"So many years… and you haven't changed a bit."

The red-robed man riding the Red Dragon smiled upon hearing Gu Changzhi's challenge.

He lowered his head, silently gazing at the Golden Divine Realm beneath him, reining in the Red Lightning Dragon's neck, barely holding it at its current altitude, preventing it from descending further. The Red Dragon halted precisely at the boundary line above the cemetery, avoiding contact with the Golden Divine Realm.

This action alone revealed his caution.

"I have not come to Nagano to fight you."

The Sky Throne spoke calmly, "Gu Changzhi, you surely don't want to truly fight me here, do you? I am not the same as Di Jiu… Once a war begins, the entirety of Nagano will instantly be reduced to ruins."

Hidden within the black clouds, Gu Shen, enveloped by the dual layers of Pluto's power and the Golden Divine Realm, still felt immense pressure. The Sky Throne was indeed not a powerhouse on the same level as the Wine God Throne.

Every word he spoke resonated like thunder!

Without the protection of these two great domains, he feared… he wouldn't even be able to hear a complete sentence!

"The Sky Throne isn't exaggerating…"

Bai Shu, sheltering alongside Gu Shen in the black clouds, said earnestly, "He has wielded his Fire Seed for the longest of all the Five Continents' God Seats. No one knows the true extent of his power."

Gu Shen narrowed his eyes, carefully scrutinizing the face of the red-robed man above.

After fusing with a Fire Seed, the "God Seats" mostly possessed youthful appearances due to the immense leap in their life level.

They had completely transcended the realm of mortals.

The Wine God Throne, for instance… often presented himself with the face of a young boy!

Using appearance to infer age was clearly inadvisable.

And forbidden arts like divination and prayer were ineffective against God Seats… Therefore, information about the Sky Throne could only be found in the deepest levels of the restricted archives with the highest clearance.

However, whose clearance could possibly exceed that of a God Seat himself?

Thus… investigating the secrets of a God Seat was fundamentally an impossible paradox.

"Perhaps, you overestimate yourself."

Gu Changzhi stood with his hands behind his back, and said calmly, "Why don't we fight now… I can guarantee that after the fight, Nagano will still be Nagano, without suffering the slightest damage."

The Sky Throne continued to smile.

"Regrettably, there will be no such fight."

He spoke directly, saying leisurely, "Fighting Fire Seed, a final burst of glory… you wish to use the last of your embers to drag another God Seat down with you…"

Gu Changzhi remained silent, merely clenching his fists.

His state appeared immensely strong… but in reality, killing the Wine God Throne had already pushed him to his limit.

Embers rekindled.

How long could they burn?

The Sky Throne laughed, "If you were at your full strength today, and only you were in the cemetery, I would gladly fight…"

Here,

His gaze swept towards a certain part of the Golden Divine Realm.

Hiding in the black clouds, Gu Shen felt a vague sensation of explosion in his heart.

That gaze had actually pierced through Gu Changzhi's Golden Divine Realm, directly targeting him!

Fortunately… there was the cover of Pluto's black clouds.

This gaze did not further tear through the black clouds.

Bai Shu stepped forward, blocking Gu Shen. It was a subconscious action… but if the Sky Throne's divine sense truly shattered the black clouds, he could act immediately.

"Senior Bai Shu…"

Gu Shen felt a surge of gratitude in his heart.

"Do not panic, just hide within the black clouds. No matter how the Sky Throne probes, do not reveal any extra emotions." Bai Shu said calmly, "If he cannot sense you, he will not dare to attack."

Gu Shen immediately understood the true purpose of Mr. Gu Changzhi's instruction to hide in the black clouds!

Gu Changzhi had sensed the Sky Throne's arrival before anyone else!

He immediately activated his breathing technique, exhaling silently, allowing his mind to regain its calm.

"You and Pluto are truly brothers in adversity. To think you could come up with the play of faking death in the Old World for today… Di Jiu didn't die in vain in your hands."

The red-robed man riding the Thunder Dragon laughed softly.

He had not stepped into the cemetery because he had seen through it: a black cloud was hidden within the Golden Divine Realm!

It was Pluto's black cloud!

Gu Changzhi wanted to invite him to a fight… This was simply a trap.

If he agreed, Pluto would appear!

He prided himself on seeing through this trick, so naturally, he would not fall for it.

So today, before arriving in Nagano, the Sky Throne had already decided that he would not give those two madmen a chance to fight.

Gu Changzhi's clenched fists loosened slightly.

He calmly raised his head.

Some regret.

The glow of the Fighting Fire Seed within his divine body was now almost extinguished. Even though he was still burning with divine power, it was impossible to rush out of the cemetery and fight the Sky Throne.

"Gentlemen… I have come here today to take away the Wine God Fire Seed."

The Sky Throne said calmly, "According to the default rules of the Federal Government's High Council… no continent may possess more than two Fire Seeds. East洲 has shown weakness for twenty years. Today's shock to the world should have achieved its effect, right?"

