18: Chapter 18 Fear of All Realms

Terrifying power was violently transmitted through the scepter. The Myriad Devouring Insect Mother was struck as if by an ancient divine mountain, her beautiful face instantly contorting and deforming.

Blood gushed like a fountain from her mouth and nose as her entire body, spinning like a top whipped with full force, was sent flying backward.

The colorful garments covering her body shattered inch by inch, and her aura plummeted sharply. It was clear she had suffered an extremely severe Dao Injury, with even her foundational essence wounded.

She barely managed to stabilize herself in the starry void, staring with utter terror at the man in the distance who, despite his pale face, still stood like a demon god.

Her heart was completely submerged by boundless fear.

This man was simply a monster!

After successive great battles, especially after unleashing that world-shocking slash, he could still erupt with such a terrifying counterattack?

Her full-force strike had been crushed so easily?

Seizing his essence blood was now a deluded fantasy. If she stayed any longer, the next punch would likely end her for good.

The Myriad Devouring Insect Mother harbored not a shred of hesitation or greed left. Gritting through the pain of her nearly shattered body,

she let out a piercing shriek. Her form suddenly exploded, transforming into billions of imperceptibly tiny flying insects that melted into the void like an illusory bubble.

She executed the Supreme life-preserving escape technique innate to the insect race, vanishing without a trace in an instant.

All that remained was a devastated battlefield and that strange, lingering fragrance.

Jiang Hao did not pursue. The Insect Mother's escape skills were superb and hard to track. Moreover, now was not the time.

Leaning on the Chaos Heavenly Blade, his tall and straight frame swayed slightly in the void as he slowly calmed the churning qi and blood within him.

Silence fell.

Longer than any previous silence,

After who knows how long, the exclamations of various beings, rendered voiceless by extreme shock, finally began to spread through the myriad realms like a plague.

"Heaven... Haotian Venerable... has fallen! Vanquished... transformed into the Dao by a single slash!"

"The Myriad Devouring Insect Mother... severely wounded and fled! Her scepter was almost shattered!"

"This... this Jiang Hao... is he still a man who hasn't merged with the Heavenly Heart? Gravely wounded and on the brink of death... yet he slew two Venerables in a row?"

"Chaos Body... is this the invincible might of the Chaos Body? Too... too monstrous!"

"Just how many trump cards does he still have? Is he truly unkillable?"

The jubilation in the Origin Realm was pushed to a peak once more, but this time, the cheers carried an almost fanatical reverence and awe.

Meanwhile, deep within the Heavenly Realm, the Insect Realm, and other major realms hostile to the Origin Realm, there was only shock, deathly silence, and internal turmoil of monumental proportions.

Deep within the Immortal Divine Palace floating above the thirty-three layers of clouds in the Heavenly Realm, there was not just one presence.

At this moment, several figures of equally majestic and vast aura, resonating with the Heavenly Dao's Laws, suddenly manifested. They were other ancient Venerables of the Heavenly Realm, contemporaries or even older than Haotian Venerable.

"Haotian Venerable... his Heavenly Dao Imprint... has dissipated!"

An elder in starry Daoist robes roared in disbelief, his voice filled with shock, anger, and a trace of barely perceptible fear.

They could clearly sense that the portion of Heavenly Dao Authority representing Haotian Venerable's existence had returned to heaven and earth, signifying his complete demise.

"Chaos Body Jiang Hao, how dare he? How dare he slay a Venerable of our Heavenly Realm!"

Another Venerable, wreathed in annihilating thunder, bellowed in rage. The thunderous fury caused oppressive thunderclouds to blanket the skies above the entire Heavenly Realm.

Countless Heavenly Realm Cultivators trembled under this pressure, their hearts filled with fear and bewilderment.

Their nearly invincible ancestor, Haotian Venerable... had actually been... slain by a single slash?

"That slash... could actually dissolve the Heavenly Dao Laws. This youth, his comprehension of the Great Dao has reached an inconceivable realm!"

A third Venerable, whose aura was the most ancient, as if coeval with heaven itself, slowly spoke.

Though anger was also in his eyes, there was more a deep wariness and gravity.

