Chapter 542: Heavenly Dao Map Shows Its Might

"Ta Ke!" Chu Yang shouted suddenly.

"Master!" Ta Ke's figure instantly appeared beside Chu Yang.

"Recall all the slaves, and also go cause some commotion, preferably a big one, and force this Insect Race Mother Empress out!" A cold glint flashed in Chu Yang's eyes.

"Yes, Master!" Ta Ke obeyed and left.

Not long after, the Insect Race legion there suffered a catastrophic disaster.

Ta Ke suddenly attacked the Insect Race legion, instantly annihilating those Immortal Insect Race.

Seeing this, Chu Yang nodded, then looked up at the sky.

"Insect Race Mother Empress, I hope you have already prepared for death…"

At that moment, a terrifying aura suddenly descended, enveloping the entire sector.

Chu Yang's complexion changed slightly; he knew the true master had finally arrived.

A cold smile curled at Chu Yang's mouth as he looked up at the sky. Dark clouds churned, as if some terrifying presence was slowly descending. A suffocating pressure blanketed the sector, the buildings moaned under the strain, and some weaker slaves collapsed outright, foaming at the mouth.

"Finally decided to show up?" Chu Yang mocked, his tone devoid of any fear.

In the sky, space warped, and a massive fortress-shaped object slowly materialized.

It was an Insect Race Mother Nest spanning ten thousand meters, its surface composed of strange metals—mostly F-grade metal, with some G-grade metal—etched with countless secret inscriptions.

Each Insect Race Mother Nest represented the Mother Empress's toughest defense, akin to a human starship.

Then a woman whose body resembled that of the Human Race but exceptionally beautiful rose from the nest; she was the Insect Race Mother Empress Fei Xi! Fei Xi looked down from above at Chu Yang, emitting a sharp, ear‑piercing screech that made eardrums ache.

"Pathetic Human, how dare you insult my authority!" The Mother Empress's voice was ethereal, involuntarily stirring a sense of submission.

But that was of no use to Chu Yang.

"Insult?"

Chu Yang snorted, "I'm just teaching you a lesson: some people you simply can't provoke!"

"Insect Race army, collective… attack!"

Fei Xi the Mother Empress let out a cold shout, and instantly countless Insect Race warriors rose from everywhere, their number reaching a million! The million‑strong army darkened the sky like a swarm of locusts, surging toward Chu Yang.

That scene could rightly be called an apocalypse.

Chu Yang merely shrugged, his expression relaxed and carefree, as if the million‑strong army meant nothing to him.

"Tsk tsk, the display is grand, but unfortunately, all show and no substance."

Chu Yang mockingly stared at Fei Xi, his eyes full of contempt.

"You…"

Fei Xi was incensed; had she ever been treated with such disdain?

"Kill him! Tear him apart!"

"The many bully the few? Is that all the Insect Race is good for?" His thoughts shifted, and in the Divine Realm the massive Heavenly Dao Map slowly unfurled.

"This is the gift Brother Hun Dun just gave me; now I'll let you see its power!"

Chu Yang sneered, pointing a finger; the ugly giant bird on the Heavenly Dao Map seemed to come alive, emitting a sharp cry.

A terrifying energy wave radiated from the map, warping the surrounding space.

"A strike from a mid‑tier cosmic overlord… hope you can endure!"

A flash of madness flickered in Chu Yang's eyes.

Fei Xi seemed to sense the terrifying wave as well; she let out an angry roar, and the million warriors surged even more frenziedly toward Chu Yang, trying to stop him from unleashing the map's power.

However, it was already too late.

The giant bird on the Heavenly Dao Map suddenly opened its massive beak, spewing a blinding pillar of light; wherever the pillar passed, space collapsed and all things were erased.

The million‑strong army, before the light pillar, was like paper; their souls vanished instantly, leaving only corpses to fall from the sky.

Fei Xi let out a mournful scream as the light pillar struck her body; the outward battle armor shattered instantly, revealing a blood‑smeared, mangled form inside.

Her massive body began to collapse, eventually turning into a cloud of blood mist that vanished between heaven and earth.

Only a single Mother Nest remained, still standing in the void!

An Immortal‑level Insect Race Mother Empress has fallen again! "Is that all?" Chu Yang glanced at the sky‑filled blood mist, sneering, "I thought it would be impressive, but it's just that."

Chu Yang dispersed the Heavenly Dao Map, turned his head toward the arriving Long Na and Wu Ka, and saw both staring dumbfounded, their eyes filled with shock and awe.

Even Ta Ke beside them stared dumbfounded.

Long Na inhaled deeply, striving to calm her racing heart.

She gracefully approached Chu Yang, slightly kneeling in salute, her voice trembling slightly: "Master, your divine might is unparalleled; Long Na admires you to the utmost."

