"Why..." As Duo Ling spoke, the beam of light had already pierced through his hand, but he still seemed unfazed and said in a deep voice, "...are you here?"

As he finished speaking, his gaze fell to the end of the hall, where he saw Fu Ling's figure.

"You're so good at scheming..." Fu Ling glared at Duo Ling, approaching step by step, "Why don't you guess..."

"You are strong... but not strong enough to reach the level of the Four Pillar Gods." Duo Ling pondered as he spoke, "Even if you could defeat the other Ling Kui in a one-against-many situation, it would take a considerable amount of time, and... you couldn't possibly be unscathed like this after the battle." At this point, his expression changed slightly, "So... someone must have helped you."

"You guessed right..." In that instant, another voice joined their conversation.

Accompanying the voice, a black stone floating in mid-air appeared before everyone.

This stone was about three cubic meters in size, with a texture similar to crystal, and an irregular shape overall. The surface of the stone was also decorated with gray-white patterns.

Although it looked like an inanimate object, it was actually... a creature, called the Wu Xing Mo (Formless Demon).

"So it's you..." Duo Ling looked at the Wu Xing Mo, his tone revealing a hint of regret, "No... I should say, as expected, it's you."

From Duo Ling's expression and words, it could be seen... that his wariness of the Wu Xing Mo had existed for a long time.

Among the Nine Undead Kui, the Wu Xing Mo had always been the most mysterious. No one knew the limits of its power, and it never revealed its thoughts.

In the past few years, Duo Ling had repeatedly tried to put the Wu Xing Mo in dangerous situations, wanting to test how strong this stone was, but the Wu Xing Mo was always able to retreat unscathed in a clever way... it was impeccable.

"After the last Peak Competition, you suddenly disappeared." Duo Ling paused for two seconds, then continued to say to the Wu Xing Mo, "You show up here today, standing on Fu Ling's side... Could it be that you were originally a mole planted by her?"

"Heh..." A disdainful laugh came from the floating stone. Its voice and tone were comparable to a radio announcer, warm, soft, and very pleasant to listen to, "Duo Ling, don't underestimate what you don't understand... you don't have that kind of strength or qualification."

As soon as these words came out, Zhuan Jie Zun and Dian He Wang, who were watching from the sidelines, both changed their expressions.

"Who... exactly are you..." Duo Ling also showed a solemn expression, "Or rather... what are you?"

"If you can 'be crowned king' as you wish, you will naturally know." The Wu Xing Mo replied, "But now... who will become the new king is still unknown."

"Oh?" Duo Ling heard this and shifted his gaze back to Fu Ling, "Based on you... you also want to compete with me for the throne?"

"What a joke!" Fu Ling replied coldly, "You should say that to yourself." She strode towards Duo Ling, her momentum aggressive, "In terms of strength, I was the number one Ling General under Lord Nether Abyss You Wang in the past... What are you? In terms of qualifications, I admit that you defeated and imprisoned me with power and schemes... after all, it was my own lack of ability. But now... you betrayed You Wang and attempted to replace him. I ask you, among the upper and lower ranks of the Undead Kingdom... who will obey you?"

"Heh... qualifications..." Duo Ling sneered, "You still want to discuss so-called legitimacy with me? How boring..." He clenched his fist and shouted, "The most reliable means of making people submit is power!"

"Then..." Fu Ling replied, "Let's compete in strength and determine the winner."

"Hmph..." Duo Ling still sneered, "Fu Ling... after so many years, how come you haven't made any progress at all?" He spread his hands and gestured towards the four people beside him, "This world... is a world where the winner is king. The process and means are ultimately interpreted by the victor... Why should I abandon the advantageous situation and engage in that kind of one-on-one, duel-style contest with you?"

"Because..." At this moment, the Wu Xing Mo spoke, "This is Feng Bujue's intention."

"You... what did you say?" That name seemed to have magic power, causing Duo Ling's expression to change abruptly.

"Isn't what he said clear enough?" At this moment, Dian He Wang, who was standing to the side and behind Duo Ling, suddenly said this in a cold tone.

"Hehehe..." Zhuan Jie Zun laughed, "Ah... you are too young..." He shook his head and said to Duo Ling, "You have both ambition and schemes, but unfortunately... you are not cunning and thorough enough."

"What do you mean? What do you mean by this!" Duo Ling's voice instinctively rose, because an emotion called "fear" had already faintly risen in his heart.

"Don't you understand yet?" The Wu Xing Mo said, "Why would I appear on the battlefield of Fu Ling and the Ling Kui? Who else could have told me this information in advance..."

Hearing these words, Duo Ling's mind buzzed, and a burst of anger accumulated in his chest.

"In other words..." At this moment, Tariq Alium was still maintaining his composure. He said in his usual, gloomy tone, "While Feng Bujue was arranging our encirclement of You Wang, he also set up another layer of scheming outside of this game..." As he said this, he looked at Zhuan Jie Zun, "Elder Zhuan... you and He Wang also participated in this matter, right?"

"That's right," Zhuan Jie Zun replied leisurely, "We were aware of Feng Bujue's arrangements in advance; on the one hand, he had Duo Ling instigate that plan to lure the tiger away from the mountain and kill with a borrowed knife, and on the other hand... he had the Wu Xing Mo lie dormant in the dark, waiting for Duo Ling to leave the battlefield before taking action to help Fu Ling." He stroked his beard and smiled (Zhuan Jie Zun's image at this moment was that of an old white-haired and bearded mage), turned his head to look at Duo Ling, and said, "Hehe... wanting to replace the position of the Four Pillar Gods, how could it be so easy? Duo Ling, on your path to being crowned king... Fu Ling is an unavoidable obstacle that you must overcome by yourself."

"Alright, let's not say anything more unnecessary... There are a total of seven people here. If we really open up and fight, it would be three of you from the Phantom Demon Church against the four of us. Weigh it yourself..." Two seconds later, Dian He Wang took the opportunity to continue, "Duo Ling, Feng Bujue's intention is... whoever wins between you and Fu Ling can ascend to the throne. You yourself also said – the most reliable means of making people submit is power. Then... use your power to open up the future."

"Damn it..." At this moment, Duo Ling was trembling all over, furious, "That Feng... you schemed against me..."

"Alright, don't put on this defeated look as if you've already admitted defeat before the fight even started." Smodur then said a fair word to his ally, "Feng Bujue's approach... also has a certain reason." As he said this, he had already retreated to the side, "Wanting to replace a god is not so easy... a position that is not obtained by paying the corresponding price usually does not last long."

"Heh... well said." Tariq Alium also immediately expressed his attitude, "Duo Ling, whether you will become an existence that surpasses us or perish here... let us witness it together."