Forty Millenniums of Cultivation

Those who had seen the real face of Lord Cooper among the remaining soldiers of the six clans, especially the Thousand-Armed Monarch, the Red Lotus Grand Monarch, Queen Medusa, and the first elder of the Turing Clan, all gasped.

The two sorceresses on Black Jack's side must've heard or seen what Lord Cooper looked like before. They exclaimed in shock, too, as if they had seen a ghost.

Theresa thought of something. She snuck close and asked softly, "What's wrong? Is there something wrong with the appearance of Senior Master Cooper?"

"How—how did he end up like this?"

One of the demonesses said, "According to the legends, Lord Cooper should've looked ugly and magnificent!"

"That's right. He must've had a beard that looked like a sword and a halberd. He was as magnificent as a lion.

Another witch added, "How could he bear to shave off his beard that looked like that of a lion? Also, why did he become so feminine and delicate after the shave?"

A bolt of lightning flashed in Theresa's heart.

Sure enough, her guess was correct.

Through the magic of Eric the Shapeshifter, Senior King Cooper turned into a girl!

His purpose was to enter the crimson palace and inherit the legacy of the Crimson Queen!

However, judging from his genderless features and the flat curves on his body, his transformation was not as perfect as Theresa's. Or rather, he was still 'incomplete'.

Maybe, this was the real reason why he left the ancient black book with Eric and asked him to continue his research.

However, since Eric's magical tower had been demolished by Black Jack's exploration team, Lord Cooper must have a way to get the alert. Therefore, he could only brace himself and march toward the crimson palace.

"Do you see it?"

With a bitter smile, General Cooper said, somewhat frustrated, "This is the 'price' that I paid for the legacy of the Crimson Queen and the 'awareness' that I got. What about you? What did you pay, what did you abandon, and what did you sacrifice?

"Tell me, who is more qualified than me to inherit the legacy of the Crimson Queen?"

Lord Cooper suddenly burst into fury. He raised his hand, and his magical power condensed into a black hand that slapped at Black Jack.

Black Jack had no strength to fight back at all. His bones were broken, and he collapsed to the ground, spurting blood.

"Jack!"

The girls of the harem were all shocked and lunged at Black Jack.

Hela the dragoness and Natasha the captain of the maid legion both glared at Grand Master Cooper.

"Are you Black Jack, the famous bounty hunter of the Emerald Continent? I'm told that you took something that belonged to me."

Narrowing his eyes and speaking in a creepy voice, Grand Lord Kuba curled his finger. Black Jack's armor and clothes were immediately torn apart.

The ancient black magic book that Theresa had been dreaming about floated in midair and fell into the hands of Lord Cooper.

"Today is a good day for the rebirth of the Crimson Queen. Stay there and don't force me to kill you.

Flipping through the book of ancient black magic, General Cooper said casually, "You and your girls might be of some use on my journey to unite the Blood Demon Sector and the Emerald Continent. If you don't want to see your beloved girls being tortured to death one by one and the entire Emerald Continent suffering, you should cooperate with me, shouldn't you?

Black Jack vomited another mouthful of black blood. He lowered his head and looked at his chest, only to discover that a burning palm print had appeared on his chest and spread out like an evil curse.

"Rest assured. I'm not dead yet.

"As long as you ask your girls to put down their weapons obediently, I guarantee that you will still be able to live a comfortable life."

Black Jack's face was gloomy. He coughed hard.

"Jack!"

Natasha, captain of the mercenary group, gnashed her teeth. "Let's fight it out with Lord Cooper!"

"Don't—don't be rash."

Black Jack's face was pale. He vomited blood and said softly, "If we risk our lives right now, we will only be committing suicide. Just wait. I don't believe that he can get the legacy of the Crimson Queen so easily. Natasha, tell everyone to… put down their weapons!"

"This—" The female captain could not believe her ears.

"Believe me, I have my ways, but not right now."

Black Jack smiled. Weird brilliance was rolling inside his eyes as he said, "I only need you to believe in me. Believe in me wholeheartedly and offer your strength, your soul, your life, and your everything to me unreservedly!

"Clang! Clang! Clang!"

