C1550

In the Forgotten Ruins, on the mid-lake island, Yu Yuan squinted his eyes, tapping into the Dragon Slaying Stage's strange power to scrutinize the figure before him—the Stormcrowned Emperor. This legendary overlord had nearly unified the entire continent of Aetherius and, wielding the Shadow Curse, slaughtered millions, nearly becoming a bloodthirsty butcher in his quest for absolute freedom.

Yu Yuan's memory was hazy, but he recalled that the Stormcrowned Emperor had been gravely wounded by a Sword Sect powerhouse, resulting in the destruction of his Solar Spirit. Only his Lunar Spirit had narrowly escaped, transforming into one of the forbidden area's alien souls.

Yet, the Stormcrowned Emperor standing before him was undeniably corporeal, having achieved a state of Great Freedom—defying all logic. The Stormcrowned Emperor was not supposed to exist in this era. Once a Solar Spirit shattered, there was a slim chance of rebirth, but for a human's real body to return from death was virtually impossible.

If the real body could be reconstituted post-destruction, Youyu wouldn't have needed multiple rebirths. Xuanli wouldn't have had to become Cao Yi. Nor would he have needed to first be Hong Qi before being reborn as Yu Yuan. In Yu Yuan's view, only he, due to the miracle of his Solar Spirit in this life, could possibly reconstruct himself after his real body's annihilation.

Aside from him, perhaps the Great Demon God Grec could achieve this feat, but it seemed implausible for anyone else. Puzzled, Yu Yuan took a closer look. He hadn't paid much attention to the Stormcrowned Emperor before, partly due to indifference and partly because the Dragon Slaying Stage's capabilities were not as advanced as they were now.

Upon closer inspection, Yu Yuan noticed that the emperor's body, including his Solar Spirit within the Golden Sanctum's little world, bore signs of being cobbled together. "Emperor..." he called out gently. The Stormcrowned Emperor, sensing the call, grew visibly uneasy and quickly responded, "Just call me Hantian."

Yu Yuan had made no move, yet the aura emanating from him kept Hantian on edge. Facing Yu Yuan once again, the once fearsome butcher couldn't shake the feeling that something was amiss, his demeanor tinged with an unmistakable tension.

"I heard that both your body and the Solar Spirit were destroyed?" Yu Yuan inquired.

"Not entirely, I managed to recover the bones later on," replied the Stormcrowned Emperor with a wry chuckle, then suddenly added, "Do you remember when we first met in the Moonfall Sanctuary? I cobbled together a skeleton from various bones and even made it grow flesh?"

Yu Yuan nodded, acknowledging the memory, "Yes, I remember."

Back then, the Stormcrowned Emperor had constructed a skeletal body and brought it to life with flesh and blood, which exuded an aura of decay. He was preparing to confront the Indigo Wraith.

"In addition to mastering the Shadow Curse, I delved into other sinister and peculiar spells, focusing on the reconstruction of the flesh," he continued.

The Stormcrowned Emperor cleared his throat, pausing briefly before adding, "It's somewhat akin to the secular bird's regenerative ability from beyond our world. Naturally, it lacks the same miraculous regenerative properties." He offered a succinct explanation.

Essentially, after his escape from the Moonfall Sanctuary, with the combined strength of the Boulderdawn and the Skyreach Consortium, he was able to return to the Everlands and locate his former body.

With the assistance of Taishi, Gui Xu, and Tianqi, he regenerated flesh on his skeletal remains and reconstructed the Solar Spirit using a fragment of it. Moreover, during the fusion of the Lunar Spirit with this body, he astonishingly advanced to the Unbound realm.

He had reintegrated with his original body using the Lunar Spirit, propelling him into the Unbound state. However, he recently noticed a diminishing compatibility between his Lunar Spirit and his body, feeling an impending sense of rupture.

The new body he had painstakingly rebuilt was causing him unease, as if it were on the verge of bursting apart. Fearing for his existence, he sought guidance from Taishi.

Taishi then directed him to seek out Yu Yuan, revealing a hopeful path forward.

"I've been told by Taishi that the Shadow Curse I've studied, along with the various mystical spells from the Terror Claws, all trace back to the late God-King..." mused the Stormcrowned Emperor.

"Terror Claws as well?" Yu Yuan asked, puzzled.

"Yes," confirmed the Stormcrowned Emperor. "In ancient times, Youyu from the Bloodbrawlers exchanged profound Spirit Magic with the Terror Claws. If you think about it, the arcane techniques used by the Terror Claws to craft Bane and the methods of the Bloodbrawlers in refining Voodoo Shades share striking similarities."

"Bane! Voodoo Shade!" Yu Yuan was slightly taken aback.

"The Voodoo Shades of the Bloodbrawlers are created from the souls of human cultivators. Once formed, they are completely controlled by their masters. Many Voodoo Shades are actually sentient from the start, but they are enslaved throughout their existence, forced to obey without question."

"Banes, on the other hand, come in various forms. The malevolent souls of humans are suitable, as are Terra Fiends, and as you've demonstrated, Sky Fiends can also be transformed into Banes. However, once a Bane is created, its sentience is entirely erased. It can only begin to recover its intelligence when it reaches the ultimate stage."

