Shang Bingwa recoiled like a startled rabbit, suddenly jerking backward in panic. "What are you doing?" she demanded in a sharp shout.

Shang Bingjie stared at Ji Changkong coldly, her eyes blazing with fury. She clearly hadn't expected Ji Changkong to be so brazen; he was certainly different from the man she had imagined.

With a slap, Ji Changkong struck Shang Bingjie’s full hip. As he pulled his hand back, a tremor ran through him; he suddenly realized this tangible contact was far more provocative than intimacy between souls.

His fingers instinctively tightened, as if grasping the yielding, rounded flesh of Shang Bingjie’s backside. A strange expression crossed his face as he murmured under his breath, "It really is different."

Shang Bingjie was provoked by his wanton action, glaring fiercely at him. "Ji Changkong, I never realized you were this kind of person!"

With that, Shang Bingjie—her face etched with annoyance—did not press the attack further, vanishing instantly without a trace.

In his soul-sense perception, Ji Changkong realized Shang Bingjie had already departed, heading towards the cluster of pavilions where the venerable Elder Shang resided.

He flexed his fingers, a look of helplessness blooming on Ji Changkong’s face. He shook his head and muttered to himself, "The heart of a woman..."

The blow from Aunt Bing earlier had left a bruise on his chest. Given the strength of Shang Bingjie’s Nine Palaces Heaven Realm cultivation, even an unexpected strike without defense had only managed to leave a dark mark, illustrating the terrifying degree of toughness his physical body had achieved.

Pulling open the lapels of his tunic, he observed the fading bruise, feeling the subtle, strange shifts in the vital energy and Star Essence within him. Suddenly, Ji Changkong realized that even if he didn't actively recover, once injured, the latent power within his body would spontaneously initiate healing.

Soon, the bruise beneath his tunic had vanished completely. The force of Shang Bingjie’s strike, which had surged within him, had already dissipated under the action of his internal power, completely erased without him noticing.

He was restored to his original state. Taking several deep breaths, he allowed his pores to absorb the dense Heaven and Earth Yuan Qi of Misty Island, replenishing the vital energy he had expended.

Suddenly, he frowned. He noticed that the five hundred and sixty-one acupoints—those imbued with both Star Essence and the Tendrils of the Ancestral Demon—seemed to ache faintly.

Startled, Ji Changkong thought, Could something have happened to the Ancestral Demon Tendrils or the Star Essence?

With this thought, Ji Changkong’s expression immediately shifted. Putting aside everything else for the moment, he immediately sat cross-legged within the pavilion, using his spiritual sense to probe the Star Essence and Ancestral Demon Tendrils inside those acupoints.

Ever since the last time on the Five Elements Continent, when he had unleashed the colossal demonic energy within him, creating an uncontrollable hurricane, Ji Changkong had realized he possessed absolutely no restraint over that demonic energy.

If he couldn't even control the demonic energy, controlling the Ancestral Demon Tendrils, which housed the immense power of the Ancestral Demon, would naturally be even more difficult.

According to Pokke, although the Ancestral Demon Tendrils held immense power, they could gradually alter a person’s will. If he could not master the power of these Tendrils, he would instead be controlled by them, becoming a puppet of the Ancestral Demon!

Since returning to the Five Elements Continent, he hadn't had a single moment of leisure to attend to his body, nor the time to cultivate the acupoints containing the Star Essence, nor the leisure to seriously contemplate the power of the Ancestral Demon Tendrils and find a way to control them.

Now, on the Azure Sea Continent, since his spiritual power had not yet fully recovered, and with certain plans still in mind, he wasn't prepared to leave immediately.

Before the gathering tomorrow began, he had at least a full day and night to truly reacquaint himself with his own body.

Plunging his soul into the acupoints holding the Star Essence, he discovered that each acupoint resembled a star shrunk countless times, especially when the Star Essence was present, making the acupoints look even more like miniature celestial bodies.

