Aura’s face changed dramatically. The existence of the Requiem’s Second Volume had one primary purpose: to constrain those who cultivated the First Volume. Otherwise, the God-King who cultivated the Second Volume of the Soul Nourishment Canticle would not be the supreme leader of the Purgatory Ghost Clan.

In understanding soul power, Ji Changkong might have been far inferior to Aura, but regarding the destruction of souls, he likely surpassed Aura by a degree. The Soul Nourishment Canticle’s Second Volume, that strange law-force capable of annihilating the souls of all living things, was precisely Aura’s natural nemesis! "I am the Great High Priest of the God Clan, and your ancestor as well. You dare lay such a vicious hand on me?" Aura ground out through clenched teeth.

"Apologies. I never even considered you one of my kin. To me, you are merely an enemy!" Ji Changkong smiled. "When dealing with an enemy, I never show mercy! Furthermore, I certainly don't have an elder who is so cruel to their juniors as you!" With that said, Ji Changkong’s current Divine Soul strand suddenly shot toward a point of light. "You cannot leave!" the Great High Priest shouted. "In the world I constructed, you can no longer do as you please. If I wish to go, I can leave!"

Billions upon billions of fiery lines originating from the sun, which had been entwined around the black hole, suddenly drew taut. Waves of flame power, capable of incinerating all things, suddenly erupted from those suns and surged toward the black hole where the Great High Priest was concealed.

Around the black hole, dazzling fireworks bloomed. Various flames impacted and resisted against it. Before long, a brilliant ray of light pierced out from the center of the black hole. That bright light shot into the heart of the black hole, seemingly punching a small aperture through it.

Thick, incredibly dense streams of soul power suddenly diffused from that small hole, dissolving within the Illusory Void Realm constructed by Ji Changkong. Within this diffusion, the strand of Ji Changkong’s Divine Soul that had previously entered it flew out from that aperture, rejoining Ji Changkong’s main soul. "Great High Priest, you can just stay in there nicely. I have plenty of time to refine you. Once the outer shell of yours cracks, I will use the Soul Nourishment Canticle’s Second Volume to refine your main soul to death!"

Within the Illusory Void Realm, the manifestation of Ji Changkong, appearing like a heavenly god, laughed heartily. The sound pierced through all barriers and descended directly into the center of the black hole.

At the core of the black hole, the suspended orbs upon the giant net began to wither one by one. The vitality contained within them started to weaken, and even the face of the Great High Priest manifested upon the giant net began to gradually blur.

Great High Priest Aura roared within the giant net, spitting venomous curses at Ji Changkong’s treason, repeating them over and over. If words could kill, Aura would have cursed Ji Changkong to death long ago. Unfortunately, Ji Changkong paid him no heed. Within the Illusory Void Realm, Ji Changkong coldly looked down upon the black hole beneath him, his expression utterly frigid.

Thousands upon thousands of peculiar suns encircled the black hole. The power emanating from the suns sprayed into the black hole, causing numerous soul essences to leak out from its exterior layer.

Those soul essences emanating from the black hole dissipated into this Illusory Void Realm, seemingly capable of changing perpetually according to Ji Changkong’s thoughts.

The soul of Ji Changkong appearing in the Illusory Void Realm suddenly shrank into a point of light. That point expanded, slowly transforming into a Star of Life brimming with vibrant energy. Upon that Star of Life, mountains ripped themselves from the earth, rivers appeared out of thin air, and flora and fauna grew rapidly.

As his thoughts shifted, this Star of Life began to resemble the Five Elements Continent more and more, with its geography, mountains, and lakes modeled after the original continent.

The soul essences originating from the black hole, tempered by his divine sense, transformed into streams of peculiar soul force and were injected into the Star of Life. Time flowed rapidly, and everything on this Star of Life underwent miraculous changes. After an unknown period, living creatures began to appear in the rivers.

Those creatures evolved at a visible rate. After creatures died, their remains scattered in the river, paradoxically generating more life. These new lives continued to evolve in the water, developing into all sorts of fish species…

On this Star of Life, time seemed entirely within Ji Changkong’s grasp. As long as his thoughts changed, time could speed by at an incredible pace.

After an unknown duration, a creature from the ocean crawled onto land. After years of evolution, it transformed into humans. More oceanic lifeforms settled on land, turning into various ferocious beasts.

Those humans possessed extremely low intelligence and did not know how to utilize the power existing within the Illusory Void Realm. Conversely, the ferocious beasts, due to their enormous size, became the rulers of this Star of Life.

Like a miniature version of the Five Elements Continent, everything Ji Changkong had known began to unfold upon the life forms within this Illusory Void Realm.

The power of the Five Elements of Heaven and Earth, which Ji Changkong had mastered completely, manifested in the existence of this Star of Life. Stars, a sun, and a moon shimmered in the space surrounding the life-bearing sphere.