"He must have discussed the secrets of Mind Magic with Youyu. He refined the method of creating Voodoo Shades and developed a new technique for forging Banes."

"After the fall of Boulderdawn, this knowledge somehow spread and gave rise to the Terror Claws."

"I've heard that he later focused on the cultivation and refinement of the physical body, delving into the arts related to this pursuit. Thus, the founder of the Terror Claws inherited his philosophy, leading to the development of the Evil Body Refining Technique."

"The demise of the Terror Claws' Sect Master and the fracturing of the cauldron were also due to the five supreme forces slowly recognizing that the Terror Claws was in fact an offshoot of Boulderdawn."

The Stormcrowned Emperor disclosed the backstory.

Yu Yuan couldn't help but chuckle.

It turned out that the arcane techniques of the Terror Claws and the Crucible of Evil he thought he had inherited were actually based on his own principles, possibly even including the Evil Body Refining Technique for tempering the physique that he might have originally conceived.

The Terror Claws was, in essence, a part of him.

It wasn't that he had taken up the mantle of the Terror Claws; rather, the sect had formed in the wake of the spells he had disseminated, tracing his own path.

After a circuitous journey, it seemed the origin was still himself.

Amused by this revelation, Yu Yuan shook his head and continued to examine the Stormcrowned Emperor's physical condition, slowly realizing that his issues stemmed neither from the soul nor from the afflictions of the Shadow Curse.

His skeletal frame, though cloaked in flesh, was utterly devoid of life.

Indeed, he possessed flesh and blood, yet the vital energy coursing through it was negligible, overshadowed by a mix of energies, primarily spiritual energy.

Lacking vital energy, his supposedly regenerated organs, like the heart, were nothing more than ornamental.

Inside his heart lingered a stench of decay, absent any vibrant life force.

Yu Yuan ceased his examination and gently closed his eyes, sinking into silence.

The Stormcrowned Emperor sensed unease, aware that something was amiss, yet he dared not interrupt.

Time stretched on endlessly.

"Your body and what you call the Solar Spirit have, in fact, perished."

Yu Yuan spoke with the stillness of a dormant well, simply stating the facts, "There's no vital energy within you; you lack the life force that should be present in a living being."

"The impression you give me is akin to..."

"Huangyin, who has taken over the body of a human cultivator. And then there's the Sky Fiend of Demon God caliber, who has claimed a body for itself."

"What you refer to as the fusion of your Lunar Spirit with your body and Solar Spirit is merely you, with your potent alien soul, refining your original body."

"You remain within, your soul still dominating the body, but this vessel is now a lifeless husk."

Yu Yuan laid bare the harsh reality.

Fear and despair flickered in the Stormcrowned Emperor's eyes, yet his facial skin, his pulse, and the meridians on his neck showed no sign of his inner turmoil.

A normal person's complexion would blanch, their pulse quicken, their neck meridians bulge prominently.

Not so for him.

The only thing that trembled violently was his soul.

He was akin to an aberrant devil soul, clinging to his deceased body, which he had transformed using the arcane secrets of the Sky Fiend.

With his past nefarious arts, he had regenerated flesh on bone, crafted organs and meridians, even conjured a Solar Spirit...

Yet these were mere facades, devoid of any real function.

Even his perceived integration with the body, his supposed attainment of unity and freedom, was nothing but a delusion.

It was all an illusion.

He had been deceiving himself all along.

Taishi, Tianqi, and Gui Xu, the three God-Kings, had assisted him in regenerating his bones with that sinister technique, transforming him into his current state, yet they seemed to have withheld the truth.

Taishi had summoned him to seek a resolution. Was he to confront the harsh reality, abandon his obsession, and pursue the path of necromancy as taught by Youyu?

Or was he to undergo a complete metamorphosis into a Terra Fiend and advance along the route of the Demon God?

"Haha, I'm no longer human. I've been dead all along. Haha, oh..." The Stormcrowned Emperor alternated between maniacal laughter and what sounded like weeping, teetering on the brink of insanity.

Yet, his eyes were devoid of tears; his emotional turmoil emanated solely from his soul.

For his heart was dead, and the body he believed to be alive was equally lifeless.

Yu Yuan observed him in silence, understanding the difficulty of accepting such a truth, yet recognizing that Hantian was beginning to see himself anew, to understand his current predicament.

This tyrannical emperor needed to relinquish his fixation and adopt a new way of life.

Perhaps...

"There is still a path to rebirth. The Ghost King of the Land of Terror is granted one opportunity for reincarnation. Given your present state, fully transforming into a Ghost King is highly probable. If you wish, I can speak with Youyu to allow you to return in human form."

Yu Yuan pondered whether Taishi's instruction for Hantian to find him was rooted in this consideration.

Knowing that Taishi and Youyu shared no close bond and that Youyu was unlikely to extend any favors, Yu Yuan realized that Hantian's self-deception was nearing its limit. Should Hantian spiral out of control, he would be forced to make the agonizing decision to eliminate him.

Considering Hantian's years of loyalty and the numerous deeds he had performed, perhaps this was the alternative he could offer?

As Yu Yuan mulled over these thoughts, the infant on the Dragon Slaying Stage let out a soft whimper, craving Lee Sha's lifeblood for another feast.

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