Peering into her soul, Meiji was startled to discover faint, aberrant energies within her Sea of Consciousness. That energy was incredibly weak, like a flickering flame, barely visible, threatening to vanish at any moment.

She activated her Ice Profundity, condensing an ice crystal in her palm, instinctively focusing her divine sense upon it.

Within that divine sense, those few wisps of weak energy were contained, and their injection caused the ice crystal to feel as if it might dissolve at any second, lending her an unreal sensation.

Meiji, at the peak of the Immortal realm, had spent years desperately seeking every possible way to comprehend the subtleties of Dark Energy, even attempting rigorous cultivation that nearly resulted in deviation, nearly causing her soul to scatter into nothingness. The path to understanding Dark Energy had been paved with immense torment and suffering.

When the Phantom Race, for the sake of their grand racial plan, insisted on her union with Batuum against her objections, her craving for Dark Energy intensified to a frenzy!

This was why, on Dragon Lizard Star, realizing Shi Yan had merged with a splinter soul of a Primordial Being, she had pursued him with such recklessness and desperation.

The Dark Energy she could not grasp despite enduring countless trials had, through an inexplicable impulse during her intimacy with Shi Yan, surfaced within her Sea of Consciousness. This left Meiji feeling somewhat dazed, as if in a dream, generating an overwhelming sense of unreality.

"How can this be?"

Meiji murmured unconsciously, her Ice Profundity still revolving, the aura of the ice crystal growing terrifyingly cold.

"Vile woman!"

Seeing her stunned, Housayn assumed his chance had arrived and roared, charging forward like a wild beast.

"Boom!"

From the back of Housayn’s head, a ferocious giant ape erupted, standing a hundred meters tall, its form blurred, letting out a heaven-shaking roar capable of shattering the firmament.

This was another secret art of the Ancient Demon Race: materializing the ancestral divine image within their bloodline through their own beast transformation, imbued with immense divine power and arcane might. The giant ape howled, its sound wave impact causing the seawater to explode, surging toward Meiji. Behind the ape, Housayn’s bones swelled, and he too began to resemble a slightly smaller ape-man, beating his chest with rampant savagery.

"Puff!"

The fierce torrent struck, vibrating Meiji’s body, and strange ripples spread out from her twin peaks.

Her bewildered, beautiful eyes instantly regained focus, and a dazzling smile bloomed on her lips. "Ice Burst!"

"Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!"

The block of ice floating behind her suddenly shattered, unleashing thousands of ice shards like keen swords, all slamming into the giant ape.

The giant ape roared to the sky, its hands like towering stone pillars, crashing down toward Meiji’s head.

Meiji giggled charmingly, the ice crystal in her palm slowly floated away, transforming into a point of cold light that suddenly shot toward the giant ape’s chest, vanishing in a flash.

"Crack! Crack! Crack! Crack!"

A grinding sound echoed from deep within the massive body of the ape. In a short span, the giant ape was frozen stiff, as if a glacier were solidifying inside it.

The giant ape and Housayn let out piercing screams together. Housayn’s main body spurted blood, and streaks of crimson also seeped from the corners of his eyes. He staggered backward, and with every step, a blood-sword shot out from his body. His face was filled with terror. "Impossible? Even at your full strength before, you didn't possess such terrifying power!"

Meiji’s smile was alluring as she nodded calmly. "Indeed, even at my previous peak, my power was not as pure and profound as it is now. Poor creature, you are truly unlucky to have encountered me just as I am breaking through. You deserve to die."

"Shred!"

The ape’s divine body exploded, scattering countless ice storms that instantly condensed, transforming back into that tiny ice crystal.

A cold glint flashed in Meiji’s eyes. The ice crystal turned into a streak of bright light, seemingly imbued with sentience, and vanished mysteriously mid-flight.

Housayn’s body convulsed, a look of pale terror surfacing on his face as he stared blankly at his chest.

A bloody hole appeared on his sternum, blood gurgling out. He felt the freezing of his internal organs, the chill reaching his Soul Altar, and his consciousness began to blur.

His body slumped backward powerlessly, shattering stone pillars as he fell, the vitality gradually fading from his face.

Meiji stepped lightly on her jade-like feet, an ice-blue light shield covering her delicate form as she gracefully approached Housayn. "I promised my beloved that I would slay anyone I encountered along the way. You offended me before, so naturally, I must cut you down completely to prevent future trouble."

She glanced at the nearby corpses of the mutilated Sea Clan maidens, sighed lightly, and murmured to herself, "This can also be considered avenging them."

"Whoosh!"

A cold light shot out from Housayn’s mouth, and the ice crystal settled steadily into her palm, gradually melting away.

Just then, a pitch-black hole flew out from Shi Yan’s direction, hovering over the corpses of the Ancient Demon Race clansmen. The Devouring Black Hole operated, drawing strands of soul essence into itself.

Shi Yan remained seated, utterly unmoving, his entire body bare, eyes tightly shut, as if he were completely unconcerned that Meiji might lose.

Soon, the death essence and soul energy of the Ancient Demon Race corpses were entirely absorbed, leaving the bodies withered and stripped of all luster.

Meiji observed this, then skillfully activated her power, carving out several cavities within the stone forest, moving Housayn’s Ancient Demon Race corpses, along with the mangled bodies of the Sea Clan women, and burying them all within the holes.

After concealing all traces of the struggle, Meiji smiled serenely, turning toward a mirror-like stone pillar. She admiringly gazed at the sheen of her facial skin, observing the subtle changes after her intimacy, her mood immensely pleased. She even hummed an ancient tune of the Phantom Race, like a maiden just discovering love.

