Everyone looked up a streak of golden light descended from the heavens, carrying overwhelming force.
It was… a colossal golden staff, towering between heaven and earth!
And it was crashing straight down on them!
The air around the staff distorted, emitting a piercing screech.
The underworld’s yin energy was forcibly torn apart by this supreme yang force, scattering into ghostly embers midair.
“BOOM!”
The staff slammed into the ground right before them, sending a storm of dark soil flying.
The ground shattered violently, countless cracks spreading outward like a spider’s web in all directions.
The fierce shockwaves stirred up gusts of eerie wind, sending everyone tumbling to the ground.
Everyone: “!!!”
This is a disaster!
The next moment-
Flames erupted.
A figure came stepping on wheels of fire, the raging inferno burning fiercely amidst the underworld’s deathly aura.
Su Fu casually pulled out the Golden Cudgel, its surface shimmering with golden light, making her smile appear especially radiant.
“Long time no see, everyone.”
“But why are you running the moment you see me?”
The crowd was speechless.
Were they running from her?
They were running from the ghost soldiers surrounding them!
Yet, with the Golden Cudgel blocking their path, they couldn’t move forward, and the ghost soldiers immediately closed in again.
Inside and out, in the blink of an eye, the entire space was sealed off completely.
A dead end!
The ghost soldiers were surging toward them like a tidal wave!
In the distance, rumbling sounds echoed clearly, encirclements from other directions were rapidly forming as well.
Elai glared at Su Fu, his eyes burning with fury.
“Su Fu!” he ground out between clenched teeth.
“Are you blind to the situation?! If you block us, you’ll be surrounded by ghost soldiers too!”
“Do you think the ghost soldiers will spare any examinee?”
He truly couldn’t understand what madness had possessed this woman?!
“Is this really necessary? Must you drive us to extinction?” he said, word by word.
“What happened in the last exam is over! You already got us hunted down for so long-we’re even now!”
He genuinely didn’t get it.
The survival exam wasn’t meant for examinees to kill each other; they were even supposed to cooperate.
So what was Su Fu doing?
Getting herself caught and dragging them down with her?
No matter how strong an individual was, against an endless siege like this, there was only one outcome-death!
Elai didn’t have a fourth perspective, but Zong Zheng Ye vaguely sensed something was off.
It seemed that right when Su Fu arrived, she had said something, and only then did the ghost soldiers begin surrounding them?
No, impossible!
Zong Zheng Ye was horrified.
Even entertaining such a thought was terrifying—it absolutely couldn’t be true.
It had to be a coincidence!
Just then, the ghost soldiers pressed closer, now right before the group.
Su Fu looked at Elai’s furious expression and suddenly smiled.
Without a word, she raised her hand.
“Salute!”
The ghost soldiers, who had been menacing just moments ago, suddenly turned in perfect unison and shouted toward Su Fu:
“Hail to the Grand Inspector of the Underworld, Zhen Xuan Yi Ming!”
The deafening roar rippled through the gloomy skies of the underworld.
The distant wails of ghosts abruptly ceased as the Black and White Impermanence arrived with a squad of ghost enforcers, their expressions full of reverence.
“My Lord! You’ve finally arrived! We’ve been awaiting your presence for a long time!”
Seeing this, it was no exaggeration to say that the expressions of all the examinees instantly froze.
My Lord?
Who?
Su Fu?!
“Wait!” Elai’s voice suddenly rose sharply, even cracking.
“You… hold office in the underworld too?!”
His mind was in complete chaos.
How was this possible?
Those ghost soldiers who had hunted them down relentlessly, leaving them no escape they were all… Su Fu’s subordinates?!
No way, absolutely no way!!
Why had he never discovered this rule before?
Could it be… because she had once held office in the mortal world?!
The other examinees turned deathly pale, some even collapsing to the ground.
For days they had been hiding in the underworld, fleeing from the ghost soldiers until their souls nearly scattered-only to now be told that the entire underworld was Su Fu’s territory?!
ZongZeng Ye froze in place, his pupils contracting violently.
His mind almost ceased functioning.
The underworld… too?!
Su Fu?
He turned stiffly to look around.
The Black and White Impermanence stood respectfully on either side, Ox-Head and Horse-Face held torches in formation, and an endless line of ghost soldiers stood in perfect ranks.
Even the yin energy permeating the air seemed to deliberately avoid touching Su Fu’s body.
“This… this can’t be…” ZongZeng Ye’s voice trembled.
“How could you hold office in the underworld too?!”
This made no sense!