He possessed five hundred and sixty-one acupoints imbued with Star Essence, yet he hadn't cultivated a single one.

These acupoints containing Star Essence were constantly seeping specks of Starlight into his body. This Starlight fluttered within him, slowly penetrating his viscera, limbs, bones, and even his blood and marrow.

Without deliberate cultivation through the Xuan Ji technique, the Star Essence hidden within these acupoints was already gradually remodeling his body, causing changes in every corner, every joint, and even every cell.

Simultaneously, these Star Essence-laden acupoints were slowly drawing in a portion of his blood essence and vital energy. Every so often, a drop of his essence blood would seep into an acupoint. The blood and vital energy seemed to maintain the normal operation of the Star Essence, a truly wondrous process.

Peering at all this with his spiritual sense, he was greatly astonished. Suddenly, he felt as if his body were an exquisitely precise machine, with the acupoints acting as tiny components, and the bones and flesh forming the machine's framework.

Without needing to issue any commands, his body was functioning methodically, providing an endless stream of power to sustain his spirit, energy, and essence.

The cultivation of five hundred and sixty-one acupoints required the deployment of soul, essence blood, and vital energy—utilizing all the power within him to transform the acupoints imbued with Star Essence, integrating the Star Essence fully into them until they became a part of his body.

When the Star Essence disappeared, becoming like flesh and blood itself within his acupoint, that acupoint would then behave like a star, capable of drawing in the vast power of the heavens and earth continuously.

A cultivated acupoint, after this refinement, could hold the combined power equivalent to four or five cultivators at the Eight Trigrams Heaven Master level!

The power accumulated in ten such acupoints could rival the total internal power of an expert newly entering the Nine Palaces Heaven Realm.

And since a Nine Palaces Heaven Master possessed over seven hundred acupoints, once all these were refined, the power within a peak Nine Palaces Heaven Master would far exceed that of an ordinary one!

Furthermore, after the acupoints were refined, the profundities of various secret arts would also see massive enhancements—an increase that wasn't merely additive, but could be manifold, perhaps tens of times greater!

Ji Changkong dared to clash with Tuo Hun not because of the power stored in his acupoints. He relied on the vast energy within the Tian Yuan Pearl, the power from the blood of the Four Sacred Beasts, the unpredictable mystery of the Divine Artifacts, and a host of arcane Heaven Master secret skills. Only with these supports did he have the audacity to fight a peak Nine Palaces Heaven expert.

Without these dependencies, if he were to truly fight a Nine Palaces Heaven expert based solely on his innate strength, his power would be utterly insufficient.

He understood clearly that the supreme path was to refine all his acupoints and enhance his inherent strength. Unfortunately, time was limited now, making it impossible to calmly refine the acupoints within him.

His primary objective now was to neutralize the threat of the Ancestral Demon Tendrils!

His soul lingered among those acupoints for a while, and he could clearly sense the Tendrils residing there. Yet, if he were to try and utilize their power, he was weighed down by numerous concerns.

After much deliberation, Ji Changkong felt he should at least ascertain whether the Ancestral Demon Tendrils had changed in conjunction with the Star Essence.

However, when he attempted to do so, he discovered that his core soul essence could not enter the acupoints containing the Star Essence at all.

It seemed that until an acupoint was refined, it remained sealed.

This meant he was unable to investigate the activity of the Ancestral Demon Tendrils, relying only on physical sensation to gauge if they had changed relative to the Star Essence.

As he concentrated on this effort, he failed to notice a marvelous transformation occurring in his soul. The Vast Star Sea Chart, having emerged from his soul at some unknown point, enveloped his body like a painting, completely isolating his aura from the outside world.

Concurrently, the other soul nurtured within the Vast Star Sea Chart easily slipped into every acupoint that held the Ancestral Demon Tendrils.

Something unexpected happened.

The alternate soul, bred within the Vast Star Sea Chart, entered every acupoint containing both Star Essence and Ancestral Demon Tendrils without the slightest obstruction.

