But in the depths of the Star Realm Rift, there was basically no chance of being discovered.

After all!

This time, Zorn had come to this deep region with an extraordinary purpose.

...

「Roughly half a day after Zorn entered the ancient Star Realm Rift.」

A trio of Lower Rank Gods also arrived outside the Divine Power barrier.

"Lord Berita Divine Spirit, this is our proof of entry for the Star Realm Rift’s Insect Curse nest."

Soon, the three of them also entered the depths of the Star Realm Rift.

The three of them conversed as they advanced.

"This time, Lord Kaferson has granted us entry into the Ancient Hall of the Starry Sky to acquire an Ancient God Curse."

"That Star Trace: Eating Phase Insect Curse is basically the highest-tier Ancient God Curse in our Calamity Court Divine Kingdom."

"As long as it’s incubated and cultivated well, it can give you a huge advantage in confrontations with Upper Rank Gods."

As they spoke, one of them looked at another, a Level 20 Peak Lower Rank God.

"How many insects are you planning to incubate?"

"I’ve tested it before. My Divine Power’s compatibility with the Insect Curse isn’t very high, so a three-insect curse is basically enough for me. If I go any higher, the Insect Curse will become a threat."

"What about you?"

"I’m planning for a four-insect curse. It would be best to find a Far-Traveling Chrysalis to use as the core Insect Curse Seed."

"A four-insect curse is already extremely powerful."

"With a four-insect curse working in concert, even the powerful Divine Spirits from the Jade Realm would suffer a great loss."

"Hahaha... That’s exactly why I plan to cultivate a four-insect curse. The difficulty is a bit high, but the boost to one’s strength is also immense."

As the two discussed this, they both turned to look at the strongest member of their trio—Terence, the Lower Rank God with an 8-winged Angel Armament.

"Terence, how many insects are you planning to construct for your Insect Curse?"

"It must be at least five!"

"In my opinion, six might even be possible," the other one said with a laugh.

The Lower Rank God, Terence, gazed at the approaching, bottomless Star Realm Rift ahead.

The depths of these Star Traces were the incubation grounds for the Insect Curse Seeds.

His expression turned serious as he said,

"I plan to incubate an ’Insect King’."

An Insect King?

The two of them were stunned. One of them exclaimed in disbelief,

"Hiss... Did I hear that right? Terence, you want to incubate an Insect King?"

"You have to understand, the Insect King Curse is an absolutely terrifying existence."

"An Insect King Curse cultivated with the same amount of Divine Power is a terrifying Ancient God Curse. It can heavily wound a Divine Spirit in one bite and kill a Divine Spirit of the same rank in two."

"It possesses an extremely high degree of Ancient Curse activity on its own."

"It even has a tiny sliver of the terrifying power of the ancient Eating Ancient Insect."

"Countless people have tried to cultivate the Insect King Curse, only to die from its backlash."

"Are you sure you want to cultivate that terrifying Insect King Curse?"

Terence’s expression was calm as he spoke slowly.

"Do you two know how many darlings of the Mythical Wave there are in the Divine Kingdom right now?"

Hearing this, the other two fell silent.

"A great, great many!"

"There’s the Cosmic Sequencer born from a Little Cosmic—Sigmund."

"There’s the Female Sword God, Abigail, who dared to hunt down a Lower Rank God while only at the Holy Crown Level."

"And then there’s Joshua, the Calamity Court Knight. It’s said that, nurtured by an Ancient Heroic Spirit, he has already become a Middle Rank God and is shining brilliantly on the battlefield."

"They are all darlings of this era’s wave, lucky ones favored by fate."

"Not to mention the recently famous [Demigod] in the Divine Kingdom, Zorn Corick."

"First, he pioneered the Dark Gate, then he became a terrifying World-Ending Evil God, and even the Jade Realm failed in its attempt to eliminate him."

"An extraordinary existence like him is extremely rare, even in the history of our Calamity Court Realm."

"It is said that several of the Ancient God lords hold Zorn Corick in extremely high regard."

"Did you get the intelligence reports from the war fortress this time?"

The two exchanged a silent look, and one of them said in a low voice,

"I heard that Zorn and his group have already conquered worlds in over a hundred Evil Divine Kingdoms, as well as more than a dozen Divine Kingdoms. Their progress has been so rapid that it has stunned many Upper Rank Gods."