The Insect Race Mother Empress Chu Yang killed was named Fei Xi; Long Na is also an Insect Race Mother Empress, so she naturally knew her.

Compared to Fei Xi, her strength wasn't much greater; it was only because her teacher, the Lord of the Universe, bestowed upon her many life‑saving treasures.

In terms of true power, the two are almost evenly matched.

"No need for formalities; go retrieve all those Insect Race corpses!"

After Fei Xi's death, those Insect Race warriors naturally perished on the spot.

"These corpses are all treasures; don't waste them."

Chu Yang gestured at the insect corpses falling like black raindrops, his tone tinged with a hint of regret.

That earlier strike sent at least half of Fei Xi's warriors into oblivion; to Chu Yang, that's money!

Long Na promptly replied, "Yes, Master."

She immediately ordered the surviving slaves to begin gathering the insect corpses.

Wu Ka stood aside, his expression complex.

Today he truly witnessed the clash of the universe's top‑tier elites; even the ruler of their Barbaric Cosmic Nation lacked Chu Yang's might! He had thought Chu Yang would need to expend effort to deal with Fei Xi, but it turned out to be effortless! Chu Yang glanced at the massive Insect Race Mother Nest, noting that this thing was a valuable asset—its defense was astounding, its interior space enormous, and with slight modification it could become a mobile fortress.

He was pondering how to acquire it when, suddenly, the surface of the nest flashed, and a figure shot out from within.

"Want to leave?" Chu Yang let out a cold laugh, his figure flashing as he instantly appeared before the silhouette, blocking its path.

The figure turned out to be another insect race Mother Queen, piloting an insect race mother nest, but its size was dozens of times smaller than Feixi's! It was a realm master‑level insect race Mother Queen! "You are… Feixi's daughter?" Chu Yang surveyed the insect woman from head to toe, a hint of amusement flashing in his eyes.

Feixi's dignified appearance was already the pinnacle of beauty, yet this realm master‑level Mother Queen was no less, perhaps even surpassing her! The realm master insect Mother Queen's eyes showed a trace of terror; she hadn't expected Chu Yang's speed to be so swift.

Biting her lip, she forced herself to stay calm and said, "Human, you have already killed my mother; what else do you want?"

"Having killed your mother, the natural course is… to kill you." Chu Yang grinned, revealing a set of stark white teeth, his tone cold.

The realm master‑level Mother Queen's complexion changed abruptly; she hadn't expected Chu Yang to be so decisive.

"You… don't come closer!" she retreated a step, her delicate body trembling. "Heh, you think you can run away?" Chu Yang looked at her mockingly, a cat‑and‑mouse teasing glint in his eyes.

His figure flashed, instantly appearing before the realm master‑level Mother Queen, transforming into a massive hand that seized her neck and lifted her up.

"Let… let go of me!" the realm master‑level Mother Queen struggled desperately, to no avail.

Chu Yang's hand, like iron tongs, clamped tightly around her throat, making it hard for her to breathe.

"I didn't expect an unexpected gain! Fall into a slumber for me!"

With that, he applied a slight pressure with his hand, sending the realm master‑level Mother Queen into a deep sleep.

Chu Yang lifted the unconscious realm master‑level Mother Queen as if carrying a chick, and returned to Long Na's side.

Long Na stood respectfully nearby, directing the slaves to collect insect corpses; upon seeing Chu Yang return, she hurried forward to greet him.

"Master, this Mother Queen…"

Chu Yang casually tossed the realm master‑level Mother Queen to Long Na's feet, "First lock her up; a single insect race Mother Queen is worth a lot, let alone one that's only… realm master‑level!"

The value of an insect race Mother Queen lies not only in herself but in her ability to spawn countless insect warriors; if auctioned, she would fetch at least a hundred‑billion Mixed Yuan‑level price! Chu Yang already had Long Na, so he had no interest in this realm master‑level insect Mother Queen.

There was another reason: Chu Yang was still short on funds! The proceeds from auctioning Earth islands were mostly spent on buying insect corpses, and that still wasn't enough!

After settling the affairs of the barbaric Cosmic Nation, Chu Yang assigned Long Na to stay at the Virtual Universe Headquarters to cultivate Dute insect race, merging them with combat genes; this would yield an invincible king‑sealing entity, also a battle master! The breeding line had been set, and from now on everything would proceed step by step: Tak would be responsible for delivering insect corpses purchased from the Junk Star Region to Long Na, allowing her to absorb and nurture them.

Additionally, Chu Yang spent three more years using the hundred‑million mermaid tears he had collected to catalyze the spirit embryo, finally completing its second metamorphosis.

At this point, his strength finally reached the level of a medium‑tier Cosmic Overlord.

