Mendi lay on the ground, groaning softly, his hair scorched, his face contorted in pain, clearly badly wounded. Ji Changkong stood beside Adili, staring coldly at Xie, saying little, merely shaking his fist in front of the man to signal he hadn't yet used his full strength.

Indeed, he had not exerted his full power; had he truly intended to kill Adili, the man would never have survived to this moment. The surrounding cultists of the Aoluo Divine Sect displayed a gamut of reactions; some stood with their mouths agape, others dared not look at Ji Changkong and Adili, while a few whispered amongst themselves in the Western Regions dialect.

However, most gazed at Ji Changkong, their faces etched with astonishment. Muluo and Ayiguli snapped out of their daze simultaneously.

Muluo cautiously approached Adili, his gaze flicking towards Ji Changkong, and asked, "Sect Master, are you unharmed?" "Of course I'm fine; he’s the one with the issue," Ji Changkong grinned, sparing Ayiguli a glance, and declared proudly, "Ask him if he still has anything to say." The way Ayiguli looked at Ji Changkong was different from before. She stared at him blankly for a moment, seemingly only then regaining her senses, before quickly bowing her head and speaking rapidly to the gritting-teeth Adili in the Western Regions tongue.

Adili maintained a fierce demeanor, clearly not intimidated by Ji Changkong. He struggled to his feet, pointed at Ji Changkong, and sputtered a string of furious curses.

A touch of venomous disgust overlay Ayiguli’s otherwise lovely features as she frowned and began to negotiate with Adili. Growing impatient, she stepped forward and delivered a sharp kick to Adili’s abdomen.

He doubled over, clutching his stomach, and this time could not rise again. Looking at Ayiguli, Ji Changkong asked, "What did he just say?" "He said your victory only proves your individual strength is adequate, but it doesn't show whether you possess true leadership ability.

As the Sect Master of the Aoluo Divine Sect, beyond sufficient personal power, one needs foresight to manage the bigger picture and strategies for subtle maneuvering. He claims he will only be convinced when you prove each of these aspects," Ayiguli stated, her tone respectful as her opinion of Ji Changkong appeared to have shifted slightly.

"He's truly troublesome!" Ji Changkong showed visible annoyance, glancing sharply at the Aoluo cultists beside him, and called out loudly, "What about the rest of you? Do you share his sentiment?" This time, there was no need for a reminder; Ayiguli volunteered to translate for him.

Those who had stood near Adili now shifted uncomfortably, hesitating. Muluo’s eyes swept over them, cold and venomous like a striking snake, clearly indicating an intent to execute any dissenters immediately.

Whether due to his previous hardline stance or Muluo's overwhelming intimidation factor, after Ayiguli finished translating, every single cultist of the Aoluo Divine Sect lowered their heads in silence. No one dared to step forward as a pioneer of defiance.

Muluo suddenly let out a furious roar, his body exuding a potent, suffocating killing aura that was on the verge of eruption. Following his roar, the expressions of every cultist in the stone chamber turned ashen.

Under Muluo’s chilling gaze, one cultist, merely at the Five Elements Heaven realm, could no longer withstand the pressure and immediately knelt prostrate before Ji Changkong. Wherever Luo’s gaze landed, the next person would kneel in turn.

In a matter of moments, not a single person remained standing in the chamber. All the Aoluo Divine Sect members, whether sincerely or not, were bowed low before Ji Changkong, their heads buried deep into the stone floor.

The chamber fell utterly silent, save for Adili’s low whimpers; he still showed defiance on his face. Ignoring Adili for the moment, at Muluo’s silent signal, Ji Changkong began to attempt to harness the power of the Celestial Origin Orb, slowly shifting his divine consciousness toward it.

A sinister, cold, and malicious aura suddenly erupted from the Orb, instantly resonating with Ji Changkong’s soul. In a flash, the entire spacious chamber filled with this raw power.

Ji Changkong, as the source, trembled slightly, energy continuously spilling outward from his lower abdomen. This power emanating from the Celestial Origin Orb was overwhelmingly malevolent and vast; for a moment, he struggled to contain it.

Centered on him, the energy began to spread outward, suddenly enveloping every single cultist within the stone chamber. Before Ji Changkong could react, the volatile Celestial Origin Orb violently shot out from his lower abdomen.

Once freed from his body, the evil, cold, and venomous power intensified. The faces of the Aoluo cultists turned ghastly as they looked up in terror at the Orb, which they had revered as a sacred artifact.

Ayiguli, standing close to Ji Changkong, suddenly displayed a look of acute pain on her beautiful face and cried out, "Sect Master, the Celestial Origin Orb possesses a power that draws the soul—my soul is becoming uncontrollable!" Muluo, who had been kneeling before Ji Changkong, suddenly sat cross-legged, tightening his own consciousness as if facing a formidable enemy, vigorously resisting the soul-sucking attraction emanating from the Orb. Even Muluo, possessing the strength of the Eight Trigrams Heaven realm, was being affected by the Orb.

The others fared far worse; thin wisps of soul-threads began to drift out from their minds, involuntarily drifting toward the Celestial Origin Orb. These Aoluo cultists looked at Ji Changkong with expressions of pain and terror.

Several guardians who had previously spoken insolently like Adili now frantically banged their heads against the stone floor, begging Ji Changkong for mercy. "I...

I don't know what's happening. I didn't intentionally mean to trouble you," without needing Ayiguli to translate, Ji Changkong understood from their anxious faces and current actions that they believed he was deliberately inflicting harm, so he quickly explained with genuine confusion.

"S-Sect Master, the Celestial Origin Orb truly has a terrifying gravitational pull on the divine soul. You...

you must quickly recall the Orb!" Muluo exclaimed in pain. Even with his Eight Trigrams Heaven realm, he was gradually losing the battle against the Orb’s influence.

At some unknown moment, Li Hentian and Tuobalie appeared outside the stone chamber. Both men stared at the scene inside with evident shock, yet they seemed completely unaffected by the Celestial Origin Orb’s power, appearing perfectly fine.

Adili’s face was stark white. Having been injured by Ji Changkong, his soul was already in a highly unstable state.

When the Orb emerged, he was the first to suffer its effects; wisps of his soul streamed toward the Orb, his breath becoming faint, his body growing weaker and weaker. "Sect Master, try using the Nebula Soul Refining Art to control the Celestial Origin Orb!

See if it works!" Ayiguli trembled, shouting urgently. Ayiguli’s sharp reminder jolted Ji Changkong into realization.

According to what Ayiguli and Muluo had said, the Nebula Soul Refining Art was the key to mastering the Celestial Origin Orb. His mind suddenly clear, he concentrated his consciousness.

Within the nebula-like expanse of his mind, he began to deliberately release a thread of his own soul, directing it into the Celestial Origin Orb. The moment his soul entered the Orb—which was actively drawing in the surrounding soul-threads—the Celestial Origin Orb underwent an immediate, drastic change.