"That’s right!"

Terence sighed with deep emotion.

"Those guys are all absolute monsters."

"What’s more crucial is that I just received a report that the Demigod Zorn has also entered the Star Trace District."

"With the special methods of that Evil Spirit Wizard, he is bound to construct an Insect King Curse."

"If I want to catch up to them, I have to construct an Insect King Curse."

"Although it’s dangerous, there’s always a price to pay for becoming powerful, isn’t there?"

"Alright, let’s hurry inside!"

"Maybe we’ll even run into that Demigod Zorn. If we really do meet that guy, perhaps we can even spar a little."

...

「Several days later.」

In the depths of a dark and deep Fissure.

Zorn looked at the "Insect Curse Seed" in front of him. It was about the size of a normal human and made of a jade-green crystal.

Inside was a verdant "Insect Curse Body" that seemed to stretch on for an infinite length.

As long as he absorbed and digested this "Insect Curse Body," he would master the "Star Trace: Eating Phase Insect Curse."

Scrutinizing the Insect Curse Seed in his hand, Zorn reached out, placing his palm on it and feeling its icy coolness.

For a moment, a rather complicated expression appeared on his face.

’Witchcraft Unity.’

’The Insect Curse Stream!’

’Back when I was a Player...’

’The "Insect King Curse School" that spread across countless worldlines was created by my own hands.’

Every Legendary figure has their own legendary story.

Zorn’s "Insect Curse Stream" was his legendary story.

In the later stages, the "Insect Curse Stream" and the "Insect King Curse School" once circulated among those Legendary figures who were constantly breaking the level cap.

He, "Zorn," was the Pioneer and founder of that school.

The wheel of fate had turned, bringing him back to the place where it all began, and he couldn’t help but feel a touch of wistful nostalgia.

Although this was an ordinary Insect Curse Seed, Zorn still stored it away with great care after obtaining it.

’It took several days, but I’ve finally found the first Insect Curse Seed.’

’After getting five ordinary Insect Curse Seeds, I can use a special ritual to combine them into a special Insect King Curse.’

’All in all, I need to find a total of 40 ordinary Insect Curse Seeds.’

’That will let me synthesize a total of eight Insect King Curses.’

’One of them needs to be digested by me using a special ritual method.’

’This will allow me to truly achieve the state of Witchcraft Unity.’

’The remaining seven Insect King Curses will be used for cultivation.’

’The Eating Phase Insect Curse of seven great Insect Kings is a near-perfect state. It’s the most stable form of this curse.’

’The Eating Phase Insect Curse of nine great Insect Kings, on the other hand, will use the cultivator’s Divine Body as a chrysalis to metamorphose. When that happens, even an Ancient God would be devoured completely.’

’Therefore, the Eating Phase Insect Curse of seven great Insect Kings balances stability and safety with an extremely powerful state.’

’My previous few Ancient God Curses were merely in the category of "powerful."’

’But this Eating Phase Insect Curse of seven great Insect Kings, this is my true ace in the hole.’

’A perfectly cultivated Insect King can kill a Divine Spirit of the same rank in a single bite.’

’An Eating Phase Insect Curse of seven great Insect Kings is an existence that is absolutely invincible among its peers.’

After storing away this Insect Curse Seed, Zorn continued deeper, searching for other Insect Curse Seeds.

As time went on, Zorn continuously harvested one Insect Curse Seed after another.

Whenever he had harvested five Insect Curse Seeds,

he would activate a ritual to offer a sacrifice to the ancient [Eating Ancient Insect].

Then, he would receive an "Insect King Curse" in return.

The reason Zorn was hiding in the depths of this Star Tier Rift was to prevent anyone from discovering him using this special ritual method to offer sacrifices to the ancient [Eating Ancient Insect].

This was a secret technique exclusive to Zorn from his time as a [Player].

And as the Pioneer of the "Insect King Curse," his accomplishments in this area were naturally unparalleled.

A seven-great-Insect-King curse could be perfectly controlled in his hands.

Time passed, day by day.

Zorn’s harvest brought him step by step closer to his goal of eight Insect King Curses.