Chapter 633: Reaping What He Sowed

As the Hive Sovereign Harris chuckled sinisterly, Ye Nan kept his eyes closed, his fingers continuously tracing across his wristwatch, passing repeatedly through the ethereal bodies of Elise and Smila.

“Disgusting.”

“You’re doing this on purpose.”

Elise and Smila could no longer endure it; they both recoiled together. Though they had no physical form, they could not tolerate Ye Nan’s touch—since they could not touch him in return, it felt profoundly unfair.

“I’m just contemplating an idea,” Ye Nan’s gaze turned cold. “Our warships are nearly annihilated. The bio-monsters have contributed not a single ounce of value. The Cosmic Emperor’s defense is simply too strong.”

His gaze settled on the Cosmic Emperor, who unleashed divine might—each punch shattered countless insects. The immense force, upon entering their bodies, gave them no chance to dissipate it; it exploded internally, reducing them to fragments.

“Has this become a war of attrition? No, I see no sign of victory.”

His eyes locked onto the Cosmic Emperor. As if sensing Ye Nan’s gaze, the Cosmic Emperor turned his clumsy body, revealing a faint smile, then turned back, opened his mouth, and sucked in the hive swarm. A gravitational pull akin to a black hole erupted—vast hordes of insects poured in like water down a funnel.

Simultaneously, the Cosmic Emperor’s body began to glow brilliantly.

“He’s eating the hive, digesting them, turning them into his own power,” Ye Nan’s expression darkened. Though the hive’s mass deaths benefited him, if that benefit came at the cost of the Cosmic Emperor’s growing strength, Ye Nan was far from pleased.

“That damned Harris—if he doesn’t stop this foolishness, we’re finished.”

Fortunately, the Hive Sovereign Harris was not that foolish. While the Cosmic Emperor devoured the insects en masse, he retained a portion of the hive as bait, while the rest retreated.

“That damned Cosmic Emperor,” countless heads of the Hive Sovereign Harris brimmed with fury, countless angry gazes fixed upon the Cosmic Emperor. Had looks been lethal, the Cosmic Emperor would have died countless times over.

“Ye Nan, what should we do now?” The Hive Sovereign Harris’s voice, transmitted through covert channels across more than a dozen solar systems, reached Ye Nan’s ears.

“Do as you please.” Ye Nan formed a silent lip movement, then sneered at the furiously enraged Hive Sovereign Harris. “That Harris must have lost his mind—asking me for advice? How absurd.”

“With a pig like him as an ally, I’d only be dragged down. Better to wait for my own opportunity.”

He held the Magic Power Orb and was in no hurry. He had already discerned the Cosmic Emperor’s combat pattern—this being was a devourer of planets. He now knew precisely how to counter him.

“If this works, I won’t lose.”

The Hive Sovereign Harris, having received no reply from Ye Nan, was deeply conflicted. His original swarm tactics were useless against the Cosmic Emperor—no matter how many insects he sent, none could breach his defense. Even attempts at attrition collapsed under the Cosmic Emperor’s power gain through consumption.

Now, he seemed to have no option left but direct assault.

“Damn Cosmic Emperor. Damn Ye Nan. Damn the hidden bastard.” The Hive Sovereign Harris roared in fury.

He finally realized he had underestimated the Cosmic Emperor. The hive’s conventional tactics were utterly useless before him. The swarm served only to fuel his power—nothing more. No matter how hard their mandibles, no matter how cunning their attacks, all were jokes against the Cosmic Emperor’s flawless form.

Without his greatest weapon, the hive was powerless before the Cosmic Emperor.

Yet the natural ally, Ye Nan, had withdrawn. Add to that the Cosmic Emperor’s mention of a hidden Chosen One—and the Hive Sovereign Harris dared not move.

“You seem fearful. Are you afraid of my power?” The Cosmic Emperor’s deafening voice ignored the laws of physics, echoing throughout the void.

“Not afraid of your power—just not ready yet,” Ye Nan sneered. “I’m not that fool Harris. I don’t know what madness has overtaken him, making him so furious and arrogant.”