Inside the acupoint was a boundless, empty expanse, and the Ancestral Demon Tendrils hung like dark clouds over the sky of this world, continuously emitting demonic energy.

In this world of the acupoint, the land was formed purely of Star Essence, glittering brilliantly and radiating starlight, gradually supplying the Starlight energy to Ji Changkong’s body.

This was the wondrous experience bestowed upon Ji Changkong by the alternate soul entering an acupoint.

As a drop of essence blood happened to flow into this acupoint, the strange world instantly transformed into a world of blood. Upon landing, that single drop of blood created an ocean of crimson across the acupoint’s domain. The ocean of blood immediately engaged the Ancestral Demon Tendrils in battle.

Bizarre and dazzling, the Star Essence in this world remained still, while the sea of blood and the Ancestral Demon Tendrils fought fiercely, as if possessing life.

At that moment, Ji Changkong felt intense pain emanating from the acupoint. Clearly, the clash between the blood and the Ancestral Demon Tendrils was directly affecting his subjective perception.

So that is how it is...

Ji Changkong finally understood the crux of the problem.

This was a battle between the Four Sacred Beasts and the Ancestral Demon! However, they had relocated the conflict into his own body, into his own blood. His blood carried the power of the Four Sacred Beasts, while the Ancestral Demon Tendrils were parts of the Ancestral Demon’s body. The Four Sacred Beasts and the Ancestral Demon held irreconcilable enmity, evident from their current state.

Perhaps the Four Sacred Beasts and the Ancestral Demon were not truly participating in this confrontation, but the essence blood and the whiskers within his body carried indelible spiritual imprints of their beings—imprints so deep-rooted they exerted immense influence.

Therefore, when the essence blood and the Ancestral Demon Tendrils met inside the acupoint, they instantly launched into a fierce confrontation, as if dictated by destiny. There was no possibility of peaceful coexistence.

It was for this reason that Ji Changkong felt pain in the acupoint.

His essence blood bore the life imprints of the Four Sacred Beasts, while the Ancestral Demon Tendrils carried the life aura of the Ancestral Demon. Unless the life imprints from these two ancient entities could be erased, the blood and the Tendrils would fight endlessly; there was absolutely no chance for tranquility.

Suddenly, Ji Changkong realized that controlling the Ancestral Demon Tendrils within his body was an exceedingly difficult task, certainly beyond his current capability.

To gain control over the power of the Ancestral Demon Tendrils, he would have to renounce the power of the Four Sacred Beasts embedded in his blood. Only then might the Ancestral Demon Tendrils cease their unrest.

To balance both powers—not to mention his current state—even a peak Nine Palaces Heaven expert might struggle to achieve it.

A massive dilemma lay before him. He could not abandon the power of the Four Sacred Beasts. As for the Ancestral Demon's power, he wanted to discard it, but the Ancestral Demon Tendrils refused to withdraw from the acupoints, leaving him helpless.

If the Ancestral Demon Tendrils had emerged, he could use the Sky Fire that incinerated soul thoughts to destroy them. But since they had retreated into the acupoints, he had tried many methods, yet the Tendrils would not budge, refusing to come out.

If the situation continued as it was, the Ancestral Demon Tendrils inside him would inevitably lead to disaster sooner or later. If the Tendrils and the Four Sacred Beast power began disrupting him internally during combat with others, the trouble would multiply tenfold. He might even be taken advantage of and killed.

A string of thoughts raced through his mind. Recognizing the severity of the situation, he began rapidly contemplating countermeasures.

No, this won't do. That won't work either.

Various notions surfaced in his mind, only to be dismissed one after another. Gradually, Ji Changkong became agitated, unsure of what to do.

In this daze, the restless thoughts in Ji Changkong’s heart slowly began to dominate his consciousness. As restless thoughts arose, negative energies flared up like scattered sparks, and emotions of fury, the craving for slaughter, and intense loathing flooded his soul.

