Chapter 788 - 773: Purification or Refinement, Make Your Choice

Shen Lang had originally intended to subdue the countless Resentful Fierce Souls within the Hungry Ghost Dao and build an army of Ghosts.

That was why he had yet to move against them.

However, ninety-nine percent of these Resentful Fierce Souls were the souls of Fierce Beasts. They tore at and devoured one another, making them extremely impure.

Each one was filled with malevolence, formed entirely from chaotic and evil energy, making them fundamentally impossible to control.

Even a being like Aragon, who was close to the Emperor Martial Realm, had been beaten into submission by Shen Lang and forced to surrender his Soul Blood...

But the moment he was influenced by the Evil Qi from the Resentful Fierce Souls within the Death God Nail, the evil energy in his body immediately surged. He transformed into a savage Ghost that had lost all reason, wanting only to tear apart and devour every living thing before him.

If that was the case for Aragon, it went without saying for the far weaker Ghosts.

Shen Lang had considered using the Tai Chi Diagram to perform Purification on them.

But there were simply too many of these Ghosts. The time and energy required for such an undertaking would be immense.

Purification was far more troublesome than simple absorption and devouring.

With the Tribulation Thunder still not fully refined, how could Shen Lang let the World Tree spare the time and power for such a task?

At the thought of Lan Mengling, an unquenchable frustration welled up in Shen Lang’s chest, and he instantly made a decision.

’The simplest thing to do is to directly refine these Ghosts that are so difficult to purify into pure energy!’

Under his control, lightning bolts rained down from within the Tai Chi Diagram, falling in a dense torrent.

Not a single Ghost could escape!

Amidst the wails and shrieks, Aragon and the other three Evil Ghost Kings collapsed limply inside their lightning cages...

Watching these Ghosts being devoured and refined, Aragon and the other three Evil Ghost Kings could practically see their own futures.

’No, what future is there to speak of?’

’It could happen in the very next moment!’

In this space, Shen Lang was the Dominator.

Even a Nascent Soul from a Late Stage Emperor Martial Realm expert was gone in a single gulp!

Aragon and the other three Evil Ghost Kings probably wouldn’t even qualify for that single gulp!

At that moment, Shen Lang’s gaze fell upon Aragon and the three Evil Ghost Kings.

"Have you seen clearly what I am doing?"

The calm yet majestic voice echoed within the Tai Chi Diagram, causing Aragon and the other three Evil Ghost Kings to tremble as a sliver of hope rekindled in their eyes.

In the central cage, one of the Evil Ghost Kings was the first to straighten up. He asked cautiously, "Lord, we have seen everything, but we do not understand... All I understand is that you do not wish to kill us yet, Lord. Perhaps we are still of some use. But we do not know how you will deal with us."

"What is your name?" Shen Lang asked, raising an eyebrow.

The Evil Ghost King replied respectfully, "In reply to the Lord, my name is Solong. I am the longest-existing Evil Ghost King in the Hungry Ghost Dao."

Shen Lang nodded. "Of course, I am keeping you alive because you are useful. But whether you can continue to live depends on you."

Solong, Aragon, and the other Evil Ghost Kings immediately focused their attention, listening intently.

Only then did Shen Lang speak. "I am completely refining those countless Ghosts because they lack high Spiritual Wisdom. They are filled with malevolence, formed entirely from chaotic and evil energy. It is far more straightforward and simple to just refine them into pure Dark Energy."

"But the four of you are different. Your Spiritual Wisdom is fully developed, you have cultivated to the Emperor Martial Realm, and your control over your own power has reached a considerable level..."

"My idea is simple. I want to perform Purification on you, to completely expel the malevolence and evil energy from your souls."

Aragon asked timidly, "Lord, I would like to ask, will this Purification erase our consciousness?"

Solong barked, "Idiot! Since the Lord is telling us these things, he obviously has no intention of erasing our consciousness! Don’t ask such stupid nonsense in front of the Lord!"

Aragon seemed terrified of Solong. Even though he knew Solong couldn’t harm him right now, he still trembled in fear upon hearing his words.

Shen Lang smiled faintly. "This Purification will certainly not erase your consciousness, because I have no desire for mindless puppets to work for me. Not only that, but only when you are completely purified and your souls are pure will you be of any use. Only then will you be qualified to pledge your loyalty to me."

"However, this Purification will not be short, and it will require your full cooperation. You must actively separate the evil energy within your bodies, scour away the amalgam of evil and all the Negative Energy that has fused with your souls, and allow it to be completely refined!"

"You will have to endure the pain of your souls being torn apart, and you will need to give it your all."

"If you fail, the result is simple. You will share the same fate as the Ghosts that are currently disappearing, and the Nascent Souls that have already been refined."

"But if you succeed, you will pledge allegiance to me, and I will provide you with unimaginable resources... For example, these refined Ghosts in the Sea of Chaos will ultimately become the purest Supreme Yin Energy, perfect for you to devour and absorb. For example, the Holy Hall of Soul and Spirit Bodies in the Human Realm... the Strongest Technique of the Thousand Soul Hall!"

"Finally, I will lead you down the path to the peak, to stand at the pinnacle of this Human Realm, and then allow you to ascend to the legendary Spirit Realm!"