Since when did such rules exist?
Hearing this, Su Fu smiled.
“What’s with that tone? Don’t tell me you don’t want the position?”
Of course he did!
But it was impossible.
The Black and White Impermanence had already begun reporting to Su Fu, “Thanks to your plan, we’ve completely surrounded these fleeing evil spirits!”
They emphasized the words “evil spirits” heavily.
The group felt as if struck by lightning.
So this siege was her doing all along?!
ZongZeng Ye recalled all the previous details and finally understood why Su Fu had been so composed on the Road to the Underworld.
She never needed to evade the ghost soldiers because the entire underworld was her domain!
He roared almost maniacally, “This is blatant cheating!”
Elai was even more shocked.
How… how did she manage this?
Holding office in both the mortal realm and the underworld?
Su Fu’s mocking gaze swept over them.
“Now, now, no baseless accusations. If the exam allows it, how can it be called cheating?”
She smiled faintly.
“If I can sentence you to death in the mortal realm, why can’t I do the same in the underworld?”
As soon as she finished speaking, she slammed her golden staff onto the ground.
“BOOM!”
Amid the earth-shaking roar, Su Fu calmly ordered, “Arrest all of them!”
Countless ghost soldiers surged forward instantly!
***
In the monitoring room.
Bai Li watched the examinees surrounded by ghost soldiers on the screen and couldn’t help but rub her temples.
“Everyone thought Su Fu was just arrogant, but who knew she was actually fishing!”
“Elai had some suspicions, but—”
Zhao Wujie coldly interjected, “He underestimated her.”
“He was too overconfident.”
Even after being tricked once before, he still didn’t learn his lesson and let her play him like a fool.
Bai Li sighed, her eyes scanning the panicked examinees on the screen.
“A judge in the mortal realm, a governor in the underworld… such authority is practically heaven-defying! How can they even compete now? The outcome is already decided.”
“Not necessarily.” Zhao Wujie narrowed his eyes.
“Elai wields the divine weapon Gungnir: Ragnarok. Even ghost soldiers won’t find it easy to stop him.”
Before he could finish, Zhang Yuanhua suddenly spoke up.
“Speaking of which, where’s Su Luan?”
“Right,” Bai Li mused.
“We haven’t seen her since she separated from ZongZeng Ye.”
Before they could switch screens, the scene before them abruptly changed-
Bai Li gasped.
“Look! What is Elai trying to do?!”
Ghost soldiers swarmed, the air thick with sinister energy.
The other examinees had already been scared out of their wits, scattering in all directions.
But against this overwhelming tide of ghost soldiers, they were like trapped beasts, struggling futilely within the encirclement.
Only Elai remained motionless.
He stared fixedly at Su Fu, his gaze so venomous it seemed to drip with malice.
Gazing at that indifferent face before him, he found it more irritating than ever before.
How ironic.
A man who climbed his way up through petty tricks and underhanded methods-how dare he look at me with such an expression?
“Hah.” Elai let out a light chuckle.
“Su Fu, you’re far too confident.”
He slowly raised his right hand.
In that instant, the heavens and earth seemed to shift.
An overwhelming pressure erupted from the divine artifact in his palm, a force so oppressive it felt capable of tearing apart the boundary between yin and yang.
“Gungnir: Ragnarök.”
This was Elai’s divine artifact-a B+ grade weapon.
The gungir body emitted an eerie cold glow, as though it could devour all life.
“Truth be told…” Elai spoke leisurely, “I hadn’t planned to use it so early in Volume B.”
He gently stroked the barrel as he continued, “But seeing you… is truly an eyesore.”
Only now did the innate arrogance and superiority he carried radiate from him without restraint.
“Relying on nothing but petty schemes, plotting this and that…”
He chuckled again. “How utterly boring.”
Yes, far too boring.
Using such underhanded methods to deceive everyone, sneaking your way to the top.
Like a rat hiding in the shadows, climbing over others.
How dare someone like that look at him with such eyes?!
Flames of anger ignited in Elai’s gaze.
Never in his life had he been toyed with like this.
Then let her see in the face of absolute power, these laughable schemes were nothing but the self-delusions of the weak!
The divine Gungnir trembled slightly in his grasp, as if resonating with its master’s fury.
Elai channeled his divine power in an instant, and the artifact erupted with a dazzling blue-white radiance.
The sheer magnitude of that divine energy was like an ocean, illuminating even the dark underworld as bright as day!
Zong Zheng Ye’s expression changed drastically.