"He hasn't yet merged with the Heavenly Heart, yet he already possesses such combat power. If he were to truly achieve the Dao..."

Upon hearing this, the several Heavenly Realm magnates fell silent.

Anger aside, the terrifying strength Jiang Hao had displayed forced them to remain calm.

Forceful retaliation? Who would go? The precedent set by Haotian Venerable was right before their eyes.

Although Jiang Hao appeared gravely wounded now, who could guarantee he didn't have the ability to unleash another slash?

Finally, the most ancient Venerable made a decision, his voice carrying boundless coldness and suppressed killing intent:

"Issue the order to the Heavenly Realm: seal the Heavenly Gate. Avoid conflict with the Origin Realm for now. The grudge against Haotian Venerable... shall be noted for now. Wait... wait for him to reveal a flaw, or for the critical moment of his Dao attainment, then strike with thunderous force."

They chose to bide their time, but the seed of hatred was deeply sown.

Deep within the Myriad Devouring Mother Nest of the Insect Realm, the atmosphere was even more stifling.

Apart from the severely wounded, breathless true form of the Myriad Devouring Insect Mother who had fled back, the wills of two other Insect Mothers who also ruled vast insect forces had descended here.

The wills of the Star Devouring Insect Mother and the Huan Yu Insect Mother had arrived.

"Myriad-Devouring, you were too reckless!"

The Star Devouring Insect Mother's will was icy and sharp, carrying reproach.

"I warned you long ago that the Chaos Body is no ordinary foe, not to be provoked lightly. Yet you stubbornly insisted. And now? You gained no essence blood, wounded your own foundational essence, damaged your scepter, and even provoked such a formidable enemy for our Insect Realm!"

The Huan Yu Insect Mother's voice carried a strange calm, but a careful listener could detect its gravity.

"Sister, you were indeed impulsive this time. That Jiang Hao... is far more terrifying than we anticipated. His combat power, capable of vanquishing Haotian Venerable with one slash and severely wounding you with one punch, is no longer comparable to an ordinary Venerable. If he achieves the Dao, the first he will likely settle accounts with is our Insect Realm."

The wills of the three Insect Mothers engaged in intense communication at the core of the Mother Nest.

"What do we do now? Wait for him to come knocking at our door?"

The severely wounded Myriad Devouring Insect Mother transmitted weakly and resentfully.

"What about allying with the Heavenly Realm? They lost a Venerable; they must hate Jiang Hao to the bone!"

The Star Devouring Insect Mother proposed.

"No!" The Huan Yu Insect Mother immediately objected.

"The Heavenly Realm can barely protect itself and likely won't dare take the lead. Moreover, conspiring with tigers carries greater risks. In my opinion, we should... proactively disavow. Announce publicly that Myriad-Devouring's actions were her own, unrelated to the Insect Realm as a whole. And offer heavy gifts to that Jiang Hao... to apologize and seek peace."

This proposal plunged the Mother Nest into dead silence.

The prestigious Insect Realm, one of the great realms of the myriad worlds, bowing its head and apologizing to a human who hadn't even formally attained the Dao?

"Is there any other method?"

The Huan Yu Insect Mother said faintly.

"Do we truly wait until our Insect Realm becomes the first blood sacrifice target for him to establish his authority upon attaining the Dao?"

Meanwhile, on the periphery of the Mother Nest, the direct descendants of the Myriad Devouring Insect Mother, such as Crown Prince Ke, were living in constant terror. They worried about their mother's injuries and, even more, feared Jiang Hao's future retaliation.

"Will we... will we be handed over to placate the Chaos Body's wrath?"

A young insect princess asked tearfully.

"No, we won't. The Mother Nest is one entity. The three Mothers surely have a way..."

Crown Prince Ke forced himself to appear calm as he reassured her, but his clenched fists and the worry in his eyes betrayed his extreme inner anxiety.

Although Jiang Hao had not completed his Dao attainment, his ferocious feats—slaying Venerables and severely wounding an Insect Mother while not yet merged with the Heavenly Heart—had already cast an immense shadow over the myriad realms.