Suddenly, the alternate soul that had entered the acupoints showed eyes filled with tyrannical murderous intent.

At that very moment, the Ancestral Demon Tendrils filling that acupoint rushed violently into this surge of soul energy, becoming tightly entangled with it.

The situation spiraled beyond recovery!

The soul originating from the Vast Star Sea Chart seized dominance over Ji Changkong's main soul. After absorbing the Ancestral Demon Tendrils from that acupoint, this soul proceeded to another.

The now-violent soul, upon entering the next acupoint, acted like a massive magnet, possessing an irresistible absorptive force for the Ancestral Demon Tendrils there, pulling them in at once.

One acupoint after another—this violent soul took complete command, traversing every acupoint that housed the Ancestral Demon Tendrils within Ji Changkong’s body, absorbing the Tendrils from each one.

In a short while, the ethereal body of this soul sprouted fine, dense filaments. The exposed sections of these filaments, hidden within the flesh, manifested as the Ancestral Demon Tendrils themselves!

After absorbing the Tendrils, the soul's aura grew increasingly malevolent. It suddenly flew out of his body and re-entered the Vast Star Sea Chart.

The Vast Star Sea Chart reacted as if a heavy stone had been dropped into it, undergoing a marvelous change. The individual stars began to warp and shift. The alternate, evil soul of Ji Changkong suspended within it felt its violent, murderous thoughts intensifying.

Kill! Kill! Kill everyone on the island!

Thoughts surged from the soul within the Vast Star Sea Chart to Ji Changkong’s main soul, gradually influencing his willpower, seeming to urge him to act immediately, as if demonic nature threatened to overwhelm his very being.

Kill! Kill! Kill!

Only this sound echoed in his mind. The eyes of Ji Changkong’s physical form gradually became shrouded in an abyss of impenetrable dark demonic energy. The Ancestral Demon Tendrils within the second soul seemed to be gaining the upper hand.

All is illusion, the heart is empty, thus it remains untainted by dust...

Suddenly, a segment of scripture emerged from Ji Changkong’s main soul. The long-dormant Grand Void Secret Record, seemingly from some forgotten corner of his soul, manifested. Symbols flew out, dissolving into Ji Changkong’s primary consciousness.

In an instant, Ji Changkong entered a state of selflessness (Wu Wo Zhi Jing). All negative thoughts vanished as his soul achieved stillness.

Simultaneously, the Grand Void Secret Record emitted wisps of pure, magnificent aura, purifying Ji Changkong’s soul. The lingering evil thoughts in his main soul gradually receded until they completely disappeared.

The Grand Void Secret Record then infinitely compressed and settled back into silence in a remote corner of his soul.

Ji Changkong finally regained complete clarity and, in that moment, felt absolute control over the alternate soul within the Vast Star Sea Chart.

With a mere thought, the soul within the Vast Star Sea Chart immediately calmed down.

Unexpectedly, although placid, this soul adopted a nebula-like form, perfectly merging with the Vast Star Sea Chart. Concurrently, wisps of profound insight from the various secret arts he had acquired from the Ouroboros Cult transformed into pure memory, continuously evolving and shifting within that soul.

It was as if that soul was cultivating the myriad profound mysteries of the Ouroboros Cult that Ji Changkong had never even encountered.

Ji Changkong was stunned. He looked up at the alternate soul within the Vast Star Sea Chart, feeling as if he were inside it, experiencing the mastery of Ouroboros Cult techniques. The nebula-shaped spirit, having acquired the Ancestral Demon Tendrils, seemed to have truly harnessed their power.

Return!

He sent out a thought. The soul contracted the Vast Star Sea Chart, making the Chart resemble a void shadow that slowly overlapped his main soul. Then, the Vast Star Sea Chart gradually shrank into a minuscule point perceptible to his soul but whose exact location he could not determine, vanishing into some obscure corner of his soul.

The Vast Star Sea Chart was now like the Grand Void Secret Record—hidden deep within his soul, only manifesting when willed.

(To be continued)