Only a short time had passed since Tianming entered the Sea of Aeternity, yet the attack had already begun. Their sheer speed showed just how eager the five pantheons were to crush the imperial star.

The battle of the Grand Xia Voidback Hole ended in the slaughter of a billion cosmic gods from the Eightpart Pantheons. This cataclysmic event sent shockwaves through the Upper Star Ruin, completely shattering the egos of those superior pantheons who had dominated the Realm of Order for countless years.

Setting aside the confused wonderians, the devas who were caught in a strange atmosphere, and the indifferent chaos umbrals, the remaining five pantheons were consumed with rage. Even without witnessing it himself, Tianming knew their arrogance well enough to picture exactly how they looked.

"This time, I'm heading back to finish this."

There was no other way around it. The Realm of Chaos was currently at a major crisis point. Only a decisive, crushing blow would intimidate his enemies and give him some breathing room.

“Let’s go.” After meeting Lingfeng, Tianming planned to return immediately.

Shifting his gaze from Zi Zhen to Huang Qi, Lingfeng kept his questions to himself. The situation spoke for itself. He could tell that while Tianming’s time in the Sea of Aeternity had been brutal, he had ultimately secured the victory.

"Hold on!" Just then, Huang Qi suddenly snapped her head up. She had been trailing behind them in silence, but now her cold gaze locked onto Tianming as she spoke.

"What is it?" Tianming turned around and asked.

“I’m willing to make a deal with you,” said Huang Qi.

“Speak,” Tianming said bluntly.

"The undying aeternal race is made up of forty-nine major tribes. Every single chieftain possesses a combat strength that easily rivals a fifth-level primocosmic god or higher. I can draw out their Aeternal Life Curse, convert part of their power, and help them leave the Sea of Aeternity to adapt to the Upper Star Ruin." Huang Qi turned to him, offering a swift, decisive reply.

Backed down already? Tianming knew this transaction came with strings attached. Expecting little, he asked casually, "So what do you want in return?"

“Freedom,” Huang Qi said without hesitation. "Release me, and I swear you'll never see me again."

Tianming laughed. "You call this a trade? It’s a fantasy. Now that you're in my grasp, I hold your leash for life, Huang Qi. You've already betrayed me once. Don't even dream of a second chance."

Huang Qi didn't seem surprised by his words. Pursing her lips, she said, "Alright, then I'll propose a different condition."

Hearing this, Tianming immediately saw through her ploy. Her strategy was simple: propose an impossible demand first, only to follow it up with her actual request. It was no different from borrowing money. Ask for a hundred thousand first and one would be rejected, but ask for fifty for a meal right after, and the other person would most likely agree.

"Go ahead," Tianming said.

Huang Qi looked up, dead serious and entirely sincere. "Once we return to the Upper Star Ruin, you are never to make me fight for you in public. Not even once."

"Why?" Tianming asked with a smile.

"Don't ask why. Just give me your word," said Huang Qi.

"It's because there's a force constraining you, perhaps a person, a system, or an object. Once you openly oppose it, your end will be miserable," Tianming replied.

Huang Qi looked at him without a word. He had hit the bullseye.

Tianming locked his gaze onto her, then murmured, "So, it's highly likely Little Fish left me because of this very same force..."

This realization brought him a sense of relief. Ultimately, the undying aeternals could lend him their strength, but Huang Qi herself had to remain on the sidelines. Considering her stubbornness, Tianming hadn't truly counted on making her fight for him. Instead, it was the forty-nine chieftains she mentioned who were much more useful to him.

"Can you do it now? How long will it take?" he asked.

"It'll take half a day for all forty-nine." After Huang Qi finished speaking, she coldly added, "Let me be perfectly clear. This applies only to the forty-nine chieftains. Don’t even dream of bringing the rest of the undying aeternals out. Between the massive effort required, you lack the time, and I lack the energy."

Judging by her words, this process required Tianming's cooperation. At this critical juncture, deploying the most elite undying aeternals to the battlefield was Tianming's best option, so he asked Lingfeng, "Can they hold out for half a day?"

Traveling to the Xenoworld was seamless. Lingfeng brought him here much faster than a teleportation formation could.

"Of course. Whether it’s the mobilization of the five pantheons or the Eightpart Pantheons' attack on the fortuna-class nova sources, both operations demand extensive preparation and travel time. This is just the beginning," said Lingfeng.

Though it was the first time he had voiced the latter part, Tianming had already anticipated it.

As long as the five pantheons were prepared to fight the Primordial Sands to the bitter end, they no longer feared Tianming's retaliation. Realizing their fortuna-class worlds had been compromised, they would undoubtedly launch a two-pronged offensive, targeting both the passage and the fortuna-class nova sources simultaneously. Otherwise, their actions wouldn't shake Tianming's foundations in the slightest!

Particularly on the front lines of the fortuna-class worlds, the five pantheons were guaranteed a victory that would skyrocket their morale. Furthermore, they had likely already deduced that slaughtering the flameyellow descendants would severely impact Tianming.

Therefore, Tianming turned to Huang Qi and said decisively, "What are you waiting for? Let's begin!"

"You agree?" Huang Qi asked.

"Enough talk. Call forth your forty-nine chieftains," said Tianming.

They reemerged from the Ancient Oldgod Domain and waited in the Sea of Order. Huang Qi made a sharp, insect-like chirp. Moments later, towering shadows converged, revealing forty-nine undying aeternals, each standing over fifty thousand meters tall. The tallest among them, a locust-headed man, loomed at nearly eighty thousand meters.

Their presence was staggering, radiating the power of their orders. They completely outmatched equivalent-sized cultivators from the Realm of Chaos. They were the apex of the entire Sea of Aeternity, the strongest of them all! Answering Huang Qi’s call, they fixed their cold compound eyes upon Tianming, clearly unconvinced.

Forty-nine completely distinct insect heads stood before him, ranging from variants of bees, ants, flies, butterflies, and scorpions, to species that Tianming failed to recognize. In short, they were a grotesque sight from the neck up, yet perfectly formed below.

Huang Qi communicated with them using a bizarre, insect-like chirp that left her exact words a mystery. Though visibly disgruntled, the undying aeternal chieftains also seemed eager to escape the monotonous prison of the Sea of Aeternity for the Upper Star Ruin.