111: Deep within the earth, the remains of the Heavenly Demon

Having settled everything, Chu He's figure appeared tens of thousands of miles above the Azure Star.

He didn't disturb anyone, simply floating quietly atop the clouds, looking down at the planet that had already submitted to him.

"The Planetary Core..."

Chu He muttered to himself.

He reached out, the majestic Dharmic power of the Soul Transformation Stage gathering in his palm as he sensed the pulse of the planet beneath him.

The earth, the mountains, the oceans, and even the rushing lava within the Mantle—every structure was laid bare under his Divine Sense.

"Found it."

His gaze focused, seemingly piercing through thousands of kilometers of geological layers to lock directly onto the planet's core, a searing heart composed of liquid metal.

There, he felt a faint fluctuation filled with deathly silence and evil, completely out of place with the rest of the planet.

If not for the Star Devourer's precise positioning, it would have been like finding a single drop of ink in a vast ocean; scanning for it himself would have been extremely difficult.

"Let's go."

Chu He no longer hesitated, speaking a word to the bracer on his wrist.

In the next moment, a faint golden radiance surfaced on his body—the Protective Divine Light formed by the combination of the Primordial Dragon God Bloodline and Soul Transformation Dharmic power.

Like a golden meteor, he caused not a single ripple as he descended vertically, silently plunging directly into the thick earth.

Passing through the crust and the Mantle... the deeper he went, the more the surrounding temperature and pressure increased exponentially.

The hard rock before him was more fragile than tofu; he didn't even need to actively trigger the power of his Protective Divine Light. Just the aura of Law it emitted caused the matter ahead to automatically decompose and move aside.

For the current Chu He, the so-called "Earth Escaping Art" had become an instinct, as natural as breathing or drinking water.

If Anya were by his side to see this, her worldview would likely be shattered once again. In her understanding, humanity's most advanced drilling equipment couldn't penetrate a hundred kilometers underground. Yet Chu He was like he was strolling through his own back garden.

"Master, three hundred kilometers ahead, we are about to enter the outer core region. The temperature exceeds five thousand degrees Celsius, and the pressure is 1.5 million times that of the surface. The Laws here are distorted by the high heat and pressure, which will exert continuous suppression on the Divine Soul," Star Devourer's voice echoed in Chu He's mind, providing a timely reminder.

"It's fine."

Chu He's expression remained unchanged.

This bit of pressure was nothing more than an itch to his Soul Transformation Stage Physical Body. As for the suppression of the Divine Soul, he possessed a Sea of Consciousness protected by the Ancient Dragon God, impervious to all methods. The suppression of a mere natural environment was not worth mentioning.

He continued to dive.

The surrounding environment began to undergo a drastic change.

It was no longer solid rock, but had turned into a viscous, searing ocean of liquid metal.

The terrifying heat seemed ready to melt everything, and violent energy currents raged here, enough to instantly shred any Nascent Soul level Magic Treasure.

Chu He's speed did not slow down in the slightest. His Protective Divine Light isolated all the violent energy, and he was like an invincible submarine navigating the deep sea, moving steadily toward his goal.

"Master, we have reached the target area."

After an unknown amount of time diving, Star Devourer's voice rang out again.

Chu He stopped his movement, suspended within this golden ocean of liquid iron and nickel.

His gaze pierced through layers of obstacles, looking ahead.

In the very center of the Planetary Core, a region where pressure and temperature reached their extremes, there actually existed a "vacuum zone" spanning a hundred miles.

In this vacuum, there was no liquid metal and no violent energy—only an absolute, deathly silence.

And in the center of that silence, an unimaginably massive skeleton floated quietly.

The size of this skeleton was larger than any mountain range Chu He had ever seen on the Azure Star. It possessed a non-biological metallic texture, its entire body dark and covered in countless scars and cracks left by the ages.

Its form was extremely ferocious, like an ancient behemoth pieced together from countless blades and armor. Even though only the framework remained, it still emitted a heart-palpitating ferocity and desolation.

"Is this... another Star Devourer Mecha Beast?" A flash of surprise crossed Chu He's eyes.

"Yes, Master." Star Devourer's tone carried a hint of complex emotion, both sadness and anger. "This is a member of my kin, designated G073. According to the information left on its remains, it was heavily damaged by the 'World-Destroying Demon General' under the Star-Devouring Demon Emperor during the 'Final War' of the Primordial Era. It fell here, and its core has long since been annihilated."

Chu He nodded, his gaze falling upon the skull of the massive skeleton.

At the center of its brow, on the mountain-like skull, a fist-sized, pitch-black diamond-shaped crystal engraved with countless eerie demonic patterns was deeply embedded like a malignant tumor.

Wisps of faint but extremely pure evil aura were emanating from that crystal, greedily absorbing the last traces of energy remaining in the massive skeleton.

This was the Star-Devouring Demon Clan's Lurking Beacon!

It was actually parasitizing the remains of a Primordial Mecha Beast!

Chu He understood instantly.

The remains of this Mecha Beast were themselves composed of top-tier Divine Gold and Immortal Iron. Even with its core annihilated, its body still contained massive energy and could block almost all forms of detection.

Hiding the beacon here was simply seamless.

"A fine calculation!"

A cold light flashed in Chu He's eyes.

He no longer hesitated, moving his body to fly toward the massive skeleton.

However, the moment he approached within a thousand meters of the skeleton, a sudden change occurred!

That black diamond-shaped crystal, which had been in a dormant state, suddenly erupted with a piercing black light, like a shark smelling blood!

Buzz—!

An evil will, more than a hundred times stronger than what Chu He had encountered in the Xuanhuang Realm, erupted from the crystal like a spiritual tsunami. It transformed into a hideous demonic face that blotted out the sky, opening its bloody maw to bite down hard on Chu He's Divine Soul!

"Jie jie jie... another delicious Soul delivered to my door! And such a powerful Divine Soul! By devouring you, this seat can awaken ahead of schedule!"

That will roared crazily in Chu He's mind, filled with greed and wild joy.

It clearly treated Chu He, who had come of his own accord, as a supplement to replenish its energy!