After I stopped trying, a rich woman trained me into a demon emperor.

The remnants of Ye Futian's soul suddenly ignited.

A wisp of pure demonic energy surged out from Zhou Ran's sea of ​​consciousness, transforming into a black curtain that completely enveloped him.

Don't look into her eyes!

Walk!"

Ye Futian's roar lost its tone, his voice filled with uncontrollable fear.

He exhausted his remaining strength to erase the karma Zhou Ran had left behind in this place.

Just before that gaze that seemed to freeze time and space locked onto him, Zhou Ran twisted around, gathered all his strength in one place, and slammed himself towards the exit he had come from!

boom!

A muffled thud.

An invisible force slammed out from the back of the painting, and the body crashed into the rocks of the real world.

sizzle.

The spatial rift behind him flashed with a final burst of lightning before closing up without leaving a trace.

"Huff... huff..."

Zhou Ran lay on the ground, his lungs burning.

They greedily inhaled the air in the Valley of Ten Thousand Medicines, which was filled with the smell of mud and blood.

It only took a few breaths to enter the virtual realm, but Zhou Ran felt as if several centuries had passed.

Especially his understanding of 'existence' and 'death'.

And the roar of the Black Jade Qilin, a comprehension of the undying fighting spirit.

Not far away, Bai Xiaosan lay limply on the ground.

The snow-white, translucent caps became limp and dull, losing all their luster.

"Small……

"Little brat..."

Bai Xiaosan hummed weakly.

"If you had come out even half a breath later, we would have been immortalized in the void!"

Zhou Ran ignored it.

His mind sank into the sea of ​​consciousness.

Within the sea of ​​consciousness lay only ruins.

The once arrogant remnant soul of the Demon Emperor is now almost transparent, curled up in a corner.

He looked even more listless than after reciting the "Mahavairocana Buddha Purification Mantra".

"Who is that?"

Zhou Ran's thoughts echoed in his mind.

"Lord of the Void Realm..."

Himezuki…

After a long while, Ye Futian finally managed to squeeze out the name.

"Throughout all the heavens and realms, there is only that one unreasonable madwoman..."

He recalled the past with a mixture of fear and awe in his voice.

"Never mind, when I first met her, my Dao heart was almost shattered by her single glance."

It's not your fault.

"Saving you this time has exhausted my life force; I must recuperate..."

The sound of the night sky grew fainter and fainter, until it was barely a whisper.

"remember……

Never provoke beings at that level!

"The farther away from here, the better!"

"Don't forget our promise..."

The voice faded away.

The black mist representing the night sky completely faded, transforming into a dim, translucent bead that sank into the depths of the sea of ​​consciousness, disappearing without a trace.

Zhou Ran opened her eyes.

He raised his only remaining right hand.

In his palm, the warm Qilin bone emitted a dark luster, and within it lurked an aura like that of an ancient ferocious beast.

He was in a terrible state, having just narrowly escaped death.

But he laughed, the wide grin on his face full of madness.

"So that was the real emperor."

"So this is what the ceiling of this world looks like."

There was not a trace of fear in his smile.

Only the ambition to trample all the heavens underfoot.

Zhou Ran propped himself up and sat up, his gaze falling on the smooth cut on his left arm.

Without a moment's hesitation, he grabbed the Qilin bone and pressed it directly onto the wound!

"stop!!"

With a start, Bai Xiaosan sprang up from the muddy state, using several roots to stumble and rush over.

"Do you want to die?!"

"Do you think this is like sculpting a clay figure, where you can just slap something on?"

Zhou Ran paused, his gaze sweeping over Bai Xiaosan.

"What are you looking at!"

Grandpa Mushroom is saving you!

White Umbrella supported itself on the ground with its roots, while its thickest root pointed at the Qilin Bone, striking a pose like an old scholar.

"This thing is called 'Qilin Bone', but its previous owner was a crazy body cultivator with a temper that was even more foul and stubborn than a rock in a latrine!"

