Chapter 1 The Beginning

Late at night, New York County.

A seaside villa; the waves crashed against the reefs, creating a thunderous roar. White foam repeatedly submerged the beach, the chaotic sounds of water echoing as the waves pushed and shoved against each other.

Zhang Yuanqing wandered around the villa under Winnie ● Bernt's name, unable to find her. Finally, he arrived at this large villa with two attached gardens.

This was once his and Winnie ● Bernt's love nest. After winning the heart of this Heavenly Punishment Inspector, he had said that he wanted to face the sea and embrace the warmth of spring!

Then Winnie bought this expensive villa. The two of them spent a period of shameless bliss in the villa, until another lover, Chris, chased them to New York County. Winnie Bernt and Chris fought fiercely, and both were placed in confinement.

After that, the demonic thoughts in his heart could no longer be suppressed, and he was seduced by Donna. After being "released from prison," Winnie's love for him turned to hate, and she refused to see him again.

At that time, he didn't care about Winnie's indifference. He continued to mingle with the women of the Goddess Association, until he died in battle early last year. The two never spoke another word.

The treasure map fragment was secretly placed in this seaside villa before the final battle.

He also left Winnie a letter, "I'm leaving, this is your breakup fee." He never expected to return here after so many twists and turns. He gave away the treasure map fragment here, and now he has to take it back.

He gave Winnie the treasure map fragment at the time because he really had the idea of "breaking up." This woman was domineering and strong-willed. When he first coaxed her into bed, he used the excuse of "those were all ex-girlfriends" and "you are my only darling."

So, after discovering the Demon Lord's betrayal after being released from prison, Winnie ● Bernt did not hesitate to break ties with him.

At that time, Zhang Yuanqing—no, the Demon Lord—thought this relationship was over.

Now he knew that this woman's coldness was fake. After the Demon Lord's death, she never started another relationship and still missed the Cat King speaker, trying to find evidence inside that the Demon Lord hadn't completely died and had left a backup plan.

Zhang Yuanqing stood outside the villa, looking at the brightly lit building, hesitating. Winnie Bernt loved him deeply, but also hated him deeply. She might not be willing to give the treasure map fragment, and this kind of "creditor" could not be forced or taken by force. It was a bit tricky.

Perhaps he should first take the treasure map fragment as Yuanshi Tianzun, and then confess his identity to her later...

Winnie Bernt finished her bath, put on a silk nightgown, and stood in front of the French window in the bedroom, silently looking at the dark sea.

Occasionally, freighters with flashing warning lights could be seen, and glamorous cruise ships sailed across the sea.

The French window reflected her face with a beautiful jawline, three-dimensional and delicate features, and deep eyes. Her slightly curly chestnut hair draped over her shoulders, exuding coldness and maturity.

She stood there silently, letting the time pass. At this moment, the maid in the villa knocked on the bedroom door and said respectfully, "Miss Winnie, someone is looking for you."

Winnie didn't turn her head and asked, "Who is it?"

The maid replied, "He calls himself Yuanshi Tianzun!"

Hearing this, Winnie grabbed a trench coat from the sofa and put it on. "Please invite him in."

The maid retreated. A dozen seconds later, she led Zhang Yuanqing, with golden hair, dark golden skin, and a golden sun branded on his forehead, into the bedroom.

Her senses were deceived by illusions, and she didn't realize that the young man she had invited in was a demigod with an inhuman appearance.

Winnie Bernt waved her hand, dismissing the maid. She examined Yuanshi Tianzun's appearance and sighed, "I didn't expect that you would be the one to become the Lord of the Sun! Heavenly Punishment headquarters painstakingly cultivated Night Tourers, but that being failed to step into the peak Overlord realm in twenty years."

"The Lord of the Moon and the Lord of the Stars... schemed and planned, but in the end, they all did the work for you."

Zhang Yuanqing also examined her. His face was unsmiling and expressionless. He said, "It's not that exaggerated. It's just that I'm more skilled."

"Inspector Winnie, I'm visiting late at night because I want to retrieve something."

Winnie ● Bernt's red lips curled into a smile. "For the Demon Lord's treasure map key? The last time you proposed a deal, my condition was the Cat King speaker. It's the same now."

Zhang Yuanqing nodded, opened his palm, and a black, palm-sized miniature speaker stood in his palm.

From the Cat King speaker's horn came a "buzzing" sound of electricity, followed by a woman's resentful voice: "When we were looking at the moon before, you called me 'sweetie,' but now you call me 'old hag'..."

Winnie Bernt also opened her hand, and a fan-shaped fragment appeared in her fair palm.

Zhang Yuanqing waved his hand to take the jade fragment, placed the Cat King speaker on the coffee table next to the sofa, and nodded. "Thank you. I have a crucial battle with the Lord of the Stars next. If this battle is won, the world will be at peace. Then I will come back and reminisce with Inspector."

He transformed into starlight and disappeared. Winnie Bernt stood there in a daze. After a long time, a tear ran down her cheek.

At dusk, Heavenly Punishment headquarters held an emergency meeting. All Gold Executives and Inspectors were required to attend. Winnie Bernt was among them.

The meeting announced the return of the Wind and Thunder Gods. The two leaders of Heavenly Punishment—no, now it was one—announced the results of the battle for the Sun Origin.

