37: Chapter 37: Deducing Five Hundred Years, the Shadow Demon Race

Four worlds, less than twelve hours.

Su Bai stood in the core area of the Netherworld World, looking at the new map emerging in his palm.

Stone-skin Wasteland, Ghostly Mist, Shadow Jungle, Extreme Cold Ice Plains.

Four new maps expanded the Netherworld's diameter from four hundred and eight kilometers to six hundred and twenty-eight kilometers.

Adding the remaining three hundred and eleven points of Power Of Faith, plus the seven hundred and twenty, eight hundred and forty, six hundred and fifty, and eight hundred and ninety obtained from devouring the four worlds.

[Current Power Of Faith: 4411 points]

Four thousand four hundred and eleven points.

This was the most Power Of Faith Su Bai had possessed since his awakening.

But he was in no hurry to look at these numbers.

His gaze fell on the two figures not far away.

Black and White Impermanence.

They stood side by side, the aura on their bodies climbing frantically.

Peak of the Third Rank.

Breakthrough.

Fourth Rank.

Mid-stage Fourth Rank.

Peak of the Fourth Rank.

[Black and White Impermanence Level Up: Third Rank → Peak of the Fourth Rank]

White Impermanence's smile remained gentle, but behind that smile was a depth that saw through life and death. On his tall white hat, the four words "Wealth at First Sight" became even more blood-red, as if they had just been written in fresh blood.

Black Impermanence's ferocity was still terrifying, but within that ferocity, there was an added majesty that suppressed everything. On his tall black hat, the four words "Peace Under Heaven" became even whiter, as if carved from white bone.

They opened their eyes, glanced at each other, and then looked at Su Bai simultaneously.

The two figures knelt down at the same time.

"Thank you, Master."

Su Bai looked down at them, and their new information appeared in his consciousness.

[Black and White Impermanence (Twin Hero Unit)]

[Rank: Peak of the Fourth Rank]

[Grade: Six Stars]

[White Impermanence · Xie Bian: Skills, Smiling Soul-Hooking (Active), Wealth at First Sight (Passive), Funeral Staff Technique (Active), Yin Energy Affinity (Passive), Yin-Yang Eye (New Passive)]

[Black Impermanence · Fan Wujiu: Skills, Angry Gaze Soul-Locking (Active), Peace Under Heaven (Passive), Soul-Locking Chain Technique (Active), Yin Energy Affinity (Passive), Yin-Yang Eye (New Passive)]

[Twin Skill: Life and Death Impermanence (Active/Can only be activated when both exist together), Black and White Impermanence strike together, forcibly hooking the target's soul. For creatures of a higher rank than Black and White Impermanence, there is a probability of successful soul-hooking for an instant kill (Cooldown time: seven days)]

[Yin-Yang Judgment (Active) Black and White Impermanence strike together to perform Yin-Yang Judgment on a target. If the judgment succeeds, the target dies immediately, and their soul is detained in Hall of Impermanence; if the judgment fails, the target falls into a weakened state for seven days. Cooldown time: three days.]

Su Bai's pupils contracted slightly as he looked at the newly added passive skill.

Yin-Yang Eye.

This meant that Black and White Impermanence could now directly see through the lifespan of all living beings and the essence of all souls.

Combined with the fate-reversal ledger, their abilities would reach a brand new height.

He nodded in satisfaction.

"Rise."

Black and White Impermanence stood up and quietly took their positions by his side.

White Impermanence still wore a smile, but his eyes were now piercing through the Yin Qi, landing on the four newly generated maps in the distance.

"Master, do those newcomers need us to handle them?"

Su Bai shook his head.

"No rush."

His gaze also fell on those four maps.

On the Stone-skin Wasteland, over five thousand members of the Stone-skin Clan stood there blankly, at a loss.

In the Ghostly Mist, over five thousand ghosts drifted in the fog, letting out low wails.

In the Shadow Jungle, two thousand three hundred Shadow Leopards were curled up in the shadows, shivering.

