C2280 The Source Spirit Had a Soul

"By whose command?"

Tan Xiaotian's gaze slanted as a wisp of black flame ignited at his fingertips, crackling amidst the chaotic energies of the starry sky. The frigid Soul Energy and the rich Blood Energy began to dissolve in the presence of the black fire.

In no time, a dark domain emanated from Tan Xiaotian, expanding outward.

He was forging his own realm of darkness, preparing for the inevitable confrontation with Reid.

"Allow me to assist you."

High Priest Reid, discerning his intent, sneered with a dark green Devil Soul gleaming in his eyes. "I have a quicker method."

With that, he produced a sphere of darkness from his loose garments, cradling it in his hands.

"Mission accomplished."

Reid spoke with a tone of reverence.

As the sphere of darkness materialized, the laws of the Perish Starfield were violently disrupted, plunging all light into obscurity.

The superior laws of darkness, emanating from the sphere, spread across the galaxy, supplanting the existing cosmic laws and transforming the region into a divine domain of darkness.

Within the sphere cradled by Reid, a faint female silhouette emerged.

As darkness swallowed the galaxy, extinguishing all light, the figure within the sphere of darkness cautiously emerged.

She approached Tan Xiaotian like a wraith of the shadows.

"So it's you!"

Tan Xiaotian could no longer afford any trace of complacency.

The Demon Lord watched the ghostly figure draw near, feeling the oppressive power unfurl, his expression turning to one of bitter resignation.

The moment Reid unveiled the dark sphere and the light of the Starfield was eclipsed, Tan Xiaotian understood the grim fate that awaited him.

This was the source of all darkness in the world, the entity that had crowned him the Supreme of Darkness. He knew it would be a formidable challenge to oppose it.

"I will join you on your journey to the Desolate Realm."

She communicated without words; a mere thought from her was enough to stir ripples within the depths of Tan Xiaotian's soul, making her intentions crystal clear.

As she left the sphere, a mysterious dominion within the darkness seemed to change rulers in the blink of an eye.

She had not yet taken her place within it, yet her presence, her influence, and her thoughts already pervaded the dark kingdom.

The realm of darkness felt tangible, its every law and truth bearing the mark of its origin.

Tan Xiaotian, ever the defiant one, found himself at a loss before this source of darkness.

"I have the power to elevate you to Supreme Darkness, and just as easily, I can obliterate you."

He released his thoughts deliberately and methodically.

Hovering in the darkness above Tan Xiaotian's head, he gazed down at the silent figure below with a sense of satisfaction, ready to make his move.

This time, his intention was to take control and completely wipe out Tan Xiaotian's self-awareness.

Tan Xiaotian was on the brink of death.

His allies had pledged that by uniting the Abyss, the Desolate Realm, and the Origin Realm, and by merging the life essence of the three Origin Bloods into one, they could craft a true flesh-and-blood body for their collective of Origin Spirits.

The Origin Soul, Extreme Flame, and he would each possess their own bodies.

They had evolved beyond their past existence.

Since the Origin Soul had refined the vast Hao Yu, they had acquired complex emotions and desires. After consuming the Origin Soul, they transcended mere spiritual consciousness.

Now, they possessed their own souls!

For the time being, they still required Tan Xiaotian, relying on his body. Once the Origin Soul successfully accessed the life secrets from the fusion of the three Origin Bloods, they would be able to forge their own bodies, independent of Tan Xiaotian.

Then, with their own power and bodies, they could traverse the many realms of the heavens.

"You're different now."

As he watched him descend, Tan Xiaotian experienced a profound realization.

Once merely a spiritual consciousness, he now seemed to embody a soul, strikingly akin to the Outland Devaputra.

He possessed not only spiritual consciousness and dark demonic energy but also harbored the laws of darkness within.

Yet within this spectral form, the laws of darkness were fragmented, far from complete.

"The true me remains within the Creation Continent. This fragment of my soul cannot yet imprint all the laws of darkness. I've only just acquired a soul; it's immature and incapable of carrying the full spectrum of darkness. Nevertheless, this splintered soul is more than sufficient to take possession of you."

"After I possess you, the dark laws branded onto your supreme form will seamlessly fill the gaps in my own essence."

His true features remained obscured, as if he were smirking.

Tan Xiaotian's face contorted with dread upon hearing these words, and he gasped, "Soul?"

"As you grow, transform, and ascend, should we remain stagnant, never improving, merely waiting to be overtaken by you?" He scoffed, choosing to remain silent as he prepared to descend into Tan Xiaotian's consciousness.

Tan Xiaotian felt powerless, unable to wield the dark laws he once knew so well.

It was only before his origin that he found himself utterly helpless, completely overpowered by the laws of the Heavenly Dao.

"Someone is approaching!"

Reid, the High Priest, also shrouded in darkness, suddenly looked alarmed.

He sensed the fabric of the void being torn!

"Who?"

The entity above Tan Xiaotian inquired, then with swift resolve, darted into the crown of the Demon Lord's head.

To prevent further complications, he intended to take over Tan Xiaotian first, then confront any unforeseen events using Tan Xiaotian's exalted vessel.

Whoosh!

A phantom galaxy, resplendent with the light of suns and moons, burst forth in the heavens above the Perish Starfield.

Within the brilliant starry expanse, myriad light sources emerged: meteors, flames, jewels, crystals, and the gleaming radiance of silver artifacts, even the primordial light from the dawn of creation!

Countless intricate light sources cascaded like a deluge, the talismans of deities adrift in the darkness engulfing Tan Xiaotian.