Winnie Bernt still remembered that when she learned that the new Lord of the Sun was Yuanshi Tianzun, the commotion in the conference room was comparable to a busy market. High-ranking Overlords collectively lost their composure.

She was the calmest. She was the one who knew Yuanshi Tianzun, that young man, the best. In addition to possessing enviable talent, he also had a firm will and an indomitable spirit in the face of adversity.

Plus, with the support of the Merchant Guild and the Goddess Association behind him, he had the potential to become a peak Overlord and impact the demigod realm. Whether it was the Five Elements Alliance or Heavenly Punishment, they all acknowledged that Yuanshi Tianzun had the qualifications of a demigod. But they could not accept that a young man who had only cleared the Killing Instance at the end of the year and entered the Overlord stage, could jump two levels in two months to become a peak Overlord.

And after being promoted to peak Overlord, he suppressed the Lord of the Moon and the Lord of the Stars to become the first Lord of the Sun since the appearance of the Lingjing Xingzhe.

In their Huaguo language, this was called a fantasy. However, the corresponding dissatisfaction, confusion, and bewilderment were dispelled by the information that the Wind and Thunder Gods announced next: The Lord of the Stars had betrayed the Lawful faction and would soon decide the fate of the world with the Lord of the Sun.

Instantly, no one had the mind to question the upgrading speed of the Lord of the Sun. A sense of panic occupied the hearts of all the Overlords.

Although Yuanshi Tianzun had become the first Lord of the Sun in history, the Lord of the Stars held two major Origins and might not be worse than the former.

Moreover, judging from the attitudes of the Chief Inspector and the Chief Executive, they didn't seem to have much dissatisfaction with the Lord of the Sun. In addition, the demigods of the Second District had collectively fallen into a deep sleep. Fortunately, the two Chiefs had regained their senses.

After the meeting, Winnie wanted to step into the teleportation array to return to New York County, but was called to the office by Milton, a Gold Inspector of the highest rank.

This peak Overlord of the Inspector system looked at her with pity and revealed a bombshell piece of information: Yuanshi Tianzun was the resurrected Demon Lord!

Winnie ● Bernt completely turned into a statue at that time. Beneath her calm, dull exterior was a surging tide, lightning and thunder, earth-shattering events, and overwhelming joy...

It was difficult to describe her mood at that time with specific, short words. If she had to describe it, it would probably be like overturning a bottle of mixed flavors, with all kinds of emotions mixing and surging, overwhelming reason and mind.

Back in New York County, Winnie ● Bernt was waiting, waiting for the unfaithful man who had said he only loved her to come to her door.

He really came!

But he pretended not to know her and only wanted to retrieve the treasure map fragment she had given him.

The anticipation and joy in Winnie Bernt's heart were shattered at this moment.

She pretended that she didn't know the news that Yuanshi Tianzun was the Demon Lord. In fact, she was holding onto a little bit of expectation, hoping that he would take the initiative to speak, hoping that he would propose rekindling their old relationship, hoping that he, after the pollution was purified, would show her true love and make her firmly believe that the initial seduction wasn't out of lust.

However, the result was exactly the opposite of what she thought.

Yuanshi Tianzun, after purifying the pollution, did not want to have too much entanglement and involvement with her.

Tears fell one by one onto the elm floor. After a year and a half, Winnie Bernt felt the heart-wrenching pain again.

Just then, the Cat King speaker's horn made a "buzzing" sound, followed by Yuanshi Tianzun's low voice, "Winnie, to be honest, I don't know how to face you. When I was still the Demon Lord, I met many women. Most of them were fleeting affairs, and they didn't care how many women I had, nor did they care whether I had feelings for them. They just wanted to get benefits from me, or, more purely, to get pleasure."

"You are different from them. You fell in love with me. I have met several women like you, and I feel guilty towards all of you. Even at the height of the pollution, I never regarded you as toys that could be discarded at will, so I gave you the treasure map fragments."

"Back then, I was a madman walking on the edge of a knife. Maybe the first thing the sun shone on the next day would be my corpse. So, when I found out that you had really fallen in love with me, leaving was my only choice."

The speaker paused for a few seconds, and in the crackling of electricity, continued, "If you can't let me go, then wait for me. If you can let me go, then let's all be well!"

Winnie Bernt hugged the Cat King speaker in her arms and could no longer hold back, bursting into tears.

Late at night.

In a night market in the northwest, the Fear King, wearing a neat suit and silver earrings, sat in front of a greasy square table in a dai pai dong, skewering meat with his left hand and sipping mutton soup with his right, savoring the deliciousness.

His office elite attire was out of tune with the noisy and chaotic night market, making him particularly conspicuous.

His handsome appearance and tall figure attracted many young women and older sisters, but they were all ignored by him.

Northwestern women were bold and fierce, but they wouldn't just give up like that. Among them, there were some who wanted to force themselves on him, but they were often frightened out of their wits by the man's slanted glance and fled in panic.

At this moment, a man wearing a baseball cap and a mask silently passed through the bustling crowd in the night market and sat down at the square table.

"Didn't you say that all the demigods have entered the Killing Instance? Why are you still in reality?" Pure Yang Zhangjiao revealed his gloomy and mad eyes.

The Fear King lowered his head, drinking the mutton soup with loud slurps, and smiled. "The battle for the Sun Origin has ended."

The eyes under the brim of Pure Yang Zhangjiao's hat flashed with emotions such as jealousy and anger, and he subconsciously asked.

"Who won?"