It opened its abyssal maw, intent on swallowing the Ginseng Baby whole.

"Eee!!! (Help!!!)" In the sky, the Ginseng Baby, brandishing wings of light, had crossed into Overlord rank with the aid of the Time Element Fruit, and still could not match the speed of the totem-rank Starry Void Insects.

It began shouting desperately for help toward the distant Thunder Crown Rubber Divine Tree.

Around it, five totem-rank Starry Void Insects and dozens of overlord-rank ones eyed it hungrily; in such a situation, not even its own father—not even its contractor—would necessarily risk their life to save the Ginseng Baby.

Yet the Thunder Crown Rubber Divine Tree, its expression shifting at incredible speed, still thrust out a massive rubber arm and grabbed for the Ginseng Baby.

No matter what, it did not want such a delicious Ginseng Baby to fall into the mouths of these corpse-eating vermin.

However, the Thunder Crown Rubber Divine Tree might dare to linger on the strength of its power, but its allies were so terrified by the insect horde that they abruptly fell back.

The Starry Void Insect swarm hurtled toward the Rubber Divine Tree because of the Ginseng Baby, and the Ginseng Baby stood at the center of the struggle between both sides; the present situation was exceedingly grim.

Life and death hung by a thread!

Boom!

The Thunder Crown Rubber Divine Tree's vine whip stretched to its utmost toward the Ginseng Baby.

But the next second, what made the Thunder Crown Rubber Divine Tree's eyes nearly explode was that it was still one step too slow.

The shark-like Starry Void Flying Insect's gaping maw, bristling with razor fangs, had already closed over the space above the Ginseng Baby.

At this very moment, neither side could make any sense of how this trial was unfolding.

Everyone could basically be certain that this Ginseng Baby was the Ginseng Baby's true body.

Right now, the Ginseng Baby was practically staking its life to pull aggro—yet before the two sides had even clashed, it was about to die first!

This tactic of letting the fisherman profit from the fight seemed a bit unpolished.

"Grab it!!!

The Origin Divine Tree, which had just been urging the Rubber Divine Tree not to fall for the trick, now saw the Ginseng Baby about to fall into the Starry Void Insects' jaws and grew frantic beyond measure.

It cursed the Rubber Divine Tree roundly, unable to understand why its movements were so slow.

"Damn it, faster!!!" The Rubber Divine Tree and its contractor had reached the most intense moment of their fusion frequency, yet their movements were still a beat behind the Starry Void Insects.

Everyone watched as the Ginseng Baby was about to be devoured by the Starry Void Insects.

The World Tree, the divine beasts, the demigods, the legends, the contestants—all were gravely solemn.

"Ahhhhhhh!!!!" At this moment, the Owl shrieked in utter terror.

It had predicted its friend's death—bad luck, bad luck, bad luck!!!!

"What are you screeching for!!" Beside it, the Gem Cat cursed.

"Just wait for the breakthrough."

No sooner had it let fall this cryptic remark than countless eyes suddenly turned toward the Ginseng Baby.

For on the verge of being devoured, this Ginseng Baby of no small strength—this Ginseng Baby without even its beast tamer nearby—suddenly broke into a smile.

Its aura climbed ever higher.

[Energy Value]: 99.99 million. First, the Time Element Fruit was activated to its maximum limit.

A terrifying energy fluctuation surged upward from its body.

This change did not trouble the Rubber Divine Tree and the others in the least; they only felt that the Ginseng Baby's aura had grown even more enticing.

But in the very next instant, as firelight began pouring from the wood-element Ginseng Baby's entire body, its aura turned strange.

BOOM!!!

Its [Energy Value]: ? — straight past a hundred million!!

The Ginseng Baby, burning through life force with its Life Flame Seed, had its energy value exploding all at once—even more terrifying than the energy fluctuations radiating from Eleven and Buggy!

For that instant, it was like a deathbed detonation, and everyone snapped their heads around to look.

"It... it's burning its life."

"Is it trying to escape this way???"

God-beasts, demigods, Legends—every one of them sensed the Ginseng Baby's power in that moment, and all stared in disbelief at how it had suddenly surged toward totem rank.

A King-rank Ginseng Baby whose power could, in an instant, climb to near-totem levels—if it truly had strength like that, it might really be able to burst out at greater speed, break free of the Starry Void Insects' devouring, and force the insects and the Rubber Divine Tree to meet face to face.

But what made the many experts' eyes go wide was that this Ginseng Baby, having abruptly erupted with such immense energy, had no intention of using that power to flee.

Instead...

The next second.

The energy within the Ginseng Baby's body began to swell, and to burst.

Every living being present knew that familiar waveform of shifting energy all too well.

Self-detonation.

This Ginseng Baby had actually begun to self-detonate!

In that instant, the Black Dragon Sovereign, the Tyrant Dragon King, and the Primordial Tree God all froze—then their faces twisted into expressions of stunned disbelief.

The Legends of the seven nations, the various god-beasts, the totem demigods—all were shocked beyond measure, unable to believe the transformation unfolding before their eyes.

Wait.

Why.

Why had this Ginseng Baby chosen to self-detonate?

It was not as if it had been driven into a corner at all.

With the strength it had gained by burning its life force, it still had a chance to escape.

And afterward, it could have replenished its life energy through any number of resources.

So all those bursts of power—everything—was only to make this self-detonation happen?!

[This Qi family—could it be—why—

At that very moment, the one who sensed it most keenly was the Thunder Crown Rubber Divine Tree near the Ginseng Baby.

Watching the Ginseng Baby turn into a sun, its expression was one of utter shock.

It could feel a searing wave rolling in from afar.

The Starry Void Insects closest to the Ginseng Baby stiffened as well, their bodies seizing up purely from the sheer magnitude of the shifting energy waves.

Especially the Starry Void Insect that had swallowed the Ginseng Baby—it felt as if it had swallowed a blazing orb of light.

From within that orb came the Ginseng Baby's domineering voice.

"Eeh!!! (I am the sun!!)"

"Eeh! (Sun and moon in mutual radiance—blow it all up!)"

First, through Plant Domination—a super-tier skill verging on the pinnacle of mastery—it had roused its own potential to the maximum.

Then it had activated the Time-Confluence Fruit to its limit, along with the Life Flame Seed, detonating every last drop of that potential.

And finally, through the Moonburst skill, it ignited everything it was.

The strongest single strike.

With a "boom," the Ginseng Baby plunged like a falling sun, and endless blinding light burst out from inside the body of the Starry Void Insect that had swallowed it.

The Starry Void Insect was engulfed whole in that fierce light and fire; the terrifying surge of energy rocked heaven and earth, blossoming into a spreading, massive explosion that vaporized everything within its radius in an instant.

The entire firmament first went dark, then a thunderous roar created a world belonging to night, altering the whole barrier's sky.

The pitch-black heavens and the bright night moon brought all things to silence.

Then, a dazzling sun rose slowly, intertwining with the bright moon.

Beneath the alternation of sun and moon.

RUMBLE!

The shockwave of the Moon Burst swept out once again.

Endless blinding light spread in all directions, and in that instant the bodies of the nearby Starry Void Insects met with devastating blows.