Earth Dao Bone, truly mysterious and extraordinary! It’s a pity it hasn’t awakened yet. I wonder if I can use Fate Points to awaken it and upgrade it.”

“After all, it’s a divine ability that combines killing, escape, control, and divine speed. Naturally, it should be fully developed.”

“With these two divine treasures enhancing me, it’s like replacing a musket with a cannon.”

He took a deep breath to calm his slightly surging emotions. Scanning the great hall, he found nothing around except bones and formation markings.

He walked straight to the throne and kicked aside Long Lingtian’s corpse.

The Demon Lord must have left behind resources for a comeback. The secrets were most likely hidden in this throne.

Sure enough, the moment he sat on the throne, the dim formation patterns around lit up again, and pure demonic energy surged forth.

This demonic energy was the Demon Lord’s most precious treasure, refined from ancient gods and demons. It was extremely pure and rare in the world.

The pure demonic energy was incredibly overbearing. As soon as it entered his dantian, it devoured everything rapidly, transforming his dantian, meridians, flesh, and divine palace into a demonic body—far stronger than before by more than a hundredfold!

His cultivation also rose steadily: peak of 1st stage Heaven Venerable Realm, then 2nd stage… all the way up to the peak of 7th stage Heaven Venerable Realm before it finally stopped.

The formation around the throne gradually dimmed, and all the demonic energy in the hall disappeared without a trace.

The armrest on the right side of the throne trembled slightly, and a storage ring made of black iron, exuding a cold glow, shot out from a mechanism and flew into his arms as if it had intelligence.

Feeling the overwhelming demonic power surging inside him, Xu Ning slowly opened his eyes, a sharp gleam flashing in them.

“I’ve completely transformed now!”

He opened the system panel to check his gains.

[Host: Xu Ning]
[Identity: Direct heir of the Xu family, Prince of the North]
[Cultivation: Peak of 7th stage Heaven Venerable Realm]
[Physique: Peerless Demonic Body, Heaven-Earth Dao Bone (Five Decays of Heaven and Man – not long to live)]
[Cultivation Technique: Xu Family Origin Return Technique]
[Fate Points: 2,100]
[Warehouse: Demon Lord’s Storage Ring]

The Supreme Dragon Blood had been devoured by the demonic energy, transforming into the Peerless Demonic Body. Just by the name alone, he could tell it was of high grade. He guessed that the Demon Lord’s storage ring must contain matching demonic cultivation techniques, or even rare treasures.

Compared to when he entered the Demon Lord’s tomb, this panel was completely different.

Xu Ning was very satisfied. After raising those people like leeks for so long, this harvest was worth it—truly a fat wave.

But when he saw the eight words “Five Decays of Heaven and Man – not long to live,” he was stunned on the spot.

Could this be the Demon Lord’s curse before death?

“System, what is this Five Decays of Heaven and Man?” he asked.

[The Five Decays of Heaven and Man refer to five signs of decline. One appears each month, and when all five appear, even a celestial being must fall.]

“How can it be resolved? Can I use Fate Points?”

[There are two ways to resolve it: spend 10,000 Fate Points, or dual cultivate with someone bearing Dragon Qi to neutralize it.]

He couldn’t help but gasp.

10,000 Fate Points? Even if he drained a Child of Destiny dry, he wouldn’t have that many!

“What is Dragon Qi?”

[Dragon Qi is a higher-level form of Primordial Purple Qi. Only emperors can gather it, such as the Empress.]

The system’s explanation left him tongue-tied.

To break the Five Decays of Heaven and Man, he either had to harvest two Children of Destiny… or conquer the Empress?

The difficulty was ridiculous!

He calmed himself after a long while. There was nothing he could do now except take things one step at a time.

Next came the wrap-up.

Like taking full control of the Great Zhou royal family to use as his rear base.

Then, he would attend the Empress’s banquet at Qianqing Palace.

He left the hall and took Zhou Shuxian and the others with him, quickly departing the Demon Lord’s tomb.

When they emerged, they saw many cultivators already flying toward them from the distance, densely packed and endless.

It turned out that when he inherited the Demon Lord’s legacy, the chaotic laws in the secret realm had vanished. Those who had been too afraid to go deep rushed in all at once.

Xu Ning guessed that based on the Demon Lord’s original plan, these reckless cultivators who came rushing in were probably meant to become the Demon Lord’s nourishment.

In a way, he had just saved all of them.

Looking at the Demon Lord’s tomb towering in the sky, the crowd’s eyes were filled with greed and burning desire.

When they saw Xu Ning already standing there, everyone was stunned, their faces filled with shock.

“Wasn’t the Xu family’s young master lost in the secret realm? How is he here before us?”

“Who would’ve thought the Xu family’s young master actually studied the Dao of space!”

“He’s truly astonishing!”

As the crowd swarmed toward him, Xu Ning curled his lips into a cold smile.

He still had to maintain the image of a righteous and noble man. After all, no one liked a villain, especially one associated with the demonic path.

He spoke calmly, “Long Lingtian was consumed by darkness and fell into the demonic path. I, as Prince of the North, act in Heaven’s stead.”

His voice wasn’t loud, but it carried immense spiritual power and rang out like a giant bell, echoing in all directions.

After speaking, he slowly raised his hand. A terrifying force swept forth, forming a giant palm over 30 meters wide in mid-air. It slammed down on the Demon Lord’s tomb from above!

In an instant, the wind howled and the sky changed color!

With a thunderous explosion, the massive tomb shattered into countless fragments. The shockwaves obliterated everything within several kilometers—ruins, mountains, flowers, trees—all wiped out.

He did this, of course, to destroy the evidence. He couldn’t let others know he had inherited the Demon Lord’s legacy.

Let Long Lingtian be the scapegoat to the end. Wasn’t that more fitting?

Watching the shattered remains of the Demon Lord’s tomb scatter, the crowd was filled with both shock and fury.

They were shocked at Xu Ning’s casual strike, which displayed power far beyond that of ordinary Heaven Venerable Realm cultivators—truly terrifying.

And that was with his cultivation being restricted!

One could only imagine how terrifying his true strength was!

They were angry because Xu Ning had destroyed the “opportunity” before their eyes, though they dared only think it and not voice it.

Though they saw themselves as lords of their own domains, in the face of Xu Ning’s absolute power and terrifying background, none of them dared utter a word!

In fact, not only did they not dare complain, they had to flatter him instead.

“His Highness is righteous and noble, exterminating Long Lingtian and upholding justice. We admire him!”

“His Highness is wise and powerful! Long live His Highness!”

“Our Xuansheng Heavenly Domain has not seen such a peerless genius in a thousand years! To see him today brings tears to this old man’s eyes!”

To all this flattery, Xu Ning merely smiled faintly and didn’t respond.

He could sense their dissatisfaction and couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

Foolish people… if not for me, you all would’ve become the Demon Lord’s nourishment long ago!

He couldn’t be bothered to explain to these fools. With his hands behind his back, hiding his contributions and achievements, he led Zhou Shuxian and the others out of the secret realm.