Chapter 46

It was not until the Myriad Underworld Demon Lord scooped the sleeping Su You into his arms that the Nether-clan figures within the Mirror Lake finally halted their movements. Everyone ceased what they were doing with the utmost care and caution, gazing intently at the tiny baby held safely in the Demon Lord's embrace.

It was him...

It was this tiny baby who had rescued them from endless torment.

It was only after hearing the baby say he was tired that Wan You finally realized just how quietly this tiny infant had accompanied them, lifting the curse that had bound the entire Nether clan.

Yet they, having heard the baby claim he wasn't hungry, had actually believed him, completely overlooking the fact that he was merely this small.

Seeing the baby curled up and fast asleep in their leader's arms, Wan You felt a surge of fury so intense he wanted to slap himself. What a complete fool he had been, failing to realize that a baby was the most fragile creature of all, needing the tenderest care and growing exhausted the most easily.

With the Demon Lord having carried the baby away, the Nether-clan members in the Mirror Lake finally broke free from their prior euphoria. One after another, they stepped out of the water. Even before taking a moment to relish the joy of their restored bodies, these Nether-clan members scattered swiftly, sprinting toward every corner of the Nether Domain—

"I know where the sweetest Youyou-grass essence is; I'm going to gather it!"

"I know where the finest fruit nectar in the Nether Domain is; I'm going to harvest it!"

"Perhaps the baby enjoys meat; I know where the most tender jade deer graze..."

"And a soft cushion woven from thousand-silk grass..."

"And my treasured purple-feathered cloak..."

Realizing that this little one had endured exhaustion just to lift their curse as swiftly as possible, every single Nether-clan member felt their heart melt entirely.

Only the best!

They would gather everything finest within the Nether Domain and present it to the baby who had saved them!

...

Not only them, but the Myriad Underworld Demon Lord had also located his former Spirit Domain. After breaking open its barrier, he tenderly laid the tiny baby upon a slab of warm jade.

Far away in the primary universe, although Su You's broadcast remained suspended due to a "technical fault," the signal on the cosmic optical network was working without a single flaw as far as the high-ranking executives of the Dark Universe Corporation were concerned.

At this very moment, these corporate elites had already lost count of how many directives they had issued to the 25838-numbered plane, ordering heightened security and increased confidentiality classifications.

They truly had not expected that hidden within plane 25838, alongside the mutations of the Immaculate Tears and the Blood Immaculate Tears, were countless resources that were exceedingly precious even to the primary universe.

To the majority of life forms in the primary universe, existing within the primary realm meant enjoying the highest tier of cosmic resources. They believed that incomplete subordinate planes could never harbor products superior to those of the primary world.

In truth, however, that was far from the case.

While the vast majority of these subordinate planes lacked a complete cosmic cycle and existed merely as fragmented space debris, there was every possibility that they had once nurtured glorious civilizations rivalling the primary universe.

At the same time, these incomplete subordinate planes carried a distinct probability of containing rare resources that were exceedingly scarce within the primary universe itself.

Normally, however, subordinate planes of this caliber were far too rare, and once discovered, they were strictly sealed off and protected by conglomerate powers like the Dark Universe Corporation.

How could ordinary cosmic audiences, who spent their days indulging in spirit-form projections and immersing themselves in the era of macro-cosmic entertainment, ever comprehend the secrets hidden beneath the surface?

Yet, obviously—even the All-Knowing Brainstem of the Dark Universe Corporation, Saint Hilberg, was not truly omniscient and omnipotent.

Take plane 25838, for instance. Prior to this, Saint Hilberg’s perception had failed to unearth any exceptionally rare resources within it, which was why the Dark Universe Corporation had registered it as an open subordinate plane, serving simply as a tournament venue for a B-grade reality show.

Then again, had plane 25838 not served as the arena for this battle-king elimination tournament, the upper echelons of the Dark Universe Corporation would never have realized that such precious resources were concealed within this subordinate plane.

Some high-ranking executives quickly made the connection that a "God-Tier Battle-King System" had been deployed into this B-grade reality show, and that even before any of them had taken notice, Saint Hilberg had already been quietly safeguarding the program from the very beginning.

Therefore...