Before the intelligence of the humans on this Star of Life had fully awakened, Ji Changkong suddenly felt spiritually exhausted, as if all the mental energy of his soul had been depleted. At that very moment, he realized that the soul energy used to refine the black hole and the realm had entirely dispersed onto the inhabitants of this Star of Life.

The generation of life on this Star of Life seemed intrinsically linked to the soul power that diffused from the black hole. The Great High Priest, who had deeply mastered the Soul Nourishment Canticle’s First Volume, possessed profound understanding of soul energy; it was the soul force originating from him that allowed life to emerge on this Star of Life.

Those suns continued to refine the black hole where the Great High Priest hid, and the black hole continued to leak soul power, though the rate had slowed slightly.

The newly reappearing soul force, under Ji Changkong’s direction, surged into the Star of Life, accelerating the evolution of all creatures upon it. Ji Changkong could allocate this soul power; when he bestowed most of it upon the humans, their evolution accelerated.

However, when he directed this soul power toward the ferocious beasts, they became extraordinarily powerful, forcing the humans to hide everywhere, daring not to venture into areas frequented by the beasts.

After an unknown time, having discovered that all his mental energy was depleted, he transformed into a beam of bright light and flew out of the Illusory Void Realm, his main soul returning to his physical body. Ji Changkong slowly awoke. The first thing he saw upon opening his eyes was a flickering, strange flame. "Master, what is wrong?" Ji Yuan asked.

Ji Changkong’s gaze held a moment of confusion, but hearing Ji Yuan’s question, he seemed to grasp the situation. He smiled and said, "I am fine." The Illusory Void Realm!

Taking a deep breath, he suddenly realized that this world he had constructed long ago possessed an incomparably wondrous power—a power capable of pulling in the Great High Priest’s black hole and possessing the miraculous ability to refine an entire realm. This realization underscored the extraordinary nature of the Illusory Void Realm once more.

The Secret Record of the Illusory Void, this peculiar supreme technique initially hidden in his mind and now a part of his very being, seemed to be far more than just a technique. At a crucial moment, the Secret Record had acted like a spiritual treasure akin to the Tianyuan Bead, mysterious and unfathomable, displaying all sorts of incredible divine abilities.

According to Gu Dan, the Secret Record of the Illusory Void was something he had chanced upon while wandering beyond the heavens. He claimed it was a cultivation method comparable to the Asura Wudian or the Mani Sutra, containing the path to reach the Realm of Ten Directions Heaven.

However, as his understanding of the Secret Record deepened—especially noting the potent nature of its ‘Fusion’ technique within the Ten Directions Heaven Realm, and its transformation during this critical juncture—he gradually realized that the Secret Record absolutely could not be compared to techniques like the Asura Wudian or the Mani Sutra. Perhaps, he thought, it was time to ask his maternal grandfather about the true origins of this Secret Record. "And him?" Ji Yuan inquired.

Smiling faintly, Ji Changkong replied, "Rest assured, he won't be coming out to cause trouble. He likely won't ever appear in the Dead Star Domain again in his lifetime." "You destroyed him?" Ji Yuan gasped in surprise. "He is an existence in the Chaos Realm!"

"I haven't completely destroyed him yet, but I believe it won't be long before he completely loses every life imprint." Ji Changkong knew that totally eradicating Aura would require more time. Once the black hole was refined, he would utilize the Soul Nourishment Canticle’s Second Volume to destroy Aura's soul, melting away the deepest mysteries held within Aura's soul imprint.

Within Aura’s main soul were the methods to control the Tianyuan Bead, as well as the Soul Nourishment Canticle’s First Volume—these were things he absolutely had to obtain. As soon as the black hole vanished and Aura’s main soul was exposed, Ji Changkong would have the legitimate right to acquire everything belonging to Aura.

Within the Illusory Void Realm, he was the sole, undisputed True God. There, he was omnipotent!

That world was born because of him; he was the master of all laws and the profound meaning of power. He could bring any figment of his imagination to fruition. Everything that could not happen in the Dead Star Domain could occur there, provided he willed it.

"That’s for the best. You gave me quite a scare just now," Ji Yuan muttered, then suddenly grew curious. "That fellow's black hole was pulled into a new world—what exactly happened? I felt a very familiar aura within that world, but I couldn't recall where from. It’s quite strange."

"What?!" Ji Changkong's expression changed drastically. "You felt a familiar aura from that world? Is it the aura from 'It'?"

The Source Fire originated from It. If Ji Yuan found the aura familiar, it was highly probable that it was related to It. Since the Tianyuan Bead was so formidable because it was Its eye, could it be that the Illusory Void Realm was also connected to It?

"It’s not Its aura," Ji Yuan immediately denied. "The aura inside was very familiar, but it didn't come from It, definitely not! For some reason, that aura made me extremely uncomfortable. Perhaps once I merge the remaining five types of Source Fire, I’ll understand what’s going on." "Yes, we must gather the remaining Source Fires as soon as possible," Ji Changkong nodded in agreement.