The darkness was shredded like a canvas, and in an instant, it lay in tatters, riddled with innumerable gaps.

The soul that had entered Tan Xiaotian's body watched as the domain of shadows was swiftly cleaved by the light, feeling as exposed as one without clothes.

"Yu Yuan!"

He instantly recognized the newcomer.

"You should not have come here."

Yu Yuan's voice emanated from a luminescent monolith.

The pale stone was none other than the Dragon Slash Platform.

"Had you been in the true Darkness Divine Land across the abyss and taken Tan Xiaotian's supreme body, you might have posed some threat to me," Yu Yuan said with a dismissive chuckle. "But here, your arrival is tantamount to suicide."

Boom! Bang!

A colossal orb of light, as vast as a mountain, burst forth with a blinding radiance, rolling relentlessly through the darkness and shattering all the shadows in its path.

From the depths of Yu Yuan's brow, a towering ten-story Soul Altar emerged, its surface radiating with a brilliance that encompassed every light source across the Three Realms.

A spectacular beam of light erupted from the Soul Altar, targeting Tan Xiaotian's forehead with precision.

The once massive beam of light narrowed dramatically mid-flight, transforming into a slender silver needle just before it reached Tan Xiaotian's forehead.

Whoosh!

A ghostly presence was impaled by the delicate silver needle and was instantly slain.

The remaining fragment, which had sought to seize control of Tan Xiaotian's Law of Darkness, dissolved into his sea of consciousness, paradoxically granting him insight into new dark mysteries.

Unaffected, Tan Xiaotian acknowledged Yu Yuan with a nod and swiftly assimilated the residual Law of Darkness.

With the Darkness Origin Spirit's soul extinguished, the realm of darkness ceased to exist. Yet, Reid, the Outland Devaputra Pontiff, did not immediately depart.

He let out a sigh, offered a respectful bow, and inquired, "Is Lord Beilstein well?"

His concern for the Great Demon God was evident, as he appeared anxious about the deity's welfare.

Yu Yuan, taken aback, questioned, "Lord Reid, you are fully conscious. Why persist in these actions?"

Following the purification of the Origin Soul within the Evil God Temple, all soul bindings were lifted, freeing every mighty being from constraint.

Devaputras, Protoss, and Evil Gods alike were liberated from its corrupting influence, each reclaiming their true selves.

Reid was aware of his identity and his past allegiance to Beilstein.

Yet, unlike Andrea and Yuv Qian, neither Lord Reid nor the other Devaputra elites remained as devoted to Beilstein as before.

Yu Yuan was confounded by this loyalty shift and sought to understand its cause.

"He has ushered in a new era; he is the pillar of our future and our souls."

Reid, neither remorseful nor intimidated, met Yu Yuan's gaze and declared with solemnity, "He has pledged to us that once he unravels the secrets of the Origin Blood, the newly born Devaputras will possess corporeal forms. In that era, we will be counted among the Demons, marching in lockstep with the Protoss."

"Yet, these are things that Lord Beilstein will never be able to grant our race."

The Outland Devaputra have always been an anomaly among living beings, brought into existence by the vast Origin Soul, devoid of flesh and blood, existing solely as Devil Souls.

Their formidable presence, bolstered by Beilstein, had already established them as the supreme rulers of the Origin Realm.

Their strength was unparalleled.

Reid's thinking was straightforward: if beings as formidable as the Devaputra could possess their own flesh and blood, just like the Protoss, the Starry Behemoths, and the denizens of the abyss, they would undoubtedly become the favored children of a new era!

With these thoughts, Yu Yuan ceased his attempts to dissuade him.

The vision that Reid painted was indeed beyond the Great Demon God Beilstein's ability to provide. Should that entity deliver on his promise, it could truly elevate the Devaputra Race to unprecedented heights.

Perhaps the Protoss and the Devaputra could indeed rise as equals, becoming the two mightiest races under his dominion.

"He won't be able to keep his promise."

Yu Yuan, uninterested in further discussion, gestured towards the Desolate Realm, "There, I will integrate the essence of life he covets into my own. Let's see how he plans to possess me."

"Tan Xiaotian, we're leaving."

As the brilliance in the sky dissipated, Yu Yuan retracted the Soul Altar into his brow and beckoned Tan Xiaotian to join him on the Dragon Slash Platform.

"You're not going to execute him?"

Tan Xiaotian alighted gracefully, offering no thanks to Yu Yuan for the rescue, but instead casting a suspicious glance at High Priest Reid, "He was fully conscious when he made his choice. Why spare him?"

Reid remained stoic.

"If I were to act on that, I would likely have to slaughter every Protoss left guarding the Gray Domain," Yu Yuan explained with a sense of resignation. "The outcome of my upcoming battle will determine the destinies of the Protoss, the Evil God, and the Devaputra. There's no need to get caught up in trivial matters."

Upon reflection, Tan Xiaotian seemed to concur.

Duan Yisheng, Jun Chen, Tan Junshan, and Shi Jing'er were all once allies of the Divine Soul Sect, along with Tan Xiaotian.

In addition to these concerns, numerous elders from the Divine Soul Sect, as well as the rising stars of the younger generation, are spread across the Tia Main Planet and the various stars of the Gray Domain. What should be done about them?

"They've changed; it's as if they've gained souls," Tan Xiaotian said with a grave tone. "The advancement and transformation of the Origin Soul are altering the entire collective of Origin Spirits. I'm worried..."

Yu Yuan nodded in agreement, "We'll head to the Desolate Realm first."

The Dragon Slash Platform soared off.

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