Certain executives among the corporate leadership began to ponder in secret—did their Lord, the All-Knowing Brainstem Saint Hilberg, truly fail to detect the anomalies in plane 25838 from the very start?

Perhaps, even now, everything that had transpired was still strictly within Saint Hilberg's calculations?

...

Unlike the complex musings of the Dark Universe Corporation's elite, by the time the vast majority of contestants had already commenced their third elimination trial, poor Makkamaka, the green-skinned host upon the virtual broadcast sphere's main stage, felt as though he was on the verge of completely shattering.

Those binary-logic trolls...

Those damned binary-logic trolls!

Those wretched trolls had bombed the main stage area countless times, leaving behind unwashable plaques of negative-review slime.

Some viewers had grown so sick of the trolls' disruptions that they chose to leave, while certain wealthy patrons opted to activate the do-not-disturb mode.

The only one suffering through it all was poor Makkamaka. Wealthy patrons could choose to shield themselves, and budget viewers could choose to leave, but he, a pitiful host, had no choice but to remain stranded on the main stage, forcing smiles at the trolls while agonizing over whether the extreme emotional fluctuations within the virtual broadcast sphere might spell even worse trouble for the show.

Great Saint Hilberg, could you not simply put a stop to these damned trolls?

This was his very own, hard-earned representative variety show!

Yet, at last... the sole piece of good news was that those foolish production directors had finally remembered they could broadcast video replays of the baby to appease the trolls. The moment he announced this good news, although a handful of stubborn trolls still demanded the latest updates on the baby, the vast majority were successfully lured back into subspace 001.

Seeing those trolls finally retreat, the poor green-skinned Makkamaka nearly wept with joy—he had finally managed to chase those pests away.

However, after clearing out the trolls, Makkamaka glanced at the real-time viewer count on the main stage. Though a smile still lingered on his face, his heart gave a nervous lurch.

For both the real-time viewer count and the viewership curves made it abundantly clear: it wasn't just the trolls waiting for Su You's appearance; many of the seemingly calm and rational viewers on the main stage were secretly longing for the baby candidate from sub-space 001 as well.

These viewers might not stay purely out of a desire to baby-sit like the trolls did—their interest stemmed from the baby's overall performance from the very beginning up until now.

Even though Makkamaka firmly believed that a battle-king variety show required formidable combat prowess, he had to admit that a program originally reliant entirely on raw combat and intellectual strategy had gained countless thrilling, unexpected twists simply because of the baby's presence.

Just like right now—numerous viewers were eagerly anticipating how Sylvalando, candidate 002, would react once he discovered that the baby was the true candidate 001.

In truth, anyone could see that Sylvalando had already formed his suspicions regarding the baby's identity. But following their transportation to the new elimination plane, Sylvalando and the other contenders were once again confronted with fresh challenges.

And since candidate 001's baby had yet to arrive in the new elimination plane due to undisclosed reasons, Sylvalando's suspicions had to remain mere guesses for the time being.

Many of the remaining audience members were staying precisely for that moment when Sylvalando and the baby would cross paths in the new plane.

Makkamaka knew that this would undoubtedly become one of the most legendary moments in the history of their show!

Aside from that, this little tot named Su You had already forged a series of legendary moments within the show that far surpassed anything seen before.

...

At this thought, the wretched host Makkamaka found himself missing the little tyke as well—no matter what, he hoped the main system would hurry and drop the baby back into a regular plane soon!

Of course, Makkamaka could not possibly know that the decision of whether or not to drop the baby back into a regular plane did not rest with the main system at all, but rather in the hands of their Dark Universe Corporation's All-Knowing Brainstem, Lord Saint Hilberg!

...

While numerous individuals in the primary universe worried and yearned over the baby, deep within the Nether Domain of plane 25838, every single member of the Nether clan was busily tending to the little one who slumbered in dreams—

"I have brought the Youyou-grass that the baby will surely love!"

"I have prepared the most delectable fruit juice!"

"The most tender roasted meat is ready as well!"

Every single Nether-clan member brought the finest items they could find to the threshold of the Myriad Underworld Demon Lord's Spirit Domain, eager to offer these treasures to their dearest little darling.