As the black mist before him slowly dissipated, He Yiming felt no surge of joy; instead, a sense of shared sorrow, like a rabbit mourning the death of a fox, settled in his heart. A peak Human Dao expert held an unparalleled position in this world where the Divine Dao had faded.

To everyone, such figures stood at the absolute pinnacle of the mortal realm, almost legendary and seemingly immortal. Yet, before his very eyes, a peak Human Dao expert had just fallen, his mighty will completely scattered into nothingness.

To claim he felt no profound emotion would be unbelievable. With a long sigh, He Yiming began searching Garfield’s body.

He was no longer the naive youth of the past; with a few casual movements, he stripped the dark expert of his finest possessions. Garfield wore a long robe that appeared to be a highly precious treasure.

Sadly, under the puppet’s thunderous strike, the garment offered no defense; the sections covering his arms and thighs were utterly destroyed. The destructive power wielded by those of the Divine Dao was indeed beyond the resistance of anything below the Divine Dao.

Beyond the ruined robe, He Yiming's greatest find was a spatial ring. His prior conjecture had been correct; while spatial artifacts were exceedingly rare, one could still occasionally be found on these Ninth Heaven powerhouses.

Injecting his true essence into the ring, He Yiming immediately saw countless precious items within: rare raw materials and objects of unknown function. The vast majority, however, were distinctly Western specialties, objects that even a seasoned veteran like Jimo Fanshu might not fully recognize, let alone He Yiming, who possessed only rudimentary knowledge.

Yet, nestled among these treasures, two small white orbs immediately drew He Yiming’s interest. Holding the two items, He Yiming instantly confirmed their identity.

The Thunderclap Child (Leizhenzi), a divine artifact originating from the East, had fallen into the hands of a Western powerhouse—a truly lamentable turn of events. Still, securing these two Thunderclap Children brought him immense satisfaction.

He now possessed twelve Thunderclap Children; with these two, his total reached a full fourteen. If Garfield’s claim was true, and the Pope of the Divine Temple held six more, he could assemble a set of twenty.

The complete Divine Artifact, the Thundering Heaven (Pili Tian), required only twenty-four Thunderclap Children. If he could gather twenty… He Yiming’s lips moved slightly; it was an aspiration of immense gravity, one he knew he could never refuse.

“Are you planning to seek out Franklin?” One Hundred and Eight’s voice drifted slowly from behind him. He Yiming started slightly.

One Hundred and Eight rarely concerned himself with matters outside He Yiming’s immediate safety. However, since he asked, He Yiming saw no reason to conceal his intentions.

“Of course, I must go. If only for those six relics, I cannot forgo this opportunity.” Pausing, He Yiming suddenly inquired, “Brother Bai, you mentioned before that you possess the ability to discern if someone is lying.

Did this Guild Master of the Dark Council speak the truth?” “I don’t know,” One Hundred and Eight replied calmly. “I can only verify if a living person is lying.

But towards a corpse, I am powerless.” He Yiming lightly tapped his forehead, a chill creeping into his heart; he had just spent a considerable amount of time conversing with a dead man. He wondered how many people would believe the story if it ever got out.

“Garfield was trying to frame someone,” One Hundred and Eight continued. “He couldn't accept being ambushed by Franklin in the end, so he wanted you to avenge him.” He Yiming let out a wry laugh.

“I know, and Garfield knew I could see through it. That’s why he dangled the Thunderclap Children as bait—because he knew I couldn't refuse such a lure.” He turned, gently stroking the neck of White Horse Thunder, “I also want to see what level of power can be achieved if I manage to gather twenty Thunderclap Children, combined with Thunder’s inherent might.” As he spoke these words, he intentionally glanced toward the stiffly standing Yu Family Ancestor not far behind him.

This formidable Divine Dao puppet stood like a block of wood, more vacant than when One Hundred and Eight had first left the valley. Yet, the sheer power this ‘blockhead’ possessed was incredible, making He Yiming feel inferior by comparison.

He bent down and examined the six Divine Weapons laid out before him. These six weapons were clearly the ones Garfield had materialized before his demise.

Given the Guild Master's abilities, any divine weapon he materialized would be extraordinary. However, among these weapons, the only one that truly caught He Yiming’s eye was the Dark Chain.

