"Hehe, you should feel honored. This is the first time I've used this technique."
Hun Miesheng threw out the five puppets. A flash of light swept over as the puppets merged into the bodies of the five Heavenly Venerates.
Forming seals with his hands, puppet marks appeared on their foreheads. Invisible threads extended from the marks and connected back to Hun Miesheng.
After Hun Miesheng injected the soul memories into the puppets, the marks slowly faded.
Buzz.
The five Venerates simultaneously opened their eyes, a strange glint flickering within—eerily unnatural.
Three thousand Daos, eight hundred heretical paths.
Hun Miesheng shook his head. This technique still had flaws. The controlled ones would suffer a drop in combat power.
A puppet was still a puppet—it couldn't truly replace a soul.
"Go."
Standing midair, Hun Miesheng waved his sleeve. "From now on, you are the Heavenly Venerates of Soul Hall."
"Yes, Hall Master!"
The five bowed in unison and departed in all directions.
"Hall Master, what about these five soul bodies?" Gui Lao asked, glancing at the souls still lying on the ground.
"Lock them in the Soul Prison. Let them burn. They can't die yet."
Hun Miesheng thought for a moment and replied.
These five likely still had soul markers in the Soul Clan. He couldn't risk killing them just yet.
His strength… was still not enough.
Hun Miesheng clenched his fist and turned back into the main hall.
Main God Boundary Stele.
He placed his hand on the stele.
"Ding. You currently have 26,100 Villain Points. Would you like to spend 10,000 points to redeem the special offer item: One Yuan Heavy Water?"
"Yes!"
Excitement surged in his chest as he stared intensely at the thumb-sized black droplet inside the stele.
One of the ten innate divine waters!
"Ding. Warning from system: Item will be delivered in 3 seconds. Please prepare accordingly."
"Warning?"
"3… 2… 1!"
"Item successfully redeemed!"
Buzz!
The thumb-sized droplet pierced through the stele and hovered midair. The moment Hun Miesheng reached out his hand, the droplet began violently trembling!
Invisible shockwaves rippled in all directions.
Dense mist spread and engulfed the surrounding dozens of li.
Crack! Crack!
Hun Miesheng felt his body grow heavy. Tremendous pressure bore down on him.
The ground beneath his feet cracked open, spiderweb patterns racing outward.
Boom!
The earth exploded. Dust flew everywhere.
The sky darkened, wind and cloud roared across dozens of li.
Moisture in the sky surged toward the ground, and within moments, a torrential downpour began!
A heavy, invisible gravitational field blanketed the entire region.
"What's happening?" Soul Hall guards stared in terror, at a loss.
"An enemy attack?" Gui Lao's face changed. He forced his lead-heavy body toward the central main hall.
Inside, the hall was completely enshrouded in dense mist.
"Hall Master!"
Gui Lao was shocked. He reached out to part the fog.
Boom.
His palm struck the mist with a dull thud.
It didn't budge.
One word: heavy!
"Gui Lao, I'm fine," Hun Miesheng's calm voice came from within.
"No one is to approach within ten li!"
"Understood!" Gui Lao immediately complied.
Inside the hall.
"A drop weighs ten thousand jun, holding the power of lakes and oceans. It truly deserves to be one of the ten divine waters."
Hun Miesheng stood surrounded by immense Dou Qi, balancing a small black droplet on his palm.
The droplet floated gently, pulsing with the tides, and pulled the surrounding mist with it. The force from his palm made even Hun Miesheng himself strain to hold it steady.
"But in my hands, you'll behave."
His eyes sharpened.
"Chaotic Devour Technique—Refine!"
Purple energy infused with chaotic aura surged from his dantian and meridians, swirling around him. The powerful devouring force wrapped around the One Yuan Heavy Water.
Boom!
The black droplet exploded, wrapping around Hun Miesheng entirely.
Chaotic energy carefully drew the water into his body, bit by bit.
Its overwhelming weight shredded his skin, bones, and meridians from within.
At the same time, the water attribute energy of heaven and earth was thrown into chaos. Mist churned into a violent storm that wrapped the entire Soul Hall, tearing everything nearby to shreds.
Gui Lao watched anxiously, but could do nothing.
"Seal all news. Any leak will be punished by ten thousand ghost devourings!"
…
Ten days later.
The mist had mostly receded.
The ten-li radius around the main hall had turned into a swamp.
Gui Lao sensed the surrounding energy gradually returning to normal. Judging by the signs, things would stabilize in half a day.
Suddenly, wild laughter echoed through the sky.
Gui Lao's expression changed.
The Hall Master had emerged!
Inside Soul Hall, Hun Miesheng opened his eyes. His upper body bare, he threw on a black robe and stepped into the air outside the hall.
He clenched his fist.
Crack. Crack!
The space around him shattered like glass, the cracks stretching out a thousand zhang!
The strength behind that punch surpassed ten thousand jun!
Five-Star Dou Sheng—Peak!
Refining One Yuan Heavy Water had pushed him straight from early-stage to the peak of Five-Star Dou Sheng!
Hun Miesheng nodded in satisfaction.
"Return."
With a grasp of his hand, the mist within ten li was instantly absorbed into his body.
"Congratulations to the Hall Master on emerging with greatly increased strength!" Gui Lao appeared behind him and knelt on one knee.
"Congratulations to the Hall Master on emerging with greatly increased strength!"
"Congratulations to the Hall Master on emerging with greatly increased strength!"
…
Black-robed figures knelt one after another. Their chants echoed into the heavens.
Hun Miesheng waved them all away. After this phenomenon, their loyalty had increased substantially.
Indeed, true strength was the most convincing force.
"Hall Master, the Gu Clan seems to be suspicious. A few days ago, they sent two Dou Zong into the Northwest Region. We eliminated them quietly."
"Also, it's almost time for the Void Devouring Flame to visit again to consume soul bodies. What should we do?"
Gui Lao frowned, visibly worried.
Hun Miesheng stood with his hands behind his back and chuckled softly.
"No rush. Since the secret's out, lift the lockdown on the Northwest Region and Wu Tan City. But make sure the cleanup is clean."
"Even if they suspect us, they won't be able to locate Soul Hall's base for now. Let the Gu Clan and Soul Clan fight each other."
"As for the Void Devouring Flame..."
Hun Miesheng laughed coldly.
"If it dares to come, I'll make sure it never leaves!"
"And the girl?"
"She hasn't eaten or drunk for three days," Gui Lao replied, shaking his head.
"Trying to die?" Hun Miesheng sneered.
Gu Xun'er was his bargaining chip for the second Tou She Ancient Emperor Jade. She was also necessary to obtain the Golden Emperor Burning Heaven Flame. She couldn't die—at least not yet.
With a step, Hun Miesheng vanished from sight.
In the dark dungeon, Gu Xun'er looked dazed and half-conscious.
Then, a cold voice reached her ears, making her tremble.
It was the voice of the devil.
"I heard… you want to die?"
(End of Chapter)