Even after his death, a wisp of his undying fighting spirit remained locked in his bones. If you press it directly against him, that force could turn the rest of your body into a pulp!

Zhou Ran raised an eyebrow.

"Do you know how to use it?"

"nonsense!

"If I don't know how to use it, would I send you in to your death?"

The white umbrella proudly raised its cap.

"Do you think I've been here for nothing for the past thousand years?"

That "Yi" (夷) is here to digest this bone, grinding and gnawing at it every day!

I was right there listening, watching, and feeling!

I've heard those fragments of cultivation techniques and refining incantations left in the bones of those powerful body cultivators so many times they're calloused!

It then pointed to the spot where the crack had disappeared.

"And that awful place you just went into, that's not a proper space, that's the 'other side' of the world, a garbage dump where everything returns to nothingness!"

Everything that goes in will be destroyed; the rules are always reversed.

It was only because the Qilin bone was hard enough that it wasn't completely crushed!

This mushroom spirit is indeed an ancient monster that has lived for thousands of years.

No wonder it could see through the Su sisters' constitution at a glance and even explain the origins of the "Yi".

He's practically a walking encyclopedia of the cultivation world.

Zhou Ran narrowed his eyes as he looked at the creature's hesitant expression, as if waiting for him to ask for its help.

State your conditions.

"Hehe, it's so much easier to talk to smart people."

Bai Xiaosan rubbed its roots and came closer.

"If you want your arm to be reattached perfectly, or even become stronger, you need to use your heart's blood as a catalyst."

Recite the body-refining incantation left by that stubborn old man again, and completely merge your aura with that of these bones.

I can teach you, but you have to promise to look after me from now on! You'll get the best food, drinks, and books—nothing less!

As soon as she finished speaking, Bai Xiaosan recited a long and obscure incantation while shaking her head.

Zhou Ran listened without saying a word.

He simply extended his right index finger and made a shallow cut on his chest.

A drop of blood, crimson with a purplish-gold luster, was forced out.

He smeared the blood directly onto the Qilin bone and began chanting the incantation.

Hey!

You actually believe that?!

So decisively?

Bai Xiaosan was stunned when she saw this stubborn kid.

Logically speaking, shouldn't he continue to play along with me?

Then I'll use some mystery he's never heard of to fool him.

Only after he is completely convinced of the integration will it be easier for me to take action!

Zhou Ran's actions left it completely bewildered.

hum!

When the Qilin bone came into contact with Zhou Ran's blood, the black light surged!

A wild and domineering will awakened from within, drilling into Zhou Ran's body along his shoulder!

"snort!"

Zhou Ran grunted, and demonic energy surged in his right arm, forcefully pushing back the invading will!

He didn't loosen his grip; instead, he tightened his grip on the Qilin bone.

He let that domineering will clash violently with his own demonic energy on his arm, producing a crackling sound as his bones broke.

His arm was covered in cracked, bloody flesh, but his expression revealed a hint of interest.

Just now in the virtual realm, I had already sensed that undying will from the roar of that black jade unicorn.

Although his cultivation was meager, the idea that this will could devour his soul was utter nonsense.

Zhou Ran turned her head and smiled at Bai Xiaosan, who was frozen in place.

That smile made the mushroom cap on Bai Xiaosan's head bristle and stand on end.

"The incantation you gave me is real."

"But haven't you left out the most crucial secret?"

Bai Xiaosan's tiny, bean-sized eyes were filled with terror.

"you……

How did you know...?

"That mental technique is used to neutralize the undying fighting spirit within the Qilin bone."

Without it, any living being would have its soul overwhelmed by this will, reduced to a mere walking corpse.

As Zhou Ran spoke, the powerful demonic energy in his hands continued to wear down the backlash from the Qilin Bone, and his movements showed no signs of strain.

"And you, a plant spirit, have neither human essence nor a physical body to bear this will."

So, you want me to help you refine it.

"Wait until I'm overwhelmed by that fighting spirit and become a puppet without self-awareness, then you can come and reap the rewards."