It was a long iron rod, entirely black, etched with mysterious runes. The moment He Yiming lifted this replica divine artifact, he clearly sensed a potent power emanating from it.

This seemingly unremarkable weapon carried an intensely aggressive power. Should an ordinary person hold it, they would likely be immediately injured by that force, perhaps even losing their life.

With a curious gaze fixed on the Dark Chain, He Yiming realized this was the first time he had encountered such a domineering divine weapon. He hesitated, surging his internal true essence toward the artifact, intending to channel it within.

But quickly, his brow furrowed. He discovered that the Five Elements True Essence he used could not manipulate this weapon.

It wasn't because another person’s power obstructed the way, but because the weapon itself inherently barred the entry of Five Elements True Essence. He even had the distinct feeling that attempting to forcibly inject his Five Elements True Essence would only result in the Dark Chain exploding and vanishing.

With a slight shift of thought, He Yiming transitioned his internal true essence, transforming it into Dark Qi in an instant. This time, the process was unexpectedly smooth.

His Dark Qi flowed into the chain without resistance, and he effortlessly gained control of the divine weapon. Witnessing this, even He Yiming felt a degree of surprise.

There was no trace of Garfield’s true essence left within the artifact. He sighed softly and waved it a few times; several magical illusions shimmered in the air.

The Dark Chain transformed into a dreamlike, ethereal serpent dancing in the air. What truly astonished He Yiming was that Franklin hadn’t lied: when a Ninth Heaven expert utilizing Dark power wielded the Dark Chain, it indeed unleashed triple its usual strength.

Of course, this level of amplification was negligible to He Yiming, as the Five Elements Ring offered a far more terrifying fivefold increase. Therefore, he paid little heed to the Dark Chain’s boosting capability.

After wielding it for a while, He Yiming frowned. The weapon was undoubtedly good; not only did it boast powerful amplification, but during combat, the Dark Chain also possessed the ability to subtly manipulate sight and hearing, appearing both real and illusory, ethereal and tangible.

Such a capability was immensely formidable in engagements at any level. But regrettably, for He Yiming, both these key features had become somewhat superfluous.

The Five Elements Ring’s power amplification surpassed the Dark Chain’s, and his existing Aurora Sword could achieve complete invisibility. In comparison, the Dark Chain held less appeal for him.

Naturally, He Yiming understood that an item called a replica divine artifact couldn't be so simple. However, his primary cultivation focused on the unity of the Five Elements, not the Western harmonization of Light and Dark.

After a moment of contemplation, He Yiming tossed the weapon toward the Yu Family Ancestor, simultaneously conveying his command via intent. The Yu Family Ancestor reached out and grasped the replica divine artifact.

“Test it,” He Yiming commanded without hesitation. The Yu Family Ancestor flicked his wrist, and a cloud of black mist erupted around him—the manifestation of the Dark Chain being operated at its peak.

However, at that very instant, the surrounding Heaven and Earth force surged inward again, draining the already sparse ambient energy almost entirely clean in a single breath. Then, a sudden explosion roared out, scattering black mist across the sky.

He Yiming’s expression changed drastically, and he quickly ordered it to stop. He regretted his oversight; he should have realized that once this puppet moved, it would unleash the earth-shattering might of the Divine Dao.

Although there wasn’t enough ambient Heaven and Earth energy here for it to expend freely, preventing another unparalleled lightning strike, any exertion on its part would still cause substantial harm based on its inherent qualities. Fortunately, the puppet remained obedient to He Yiming’s commands and instantly ceased all action.

He Yiming stared intently and sucked in a sharp breath. The Dark Chain was now hanging on the puppet's body, but its color had undergone a strange transformation.

Within the deep black, a faint trace of red had appeared, an unnerving sight. He Yiming paused briefly, then understood: the Yu Family Ancestor had subconsciously channeled the power of the Blood Coagulator into it.

Had he been handling an ordinary divine weapon, it would have surely burst from the strain. With a bitter smile, He Yiming eventually recalled the weapon.

The puppet’s power was undeniably immense, but regrettably, even with He Yiming’s wealth of resources, he couldn't equip it with a suitably matched divine weapon. He gathered the remaining divine weapons from the ground.

Though none matched the might of the Five Elements Ring or the Dark Chain, each was far from common. Any ordinary Great Venerable would cherish them as priceless treasures, so He Yiming certainly wouldn't abandon them.