His eyes locked onto the divine Gungir in Elai’s hand, the surging waves of divine power crashing like a relentless tide.
“This can’t be… Elai—” he muttered to himself.
“Has he already reached the threshold of B-grade divine power?!”
The space around the gun began to distort, as if unable to withstand its power.
Tiny sparks gathered at the tip, condensing like bolts of lightning.
Jiang Qingyu instinctively took a step back.
“This level of divine power… it’s completely beyond the limit!”
He could flip the table at any moment!
No sooner had the words left his mouth than Elai struck.
With a sweeping motion of the spear, a blue-white arc sliced through the sky.
Where it passed, even the deathly aura of the underworld was split in two.
Countless spectral soldiers were sent flying by the force, dissipating instantly!
“BOOM!”
A shockwave surged forth, the attack carrying boundless momentum as it barreled straight toward Su Fu-enough to obliterate anything in its path!
And yet―
“CLANG!”
A crisp metallic ring echoed as two divine artifacts collided.
The moment the Ruyi Jingu Bang met the divine spear, golden light intertwined with blue-white radiance, erupting into a blinding flash.
The resulting shockwave spread outward like a tangible force, annihilating everything in its wake.
Two vastly different divine powers clashed violently in midair!
Su Fu’s eyes gleamed with excitement.
“Not bad at all, this artifact of yours. I have to say, this clash is really exhilarating.”
Elai couldn’t help but laugh in disbelief at her words.
Tilting his head back, his golden hair gleaming, he declared with arrogance, “In that case, consider it an honor to witness the true power of Gungnir: Ragnarök.”
Before the words had even faded, he was already charging forward.
The divine spear moved with unparalleled agility in his hands, blue-white light leaving trails of afterimages.
“CLANG!! CLANG!”
The clang of metal against metal rang out incessantly.
“Ah!”
The Ruyi Jingu Bang collided with the divine spear, sending dazzling sparks flying.
The examinees, knocked back by the shockwave, stared in stunned silence at the scene before them.
“My god…” someone murmured, “Is this the power of a B+-grade divine artifact?”
Jiang Qingyu’s eyes were fixed on the battlefield, filled with awe.
“That spear’s divine energy is overwhelming!”
“But the most terrifying one is Su Fu!”
“She’s wielding only a B-grade divine artifact, yet she can withstand attacks from a B+-grade weapon without faltering! Truly a divine gift!”
Elai’s assault grew fiercer, his spear transforming into countless streaks of cold light, striking from every conceivable angle.
Yet no matter how he shifted his attacks, the Ruyi Jingu Bang always intercepted the spear’s tip with perfect precision.
“Screech-“
Another violent clash.
Elai’s hand trembled slightly, his eyes flashing with disbelief.
“For a mere staff to hold its own against me for this long… not bad.”
But inwardly, his mind was in turmoil.
This wasn’t right!
Gungnir: Ragnarök was a whole tier above-so why was every single strike being completely blocked?
It made no sense!
His divine spear should have had the advantage in piercing power, yet it couldn’t even budge what appeared to be an ordinary staff.
“Boom!”
Another collision.
Su Fu suddenly tilted her head, curiosity gleaming in her eyes.
“Your spear’s penetration is decent. Got any other tricks?”
Her expression was eager, almost playful.
“Mind if I give it a try?”
Elai’s movements froze.
What?
Wait-
He was locked in a life-or-death battle, and she was… testing his weapon?!
“You !” Rage burned in Elai’s eyes as Gungnir: Ragnarök hummed violently in his grip.
“Su Fu!”
“Fine,” he sneered, his fury turning into a chilling grin.
“Since you want to try…”
Divine energy surged wildly at the spear’s tip, distorting space itself.
The sound of the void tearing apart echoed like cracking glass.
“Then try this!”
“Ragnarök: Skyrend!”
A blinding beam of energy erupted from the spear, a force capable of piercing heaven and earth.
The crowd around them erupted in gasps.
“Oh my god! They’re going all out!”
“Ultimate move against ultimate move!”
“Elai! Finish her!”
Yet at that moment-
“Sure.”
Su Fu chuckled softly, and the Ruyi Jingu Bang in her hand suddenly blazed with radiant golden light.
To the shock of everyone watching, the rod began expanding at a terrifying speed.
One foot, ten feet, a hundred feet….
Until it transformed into a colossal pillar that reached the heavens-13,500 jin of sheer, unyielding weight!
“BOOM!”
With earth-shattering force, the Ruyi Jingu Bang smashed straight into Elai’s divine spear.