On the Extreme Cold Ice Plains, there was no one.

Only the pile of frost cores lay quietly at the edge of the ice plains, emitting a faint blue light.

Four races.

One batch of elemental crystals.

Su Bai took a deep breath.

It was time to deduce.

...

Su Bai stood at the edge of the Shadow Demon Abyss, looking at that patch of pure darkness.

Eight thousand seven hundred and twenty-three Shadow Demons were busy deep within the abyss. They used darkness to build nests, Space Folding to open paths, and shadow energy to nurture their young.

This was the race Su Bai looked forward to the most.

Shadow Affinity, Space Affinity, a six-month reproduction cycle, and high intelligence.

If they could survive in the Netherworld, their future potential would be limitless.

Su Bai raised his hand, his consciousness sinking into the world core.

[Time Flow Adjustment]

[Target: Shadow Demon Abyss area]

[Adjustment Ratio: An instant outside, a hundred years inside]

[Power Of Faith Consumption: 100 points/century]

[Please select acceleration duration]

Su Bai did not hesitate.

"Five hundred years."

[Power Of Faith Consumed: 500 points]

[Current Power Of Faith: 4411-500=3911 points]

[Time Flow Adjustment initiated]

[One second outside, one year inside]

[Duration: 500 years (internal)]

Within the grayish-white Yin Qi, that abyss began to blur.

Su Bai sat cross-legged, closed his eyes, and completely immersed his consciousness into that abyss.

He wanted to witness this five-hundred-year evolution with his own eyes.

...

On their first day entering the Netherworld, the Shadow Demons felt that bone-chilling cold.

It was a different kind of existence from the pure darkness of the Shadow Demon Realm.

Grayish-white mist drifted down from above the abyss, like eternal snowflakes landing on them. That mist carried a strange corrosiveness, making their skin itch and their eyes sting.

"What the hell is this?" a young Shadow Demon swatted at the mist in panic, only to find that it couldn't be brushed off; instead, it wrapped tighter.

"Calm down," an elderly Shadow Demon scolded. "This is our new home. If you can't adapt, then die."

The young Shadow Demon lowered his head and stopped speaking.

But in those deep blue eyes, fear and resentment flickered.

In the first year, the Shadow Demons built crude nests with darkness and opened temporary passages using Space Folding. They tried to resist the corrosion of Yin Qi using methods from the Shadow Demon Realm, only to find those methods completely ineffective here.

In the fifth year, Shadow Demons began to die.

The first to die was an elderly female Shadow Demon. Her body was riddled with holes from the Yin Qi corrosion, and finally, she turned into a wisp of black smoke and dissipated into the abyss.

The clansmen gathered before her nest, silently watching the wisp of black smoke drift away.

No one spoke.

There was only silence.

In the tenth year, the death toll reached one thousand.

Those with weak wills or weak constitutions fell one by one. Their bodies were devoured by Yin Qi, leaving not even a bone behind.

The remaining Shadow Demons began to search frantically for a way to survive.

They tried wrapping their bodies in shadow energy to isolate the corrosion of Yin Qi. This method worked, but it required a massive amount of energy. Consuming it every moment made their bodies weaker and weaker.

They tried hiding in the deepest part of the abyss, where the Yin Qi was thinnest. But space in the deepest part was limited, only able to accommodate a few hundred Shadow Demons. To fight for that limited space, the Shadow Demons broke out into their first internal conflict.

It was a brutal slaughter.

Darkness surged in the depths of the abyss, and screams echoed one after another.

When the slaughter ended, another three hundred-plus Shadow Demons had fallen.

The survivors occupied that space in the deepest part, huddling together and using each other's body heat to fight against the eternal cold.

While those driven out could only struggle to survive in places where the Yin Qi was even thicker.

By the twentieth year, the number of Shadow Demons had plummeted from eight thousand seven hundred and twenty-three to just over five thousand.

Death never stopped.

But those who lived had already begun to change.

The first change came from a young Shadow Demon named Shadow Blade.