I Really Am A Villain

Xu Zimo’s thoughts were simple.

If something couldn’t be used by him, how could he possibly allow it to leave? He might as well tear that door apart right there and then.

He didn’t say it aloud, though, he wanted to win the Iron Gate’s loyalty, not its fear. If the Iron Gate chose to stay willingly, all the better. It would save him quite a bit of trouble.

For now, Xu Zimo had no time for anything else. He was fully focused on breaking through, on stepping into Eternity.

Unlike the Chaos Primordial stage, the power of the Eternal Overlord stage lived up to its name.

It was said that once, an Eternal Overlord had struck the Unforgotten Mountain with a single sword. The entire mountain had split apart, and even after countless centuries, the sword intent he left behind still lingered, as vast and boundless as the sea.

That was the true power of Eternity.

If one were struck by an Eternal Overlord, and one’s own strength did not match theirs, the wound would never fully heal, not even after a thousand years.

Such was the mark of an Eternal Overlord’s might.

Within the five stages of the Saint Sovereign realm, Eternal Overlord stood as the third, a realm of profound power.

With four great Infernal Archons guarding him, Xu Zimo could meditate in peace, free from any outside interference.

His consciousness entered a realm of pure darkness.

Within him, his God-Soul, the embodiment of the God World, began to spin rapidly.

With the aid of that internal world, his comprehension speed doubled, perhaps even more.

If his understanding of the Primal Dao of the world had once been as narrow as a finger, now that he was becoming an Eternal Overlord, those same Primal Dao thickened into something as broad and solid as an arm.

The power of Primal Dao within him grew stronger and stronger, little by little.

It was a long and gradual process, but Xu Zimo was patient, fully immersed in the sensation of transformation.

The God World within him was intimately tied to his own being. As he grew stronger, that inner world expanded from a small, self-contained realm into a true medium-sized world.

The stronger Xu Zimo became, the wider the God World stretched, and the might of its heavenly laws grew in tandem.

In the past, when Xu Zimo was at the Grand Emperor Realm, the native beings of his continent could never surpass that level. The world’s law itself placed a ceiling upon them; its power simply couldn’t sustain anything greater.

But now that he had walked far along the path of the Saint Sovereign, his world’s inhabitants could naturally reach higher levels of cultivation as well.

Xu Zimo and his inner continent nourished each other in a perfect cycle, one strengthening the other.

……

Inside his body, the twin Life-Death Souls sat cross-legged, one on each side. Their posture and appearance mirrored Xu Zimo’s exactly.

They faced the heavens, breathing in the spirit energy of the world. With every breath in and out, countless laws of nature surged and intertwined around them.

Meanwhile, Xu Zimo’s Hell-Suppressing Demon Physique seethed with infernal energy. Strengthened by the evolving Primal Daos, his physical form grew more formidable with every moment.

A monstrous, demonic visage began to take shape upon his chest, a new transformation born of the Eternal Overlord.

The ten meridian gates within him roared as torrents of demonic energy surged through his eight strange meridians and five internal organs, resonating even with his God-Soul.

Xu Zimo had no sense of time anymore. He only knew that he was surrounded by an endless ocean of Primal Dao, enveloped in pure bliss.

When the transformation reached completion, the aura of eternity erupted from his body, vast and indestructible.

Even through the rise and fall of ages, he would remain unending.

“I live and perish with Heaven and Earth.”

When the final strand of Primal Dao fully evolved, spirit energy within him flowed like a roaring river, shaking the heavens. His aura swelled higher and higher until…

Suddenly, he opened his eyes.

A thunderous roar burst from his chest, shattering the silence and echoing across the entire inner world.

The power radiating from him blasted outward, ripping the land apart. The ground cracked open with a deafening rumble that seemed to tear through creation itself.

“Fall back!” the four Infernal Archons shouted, retreating swiftly as waves of energy swept across the area.

Dust filled the air, veiling the world in chaos.

When it finally settled, Xu Zimo rose slowly to his feet.

The power of eternity surged through his veins, boundless and terrifying.

“Congratulations, my lord,” the four Infernal Archons descended from the sky, kneeling as one.

Xu Zimo gave a faint nod, a smile curling at the corner of his lips.

“It feels good to be stronger,” he said lightly.

Then he lifted his gaze toward the Four Symbols Flame Crystals above.

At first, he had believed that their energy came purely from the four elemental beasts, but as he refined their power during his breakthrough, he realized it was far purer than that.

This was no ordinary fourfold fire energy.

Xu Zimo concluded that the crystal’s true origin had nothing to do with the Four Symbols. It had merely been discovered and named by the Fire God Race afterward.

Within it lay one of the most pristine forces in all of creation.

Now, that power was gone. The surface of the Flame Crystal was covered in cracks, ready to shatter at any moment.

“You should’ve known better,” Xu Zimo said coldly. “If you had obeyed me before, I would’ve left you a spark of strength to survive. But now… only destruction remains.”

He extended a finger and tapped the crystal lightly.

A sharp crack rang out, and the Four Symbols Flame Crystal shattered into fine dust, vanishing into the void.

Xu Zimo never showed mercy to anything, or anyone, that defied his will.

He turned and saw the Iron Gate still standing nearby.

“You’re still here?” he asked with a grin.

“I thought about it,” the Iron Gate said. “Staying by your side is probably the safest choice… though you’re also the most dangerous.”

“A wise decision,” Xu Zimo chuckled. “By the way, aside from these crystals, did the Four Symbols Fire Progenitor leave behind any inheritances?”

“Not much,” the Iron Gate replied. “Just a few of his so-called signature divine techniques. But you probably wouldn’t be interested.”

“I might not be,” Xu Zimo said with a smirk, “but the others who came with me will be.”

“You really do plan to wring me dry, don’t you?” the Iron Gate complained, but it still obediently handed over the cultivation methods.

“How long was I in seclusion?” Xu Zimo asked.

“About seven days,” Paimon answered.

“So long already?” Xu Zimo murmured.

He waved his right hand, opening portals leading back to the God World.

“Go back and cultivate,” he ordered.

After watching the four Infernal Archons depart, Xu Zimo grabbed the Iron Gate and said, “Come on. Let’s head out. I wonder how things are up there.”

Leaving the ancient ground behind, Xu Zimo immediately sensed the destruction of the Fire Venom Beasts’ nest above, the battle had long since ended.

He spread his divine sense outward, instantly locating Shangguan Xian and the others.

He tore open the void before him and stepped through.

A heartbeat later, he appeared before them.

They were gathered on an open plain, resting and waiting for his return.

“You finally came out!” Realm Lord Bai exclaimed in relief. “We were worried something had happened to you.”

Xu Zimo smiled and tossed him a few scrolls.

“They’re the divine techniques left behind by the Four Symbols Fire Progenitor,” he said.