Upon hearing this, the Hive Sovereign Harris erupted in rage. “Damn Ye Nan, you treacherous, stupid, hell-bound bastard—how dare you insult me?”

“Insulting you is mild. I’d rather hit you.” Ye Nan’s form vanished, then reappeared before the Hive Sovereign Harris, punching one of his heads.

The colossal body was flung away by the punch, drifting through space. The surrounding insects, seeing their leader struck, flew into a frenzy, clawing and snapping toward Ye Nan to teach him a lesson.

“These trash insects.” Two superheated beams shot from his eyes, sweeping across the spaceborne insects. At 6100 degrees Celsius, they were instantly vaporized.

“You bastard!” The Hive Sovereign Harris snapped back to awareness, enraged. “How dare you ambush me?”

At the Hive Sovereign Harris’s voice, the surrounding insects halted their advance and slowly retreated, leaving Ye Nan a wide open space.

Of course, the space was not meant for Ye Nan—it was for Harris. His massive body slowly shifted forward until he stood before Ye Nan.

Compared to Harris’s ten-thousand-zhang frame, Ye Nan looked like a child. He looked up at the colossal being, unmoved by its size.

“Size does not equal strength, Hive Sovereign Harris. Have you still not recognized your own nature?” Ye Nan smiled faintly. “You weren’t always like this. Rage filled your mind. From man to insect—you truly believe you are one now?”

“Foolish! The hive is supreme!” Harris slammed his palm down. Immense force crushed the surrounding space; black fissures flickered into view. Ye Nan heard a faint groan.

It was space itself groaning—suffering under the weight of the Hive Sovereign Harris’s power.

“I have already perfected the Aio Body, linked to every hive creature. Their strength is my strength,” Harris roared madly.

“That’s why your mind turned from human to insect,” Ye Nan sighed. His body vanished in an instant, slipping from between Harris’s fingers.

Cosmic space layered upon itself, countless dimensions overlapping. The Subspace Network, however, was a separate web, hidden deep within space. Though Harris’s power was immense, shattering all dimensions in a single blow and extending force to the Subspace Network was nearly impossible.

Harris had always behaved normally before—though dense-witted, he never acted so impulsively or irrationally. Sometimes Ye Nan even doubted whether he was still a man or truly an insect.

From past to present, he had always remembered he was human. Though his blood and genes had changed, his memories remained intact. He had protected his own mind.

But Harris was different. He was once a man—but now he acted like an insect. Was he still himself?

His form vanished. The next instant, Ye Nan appeared behind the Cosmic Emperor, standing on his shoulder, gazing coldly at him. “You seem to understand something.”

“What?” The Cosmic Emperor frowned deeply. He made no move to attack Ye Nan—not even the thought crossed his mind. He allowed Ye Nan to stand on his shoulder, his rough voice rumbling. “If you mean the Aio Body of the Chosen One, perhaps I can answer.”

“Speak.” Ye Nan’s reply was brief.

“The Aio Body originates from the true form of Aio, ruler of the Toril system. Aio forged it by extracting the soul essence of all Toril deities. Its core is the Divine Core.”

“This Chosen One, Harris, cultivates the Aio Body. Judging by his appearance, he synthesized it by draining the soul essence of the hive. Theoretically, he succeeded.”

“But he lacks a Divine Core. The savage thoughts from the hive souls relentlessly assault his will. Slowly, he lost himself.”

“So he was tricked?” Ye Nan understood at once. The Aio Body was a trap. With his Sargan memories, he knew cosmic fundamentals: in the Milky Way, matter outweighs energy—hence technology flourished, while cultivation was suppressed. Both Sargan and other civilizations studied technology first, then accessed the Laws, using tech to control them.

In such a system, forming a Divine Core was nearly impossible. Without the buffer of a Divine Core, the hive’s savage consciousness shattered Harris’s will, transforming him into a collective hive mind. In a sense, this Harris—the one now—was the true Hive Sovereign.

“Poor Harris. To make the hive fearless and fierce, he infused it with savagery and slaughter—and now he suffers the consequences.” (To be continued.)