Here, Shen Lang paused for a moment before continuing in a deep voice, "Since you have existed in the Hungry Ghost Dao of the Dragon Scale Divine Hall for a long time, you must have had much contact with the experts of the Yumu Cave Blessed Land and know many things about the outside world... In this world, I am unique! I alone reign supreme!"

"Is there a single shred of falsehood in what I’ve told you?"

The voice, filled with supreme confidence, carried an unimaginable majesty in this space, piercing straight into the depths of the Four Great Evil Ghost Kings’ souls.

It made the still-trembling Four Great Evil Ghost Kings feel their very souls shudder!

Seeing the time was right, Shen Lang said coldly, "Purification or Refinement. I will give you a chance to choose now!"

"Choose Purification, and you will cooperate with me with all your might and endure it."

"Choose Refinement, and you will be utterly annihilated right now!"

With that, Shen Lang waved his left hand. "Ghost King, you’ve reached the Peak of Xuanwu Realm and are just one step away from advancing to the King Martial Realm. Go to the Sea of Chaos Divine Body and start devouring those refined Ghosts! Don’t be greedy; know when to stop."

The Ghost King, who had been listening quietly, was overjoyed. "Thank you, Boss! This old ghost understands!"

A black wind swept past, and the Ghost King had already lunged into the lightning-filled Sea of Chaos.

Solong and the other three Evil Ghost Kings watched with wide eyes as the Ghost King pounced and began to feast ravenously. All of them were seething with jealousy.

"Lord, as long as you don’t kill us, as long as you don’t erase our consciousness, even if I must endure the pain of my soul being split in two, I, Solong, am willing to try! I choose Purification!" Solong was the first to declare his stance.

"Aragon chooses Purification!"

"Turando chooses Purification!"

"Sass chooses Purification!"

The other three Evil Ghost Kings roared their answers at almost the same time.

Having witnessed everything within the Tai Chi Diagram, even with the savage and tyrannical aura still within their souls, the four Evil Ghost Kings quickly made their decision.

"Very good. In the future, you will know just how wise your choice today was!"

Shen Lang said nonchalantly, "Rest here quietly for a while. After I deal with the Abyss Lord, I will come and help you with your complete Purification."

After saying this, Shen Lang turned his gaze to the two wisps of the Abyss Lord’s soul, which were tightly bound by the World Tree.

...

「Three days passed in the blink of an eye.」

However, Shen Lang’s gains over these three days were substantial.

Having absorbed the Nascent Souls of more than ten King Martial Realm and two Late Stage Emperor Martial Realm experts, plus the two wisps of the Abyss Lord’s soul, the World Tree had once again grown a small, visible amount!

Now, when dealing with the Tribulation Thunder, the World Tree finally displayed an overwhelmingly dominant posture!

Within the Tai Chi Diagram, snake-like branches coiled tightly around Aragon and the other Great Evil Ghost Kings, burrowing deep into their souls.

It was continuously purifying the Four Great Evil Ghost Kings.

Over thousands of years, the evil energy and various Negative Energies had completely fused with the Evil Ghost Kings’ souls, becoming almost inseparable.

In the outside world, even if a high-ranking monk from the Buddhist Sect were to exert their full power, it would be impossible to accomplish this in anything less than several thousand years.

Matters involving the soul were difficult to a degree that surpassed the imagination of countless experts.

But within the Tai Chi Diagram, with the World Tree taking action and the Four Great Evil Ghost Kings cooperating desperately...

...the process was proceeding in an orderly fashion.

Wisps of Evil Thought were continuously being separated from the souls of the Four Great Evil Ghost Kings.

They were then immediately dispersed and refined by the Tai Chi Diagram!

The blood-curdling screams of the Four Great Evil Ghost Kings echoed ceaselessly within the Tai Chi Diagram. Hearing them terrified the Ghost King so much that he didn’t dare even approach that area.

Shen Lang had not been idle during these past few days either.

After cultivating the "Thunder Control Divine Technique," he had easily condensed a "Thunder Element Mansion."

However, this Thunder Element Mansion was clearly different from others’.

Because of the "Thunder Control Divine Technique," three vortexes of Thunder Power, each no smaller than the Thunder Element Mansion itself, had formed around the square-shaped mansion!

The three Thunder Power vortexes and the Thunder Element Mansion, though independent, were closely connected. The speed at which he could channel Thunder Power was now more than three times faster than before!

Not only that, but when Shen Lang used his Thunder Power, he didn’t draw from just one of the vortexes or the Thunder Element Mansion...

With a single thought, the Thunder Power from the three vortexes would mix with the Thunder Power from the Thunder Element Mansion and erupt outwards, at least twice as strong as using the Thunder Element Mansion’s power alone!

The North Netherworld Extreme Heaven Sect’s "Thunder Control Divine Technique" truly lived up to its reputation as the world’s most powerful Thunder Element Technique!

And besides the Thunder Element Mansion, Shen Lang had also used the power of the World Tree to condense a "Yin Element Mansion" with Netherworld Qi!

This Yin Element Mansion was now like the Vermilion Bird Divine Fire Elements Mansion, resembling a great lake that continuously received the Netherworld Qi refined by the Tai Chi Diagram!

Even though Shen Lang’s Cultivation hadn’t changed much, just by relying on the Netherworld Qi in his "Yin Element Mansion" and the Vermilion Bird Divine Fire in his "Vermilion Bird Divine Fire Elements Mansion," he already had the power to fight an Emperor Martial Realm expert!