The Five Continents had a total of seven Fire Seeds.

The reason why Central Continent was able to become the undisputed overlord was because, during the twenty years that the Pluto Fire Seed was lost… two God Seat-level figures who had fused with Fire Seeds stood atop the Source Tower.

And now, East Continent possessed both the "Fighting God Seat" and "Pluto"!

From the weakest at the start, it had directly become the strongest!

The Wine God Throne's corpse floated amidst the ruins of the cemetery.

His divine blood, having lost the augmentation of the "Fire Seed", was no different from ordinary blood, seeping into the earth.

And within his exploded head, a purple "Fire Seed" was coalescing.

That… was the Wine Fire Seed!

If one approached it, they would smell a faint alcoholic fragrance that went straight to the spirit.

The disordered power emitted by this Fire Seed was like fine wine, capable of immersing people in the "Land of Souls", allowing them to experience boundless joy and illusory bliss.

At this moment… the Wine Fire Seed floated before Gu Changzhi.

But he showed no intention of handing it over.

"This Fire Seed has been passed down in my Source Tower for many years, with countless believers benefiting from its blessings."

The Sky Throne said leisurely, "Even if you want to stay in Nagano, there is no one who can inherit it… The current Five Continents are facing immense pressure on order outside the fortresses. Returning the Fire Seed and allowing the Source Tower to select a new master among the Wine God believers is the best outcome for the human world."

He knew Gu Changzhi's character well.

This was a selfless individual who would burn away all his glory for the sake of the Federal Government and the human world.

To obtain this Fire Seed from him… one needed to start from the big picture.

Gu Changzhi fell into a brief silence.

No matter how unwilling he was to return the Fire Seed, he had to admit… what the Sky Throne said was correct.

"If you are willing to hand over the Fire Seed to me, I can guarantee that the Source Tower will not pursue the responsibility that Nagano should bear for this God War in the High Council." The red-robed man said gently, "Conversely, your killing of a God Seat has caused great losses to the Federal Government… If the Source Tower insists on pursuing the matter, you will not be able to escape the blame, no matter what."

Gu Shen, hidden in the black clouds, gnashed his teeth in anger upon hearing these words.

It was clearly the Wine God Seat who had first committed the transgression!

If Gu Changzhi had not acted… how many innocent people would have died in Nagano after today?

"Di Jiu's crimes deserve to be punished ten times over."

Gu Changzhi said calmly, "I simply did what you were unable to do."

A God Seat who did not fulfill the duties of a God Seat was the greatest scourge of the Five Continents!

"Indeed, I agree." The Sky Throne said calmly, "If there truly is a day of reckoning, it will not be to pursue your responsibility for killing him, but to pursue your actions of keeping the Fire Seed. In any case, the human world… cannot be without God Seats."

Saying this, he once again looked towards the black clouds within the Golden Divine Realm.

Gu Changzhi seemed to have already performed this play once before.

The disappearance of Pluto caused immense losses to the Federal Government. Many transcendents were mobilized to search, but no answer was found.

However, at that time, there was no evidence to indicate that Gu Changzhi was responsible for all of this.

The only one who caught a glimpse of the Old World God War happened to be the Wine God Seat…

"I can hand over the Fire Seed to the Source Tower."

Gu Changzhi pondered for a long time.

Finally, he raised his head and made a request: "But I want the Source Tower to permanently revoke the 'Awakening Act'."

The man riding the Thunder Dragon fell into contemplation upon hearing this.

After a moment.

"I can only guarantee… the revocation of the Awakening Act in East Continent."

The Sky Throne said faintly, "I cannot guarantee the others, but for you, isn't withdrawing the Awakening Act from East Continent… enough?"

Withdrawing it from East Continent was already enough.

This request was excessive, leaving room for negotiation. Gu Changzhi knew that it was difficult for him to protect everyone in the Five Continents on the matter of the act, but at least, he had to protect East Continent!

He frowned and said, "You… have already chosen a new location for the implementation of the act?"

Since the Sky Throne could agree to his request, he must have already thought of a countermeasure.

From the beginning, the Awakening Act was more like a test to see if he had awakened!

However… with the progress of the experiment, the speed of the act's implementation had become faster and faster.

The "Deep Sea" linking to the human body, mental stimulation awakening, allowing everyone to achieve transcendence… was no longer a misty and illusory idea!

Once the act was passed, there would truly be a group of ordinary people who would achieve transcendent bodies!

Obviously… among the Five Continents, aside from East Continent, there was another location that was very suitable for the implementation of the act.

"The act will be implemented in South Continent."

The Sky Throne said seriously, "I will persuade Storm to select a city-state in South Continent to conduct a transcendent awakening experiment before the act is implemented. Therefore… I can guarantee you that from today onwards, the Source Tower will withdraw its proposal to implement the Awakening Act in East Continent."