Everybody in Black Jack's adventure team, as well as the remaining soldiers of the six clans, put down their weapons and were escorted aside by the soldiers of the Hell Destroyer Clan.

Everything was under the Grand Lord's control. He had foreseen such an outcome a long time ago. With a snort of disdain, he shook his hands, and the ancient black book that Theresa had been dreaming about burst into flames.

Weird things happened. In the raging flames, the ancient black book was not burnt to the ground. Instead, it melted like liquid metal and turned into a weird key!

"Eric is truly one of the best palace mages in the Jadeite Continent. In the end, he finally figured out the mysteries of the ancient black magic. It's a pity that his life was too short!

With the key in his hand, General Cooper walked deeper into the cave.

He raised the key high. Suddenly, countless metal flowers bloomed on the walls nearby. The colorful stamens crowded toward him and tied up the key in his hand, before they pierced into his veins and nerves softly.

Lord Cooper seemed to have turned into a statue.

The black flames around him, on the other hand, were more furious than ever.

Theresa knew that Senior King Kuba was trying to pass the test of the crimson palace—or, more precisely, the test of Jade—in order to gain control rights of a higher level.

Theresa was burning with anxiety. She was not sure how far he could go. Now that he had come prepared and had the 'key', would he be able to control Jade directly?

If so, not only would the Emerald Continent be doomed, such a brutal, untamable, and full of uncertainties guy was not an ideal partner for the Pangu Universe, either.

But Theresa could not stop him.

The magical power that she had awakened was too weak compared to that of Lord Cooper. If she took action recklessly, nothing would change except that she would be killed.

Right now, the only variable was Black Jack.

Black Jack, what are you up to exactly? What are your trump cards? Show them now!

In the mental world, the test of Jade lasted a long time.

But in reality, it was only for a moment.

Very soon, Lord Cooper took a long breath in relief and opened his eyes slowly. Dazzling brilliance was added to his eyes out of nowhere.

His lips curled into a confident smile, and his aura became deeper and stronger.

Rumbling noises came from the depths of the cave. The liquid metal around them changed again and looked more and more like a magnificent, futuristic bridge.

The remaining soldiers of the six clans looked at the unrecognizable cave in disbelief.

The Hell Exterminators all cheered.

The wall in front of him that had been sealed melted into two sides like a water curtain hole, opening a dark, deep channel.

"The pathway to the central area of the bridge has been opened. Now, go and claim our treasures!"

Lord Cooper turned around and said proudly.

What greeted him was a bright gold tentacle.

Hiu!

The tentacles were too fast to be described as 'fast as lightning'. Even Lord Cooper could not dodge or resist them. His shoulder was pierced through by the tentacles.

"It's impossible!"

The color of his face suddenly changed. Holding the bloody hole on his shoulder, he retreated three steps and stared at the rapidly expanding enemy in front of him solemnly, while he shouted, "Black Jack, it's you! You are—not a human being!"

Under everyone's shocked and horrified gazes, Black Jack emitted an aura that was even more evil than that of General Cooper. Bright gold tentacles grew out of his bulging armor and supported him on the ground and the walls, turning him into a monster that was even uglier than a deformed spider.

"Jack…"

Theresa and everyone in the fan club were dumbfounded.

Natasha stammered, "How—how did you end up like this? What happened to you?"

"Shh…"

The smile on his face, which was full of gold stripes and twisted features, was still as warm as before. He said, "Rest assured. Leave everything to me. You just need to trust me wholeheartedly and dedicate everything to me.

Waving his tentacles, he crawled toward Grand Master Cooper unhurriedly.

"Thank you for opening the pathway to the central area of the bridge for me. I've wasted too much of my strength in the space jump. Without your help, I wouldn't have been able to deal with such… advanced starships in such a short time.

Black Jack smiled at Grand Lord Cooper.

"What are you exactly?"

Raising the giant sword in his hands, Grand Master Cooper shouted, "You are not Black Jack. No. You are not a human being at all!"

"Human beings, how can such insignificant names define my existence?

Black Jack waved his bright gold tentacles and smiled. "After a long time, the creatures who are screaming in the fire of destruction will call my species 'Devourer', but I suggest you call me 'Master Devourer'."