……

Demon Mountain lies within the Primordial Secret Realm of the Virtual Universe Company; the inheritance of the Demon Sound Divine General spoken of by the Lord of Chaos City is located within this secret realm.

The Demon Sound Divine General and the Guardian Divine General of the Ancestor God Sect are of the same tier, both possessing Cosmic Overlord‑level power; their inheritances can serve as references for Chu Yang today.

Chu Yang intends to forge a secret technique of his own, setting the starting point very high—at least it must be a pinnacle secret technique of Cosmic Overlord level!

Therefore he needs a massive amount of inheritances to perfect it.

Not only the Demon Sound Divine General's inheritance here, but also the inheritances within the Ancestor God's secret realm, he has considerable interest in.

The towering, continuous Demon Mountain has one side as Demon Sound Mountain and the other side as Ice Mountain.

Some dangers on Demon Sound Mountain pose significant threats to Cosmic‑level beings, Domain Masters, even Realm Masters, yet for Chu Yang they are as easy as walking on flat ground, reaching the destination effortlessly.

At the core of Demon Mountain lies the Inheritance Palace.

Chu Yang took a step forward and entered the great hall.

"The 157,675th inheritor,"

A wondrous set of characters appeared on a stone tablet beside it, and Chu Yang easily grasped their meaning.

"Am I the 157,675th inheritor?" Chu Yang smiled faintly; Luo Feng had already been to Demon Sound Mountain, so he should have arrived earlier than himself, ranking higher.

"Walk along the side staircase; that is the inheritance. Go receive it!"

Chu Yang did not hesitate and stepped onto the first tier of steps.

"Each step contains a layer of inheritance information; when you reach the end of the steps, you become a great being in the universe—a Demon Sound Divine General."

A booming sound echoed in Chu Yang's sea of consciousness, while the cultivation method of the divine general began to surge in.

The inheritance information of the first tier of steps concerned soul‑type secret arts, flooding Chu Yang's sea of consciousness like tides, which he easily absorbed and digested.

This inheritance is still inferior to the Ten Thousand Hearts Soul Control Technique, but far superior to ordinary Immortal‑level secret techniques.

Chu Yang absorbed the inheritance information while ascending the steps.

This inheritance staircase appears ordinary, yet it harbors immense pressure; the higher one climbs, the more terrifying the pressure.

Some Cosmic‑level beings lacking strength probably cannot even reach the tenth tier.

"Interesting."

Chu Yang's mouth twitched upward slightly; while the Demon Sound Divine General's inheritance offered little aid to his secret technique creation, some of its insights into the soul earned his appreciation.

He continued upward as if on flat ground, soon reaching the first thousandth tier.

The staircase has a total of 9,999 tiers: the first 3,333 tiers constitute the First Stage, the middle 3,333 the Second Stage, and the final 3,333 the Third Stage.

Passing each stage grants the corresponding treasure.

Generally, the Immortal level lies around the one‑thousand to two‑thousand tier range; stronger cultivators may obtain treasures from the First Stage.

From the first thousand to the second thousand tiers, Chu Yang spent less than half a year.

To him, the so‑called pressure and Demon Sound attacks were merely nominal.

It was the inheritance information that yielded him some benefit.

The Demon Sound Divine General's use of soul and mental intent techniques reached an almost incomprehensible level; some of its peculiar skills made Chu Yang's eyes light up.

As he ascended, the pressure grew stronger, yet for Chu Yang it remained like a gentle breeze.

Three thousand tiers, three thousand one hundred, three thousand three hundred… When Chu Yang stepped onto the three thousand three hundred thirty‑third tier, the scene before him suddenly changed.

A hall towering about a kilometer high, its outer walls covered with intricate carvings, stood before him, with two massive golden doors.

The doors were open.

Chu Yang walked straight inside.

"Congratulations, you have passed the First Stage's trial."

"You are the 61,204th inheritor to arrive here, earning the title of Primary Selector!"

「……」

Regarding the meaning of these words, Chu Yang didn't pay much attention; he shifted his gaze and looked toward the stone platform beside him.

Two items were placed on it.

A swirl of golden Qi.

A swirl of gray Qi.

Inside the golden Qi was the Luo Fu Liu Disk, and inside the gray Qi was the Golden Soul Fruit.

The two treasures are very good items for ordinary Immortals, but Chu Yang was not interested.

He casually collected the two and prepared to continue climbing upward.

Chu Yang curled his lip; these so‑called treasures were, to him, like chicken ribs.

The Luo Fu Liu Disk, a mental‑force weapon, at most usable by a Marquis‑rank Immortal; to him, even a tooth‑gap was insufficient.

The Golden Soul Fruit can indeed boost soul strength, but for him, a mid‑level cosmic overlord, the increase is negligible—better than nothing. (End of chapter)