After a long while, Shi Yan finally opened his eyes. He casually picked up a black robe and draped it over himself, standing up tall. "It is time for us to leave."

Meiji’s graceful figure flickered, immediately squeezing into his starlight barrier, pressing intimately against him, proactively linking her arm with his, like a woman deeply in love. "Do you know, I... I actually have Dark Energy in my Sea of Consciousness?" She was extremely thrilled, speaking slightly incoherently. A stunning beauty radiated from her face, the innocent charm of a young girl perfectly merging with the unique allure of a mature woman, making her charm breathtaking.

Possessing Dark Energy meant she could genuinely advance toward the Domain Ancestor realm—something she had only dreamed of! How could she not be ecstatic?

"You should thank Gan Fu and Batuum," Shi Yan mused for a moment, speaking thoughtfully.

Both Gan Fu and Batuum had insights into the subtleties of Dark Energy. He had devoured both of their Soul Altars entirely, and the main reason the absorption process in the Devouring Black Hole was difficult for him, nearly driving him mad, was the Dark Energy belonging to Gan Fu and Batuum.

Purifying that Dark Energy into power he could absorb and wield was the most arduous step, and the fundamental reason why his energy conversion subsequently stalled, accumulating more and more to the point where the Devouring Profundity stagnated.

During their unrestrained pleasure, his negative emotions were gradually released one by one, piling up inside the sealed stone pillar. When Dark could sense it through the power of Water, those negative emotions found an outlet like a dam bursting, surging out violently, causing Dark’s soul memory to collapse, plunging him suddenly into madness.

With his intellect restored and negative emotions released, as Shi Yan and Meiji both scaled the peak of desire, there was a moment of ethereal trance. During that interval, a portion of that purified, massive power surged into Meiji’s body.

This caused Meiji’s divine power to condense to a new height, tempered her physical meridians, and evolved her life form. Furthermore, a portion of Gan Fu and Batuum’s Dark Energy was injected into Meiji’s Soul Altar in a manner even he didn't fully grasp, causing a few wisps of faint Dark Energy to appear in her Sea of Consciousness.

"The Dark Energy in my Sea of Consciousness came from Gan Fu and Batuum?" Meiji laughed foolishly.

"Yes, you could say the deaths of Gan Fu and Batuum fulfilled you, and also created you," Shi Yan nodded. Then he added, "Of course, a greater portion of the Dark Energy merged into my Sea of Consciousness. You only received two-tenths of their Dark Energy. How you gather Dark Energy in the future, if you continue to cultivate, I can offer you little further advice or help. Because even I am baffled. Perhaps because I haven't stepped into the Domain Ancestor realm, I feel there are immense flaws in my understanding and application of Dark Energy. Only when I break through to the Domain Ancestor realm can I truly comprehend the subtleties of Dark Energy."

"I benefited so much, what about you? How are you?" Meiji asked with a charming smile.

Shi Yan narrowed his eyes, sensing for several seconds, then smiled faintly. "I am only short of comprehending the realm to break through to the Second Heaven of Immortality. My divine body, divine power, and Soul Altar are all at the tipping point of breakthrough. As long as I grasp the true meaning of the Profundity, I can advance to the Second Heaven of Immortality in the next second."

Meiji’s eyes lit up.

There was one thing Shi Yan did not mention...

The mysterious power formed by converting the death essence and soul energy absorbed during this period far exceeded his tolerance threshold. Even after sharing a portion with Meiji, the remaining power was still terrifyingly surging. A significant part of that power flowed into the Primordial Origin Talisman within his sphere of life.

That Primordial Origin Talisman acted like a vast field of life, currently emitting intensely terrifying life fluctuations, like his own source of life, a reservoir of vitality!

He had a feeling that even if he were severely wounded right now, his physical body torn apart, his bones shattered, as long as he activated the ultimate divine ability—Surging Life—and mobilized the vitality within the Primordial Origin Talisman, he could immediately recover completely, his divine body instantly restored to vigorous, unyielding life!

This was immensely advantageous in combat!

Imagine: critically wounded and near death, yet instantly healed, the divine body at peak condition, life surging intensely—how terrifying would that be?

"That Housayn, it seems he was infatuated with you for many years?" Shi Yan suddenly remarked. "You killed him without mercy when you should have. Will you be the same toward me in the future?"

"If you dared to abandon me, I would kill you too! Puchi!" Meiji first threatened with bared teeth and harsh words, then found it amusing and burst into laughter herself. "I’m just unlucky to have fallen into your hands; I probably won't escape this life. If one day you abandon me, perhaps even if I wanted to kill you, I wouldn't be your match anymore."

"As long as you behave," Shi Yan grinned, extending one finger into her bright red lips. "I like obedient women. If you can be an obedient woman, nothing will happen."

"I will be obedient," Meiji purred charmingly, obediently taking the finger into her mouth, her tongue writhing as she sucked it in carefully... Third watch complete. It's been a long time since I was this exhausted. The South has been quite cold recently. Last night, my son kicked off the covers and I caught a cold. I have a fever now and feel dizzy. All day today, my nose has been running constantly; I have two wads of tissue stuffed in my nostrils. I gritted my teeth and churned out three chapters. After finishing this chapter, I’ll take medicine and sleep. I’m getting old; my body really can’t handle it anymore. Ah, the last few hours of double votes, I'm truly worn out. I don't even have the energy for a single-chapter plea for votes. I hope everyone who still has monthly tickets will give them to me during this double period. Xiao Ni is immensely grateful~~ That’s all~~ I beg of you~~ (To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to visit the novel website... to cast recommendation votes and monthly tickets. Your support is my greatest motivation.) RQ